The Vietnam Story

Deere Dude · Sep 23, 2017

6thgpSF said:
houstonscott I served with men in S.F. that were WW2,Korea and had up to 6 tours in Nam. I volunteered for the Army ,jump school S.F. and Nam. I'm proud of my service but kept it quiet for yrs. I worked 34 yrs at the V.A. and worked w/ professionals that didn't like Nam vets. I made the mistake once in a staff meeting that I served in VN and a shrink called me a baby killer. You can call me a complainer if you want,my SIL just retired, has 5 deployments as 11b. I respect all those that served honorably. If you served in combat whether for a day or 12 tours you have a right to complain more than those that let others do it for them. For the record I served with the 173 ABN in VN and S.F. at Bragg. russ

6thgpSF said:
houstonscott ,I think you are a wannabe poser. Anybody that was KIA ,WIA etc. in ANY WAR will always have my RESPECT !!! You and the other wannabes that WISH SO MUCH TO BE A COMBAT VET. are the problem w/this country.This country made a huge mistake when it did not reinstate the draft after 911. The men and women w/ multiple tours will have the same problems the vet from any other war had, This country used them up and will spit them out the same way as they did the war vet from other wars.I wish you would have served w/me in NAM,I would of put you on point or strapped a prc25 on your back to see what you are really made of. In closing I won't say because it would probably get me kicked me off this forum.enough said....russ

Thank you for your service. I don't see HS being a wannabe poser because he has an opinion on the Vietnam war. We all do to some extent. I do find it interesting as what shrink would call a vet a baby killer especially when they are supposed to be helping folks.

Just curious as to your MOS. For clarification, what were you doing with the 173rd. You went to basic, AIT, Jump school then off to VN with that group and came back and were attached somehow to a SF unit in Fort Bragg to some degree? Just wondering what your job was.

6thgpSF · Sep 23, 2017

served in 6th GP SF FT. BRAGG mos:05B4S,11B4P. 173rd ABN VN ..A group of us from the HERD were attached to a MACV unit and worked w/the ARVN unit in TamQuan in BinDin prov....russ

YardBikeBob · Sep 23, 2017

Some talk of Military Industrial Complex & following the money. So something I have pondered: Do helicopters used as troop carriers to carry our soldiers into dangerous places really represent a sound military strategy? America has certainly never won a war since the advent of Air Cav.

It seems our military strategy since 'Nam is to drop our soldiers in places to get shot at. After a few dozen casualties on our side we abandon the position and regroup the survivors to drop them someplace else. To what purpose?

It would seem to be a strategy to use up as much material as possible within some definition of "reasonable" casualties.

Yet the geographical boundaries of the conflict do not change while the number of enemies created expands greatly.

Bob
Turned 18 the year Nixon cancelled the draft.

bunyip · Sep 23, 2017

RAAF 35 Sqd Caribou's, lots of flak holes to show for it, great aircraft if you could stand the noise and always got you home.

Deere Dude · Sep 23, 2017

houstonscott said:
Today solders do a year tour every other year, Vietnam guys look like complainers compared to today's military situation. Any Vietnam guys have 12 one year tours? I have a healthy respect for today's guys.

A healthy respect as opposed to those who fought in NV? Look at the KIA from both wars. 2500 vs. 58,000. Both are bad but I would rather take my chances with the 2500 group.

QRTRHRS · Sep 24, 2017

kidr said:
During Viet Nam most soldiers were draftees. 2yrs was the obligation. Now we have a volunteer army. You might say they are pro. soldiers. Big difference I think.

I got drafted in 1970 but ended up in Germany. Every other week, Fort Sill was sending most of the graduates to VN but when they got to us it was Germany and Korea. Except for the platoon leaders who's original class had gone to VN. Those guys got VN orders.

Gunny · Sep 24, 2017

Just gotta tell my story:

Just before we finished up our final training they passed around "dream sheets", where you give your three locations that you'd like to posted to. As the senior instructor was handing out the sheets, he told the class that we could put whatever location we wanted, but 90% of the class was going to Viet Nam because of personnel shortages in our MOS.
We were required to submit three locations, couldn't turn in a blank sheet, so I played their game, I entered Viet Nam on all three lines.

This was a class with 15 students, 4 got assigned to Australia (sweetheart location), 1 got Korea, 3 went to Germany, 5 were assigned to stateside jobs. Me and one other guy got Viet Nam.

6thgpSF · Sep 24, 2017

bunyip ,I jumped 119 flying boxcar and the c141 in jump school. At bragg did jumps out of Uh 1 hueys ,C130 s,C123s and again the C141.It wasn't until I came into CamRon bay we boarded a CARIBOU. I'd never seen one and wondered what the heck this thing is.We got airborne and it developed engine problems soon after takeoff and had to land.Then we got on another one. My respect to you. YardBikeBob ,it wasn't about keeping ground,it was body count.One of the many failed strategies...russ

houstonscott · Sep 24, 2017

6thgpSF said:
bunyip ,I jumped 119 flying boxcar and the c141 in jump school. At bragg did jumps out of Uh 1 hueys ,C130 s,C123s and again the C141.It wasn't until I came into CamRon bay we boarded a CARIBOU. I'd never seen one and wondered what the heck this thing is.We got airborne and it developed engine problems soon after takeoff and had to land.Then we got on another one. My respect to you. YardBikeBob ,it wasn't about keeping ground,it was body count.One of the many failed strategies...russ

Remember the guys running the strategies were the greatest generation.

Creamer · Sep 24, 2017

houstonscott said:
Remember the guys running the strategies were the greatest generation.

But they weren't the greatest of the self-named greatest generation.

dmccarty · Sep 24, 2017

YardBikeBob said:
Some talk of Military Industrial Complex & following the money. So something I have pondered: Do helicopters used as troop carriers to carry our soldiers into dangerous places really represent a sound military strategy? America has certainly never won a war since the advent of Air Cav.

It seems our military strategy since 'Nam is to drop our soldiers in places to get shot at. After a few dozen casualties on our side we abandon the position and regroup the survivors to drop them someplace else. To what purpose?

It would seem to be a strategy to use up as much material as possible within some definition of "reasonable" casualties.
...

If the enemy is in the jungle how do you get to them? The enemy certainly watches the very few roads and can easily set up ambushes on any units using said roads. There are trails in the jungles but trails have the same issues as roads. So walk through the jungle? Well that got done but the unit will not move fast and is pretty easily detected. Now you are back to the problem with roads and trails.

With helicopters one can move very fast, much faster than a ground unit moving on foot, and the helicopter unit can travel much greater distances. Helicopters are a big advantage.

Air Cav is just an evolution on paratroopers.

Later,
Dan

aczlan · Sep 24, 2017

dmccarty said:
Air Cav is just an evolution on paratroopers.

A chopper is much better at picking up people than the planes that they jump out of...

Aaron Z

houstonscott · Sep 24, 2017

dmccarty said:
If the enemy is in the jungle how do you get to them? The enemy certainly watches the very few roads and can easily set up ambushes on any units using said roads. There are trails in the jungles but trails have the same issues as roads. So walk through the jungle? Well that got done but the unit will not move fast and is pretty easily detected. Now you are back to the problem with roads and trails. With helicopters one can move very fast, much faster than a ground unit moving on foot, and the helicopter unit can travel much greater distances. Helicopters are a big advantage. Air Cav is just an evolution on paratroopers. Later, Dan

You don't fight there, you bomb generals sitting in there city, and like the end brought them to their knees in eleven days.

hslogger · Sep 24, 2017

Creamer said:
But they weren't the greatest of the self-named greatest generation.

Roger that.

Rock knocker · Sep 24, 2017

houstonscott said:
You don't fight there, you bomb generals sitting in there city, and like the end brought them to their knees in eleven days.

What? Your sentance structure makes no sence.

RichM752 · Sep 24, 2017

Rock knocker said:
What? Your sentance structure makes no sence.

Yes, but your sbelling is incorrect.

Rock knocker · Sep 24, 2017

Point on. But at least you can figure out what I'm getting at. I have no idea what Houston Scott is trying to get at.

tcreeley · Sep 25, 2017

Good article here:
Pilger's article on Burn's Viet Nam docu.
The Killing of History

dmccarty · Sep 30, 2017

Tractor Seabee said:
Check out the link below before wasting time watching the documentary starting tonight; which many consider a communist propaganda story. It is your decision just as I have made mine. I was there; saw the aftermath of the devastation of HUE in the sacking of 1968.

Review Of Ken Burn's Vietnam PBS Series - Maggie's Farm

Ron

When you first posted the link, I read it but did not have time to comment.

One of the things in the link that is interesting/odd is that they mentioned 6,000 people being executed by the communist's at Hue. My memory says there were several mass graves with a total of 15,000 executed civilians. Some buried alive.

The executed people were government officials, government workers, and teachers. What Pol Pot did later in Cambodia, was done at Hue where the educated were killed simply because they were educated.

If the series did not mention what the communists did at Hue on a large scale, and what they did around the country on a smaller scale, it just shows the bias of the documentary.

Later,
Dan