Laurels & lances: Respect and attack

Laurel: To paying respect. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., is the most visited of all the locations on the National Mall offering remembrance of a person or a group of people. More than 5 million visitors make the trip there every year.

But that memorial is unique in another way. There is no portable version of the Washington Monument or the Lincoln Memorial. Of all the National Park Service shrines to a moment in time or a sacrifice or a great act, only the Vietnam Veterans Memorial brings its opportunity to quietly reflect or mourn to the people.

The Vietnam Traveling Memorial Wall came to Mt. Pleasant last week.

A three-fifths scale replica, it lists more than 58,000 names of Americans who died during the Vietnam War.

There is something very fitting about a memorial that brings the opportunity for remembrance to the people rather than demanding they make a pilgrimage to pay respect. It is especially so for the fallen of this war — a war largely composed of those drafted to serve, who did their duty and were reviled for it.

“It’s very moving, kind of the feeling you get when you go to the 9/11 memorial,” said Stephanie Soflak of Mt. Pleasant Township, who visited the traveling memorial with her grandson. “It’s just overwhelming.”

The weight of the service and the loss is staggering. The appreciation and respect should be, too.

Lance: To violent attacks. On Friday, two Jewish students at the University of Pittsburgh were attacked outside the Cathedral of Learning in Oakland.

Jarrett Buba, 52, of Oakland was charged with two felony counts of aggravated assault and two misdemeanor counts of simple assault and reckless endangerment. Police said he attacked the students with a glass bottle, leaving one bleeding with cuts to his neck.

An attack like this should not occur for any reason. The question quickly became whether the incident was a hate crime or not. Buba was wearing a keffiyeh, a piece of clothing associated with support for Palestinians. The students were wearing yarmulkes.

On Tuesday, Pitt officials said it was not a hate crime or targeting of a specific group. No motive for the incident was given.

It seems quick for Pitt to make that determination. In fact, that seems more something to be weighed by prosecutors than the university.

Antisemitic acts have cropped up repeatedly over the past year, especially in relation to the Israel-Hamas war. The anniversary of that conflict is just a month away.

Was the incident last week a hate crime? Maybe Pitt is right and it wasn’t. But the school has to remain watchful.