All Comments on 'Never Welcomed Home Pt. 01'

I think. Some were stronger than others, some were never able to "come home". Charlie Daniels song "Still in Saigon". Didn't go but was in that era, saw the boys that went and what was left when they came back. Saw the protests on campus and the abuse. Even went with the "Cowboys" to straighten one group of agitators out one night. Not my finest hour let me tell you. So, thank you for writing this little part of that. No matter where you take this, thank you for this first part.

And to all of you that went and didn't completely come back at first: Thank you for your service and for the part of your youth that was taken from you. And WELCOME HOME BOYS AND GIRLS.

pappy

but coming back home to the peace is not always for the better, TK U MLJ LV NV

Gut wrenching emotional story. Just another example of why you are among the best that post on Literotica.

My Lord , that's some powerful emotions sir ! I don't know if this is autobiographical or not, but this is some of the most compelling and emotionally raw feelings that I've ever found on this site. Or anywhere for that matter.

Simply wonderful storytelling !

5*'s

5 well earned stars for this part of the story that speaks so well about a time that should not be forgotten nor those who came back and went trough hell

This is a emotionally powerful story...And as usual masterly written by @Slirpuff...Waiting by part 2...Thank you for writing this...4*

How I didn't resort to booze and drugs....I don't know. But thank God for my wife and family to give me support. The VA didn't do shit and the shrinks I saw didn't help because they didn't and couldn't understand. It has taken years to finally put some of the demons to rest...but not all. Looking forward to the next chapter.

As in a Great story that is over the Top of the rest.....

A very strong and emotional story. Great characters.

An easy 5*

You're one of the masters of the genre, Slirpuff. It's a wonder why you share your talent here of all places! I'm very glad that you do. Thanks for contributing another powerful story. I look forward to the next chapter.

A very emotional & well told story. If this is fiction then somehow you've truly captured the demons many Nam vets felt, if factual, my deepest commiserations.....

During the early 60's my country re established selected conscription & I was unlucky enough to be balloted into the Army, trained as a medic & posted to a Field Ambulance company which consisted almost completely of territorials (weekend soldiers). Thank goodness only a relatively small number of our regular force troops were sent over. After about 5 years a new Quarter Master Sergeant was posted to our unit. He was ex SAS & been wounded during his second tour to Nam, bad enough so he was unable to remain in the unit, but still able to serve in the Army . During the next 5 years with my unit the 2 of us became very close friends & spent many army & civvie nights where he relived some of his terrors; the loss of his marriage & family, loss of friends in Nam & for him, the loss of being in the SAS. Truthfully, sometimes it was not safe to be around him when he became really morose & depressed.

Your story just resonated so much with me, bringing back memories of his tales of despair, fear, humiliation & loss he displayed some 2 -5 years after his return. It was almost as if you'd written his story. Once again congratulations on probably the most insightful story ever written on this site. Worth 100 but sorry only allowed 5... 5 * * * * *

That is all I can say. Powerful story. This is why I come to this hub. Please keep writing.

Could you tell us how many parts there are and when we might see them.

I hate to read Part 1, then have to RE-read it when Part 2 comes out because I've forgotten what happened!

No one wins in a war , ...it leaves everyone wounded ..and you go on licking your wounds for a long long time ....the healing is a very arduous , strenuous , painful and a horribly long process .... so well and beautifully narrated by the author ....eagerly awaiting the next chapter ..hope it comes soon enough .

A 5 star material ..wish i could give more ....

Sorry. I only read the first page! You get 5 stars. I could say: "been there, done that", but in country I had it better than this fellow, getting out in San Francisco then later in college I too had a few problems with the protesting assholes. Being in the Vets Frat in college helped me and all the brothers ease back in. Then there is that asshole Art Prof in college who got to close, I dropped his stupid ass. Life is good for me now, but every now and then something happens or I read something and it bothers me a lot. My heart breaks for these young guys in the sand box! Some memories fade some don't. I try and dwell on the good memories casue the bad ones, make me weepy. Life member DAV & VFW, but I avoid meetings and any memorials. Been to the Wall once and I'm not going back.

Not to be a critic, but I don't recall a lot of cold beer, I remember a lot of room temperature 10 cent beer, and when the temperature runs over 100 degrees, well so does the room.

A comment about the welcome home from war protesters. I was not in Vietnam, but a Brother in law was as a Marine and he has told me that his welcome at San Francisco airport was not friendly, nor were the cops helpful. I have forgotten the details of what he related to me as he walked into the terminal, but I do know that after all this time, he is still not completely over his time in service. He would never go to counseling, but should have.

"As I left she told me not to be a stranger, but I already was—even to myself. "

*****

A very emotional story.

Well-written and holding us by the heart.

wow this story is so emotional. if a person were to sit down and read this and think about what all this guy went through u could see how it would be easy to do what he did. people got to remember back in that time there was no help for people coming back and having to deal with all of what they seen and did over there. now when they come back they have help if they need it and are not pushed away cuz of what they did because they had to do it; there are still alot to vets that are having problems out there and it is hard to seek help when u r use to being push down all the time. great writing love your stories and hope to see the next chapter soon.

I hope the puny minds who think that this story might not belong here don't mar the reading experience for the rest of us who CAN enjoy this beginning to an impressively powerful story that seems to be well on its way to becoming one of Slirpuff''s greatest and most important contributions!

Thank you so much for attempting this. I was consumed by every page...

for a Marine with couple of combat tours including about 18 months in "RVN"

there are a few technical errors, but since not many of us are willing to talk about our expeiences back then it stands to reason there might be. Thanks for even attempting to deal with one of two forgotten wars especailly with the 50th annivresary events taking place. By the way I agree with the comment about the SF reception.. There are a lot more myths than reality stories about our reception confrontations. There were bad feelings and some of the shouting and demonstration issues, but the cops had it just as bad back then, often getting caught in the middle.

I spend time with both cops and veterans now attempting to help them deal with the social experimentation society is trying to force upon them today and the intense pressures they and their families are forced to experience. Talking about them and reading stories such as this one, even on a site like this can reach many of them and cause them to reexamine their issues and that is a first start; so thanks and keep writing stories that deal with the real issues of morality and ethical decision making.

This is a rock solid story worth five stars and I look forward to the next part.

That is all.

It was a very good story; but where do you go from here? Reconciliation seems possible? Have him relapse again? That would be cruel. If you wanted me to wonder, you've succeeded.

Looking forward to the direction you take.

BDEarth

I was discharged in late summer 70. Went straight to grad school, thinking I could just pick up where I left off. So did the school. Failed out. The univ was like most others. The kids knew only what they wanted to know. I wasn't a kid anymore. I had been in an elite unit, proud of what I did with guys who did the same -- quiet with the rest of the world. I arrived on campus with white sidewalls, a very hard body, a convertible muscle car, and a young wife from a military family. We were aliens from another planet. I had been a star student, so another grad school took me at the request of my major profs. I buried myself so deep and completely in my studies that I lost the rest of my world. It was my drug; it was my way to escape. Great academic success, great job offers, completely alone. Took a long time to understand how selfish I had become. A lovely woman cured me when she did not know she was doing it. I could not tell her anything real about my service. She was frustrated at times, but loving, abiding and committed to her vows. Her dad was a D-Day soldier; he knew. Her mom knew, so she knew. Thanks be to God. My father and mother both came from large families. All of my uncles and my dad served in either WWI or WWII. I did not talk about it with them; they did not talk about it with me; but we all knew. It helped. I am blessed with family, children and grandchildren. I will work to keep them from another war we do not declare and do not have the will to win.

Great story and given the start of the story reconciliation is on the way. Having grown up during the time period involved, I look back now and am truly ashamed of how my country treated the returning vets from that era. They should have been and should be today honored for their service. They did not fight that war by choice they strictly followed orders just like to today's vets. I want to thank all service people for their service no matter what era they served in. I look forward to the next part of this story, I have a hunch that their will be problems coming but in the end they will work the problems out.

Served, starting in 1962. Medically discharged in 1968. Disabled. So what.

Men and now women have been serving and being harmed during wars before and since. But the rejection of Nam Vets by the American people was so bad and so shameful, I am angry to this day. This story is good, very good, but it hit a nerve and brought back a flash of anger. Five Stars.

but so realistic, that I think you lived it or witnessed it. Wonderful writing. 5*

And these are the guys we are getting back now too, all because of some oil and a bankrupt religion that doesnt allow for alternaives to its own principles.

WOW!

Very good story so far!

Playing out painfully but realistically written.

Really looking forward to more.

SP is a master storyteller. It is tragic how our military people were treated in the late '60's and early 70's. Thank goodness that even the people who hated GW didn't take it out on the GIs - maybe we are learning something. One of my best friends died last year from complications from agent orange exposure. Thanks SP for this story.

The glorification of war and the celebration of those who murder other people for political bosses. Perfect for the old man warriors that haunt this site. At least it's not readypuff's usual racist shit, so I'll give it a two.

Many others didn't, including my wife's and my fathers when they fought in Vietnam. They got spit on and assaulted in the airport, when they returned from their last tour of duty. We, as a country, need to thank ALL of the veterans who served, whether in wartime or peace, and whether in a "popular" or "unpopular" war.

@Anon "Play on sympathy"

You're welcome for the continued freedom to express your opinion.

@Slirp

Thanks for a great tale that makes people think.

5 GINORMOUS Stars! Trust me, brother. I'd give more if I could.

I did not have a more clever subject line. Just keep rolling with memory river!

Is it worth reading this, or is it going to be left part the way through like Megan?

Slirpuff, you are quite a story teller and this may well be your best. Can hardly wait for the next chapter.

I'm a WWII and Korea vet, but got out after 14 years active duty. As I look back at it, I too had a bunch of issues. But I jumped right into industry and didn't have time to let them take over. Back then personal issues didn't get the chance to dominate that they did 20 years later.

To all who have served and is still going to hell and back, a simple thank you is not enough. LESS WE FORGET

Very insightful! I know, I've been where few others have gone. Those who have never seen the face of battle will never understand.

....and how much of that shit lingers, overwhelms and buries the men and women that serve in those theaters.

And we, as a country, thank them by ignoring them. It's an abomination!

Thank you for adding your voice, your insight. Some of it seemed a little askew of what I know, but everyone's experience is their own....and I am no authority on the topic.

Becky's responses to his descent and climb back from the abyss are pretty typical....although you saved us from any really ugly shit. For that I thank you. No one wants to read about how time in a shithole made monsters out of the individuals we sent there. And, luckily a minority came back monstrous. The rest damaged and struggling.

I thoroughly enjoyed all of this.

Please continue and let's just agree that the irreverent assholes that think they understand and have the right to judge can go fuck themselves with a pitchfork.

Semper Fi.

This was a good first chapter in a long story, if I'm guessing correctly. Combat stress (as you state PTSD) is very complicated with many layers. It takes a lot of effort and help from others to actually deal with it. I don't know if it is ever truly healed. I think the best you can hope for is to be able to comfortably live with yourself. And that takes a long time to get there.

Can't wait for more and there is only one word that describes this story so far and that is WOW.

Powerful tale. I can't imagine how tough coming back from a war totally disrespected felt like but this seems as real as it could possibly get. Please continue...

Five Stars

I never served in the armed forces, instead I fought 'the war at home.'

Someone else wrote: "No one welcomed me home but no one yelled at me or spit in my face either. The war protestors weren't angry at us, they were angry at the government."

Now THAT is the truth.

I was active in the antiwar movement for many years, full time. We organized plenty of demonstrations, but NOT ONCE did the organized antiwar movement blame individual soldiers. Like someone else said, there was a Draft, and most of the soldiers did not choose to be there. The public knew that. We knew that returning vets were oftentimes the most eloquent spokespersons for the anti war movement, and we often put vets at the front of the march. The movie Forest Gump has this spot on. Yes, there may have been some glares or such made when soldiers were at the airport, but there was NEVER any picket signs (ps. I was in San Francisco), it would have been politically very stupid to try to blame individual soldiers.

Aside from this glaring, damaging, false info, there were enough 'tells' in your story to know this was fiction, and you never served in Vietnam. Start with your posted age, which is too young to have been drafted. Also, if your friend had a draft number...lottery numbers were only used at the very end of the war, the last 2 not even full years. And by that point, there were no agressive night patrols like you write. Due to the high number of 2nd Lieutenant deaths, as well as sentiment at home, the brass was doing all it could to lower casualties. The grunts would, in fact, 'frag' (toss a fragment grenade) any aggressive officer who took them out on a patrol like this. It's been covered over and ignored, but fragging, in fact, was widespread.

I am often reminded by the comments that this is a jacking off sexual titillation wives gone wild forum. Then someone like you submits a story that aspires to engage our minds and hearts with a story about marriage, and its hazards, and temptations, and the pain we endure, or cause. Very poignant and compelling. I get that you never went to Nam. My draft number was too high so neither did I, thank God. But this story could be about any soldier who experienced any war. There were no wars that did not produce the walking dead.

Thank you for your time and talent, and sharing with us your efforts to learn and practice being, a writer. There are very few on this site. This is well done, so far, and I hope I can say that for the entire story. Its a very good start.

Served in Nam 1968 - 69... I came back alive but not like I was before; better than most.. Drugs were everywhere and saw too much what they can do to someone...

Lost some friends but most that I knew survived... or at least made it home...

War sucks ... enough said...

Not my cup of tea or I would have given it a 5. As for the snipes of other commenters re hot wife stories, I hope they can read well enough that they see "wives gone wild" is in the description of the LW category on the Literotica Erotic Stories main page. I wonder why they felt compelled to comment on something other than the matter at hand: your fine story.

#48, my number, how lucky they stopped drafting 18 year olds the year before.

The protesters should not of confronted the soldiers, but most confronted our nation and shortened the war. Scott was talking me into the buddy deal you mentioned, we didn't have much going on it sounded like an adventure to me as well, then I met a girl and well there was a reasons for me to stay. A family on our street opened their house to soldiers coming back on leave or waiting to go home. I didn't really understand all the drinking, no one drank in my family, and they didn't like what was going on down the steet. What a differnce in familys with 8 kids each and friends with each others brother and sisters, still to this day, there are less of us now.

Thank You for a eye opening story, nothing is easy not even takin it easy.

"WAR, hugh, what is it good for, absolutly nothin."

SO DID I! I had nightmares and a had time adjusting first time back and his story comes extremely close to offering as much insight as a short story will allow into the internal struggles we had. No offence intended but unless you lived thru it and experienced the fear/anger You have no idea what it was like. I lost 35 men overthere most were damaged but alive 10 died and 1 was MIA until recently ( his remains were returned a while back) 3 of these Men I grew up with. We volunteered together

and managed to serve together. My personal demon was "why me? Why did I make it back and they didn't?" My wife helped me with my answer by taking me in the bedroom and pointing to my son. Enough said.

Patriot, Murca, truck, gun, flag! What passes for literature and music among the unwashed.

1968- I can't use my right hand all that well due to an AK round across my wrist. Lucky it didn't do more damage. Same ambush lost Perkins and Calhoon KIA, me and some FNG were the wounded. That was my 2nd PH. I was back in the states 27 days later. Flew back east from Seattle-Tacoma. Stopped in Atlanta and made a call I promised to make. That was hard. Went home, changed into civies and went to work and registered for school. Went half-crazy now and then, like the song says. Ruined a good woman's life. Did not connect my anger to VN for a long time.

Fast forward to 1991. I'm flying into Charlotte. We land and the Captain comes over the intercom and asks that we remain seated while some troops returning from the Gulf War got off the plane. People started clapping as they exited the plane. I started crying. Couldn't help it. Lots of memories came flooding back. Things I did not know were there came out.

To the story: The story is extremely well done with a lot of emotion. Curious to see how it progresses. I assume there is drama to come. Oh yeah, do me a favor and quit saying "clips" goddamnit. You know better. You used magazine almost immediately after.

This story hits one theme common to LW stories, how to regain trust after a horrible event. It sounds like they will make progress. I found it amazing that he managed to fight back, because he was ready to lie down and die. Fighting back from the inablility to sleep or to focus is almost impossible.

A very touching first chapter. I am eagerly waiting for the next chapter.

Fantastic writing as always, a true drama with plenty of emotional pull. Your stories have such great flow. You have shown the horrors of what war brings to people. You have really shone in your portrayal of strong independent women...well done...my gosh SharedSigne you act like your opinion is the only one that matters...give it a rest, we get it, for your marriage to work, your husband must sit in the corner jerking off while your getting plowed by the latest guy picked up at the bar.

re:

I lived thru it

You and those you protested with may not have treated returning soldiers badly.

But there were those that spat upon them.

There were those that screamed insults at them.

Just because you didn't personally do it does not mean it did not happen.

Just because you didn't personally see it does not mean it did not happen.

Disturbed sleep can cause depression.

Depression can cause disturbed sleep.

It becomes a terrible and terrifying negative feedback loop.

Someone said:

Just because you didn't personally do it does not mean it did not happen.

Just because you didn't personally see it does not mean it did not happen.

I was well placed enough to know with certainty that there were NEVER any organized protests at any airport. I also know that this whole myth was unheard of until the war was over at least 3-4 years.

As someone else said, this has been looked at over and over again. Find actual vets who claim it happened to them (picket signs - any organized activity - sure there might have been individual dumb actions) - you can't find someone. It is always someone they HEARD about.

Better yet, search the archives of every news media you can think of ....there were ZERO contemporaneous articles about this issue! Believe you me, the media would have loved to try and give the antiwar movement a black eye over this issue - IF IT HAD HAPPENED.

IT IS A MYTH!

This article first appeared in the Sunday, De-

cember 5, 1982 edition of the Grand Rapids Press,

circulation in excess of 500,000.

The Bitter

Homecoming

by

Dennis J. Stauffer

I left Vietnam nearly 14 years

ago and tried to put that phase

of my life behind. I kept my

experiences private, as did

many Vietnam veterans, to

avoid the pain of that war.

I also kept quiet because the

war was not a welcome topic

outside the walls of veterans

clubs. The Viet vet became a

scapegoat for our country’s

involvement in an unpopular

war.

We faced rejection and ver-

bal, sometimes physical as-

sault. That’s why many veterans

quickly discarded their uniforms

after returning home; it was

easier than facing humiliation in

public places

So Y_Diner are you sure about your comment about the homecoming of vets ??

Protests outside Travis AFB (Sacremento, Ca) for flights of returning GIs happened. I travelled through that gauntlet picking my dad up.

I asked for CONTEMPORANEOUS articles that claimed vets were spit on. You give me an article from the 80's, in which he makes no such claim for himself. The author of this book, says that a lot of these myths started in the eighties. See:

https://www.amazon.com/Spitting-Image-Memory-Legacy-Vietnam/dp/0814751474/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1466158966&sr=8-1&keywords=The+Spitting+Image%3A+Myth%2C+Memory%2C+and+the+Legacy+of+Vietnam

Here's Amazon's capsule review:

One of the most resilient images of the Vietnam era is that of the anti-war protester — often a woman — spitting on the uniformed veteran just off the plane. The lingering potency of this icon was evident during the Gulf War, when war supporters invoked it to discredit their opposition.

In this startling book, Jerry Lembcke demonstrates that not a single incident of this sort has been convincingly documented. Rather, the anti-war Left saw in veterans a natural ally, and the relationship between anti-war forces and most veterans was defined by mutual support. Indeed one soldier wrote angrily to Vice President Spiro Agnew that the only Americans who seemed concerned about the soldier's welfare were the anti-war activists.

While the veterans were sometimes made to feel uncomfortable about their service, this sense of unease was, Lembcke argues, more often rooted in the political practices of the Right. Tracing a range of conflicts in the twentieth century, the book illustrates how regimes engaged in unpopular conflicts often vilify their domestic opponents for "stabbing the boys in the back."

Concluding with an account of the powerful role played by Hollywood in cementing the myth of the betrayed veteran through such films as Coming Home, Taxi Driver, and Rambo, Jerry Lembcke's book stands as one of the most important, original, and controversial works of cultural history in recent years.

And the guy who saw a demonstration outside Travis AFB? Travis was the main point they shipped guys TO Vietnam. A pretty damn educated guess is that those

were generalized war protests, hoping to inspire guys before they went over there to speak out. There was nothing aimed at individual returning vets.

You commenters still fighting that old fight. Until that generation is all dead, I guess we'll get this bickering. I suppose the WWI vets might have argued about those trench was muddier and whose farm got bought for a lower price. Regarding the STORY , it is very well written, and I accept that writers will craft the environment how they want. A very good start- no quick resolution or bed of roses in this one.

As Vietnam Vet who experienced combat action aboard ship in '72, this is such a compelling opening for a story I'm excited to read future segments. I'm already an addicted fan of your work. Kudos!

@dyonysos

Y_Diner is calling all Vietnam vets who got spit on and assaulted, liars. Just because no vets spoke out about it until 1982, to Y_Diner, it means that those veterans who took the abuse are just lying about their experiences. That's Y_Diner's opinion. He'd rather believe an anti-war propaganda book of questionable authenticity, than the word of those vets who experienced it, or anyone who witnessed it firsthand.

I did four tours in Nam and was spit on and called baby killer all four times I went through San Francisco airport on the way home. This is not some wishful thinking out of a fictional book, but reality that we suffered through on top of everything in Nam

This story reminds me of a friend I had years ago. In fact it almost is word to word on what he told me. A great story and I can't wait to read part 2

Wow for the quality of your writing, and wow for noticing how much division that war still creates. As a vet of that war, I'm grateful to you for writing this, and looking forward to the following installments. I don't suppose this will have much impact on the doubters, but I experienced the disrespect on return that the story describes.

Based on my experience returning from Vietnam, the disrectful treatment, wasn't from the Left, but the Right. It was rightwingers who controlled the hiring process for jobs that discriminated against Vietnam Vets. It was conservative World War 2 vets who sneered at us with, "we won our war, what's your problem?" It was Nixon appointees who were responsible for the delays in VA educational benefits, and who opposed upgrading VA facilities. I got as far as the airport incidents, and stopped reading. A 2 for this bull shit.

But that was hard to read. For all the right reasons! So well written and so intense I wonder if it's really just a story. Looking forward to the next part in the hope that he finds some happiness. Some of us know there will never be any real resolution.

"This is a porn site!"

Wrong dipshit, this is a literature site that specializes in erotica, but is not in any way limited to that. If porn is what you want then look elsewhere.

I did not get any shit from being in Nam because I was not. My duty was before and nobody knew about it. By orders for 35 years I could not talk about it. I had no way to let it go. I had all the feelings of taking lives. Taking lives thru patience and long distance shots. One of my best friends, a fellow Marine, who was in Nam talk about our days in the mixer. That is what we call our time doing our duty when death was a hidden round away. The feelings we have are basically the same even though the situations were quite different except for the damn jungle. To all that have faced the enemy outside in the jungle or the sandbox, "we are with you always and semper fi."

I spent 22 plus years in the military doing things no one should have to do. While I was never personally in combat I was a NCO for over 20 of those years and had to make many decisions that no man should ever have to make. From what those that live that side of the military it seems you did a wonderful job of describing what they go through. The worst things I had to face was having to pick who of the soldiers I trained went outside the wire to face the enemy and to help them deal with what they saw and did. Keep up telling the story and tell the rest so that you may actually help someone else get through.

"This is a porn site"

I would consider only a handful of stories actually qualify as "literature of erotic writing" in this category. For the majority it's a porn site. Really anon, where did you get the idea that the amateur authors are masters of Literature?

Most of the stories in this category make ones stomach turn. A handful of writers,like this one make the difference. Good story Slirpuff, you've become one of my favorite authors here. You've come a long ways from your early writings. High marks.

Written by a very skilled author.

The story is so very true. Those that have been there will recognize the truth in what the author says. I've been purging my demons for the past 40 years since my return from RVN. It definitely has been hard on my family. This is the second story that deals with RVN and the civilian aftermath. The other is titled Ruby. Look it up.

Wow!!! It sounds like this was written from experience or at least from someone very close to you.

I suggest also posting in the other site (SOL). It caters to a wider variety of readers.

Thanks for sharing this story. Very well written!!

To those posters that do not believe there were protesters who verbally and physically assaulted returning soldiers, you should understand that talking about it to someone who was not there is one of the most difficult things there is to do.

To posters such as Y_Diner, if it makes you feel better to call someone a liar, that is your prerogative, thanks to the ones at whom you are hurling accusations, because their actions preserved that freedom for you.

But just because it didn't happen to you doesn't mean it didn't happen. Multiple trips to and from meant multiple encounters. Some times I was ignored. Other times people would turn away and not make eye contact, would move to the other side of the sidewalk or room, or would avoid a conversation or any interaction. And those were the good experiences. Want to know what the bad ones were like? Read the story again.

Been there. Done that. The reason why most veterans' lives go to Hell in à handbasket was described in this story. What Becky put Doug through in his struggle to regain a grain of respect was worse than what he experienced in Nam. I doubt that Doug and Becky will successfully return or start anew as man and wife. They are much different people than they each remember. But, at least, Doug is paving a good path for himself. Abby will continue to play a key roll in both of their lives...separately.

Five stars. masterful.

C/504th/18th Bde 67-68

...please don't fuck it up! I am going to read part two right now.

can't stomach gringe-worthy stories like this

Been there done that. Pretty well lays it out.

If you've not been there you don't get a vote.

It is no bs.

I found it strange how the experience really fucked up some guys and not others and I was surprised at how some I thought were rock solid fell apart.

Luckily I had no ptsd at all but that got me thinking I might be sociopathic.

Turns out I am not but I can get very angry and do a lot of damage in a bad situation.

However you cope with it it effects and changes you

I was a corpsman from 70-76. I was very fortunate to stay stateside. But, working in hospitals, I saw much of the devastation. This story nails one part of the return. In my last year of duty, I spent much of my time with guys who returned with a heroin addiction. I'd like to say I got through to some of them. The military only seemed to keep them around till all traces of the drugs were gone from their systems. There was little tolerance of what caused the problem. The desire was to get their systems clean and discharge them. I'm pretty certain they were not honorable. Then again, I have to admit, most of those guys only looked forward to their next fix once they were discharged.

I was in other shitholes. I saw friends and civilians die in many ways. Found out I still have the nightmares at times. My wife tells me about when I wake up sweating and drop off the bed crawling to the door to get a peak around the corner. She manages to wake me up and I try to explain what I myself sometimes don't even understand.

Let me say right now, it doesn't matter which military you served in, thank you for your service! To those who survived Vietnam, thank you for your service, and thank G-d you came home! To those now serving whether in afganistan or elsewhere, thank you for your service! To all of us who have lost brothers in arms, remember them, remember their sacrifice, and remember that even though they may not be with us in life anymore, they are still with us in spirit and are hopefully able to rest peacefully now! Never forget them, but honor them by being able to be strong enough to move on with your lives!

As was said before, if you never wore a uniform you do not get a vote. If you want one, then join up, pick up a rifle and man a post! It truly is that simple....

Even though I never went to Nam, I served during "the armed confrontation". I worked in hospitals The pain and results of combat were never far away . I can't say I've liked all your stories, but, you definitely hit the nail on the head with this one. Congratulations.

I was in the Marines in Viet Nam from 1967-1968. I left Viet Nam in 1968. It never left me. As i was reading this story I was crying. I remember the friends that did not come home. I remember being called baby killer. I remember being spit on. I remember cars turn across two lanes and onto the shoulder of the road to try to run me over. That was across the road to the base I was reporting to after I got back. While in Viet Nam we all wanted the same thing...to get home. While in Viet Nam my mom sold our house and moved. I never got "Home" again.

I tried to drown the memories. I did the hard drugs. I drank myself to sleep I got thrown out for non payment my wife left me, took my daughter. I slept in an abandoned car. I was homeless, drugged out and drunk. I know his pain

I call the house I live in is "my house". I don't call it "Home"... Most nights my memories come haunt my dreams. I call them my ghosts. I went to the VA. They turned me down> I stay up all night and go to sleep at 5 AM.

My wife and kids know one day my ghosts will get to me too much. I have told them one day I will drive into a bridge support at 100 MPH..

You can't go home again!

I live in a military community. PTSD is epidemic. I was too young for Vietnam but I had classmates who went. We did a lousy job with Vietnam Vets. We still aren't helping as we should. Our Military is stretched thin with multiple deployments and no end in sight.

You can tell by his poor spelling that he is just another heartless redneck Trump support! This was an excellent story on a very worthwhile subject. Although not an American, I did know a number of Americans who did served in Nam when I was 18 years old in 1968. The Jane Fonda's of the world at that time were all assholes! What she and others like her did to the returning vets was treasonous and they should have been punished for that. It was not the fault of the solders that the USA joined in that war. But these peaceniks took out their anger on these returning vets who only did their duty according to the USA constitution.

So far good, but unless you've been in combat and had one of your men die in your arms you'll not get it, you'll not feel it, you'll never truly understand. Only Nam Vets know coming home was not what we expected - we just became targets to ignorant college punks.

Every Nam Vet who returned had problems - we just cope with them differently. This story is just more extreme then mine, but still holds haunting truths and brings back long past memories that I buried of have slipped into the fog of time. The worst of it is how the VA/Govt just abandoned us.

WWI, WWII came back hero's (they won the wars), Korean Vets were tokenly honored but not much (they fought to a stalemate), Nam Vets were outcasts to be shunned and barely tolerated (POTUS lost that war). Think about Vets of Beirut, Panama, Granada that no one remembers, hell you cannot even find a Vet hat for those events but men died.

It is nice to see sand-box Vets so honored (they won twice and in a stalemate in the other) but it leaves a sour taste in older Vets - who are forgotten and replaced by the winners. Or like the Wounded Warrior program that ONLY is for sand-box Vets, flipping the bird to all other Vets.

You'll never know the affects of even today is until you lived it!

At how “History” is being written by cowards who tried to pretend they weren’t. They were wrong then and they are too cowardly to acknowledge it even now. I was a Navy corpsman serving in a Marine unit. It doesn’t matter which one, but I was there during Tet when the ignorant SOBs said we lost when we won! I know how many young men died in my arms because I wasn’t good enough, fast enough, or brave enough to save them. I can still taste the blood of heroes sprayed on me. It will never go away, and I wouldn’t want it too! They are too important to be forgotten.

I respect men like Ali who went to jail for their beliefs, and I wouldn’t piss on a burning draft doger to save his life. I’m not ashamed of the medals I earned, but given the opportunity, I’d shove them where the sun doesn’t shine of any of those sneering a$$holes who still try to justify their support of the “anti-war” crowards

who the NVA credits with their victory. A victory won because we broke our promises.

I pray that somehow they have to explain their “nobility to a Cambodian named Sisowath Sirik Matak!

To repeat, I’m proud of what I did, and what we vets did but I’m still ashamed of our government. Our last President apologize to every one of our enemies, but never apologized for what his party and his buddies did to us Vets!

On one hand I kind of liked it, and sympathized with Steve. On the other, so much of the story is just fictional nonsense that I’m afraid it’s going to perpetuate the “crazed Vietnam veteran” stereotype. In October 1969, when “Steve and John” enlisted in the Marines, I was well into my second tour “Down South”. Any Marine who’s been there knows what I mean. The descriptions of the Marines’ activities in VN were so wrong I wondered if I was reading a “Sgt Rock” comic book. Sorry if I’m being picky but this story talks about something I have lived with every day of my life for almost 50 years. As far as the PTSD goes, I don’t know. It affects everyone differently. Everybody I served with, the ones I’ve kept contact with, has it. Every single one of ‘em. Including me. So yeah, PTSD is a bitch. But as the saying goes, Life sucks, then you die.

my dad's youngest brother was in d day w w 2 before that he was a happy go lucky man. of course being born 43 I didn't know him even in the 60's & 70's some times he would still get that 1000 yard stare . would hate to think what would happen if we had to depend on what's growing up now. can thank L B J for the screw up in Nam couldn't bomb an out house without his say so . those sorry things in D C setting R O E when they had never been in the military . I didn't make it to Nam because of losing a shoulder joint at 17 yrs old but have the deepest respect for those who did.

I was in WWII and also Korea. This author captured well the feelings of both back then and today.

I didn’t turn 18 until Vietnam was over, but not by much. So I knew people that served over there. I knew one pretty well and parts of him came back in a box. I knew others who, while they didn’t get as bad as Steve, we’re scarred for a long time. Thankfully, Steve’s spiral wasn’t the norm, but it wasn’t as much of an exception as we want to think. Nam vets were the absolute worst treated veterans of any war and it’s this country’s shame the way they were treated.

Well written.

To anonymous who said he was "down south" and said so much of the story was fiction I say bullshit to you. The "fictional" Steve went thru what thousands of Vietnam veterans went thru and many are still suffering. As a veteran and mental health care professional I've seen too many Steve's from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Middle east and all the other "little" conflicts around the world that our men and women in uniform have fought and died in. All of those who have survived have been forgotten and ignored by this country. The current rate of veteran suicide is 20 per day. YES, 20 PER DAY!!! The VA health system, including the mental health system, is a total cluster fuck. Too many veterans, not enough staff, means not enough time to help. I have been "written up" and disciplined for taking "too much time" per veteran. Since there is no mandatory retire age for non-law enforcement officers I will continue to work as long as I'm capable of helping my fellow veterans. But too many caregivers are leaving because of the lack of support from Congress, the President, and yes, the people of this nation, IN SPITE OF PROMISES MADE EVERY YEAR.

I never served in Vietnam, despite enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1973. The Marines were already on the way out, with the exception of a few specific Units. I asked my parents for permission to enlist in '71, after I turned 16, but they were adament that I was going to finish High School. Long story short, I enlisted in May of my senior year, that was '73. I was a slick-sleeve private wearing 1 ribbon and a shooting badge just 10 days out of Boot Camp when a fucking hair-head walked up to me at LA International, called me a baby killer and spit in my face. LAPD grabbed ME and took me inside to check in and told me if there was any more trouble, I was going to jail. FUCK ALL OF YOU WHO SAY THAT THAT KIND OF SHIT DID NOT HAPPEN!!!

The reason the troops today are treated so well, is because of the "National Guilt" over how the NATION treated the MEN and WOMEN who served in a shitty place, fighting a war that the government never had a strategy to win or way to get out. JUST LIKE TODAY.

I spent the next 17 years serving in the Corps, and I still hate hippies.

I am a Brit and as some one in my middle teens to a young man i watched television news and documentary's about Vietnam. Growing up in East Anglia i was aware of American service men, during the cold war the U.K. was the biggest aircraft carrier America had. i remember my mother complaining when the windows rattled because Sabres were breaking the sound barrier,i thought it was great hearing the double boom. (smile) I remember visiting the American cemetery in Cambridgeshire. Of course we have all seen film of the huge cemeteries in Europe. It was years later when i became aware of how Vietnam veterans were treated by many of the population, and the U.S. government did not come through that well with care.Different today of course. Many parents sent their sons over seas to escape the draft, a fact i became aware of when coming to live in Spain.Was it right to fight that war, in hindsight many would say no. It has to be looked at in the time that existed then,That communism had to be resisted, it was a dangerous time for free democracy's.Korea is still an unresolved issue. We all enjoy a freedom given to us by all the graves of American, British, Canadian many other nationals. This is a very well written and realistic story. Those who were abusive to service men should hang their heads in shame.

5* Well-said and emotional story about the worst treated war vets of all time. May all hippies burn in hell. Write on!!!

Having watched “Vietnam” by Ken Burns. I know who to blame. POLITICIANS!

Not peaceniks, hippies, college kids and Moms and Dads, or even Grandparnts.

They all marched in the end to stop that useless politicians war.

Blame the old men who send all those young men to be maimed and killed.

Blame the political assholes and never forget what they did, because they are at it again.

The new greeting , especially if you were in 'Nam, is " Welcome ho me " . We didn't get much of it When I came home in April 1971, after 3years, 11months ,and 29 days in the USAF, we were out at the Garden State Shopping Mall in northern N.J. Some liberal intelligentia were burning an American flag. Freedom of speech. I came out of one side of the crowd, and another young guy came out of the other side. I found out later he had just got out of the Marines, 1 year in 'Nam . I grabbed the flag, took a couple of shots to the ribs, got the flames out. He layed out 3 long haired hippie fags. 2cops came up, asked us what happened. We told them. The older one said" Oh They fell down ?? " Told us to beat it, and broke up the crowd. I went over there and served so that people could do that . NEVER AGAIN will my country go there. 13 stars, for the original Colonies. The Bear can't count. I heartily approve.

The BEAR

I never understood the disrespect and hate of our Vietnam Veterans. The politicians were the ones who should have been spit upon...