'Nam

From Woodstock and a man on the moon to the Manson murders and the Stonewall riots, the summer of 1969 was a tumultuous and eventful time. Today happens to be the 40^th anniversary of Woodstock. It is said to be an event that shaped a generation. It was a celebration of peace, love and harmony and young people’s expression of youth and optimism in a time of war. Ironically enough, just 7 days before Woodstock my dad received his draft letter. My dad was ordered to report for induction on September 11^th, 1969 at 6:45 a.m. He was ordered to bring enough clean clothes for 3 days and to bring enough money to last one month for personal purchases. Today, Aug 15^th, in 1971, would turn out to be my dad’s last day in Vietnam. Some people think of 13 as their lucky number. My dad was in Vietnam for exactly 13 months and 13 days. I’m pretty sure that my dad didn’t consider 13 to be a lucky number. It says in his draft letter to be prepared to be found 'not qualified' for induction and to make arrangements with their employers for their return if that is the case. I wonder how many people actually got turned away after being drafted. I imagine not many. Supposedly if you were a college student and/or married you could petition to be excused. Being fresh out of high school and only 19 years old at the time, my dad was a college student and with my grandmother being so angry at thought of him even being drafted, I wonder why he didn’t petition. I never got the chance to sit down and talk to him about his experience. I know that like many war veterans my dad chose to keep his war experiences to himself. Thankfully, my dad was an incredibly organized person. He kept everything. When he died 5 years ago I brought home all of his stuff. Included were boxes of pictures, slides, photo albums and yearbooks, every ticket stub to every concert he ever attended, albums of his favorites like Jimi Hendrix, The Who, CCR, Tom Petty, etc. Even Scotch tape reel recordings that state they are of a live Jimi Hendrix concert which I have yet to listen to. He kept all of his buttons and patches from his time in the Boy Scouts. During his run for Mayor of Juneau, Alaska, he kept all of his bumper stickers and campaign paraphernalia including all the newspapers featuring him and the election. All of this ‘stuff’ was and is my dad. It has taken me five years to go through everything and appreciate it all…the good and the bad. One of the boxes happens to be the contents of my dad’s time in Vietnam. I had skimmed through it in the past but in the last week I have actually read every piece of paper, looked at every picture and read every article he kept. I have such a new found respect for him and the sad part is that I never got the chance to tell him. It’s almost like I am taken back in time and meeting my dad for the first time. I guess the purpose for this entry today is just my reflection on it all. I'm absorbing the rawness of what it must have been like to be in his shoes at that time and I thought I would share it with anybody who'd like to listen.

One of the things that I found amongst his Vietnam-era things was a form given to him by the Army. On the front it states, “To make the U.S. Army more attractive for the G.I. and to promote a volunteer Army, fill in the questionnaire and add your suggestions. Return to 1SG4 or Section NCOIC after completing.” The front is completely blank. However, stapled to the back of the form was this letter written by my dad.

(Keep in mind that he is only 19 years old)

“We the undersigned appreciate being given the opportunity to express our ideas and opinions, as individuals, about how we can better serve the Army.

It is our opinion that if more individual rights, as given in the Constitution were granted to the soldier, he would feel more pride in being a part of the Army. Rights such as freedom of speech, press and assembly are given, in the Constitution, as inalienable. Yet, we who are in the Army are denied these basic rights. We ask why? We feel that an Army can function well using the basic rights as dictated by the Constitution.

During a period of war, not a “police action” as Vietnam is considered, some of these rights must be given up, and are. But, by all of society. It is our opinion that today’s soldier feels isolated from society because he protects rights which he himself does not have.

Revision of the UCMJ we feel is one of the more important points needed to promote a Volunteer Army. Being innocent until proven guilty, trial by our peers, and a reasonable bond system while appealing conviction will insure fair justice in military courts.

There are other points which cannot be written down in regulations which we feel must also be considered. The right of free expression has made the United States great and we feel it would greatly improve the military. The opportunity to be creative in one’s job would give the soldier a greater feeling of pride. All this is important in developing a totally volunteer Army. We feel it is important to encourage enlisted men to think rather than blindly follow orders. Until action is taken we feel a volunteer Army is far from reality.

As soldiers we have tried to point out what we feel are weak points in the military which may cause an individual to decide against a career. Of course, there are many small but significant points which would need to be changed. We have slightly touched upon what we feel are major points that need to change before what the Army desires can ever become a reality.”

Attached to this letter are 30 pages of signatures:

Here are some more pics:

I have a greater respect and feeling of admiration for him now. I recently have been corresponding with a man through his blog who is writing about his time in Vietnam. His daughter (Jill, weird huh?) suggested he write about his experiences and it has become therapeutic for him to write down thoughts that he has lived with about Nam for 40 years. Through him I am learning more about what my dad went through, in turn, getting some answers that I never would have had answered otherwise. If you'd like to check it out: http://usastruck.wordpress.com/
I feel like the Vietnam War is a thing of the past in the eyes of my generation, and with the current war going on, is also being forgotten. I unconditionally support all of our troops past and present, and whole-heartedly want to thank all of them for all the sacrifices they've made for our country.