As someone near the President's age who lived through the Vietnam era, I knew 1 "sucker" in my dorm, (Reese Hall) out of all the many, many people that I knew at U.T., who wanted to go to Vietnam. The other 99 of us thought he was nuts. He was in ROTC as a gung ho Army Ranger by the name of Pat Lipford. For all that I know, he may be a decorated veteran, or may have had his cold, lifeless body shipped back home to his momma, like 5 of my high school friends (Butch Mason, Harold Stills, Rae Rippetoe, Steve Torbett, and Donnie Swatzell).
Everybody else pulled every string available to get out of going. There were lawyers on Gay Street who specialized in delaying induction notices, and doctors who write you up as physically unfit. If you weren't alive then, your opinion means sh!t to me.