By Mary Sanchez, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist

In the language of newspapers, some stories are “briefs.”

Short reports, not considered significant enough to warrant full-length treatment, except they almost always could if a reporter had the time, and the paper the space.

One such short screamed from Saturday’s pages: “Two accused in robbery of homeless veteran.”

I read the account_three paragraphs_and wondered if the hurt veteran was one of the men I see regularly in Mill Creek Park. Men I alternate between holding with suspicion and respect.

The veterans are routine to anyone who walks or runs in Mill Creek, adjacent to the Country Club Plaza.

The Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial is nearby and the men, and sporadically a few women, gather there. They tend to group into clusters of three or four, sitting in the shade, passing the hours. They are part of the landscape.

Occasionally I’ll hear snippets of their conversations. Some talk loudly, with references to which unit they served in, or something about “when I was in….”

Others wear camouflage jackets, even in summer heat. Maybe the jacket reminds them of a time when they had firmer identity, one not as easily discounted by most.

For the most part, they are no concern to me; just a lingering presence that I monitor for the occasional rough newcomer. Sometimes when a younger guy shows up, the lewd behavior begins. One guy liked to stand on the path, open his pants to relieve himself. Others yell remarks at single women.

The older guys, the vets, chastise such antics. They police themselves, keeping their space in the park safe for them and others.

But I wonder if one of the Mill Creek regulars was the victim:

Prosecutors on Friday charged Rolando Aaron and Paul W. Simmons, both 19, of Kansas City, with beating a 54-year-old homeless man with a brick and robbing him at 3:20 a.m….

The victim, a Vietnam veteran, said he fought back and chased them into a pickup, where he struggled with them as the vehicle fled.

Officers later arrested five males. Two were taken to the juvenile jail. Police released the fifth suspect.

The young suspects might be the age the veteran was when he was sent to Vietnam.
If they are convicted, punishment_besides jail_should be spending time with the men in the park.

I’ve listened to their stories, writing articles about homeless veterans and, as a volunteer interviewer for two projects that videotapes the lives of ex-soldiers, compiling and cataloguing their stories for history.

The most compelling, and often conflicted about their service, are the men from Vietnam. They offer a clue to how the nation ended up with so many homeless Vietnam veterans.

Some of their stories are essays in how people slip toward instability, severing or losing contact with family that could make all the difference.

Their service, the disdain many Americans felt for that war, drug and alcohol addiction, lack of sufficient mental health treatment, lack of job skills, their own failings. It’s impossible to decipher the final nudge that slipped them away from society.

But it should be said they are still a part of it.

Most are respectful to others in the park. Cordial even. “Morning,” “evening,” some call out, depending on the time of the day.

Rarely is it the homeless man who leers. Those looks are more likely to come from male patrons of the park who weren’t raised right.

“Watch the tree!” one vet called out Sunday as I ran by. Sure enough, the wind was dipping a branch about ten feet ahead.

I’ll continue to watch for men who seem threatening at the park; it is a necessary part of exercising alone as a woman.

But I realize many of the homeless men did something I’ll never do. They wore a uniform and served in a war with the belief it was helping the nation. For those days of their lives, they will always have my utmost respect.

To reach Mary Sanchez call 816-234-4752 or send email to .