 Post; Two personal post-Vietnam stories ...
To give you just a 'little' idea of what transpired when we came home, I can relate two stories from my personal life.
Coming home from Vietnam:
When I came off an airplane in Ohare Airport in Chicago, I picked up my duffel bag and was 'running' from one concourse to another to catch a connecting flight ... a bald headed bimbo (Hari Krishna or some such sect), jumped in front of me and was screaming some of the most filthy language at me I have ever heard coming out of the mouth of a woman (I was in uniform). It seemed, one of the simplest things I was, was a 'baby killer' and a 'rapist'. Since I didn't have time to argue with her, I raised my hand and stiff-armed her right between her breasts and knocked her on her arse, then stepped on her as I continued on my way. An airport policeman saw what happened, hurried up and without hindering me asked me what happened ... I told him, he turned around and went back to the bimbo, and the last thing I saw was the cop putting a set of handcuffs on the 'lady?'.
Home on leave ... first week after return from Vietnam:
My girlfriend and I were walking down Main Street in our town, when a jet went supersonic overhead with the resultant sound that we all associate with an airplane exceeding the sound barrier. As the sonic boom was fading into silence, I looked up at the people that were standing around and realised that I had unconsciously reacted to the loud booming, window and ground rattling sound ... you Vietnam Vets know exactly what I mean. I had 'hit the deck' and rolled to cover (streetside curb), against the next 'incoming'. When my girlfriend told the people that I had JUST returned from Vietnam, I heard comments from some of the younger little 'corner warrior pr*cks', that had me seeing red. If it hadn't been for my girl I would have ended up in jail for committing mayhem on people that just weren't worth it.
DOES THIS SOUND FAMILIAR TO SOME OF YOU? My stories are MILD in comparison to some of the stories I have heard from other Vietnam Vets ... spitting and name calling were just some of the mildest actions carried out against returning veterans.
Is it any wonder that some of our compatriots snapped and went on people killing rampages?
There were a few times that I could have been one of them ... but ... I was never quite that far gone (bent but NOT warped). |