Memorial Day

[SBS]

We had NO business being in Vietnam !

Like Korea, not a war fought on terms I agreed with, but still a necessary one to check Communist aggression. On today of all days is not the one to demean a war many of us fought in and many died, as it also diminishes the brave efforts and the ultimate sacrifices that were made. I think a considerable majority of veterans would agree with that. I'll take the side of America's military involvement in world affairs against the actions of any other major power with which you might care to compare. No other nation has done so much for the cause of peace and freedom in the world since WWII, even helping our former enemies Japan and Germany. Isolationism as a plausible national policy & strategy ended with the advent of long range air power, atomic weapons and long range missiles. I never doubted for a minute the reasons we were in Vietnam and neither did the men around me. Most were older, some in their 2nd war, a few in their 3rd. All were volunteers who didn't have to be there, having served well beyond a minimum "enlistment". They believed in what they were doing and they were old enough and experienced enough to know the facts of war and geopolitics.

 

[mike a]

Amen Brother. Caribou pilot Phu Cat AB. 68-69

I thought Santa Clause was a Caribou pilot. Sorry just had to. My first static line jump was from a Caribou. Remembering my cousin kia Vietnam.

 

[Old Navy]

I couldn't have said it any better. Thanks

 

[SBS]

Your version of history is not correct. The Vietnamese drove the French out and we did not help the French. As a matter of fact, we were in Laos before Vietnam and there was a great deal of friction between us and the French, not much cooperation. I well remember the fall of Dien Bien Phu, which signaled the end of French occupation. The U.S. helped broker a peace and aided in the partition of Vietnam between the Communist and non-communist camps, much as was done in Korea. The Communists made immediate plans to conquer the South, leaving agents behind (Viet Cong groups) and buried military supplies buried all over S. Vietnam (we found many along with documents) and sought help from Russian and China. Actually it was Ho Chi Minh who asked us to put his forces in power or he would turn to Russia. Corruption in 3rd world countries is commonplace and not a reason to resist communist expansionism. Comparing the subversion of S. Vietnam to our own Revolutionary War is ludicrous. As far as making the North out to be the good guys, the years I was in country, the North/Viet Cong deliberately killed over 25,000 civilians each year; intimidating the populace to not cooperate with the S. Vietnamese gov't. or the U.S. forces. Some villages our forces went in, the VC had killed all the local leaders and their families and put their heads on stakes lining the road to the villages. Bet they didn't tell you that in the liberal books you read. The press made the VC out to be just ordinary S. Vietnamese citizens revolting against their government, while in reality, they were trained agents of the North. In international politics and warfare, nations have interests, not friends, and not many of them are lily white, but we act in our own interests and for our own reasons. While S. Vietnam fell, Russia and China got the message from Korea and Vietnam that we would resist communist expansionism in a serious way. You needed to have been there, not just read about it from obviously biased sources. Over and out, no more history lessons.

 

[PhilC]

Amen Brother. Caribou pilot Phu Cat AB. 68-69

My dad was flight engineer/instructor flight engineer on Caribou at Phu Cat AB 70 - 71 and logged 1216hrs combat time.