Vietnam War Interview Forum

Guest

Dave Wright

>2) What military branch/rank/unit/assignment

Army, 1st Division, 1/26th Infantry Regiment, Co. A. & Recon.  Pvt to Sergeant.

>3)Age at the time of service/and end of service/years in military

22-24 two years in the service.

>4)Geographic location during the Vietnam War.

We operated between Saigon and Cambodia, Tay Ninh and Ben Cat.

>5)What was your attitude toward war/government/military prior to the Vietnam War.Were You drafted?

The Cold War had be going on since the end of the Second World War.  T?here was great fear in our country about the aggressiveness of Communist expansion.  Vietnam became the place and the time where we decided to send them a message that we wouldn't just stand by while they took over the world.

Service in the nilitary was no where in my career plan but I had quite college and went to work after three years so the draft was going to catch me sooner or later.  I volunteered for the draft to get it out of the way so I could continue on iwth the rest of my life.

All I knew about the war was seen on the evening news and the movie, Green Barrets.  Thoughts of going to Canada or jail, or going underground with the hippies were unacceptable - how could I live with myself if I ran away?

>6)What was your experience in the war.

I was in a combat infantry unit and walked point about every third day.  Most of my experiences were shadowed by terror or frustrated with unexpressed grief.  So many kids around me didn't make it home but the war continued 24/7.  We coldn;t let up.  We had to keep going the best we could.

>7)What was your attitude after the war?

I came home cynical and angry that mankind couldn't do better than Vietnam.  The only way I could deal with it was to bury all my memories and deny that the war had changed me.  I was desperate to continue life as it had been before I left.  I married my fiancee, finished college and got a good job, but somehow the American Dream seemed hollow or shallow compared to real life and death in Vietnam.

Most people at home distanced themselves from the war, life went on as if Vietnam was some dream happening on another planet.  Suffering together, supporting one another, and self sacrifice had no worth in climbing the ladder to success back home.  All that impacted me so much had no worth back home so it was easy to believe that a big part of me had no worth either.

Vietnam became a national embarrassment and soldiers became reminders of all the bad political decisions that led us to abandon the South Vietnamese after so many kids were sacrificed by our country.

>8)Description of any problems related to the Vietnam War: Post-Traumatic Stress (PTSD), drugs/alcoholism, health issues (Agent Orange), divorce,nightmares, anti-social behaviors, unable to hold a job, unable to concentrate in school). Do you use the VA hospital? Do you watch Vietnam movies?

PTSD has been a continuous problem for fourty years.  I isolate from society because I am different from most people and the things I know aren't recogniazable by "normal" people.  I don't sleep well, always half awake on guard.  Diabetes showed up a few years ago and was presumed to be related to exposure to Agent Orange.  Short term memory is poor and the emotions I shut down to allow total focus while walking point still haven't returned.  The VA offers some help and I do watch war movies - still looking to see if someone has found answers that might help.

>9)Do you keep in touch with other veterans from the Vietnam War?

Keeping in touch with other vets usually means re-living the experiences that hurt so much.  I'm getting better now and have a few answers that seem to help others.

> Have you shared these experiences from the Vietnam War with your family members? Have you visited the Vietnam Memorial? Would you encourage your children (if you have any) to join the military?

Like many vets, I couldn't verbalize my experiences without feeling like the emotions would overwhelm me.  After thirty years, my wife suggested that I write down a few stories for our son.  All that I couldn;t talk about seemed to flow out on paper.  If you're interested, the stories are published under the title, "Not Enough Tears" available from Barn's & Noble or Amazon book websites.
>
>You can contact me by e-mail: turtle_601@yahoo.com