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I appreciate your time and effort on building this thread. I accept your motivation as sincere. I hesitate to reply for fear you and others will misunderstand. Perhaps it is just a timing thing, but just last night my wife of 34 years prevailed upon me to attend, with her, a seminar put together by our local VFW and American Legion where VA reps came in to "present" their program of bennies that vets are entitled to. It was a 3 hour presentation and I had to leave after about half of it.

Most in attendance in the room were Korea or WWII vets and their families. I would guess, out of about 3 hundred folks in attendance perhaps there were a dozen VN (in country) vets present. Other than a semister in college, where I partied out anyway, I have not sought any "benies" and quite frankly don't want any. They are great for the guys that need them and can go through the process to get them, but I found out last night I ain't ready yet and may never be.

As I was leaving a Vet rep from somewhere came up and asked "Viet Nam vet?", I said yeah and he handed me a coin with a map of VN on one side and the serenity prayer on the other. He said, "I thought so. Why you leaving?" I wasn't rude but direct in replying "30 plus years of being a bitter bastard ain't easily left behind". He shook my hand and asked me to call him.

I might send him a note thanking him for his genuine concern as I also don't want you to think I don't appreciate your genuine sentiment in this thread and others like it you and some others here support.

Some of us, and I know I have no right to speak for others but I do know they are out there, still have a hard time accepting gratitude, never sought, and then offered 30 plus years later.

My wife has been after me for years to get some "professional help" to which I reply, "It ain't no thing baby. I just deal with it, one day at a time." Many days I get through without stroking the fires of my resentments, but then ... well, something happens to remind me that years later I am still a "sick and bitter bastard" at times. But it ain't no thing. Life will go on.

So again, thanks for the sincere effort but for some of us it doesn't totally have the desired result. That ain't your fault. It's just the way poop happens.

God and Soldier, all men adore
In time of danger, and not before.
When the danger has passed,
And all things righted.
God is forgotten,
And the Soldier is slighted.
Anon.

So many have given so much to so few, who really care!

Thank you and others for at least caring and God Bless all who have and continue to serve.

Snow Bunny is one of the damn few civilians who understand us. She stayed in country for an extra month each time after her Bob Hope Tours were finished so that she could visit with the wounded and saw just what we were living with. She carries the same resentments we do towards the gooks. Of all the civilians I know, she is one of the few who just flat ass understands us. There isn't very many civilians who will read this and know what I mean, but ImpBill I promise you she does. Yeah, she is warped the same way we are but handles it the same way we do, one day at a time.

When I posted the RT Northcut thread, she was the one of two civilians who actually understood the man. The other one was a lady who spent two years as a nurse on one of the med ships and also served in country. Both of them actually knew about 'too little - too late'. If you ever decide that maybe some of the beneies might fit, try starting with AmVets. That's a group that has their head on straight.

Stand Tall and Proud !