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Sunday marks 50 years since U.S. combat troops arrived in Vietnam
ABC7 Chicago ^ | 03/08/2015

Posted on 03/08/2015 7:06:50 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum

DA NANG, Vietnam (WLS) -- Sunday marks 50 years since United States combat troops arrived in Vietnam when two battalions made up of hundreds of Marines landed in Da Nang on March 8, 1965.

They originally went to help the South Vietnam government defeat communist forces.

The U.S. sent in more troops over the next few years, peaking at 543,000 in April, 1969.

More than 58,000 U.S. troops lost their lives in the war. The last U.S. troops left the country in March 1973.


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To: null and void
I thought US diplomat passports were purple?

That is an error in the article. My red passport is an "Official Passport."
Diplomatic passports have a black cover.

81 posted on 03/09/2015 5:00:03 PM PDT by ASA Vet (We weren't here, We were never there, We don't exist. ASA)
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To: null and void

Another interesting tidbit. The photo in my Red Official Passport has me in uniform but wearing ‘Signal Corp Brass.’
When I went overseas the first time, I donned ‘Unassigned Brass.’


82 posted on 03/09/2015 5:07:32 PM PDT by ASA Vet (We weren't here, We were never there, We don't exist. ASA)
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To: PROCON

Being an old Army vet, you know what ASA stands for.

ASA Vet beat the draft the way many of us did. I beat it by about 3.5 years by enlisting in the Navy.

Thanks for your service and ASA’s service and all of our vets who enlisted or got drafted.


83 posted on 03/09/2015 5:14:04 PM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will Sisi, Bibi, King Abdullah & ?, take out Isis in our White House, AG Dept, CIA, & State?)
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To: xrmusn

“I did end up in the Navy and on a 1959 Westpac Cruise my Mother had written the CO asking why the FBI were pounding on her door wondering why I hadn’t registered for the draft.

Made it ‘worse’ as I had a TS Clearance so there should have been some kind of ‘crossing the wires there’.”

BOL!


84 posted on 03/09/2015 5:24:52 PM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will Sisi, Bibi, King Abdullah & ?, take out Isis in our White House, AG Dept, CIA, & State?)
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To: ASA Vet

I was a CTI in the US Navy, a crypy linguist from 1980 - 1986. Worked a desk involved with Med/ME/NAfrican intell.


85 posted on 03/09/2015 5:53:15 PM PDT by SatinDoll (A NATURAL BORN CITIZEN IS BORN IN THE US OF US CITIZEN PARENTS.)
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To: Grampa Dave

Made it ‘worse’ as I had a TS Clearance so there should have been some kind of ‘crossing the wires there’.”

BOL!
= = = = = = = = = = =

To make matters even ‘worse’ they (FBI?) almost had to start my BI when I started Boot Camp as I went to school at Imperial Beach (CT’R’) and one needed a clearance to start it.


86 posted on 03/09/2015 6:51:58 PM PDT by xrmusn ((6/98)A pessimist damns the wind, an optimist thinks it will change and a realist adjusts the sails.)
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To: Grampa Dave
Thanks for your Service to our Country too, Dave.

Hell, we may have to form an Old Vet's Armed and Dangerous Assault Brigade if this Obama crap gets any more anti-Constitutional.

We need to take our Country back!

87 posted on 03/09/2015 7:08:14 PM PDT by PROCON (Always Give 100% --- Unless you're donating blood.)
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To: Pelham

“Let me remind you that Richard Nixon, Republican, was elected President in 1968.”

Pelly, Pelly, Pelly. You have to remember that Democrats play hard ball. In the late ‘60’s - 1970’s, the media, together with Bubba’s mentor Fulbright, Ted Kennedy and others savaged Nixon every day. Congress was controlled by Democrats and they had their way with the country. If Nixon got a bill passed, Congress would override Nixon. Remember, Pelly, those were the Watergate days, Nixon could do no right.

But, why tell you. Your mind is made up.

Perhaps you ought to remove your blinders and read some of the actual history of what happened back then.


88 posted on 03/09/2015 7:38:23 PM PDT by Rembrandt (Part of the 51% who pay Federal taxes)
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To: xrmusn

Re your ctr clearance, were you one who never moved until you joined,and your parents lived in one place?


89 posted on 03/09/2015 10:36:23 PM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will Sisi, Bibi, King Abdullah & ?, take out Isis in our White House, AG Dept, CIA, & State?)
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To: Rembrandt

“But, why tell you. Your mind is made up.”

Good to see that high school wit is still popular. It never gets old.

“In the late ‘60’s - 1970’s, the media, together with Bubba’s mentor Fulbright, Ted Kennedy and others savaged Nixon every day. Congress was controlled by Democrats and they had their way with the country. “

And so we learn that you think that harsh words negated Nixon’s authority as Commander in Chief while he was President.

That’s an interesting albeit confused theory which at least explains your fantasy that the Democrats controlled the conduct of the war while Nixon was President.

But I’m sure that you must have a truly illuminating theory as to who exactly was the acting CIC from 1969 to 1974, since it evidently wasn’t Nixon.

Was it Speaker John McCormick? Carl Albert? Majority Leader Mike Mansfield? C’mon, inquiring minds want to know who was in charge! Don’t keep such valuable information to yourself!

“Perhaps you ought to remove your blinders and read some of the actual history of what happened back then.”

Don’t have to read it. I was alive and saw it occur in real time. I’m quite certain you didn’t.


90 posted on 03/09/2015 11:52:06 PM PDT by Pelham (The refusal to deport is defacto amnesty)
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To: centurion316

Thanks!

Vietnam bookmark


91 posted on 03/10/2015 12:59:52 AM PDT by Pelham (The refusal to deport is defacto amnesty)
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To: Pelham

Interesting about Diem’s assassination, the same month that JFK himself was killed, 3 weeks later.

Enlisted 68 as 22yo. 108thMI Newark.


92 posted on 03/10/2015 3:38:24 AM PDT by Mouton (The insurrection laws perpetuate what we have for a government now.)
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To: ASA Vet

The silent warriors of the team.


93 posted on 03/10/2015 4:10:35 AM PDT by Old Sarge (Its the Sixties all over again, but with crappy music...)
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To: Grampa Dave

Re your ctr clearance
=== = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = =
NO NO NO.........<:

I always used to say my father was one skip ahead of the rent man.....I had amassed 18 DIFFERENT addresses by the time I was 17.

The Navy was the first ‘home’ I had.
(On my first cruise in late 57 or so got called into the CO’s Stateroom and he asked if I had any problems. I said ‘No Sir’ and he pulled out an envelope that had several checks in it.....I didn’t realize that in addition to feeding you, clothing you and giving you a job, that you also got paid.........(HA HA<: <:)

Guess the only saving grace was kept in a pretty close area around Southern Tier of NY (and a dip into CT) but the only constant being basically going to the same school from 1-9th grade (a Catholic HS++)


94 posted on 03/10/2015 4:25:13 AM PDT by xrmusn ((6/98)A pessimist damns the wind, an optimist thinks it will change and a realist adjusts the sails.)
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To: Pelham
If you are going to fight off an aggressive enemy you have to feel like you are a nation. South Vietnam was a splintered society with factions that weren’t much interested in cooperating with each other.

Sounds like some place a little closer to home, today.

95 posted on 03/10/2015 5:44:13 AM PDT by Mr. Jeeves (Heteropatriarchal Capitalist)
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To: PROCON

“Hell, we may have to form an Old Vet’s Armed and Dangerous Assault Brigade if this Obama crap gets any more anti-Constitutional.”

We could get the membership list from the Obama administration’s potential domestic terrorist list.


96 posted on 03/10/2015 6:13:33 AM PDT by Blue Collar Christian (Ready for Teddy. Cruz, that is. Texas conservative.)
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To: Blue Collar Christian; PROCON; Jim Robinson; ASA Vet

“Hell, we may have to form an Old Vet’s Armed and Dangerous Assault Brigade if this Obama crap gets any more anti-Constitutional.”

‘We could get the membership list from the Obama administration’s potential domestic terrorist list.’

Without any great imagination, old vets posting on Free Republic are probably on some list in the 3 letter agencies, including some of us who were might have been semi affiliated with one or more of them.


97 posted on 03/10/2015 10:23:02 AM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will Sisi, Bibi, King Abdullah & ?, take out Isis in our White House, AG Dept, CIA, & State?)
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To: xrmusn

My TS was a little different. From my 7th grade until after college my parents lived in the same town.

Apparently, when I went to college and worked out of state during the summers, after graduation from college and until I got married, my background check was like a black hole. I told them where I had lived but there was really not that much history outside of my hometown. The investigators could do police checks but there was no one in those areas, who knew or remembered me with the exception of a couple of professors.

I was informed about this in later years as newer/current background checks were run. By then I was married, a dad and a home owner with neighbors, no more black holes.


98 posted on 03/10/2015 10:39:04 AM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will Sisi, Bibi, King Abdullah & ?, take out Isis in our White House, AG Dept, CIA, & State?)
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To: ChildOfThe60s

“My father was of the opinion that had Kennedy not been assassinated, we likely would have gotten no further involved.”

I was on active duty before and after Jack was killed.

Jack would have probably got us more involved without the stupid ROE’s that LBJ forced on our troops, Air Force and Navy.

Our Navy and Air Force if released to kill communist in North Nam and throughout Nam would have made their cities and infra structure look like Japan and Germany did after WW II. Then, our Army and Marine Warriors would done what they did in W WII, kill and destroy the enemy soldiers until they surrendered.


99 posted on 03/10/2015 10:48:06 AM PDT by Grampa Dave (When will Sisi, Bibi, King Abdullah & ?, take out Isis in our White House, AG Dept, CIA, & State?)
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To: Grampa Dave

Remember how USN/UMSC used to ‘love’ us ‘Catholic School People’ as we were ready made for boot camp?

After the Nuns ‘working one over’ for 8 or so years Boot Camp was a breeze..<: and had figured out no matter how ‘hard’ they threatened you, chances are they wouldn’t kill you.

As to the BI and all the addresses, given the times, I imagine the ‘word’ from 8 yrs worth of Nuns probably carried more weight than neighbors.....plus never in one place long enough to make ‘real enemies/adverseries’.....


100 posted on 03/10/2015 1:15:47 PM PDT by xrmusn ((6/98)A pessimist damns the wind, an optimist thinks it will change and a realist adjusts the sails.)
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