On This Day In History Battle of the Ia Drang Valley,

LZ Xray ^

[KC_Conspirator]

Was there not a movie by the same title about WWI recently?

[Protect the Bill of Rights]

I watched the movie last week. I have learned so much from the Swifities and our own Freeper Viet Nam Vets. It made this viewing up close and personal for me, especially knowing Aloha Ronnie was there.

God bless you all.

[rudy45]

Thanks for your service.

I know Hollywood sometimes changes things, but could you explain one part of the Moore speech? He says, "Some people think we're leaving home. (shakes his head) "We're going to where home was always supposed to be."

What does he mean by that?

[ALOHA RONNIE]

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...In MEL GIBSON's Speech, written by RANDALL WALLACE for "WE WERE SOLDIERS" the...

.."We are going to where home was always suposed to be" remark...

...meant that any previously held notions about race, color or creed would not matter to those fighting on the battlefields of Vietnam...

...just as it was always meant for it to be back home in America, but wasn't.


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[Calpernia]

Is campfollower the one I just got the pictures from?

[glock rocks]

When I saw this article posted on Sunday morning, I put my copy of We Were Soldiers in and began watching it, again. As the Hueys lifted off to go into the battle, the narrator noted it was the morning of Sunday, November 14, 1965. That gave me pause... 39 years ago today, on Sunday. Knowing you were there, from your earlier posts on FR, brought a frightful reality to the movie.

My older brothers served during Nam though I didn't. I have the highest respect for all our service men. What a horrific experience Ia Drang must have been.

Thank you Ronnie, and God bless you for your service.

[PISANO]

Col Moore [Lt Gen Moore Retired] along with his Sgt. Major Plumley and all the valiant men of the 1/7th I salute you! Although I wasn't in country then I was off the coast and the news of your ordeal spread like wild fire.

GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!

[Diver Dave]

On This Day In History Battle of the Ia Drang Valley

Was in Subic on my second of three WESTPAC cruises.

Salute to these brothers!

[ALOHA RONNIE]

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Here's a Thread about last week's Network TV Premiere Showings of...

"WE WERE SOLDIERS"

http://www.Freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1276954/posts

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[campfollower]

I was five years old and my dad was there, an aerial rocket artillary pilot. The scenes of the home life could have been my home, minus two kids. I sneaked a look at many cocktail parties like the one depicted, and I have a memory almost exactly like the scene where Mel's daughter in the movie asks him what war is. I remember distinctly my dad telling me about communism and how little kids were treated brutally under such a government. He promised to take them many Hershey candy bars when he flew his helicopter in there...

I didn't find out until way after the movie came out that his ARA pilots played a vital role in the battle.

My brother and I attended the reunion over the weekend. Calpernia has offered to post some photos for me when she has a chance -- thanks Cal. Aloha Ronnie...I cannot tell you how moved I was by the mood of the reunion and the respect Gen. Moore inspires. Everyone I met was so very nice to me and my family. (my dad was not killed in the Ia Drang, but later on his second tour in '68)

[ALOHA RONNIE]

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Thank you for sharing your IA DRANG Story with all of us, Freeper campfollower. It is a distinct honor to have you here.

Thank you also for your own selfless work on behalf of our country this 2004 Election Year. Your writings and speeches helped ensure that an Enemy Within JOHN KERRY did not become our Commander-in-Chief in a new time of war.

Your Speech at the Sept. 12th 'KERRY Lied' Rally in Washington, D.C., which was well covered by C-SPAN TV, was a thing that true Patriotism is made of.

And as Lt. Col. HAL G. MOORE kept telling his SkyTroopers over and over again at 1965's Battle of the IA DRANG Valley...


.."That's just OUTSTANDING"..!!!

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

Thank You

[Calpernia]

The 39th anniversary and reunion of the famed Battle of the Ia Drang Valley warriors was marked last weekend by a gathering of over 500 heroes, family members and distinguished guests in Washington, D.C. Sometimes described as the "first real battle" of the Vietnam war, many people are familiar with the story as portrayed in Randall Wallace's movie, "We Were Soldiers", starring Mel Gibson. The movie was based on the book, "We Were Soldiers Once...and Young" by retired Gen. Hal Moore and award-winning correspondent Joe Galloway (still reporting for Knight-Ridder news service).

The formal dinner of the weekend opened with the traditional First Cavalry color guard posting of the colors and bagpiper playing "Gary Owen". Veterans of the intense engagement introduced themselves simply in a moving tribute around the large ballroom, and surviving relatives of the fallen were recognized also. Other services were represented. Among the many distinguished-looking First Cav hats were the service uniforms of Navy, Marines and Air Force -- proof that the ideals of service are often passed down from one generation to the next (as most of the active duty attendees were related to the vets).

Freeper Campfollower attended the reunion with her brother, a former USMC aviator, and her friend, an active duty Marine. Her father, the late Lt. Col. Roger "Black Bart" Bartholomew, was an aerial rocket artillary pilot and one of the many, many heroes of the battle. She met for the first time some of the men who flew with her father, as well as infantrymen on the ground who knew and admired him. It was emotional for all who attended, yet, according to Gen. Moore, a re-affirmation of the ideals of service, the sacred trust among brothers in arms, and most of all, a dedication to those who fell -- that they will never be forgotten.

Campfollower (L.B. Armstrong) was also a speaker at the Sept. 12 "Kerry Lied" Rally on Capitol Hill, which was organized by the Vietnam Veterans for the Truth in association with Swift Boat Vets and POWs for the Truth.

Other freepers associated with the Ia Drang are Aloha Ronnie.... etc etc....

22 - Vietnam helicopter pilot Chip Parker, wife Vicki , Campfollower, author and famed war correspondent Joe Galloway - at a casual gathering prior to the formal dinner

21 - Famed helicopter pilot Bruce "Snake" Crandall (played in the movie by Greg Kinnear) with Campfollower, whose dad was "Black Bart" Bartholomew. He was later KIA on his second tour in 1968.

10 - Laura Armstrong and her friend, who served with Central Command in '02-'03

08 - Gen. Hal Moore enjoyed meeting one of today's Marine warriors

[Valin]

I was five years old and my dad was there

Where's my Geritol? :-)

[campfollower]

Thank YOU Tonk, for inspiring me to be more active in the defense of our great military.

The way you guys were treated after Vietnam was the beginning of a bad pattern that will continue today (see the latest Marine story), unless those of us who know the military BEST can come forward to explain... YOU guys gave the best you had to protect us ALL, and should be given the respect and gratitude you deserve.

I think the activists on FR have some work ahead, if we're to fight the propaganda and the undermining of the Global War on Terror. I'm in...

[ALOHA RONNIE]

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I'm in, too...

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