Thanks for the info on An Thoi.
On the other hand, no self-respecting officer would accept a Purple Heart for a "band-aid" wound if he had ever seen the men who truly earned the award. I cannot imagine an officer who would use a loophole to sneak out and leave his brothers to do the fighting. Most of us served out our tours as prescribed and didn't let down our fellow officers and men.
I agree with you there, Kerry was there to get his ticket punched for a future political career, image his dismay that when he got home the war had turned unpopular. So he now becomes a protester because that is what it took to be popular back then.
Sam, I am ever more convinced that it was his way of blame-shifting for the atrocities he, himself, admits to committing. I came home from Vietnam with a clear conscience; something I don't think is true of J F'in K. In my tour, I never saw any of the things that Kerry claims were "commonplace". What I saw was mostly a bunch of guys doing the best to do their lawful duty under very trying circumstances, which were only made more difficult by the likes of Hanoi Jane and Hanoi John. I attend a reunion every year of the men who served in my wing with me and I don't think any of them feels much different than I do. We are proud of our service and with good reason; we served with honor.