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November 20, 2006 Vietnam Journal entries: November 22, 1967 (Wednesday) Post assignments: ‘Windy’ W-39 and W-49 (ESP) “Letters from Mom, Dad, and Bob Press (GI buddy from Texas, due to arrive at our base, Bien Hoa). Goodies packages received from Mrs. Press and (old girl friend’s) parents. Thanksgiving card from Mom. 5 new troops starting work tonight. “4 years ago today, JFK was assassinated in Dallas. I was in Advanced Chemistry Lab with Sister Mary James at Notre Dame High School on East 8th Street in Chattanooga (my Senior year) when the news came. “Tan Nguyen (spelling?) overrun by Viet Cong. Artillery strikes outside our perimeter. Put on ESP post to find VC forward artillery controller.” ________________________________________________________________________ November 23, 1967. “OFF DUTY! THANKSGIVING --- but just another day. Had a few beers with buddies Corky Hall (Philadelphia) and Bobby Joe Baca (Oxnard, California). “Received letters from Mom, Dad, and (old girl friend). Wish I was home with them. Lonely. Lonely, Lonely.” ________________________________________________________________________ November 27, 1968 (Wednesday) Post assignment: W-30 “At 2300 hours, tower sentry A-9 spotted 5 ‘other-than-friendly’ individuals north of base about 500 meters out. Choppers (3) were called into area to search, but the ‘visitors’ made their break. “Quiet night. Saigon (South Vietnam government) to enter peace talks. Real negotiations should begin next week. Just hope that they are successful. Had C-Note (my K-9) on sick call at 1600 hours to treat his pads (on feet) due to ‘jungle rot’.” ________________________________________________________________________ November 28, 1968 “OFF! THANKSGIV ING! “At last, after 26 straight nights of duty, I was given the night off. Went to 23 Club with Denny Malacarne, Tony Pekich, Stachowiak (‘Stach’), and B.J. Baca. ________________________________________________________________________ Comments from today: So long ago, but seemingly so near. So hard to believe, yet harder to forget. I’ve been thinking very much of the soldiers in Iraq who are going through a very similar phase of the war. My 2nd Thanksgiving in the ‘nam was also an election year. Though half-a-world away, young (22), and much more naïve than today’s soldiers, I was nevertheless keenly aware that the election of Richard Nixon as President portended a major change in the war strategy. Until then, those I knew at our base in Vietnam still believed that America was trying to win the war. I had voluntarily extended my tour of service during the worst part of the war. Over 500 American GI’s were being killed each week in ‘68. Despite the carnage, I truly believed we were winning. We were winning on the battlefields of Vietnam, though fighting with only limited resources, but we were losing the war at home. We couldn’t see that then. It’s déjà vu, all over again. When President-elect Nixon began talking about ‘Vietnamization’ of the war, he might as well have said, ‘re-deployment.’ It was a code word for cut-and-run withdrawal. It meant we were no longer trying to win the war in which we had then invested 30,000 lives. (The toll would rise by 20,000 more before the final pull-out in 1973). The morale of the GI plummeted from the moment the realization sank in that we were bugging-out, even if over a prolonged period. The Army began to disintegrate. I was thankful that my duty commitment would end in early ’69. My American heart was breaking. Reviewing my journal, I can now see that I was probably close to exhaustion in many ways, not unlike the incredible stress and constant pressure on the men & women in Iraq. I’d not taken any ‘R&R,’ though I was entitled to three (3) of these ‘rest and relaxations’, each a one week, paid-vacation to any of numerous destinations, from Australia to Hawaii. Our small K-9 unit was constantly understaffed, yet tasked with the perimeter defense of the huge military complex at Bien Hoa, 13 miles northeast of Saigon. I felt that I couldn’t leave them understaffed, even if by just one. It was a deep and personal commitment. Yet in a moment, following Nixon’s announcement of his ‘secret plan’ to end the war, I felt my sense of commitment change. From that moment, I was there only to protect my fellow Americans because I knew that the dream of victory, of a ‘V-V’ Day (Victory in Vietnam) might not occur. There would be very difficult and emotional bridges yet to cross before I would leave the following February. Hardest, perhaps, would be the final abandonment of my K-9 companion, C-Note, the beautiful German Shepherd that had protected me during my entire stint of service. He had been by my side through over 30 attacks. C-Note had scrambled for cover with me when over 1,000 rockets and mortars had fallen, and had given me the courage to face other difficult challenges. He guided me each night on the seemingly endless, dusk-to-dawn patrols when we worked alone on the outer perimeter as silent predators, hunting an enemy we hoped wouldn’t find us first. I cried like a baby kneeling beside him in the kennel that last day. I’d watched many of my buddies leave during the three (3) years that spanned my tour (’67-’69). The first departures had some emotional impact, but, after that, a numbing set in. There was satisfaction in knowing that each GI had made it safely away from the war, even though we were left behind to continue the fight. I thought I’d never leave until it was over, and then, after Nixon’s election, I knew it would not end, at least not how I had hoped with all my heart. I’m not angry, but my heart is aching for the boys in Iraq who are heading down the same road. I know that this is a time for thanksgiving. Let’s be thankful for those who served in the past and those who now walk the front lines of freedom. Let us pray that the people of Iraq may also someday be able to express thanks for their service. Let us also remember the long-suffering people of Vietnam, who, ironically, welcomed President Bush to Hanoi this week. Maybe, in the long view, we actually did win the war.
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