Nov. 6. 50 Years Ago Got My All Expense Vacation To Vietnam For A Year.

[TheMastersNemesis]

Hard to believe that I survived that mess to live a largely enjoyable and successful life and now have been retired nearly 20. My how time flies.

Vietnam now seems like an unwanted adventure that few people have. Yet Burns documentary reminds me how bad it really was at the time. It was a year where Bravo 1-5 of the 1st Cavalry Division lost 27 KIA. The Cav itself lost 5440 KIA during its time of service in Vietnam. Our battalion lost its colonel in Operation Pegasus receiving Khe Sahn. I lost a Captain severely wounded destined to die in the states months later. Used to have go to Battalion headquarters periodically to review out KIA casualty book if we had one. It grew all to large daily, weekly. Circumstances of some soldiers demise were unmentionable. All I know is it really seems like it was all a waste now. We really accomplished nothing.

The passage of time has blurred it all. Thankfully I was a company clerk at the time. However that position did not spare me the bad times and bad news coming from the field on an too often basis.

I personally have never felt ashamed to have served. I was drafted and my response is I went to Vietnam anyway even though I did not volunteer. I was volunteered. It is too bad so many vets have felt guilt for being forced to fight a war they did not volunteer for. They did what they had to do live an help their buddies to survive. Not shooting back was never an option under such circumstance.

So now we celebrate another veterans day.

[cilla4progress]

1. Bless you

Glad you survived

[GP6971]

2. I served during Vietnam

but never deployed there. I was a ROTC "Nazi" 69 - 71 and it wasn't fun and went on active duty shortly after graduating.

The traveling Vietnam Wall came to our little community in June and I was talking to one of the organizers / sponsors and mentioned I served during VM and he asked me if I had received my "pin". I had no idea what he was talking about and he explained that anyone that served during that time received a pin stating they were a VM veteran. I tried to decline but they would have no part of it. So there was a little ceremony thanking for my service and pinning the pin on my collar.

I'll never wear it...it's an insult to those that served in country. I consider it a well intention gesture, but totally off the mark and over compensating for how we treated those that served, died and were wounded in country.

[roamer65]

3. Glad you made it home alive, Masters.

Sadly, many did not from a war in which we should not have been involved.

[Beringia]

4. Glad you made it back

Thank you for your service.

[Wwcd]

5. Three of my classmates were in the Mekong Delta

A handshake & hug to you my friend, to say thanks & proud to meet you.

Peace 🍃