Who is a Nam vet?

[Jennie@ifish]

Just curious how many vets from Nam we have, here.

...and by the way, Thank you for your service! :smile:

Jen

[Jennie@ifish]

Going to add a poll, too!

[Jennie@ifish]

My niece's husband just shipped out for Iraq, again.

He was going to get out and go to school, but then something happened that he couldn't, yet.

He has trouble dividing his life into serving, and not serving. He says that it is so different, that it takes a long time to adjust between the two different lifestyles.

It's very interesting to me. Scary, and sad, and intriguing.

My poor niece. She is worried sick.

He is very good at what he does and is always chosen for the hardest tasks. This time, he was issued a sniper rifle. My sister asked if that meant scarier jobs, and he said, "Yes, but further away!"

He's in the 102nd airborne, I think, and repels (sp?) out of helicopters.

I just wanted to send out my prayers for his safe return.

Jen

[fishinlady97140]

They wouldn't let me go to Nam because I wasn't in the medical field, but I was working in the Pentagon during Nam -- shoot, they wouldn't even let me go to Germany! Rascals -- they asked me where I wanted to be stationed after AIT .... I said Washington (but neglected to specify STATE OF) and immediately got shipped to Ft. Myers to work in the Pentagon -- go figure

[No Wishin Just Fishin]

3 tours Viet Nam, with time in Europe and Central/South America. I feel for all those Kids over there and wish them all well, and a safe journey home. Even if you don't believe we should be there you still have to support the troops.

[Jennie@ifish]

Even if you don't believe we should be there you still have to support the troops.

Amen to that!

You know, it's interesting talking to him. He states that he is quitting, because he is having trouble going teeter totter from normal married life, to his time in uniform.

He has had to shoot people. He said there were times when he shot people on order, that he knew were innocent, but that you just can't argue orders. He lives with that, and it's not easy. He has nightmares, and wakes shaking.

His wife, (my niece) says it is very painful to watch.

I sure feel for those guys and gals and even though I am not an advocate for this war, I have more respect and admiration than you would believe for their service, and the past service of every young man and woman that has ever served and protected.

Jen

[bucketmouth]

Viet Nam vet 1969-1970. 365 days of pure hell. Had no desire to extend my tour over there or return during rest of service time.

100% behind todays boys and girls over in the middle east.

[ICHTHYDEMON]

I wasn't in Vietnam,but my Dad was. He is a Marine and spent two tours over there.

He has a bunch of medals,but has never spoken of them. The only one I recongnize is a Purple Heart.

When I was about 10 I asked if he had ever killed anyone,he told me he'd tell me about his tours when I was older. I've never asked again and won't. I figure he'll tell me when he feels like it.

I feel like his service in Vietnam was a big factor in my Mom divorcing him. He came home and she said he wasn't the same guy (go figure).

I regret never having served my country,I think about it all the time.

[PapaHog]

Jen I was in Viet Nam at Bien Hoa in 1966 and 1967. Not fun.

The service people who are serving now will come back needing our help. I have a nephew Going to Iraq in November and he is a truck driver. Life will be forever changed when he comes home. He is in his 40s and leaves a wife and two daughters at home.

War is hell for all including family at home. Pray for our troops.

papa

[PapaHog]

My avatar is the Viet Nam Service Medal.

I came back change and the time in Viet Nam affected the rest of my life. Not all for the good but I was and am happy to serve in Viet Nam. I was a volunteer in a time when we still thought we were there to protect the American way of life, mothers and apple pie.


I proudly display that medal as I remember my friends that did not come back and them that come back all shot up.

The replica Viet Nam Wall that travels the country will be in Rochester, Washington at the Lucky Eagle Casino next month on Veterans Day weekend.

Life is good. Thank God for our Troops and their service to this great land.

papa

[BCF]

3 tours Viet Nam, with time in Europe and Central/South America. I feel for all those Kids over there and wish them all well, and a safe journey home. Even if you don't believe we should be there you still have to support the troops.

Right On Bruce. I agree 100%. And I do support and pray for all our sons and daughters over there. Being a Dad has changed everything. It could be my kid on the line over there.

Robin

[roadsend]

Tan Son Nhut 1968-1969.

Thanks and best wishes to those who are presently serving our country in this war against terrorism.
I am proud to say that my nephew Sean is presently serving in our airborne forces.

[Kevin M. Kelly]

Army, Can Tho '71 - '72.

Sat behind 3' of concrete and ran my teletype for the year.

Each of us had different experiences depending on what we did and when it was. No matter, it still left it's marks.

[freespool]

1969-1972 United States Navy
Fixed wing light attack
aircraft electrician/flight deck trouble shooter
A-7 Corsairs and A-4 Skyhawks


AE2 salmon hugger

[Fishfeet]

Jen. Just looking at your poll. I was off of Nam but not on the ground. Just in the SE Asian theater Between 1971 & 1975. South China Sea to be exact. Does that count? Ff

[Jennie@ifish]

Of course it counts! :smile:

and thank you, thank you, thank you! :smile:

I dunno why, but having my nieces husband involved in this whole thing makes me appreciate service people all the more.

Real close to home!

[Fishfeet]

NO! Thank you Jen! And all the other supporters of our forces past and present! It really means a lot to all of us knowing we have all that support back home! Even though it didn`t seem that evident back in the Nam era. I nearly got into a confrontation with some wannabe flower children when I made the mistake of wearing my uniform on leave once into the Salem bus depot. :whazzup: I walked away but wasn`t sure they would let me. (sour grapes). We`re all dern proud of your neice`s hubby and understand his delima! (not being able to convert from military to civilian mode is quite a culture shock!). I remember well! Anyway thanx again! Ff

[reeldick]

Yep, 1/1 CAV at Hill 28 south of Da Nang for a year. Not a fun place to spend your vacation.
I'm 100% behind all those kids serving our country today. It's tough duty being away from family and then having to do a nasty job while you are there.
Lets hope they all come home in one piece.

[fishnbus]

I was an Infantryman with the 3/22 Inf,25th Inf Div, '67-'68 Tay Ninh Province, Tet Offensive '68. I was 20 yrs old. I'm very proud of our service men and women, and fortunately so is much of America. When we came back from 'Nam it wasn't pretty and most of us remained in the closet until Hollywood made it popular with a few movies in the '80s.

[bassin]

Two tours, And I volunteer also.
PBR's and then on a LPH in the gulf.
And I know what you mean about the changes that you have for life. And not all for the good.

[Phil Layer]

When we came back from 'Nam it wasn't pretty and most of us remained in the closet until Hollywood made it popular with a few movies in the '80s.

That was truly one of the low points in American history, imho. My heart felt apology for the way you were treated after serving your country. And thanks for your service.

[brshooter]

Thanks to all of you who served in 'Nam or anywhere else.

My oldest brother spent 5+ years in that neck of the woods from 1964-1969. Most of the time in Thailand. He has not talked much about his experience over there. It definately had an effect on him. A different person came home. He is on a full military disability due to PSTD linked to his experiences over there.

Odd thing is, he now lives in a small village in Thailand up on the Khorat Plateau near the Cambodia/Laos border. He has been there for three years now. He loves it there.

[Kentucky Hog Hunter]

As I sit here typing this I can't help but say thanks to all our service personnel, past & present.

I am currently wearing my USS Indianapolis (CA 35 1932 - 1945) "Still at Sea" T-Shirt my good friend gave me this summer.

For those of you who don't know, the USS Indianapolis sunk on July 30, 1945 and is documented as the worst naval sea disaster ever. 880 men lost their lives and 317 survived to tell the story. This has been documented on the history channel as well. There was a dedication of the event this summer in Indianapolis and I continue to pray for all those WW2 survivors as they approach the twilight of their life here on earth. These were truly remarkable men & women just are the Vietnam Vets and the current military men & women serving around the world.

I never served but my dad served in the 101st airbourne during the Korean War era but fortunately for him never had to go there.

I love history & read a truly remarable book called "Lost Victory" several years ago which was a book about the Vietnam War as seen through the eyes of the former Director of the CIA, William Colby. I wanted to try and understand the war better and found this to be a very nice read......

God Bless our Troops & Republic ....

[Abalone]

1968-1972 U.S.S. Ticonderoga CVS-14 yankee station.

EM3 Ships Company E-Division.

Freespool... Sounds like we were Close to each other.

Remember Subic Bay Mate ???????

[Abalone]

The Worst Naval Disaster in US History >Latest Indy News<

At 12:14 a.m. on July 30, 1945, the USS Indianapolis was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine in the Philippine Sea and sank in 12 minutes. Of 1,196 men on board, approximately 300 went down with the ship. The remainder, about 900 men, were left floating in shark-infested waters with no lifeboats and most with no food or water. The ship was never missed, and by the time the survivors were spotted by accident four days later only 316 men were still alive.

My ship passed by the spot where she sank and we did a memorial Stop there. It was a very formal event that we had to dress up for.

[RaiderRon]

Glad someone mentioned the USS Indianapolis. I read a book years ago called "In Harms Way" that details the events of the ship. It is a must read in my opinion. I believe you can still contact some of the surviving crew members by going to the USS Indianapols website.

[Irish Pennant]

I was too young for VN, I have 2 older brothers that was there, one was a Marine (Combat Vet) and one was Air Force (in country, he never said much), I was Navy 75-81. My dad was Navy WW2 (Combat Vet), My step dad was Army in Korea (Combat Vet), My younger brother was Air Force 83-88. My foster dad was a Marine, WW2 and Korea, Combat Vet. My family has served this country during peace time and war. My prayers go to those that are currenty in harms way and may they come home safely and with honor.

My oldest brother that was Air Force became a cop afterwards and was killed on duty.

[Fishfeet]

Hey Abalone! I spent a little time in Subic about 2 yrs after you were there! Wonderful place! Had to be dern careful around the PC though! Them was some BAADDD boys!! Midnight curfew was VERY strickly enforced! I remember the rock & roll bands in some of those places were so good at mimicking the real bands that you could hardly tell the difference! And the "mojo" wasn`t too bad either! Ff (USS Dixie-AD14 1974)

[freespool]

Remember Subic Bay Mate ???????

My last tour was 5 months on beach det. which was Cubi Point.
My buddy and I rented a two bedroom apartment in Olongapo City.
We flew back and forth to Viet Nam fixing aircraft that could not return to the carrier. The rest of our time was spent doing hourly inspection on aircraft. There was not enough room on the ship, so they did them at Cubi Pt.





salmon hugger

[IDFishrite]

My dad was 173rd Airborne and was injured at Dak to on Hill 875 in November 1967.He never spoke of his time there.From the research I have done about that hill,I understand why it was never spoken of.They actually had a TLC one-hour film covering the fight for that hill.I have nothing but respect for all veterans and those who serve today.

[Norski]

1969 USS Joseph Strauss, 1970 Doc Trang, 1971 & 1/2 Hawaii, 1972 out, and was ask to re up, and back to V-N said He** NO.
I think the service is good for any young man, but I would not send my son off now, seeing whats going on in the east.

Yes Subic Bay was fun, lots of pictures I have of the place, you show up as a boy and come home wiser.

[jocose]

i served in the navy from 74 to 78. the first two on the uss hancock cva 19 out of alameda, we were involved in the evacuation of phnom penn cambodia and a couple weeks later saigon. this was in 75 when the communists over ran vietnam and cambodia. my ship evacuated 3000 vietnamese to the phillipeans. in the movie deer hunter, there is a scene showing a reporter on a carrier (the hancock) talking about the evacuation while in the back ground they were pushing a vietnamese airforce helicopter over the side to make room for more incoming evacuees. the footage is real the reporter was not...the last two years were spent on the guided missle cruiser chicago cg11 out of north island.. i was lucky to be born in 1954, the draft ended the year i was eligable. it was a scary time growing up.. fearing your 18th birthday is not a good thing.. etr2 fetters..

[PapaHog]

Having seen combat I would hope that my grandson (now 11)will not have to go to war but I fear that this present war will still be going on when he is 18.

I see no end and pray for them that are there and the ones that have come back.

My medical care is at the VA Hospital in Portland and in recent months I have noticed there are many many younger faces there getting care. Young people in wheel chairs and some with combat looking face injuries.

War is in never a healthy experience for the warrior.

papa

[Joe Schwab]

I spent 8 years in USAF from 1962-1969. Was sent to Nam twice and rerouted both times to Okinawa. I was in a combat engineering unit that eventualy ended up in Pleiku(sp) but without a group of us that were stuck on Oki. At the time I felt lucky but after meeting some of the finest people I have ever known who did go over there I still feel I missed something very important. I have the highest respect for anyone who has served and still get uptight about people who say they would never "send" their sons to war. It is as if parents force their sons to enlist. Nothing could be further from the truth. My parents had nothing to say about my decision to enlist. If either of my sons had chosen to serve I would have been nothing but proud. I'm still proud of them but the point is we don't make decisions like that for our children. If they are old enough to serve they are old enough to sign. End of story. Thank God there were, and still are, those who served.

[sturgophile]

Thanks for that question Jennie. I served there, and am proud I did so because I believed, like most, that our country needed us there.

I am very proud of the young men and women who've answered the call to duty when their country needed them, in years past and now. To those who are, or who have loved ones, in harm's way today or in the future, please know our nation's heartfelt prayers and gratitude are with you.

[fishloader]

PROUD OF IT