A Man Worthy of Respect Passes

Hugh Thompson Jr. has died from cancer.

Early in the morning of March 16, 1968, Thompson, door-gunner Lawrence Colburn and crew chief Glenn Andreotta came upon U.S. ground troops killing Vietnamese civilians in and around the village of My Lai.

They landed the helicopter in the line of fire between American troops and fleeing Vietnamese civilians and pointed their own guns at the U.S. soldiers to prevent more killings.

Quoting a fictional character here may seem trite but the words that come to mind for me are from Albus Dumbledore from Harry Potter, "It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends." Hugh Thompson obviously was a man of courage.