Are my brother's medals worthless too?

[Pathwalker]

I have two brothers. Both served in Vietnam. The stories of their service could not be more different.
My brother Loy enlisted and served two complete tours in Vietnam. He was a helicopter rescue pilot who rescued many, many soldiers in Vietnam. He also killed the enemy. My brother would never talk about the medals he received, but one drunken night more than two decades ago, his WIDOW got out the shoe box he hid them in and showed them to me. As I read the letters that accompanied those medals, letters that told what he'd done to get them, tears ran down my cheeks, and my heart broke for my brother. My brother saved the lives of his fellow soldiers, many, many times; landing his aircraft under enemy fire to rescue the wounded and dead, killing those who had killed and wounded his fellow soldiers. Because of my brother's efforts, many of them lived to fight another day, and many are no doubt still alive today. My brother is one of those soldiers who came home and later committed suicide - and once again, I repeat - more Vietnam Vets have since come home and committed suicide than were killed in the entire war.

Are his medals worthless now too - thanks to those Swift Boat liars?

My other brother, Rick, was drafted, and the only reason I'm telling you about his service is because IN A WAY it pertains to the question underlying some of the worst charges against John Kerry.
When Rick received his orders to go to Vietnam - HE SHOT HIMSELF. In the foot. The Army gave him the necessary medical treatment - and gave him the time to heal before they renewed the order to deploy to Vietnam. Three days before he was scheduled to leave for Vietnam, HE SHOT HIMSELF AGAIN - in the thigh!!!
Long story short: he served his tour in Vietnam, may or may not have participated in a fragging, was a supply truck driver, and got an HONORABLE discharge. Not a single medal. Today, he is dying from the effects of chronic alcoholism, and is totally, completely insane - to the point of being permanently committed to a mental hospital, for the remainder of his days.
My brother's wounds WERE self-inflicted. I know my brother,I know what kind of man would shot himself to get out of serving in Vietnam; he is my brother - AND HE IS NO JOHN KERRY!

[cindyw]

1. Thank you for sharing.

n/t

[Skinner]

2. Thank you for sharing.

I am only 33, so I have never been faced with any experiences like this. I simply cannot imagine what it must have been like.

[skygazer]

3. That's a really sad story

And I have compassion for BOTH your brothers (and you as well).

I think in the long run this thing is going to do more harm than good for Bush. Vets as a whole don't appreciate slurs being placed on one of their own - it's too easy to imagine that it could be them that's being called a coward or a liar. Vets know that the only other people who can truly understand what they've been through are other vets - and * is no vet.

[Racenut20]

4. About your first brouther.

Those medvac pilots were, in my opinion, the bravest fliers in the war. They continually went into hot zones at their own peril to save lives. They were, if I remember my stats correctly, the shortest lived of any of us.

Your second brouther, there is no way to see what was in his mind. I wished the hell he would have found his way to Canada.

My father sent seven sons to three different wars, me being the last. The most patriotic man I have ever known. He told me a couple of years after my tours of VN, that if he knew at the time what he knew then, he would have loaded me in the trunk of his car and dumped me out in Canada. I was so shocked, I never could form a reply into words.

May God bless both your brouthers.

[A_Possum]

5. *hug*

It's all so twisted and ironic, that this country is living through Vietnam again at the same time that we are creating veterans from Iraq who will be suffering for years in the same way.

Yes, LibraLab, if you read this--I understand that all the soldiers in Iraq are not in combat, and many are doing support work and helping the population, but the nature of the conflict in Iraq is the same as it was in Vietnam. The guerilla tactics, the bombs out of nowhere, the inability to know who is on your side and who is going to kill you--these things are the same, and they will have the same effect.

The only difference is, the Vietnam vets were abandoned, because they didn't "win." It doesn't matter whether they were spit on, because in every way they were abandoned. They were not treated as heroes, they came home one by one, directly from a war zone to their homes, and nobody understood what they had been through, and they couldn't talk about it, and most of them didn't talk about it for decades.

I won't write about my personal experience with my own Vietnam vet, all I can say is I know this to be true.

[wryter2000]

6. Thank you

It sounds as if you've lost two brothers to that war. As someone who opposed it, I must say we learned our lesson about how the individuals who served in it deserved to be treated. They should have been treated like brave and honorable soldiers, and that's how we'll be treating the men and women who come home from these wars.

To answer your question, though...your brother's medals are NOT worthless. We have a bunch of liars and scoundrels in charge now. They have a minority of the population convinced that night is day and up is down. As soon as they're gone, this idiocy will stop.

[progressivebydesign]

7. Thank you for sharing that..

.. I know that is hard thing to say and accept about your one brother. I think your decorated brother illustrates how many Vietnam vets are out there, who are not opening up about their experiences over there.. it's too painful. I understand now, why some of Kerry's fellow vets are now speaking out on his behalf, after remaining silent until this week.

I wish your family well.

[realFedUp]

8. and that's the question everyone is asking....

Sliming one man's medals puts that question
on the table...are these really worth anything...
are other's actions questionable?

You asked the $60,000 question with a good personal
story to boot. Congrats. This one should
be front page DU.

[Lefty48197]

9. That's a very sad story

Nobody knows the horrors of war like those that have been there.

[H2O Man]

10. Thank you for telling us

about your families' experience. Every one of those young men in Iraq -- just as in Vietnam -- were part of a family. And families suffer. Communities suffer.

I used to live in a small hamlet in upstate New York, Sidney Center, where seven young men died in Vietnam. The hamlet has a population of about 500, so the loss of 7 young men affected every family. In those same "war" years, another 6 teen-aged boys died in DWI-related accidents. It doesn't take a genius to make the connection. So almost an entire generation died.

One of the guys who died in Vietnam was my ex-wife's cousin. The day his family found out, a younger brother commuitted suicide. A year later, the father killed himself.

War is hell. It takes a terrible toll on people. If Bush is not removed from office, there will be many, many more young men who kill and die in the wars Bush starts. Their families will suffer. The communities they live in will suffer. And, of course, it's worse in the countries hosting the war.