Viet Nam Vets <3

[trimmer]

I did not look at the video, I will not look at it ever. I spent a small fortune pickling my brain in an effort to forget. I can only remember a very few pleasurable times during that period of my life. Most of the time these days if someone asks me about that I find it to be much easier to just tell them a lie. After all that was a very long time ago and I can not bring any of my Marine brothers back.

 

[snakeyes]

trimmer so true its a little late Ive tried to bury the times there ,done gone off line bye

 

[Blackheart]

. Everyone's primary MOS was 11B (Army) no matter what job you were doing.

Army 11B (Bravo) was infantry for the ones that didn't serve.

I was a 16B assigned to a German missile battery with tactical nukes were we controlled the access to the warheads on the German's missiles. That was classic cold war type stuff. The Russians had way more armor than NATO back then, early 70's, so the deterrent was tactical nukes in missiles and artillery to wipe out large swaths of armor if they started heading west. The scary thing for my little team (12 E3 to E5's) was that should war break out, and the missiles from our base fired, we would have been automatically assigned to the German Luftwaffe unit that controlled the base to do with as they saw fit. Everyone of us, other than the officers, had other ideas should that happen. Being we were 15 miles from the Dutch border we were all planning to head there and try to get to England if possible ala Dunkirk. You see if the Russians were within range of our missiles (100 miles), and we are on the western edge of Germany, then they pretty much had Berlin and Hamburg. We really didn't like the Germans that much to stay and fight for them. Thankfully nothing ever happened, maybe having that firepower in place deterred any bad intentions they had.

 

[Moparsmitty]

Everyone gets to decide what a "hero" is in their own mind. To me the phrase "above and beyond the call of duty" says it for me, but that's just me. I answered the call of duty when I joined the military and I certainly don't think of myself or most of the troops I was in with as "heroes". In some ways the military is a representation of the rest of our country. There are good guys and bad guys too. For the most part, the guys I served with were some of the best guys I have ever known. I haven't seen most of them since my discharge or had much contact, but I will never forget them. One thing I do know is that they volunteered to serve thier country for their own reasons and I respect them for that.
My late uncle Doug was a real hero to me. He served in the Pacific during WWII after Pearl Harbor. He was captured by the Japanese and was in the Bataan death march. He was finally liberated and came home but died from health issues caused by his imprisonment. Like many that serve in combat, he didn't want recognition or even to talk about his service. I don't call many people "hero", but my uncle Doug will always be my hero. RIP uncle Doug.

 

[Stumper]

.
Army 11B (Bravo) was infantry for the ones that didn't serve.

Not sure I follow your comment. 11B is (or was 45 years ago) an infantrymen.
At any rate, I can also relate to your experience in Germany. I was in the Signal Corp there in the very early 70s. My company was made up of small 15-25 man units set up on various hill tops all around Germany supplying NATO communications. Each site had their life expectancy measured in seconds in the event of war with Russia. and when that wasn't enough to fret about we had to worry about the Red Army and Bader - Meinhoff attacks.. Remember them? They were the original "terrorists" long before the towel heads got active..
But we digress from the original post.

 

[moweepea]

Wow! Very emotional for me. Thanks for posting it....1st Cav 65-66

 

[NJRR]

I have a friend who was in-country for a year, also a door gunner. About a year and a half ago, he was diagnosed with Lou Gehrigs disease. They say it was from Agent Orange. The VA immediately gave him full disability. He's in a wheel chair now and needs a mask to breathe. He never thought of himself as a hero, just doing what he had to do. Only good thing that will come out of it is that his wife will get his disability for life after he dies. She would trade that for his life if she could. Is he a hero? Sure is!! He served his country, risked his life and will lose it because of that service.

 

[snakeyes]

thanks why don't people thank of our fallen that gave so much or go to a VA hospital and and walk the wards that are filled with so many that will never see a home or be able to some many things that they once could do for them selves ,don't have friends come by to see them or some one to just talk to , a lot don't want your thanks they have been holding most inside of them selves ,how many do you think use to love working ,driving a car or motor cycle or do anything that they once did ,bet a lot would love for the chance to be able to turn back that clock, how many of them do you think would of like to run and avoid the draft ,and for all you fn bastards that ran and hid to avoid going ,and then be given amesty F Y !

 

[kelly]

I remember coming back and getting spit on and called baby killer.....lot different now a days...to the good...

 

[paladin06]

Thank you for your service brother.

I did not look at the video, I will not look at it ever. I spent a small fortune pickling my brain in an effort to forget. I can only remember a very few pleasurable times during that period of my life. Most of the time these days if someone asks me about that I find it to be much easier to just tell them a lie. After all that was a very long time ago and I can not bring any of my Marine brothers back.

 

[trimmer]

I remember coming back and getting spit on and called baby killer.....lot different now a days...to the good...

Those "Baby-Killer" comments along with a bunch of other comments got me into way too many fist fights during my drinking days. As much as I hate to admit it they can still make my old tired blood boil.

I thank you and all the other military personnel that serve this country only to be **** on and shafted when returning home.

To my Marine brothers and sisters, I share and feel your pain. You always make me proud.

 

[snakeyes]

thanks to all but esp. our Korean vets they staring eating the **** before us good bye guys got to go get my leg irons on going to work

 

[Richard Cranium]

I almost bought a Vietnam era ear necklace off of ebay last moth.

 

[Budnicks]

Thank you for your service brother.

X2 thank you trimmer- - - Updated - - -

I remember coming back and getting spit on and called baby killer.....lot different now a days...to the good...

Thank you for your military service... it can never be said enough

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to all you that have served thank you