Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam

---

Hey, it's 104 degrees,

(40C)

and if that doesn't wipe you out,

a jammed weapon will.

Remember, guys, keep it clean

and keep your head low.

"Hi, Mom. Well,

I'm fine today.

And I hope that you're

in good shape also.

Today I am swimming,

washing and taking in the sun.

The beach is great.

The sand is white

and the sky is clear.

Boy, I wish every day

was like this,

then I wouldn't have

any problems while I'm here."

American casualties

in Vietnam,

killed and wounded

now exceed 300,000.

More than 39,000 killed

and more than 258,000 wounded.

"Dear folks, this is your

on-the-spot correspondent

in the Big 'Nam reporting.'

"Hi, honey, I had

a hell of a day yesterday."

"Dear Sue, thank you

for the wingtips.

Only one question:

Where do I wear them in Vietnam?"

"Darling, I am sitting down

to write of my love for you

and the horrors of war."

"Actually, I'm writing because I have

to, or go out of my mind.

Things happen over here

you just can't..."

"Mom, I appreciate

all of your letters.

For a while as I read your letters,

I'm a normal person.

I'm not killing people

or worried about being killed."

"Darling, believe me, I try not

to skip a day in writing you.

Whether or not I get a letter determines

if it's a good day or not."

This is London...

Switzerland calling...

...South America...

And here is the news.

Three Communist P.T. boats

attacked an American destroyer

off the coast of Vietnam

yesterday.

And today, President Johnson's

response was hard and tough.

He has ordered the U.S. Navy

to continue patrolling there,

and if they are attacked

to destroy their attackers.

To any armed attack

upon our forces

we shall reply.

To any in Southeast Asia

who ask our help

in defending their freedom,

we shall give it.

You can't win in Asia.

So I am not going to go along

with this kind of a program

in South Vietnam,

at least with my vote,

that in my judgment is going

to kill needlessly

untold numbers of American boys,

and for nothing.

"Dear Dad, well, here it is.

We've been told that our whole company

will be shipping out to Vietnam

after advanced infantry

training.

Our company commander and our

battalion and brigade commanders

told us there's no sense in trying

to fool ourselves, we're going for sure.

The only thing

that makes me mad

is how do they expect you

to tell your parents."

"I don't mind going, but there are some

guys here who just won't make it.

And I don't think

they'll make it out alive.

Your son, Bob.

P.S., tell Mom not to worry.

It's nothing I can't handle."

All right, settle down,

settle down.

"Dear Uncle and Aunt,

some people wonder why

Americans are in Vietnam.

The way I see the situation,

I would rather fight and stop

Communists in South Vietnam

than in Kincaid, Humboldt,

Blue Mound or Kansas City.

And that's just about

what it would end up being.

The price for victory is high

when life cannot be replaced.

But I think it is far better

to fight and die for freedom,

than to live under

oppression and fear.

Your nephew, Jack."

- What state are you from?

- Charlotte, North Carolina, sir.

North Carolina?

Charlotte, yeah,

- I know it well. Good luck to you, lad.

- Thank you, sir.

"Dear John, well,

in 360 days I'll be home.

Try not to worry

too much about me.

I know that will be

difficult,

but it doesn't do anyone

any good.

Love, Bobby."

"Chris, I finally got

to my unit yesterday.

Our mission is to find V.C.

and kill them.

I should be operating like this

for the next two months

before I get a chance

to take a shower and sleep in a bed.

What a life.

There are absolutely

no comforts in our job.

I carry nothing but a razor

and a bar of soap for comfort.

We wear the only clothes

we have

and wash them in rivers

and streams as we cross them.

You were right.

I managed to get myself

right in the middle of it all."

"Dear Tom, hi, how are you?

I hope all is well at home.

Everything's okay here.

My whole squad is

all a bunch of screwballs.

Eddie's running around

with an insect bomb

cursing the bugs.

The mosquitoes that come out

at night are man-eaters,

but the insect repellent

keeps them off.

It's safe in the daytime. We stand out

in the open or work on the bunker.

We can run up and down

the hill with no worries.

But at night we've got to stay

in the bunkers, as snipers sneak in.

Dennis."

"P.S., send some Kool-Aid.

The water here

tastes like sh*t."

I think I got

a booby trap here.

Roger Whiskey,

I have a booby trap...

trip wire tied

onto a branch,

grenade on the end of the trip wire.

Spoon is out.

"Dear Mom and Dad, the way

we move without contact

I begin to wonder

if the V.C. are even out there.

All the time

you know they are.

The great frustration is

that they don't come out and fight."

Be careful now!

Watch yourself.

"Dear Red, anyone

over here who walks

more than 50 feet

through elephant grass

should automatically

get a Purple Heart.

Try to imagine grass

possessing razor-sharp edges

eight to 15' high, so thick

as to cut visibility to one yard.

Then try to imagine

walking through it

while all around you are men possessing

the latest automatic weapons

who desperately want

to kill you.

You'd be amazed at how much

a man can age on one patrol."

"We're all scared.

One can easily see this emotion

in the eyes of each individual.

One might hide it

with his mouth,

while another might hide it

with his actions.

But there is no way

around it.

We are all scared."

Look up in the tree!

Look up in the tree!

Aw, sh*t!

He's over there!

I'll get you,

son of a b*tch!

Go!

"My dearest Bev,

for the last week we've been waiting

for an attack,

and finally it came

in full force.

Honey, I was never so scared

in my whole life.

We got hit by 12 mortars

and rockets.

A mortar landed

about 30' from me.

And I was lucky enough

to have my head down.

But the sergeant

next to me didn't,

and I think

he lost an eye."

I've been hit!

Ahhh, I've been hit!

"This was my first

real look at war.

And it sure was

an ugly sight.

I helped carry

some of the wounded away.

And, boy, I sure hope

I don't have to do that again.

It was an experience you can never

explain in a million words."

I've got a lot of pain

in that left ankle.

That's a good sign.

It's that sharp pain you get

when you've got nerves, you know?

It's that sharp nerve pain,

burning, burning.

They're gonna do

all they can to save that leg.

I know.

I know there's not much left

because I was carrying

that damn thing in my hands

all the way back.

I was afraid the whole thing

was gonna come off.

I said, "Hell, they can't be

right around in here."

So, I didn't call bombs

and nap in on these people.

- Mm-hmm.

- But that's where they were.

I'm sure now that

that's where they were.

God damn it, I...

I hate to put nap...

and...

and on these women

and children.

I just didn't do it.

I just said, "They can't be there."

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