THE Wall

[BLUEHAWK]

It was lonely there, in a unique way, the way I ended up doing it anyhow.

Now later, it seemed like I was taken back to another time, or something of the kind, ages ago, but in the present.

Kipling said it best to me... that day.

TOMMY

"I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer,
The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here."
The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I:
O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away";
But it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls,
But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls!
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide,
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.

Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;
An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit.
Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.

We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints,
Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints;
While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind",
But it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind,
There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind,
O it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind.

You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires, an' all:
We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace.
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country" when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees!"

[MORTARDUDE]

This is one poem that should be required to be read in Basic training and whenever somone leaves active duty. Thanks for posting it again !

Larry

[MORTARDUDE]

This picture shows the reflection of I and my wife and two children ( in 1986 ) looking at the Wall panel where my comrades who were killed in an ambush in June 1970 in Cambodia, are listed. The shake-and-bake Sgt. in charge had only been in country for a month. All five were killed and because it was in heavy jungle they brought the bodies out in a net slung underneath a Huey. I will never forget the sight as it went over my head with their arms and legs protruding thru the mesh...another day in 'Nam. Rest in Peace.

Larry

[MORTARDUDE]

........................

[BLUEHAWK]

Originally posted by MORTARDUDE This picture shows the reflection of I and my wife and two children ( in 1986 ) looking at the Wall panel where my comrades who were killed in an ambush in June 1970 in Cambodia, are listed. The shake-and-bake Sgt. in charge had only been in country for a month. All five were killed and because it was in heavy jungle they brought the bodies out in a net slung underneath a Huey. I will never forget the sight as it went over my head with their arms and legs protruding thru the mesh...another day in 'Nam. Rest in Peace.

Larry

I'm sorry to hear about that, Larry.

Thanks for the pictures though.

[BLUEHAWK]

Originally posted by MORTARDUDE ........................

Thank you, Mr. Perot, very very much.

[BLUEHAWK]

Paco saw it recently...

"Dr. Victor Westphall Dies
July 22, 2003
News & Links
America's Veterans
Homepage

July 22, 2003 -- America's Veterans has learned that Dr. Victor Westphall, founder of the nation's first Vietnam Memorial at Angel Fire, New Mexico died Tuesday morning, July 22nd. He was America's Veterans Featured Veteran in April 2003.

Our last visit with Dr. Westphall was in June of 2003. We feel blessed to have known him over the years and to have had the opportunity to interview and photograph him for The Living Wall? project.

He is reunited with his son, David, killed at Con Thien in May of 1968 in whose honor the Vietnam Memorial was built.

Contributions in lieu of gifts may be made to the Vietnam Veterans National Memorial, P.O. Box 608, Angel Fire, NM 87710"

Don't miss it, if you ever have a chance.

[BLUEHAWK]

Scout Barnes posted this on another thread... seemed right to copy it here:

"Consider the very topmost civilian-military leadership skill sets and mindsets of our current time vs. what we suffered under during the Vietnam war. Better yet, don't take my word for it, but read a highly praised book, "Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, The Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies the Led to Vietnam." If you don't want to, or have not the time to read it, than I encourage to read the review, printed in the "Army" the magazine of the Association of the United States Army, March 2005 issue. Here's just the first paragraph:

"As is evident by the publication of Robert S. McNamara's "In Retrospect," the Vietnam War still haunts us. In what is likely to become the most controversial examination of civil-military relations during the period 1963-65, H. R. McMaster has produced a provocative analysis that sheds the veil of secrecy that dominated Lyndon B. Johnson's decision-making process. In so doing, he paints a disturbing portrait of McNamara and the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), particularly Gen.Maxwell D. Taylor. If a historian's job is to challenge the conventions of history, however, McMaster succeeds admirably in exploring the ineffectual role of the Joint Chiefs..."

After reading the book, I came to a much better understanding of how the ineptitude of LBJ, coupled with the spineless behavior of some of our senior military were the primary cause for 58,000+ names being where they are. That Holy Wall is their damning legacy."

[BLUEHAWK]

GOODBYE VIET NAM

"I'm haunted by memories brought up from the past
When I hear your name or remember the blast
Of ammo exploding and the sky lit with flame
How I wish I'd forget the sound of your name!
It brings forth my tears and feelings of dread
To listen to voices inside my head
That say, "What the hell am I doing here?"
I feel sadness, anxiety, rage, and fear.
For so long I managed to push you away
To a place in my mind so far from today.
Yet sooner or later your head would rise up
And stir my emotions and they would erupt.
The tears come so freely to think that
I Was not one of the 58,000 who died.
My life was spared by the hand of God
But others were not, and they died like dogs.
They carried their bodies in zip lock bags
To choppers and ships after they dragged
Them through rice paddies, jungles and village streets
To coffins lined up so straight and neat.
These boys were just heeding their country's call
To defend our freedom; to give their all.
Little they knew when they departed
To fight in a war they had not started.
Good little soldiers were trained to kill
In simulations of deserts and hills.
They could not know that it was different this time,
There was no way to tell there was no front line.
The war was among us, on every side
There was no safe haven, no place to hide.
Was the kid over there a Viet Cong?
Was I right or could I be wrong?
Would he tie a grenade to my bunk that day
So when I slept, it would blow me away?
Would Mama-San rig up my jeep to explode
A grenade in my gas tank ready to blow?
The war was on all sides and made me feel
Constantly vigilant even at meals.
No one could be trusted, no one at all
A misplaced trust could cause you to fall.
The evening news would report the death toll
Between ads for soap and Wesson Oil,
Barely pausing before the vultures would pounce
On the chance to update today's body count.
One more number to add to the score;
One more son not coming home any more.
One more to feed to the war machine;
One more whose face would go unseen.
I did my part, but I still mourn
For the ones who seem they were never born.
Their lives snuffed out with little regard
For their souls and their eternal reward.
I thank my God for sparing me
And for the effort it took for me to see
That His hand was on me throughout the time I spent in that humid, tropical clime.
Still my heart is tender and my feelings are raw
To think I walked into the jaws
Of ugly war which made no sense to us
Nor to the ones who thought it unjust.
They called us hawks and baby killers
They spat on us and took their pills.
They carried signs and protested involvement
Like we were the ones who made the commitment
We just followed orders like our fathers before us
Who did it and then were brought home victorious.
They showered them with ticker tape parades;
We came home to ridicule and rage.
Where's my parade, the flags unfurled;
I was dropped like a rock back into the world
With cars whizzing past and mindless chatter
Was I really there, did I really matter?
Can you understand my grief and my pain?
The tears I shed, the hurt that remains?
The dead, the dying, the innocence lost,
Didn't you stop to count the cost?
It's too late now to make amends
To wipe the slate clean, to call me your friend.
I hate you dreaded Viet Nam
You stole a part of who I am.
My tears are like medals, it's OK to cry,
I'll drop a tear for every guy
Who entered that land and did not return
And for those who were damaged, whose feelings burn.
Goodbye, Viet Nam,
I won't give you the power
By thinking of you every day, every hour.
I'll choose to honor the memories instead
Of my fellow soldiers, living and dead."
_________________
"Welder"
Spc4
C-Co 17th Sig Bn
(Attatched to 143rd Sig Bn 3rd Armored Div)
Desert Storm 1990+1991

Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2005 3:14 pm

"Blue, this was written by Terry Rushbrook
1LT, Army Signal Corps,
1968-1969, Cam Rahn Bay, Qui Nhon, Da Lat"
Frisbee

[BLUEHAWK]

"BH,I believe this is the soldier who wrote this poem....Written from the heart by Terry Rushbrook
1LT, Army Signal Corps,
1968-1969, Cam Rahn Bay, Qui Nhon, Da Lat .....I hope this helps"
Cominatcha