Comments on: The Vietnam War Revisited- Part XVI- Coming Apart at the Seams

By: R Lawson

R Lawson — Wed, 27 Nov 2019 22:54:34 +0000

Mariano – Well spoken and on point. Wars of attrition are doomed to poor outcomes as this series of blogs will document. Hope you follow along and make cogent comments like this one. As Santayana stated, ”
Those who fail to learn the lessons of history are condemned to repeat them.”

By: R Lawson

R Lawson — Wed, 27 Nov 2019 22:53:31 +0000

In reply to Bob. Bob- Precisely one of the key viewpoints I express in my blogs (Fake News) and historical narrative, RECALL. I hope you take time to read them and comment.

By: R Lawson

R Lawson — Wed, 27 Nov 2019 19:42:33 +0000

In reply to Chuka. Thai for sweet.

Interesting story! I’ve heard similar stories from other pilots over there. Please read my blogs on ‘Rolling Thunder.’ Also, in my historical narrative,RECALL, I recount Col. Robin Olds F-4// F105 story that is a classic. Enemy knew our targets, our call signs… Olds, flying out of Thailand, turned the table on them. Also read my ‘Political Interference’ blog re LBJ’s telegraphing North Vietnam targets through Swiss Embassy in DC and Hanoi revealed by war correspondent Arnett in Canadian documentary, “The Ten-Thousand Day War’ in early ’80s. The media did a good job over covering that up during the war, but our pilots suspected it. The enemy’s intel was not that good !

By: Chuka. Thai for sweet

Chuka. Thai for sweet — Wed, 27 Nov 2019 17:02:59 +0000

Max sortie was the game being played during my adventure in ubon Thailand.
47 th out of macdill in 65, then with the 8 th out of George in 66,67. Really stupid.
We worked 24/7 for max sortie, f-4 s carrying two bombs. What a waste. The pilots would get fifty missions risking their life, in less then a month.
I was selected to go attend a motivational meeting at the commmanders call. Got to watch two F-4 s fly up a small stream, an napalm a couple of jokers fishing from the back of there Neba huts. What the hell.
I knew then something was starting to smell bad.
We were working hard, but the weapons guys were being juiced. They had to keep changing ordnance to confuse the enemy, it always left with two bombs, Don’t need, Mers and ters for that.

By: Mariano l. Domenech

Mariano l. Domenech — Tue, 26 Nov 2019 12:00:52 +0000

Although well known then, but forgotten today just like 9-11 did. Your information is accurate and well known, there wasn’t a single armed forces person that didn’t know what needed to be done, with the exception of their Commander In Chief. So many patriots lost, that could have been reduced to a fraction. The saddest thing was that the then generations, depicted in your commentary, opted to blame the military that was there on orders and believed in what they were doing, instead of blaming top management, the President and his staff. I belief, under a different person of course, that the George Soros era started back then. During the Golf War, Command and Control, after decades of practice and lessons learned, was executed, to a certain extent, and proven successful – leaders in the combat zone were given more flexibility to carry out the missions that were necessary, quickly, where needed, and effectively. Unfortunately, for eight years it went back to what it was, limiting and curtailing essential missions.

By: Bob

Bob — Fri, 22 Nov 2019 22:32:53 +0000

If memory serves me right, the VC were all but ready to surrender after Tet Offense, but thanks to the news media here in America and political pressures around. We became lost in the war.