Originally posted by Plain Old Bill:
Was your father there? were your brothers there?While books teach they all have thier own agendas.It is important who you learn from.Among vets there are many and varied views all earned by thier own personal experience.I can respect the views of those who were there whether iI agree with them or not.
You're correct Plain Old Bill, there are many views among Viet Nam veterans which is to be expected amongst a population of 2.6 million who served in country! (By the way, I incorrectly stated 9 million earlier in this thread. That was the number who served during the Viet Nam era but only about a third of these actually served in Viet Nam.) I try to respect the views of other veterans even when I don't agree. Some of our brothers, unfortunately, fulfill the stereotypes expected of them perhaps just to gain acceptance although I'm not sure what makes them all tick the way they do. I find it difficult not to speak out against these! Out of 2.6 million veterans I'd guess that the vast majority don't say too much so its the vocal ones that get heard the most often. I also try to respect the views of non veterans but that's often very difficult when they start a lot of trash talk.
In the past I found very few books about the Viet Nam war that reflect it accurately. There a lot of trash novels out there and a lot of books are written to grind a particular ax. Many more portray the same view that Hollywood did and have to include the obligatory drug use, incompetent leadership, wanton killing, rapes, etc. probably just to increase sales. Few are worth the paper they're printed upon. It seems like many of these have the goal of some kind of self flagellation. Unfortunately, the liberals base their views of the war, the veterans, and the Vietnamese upon these type works.
I've even had the experience of reading one fairly good book which included details of events involving one of the units in which I served and at the exact time and place I'd been. That's a strange feeling! It was written by a respected author who didn't serve in the military at all but who has generally written very well about the Viet Nam war. It was co-authored by a veteran who provided the details used. The story was generally accurate but contained some serious errors that were very obvious to me. I raised the issue with fellow veterans and they confirmed the inaccuracy of what was written. Apparently this veteran had an ax to grind and chose to relate some less than truthful "war stories" to fit his needs at the expense of discrediting other veterans. That's a shame but it happens. Correcting the record is next to impossible because these exaggerations, distortions, and lies get repeated. The truth just doesn't sell nearly as well. There's no telling how many outright lies have been propagated over the years.
Fortunately, in recent years some better and more accurate reading is available. I've added a number - along with the ones I don't like - to my library and have become more interested in reading because the material seems more credible. When it comes to checking credibility of publicly known persons I always use B.G. Burkett's Stolen Valor. That man should receive a special medal for exposing so many fakers and impostors! I've also found reading the Vietnamese accounts (which requires a serious knowledge of that language or a good translator) to be very worthwhile especially in understanding the war from their perspective. The period from 1973 to 1975 and afterwards is little known to the typical American including most veteran.
Show resolve - Support the cause!
Patrick
