Good luck with your research. I hope it is objective.
Regards,
Monte Olsen
Monte,
First of all, and above all else, I want to thank you for your response. Doing a
history of the time is still a bitter experience. I am intent upon preserving
the TRUTH because I agree with something Einstein said, "Those who cannot learn from the past are condemned to repeat it." It was a terrible, divisive time
for all of us. I don't want to repeat it. Therefore, I need to learn from it.
I've learned that most of the posters in AWV are veterans of the war -- and not
its opponents. Therefore, I will need to find former AW people elsewhere. I also
need to change my research tactics a little bit. I think it would be a good idea
to begin a dialogue with veterans. I really want to talk -- to exchange opinions
-- with people like you. Please give me your best arguments, I will be pleased
if I am proven wrong. Back in the late sixties and early seventies, dialogs with
proponents of the war were almost impossible. They quickly degenerated into
shouting matches where both sides traded slogans -- it was a cruel parody of the dialogue of democracy. I don't want to exchange slogans with anyone. I
would like to continue my communications with you. Perhaps you and I will
find some grounds where we can respect one another's point of view, and
learn from the experience.
Since I am changing my tactics, I have a few questions I would like to ask:
You served in Vietnam from 3/70 to 3/71. I seem to recall that was around the
time Nixon was trying to put together an all-volunteer army. Were you a
volunteer, or were you drafted? How did you feel when you were assigned to
'Nam?
I was a volunteer. My brother had been serving in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968 in the infantry. I dropped out of high school to enter the army at age 17. I really hadn't thought about going or not going toVietnam at the time. I supported my brother and felt it was my duty to stand by him. I'm glad I did as we are good friends.I believe that our "poor" behavior in Vietnam has been grossly exaggerated by many many people and that we, as returning veterans, took the brunt of many peoples' hard feelings. Most of us simply wanted to come home, put it as far behind us as we could and, if not be thanked for our service, not be abused for it either.
I was first sent to Italy and my name came down on a "levy" for Vietnam. I really didn't have any feelings one way or the other except a small pang of fear. I was a radio operator in the army, which meant I could have wound up almost anywhere. Fortunately, I was not assigned to an infantry unit when I spent my year there. I was sent to a place that was rocketed and mortared fairly frequently (once a day or so), but I didn't have to hike through the jungle (hump the boonies), nor did I lose any close friends.
I am really sorry your welcome home was "somewhat dulled." Did it come as a surprise? What was the perception of the antiwar movement by soldier in 'Nam? Were you prepared or surprised by a cool reception?
I was somewhat surprised at how people felt about us. By that, I mean I was surprised that people thought we had rampaged around the country, shooting anything that moved and venting our anger and frustrations on a humble populace. That was not true. For the large, large majority of us, our service was honorable. Whether we should have been involved in Vietnam is another matter. In retrospect, I believe our goals were honorable for the most part, but we should not have fought the war for the Vietnamese. I wasn't prepared for the image people had of us when I returned. This is an image many people still have of us.I sometimes relate the memory of sitting in a community college classroom, attending night school economics and having a professor at the front of the class literally use some of the most abominable language to describe veterans and what we did in Vietnam to a class of young and open minds. I had only been back five months at the time and almost jumped over some desks to punch him out. Whether he knew I was a veteran, I don't know. I managed to restrain myself and leave the classroom without doing or saying anything. I dropped his class after two weeks of not learning economics but hearing this person go into hysterics about our supposed behavior. This definitely stuck in my mind. During the Gulf War, I demonstrated in support of our troops (I was against sending them) and had a woman come up to me and say I should "have died in Vietnam." This was not an uncommon sentiment then and some people still feel that way.
Regarding the veterans you knew who were spat upon, I would like to know more about specifics, etc.
My friend, Jack Carpenter, a pilot, was spat upon. Another friend, Gary Allord, a returning Marine officer, was also accosted.
Please note: Monte Olsen never was an opponent of the Vietnam War. Therefore, I do not want any of his comments to be misconstrued as being supportive of the antiwar movement.