Posted on 01/03/2007 7:09:24 AM PST by rface
Right on the cusp of eligibility at any rate.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1759768/posts
I like this one especially because he looks very like my grandson.
Bush should put this brave vet in as Secretary of Defense, instead of the pussy Gates. This is a real man, a real hero. On second thought, better not to corrupt him.
If he is about to turn 51 he could have been 18 in Vietnam.
Assuming he is 50 years and 364 days old, it is possible he could have been a 17 year old volunteer in 1973 - but the number of such individuals is very small, and the likelihood of someone signing up in '73, completing basic training and being deployed to Vietnam in mid '73 is very, very small.
Now that's bravery! God bless him. Great story.
What a wonderful story, and a great way to get me started on the day! Mr. Autrey is a hero.
Thanks for posting.
Assuming he hasn't had his 2007 birthday yet, then he was born in 1956, which would make him 17 in 1973, eligible for duty during the last year of the war. However, whether he's embellishing his resume or not, he's still a stud.
Good story to start the day.
My best guess is that he is "in his 50's" and the news people just rounded it.
I thought at first he had pulled the man to the side or something. Man...He's a quick thinker. Unbelievable.
Lying about being a combat veteran is not acceptable regardless of circumstances.
Of course, the paper may just be wrong about his age.
Again, he almost committed suicide - only sheer luck saved him from certain death, not any skills or resourcefulness on his part.
He also abandoned his two little daughters on a subway platform - unthinkable.
Those little girls were his primary concern and they came very close to being fatherless.
Thank God everything worked out OK.
in the Army, you COULD NOT go to Vietnam until you were 18 years old.....(but parental consent enlistments at age 17 were permitted). I don't know about the other services....
Wow, what an amazing story! What a heroic man! Unbelievable. And I teared up a little, too.
All New Yorkers know that at one time or another a subway track worker has narrowly avoided death by ducking into the groove and all New Yorkers know that at one time or another passengers have died by brushing against the third rail.
He did the only thing he really could do in the circumstances. He was out of options.
my first thought is how he could leave his kids alone. They could have been put in danger, following the dad. On the other hand, in that situation he did not think and acted. Status HERO........
Just nit-picking here: some American marines and embassy staff were in VN until 1975; I'm guessing he isn't lying. Perhaps the paper is rounding down his age. Yes, he is brave and lucky.
He didn't leave his kids alone. He entrusted them to a nearby woman whom he may or may not have known.
We are only three days into 2007, so he was probably 50 years old in 2006, which would have meant he was 18 y/o in 1974.
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