Perhaps I was too quick to judge. We’re good.
I simply know from listening to WWII vets that those that saw combat didn’t even talk about other aspects of their service. And yes, I understand the difference between service and combat.
I remember one guy that was a airplane mechanic and he would go on and on.
Actually reports of Troops getting spit on was more propaganda than it actually happened. Most of America was for the troops even ones against it. Same thing happened at start of Bush Iraq war. I was a idiot GOP member back then and bought into the lies of how if criticized the war you where anti-military, which was not true and now GOP has proven they are worst idiots who hate Veterans with electing a loser like Trump.
Well, they saw a lot of combat.
I have about as much respect for them as I do John Kerry.
Thank you.
Not really…they did what they did and live with there decision. But what does bother me are draft dodgers and those didn’t step up to serve when they could…who are know war hawks, and always talk about putting “boots on the ground”…Cheney, GWB, Bolton. etc…and others who’s names I won’t mention on here…
GWB rankles me too. He joined the Air National Guard and spent his time state side during Vietnam.
There nothing wrong with that, in itself.
Later he claimed he didn’t get any help getting in the Guard and frequently said “I know war. I’ve been there”.
He did get help and he knows he did. I was trying to get into the same Texas Air National Guard that Bush got into and there was a two year line of people waiting. Bush was accepted the day he applied. Bush also had an arrest record that would have eliminated anyone else.
Yep, that’s my dad. Sergeant for a field artillery unit. Had some photos out for fathers day and snapped a pic.
When my number was pulled I was about to start college. A few days before my Dad who was retired Army and saw action in WWII asked me what my plans were. I said if I got a low number I would hope to get a student deferment. And if that didn’t work I would try to get a conscientious objector deferment. He asked me the what if none of those things worked question. I told him that I would have to leave the country. He then said that if it came down to it he would help me get out. My Dad felt that Vietnam was a unjust war and felt that our government was absolutely stupid to stay in a conflict that (as he said) we had no chance to win. I got a high number and happily went off to college.
I’m not military so I’m not going to judge anyone who refused to go. That was way before my time.
If they issued Levee en Masse today I wouldn’t dodge. Even if I disagreed with the conflict I would go. Solely because of the fact that if I didn’t go some other guy or gal would have to go in my place. I don’t think I could sleep at night with that knowledge.
Would I be terrified? Yes. I think most civilians would be, especially my generation. But I do have a sense of duty. I wouldn’t shirk the responsibility if it came down to it. Because like I said, if I skip out then some other poor guy has to take that number.
Life isn’t always fair. It literally is a lottery at times. I guess that’s just my take on it.
I have served in 3 branches of service. I never had to go into combat though. I was in the reserves during end of the Gulf war and my squadron was scheduled for a rotation to Saudi Arabia. I wanted to go, but we got cancelled a couple weeks before we were to leave. I still would not have been in a high risk area as I was in the Air Force at the time. I think anyone that serves is worthy of honor and I do thank those who went before me, especially into combat. I make a point to thank Vietnam vets, they got a raw deal. Because of this, I personally give those that dodged some leeway, those guys were lied to… What was the noble cause our vets died for there? Certainly not what previous vets died for. I will let the guys that went and fought decide about those that didn’t.
I didn’t go because I thought it was a noble cause. I don’t think any of us thought that. I don’t think anybody thought that Lyndon Johnson was anything but a fraud and a dirt bag.
I went because I was taught it was my duty to obey the law.
Conscientious Objector status was hard to get. You had to be a long term member of a church that didn’t believe in fighting wars- something like Jehovah’s Witness or Quaker.
Muhammad Ali would have gotten one if he hadn’t run his mouth. He went around saying that the only war he would fight in was one authorized by the Honorable Elijah Muhammad.
The government concluded if he would fight in that kind of war, he could fight in Vietnam.
A Conscientious Objector has to be against all wars.
It has always been my belief that LBJ saw the war as a vehicle to funnel money to the defense contractors and one reason was that he wanted the space program to succeed. And the US was going to need those contractors at maximum strength. And as much as Vietnam divided the country, the race to the moon united us against the evil USSR. And as much as he tried to sell the idea that Vietnam was necessary to fight the red evil, it just didn’t sell that well.
And thanks for the clarification of the conscientious objector status. I was a long time member of a church (Methodist). But I never got the opportunity to test the requirement. From your description I now have my doubts.
I agree. I lost a couple of high school buddies. A friend of mine had a brother come back a hard-core alcoholic. And I had a friend come back a drug addict. Over the years I have met a lot of Vietnam Vets and have met only one who jokes about his time there killing people (he became a Cop). Most of the guys who served there have been pretty quite about their time there. Reminds me of my Dad who saw action in WWII and only once told me about his experience and then told me that he would never answer my questions about it again.
Thank you for your service.
Johnson gave military construction work- bases, runways, hospitals and port facilities- in South Vietnam, to Brown and Root Construction Company of Houston. Previously this type of work had been done by the Army Corp of Engineers and the Navy Seabees. The Vietnam War contracts let out to Brown and Root ran into hundreds of millions of dollars. Their work was laden with cost overruns and compensation claims for stolen equipment.
Brown and Root owner, George Brown, was an old crony of LBJ and his political benefactor. He had financed Johnson’s political career beginning in 1937 when Johnson was a young congressman.
My opinion is based off performance like unemployment being the lowest in over 50 years, to bad Trump had to erase Obama’s policies to do it.
I’m aware.
Working for free?..lol. How much has his family business benefited and how much money has his family raked in off of him being President?
Not really. A WWII veteran saw on average about 40 days of combat in 4 years.
A Vietnam veteran saw about 240 days of combat each year.
A good reason why they all came back so broken, they experienced a ton of stress.
