Korengal Page #7

blowing into pieces...

We all started cheering.

It's pretty much like

a "f*** you" to them.

'Cause every single day

they're trying to kill you

when you're trying to bring

something good into their val...

into this shitty-ass valley

they have.

That has not even running water

in it, really.

And then, after every single day

of them trying to kill you

and then finally you know

that you f***ed one of them up,

you're like...

it almost makes...

it makes you cheer a little bit.

In your mind you're thinking,

this guy could have,

you know, murdered my friend.

He could be the one

that put the bullet

through so and so's head.

He could be the guy

that shot me in the head.

The cheering comes,

I think, from knowing that

that's a person you'll

never have to fight again.

That's a person that's not gonna

attempt to kill you ever again.

And as sick as people may think

it is at home

or people that don't

understand it, uh...

Fighting another human being

is...

is not as hard as you'd think

when they're trying to kill you.

You can't kill me,

motherfuckers!

This one's for you, America.

For a while there,

I started...

I started thinking

that God hates me.

And, like I said,

I'm not religious or anything,

but I felt like

there was this hate for me.

'Cause I did... sins, you know?

I sinned.

And, uh, although I would

have done it the same way,

everything the same exact way...

I still would feel this way,

you know?

I'd still...

And that's the terrible thing

of war, you know?

You do terrible things.

And then you have to live

with them afterwards.

But you'd do them the same way

if you had to go back.

So what do you do?

You know.

It's like a f***ing...

it's an evil, evil,

evil thing inside your body.

It's like f***ing good

versus evil inside there,

and... everyone tells you,

you know,

you did a honorable thing.

You did all right.

You're all right.

You did...

You did what you had to do.

And I just hate that comment.

"Did what you had to do."

'Cause I didn't

have to do any of it.

And that's

what the f***ing thing is.

That's the hardest thing

to deal with.

You know,

I didn't have to do sh*t.

I didn't have to go in the Army.

I didn't have to become

Airborne Infantry.

I didn't have to do any of that.

But I did, you know?

And, that comment,

"You did what you had to do,"

just drives me insane.

Because is that

what God's going to say?

"You did what you had to do,

good job"?

Punch you on the shoulder

and f***ing say,

"Welcome to heaven," you know?

I don't think so.

They're 762

AK47 rounds with wings.

Due to the fact that I,

uh, got...

you know, took one to the head.

Kind of grazed off my helmet.

So they had...

Some angels were watching

that bullet when they

popped me in the head,

so I've got my wings.

I got this one right here.

That's the good tattoos

right there.

These are the things

you get drunk

and wake up like, oh, jeez..

When did you get that?

My 18th birthday.

And how long ago was that?

Two years ago.

How come you got it?

Uh...

Partly because I wanted to

kind of make my dad mad.

'Cause he didn't really

want me to get it.

And another because

my great uncle was in the 101 st,

and that was kind of for him.

Do you have any other tattoos?

Or just that one?

- Just that one right now.

- You going to get any more?

Yeah, I'm going to get

the memorial of everyone who's...

that we lost here.

Sergeant Rice has

some names on his arm

from his last deployment.

He's going to get

another one too, with, uh...

As far as I know,

he's going to get the quote

from the beginning of

"8th of November."

- Which is what?

- It's uh... no...

"There's no love greater..."

Er... what is that?

- I can't remember it.

- You have it on your iPod?

Yes, I do.

Hello, I'm Kris Kristofferson.

On November 8, 1965,

the 173rd airborne brigade

on Operation Hump,

War Zone D in Vietnam

were ambushed by over 1,200 VC.

48 American soldiers

lost their lives that day.

Our friend Niles Harris,

retired 25 years,

United States Army,

was one of the wounded

who lived.

This song is his story.

Caught in the action of

kill or be killed...

it's coming up.

Greater love hath no man

than to lay down his life

for a friend.

That's it.

Said goodbye to his mama

As he left South Dakota

To fight for the Red,

White and Blue

He was 19 and green

with a new M-16...

This is from last deployment.

This was the five guys

that were killed in action.

These metal bands

right here symbolize

and memorialize the people

that our company lost.

All the way from OEF 6,

actually, until OEF 8.

And they will always be with me

the rest of my life.

And I carry these

as a remembrance of them.

I'm...

They, this right here

is just a small representation,

but this right here

means a lot to every soldier

within the company,

because every day that

they wake up or every day...

just like...

I got this,

and they're always

going to be attached to me.

And especially for me

being their First Sergeant.

It's something

I will always remember.

Tell me what

Outpost Restrepo is named for.

OP Restrepo is named after our

original medic we had,

PFC Juan Restrepo.

He was a good friend

of the platoon.

Real, real wild guy.

Everyone liked him.

And when we were

handing over Phoenix

to third platoon,

the last patrol,

he was sh...

He was shot and killed.

How did he die?

What happened?

I wasn't out there.

I was at OP3

when Restrepo got hit.

And we were getting food.

And Sergeant Rentis

came in there,

and all like...

a couple of the guys

that were out on patrol

with him were in the chow hall.

Well, the old one,

and, he's like...

he's like,

"Yeah, he didn't make it."

And I'm like, "Who was it?"

And he's like...

he's like, "it was Restrepo."

And right then I just...

I just broke down

and started crying right there.

It was like...

probably just crushed me.

It was just pretty bad.

And then...

Is it a good thing

that this place

has been named after him

up here?

Yeah. Yeah.

Here, Sir!

Staff Sergeant Ortiz!

Here, Sir!

PFC Restrepo!

PFC Juan Restrepo!

PFC Juan S. Restrepo!

Ready! Aim!

Fire!

Ready! Aim!

Fire!

Ready! Aim!

Fire!

We did the ceremony, uh,

we all walked away,

and there's this little room.

Like, you notice it

when you're coming off the LZ

in blessing, kind of going

in to blessing,

there's a little guard post,

a little itty-bity room.

Our whole platoon was just

squeezed into there

'cause we didn't want

to see any of us crying.

But we we're all sitting there,

just no one talking

to each other, just upset.

And then, uh, when you like,

you... before you deploy,

you have this blue book

you fill out.

It's just a bunch of information

about how you want to be buried,

who you want notified first,

who you want to notify

your family,

and then how do you

want your memorial.

So he picked out his song...

You get to pick out what songs

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