Spoken like a True American...
...and an admired veteran.
I was reading an 'Oral History of Vietnam by Black Veterans' book for an assignment today when I came upon the following passage. This veteran was explaining how he felt his life had changed after he'd come home from Vietnam and gone through the culture shock. I'm not completely sure why, but I felt really moved.
"I found out that I was just not existing. Now I done fell into the real life that I am living. I'm living 24 hours a day, no matter how rough the situation. Within my body I maintain peace and tranquility. I see I have all I need. I can cope with anything. I lost my fear of death, because I have really accepted life. Although I live in a merchandise society, I don't try to keep up with it. I don't even watch TV unless it is a live sports event or something happening right then. When you watch someone pretend to live life, you wasting you time. And I see many people back here stateside killing as many people as they were killing in Vietnam. Vietnam really gave me a respect for human life. I value people. People make me happy now. And I don't feel inferior anymore....I feel equal to everyone, and I walk humbly among men. I'm studying to be a computer programmer, but that doesn't make me better than a garbage man.
Most of the nightmares are gone. Except one.
I still think about this North Vietnamese soldier. We took two hours to kill him. This was a brave dude. I'll never forget him. It took a whole platoon to kill him.
He was held up in a tunnel. He knew he had no possible chance of winning whatsoever. And he wasn't really expecting no help. But this was the bravest dude I had ever seen. And I respect this dude.
...We had interpreters to rap to him to give up. If he give up, they would rehabilitate him and shit like that...They rapped and rapped to him. And we started shooting and throwing frags and Willie Peter rounds--white phosphorous grenades that burn through metal and shit.
But the only way we got him was this crazy [soldier] jumped down in the hole and beat him to the punch. With a shotgun right through his neck. So when they pulled him out, he was hit badder than an ol' boy. He had a hunk of meat out of his leg, big as that. He had shrapnel all over his body. He had a hole in his side. But he wouldn't give up. Because he really believed in something. This man was willing to die for what he believed in. That was the first time I ran into contact with a real man. I will never forget him.
When I was in Vietnam, it was not important to me where I died. Now it is very important to me. I made a promise in 'Nam that I would never risk my life or limb to protect anybody else's property. I will protect my own.
So this country is not going to tell me to go out again to stop the spread of Communism. In Germany we were buying beef for the GIs that came from Communist countries. They telling us to fight the spread of Communism but they be helping the Communist economy. I don't walk around blind anymore. If another war breaks out and they want me to go, I'd rather die. I'll fight anyone here in America. But if they come and get me to send to some other country, I'm going to have my gun ready for them." - Charles Strong
Source: Terry, Wallace. Bloods: An Oral History of the Vietnam War by Black Veterans. New York: Random House Publishing Corp, 1984.
I was reading an 'Oral History of Vietnam by Black Veterans' book for an assignment today when I came upon the following passage. This veteran was explaining how he felt his life had changed after he'd come home from Vietnam and gone through the culture shock. I'm not completely sure why, but I felt really moved.
"I found out that I was just not existing. Now I done fell into the real life that I am living. I'm living 24 hours a day, no matter how rough the situation. Within my body I maintain peace and tranquility. I see I have all I need. I can cope with anything. I lost my fear of death, because I have really accepted life. Although I live in a merchandise society, I don't try to keep up with it. I don't even watch TV unless it is a live sports event or something happening right then. When you watch someone pretend to live life, you wasting you time. And I see many people back here stateside killing as many people as they were killing in Vietnam. Vietnam really gave me a respect for human life. I value people. People make me happy now. And I don't feel inferior anymore....I feel equal to everyone, and I walk humbly among men. I'm studying to be a computer programmer, but that doesn't make me better than a garbage man.
Most of the nightmares are gone. Except one.
I still think about this North Vietnamese soldier. We took two hours to kill him. This was a brave dude. I'll never forget him. It took a whole platoon to kill him.
He was held up in a tunnel. He knew he had no possible chance of winning whatsoever. And he wasn't really expecting no help. But this was the bravest dude I had ever seen. And I respect this dude.
...We had interpreters to rap to him to give up. If he give up, they would rehabilitate him and shit like that...They rapped and rapped to him. And we started shooting and throwing frags and Willie Peter rounds--white phosphorous grenades that burn through metal and shit.
But the only way we got him was this crazy [soldier] jumped down in the hole and beat him to the punch. With a shotgun right through his neck. So when they pulled him out, he was hit badder than an ol' boy. He had a hunk of meat out of his leg, big as that. He had shrapnel all over his body. He had a hole in his side. But he wouldn't give up. Because he really believed in something. This man was willing to die for what he believed in. That was the first time I ran into contact with a real man. I will never forget him.
When I was in Vietnam, it was not important to me where I died. Now it is very important to me. I made a promise in 'Nam that I would never risk my life or limb to protect anybody else's property. I will protect my own.
So this country is not going to tell me to go out again to stop the spread of Communism. In Germany we were buying beef for the GIs that came from Communist countries. They telling us to fight the spread of Communism but they be helping the Communist economy. I don't walk around blind anymore. If another war breaks out and they want me to go, I'd rather die. I'll fight anyone here in America. But if they come and get me to send to some other country, I'm going to have my gun ready for them." - Charles Strong
Source: Terry, Wallace. Bloods: An Oral History of the Vietnam War by Black Veterans. New York: Random House Publishing Corp, 1984.