homepark
Resist
wrs:
I volunteered. Enlisted for 3 years active. I was 17 and naive, what can I say? Anyway, while folks were protesting the Cambodian 'incursion', I think it was called, our NVA/VC activity dropped to nil. I get back to the States, find Kerry and Fonda and all the war protestors. I was only called a baby-killer once that I recall.
I went right to college after coming home. It was a very hostile environment for Nam Vets. We tended to keep to ourselves. We did not have much in common with kids whose worst worry was how to keep their grade point average up.
And, yes, the government that sent us there, promptly abandoned us. A good friend of mine said that she opposed the war (Afghan/IraqII) because of the effects that it had on us. That I could identify with and respect.
The efforts of Kerry and Fonda did much to malign Vets and in particular Nam Vets. They chose to ignore the horrible atrocities the NVA/VC were doing to our wounded and dead. I have brothers who were there 1964-6 time frame who witnessed it all. By the time of Kerry's 4 month stint, it was very old news and well known by the troops as it was passed on to each new person.
These atrocities included booby trapping the American dead and NVA/VC wounded. Dismembering and disfiguring our dead (to the tune of field dressing them). My one buddy found his cousin in such a state when he was doing fire-fight cleanup. He was one of the 'clean-up' crew for the Ia Drang valley fight. He lost two medics while trying to treat NVA/VC wounded (they were booby trapped). He picked up the pieces of the war dead trying to put enough in a body bag to console the families. By the way, MIA is a way of saying that we never found enough remains to identify.
Jane Fonda actually informed the North Vietnamese guards in Hanoi that the prisoners were trying to send messages out through her (she gave the guards the written messages). Those POW's had more hell to pay for that. Now that was torture. It was more than parading around naked with a leash on your neck. Some were hung by their arms behind there backs so long, it took years for them to be somewhat functional.
Hanoi Hannah (Trinh Thi Ngo) had a field day with the anti-war movement. Although the Paris Peace Accord was signed in 1972, a number of writings are showing how the anti-war movement gave them strength to carry on and string it out for 3 more years. Rather than shorten the war, one could make the argument that the anti-war movement prolonged it.
So, here we are today. We have Michael Moore, darling of the left. He does an antiwar propaganda piece. He routinely bashes America and the President both here and overseas. He prefers to think that he is helping to end the war. It is simply not true that this has no effects on troop morale. It certainly stirs up some feelings. He is quoted in the Islamic world which have remained largely silent about the jihadists atrocities, yet feel compelled to be vindicated by Moore and his antics. In Michael Moore we see the quintissential spin doctor. He's oblivious to the harm he does.
When you are in combat, the only rule is to survive. It is said that there are no atheists in fox holes (I can attest to that). It is also true that there are no politics there either. When you are in the military, you have no choice but to follow orders, especially in a combat area. When you see and hear of this type of propaganda crap slamming your leaders and country and it is coming out of your own country, it is exceedingly demoralizing.
Making a propaganda movie is easy to do from the director's chair. Trying to keep your focus on survival when your countrymen are beating you down and helping your enemy, that is heroic.
Michael Moore has a right to do the type of films he does. That right is not universal nor is it free. The men and women in harms way are paying the price for him now. He dishonors them.
My country right or wrong? No, of course not. Lets debate the policies, the wisdom of going to war, etc. The mud slinging, stereotyping, name calling is counterproductive. War is horrible. Lets talk it out.
I volunteered. Enlisted for 3 years active. I was 17 and naive, what can I say? Anyway, while folks were protesting the Cambodian 'incursion', I think it was called, our NVA/VC activity dropped to nil. I get back to the States, find Kerry and Fonda and all the war protestors. I was only called a baby-killer once that I recall.
I went right to college after coming home. It was a very hostile environment for Nam Vets. We tended to keep to ourselves. We did not have much in common with kids whose worst worry was how to keep their grade point average up.
And, yes, the government that sent us there, promptly abandoned us. A good friend of mine said that she opposed the war (Afghan/IraqII) because of the effects that it had on us. That I could identify with and respect.
The efforts of Kerry and Fonda did much to malign Vets and in particular Nam Vets. They chose to ignore the horrible atrocities the NVA/VC were doing to our wounded and dead. I have brothers who were there 1964-6 time frame who witnessed it all. By the time of Kerry's 4 month stint, it was very old news and well known by the troops as it was passed on to each new person.
These atrocities included booby trapping the American dead and NVA/VC wounded. Dismembering and disfiguring our dead (to the tune of field dressing them). My one buddy found his cousin in such a state when he was doing fire-fight cleanup. He was one of the 'clean-up' crew for the Ia Drang valley fight. He lost two medics while trying to treat NVA/VC wounded (they were booby trapped). He picked up the pieces of the war dead trying to put enough in a body bag to console the families. By the way, MIA is a way of saying that we never found enough remains to identify.
Jane Fonda actually informed the North Vietnamese guards in Hanoi that the prisoners were trying to send messages out through her (she gave the guards the written messages). Those POW's had more hell to pay for that. Now that was torture. It was more than parading around naked with a leash on your neck. Some were hung by their arms behind there backs so long, it took years for them to be somewhat functional.
Hanoi Hannah (Trinh Thi Ngo) had a field day with the anti-war movement. Although the Paris Peace Accord was signed in 1972, a number of writings are showing how the anti-war movement gave them strength to carry on and string it out for 3 more years. Rather than shorten the war, one could make the argument that the anti-war movement prolonged it.
So, here we are today. We have Michael Moore, darling of the left. He does an antiwar propaganda piece. He routinely bashes America and the President both here and overseas. He prefers to think that he is helping to end the war. It is simply not true that this has no effects on troop morale. It certainly stirs up some feelings. He is quoted in the Islamic world which have remained largely silent about the jihadists atrocities, yet feel compelled to be vindicated by Moore and his antics. In Michael Moore we see the quintissential spin doctor. He's oblivious to the harm he does.
When you are in combat, the only rule is to survive. It is said that there are no atheists in fox holes (I can attest to that). It is also true that there are no politics there either. When you are in the military, you have no choice but to follow orders, especially in a combat area. When you see and hear of this type of propaganda crap slamming your leaders and country and it is coming out of your own country, it is exceedingly demoralizing.
Making a propaganda movie is easy to do from the director's chair. Trying to keep your focus on survival when your countrymen are beating you down and helping your enemy, that is heroic.
Michael Moore has a right to do the type of films he does. That right is not universal nor is it free. The men and women in harms way are paying the price for him now. He dishonors them.
My country right or wrong? No, of course not. Lets debate the policies, the wisdom of going to war, etc. The mud slinging, stereotyping, name calling is counterproductive. War is horrible. Lets talk it out.
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