VIDEO A Face of War (1968) – USMC, Vietnam War

bobby.knight

Senior Member
Link:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnA_nS8c6bI
time 1:19.00

I stumbled on this tonight.
This is a true documentary of the war in Vietnam.
This is not a Hellywood production filled with phony actors.
These men are real and this is exactly what it was like on the ground.
Live fire fights, men hollering for a corpsman, and for medi-vac chopper.
Vietnamese men, women, and children caught up in this madness.
So for those of you who have sensitive feelings you have been warned.

Bobby.Knight NBC
HM2 1/9 3rd Mar Div.
 

Doc1

Has No Life - Lives on TB
The United States hasn't won a war since WWII and every place - with the notable exception of Korea - was left in worse condition than before we arrived. Even Korea was a draw and not a victory.

Any business with such a track record would fire those responsible and at minimum, change their business plan. The US? Not a chance. The big .mil mucky mucks get promotions and generous retirements and then often rotate into the high bux Military Industrial Complex. The MIC civilian executives make a fortune.

The soldiers, NCOs and company grade officers? Well, the wounded usually get miserly disability pensions and often spend the rest of their (often) shortened lives battling the VA. The junior officers on disability usually fare better than the grunts, but nothing like the colonels and generals. Fortunately, at least the dead don't get any deader.

Rivers of US blood and a Heaven full of souls were wasted in Vietnam to no good end. My own son was badly wounded in Iraq, again, to no good end. Look at shithole Iraq today. Yeah. Big improvement, right? Afghanistan? Don't make me laugh.

This post isn't about patriotism or soldier's willingness to sacrifice. No, sir. Not one bit. It's about the soldier's wastage and the fact that they are badly used.

They - and the rest of the country - deserve better.

Best
Doc
 

155 arty

Veteran Member
Link:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnA_nS8c6bI
time 1:19.00

I stumbled on this tonight.
This is a true documentary of the war in Vietnam.
This is not a Hellywood production filled with phony actors.
These men are real and this is exactly what it was like on the ground.
Live fire fights, men hollering for a corpsman, and for medi-vac chopper.
Vietnamese men, women, and children caught up in this madness.
So for those of you who have sensitive feelings you have been warned.

Bobby.Knight NBC
HM2 1/9 3rd Mar Div.
Thanks Doc!
From the bottom of my heart..
Thank you Brother
 

Dozdoats

On TB every waking moment
I knew Paul Campbell, the medic who helped with the early arrangements for the MACV/Special Forces CIDG/Village Defense Program in Vietnam.


I was draft age in 1971 and have never been happier to hit a winning number than in that year's draft lottery. My ROTC advisor was a Special Forces Vietnam vet, and I wanted no part of that war as it was then.
 
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9idrr

Veteran Member
Viet Nam 68-69 Helo pilot, made it thru wothout any detrimental affects, thank the "Lord". Welcome back to all that escaped that hell hole the gov't put us thru
First beer's on me should we ever meet.
Well... unless you're the guy who wouldn't set it down an' made me jump into mud up to my knees.
Oh... wait... there was more than one time that happened. ;)
If'n you flew my dust-off I'll buy you a couple.
 

Griz3752

Retired, practising Curmudgeon
I see most of the inbound helo. amb. traffic to ROH & LeBonheur Children's on any given day and, there's lots some days but. almost always at least 2+ per day, each.

I can spot the ex-service dust off guys a mile away; they come in hot, are on the the pad & set down - in, down, unload & up and out, now - while those who just got their rotary ticket are obvious: pussy footing around w/, multiple approaches, painful descents.

For most grunts, I think right after 'on the way' the next best message is 'dust off, inbound'
 
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Griz3752

Retired, practising Curmudgeon
The United States hasn't won a war since WWII and every place - with the notable exception of Korea - was left in worse condition than before we arrived. Even Korea was a draw and not a victory.

Any business with such a track record would fire those responsible and at minimum, change their business plan. The US? Not a chance. The big .mil mucky mucks get promotions and generous retirements and then often rotate into the high bux Military Industrial Complex. The MIC civilian executives make a fortune.

The soldiers, NCOs and company grade officers? Well, the wounded usually get miserly disability pensions and often spend the rest of their (often) shortened lives battling the VA. The junior officers on disability usually fare better than the grunts, but nothing like the colonels and generals. Fortunately, at least the dead don't get any deader.

Rivers of US blood and a Heaven full of souls were wasted in Vietnam to no good end. My own son was badly wounded in Iraq, again, to no good end. Look at shithole Iraq today. Yeah. Big improvement, right? Afghanistan? Don't make me laugh.

This post isn't about patriotism or soldier's willingness to sacrifice. No, sir. Not one bit. It's about the soldier's wastage and the fact that they are badly used.

They - and the rest of the country - deserve better.

Best
Doc
Probably not a good idea to start fixating on how many 'We, the People' have been wasted versus the body count from the families of the MIC 'Elites' - a few slipped through but the numbers are way skewed towards our side of the page.

Sadly, your assessment:
"The big .mil mucky mucks get promotions and generous retirements and then often rotate into the high bux Military Industrial Complex. The MIC civilian executives make a fortune.

The soldiers, NCOs and company grade officers? Well, the wounded usually get miserly disability pensions and often spend the rest of their (often) shortened lives battling the VA. The junior officers on disability usually fare better than the grunts, but nothing like the colonels and generals. Fortunately, at least the dead don't get any deader."
***********************************************

is bang on; the ones who really grind my ghoulies are those (O6 & up) who flit back & forth from Mil Svce to Lobbyist to under-secretary/asst under-secretary roles, filling their pockets at every transition.
 

homepark

Resist
Well, I tried drinking my symptoms away for 20 years, until that didn't work anymore. Then I tried to bare-knuckle them away for another 20 years until that did not work anymore. When I finally consented to treatment at the VA, the triage Nurse and Doc started talking to me about inpatient treatment for PTSD once I described my symptoms. I looked right at them and said, "I can't just stop working to go into a hospital for a few months." They looked at each other and said "You are still working?". Me: "I did not know that not working was an option!" It was a bitter-sweet pill to swallow when reading those words in black & white: 100% Permanent and Totally Disabled with no future re-examinations. I will be taking medications for the rest of my life. However, there is no free lunch. At least I can sleep now.
 

erichtmobile

Senior Member
Above photo


PFC Phillip Mark Wilson of Wolfforth, Texas near the DMZ in Vietnam, 1966. He was killed in action a few days later & is buried in Lufkin. Life Magazine photographer Larry Burrows took this photo and was himself later killed when his helicopter was shot down over Laos in 1971.
 

AlfaMan

Has No Life - Lives on TB
WOW. Probably one of the better documentaries on Vietnam I've seen.

MUCH respect for those who fought in that meatgrinder called Vietnam.
 

dvo

Veteran Member
A crazy time, and a crazy war. Thank you to those who went. Mostly without a choice. I missed that mess by a couple of years, but I’m not sorry. There was nothing in Vietnam worth fighting for. Unfortunately, Korea too. My dad did that tour. The MIC isn’t worth defending with the lives of our best youth.
 

changed

Preferred pronouns: dude/bro
My uncle said he hated helicopters because the only time he saw them was when they were dropping him off or picking the wounded up.
 

Dozdoats

On TB every waking moment
What Really Happened To MIA Soldiers In Vietnam? - Among The Missing - War Documentary - YouTube
What Really Happened To MIA Soldiers In Vietnam? - Among The Missing - War Documentary
RT 46:16
Premiered Jul 1, 2021

Vietnam is often called "the war that won't go away", largely because of the continuing controversy of the POW/MIA (Prisoners Of War / Missing In Action) issue. Families of those who were POW/MIA in Vietnam organized an activist movement which went on to pursue a question which still haunts America nearly decades later: were soldiers left behind in captivity after the Vietnam War? Once the exclusive domain of a select fraternity of soldiers' wives, the POW/MIA movement has become both a fixture of American life and a distinct subculture within it.
 

Mtsilverback

Veteran Member
Gen. Smedley D. Butler had it right in his book, War Is A Racket.

Then theres that often expressed saying that those that went and fought did so to save democracy. Not since WW2.
 

homepark

Resist
What Really Happened To MIA Soldiers In Vietnam? - Among The Missing - War Documentary - YouTube
What Really Happened To MIA Soldiers In Vietnam? - Among The Missing - War Documentary
RT 46:16
Premiered Jul 1, 2021

Vietnam is often called "the war that won't go away", largely because of the continuing controversy of the POW/MIA (Prisoners Of War / Missing In Action) issue. Families of those who were POW/MIA in Vietnam organized an activist movement which went on to pursue a question which still haunts America nearly decades later: were soldiers left behind in captivity after the Vietnam War? Once the exclusive domain of a select fraternity of soldiers' wives, the POW/MIA movement has become both a fixture of American life and a distinct subculture within it.

Story of two guys from our unit who went missing during Tet of 1968. They were hand delivering messages to our group HQ near Saigon since the phones were down. Turns out they drove right past an old race track that the VC/NVA were using as a field hospital. They were ambushed in their jeep at that location. The body of the one guy was found. The other was MIA. Still is. On numerous occasions the recovery teams got close to where he was believed to be. However, diplomatic concerns seemed to rule the day. The details of trying to find his remains are disgusting and frustrating. For those familiar, this was all on the west side of Saigon(Cholon), along what we called Plantation Rd, running from Tan Son Nhut to Phu Lam. But one of many MIA stories, I am sure.
 

Dozdoats

On TB every waking moment
A good many of the SEAsia vets I knew had run recon with MACV-SOG. Their MIA stories are particularly heartbreaking, because they were in so-called "denied areas" to start with.

One had been on radio watch when two teams called Prairie Fire at the same time. He only had assets to rescue one team ....
 

9idrr

Veteran Member
A crazy time, and a crazy war. Thank you to those who went. Mostly without a choice. I missed that mess by a couple of years, but I’m not sorry. There was nothing in Vietnam worth fighting for. Unfortunately, Korea too. My dad did that tour. The MIC isn’t worth defending with the lives of our best youth.
Most who went were there by choice. I could have gone to Canada or prison rather than Viet-of-the-Nam. Of course, once in the military, goin' to Canada could have meant bein' extradited back here for prosecution. Too bad so many folks still believe so much of the Lefties' propaganda.
Check this link and be sure to scroll down as far the "myths & facts" section.
 

Dozdoats

On TB every waking moment
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQyv6x_brHw

MACV-SOG veteran Nick Brokhausen, Ep. 76
RT 1:33:30

Nick Brokhausen served two tours with the highly classified Studies and Observations Group (SOG) in Vietnam, running recon in denied enemy territory "across the fence" without the benefits of a passport. After the war, Nick used his skills in the private sector all around the globe. He is the author of "We Few" and "Whispers in the Tall Grass."
 

Dozdoats

On TB every waking moment
The legendary Super Bazooka! :D
=============================


M20A1B1 Super Bazooka – It’s a Super Bazooka. Need I Say More?
October 28, 2017 Ian McCollum Artillery, Video 47
RT 15:37


The US was one of the few major military powers that went into World War II without a substantial infantry antitank weapon. Most countries had an antitank rifle of some sort, but the US just had some marginal antitank rifle grenades. That was rectified in late 1942 when the M1 Rocket Launcher – aka the Bazooka – was introduced. Using a 2.36” shaped charge warhead, it was able to penetrate about 4.7 inches of armor, which was effective through most of the war. A larger version went into development in 1943 though, because it was clear that the M1 would soon become obsolete.

The 3.5” M20 Super Bazooka was adopted in late 1945 and put into production in 1948, with it s first combat use coming in the Korean War. It was much more powerful, capable of penetrating 11 inches of armor plate. The launchers itself weighed just 13 pounds, with each rocket adding another 8.9 pounds. This, and the updated M20A1, would serve as the main US infantry antitank weapon until replaced by the 90mm recoilless rifle in the 1960s.
 
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