I have watched many interviews with Vietnam vets and this is really the first time that I have heard someone speak so candidly about things they experienced there. Very good interview I am proud of you sir for not sugar coating your answers and telling the truth about how things were there!
He’s not saying anything I haven’t heard before in regards to his analysis of what was wrong and right about the war and to whom all blame should be accrued. I usually keep my mouth shut when veterans try to talk politics; most of them obviously lean one way or another, but I’m not interested in this guy’s politics. I want to know what happened to him in Vietnam. I’ve read at many books on the Vietnam war and this guy’s politics have a lotta holes in them. He doesn’t say a thing some other good old boy or another has to say. I want to know how he felt, and what he experienced when he was a 21 year old lance corporal.
A good man whom I thank for his service and for his oral history of his many interesting experiences. Not all pilots know what they're talking about anymore than privates do, so it would be better to get informed about what was really happening in a war by gathering information from competitive sources that go through a process of scrutinizing documents from many directions. A few pilots on holiday drinking Jack Daniels is no substitute for a pack of obsessed military historians trained to painstakingly dig and analyze facts. They talk to everybody but their analysis is tied to facts and years of study.
Vietnam vet here. I had it easy as I worked on a large base for a General. I only fired one clip through my rifle the whole time there. I was exposed to Agent Orange though and suffer many health problems. May God bless you sir and those other combat vets. May you find peace.
Hey RJ, always good to see a fellow Trooper who managed to get out in one piece. My time in the Herd was when our Base Camp was in Bien Hoa. We were two Battalions back then. I was struck by your comment on the torture of villagers. In 65 and 66 we saw it numerous times. Usually done to village elders who would not turn over the young men for service to "the cause". We went into one village where no one would even look at us. Four of the village elders were strung up by their thumbs, bellies cut open. Already dead. We knew something was off and moved on through the village and moved out. We hooked up with our sister platoon and went back. Found all of them out of their holes and opened up. It was a good day for us and the villagers. I have a daughter who lives outside of Baltimore and she took me down to see Monuments in D.C. It was good to see all that stuff. We got to the wall and I lasted less than a minute and I had to leave. Fifteen of my friends are enshrined on it and it was just too much.. Nice our Govt. let that lady get it built. I was near Benning once and stopped to find the memorial. It's really nice. All the guys we left behind are listed on plaques around it. Anyway, God Bless you my airborne brother. Keep hanging in. Doc Tenny 1/503rd
I was with A/3/503 WITH LZ UPLIFT as the rear area. the 3rd Batt was a line company. didn't know it at the time but we spent almost all our time in the mountains of the Central Highlands. No ambiguity there, almost all NVA. there is HERD reunion in June in Scottsdale. hope all off the HERD guys there. Joe Ryan
IVE WATCHED MANY OF THESE INTERVIEWS JUST TO GET A FEEL OF WHAT MY FATHER WENT THROUGH BECAUSE HE WOULDNT TALK ABOUT IT , BUT THIS MAN HAS WON MY HEART BY FAR . What little dad talked about this man made it so much more understandable, he didn’t hide a single thing . People are blind to what our government is all about. Thank you sir for having a pair and speak the truth . Thank you for your bravery!!
This is the most truthful, real to life, and honest vet interview I have heard of the hundreds I’ve listed to. What a great American. I was a helicopter pilot during the war and didn’t have it near as bad as him but totally agree with his feelings about our current state of the country and our corrupt politicians.
I would say his study, experience and views pretty much correctly summarizes the U.S. role in the war. Whatever embellishments one perceives from his words, they provide context. When you came home, the media was only interested in the alleged vet all scruffy looking and not the vet, clean shaven, wearing a coat and tie. For those of us raised on the heroics and exploits of WW 2 and Korea, we were disappointed in how even those vets ostracized us. Amazingly, some studies show most Nam vets would do it again, even knowing the outcome. Whatever puts you in harms way, you fight for your buddies and those around you, even those complete strangers, regardless of race. Recon HHC 2/503, 173d Abn Bde, '66-'67,
Thank you for your service and welcome home, Mr. Howell. You have directly and indirectly saved my life and thousands more. You gave an utmost truthful interview and young Americans should watch this interview. I agree with you 100% 🙏❤️🇺🇸
Gee. I'm a Vietnam resistor. I thought the man was also fighting for American freedom. No? Too foolish to believe now? Actually, a lot of veterans will say they fought for the guy next to them, that's it. They're the honest ones.
Vietnam didn't need to be communist; they could've done it themselves. Again, Vietnam didn't have to be communist. It could've been independent and democratic without a war we had helped them become independent right after WW2 then the whole Vietnam war would've been avoided. You see, at the end of WWII Ho Chi Minh came to Truman and asked for his support in seeking Vietnamese independence from the French, and Truman basically brushed him off to support the French in their occupation! And it’s not like Ho Chi Minh just played Truman one visit and then went to Moscow! No, he really respected America and in fact he modeled the Vietnamese declaration of independence directly on the American one, so he sent Truman numerous letters, which Truman chose to ignore in favor of supporting the French! Ok, France was our friend and all who backed our bid for independence, I get that, but France was wrong on this! And we as a self-proclaimed champion of freedom and justice were morally obligated to support the Vietnamese in their quest for independence and freedom! But it gets worse than all that. We turned our backs on the morally correct until Ho Chi Minh got support from the soviets! Then we decided to get involved on the premise that if South Vietnam fell to communism, then all of southeast Asia would follow! But as you can see, after we left and all of Vietnam became communist, that did not happen! So basically 58,000 Americans and several million Vietnamese died for nothing! To me that makes it the worse war! And I can’t help wondering how different Vietnam would be right now if America under Truman had done the morally correct thing! Also, many South Vietnamese felt they could've fought the war themselves without U.S. interference. Now I'm no fan of communism but it's none of our business whether Vietnam is communist or not. Besides, the South Vietnamese felt that they could fight the war themselves without American interference. All they needed was supplies and moral support, nothing more. As one former South Vietnamese officer stated, " We fought for our country with our best,” Vo said. “We didn’t need the Americans to do our job for us. We didn’t need the American GIs to come and fight for us. We needed money, supplies and international support.” And here's my source. www.mercurynews.com/2017/09/29/veterans-angry-disappointed-following-pbs-vietnam-war-documentary/
he didn't secure our freedom. He goes to where he did NOT belong. It was NOT his fight. He was an invader and aggressor in someone else's country that did nothing to Americans or the US. He did nothing for American safety, security and freedom. In reality, he was fighting for his own ass and the men who he served with. That's not a reason for an American to be fighting in Vietnam. He was just another American who made other people's business...his business...on the other side of the world. And yet....he gets the CMOH. America is more screwed up than he is. He's just another of the 2.7 million Americans that went somewhere they didn't belong...Vietnam. He did his part in enabling his dysfunctional Government to conduct an illegal war for almost 10 years. He was a pawn of his Government and went to someone else's country where he had no right to be. Vietnam did nothing to Americans or the US. It was an Asian civil war. His time in Vietnam did nothing to keep America safe, secure and free. He bought into the militaristic propaganda of his country and its obsession with Communism. He is not a hero nor a victim. He is simply a survivor who dodged a bullet from the people he wrongly intended to kill. He was just another chump who risked his life for absolutely nothing. He should have figured that out before he went.
Made me laugh my ass off watching the reactions of the interviewer (media professional) when he accurately blisters democrats/politicians. Bravo, sir. Make ‘em squirm.
Good job soldier I Am very proud of you. If I hadn’t been so young I would have been there to try and protect you as much as I could at the airport. Don’t worry about who you had to kill. Keep your chin up HERO q
There is a guy that lives here in Iowa Park, Texas that says he was a crane operator at Cam Ranh Bay and that he never went outside the wire. He is the only one I have heard say that.
I've seen a thousand plus interviews over Vietnam I'm 62 as a kid I really felt for these guys , This man's story is the one I have waiting for TRUTH ! Democrats and the media is complete BS.
In our county nobody bothered our men when they came home. You couldn’t melt and pour any of those punks on our soldiers. We loved our boys. They drafted almost all of our boys because they could shoot the eye out of a squirrel. Good luck to you and your wife and family. God be gracious unto you
...when I got to Fort Riley, I went to Manhattan, KS, a college town...went into a 7-11, no one acknowledged me...they avoided eye contact, or just looked at me with disdain...of course, in '72, everyone was dirty looking, long hair, wannabee hippie, college students going to school on daddy's dime...I was glad to leave and went back to Fort Riley, where I felt more comfortable...
A lot of what he said sounds a lot like general and common opinions and facts. It seems like she's interviewing a person who has read quite a bit and formed a lot of opinions about things. Perhaps he believes that his tour wasn't very interesting or eventful, and perhaps it wasn't, but I'd still have preferred hearing him talk about his personal experiences
I am still conflicted about the war even loosing my own brother. It has been said that the first casualty of was is the truth. The way we treated our own soldiers, talking about my generation is shameful. There were a few monsters in the military as there always are but most just killed to survive, to do what they were trained to do come home and try to put their lives back together. People stopped trusting government patriotism split the country badly. Vietnam has flowered after the war in spite of us, the French, the ,, Chinese, the communists .
173rd "The Herd." My uncle was in the 1st Cav , and was kia mid-3/1968 , 10 days B-4 my 11th bday. He was shot down in his Huey in the Central Highlands. Knew friends bros. , And neighbors sons sent there from 65-69, last one returning hm late 71.
People don't realize that due to all the rules and stuff war has to be fair. So of course they dropped animals and weapons way past the point they were supposed to drop them if they were going to drop them to the American soldiers and they went to the enemies. War has to be fair so that's why they kept bombing the same spot where nowhere was at on both sides. The rabbit hole is deep
I was a combat veteran 25th and this guy exaggerates a lot. Sounds like he's read a lot of war stories. No details about anything just generalities. Too many movies...
The most honest appraisal of all the political rhetoric that went on during Vietnam and goes on today. Only difference is that msm is more anti armed forces than ever
When the French defeated and left Vietnam in 1954. The country divided into two partition states: North Vietnam is the communist and the South is Republic under Democracy government. So, let both side of Vietnam run their countries the way they want. The American participated in to assist by providing aids to South Vietnam to fight back the International Communist (that is Soviet Union and China). So, the US helped South Vietnam so long until 1973 and declared to withdraw cutting significant aids to South Vietnam. The let South Vietnam fight alone against North Vietnam (North Vietnam with the helps from Soviet and China)...and so those nations (US, Australia, Korea, Philippines, Thailand and the whole West) under Democracy running away. Sounds great, huh? Ultimately, the citizens of the Republic of South Vietnam collapsed and its people stranded and faced the consequences of all cost: jails, rapes, rootings, refugees, death, poor, loss....You name it. Why the West entered the war rather let South Vietnam taking care of their country from the beginning, so they didn't depend on the West? You promised and ran away from this war.
There is an alternative, and very valid perspective to Vietnam. Those of us who resisted the Draft/Vietnam were serving our country...just as those who see this man doing it. Vietnam was an illegal war. It did not have anything to do with America or Americans. Yet, almost 60000 Americans lost their lives and there was a 10 year drain on the US economy. Many...many...veterans acknowledge a lot of BAD things happened in Vietnam. We who resisted did NOT enable our dysfunctional US Government in its erroneous foreign policy. We hastened the end of an American tragedy. Try thinking out of the box who you want to thank for their service and dedication. To resist the US Government could have serious consequences. Don't be mislead....a lot of Vietnam veterans chose to serve in Vietnam ONLY b/c it appeared to be the best option for them
andre oates No. An immigrant is somebody who looks at a map, sees another country, and says: “What a great country! It’s a lot better than this terrible place. I think I’ll go there, maybe find work.” That’s an immigrant: My father’s parents were immigrants. A settler is somebody who gets on a ship; sails to a wasteland where people are living in lean-tos and temporary dwellings, and builds a nation.He sets up a government that installs the rule of law; appoints property rights, and sets up courts to apply it. People build homes, plant farms, and they put up fences. Cities and roads are built. The people who came to America and did this were not immigrants only. They were pioneers. My mother’s family were the American pioneers.
Joel Gehrke let me say this to you the real Americans and American Indians let’s just agree on that but America is a melting pot of different nationalities so when you tell me to get out of our country I don’t know who you’re talking about because my family has built this country my followers and die for this country and I pay taxes and I own my own home we all have different perspective of things but I’m willing to listen to you but please listen to me who is my neighbor when you do the lease to own them we don’t show love to your fellow man or don’t give them shelter or food to eat☺️
Guy talks about the U.S. being "world police" & then bags on the French for needing our help during WW1&2, *HEY* smart guy!!!... Who was the biggest force in helping us win the Revolutionary War?!?!? The FRENCH!!! If it wasn't for the French the Brits would have done us in. I laugh soooooooooo hard when people bag on the French. Yes, we helped them in WW1&2..... But why?? ....Because we owed them
