Posted on 01/21/2019 11:45:47 AM PST by rktman
I will be 63 this year and there is no way I was close to serving in Nam. He was 18 in 73. Draft ended Jan 73. Miracle for him to go there.
Embassy duty in Saigon????
I seem to recall Obxxx mention he considered enlisting but VN was winding down so........meh.
I would guess some alcohol too.
Good point. This seems to be a person who quickly picks up on received ideas, and knows how to spin a story.
That’s right. We (101st Airborne) took their place in I Corps.
Same here. Feb., 1951.
Embassy duty in Saigon????
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I doubt it. I could talk to that guy for about 2 minutes and it would be easy to determine if he was in Nam.
Yes...and no.
Most returning VN vets never saw anyone at an airport that gave a rat's ass one way or the other.
Depended on the airport.
The first time I came back thru, I went thru LAX...and never saw a thing adverse towards any returning soldiers.
Now...outside the gate of Oakland Army Terminal, that was a different thing.
The "hippies" were in a permanent encampment there and they abused EVERYONE that came out the gate, but no spitting, as best as I recall.
The second time I came thru, I went thru Seatle-Tacoma...and as soon as a bunch of grungy looking Kurt Cobain soon-to-bes saw me, the spit, and chewing gum and coke cans and tobacco wads...you name it, flew fast and furious.
But they were behind a glass wall type of thing and I kind of think they were doing something that they knew was relatively harmless, yet disgusting.
When I came thru Atlanta, I was yelled at by a few of the nasty looking ones that had made a point of demonstrating at the airport, mainly remarking on my CIB, which the activists had learned to key in on, as they just knew, KNEW, that anyone with a CIB or a Green Beret...even jump boots, had to be a baby-killer.
But I went on to make a career and I did talk with some guys that were on the receiving end of some spitting fools, just not quite the way the media and the movie industry portrayed it.
I don't know about you, but when I came back, I was the very epitome (or thought I was) of the "fear no evil, for I am the baddest MF'er in the valley" mindset...and I guarantee quite a few of the pieces of canine fecal matter would have much rather just flipped a bird from 50 feet as opposed to spitting on me from 6-8 feet away.
If he lied about his age, he might have been in Vietnam, but I suspect he was a "Vietnam era veteran," someone who served between 1964 and 1975.
Usually, when people lie there is some grain of truth or some reason for choosing the lies that they choose.
If he never served at all, he might have chosen something else to lie about.
Mar.
Happy early birthday.
We’re getting older but not ancient....yet.
70 might be kind of weird, though.
“Recon” is a common but exclusively Marine term, “Ranger” is exclusively an Army term.
It is as foolish to claim “I was a recon ranger” as it would be to claim “I earned my wings flying helicopters for the Landing Control Officer from the Ohio class submarines as an Air Force colonel.”
I’m 62. I was 19 in 1975 when Americas involvement in Vietnam ended. It’s my understanding American combats troops were not sent to Vietnam after 1970. If this guy was in the military and states side then I believe he would be classified as “Vietnam era’’. But 64 is too young to have been involved in any way in the fighting from 1965-69.
Well, I’m a year and half in and it doesn’t seem weird to me. But then again, we’re talkin’ about me so there is that. ;-)
The term ‘Recon Ranger’ is used during Marine Corps PT work-out jogging chants:
“I want to be a Recon Ranger!”
“I want to lead a life of danger!”
The actual Marine Corps position is called ‘Force Recon’.
I suppose the term ‘Recon Ranger’ was used because it rhymed with ‘danger’.................
The term ‘Recon Ranger’ is used during Marine PT work-out jogging chants:
“I want to be a Recon Ranger!”
“I want to lead a life of danger!”
The actual Marine Corps position is called ‘Force Recon’.
I suppose the term ‘Recon Ranger’ was used because it rhymed with ‘danger’.................
I see what you’re saying. But when you hit 70 I can imagine it was different than when you hit 40.
I think it’s the realization that one has made 70 years.
OH CRAP! Now you made me think about it. LOL!
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