Every night for the past week I've sat down at my television and been in communion with America's greatest storyteller, Ken Burns, along with millions of other Americans for what I feel, is his masterpiece—a documentary about The Vietnam War. I may be biased, but only public media allows a canvas, this broad, this deep, this multifaceted. I've wept, I've smiled, I've sat in disbelief.
Although I did not live in the era, the cultural touchstone that is the Vietnam war has pervaded every type of media for the past 50 years. Yet, Ken Burns, in 18 hours has somehow revealed more. He's removed the mask that keeps Vietnam in the past, as a thing never to be repeated.
Without overt force, burns exposes the parallels between our country now, and our country in the tumultuous 1960s, with cultural and racial unrest, bogged down in war deemed impossible to win, and a political chasm so deep and wide that it seemed impossible to heal.
The central conceit of the Vietnam era was "never again,” yet here we are. And no one is more qualified to hold the mirror than ken burns. Not through opinion or punditry but by reminding us of our biggest failures, but also our highest ideals. In a time so politically divisive, can we remember that our country was not created in whole, forever perfect. But our founders called it a pursuit of a more perfect union. May we humbly continue to pursue perfection in good faith of our fellow Americans. Ken Burns the Vietnam war concludes on Sept. 18 but will be available to stream on PBS.org.