Vietnam War Memories & An Excerpt from RECALL
Half our population was not born in the 1960’s so they have no first-hand knowledge of the Vietnam War. They base their knowledge on war stories, movies, and a collection of myths – Not a reliable fact-based perspective, don’t be deluded. Many of those who were alive back then may remember the nightly black and white TV reports and daily media accounts bombarding the public from Vietnam. Unfortunately, some was fake news promulgating antiwar propaganda. Remember the scenes from the battlefield? Some horrifying photos had a force multiplier effect on public opinion.
For others, the recollection is foggy, fading from memory as they age. But, for those who served over fifty years ago in country the memory remains vivid, repressed, the source of nightmares or PTSD. Two-thirds of those veterans have passed away. God bless them.
Most agree that memory is not a responsible or reliable stenographer of events occurring that long ago. Also, another factor complicates matters – Perception often does not correlate with reality. Many may view the same event and describe it in opposite or conflicting terms. The history of the Vietnam War offers a prime example.
The rancor of that war birthed a political polarization that persists today, five decades later. Attitudes following the war have remained divisive explaining in a large part why we behave the way we do today- civil discourse in tatters, bitter resentments lingering, and unwillingness to compromise becoming the norm.
For that reason, I spent five years trying to sort out my Vietnam experience and that of my close pals by reading every documentary or history I could find. That’s when I discovered CIA intelligence estimates from the Vietnam era (1964-1975) that were declassified in the ‘80’s. That was the eye-opener for me. I decided to write a fictional historical narrative to pass along what I learned about “what we did not learn from our Vietnam experience.” I recall not only Vietnam, but the turbulent antiwar aftermath and hippie culture when I returned to San Francisco during the height of the cultural revolution to complete my surgery residency.
It is no coincidence that I titled my narrative RECALL. The novel features four young men who played high school football together in the ‘50’s who end up in Vietnam a decade later. An excerpt from one chapter illustrates a highly decorated Green Beret’s reaction to the antiwar movement in San Francisco. His opinion renders an unfiltered version of how many veterans felt back then. I hope his comments will give you an idea of those turbulent times.
EXCERPT FROM RECALL
The Scene: Two of my protagonists are discussing a third’s attitude who is undergoing reconstructive surgery for Vietnam battle injuries. It gives you a glimpse of how many vets objected to their shabby treatment upon their return to the States and the pervasive divergent attitudes of the cultural war raging in the streets. Not the warm homecoming they may have envisioned. But, then again, Vietnam was not a warm and fuzzy story. Assimilating back into a chaotic society posed another challenge for the vets when they had enough inner demons to deal with after their battle experience.
The conversation then went on to other matters, catching up with old friends and their activities. The men carefully avoided mention of Roe’s last encounter with Cody at the Haight Ashbury party in October. That was confidential information. Both choose to keep a lid on it while the surveillance operation proceeded.
Instead, Roe mentioned that Cody was undergoing another reconstructive plastic surgery at the University Hospital in San Francisco to repair the damage to his ear and to revise the ugly scars from the shrapnel wounds he suffered at Pleiku. The surgeons at Clark AFB did what was required under wartime conditions, debriding the wounds, and preventing infection. Cody had lost large portions of soft tissue, making cosmetic wound closure difficult. The Plastic Surgery Department at Cal was more than glad to take on the challenge as the Presidio Hospital was packed with wounded arrived from Clark for continued care.
Roe had visited Cody on several occasions and reported he was doing well, in general, though he seemed a little quieter than usual. “He was taking a lot of pain medication, more than required, it seemed. Guy was never really very talkative anyway, Cody seemed a little detached. Looks really different, almost didn’t recognize him. He let his GI haircut grow out to shoulder length like a hippie, has a moustache, an earring, and a lot of tattoos. Nothing like the Green Beret I evac’ed out of Pleiku in ’65. He told me that his old dog, Schooner, had died. Remember that great big Chesapeake Bay retriever, Biff? He was like a brother to Cody. Said his Dad died shortly thereafter, and his Mom is in a nursing home with Alzheimer’s disease.”
“Sorry to hear that bad news, Roe,” Biff commented. “Cody’s hit a rough patch.”
“Agree, life doesn’t seem to be going favorably for Cody. He expressed strong resentment directed to the anti- war crowds in San Francisco. He didn’t like the disrespectful way they were treating returning troops.” “I can understand that,” Biff commented. “It’s disgraceful.”
“Cody said they all thought our troops were napalming villages and killing kids, day and night. Asked me if, ‘Can you fucking believe that?’ Concluded they didn’t have a clue about the war. He got real emotional, almost flipped out with anger. Really pissed.”
“Anti- war propaganda drummed up by the media.” Biff grumbled. “It’s created a toxic atmosphere dividing the country into opposing camps.”
“Everyone has so many misconceptions, I’ve lost count of them.” Roe added.
“Cody said he finally gave up trying to explain what it was really like over there. He sensed there was no appreciation for the GIs serving in Vietnam, what they were up against, so no need to try to convince them otherwise. Said the concept of collateral damage was lost on them, and the anti- war crowd considered our troops were invading barbarians. That they hadn’t even a remote idea what war was like. Basically, they lacked any sense of gratitude for our troops’ sacrifices. So, he’s adopted, ‘Screw all them friggin’ hippies’ as his attitude.”
Roe recounted Cody’s bitter comment that they were, “All a bunch of frigging draft dodgers, not worth fragging!”
Biff said he had heard remarks like that from other vets and that there was a lot out anger out there among vets regarding their baneful reception upon returning home.
Roe went on to say he tried to explain that at least half the population was truly grateful for their service. He had tried to explain to Cody that it was a time of political upheaval and shifting societal attitudes, but his perspective failed to influence or calm down Cody.
Cody had listened politely, but replied with the old Eastern Shore saying, “Nothin’ but a bunch of chicken shits!”
For more stories like this, read RECALL. Get the facts and form your own opinion. I’ve tried to present mine fairly. All four of my protagonists reached reached different conclusions about Vietnam, but remained friends.
Your comments are welcome if civil. Old passions die hard. I got it. We need to get over it and move on. Hopefully the insight RECALL provides will help.
FotoshopTofs / Pixabay
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