tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post2193337501066220351..comments2023-06-01T08:22:02.085-04:00Comments on here still running: Invasion and Occupationjohniebhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comBlogger34125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-9468328828957632112008-03-29T03:23:00.000-04:002008-03-29T03:23:00.000-04:00What I wanted was an understandingthat the world i...<I>What I wanted was an understanding<BR/>that the world is neither black-and-white<BR/>nor ours.<BR/><BR/>What I wanted<BR/>was an end to monuments.</I><BR/><BR/>Yes. Patriotism and all its trappings is a crutch for the dull minded.<BR/><BR/>Wonderful post.Mark Prime (tpm/Confession Zero)https://www.blogger.com/profile/04683863540465969835noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-2925402174153126042008-03-22T21:24:00.000-04:002008-03-22T21:24:00.000-04:00Not "rotten", Fluffie: carefully fermented; there'...Not "rotten", Fluffie: carefully fermented; there's a difference.<BR/><BR/>I guess there's no point in asking what he thought of the Ocelot's earlobes? "They're lovely."johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-91201600351954211782008-03-22T17:39:00.000-04:002008-03-22T17:39:00.000-04:00Apparently, the Nuoc Mam involved in said incident...Apparently, the Nuoc Mam involved in said incident, was dug up from out of the ground and passed off as "hot sauce". Hee hee hee. Rotten Fish Heads...PEW!<BR/><BR/>His other favorite thing to tell us, was about all the stuff the Vietnamese would put in coffee - massive sugar, hot sauce, eggs, etc., because it was so...bland.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-64428659938646048392008-03-21T14:41:00.000-04:002008-03-21T14:41:00.000-04:00Yeah, ED; I'm used to interpreting yer crap.Kiss, ...Yeah, ED; I'm used to interpreting yer crap.<BR/><BR/>Kiss, Sweetie.johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-47926568056371265582008-03-21T13:29:00.000-04:002008-03-21T13:29:00.000-04:00Clap Clap Clap.......You my very good friend and f...Clap Clap Clap.......You my very good friend and fellow disallusioned veteran have found your voice. I thought that in the past you blabbered in prose and mostly cons, but alas you have joined the lower class rectumus of us that try to say what they mean. Ya know what I mean brother man?wanderingmindhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13744459974563735334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-11199007555228441952008-03-21T12:18:00.000-04:002008-03-21T12:18:00.000-04:00John, your service credits you. What you have pai...John, your service credits you. What you have paid for it credits no one, least of all those meretricious bastards who robbed you and your generation, and are keeping at it.<BR/><BR/>I am still close to shame over not having served. I was called twice: once I psyched out, the 2nd time I was legitimately rejected. But somewhere, somehow, there were men who went over there because some of us over here thought we were getting over on the system or just got lucky. I have a friend who enlisted in the Marines and still will not talk about his punishment tour in something they called The Caves. Let's say it must've been awful because they offered him that or a trip to Leavenworth. He'd tried to frag an officer.<BR/><BR/>I DO hold a certain degree of satisfaction that I was not one of those antiwar types who showed up at airbases and screamed "Baby killer" at returning combat veterans. It seemed obscene and wrong then, and seems worse than that now.<BR/><BR/>I feel helpless, John. Many of us do. I thought that the time for investigations and hearings is gone, and it's time to get the torches and pitchforks. I will say right here for that I don't discount revolution as a means to an end. But they've got the guns. They've got a Nascar President with the true sobriety of a guy in a doorway, and this country is fulfilling its destiny as the land of the endless penis waving contest.<BR/><BR/>I don't know what to do anymore. The urge to give up, to not vote, to withdraw is overwhelming. But we can't. Can we?Kenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10020538249548627986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-80912283812559553452008-03-20T22:37:00.000-04:002008-03-20T22:37:00.000-04:00The more, the better; link away, all y'all. Commu...The more, the better; link away, all y'all. Communicating is the point, after all, isn't it?johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-54533541600353555372008-03-20T22:06:00.000-04:002008-03-20T22:06:00.000-04:00Johnieb - Thank you for your service, and thank yo...Johnieb - Thank you for your service, and thank you for your witness here. What you have to share is very powerful. I wish we could have folks with your experiences come speak at every church, every school, every workplace. So many of us saw through this charade of a war before it even happened. When the word "Iraq" began to appear in the media after 9/11 it seemed too carefully placed. I said to myself, "we're going to war in Iraq." And golly gee, we did.<BR/><BR/>I loved history class. I paid attention. I learned from it. I suspect many did not, and need to hear the stories and the history over and over again. And hopefully, someday, they will learn. I am dismayed -- no, more than that -- disgusted by and ashamed of the current administration. I have done as much as I know - I've voted, I've written letters, I've demonstrated, all to no avail. I hope and pray that someone will someday be brave enough to bring the current leaders of this country up on charges for war crimes, but I won't hold my breath. They're laughing all the way to the bank, over a road of corpses.<BR/><BR/>I'm linking this on my blog, and hope that's o.k. with you. My blog's private, but there's a few folks who I think would like to read this.Suzerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03529580138314011952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-87310761237819911822008-03-20T16:59:00.000-04:002008-03-20T16:59:00.000-04:00I, too, was language-qualified, and still understa...I, too, was language-qualified, and still understand a (very) little. I occasionally worked for the first six months with the 3rd MarDiv near Dong Ha, on the other side of Quang Tri City.<BR/><BR/>Bah! I still use Nuoc Mam, though I'm out right now. (We shared meals with our Vietnamese counterparts; as a consequence, I've eaten some things way past Nuoc Mam: don't ask)<BR/><BR/>I don't know how much time Marine Interpreters spent with Infantry companies; my circumstances dictated it: detached to a Brigade HQ, and enough choppers available to get me off the bases a couple of times a week.johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-17993170151315627272008-03-20T15:31:00.000-04:002008-03-20T15:31:00.000-04:00Hey johnie - Me da is not online - only to shop fr...Hey johnie - Me da is not online - only to shop from Bass Pro or RedHeads- hee hee<BR/><BR/>He was indeed a Marine. Trained at Paris Island. I'm sad to say, I'm not even sure what Battalion he was with...that's how little he talks about it.<BR/><BR/>And when he does talk about it, the stories I hear, are about guys gettin' likkered up gettin' tattooes, busting a bottle of nukmam in the hooch and having to move, or who won how much money for eating a cockaroach.<BR/><BR/>He NEVER talks about combat. He was an interpreter...can barely remember a lick of it now though. Force of will, he thinks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-53473268336409870002008-03-20T13:27:00.000-04:002008-03-20T13:27:00.000-04:00And I'm originally from the NE Texas/ SE Oklahoma/...And I'm originally from the NE Texas/ SE Oklahoma/ South Arkansas area, now in CT.<BR/><BR/>Thanks, all y'all, for the kind words; this is a rant that has long antecedents.johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-15547024500157082012008-03-20T13:23:00.000-04:002008-03-20T13:23:00.000-04:00What a wonderful gift you've given, Johnieb. Than...What a wonderful gift you've given, Johnieb. Thank you. <BR/><BR/>BTW, I may have mentioned this to you before, but in case I haven't ... Although I'm in Texas now, I'm originally from the Berkshires of Western Mass.Mike in Texashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12324396563818549026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-12126912894237724602008-03-20T11:10:00.000-04:002008-03-20T11:10:00.000-04:00I want to echo PJ, johnieb---thank you for what yo...I want to echo PJ, johnieb---thank you for what you tried to do for your country. I am appalled and ashamed that you and your compatriots are so badly served by the nation to which you gave so much.<BR/><BR/>A few years ago, I had a conversation with a church friend who had served in Vietnam. He was the first person who ever conveyed to me what war is REALLY like---weeks wearing the same dirty clothes, fungal infections from the inability to get clean, the constant weight of both gear and fear. The realization that you are being led by people who do not put themselves in harm's way.<BR/><BR/>When I go to the airport these days and see young people in uniform--the boys just a few years older than my beloved son---it makes me want to scream and kidnap them to keep them safe. If Bush believes this war is worth fighting, he needs to go to the front line himself, and not ask children to do his dirty work for him. <BR/><BR/>Prayers for you and for all who serve. And prayers that we will finally wake up and put an end to this nightmare.Wormwood's Doxyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10882756844690851674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-18692487305727089432008-03-19T20:21:00.000-04:002008-03-19T20:21:00.000-04:00And welcome to all you FNGs; stop by again.And welcome to all you FNGs; stop by again.johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-29213677245240768412008-03-19T20:20:00.000-04:002008-03-19T20:20:00.000-04:00Hey Pagan,Sure, I'd be happy to have you be the fi...Hey Pagan,<BR/><BR/>Sure, I'd be happy to have you be the first to link to one of my posts. And you may *** a few letters if that helps things at school.<BR/><BR/>Yer in Western Mass, right? There's a group in Amherst who have vets going around to schools to share experiences. I did that from Hartford a couple of decades ago, but Amherst is too far to be a regular part of such a group. <BR/><BR/>A one shot deal is not impossible, though.johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-6968577914742184452008-03-19T18:16:00.000-04:002008-03-19T18:16:00.000-04:00Oh Johnnieb, thank you for telling the truth...tha...Oh Johnnieb, thank you for telling the truth...<BR/>that's all I can say...Diane M. Rothhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07749136181846671327noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-43639808017981909472008-03-19T17:14:00.000-04:002008-03-19T17:14:00.000-04:00Thank you for this. It still astonishes me that w...Thank you for this. It still astonishes me that we even came close to walking into another Viet Nam -- worse yet, this time, because there was no government or identifiable group for us to to support or a civil war to claim to be stopping. We went in, destroyed the internal structures of Iraqi society, the police and the courts along with their military, not just the tyranny of Hussein, and then started wringing our hands about how difficult it will be to leave. What you and others told us returning from Vietnam was all over the news, t.v., magazines, later studied in schools, so how and why did we do it all over again, only so much worse? I'll never, never understand.kladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09526715552795733402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-79088357265604163902008-03-19T17:03:00.000-04:002008-03-19T17:03:00.000-04:00Hi,I came here on Franiam's recommendation. Thank ...Hi,<BR/><BR/>I came here on Franiam's recommendation. Thank you for sharing this. It's a very powerful piece. I'm at a loss for further words.<BR/><BR/>Peace.Edhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04936679109203808216noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-53943442573816710282008-03-19T16:47:00.000-04:002008-03-19T16:47:00.000-04:00Wow!Hugely powerful message. One day they will lis...Wow!<BR/><BR/>Hugely powerful message. One day they will listen.Rev Paul Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05294221174324852637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-76234385637608137272008-03-19T16:27:00.000-04:002008-03-19T16:27:00.000-04:00Mr. Johnieb,I am honored. May I link to this post?...Mr. Johnieb,<BR/>I am honored. <BR/><BR/>May I link to this post? I have visitors who may not otherwise see this. I would also like to ask you for permission to print this post and perhaps put it up on the staff buletin board at my school? I'm not sure if I will be granted permission, as it is overall quite a conservative school community in a very small rural town. But I can try.<BR/><BR/>Peace,<BR/>The P.S.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17296223961815248113noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-60644768132330430382008-03-19T16:16:00.000-04:002008-03-19T16:16:00.000-04:00What a fabulous post. Thank you for your anger and...What a fabulous post. Thank you for your anger and disappointment. How positive that is.Doorman-Priesthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06407399232593479871noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-87395174021712491012008-03-19T15:07:00.000-04:002008-03-19T15:07:00.000-04:00Oh, Johnieb, thank you for this. I had friends in ...Oh, Johnieb, thank you for this. I had friends in Viet Nam. One was killed 3 weeks before he was to come home. The others were never the same either.<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your witness here and everywhere.susan s.https://www.blogger.com/profile/03679099677585214433noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-86350519184690715732008-03-19T14:50:00.000-04:002008-03-19T14:50:00.000-04:00Actually, Fluffster, I called his evil minions "fu...Actually, Fluffster, I called his evil minions "fuckwitted...thugs"; him I called "Captain Codpiece."<BR/><BR/>Is your Da ever online? Da Nang likely makes him a Marine, or in support of Marines.johniebhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11635403219973766022noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-71628422008916951942008-03-19T14:25:00.000-04:002008-03-19T14:25:00.000-04:00(((((johnieb)))))My da's a Viet Nam vet too. He wa...(((((johnieb)))))<BR/><BR/>My da's a Viet Nam vet too. He was there in '66-'67. - Da Nang, I think...He doesn't talk about it much.<BR/><BR/>It's a shame, that as a species, we allow ourselves to be led around by the nose, and sacrifice our young for "interests".<BR/><BR/>It's an even bigger shame that it appears we can't learn shit.<BR/><BR/>I'm sorry - for all of us.<BR/><BR/>Plus....you called Shrub "fuckwit" which I love...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7824638781408722483.post-53021146984937496952008-03-19T14:11:00.000-04:002008-03-19T14:11:00.000-04:00Very well put. I appreciate your perspective. It...Very well put. I appreciate your perspective. It's sad the current administration's perspective is almost completely the opposite. I wrote a post about it last year, but as I'm sure you know, the current gang believe the stab-in-the-back crap over Vietnam, and not coincidentally are trying to sell the same crap now on Iraq, while trying to run out the clock to pass it to the next president. They have no shame, no conscience, no sense of public duty, but sadly, as if often the case, it's others who will continue to suffer and die as a result.Batocchiohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02193752396025012825noreply@blogger.com