Category Military

Feb 8 2014

Dustoff in Vietnam


The story of what it is like to be WIA

The night of 7 December 1967 was an eventful one for me because of what would happen over the next six hours.  It all began at about 2100 hours when the VC/NVA launched another rocket and mortar attack against Bu Dop and the 1-28th infantry that was deployed adjacent to us on our north.  While my normal alert position, when the CO was in camp, was in the commo bunker (a strongly protected bunker with all the radio equipment in it) we had received so many replacements over the past several weeks, due to casualties, that we had lost continuity.  Therefore, I went with the new Heavy Weapons Sergeant, SFC Ernest O. Broom and another SF trooper, SP4 Gerry D. Schroeder (I can’t remember his specialty now) to their assigned post at the 4.2″ mortar position.  Both had just arrived in camp and were unfamiliar with anything relating to Bu Dop operations and so it made no sense to send them out into a potential combat situation without help.  Especially, as the 4.2″ mortar position was a key spot, since we used it to illuminate the area around Bu Dop so that we could see any enemy troop movement near the camp.  I went there to show them where we fired the illumination rounds and also where the HE was to be fired, if required.  The 4.2″ mortar couldn’t fire in close on attacking troops (for technical reasons beyond the scope of this story) but it could fire on suspected staging areas and routes of withdrawal and we used it extensively for this purpose.

Over the next several hours we continued to receive sporadic incoming mortar rounds from the Northeast; probably from somewhere near Ap Phuc Tien as in most of all the past mortar attacks, I don’t remember any rockets being fired at or hitting the camp.  There was also some small arms fire but no signs of any kind of ground assault.  It appeared that this time we were just being harassed or probed and not attacked as they had just recently done and been repulsed.  As I remember it about 20 or 30 mortar rounds were fired at Bu Dop and the 1-28th infantry positions during the night, more to keep us from sleeping than to inflict major damage, I would guess. The 1-28th infantry was taking some casualties from shrapnel but I don’t think they had any KIA’s during this mortar bombardment.  We fired counter mortar fire from our attached 105 mm Howitzer pieces (artillery) as did the 1-28th infantry but I don’t think any of us hit the VC/NVA mortar positions.  They were probably just moving around firing a few rounds from one position and than a few rounds from another nearby position.

However, at about 0300 hours early in the morning of 8 December 1967 one of these incoming rounds landed either: near the 4.2″ pit sending hot shrapnel into the ammo bunker; or it landed directly on the ammo bunker itself penetrating it with flash or hot shrapnel (There was no way for me to know then or now).  In either case it didn’t matter for it ignited the charges on the staged illumination rounds (on the back of mortar rounds are placed propellant charges “explosives” that fire when the round is dropped in the tube.  That’s what propels the round to the target).  Maybe even some of the illumination rounds themselves that we were getting ready to fire were set off.  I do remember that there was a dull explosion and then several very intense waves of heat that went through the position igniting everything that could burn.  Fortunately we had used up all the HE rounds that night and only a few illumination rounds were left unfired.  If there had been any HE rounds in the pit and they had gone off when the incoming round hit they wouldn’t have found much if any of us.  Just a few pieces and parts here and there scattered around the camp.  For sure I wouldn’t be here writing this book now.

I had on a standard issue steel pot, a nylon flack vest, jungle fatigue pants and jungle boots, your basic standard uniform for combat in Vietnam.  Because we were in camp I did not have on any web gear and I wasn’t carrying a side arm (45 caliber pistol).  My CAR-15 was in the pit with me but I did not have it in my actual possession.  Most of us didn’t wear socks or underwear to try and prevent getting fungus infections from the heat and moisture that was always present.  The heat from the blast hit me from the right rear while I was talking on the PRC-25 radio.  I remember being engulfed by the flames as the fire ball rolled past me in several intense waves (I could feel the pressure as they hit me) of heat hitting me on the back and right side.  These blasts or waves of heat were extremely hot such that the intensity of them melted the nylon flak vest completely off me as well as instantly setting fire to my pants and jungle boots.  I must have instinctively closed my eyes as the fireball engulfed me and then there were a few seconds where I don’t remember what happened.  The blast either blew me out of the pit or I crawled out (I’m not sure which), the next thing I do remember a few seconds later was that I was laying on the ground just outside the pit and seeing that I was on fire.

My first action was to put out the flames that were still consuming what was left of my clothes and flack vest.  That probably took 20 or 30 seconds and while I was doing that I also saw there was an intense fire still burning in the 4.2″ mortar pit.  After I put out the flames with dirt I got up and saw that SFC Broom and SP4 Schroeder were down on the ground in the pit and still burning, I think they were both unconscious.  They were behind me when the blast hit and so this was the first I saw of them after the fireballs rolled over us.  I was in the process of climbing into the pit to help them when some of the other team members showed up.  They stopped me and took care of the other two guys in the pit.  I don’t remember which team members helped me (If ever any of them read this thanks for what you did) besides that being a long time ago I probably wasn’t in the best state of mind.

I knew I was injured and burned but I had no sense that I might be seriously or even mortally wounded.  I was placed on a stretcher and I do remember getting a shot of morphine.  A Dustoff was called (call name given for a MEDEVAC helicopter mission normally a Huey UH-1D) and by 0400 hours we were loaded in it and we left Bu Dop for the last time.  It was still dark and as we left I could see the camp and 1-28th positions dropping away as the chopper rose into the dark night sky.  Still, not realizing the extent of my injuries I was concerned over my team and that I needed to get back right away, they needed my experience.  I was thinking that I’d be gone for a few days, get some rest and then join my team in a week or so.  I was very wrong in this assessment of the situation.

When doing the research for this book one of the documents I was able to get from the National Archives was the 1st Division radio logbook for the period November 25, 1967 through December 8, 1967.  When going through it to check the accuracy (dates and times) of what I was writing I found on two of the pages the references to my MEDEVAC.  It wasn’t my name  (names were not used in most cases) but it was the right date, time and place and I know it was me.  It was a very eerie feeling reading about your own MEDEVAC and also knowing that later you would almost die from those wounds.  It was almost like reading your own obituary, a very strange feeling indeed.

1st Division LogSf-1log

We were all MEDEVACed to the 24th Evacuation Hospital in Long Binh for emergency treatment (see copy of emissions report on next page). I can remember going into the triage room (place were the doctors made decisions as to what to do and how serious the injuries where) and answering a few questions but then my memory starts to get fuzzy.  Probably by that time shock was setting in as the next several days were very disjointed and what I can remember is only a few images and feelings.  At some point I remember being loaded on a medical transport and then being moved to the 106th army hospital in Japan on 9 December 1967.                                                                 

Copy Emissions Report, 24th Evacuation Hospital, Long Bin Vietnam.Sf-emit

I spent several days in Japan, of which I remember almost nothing but a few images of being in a hospital ward that I remember as being dark (however, I was experiencing shock by this time and so I can’t really rely on anything I remember as being absolutely true).  Then all three of us were placed on a military hospital plane (we were all on stretchers, stacked maybe three high and on both sides of the plane, in any case there were a lot of us, but I don’t think we were all burn patients) and flown back to the states.  The ride back was one of constantly dropping in and out of consciousness and blurred images of patients, nurses IV’s and being very cold.  I think there was a plane transfer somewhere in this process (in Hawaii or maybe California) and then we (the three of us from Bu Dop) were taken to the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas.  I remember very little of that plane ride from Japan but I do remember the airfield in the states and the ambulance ride to the hospital when we arrived there on 11 December 1967.  This was the last planeload out before Christmas that year (I was told that later by my wife).  If I had missed that plane I would not have gotten to Brooke until sometime in January and by then I may not have been alive.

Telegram telling My Family I was Severely WoundedSf-tel4

Brooke Medical Center was then (I think it still is) the premier center, in the world, for treatment of burns, so if you were going to be burned this was where to be.  I had 3rd degree burns (all skin burned away) on my legs (23% of body area) and 2nd degree burns on my arms, back, neck and face (44% of body area).  I had also inhaled hot burning gases in the pit when the fire balls rolled over me which had burned the inside of my mouth, tongue and my lungs.  Besides that I had some shrapnel wounds and was experiencing a sever loss of body fluids.  Generally I was in very, very bad shape

Much later, when I was discharged from Brooke Medical Center, the Doctors told me that when I reached the hospital in December they had given me only a 10% chance of living through this severe trauma.  There had been so much physical damage to my body that they just didn’t think I would be strong enough to make it.  However, I’m certainly glad they didn’t give up and that they did still tried to save me despite their doubts.  As I contemplated this brush with death a few years later I came to the conclusion that my life after 1968 was a gift and that since I should have died then, but instead I had lived, that I would do something before I died to justify my existence.  As a result I have been driven to accomplish something ever since and what I’ll do if I’m ever successful I don’t know.

Being burned extensively is not pleasant and the burned person’s body reacts to this, in part, by allowing the mind to hallucinate.  I guess the hallucinations allow time to pass without direct knowledge of the pain the body is going through.  I was no exception to this developing situation even when I knew what was happening to me.  However, to me going into the hallucinatory state was a very frightening situation, much more so than the burns and associated pain (most people would not understand this nor agree with me).  The pain, I could control mentally to the point of being the only patient (during that period) in the ward that didn’t scream or in any way get violent during the treatments.  That’s not to say that I in any way enjoyed it but only that between the two at least the pain was real.  The real I could deal with but the lose of reality was frightening to me.  I’ll write more on this later in this chapter, but now I’m talking more about the treatment.

For example, there was a daily treatment where the burned patient taken to a special room and was placed in a tank (called a Hubbard Tank) full of water with cleansing and disinfectant soaps.  This treatment was given each and every morning whether you wanted it or not. A doctor would then proceed to scrape away all the dead skin with a scalpel.  In effect a person was being skinned alive and I can tell you with a great deal of certainty that it did hurt.  I was always able to bear this without any screaming or hollering.  Also, since everyone could not be treated at once, you could hear the ones that went before you hollering and screening as they got their daily skinning treatment. That preconditioning was almost as bad as the treatment itself for you knew your turn was coming.  After you turn in the “TANK” all the raw areas were coated with a white cream (silver sulfadiazine?).  In 1967/68 this was a new treatment and it prevented infections from getting into the large open areas of the body.  Unfortunately, it had a side effect in that it burned worse than the original burns when placed on the raw flesh of the burned areas.  Since this one two punch was given to us each morning we didn’t have a lot to look forward to when waking up each day.

I had always prided myself in being in control of my internal self (I recognized that I could not control the external world in any way) to the point that I really never allowed myself to even get drunk (I could act totally rational even after quite a bit to drink).  This pain and shock induced hallucinatory state beat me, however, and as I would go in and out of this dream world I found that I could not stop it from happening nor recognize that I was in this state after it happened (Very different from being drunk and at least knowing you were high).  While in these dream states I actually believed that what I was hallucinating was real no matter how bizarre the situation I was experiencing.  After this hallucinatory state had happened to me a few times I could sense it was coming on but it was too powerful a force to fight, as much as I tried to stop it from happening, it would take control of me at will.  Note hospital policy (at Brooke in 1968) in regards to burn patients is that no painkillers are given.  The logic was that since the time of treatment was so long, no matter what painkiller was given or what the dose was the person would become addicted.

I can remember lying in the circle bed and feeling reality shifting and changing on me.  As I was watching the room or something in it, my perception would blur and I would lose focus then I would be somewhere else.  I guess it’s kind of like a dream or maybe what it is to experience drugs like LSD (I have never taken any drugs nor smoked any marijuana so I have no direct knowledge) as we have all seen in movies or as we have read about in books.  It’s very strange to be one place and then all of a sudden somewhere else.  These spells lasted from a few minutes to several hours (I’m really not sure and I was in no state to time them) and they would center on some situation.  Sometimes they seemed to relate to experiences that I had in Vietnam and other times they related to what I was currently experiencing in the hospital.  The specifics are now vague and so I can’t relate any of the situations except that as I remember it they were quasi real like animation characters (The Disney film of a few years ago “Roger Rabbit” might be a good example).  I do remember that as I came back into this reality I knew what had happened.  I could remember being in the state when I was out but I could not tell when I was in one of these states that it was not real.

Later after leaving the hospital and thinking about what had happened I realized how dependent our beliefs and actions are on what our sensory input tells our brain.  If the input says one thing no amount of logic and intelligence can overcome that for long.  We are therefore captives of what we perceive, whether it is right or wrong or whether it is true or not.  This taught me the importance of analyzing a situation for the root causes and even to question supposed facts.  However, I will never forget how when I was in this state I was fooled into believing something that was not true.

During the initial period of my treatment at Brooke I dropped from over 180 pounds to under 100 pounds (98 pounds if I remember correctly).  As I started my recover (probably in mid January) I started to gain weight back and also to have fewer and fewer hallucinatory states.  After getting skin grafts from by chest to my legs where the skin had been completely burned off and healing some from those operations I had to learn to walk again.  That was a task, as the grafted areas would quickly swell up when standing as well as be very uncomfortable.  It was probably five or six years later before I really felt comfortable walking and I was never able to run again for any length of time.  Now, thirty three years later I probably could start running again if I tried as I can still feel my body recovering from that period, and I no-longer need support socks to keep my legs from swelling up with fluids.

While I was recovering from one of my many operations I was interviewed by a military person (I don’t remember his name or rank) on the subject of flame warfare and the effects on the individual soldier.  The military was interviewing troopers that had been burned to see if flames/fire was an effective means of stopping a military unit.  Flame warfare unlike explosive warfare does not necessarily render you immediately incapable of fighting even though you may be fatally wounded.  It was my personal opinion that I could have fought on for a short while (1/2 to 1 hour) after I was burned, which would mean that flame warfare might not be effective in a personal combat situation.  I relayed this personal opinion to the person taking the survey, but what the results of the survey were I never found out.

My wife, Darlene, flew to San Antonio to be with me and I attribute my recovery solely to her presence there.  She was there the entire time I was, and I believe that this gave me enough of an anchor to reality to hold on to life.  My brother, Jonathon, also visited me while I was in the hospital during December 1967, around Christmas, if I remember correctly. There was one good experience later on, which was I think in February, when I received a phone call from Martha Ray (the famous entertainer) she wished me a speedy recovery from my wounds. This call was a real surprise and resulted from a request from my parent’s neighbor’s daughter, Susan McCollum.  She was a dancer and with Martha Rays’ troop in Vietnam in 1967/1968 when she heard about my being wounded, and she had Martha Ray call me. That was really something I can tell you and shows what was in her heart; unlike many in the entertainment industry today. Note: Martha Ray did a lot for Special Forces troopers such that she was later made an honorary Colonel in the Green Berets.

San-Antonio

One other thing happened to me while at Brooke and that was that my left elbow froze to the point that I could not move it at all, from calcification.  When I was discharged from the hospital the doctors told me that after a year or so they could operate to free the joint (they also stated that I would not get back 100%).  Prior to that length of time they said it would not have stabilized and could have reoccurred again.  That meant that I would have no motion in my left arm until that operation could be performed.  Along with that I had a lot of Keloid tissue (scar tissue) form that gave me additional motion problems on my arms.  That too would have to wait but could also be fixed.  Since I knew that it would be 12 to 18 months before I would be done with all these corrective surgeries I elected to stay in the army and take a light duty assignment instead of getting a medical discharge, which was an option.  I couldn’t picture myself waiting around for a year or more waiting for these operations.  It would be impossible to get a job and I would just be another unemployable vet until these operations were finished.

While I was in the hospital (over three months the first time) I received several operations and skin grafts to repair the massive burn and shrapnel damage I had received in Vietnam.  SFC Broom and SP4 Schroeder who were there with me in Vietnam both died at Brook Army Medical Center while I was there.  I was therefore the only one of the three wounded in the mortar pit at Bu Dop that made it.  SFC Broom was very severally burned and there was probably never any chance that he could be saved.  I was bad but he was even worse as he was the closest to the explosion when it when off.  He may even have shielded Schroeder and I from some of the blast.  SP4 Schroeder was only slightly burned and was actually on his way to being released.  He had been transferred to a different, non critical, ward and then he developed a strange infection which ravaged his body with extremely high temperatures eventually killing him. Years later long after writing this book I visited the Vietnam Wall Memorial in Washington DC and found the names of all those that died at Bu Dop in 1967 while I was there.

Fortunately for me I was not that aware of what was happening and so I didn’t really comprehend that they were both gone until later when I was out of immediate danger.  If I had realized what was happening to them it probably would have affected me to an extent and that may have been just enough to trip me over to the not make it category.  In any case I didn’t really know and I just made it through this experience.  The following paragraph was something I wrote to summarize what happened to me that night in Vietnam.

On the night of 7/8 December 1967 I was mortally wounded (all mortal wounds don’t kill you immediately). I was MEDEVACed and sent to a hospital in Texas where I meet the grim reaper soon after arriving.  He told me he was coming for me but I told him I wasn’t ready; he laughed at me and said he was going to come anyway.  I told him it didn’t matter whether he came or not I just wasn’t going with him.  But he wasn’t to be denied and so he visited me every night in the form of a large Bengal tiger and we battled all night for the rights to my soul.  He was a very vicious and determined tiger and he tried his best to rip my soul from my body with his sharp teeth and claws but I was strong and stubborn and I would not let go.  This battle lasted for two months and he chewed me down to 95 pounds but in the end I prevailed and he disappeared and I was not dead and he had to settle for taking the souls of the two men who were standing next to me in Vietnam.

Feb 1 2014

Special Forces Creed


Americas Best

I am an American Special Forces Soldier!

I will do all that my nation requires of me.
I am a volunteer, knowing well the hazards of my profession.

I serve with the memory of those who have gone before me.
I pledge to uphold the honor and integrity of their legacy
in all that I am – in all that I do.

I am a warrior.
I will teach and fight whenever and wherever my nation requires.
I will strive always to excel in every art and artifice of war.

I know that I will be called upon to perform tasks in isolation,
far from familiar faces and voices.
With the help and guidance of my faith,
I will conquer my fears and succeed.

I will keep my mind and body clean, alert and strong.
I will maintain my arms and equipment in
an immaculate state befitting a Special Forces Soldier,
for this is my debt to those who depend upon me.

I will not fail those with whom I serve.
I will not bring shame upon myself or Special Forces.

I will never leave a fallen comrade.
I will never surrender though I am the last.
If I am taken, I pray that I have the strength
to defy my enemy.

I am a member of my Nation’s chosen soldiery,
I serve quietly, not seeking recognition or accolades.
My goal is to succeed in my mission – and live to succeed again.

De Oppresso Liber

Feb 1 2014

Becoming a Military Officer in the United States


A Military Officers Oath of Office

I graduated from College in 1965 during the early stages of the Vietnam War. Since I was in college I was exempt from the draft until I graduated, but now I was out and my options were limited. I had considered grad school but the Military seamed better at the time than two or more years of school. So knowing I would be drafted I joined the Army in the summer of 1965. While in the induction center I got talked into going to Officers Candidate School (OCS). Ten months later I was one of 121 men that graduated out of about 250 that started. On 13 September 1966 I accepted a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army and along with 120 others took the oath of office that is required of all officers. That oath had a profound affect on me and how I looked at my country ever since. That Oath is what I want to tell you about today.

Most of the following information I’m going to talk about comes from a report issued by Lt Col Kenneth Keskel, USAF in 2002. His analysis was written from an Air Force prospective and being an Army man I did need to make some changes. I will apologize in advance for having to read a lot of this as the words and meanings are very important and I don’t want to screw them up.

The first law of the United States of America, enacted in the first session of the first Congress on 1 June 1789, was statute 1, chapter 1: an act to regulate the time and manner of administering certain oaths, which established the oath required by civil and military officials to support the Constitution. The founding fathers agreed upon the importance of ensuring that officials promised their allegiance and so little debate occurred before the first Congress passed this statute. The wording of the military officer’s oath has changed several times in the founding, but the basic foundation has withstood the test of time.

While developing the oath of office for US officers, the founding fathers had serious concerns about pledging “allegiance” to any specific person. For example, during the Revolutionary War, Gen George Washington issued a general order on 7 May 1778 that required all officers to take and subscribe to an oath renouncing King George III and supporting the United States.

This general order had significant weight. On 1 October 1779, Washington court-martialed Benjamin Ballard for “selling rum, flour, pork, hides, tallow and other stores the property of the public without any orders or authority for doing so and contrary to the tenor of his bond and oath of office.” This example shows that the oath represented more than a simple, ceremonial formality; rather, it provided overarching guidance and a standard of moral conduct, as opposed to dictating specific, limited criteria.

The first official oath of office for US military officers under the Constitution was established on 1 June 1789. The law implemented the requirement in Article 6 of the Constitution that “Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the members of the several state legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both of the United States and of the several states, shall be bound by oath or affirmation, to support this Constitution.” This first oath was short and to the point:
“I, YOUR NAME, do solemnly swear or affirm (as the case may be) that I will support the Constitution of the United States.”

The current Oath had its origins in the civil war area and on 11 July 1868 40th Cong., 2d session, chap. 139 congress made a change to the Officers Oath as follows.

I, YOUR NAME, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.

Note that the last sentence is not required to be said if the speaker has a personal or moral objection, as is true of all oaths administered by the United States government.

Note also that this is not an oath to defend any specific territory or persons or property. This is an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States.

Note also that there is no duration defined in the Oath. Once taken, it is a lifetime affirmation. Maybe even a bigger commitment that that of a marriage. But don’t tell my wife I said that or maybe I’ll be single again.

The Oath that I took on 13 September 1966 and as shown on DA Form 71, 1 August 1959, for officers; is a variation of that 1868 Oath.

“I, David John Pristash (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the Army of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of 2nd Lieutenant do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God.”

The Oath of Office is a solemn oath taken by officers of the United States Uniformed Services on commissioning. It differs slightly from that of the oath of enlistment that enlisted members recite when they enter the service. It is statutory (i.e. required by law) and is prescribed by Section 3331, Title 5, United States Code. It is traditional for officers to recite the oath upon promotion but as long as the officer’s service is continuous this is not actually required.

One notable difference between the officer and enlisted oaths is that the oath taken by officers does not include any provision to obey orders; while enlisted personnel are bound by the Uniform Code of Military Justice to obey lawful orders. Officers in the service of the United States are bound by this oath to “disobey” any order that violates the Constitution of the United States.

The following Descriptions give the logic behind the words that are used in each phrase of sentence.

I, YOUR NAME, Do Solemnly Swear (or Affirm)
The oath begins with an option to swear or affirm. This wording is also consistent with the option for the president to swear or affirm, as prescribed in Article 2 of the Constitution. Either way, the oath signifies a public statement of personal commitment. Officers must take personal responsibility for their actions.
That I Will Support and Defend the Constitution of the United States

The oath requires officers to support and defend the – Constitution of the United States – not the president, not the country, not the flag, and not a particular military service. The preamble to the Constitution succinctly highlights the ideals represented by that document. Because the Constitution was built on a series of checks and balances that distribute power across the executive, legislative, and judicial branches, officers must give their allegiance to all three entities – despite the fact that the chain of command leads to the president.

These checks and balances create an inefficiency that is inherent in America’s democratic system that often proves frustrating for military officers, whose environment tries to provide the most efficient and effective fighting force available.

But it is also a key element to that which keeps us free. For the founding founders knew that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely that is why the Constitution is written the way it is — not because it is the most efficient method of government but because it is hard to consolidate power. That is a critical point you should never forget.

The words and defend were added in 1862, during the Civil War, when defense and preservation of the nation became paramount. The phrase support and defend the Constitution is purposely vague, allowing better minds to interpret and improve, within certain guidelines. To understand the significance of the wording, one should compare the US oath to the old Soviet Union version, the latter requiring officers “unquestioningly to carry out the requirements of all military regulations and orders of commanders and superiors.”

It is a true blessing that America does not require its officers to obey “unquestioningly” but gives them the opportunity and flexibility for innovation. But with that flexibility come both responsibility and accountability for one’s actions.

Against All Enemies, Foreign and Domestic

This phrase was added in 1862 as a direct result of the Civil War- specifically, to address the possibility of Union soldiers joining the Confederacy (most notably the forces commanded by Gen Robert E. Lee). That is, people who had previously sworn allegiance to the United States were now fighting against it. No one expects another civil war but this clause was designed to clarify the military Officers duties in every instance.

Military officers cannot simply maintain the status quo- they must look toward the future, identify emerging trends, and develop capabilities to counter the entire range of threats. Officers must ensure that they address all potential enemies. An officer’s oath demands that they support and defend against all enemies no matter where they are if they pose a threat to the Constitution.

That I Will Bear True Faith and Allegiance to the Same

The officer’s oath ensures allegiance to the Constitution as a whole. Even though the Constitution built a system of checks and balances to embrace multiple branches of government, the founding fathers cautioned against counterproductive parochialism.

In his inaugural address, Washington warned, “I behold the surest pledges, that as on one side, no local prejudices, or attachments; no separate views, nor party animosities, will misdirect the comprehensive and equal eye which ought to watch over this great assemblage.” An Officers’ allegiance compels them to work together to develop the best solutions for the nation.

That I Take This Obligation Freely, without Any Mental Reservation or Purpose of Evasion

This passage also originated during the Civil War. Congress and President Abraham Lincoln, wanting to ensure that soldiers not defect, expanded the oath in an attempt to guarantee loyalty. In the final analysis, however, loyalty depends upon the integrity of the individual.

Integrity is a learned trait. Whether that learning is based upon a religious upbringing or an embracing of acceptable norms of society, honor and integrity are part of the core of all military services. Maintaining integrity is implicit in the oath and must guide officers when they face conflicts of interest and hard choices.

And That I Will Well and Faithfully Discharge the Duties of the Office on Which I Am about to Enter

This wording has its genesis in the first statute of 1789. This clause epitomizes the military values of “excellence in all we do,” “commitment” and “duty.” We must be proactive and perform our duties to the best of our abilities, mastering our specialties while we are junior officers and then gaining breadth as we advance in rank. The progress of the nation depends upon our doing so.

So Help Me God

So help me God became part of the officer oath in 1862, but the enlisted oath did not add these words until 1962. The Congressional Record provides superb insight into their meaning:

The words, “So help me God,” are not a part of the obligation assumed upon taking the oath. They constitute rather an assertion of sincerity to undertake the duties of military service in good faith and with the aid of the highest power recognized by the enlistee. It is directed solely to his or her personal conception of the almighty, whatever that may be or whatever it may not be. There is no effort to impose on the enlistee any established religious conception, or even to require his acknowledgement of any religious conception. . . . For the vast majority of the persons taking the oath, however, this addition will assure a unique degree of personal conviction not otherwise attainable, and will thus prove a welcome source of both personal and national strength.

So help me God also implies retribution if officers do not keep their word. Compare the part of the Soviet oath that ends with “If I break this solemn vow, may I be severely punished by the Soviet people, universally hated, and despised by the working people.” Although that is quite a condemnation, in actuality it is less severe than the potential consequences for someone who has a strong moral or religious foundation. So help me God acknowledges that no stronger commitment exists.
I’ll leave with this last thought.

The Men and Woman in the United States Military are the only Federal Employees that have knowingly put their very life’s on the line 24/7 for the citizens of the country and the defense of her Constitution. Their life’s are valuable, precious even, to them and their country but yet both they and their commander know that in any use of force their will be losses. Accepting that those losses will occur is what sets these men and woman above the rest.

Feb 1 2014

A Soliders Duty


I am an American Soldier

Liberty never ever comes free,
and a soldier’s life is the key.
My blood in Lexington first flowed,
giving sweet life to her precious seed.
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

Liberties demands are many,
and the price we all must pay.
When next my blood flowed a plenty,
it came forth from both blue and gray.
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

Some help for others was now needed,
and they were not to be denied.
Answered now was this distant quest,
with my blood in the Argonne forest.
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

Storms now formed both east and west,
and their deep darkness threatened all.
Now for my dear blood there was no rest,
until Midway and Bastogne brought evils fall.
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

The storms were cleared and the sun was set,
When new alliances brought a different threat.
Yet again my red blood was sorely needed,
From so many, before Pusan succeeded.
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

Now perceived threats a new do grow,
In places hidden both near and far.
Still my red blood in earnest does flow,
From far away Nam’s ever present scar
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

Freedoms path is by the two towers,
which our liberty’s bright torch empowers.
But now she cries for the loss so dear,
dealt from those that deal in fear.
So sons and daughters of this land,
Must yet again to battle go.
This time our blood will flow in the sand,
So those seeds of liberty can grow.
But liberty is a demanding thought,
and Its growth with much sacrifice is bought.
I am an American Soldier

 

Written by David Pristash after 9/11

Feb 1 2014

Memorial Day; May 27, 2013


This is a speech I gave on memorial Day

Today is Memorial Day the day we honor our war dead, those warriors who gave what Lincoln called, “the last full measure of devotion.” I’m a veteran but this is not our day that comes on Veterans Day on November 11th. We came home carrying our shields; they came home carried on theirs. Memorial Day is the day we raise our glasses to honor and remember all the absent comrades.

The History:

Memorial Day is now a United States federal holiday which occurs every year on the final Monday of May. Memorial Day is a day of remembering all the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. The observance originated shortly after the American Civil War ended to commemorate the Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the Civil War. Memorial Day was formerly known as Decoration Day, but the name gradually evolved into Memorial Day in the 20th century and that was made official by congress in 1967.

The first well-known Memorial Day-type observance after the Civil War was in Charleston, South Carolina. During the war, Union soldiers who were prisoners of war had been held at the Charleston Race Course. During the war at least 257 Union prisoners died there and were hastily buried in unmarked graves. Shortly after the war ended, in May 1865, black residents of Charleston organized a ceremony, which was covered by the New York Tribune and other national papers.

Nearly ten thousand people gathered on May 1st to commemorate the war dead. Involved were recently “freedmen,” teachers, school children, Union troops, black ministers, and white northern missionaries. Most brought flowers to lie on the burial field. Years later, this celebration would come to be called the “First Decoration Day.”

Three years later on May 5, 1868, in his capacity as commander of a veterans’ organization for Union Civil War veterans, General John A. Logan issued a proclamation calling for “Decoration Day” to be observed annually and nationwide. It was observed for the first time that year on May 30.

That date was chosen for two reasons first because it was not the anniversary of any particular battle and, the second according to the White House was, this was the optimal date for flowers to be in bloom.

An interesting fact is that Ironton, Ohio, lays claim to the nation’s oldest “continuously running” Memorial Day parade. Its first parade was also held on May 5, 1868, and the town has held it every year since.

How many of our military have not come home?

America has been involved in small, medium and large conflicts almost continuously since its founding. According to Wikipedia the U.S. military has been involved in 74 military conflicts since the Declaration of Independence where our soldiers have fought, died and suffered for their country. Because of the poor record keeping (no internet or computers) and the intensity of the fighting in many of these early conflicts, the numbers shown here are estimates’ only but probably not far off.

The totals are:

664,401 KIA

40,915 MIA (which I will consider KIA here)

and 1,647,973 WIA

Also there were 652,602 (mostly in the Civil War) who died in theater

That makes a total of 3,005,891 military casualties.  Therefore, we can say since the formation of our country 237 years ago that we have incurred 12,683 casualties per year or 35 casualties per day since the founding.

But today we are here to give thanks to those that gave their all in “combat” which, including MIA’s, as of last month totals 705,316 KIA.

What were the worst conflicts?

Of the 74 conflicts that the American military has been involved in eight (8) stand out for the numbers of military personnel who died or were wounded.  These 8 conflicts account for 97.2% of all military casualties.

More military were lost in WW II than any of the other conflicts but that was not the worst war we were in. To put these conflicts in proper prospective and using the figures listed in Wikipedia under “Untied States Military casualties of war” I created a table where I could compare the military casualties to the size of the country at the time of the conflict.

This makes a big difference since when the country was formed there were fewer than 3 million citizens and today there are well over 300 million citizens, 100 times more.

I’ll start with the current War On Terror even though it is not one of  the eight to give a base of comparison to all those past conflicts since it is the one we are most familiar with today.
The Global War on Terror (WOT)

10/7/2001 to …

This Kinetic Action using today’s vernacular can not be rated as it is not yet completed, but as of April 2013 last month 6,677 have died to get rid of the Taliban and Al Qaida in Afghanistan and remove an evil dictator with delusions of grandeur from Iraq.

So far this war has lasted 4,223 days and we have lost 1.58 of our military per day. This is America’s longest continuously running war.

Considering the size of the country at 300.4 million citizens and even if we add in the wounded, that means that only a very small fraction of the country has served, or died, or was wounded in this conflict.

In all the following conflicts I will reference them as some multiple of the War On Terror.

The American Civil War

4/12/1861 to 4/9/1865

This was by far the worst war we have ever been in, since it was the South against the North, all were Americans and 624,938 of them died to end slavery and to keep the country whole. The war lasted 1,458 days and we lost 428.6 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 33.5 million citizens and adding in the wounded means that almost 3.2% of the population died or was wounded in that conflict.

That amounts to 1 out of 32 people. Nothing since comes even remotely close to what happened during the Civil War.

In fact we would have to add together all the remaining 7 major conflicts we have been in to equal that of the Civil War casualties compared to the size of the population. This war was 165.5 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

The American Revolution

4/19/1775 to 9/3/1783

This was the second worst war we have ever been in with 25,000 who died to sever our relationship from England and form the country.  The war lasted 3,059 days and we lost 8.2 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at only 2.8 million citizens means that this war was 93.0 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

World War II

12/7/1941 to 9/2/1945

This was the third worst war we have ever been in with 435,713 who died to defeat the Germans and the Japanese who were trying to take over the world. The war lasted 1,365 days and we lost 319.2 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 136.7 million citizens means that this war was 42.4 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

World War I

4/6/1917 to 11/11/1918

This was the fourth worst war we have ever been in with 119,866 who died to save England and France from being defeated by Germany. The war lasted 584 days and we lost 205.3 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 103.2 million citizens means that this war was 16.4 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

The War of 1812

6/18/1812 to 2/18/1815

This was the Fifth worst war we have ever been in with 14,260 who died to prevent England from taking back her former colonies.  The war lasted 975 days and we lost 14.6 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 8.0 million citizens means that this war was 12.3 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

The Vietnam War

11/24/1963 to 4/30/1975

This was the Sixth worst war we have ever been in with 60,698 who died trying to save the Vietnamese from being taken over by the communists’. The war lasted 4,175 days and we lost 14.5 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 202.6 million citizens this war was 5.5 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

The Korean War

6/25/1950 to 7/27/1953

This was the Seventh worst war we have ever been in with 41,278 who died to prevent the Communist North from taking over the free South. Technically this war never ended as there was a cease fire but no official end to the conflict.  The active portion of this war lasted 1,128 days and we lost 36.6 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 156.2 million citizens means that this war was 4.5 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

The Mexican War

4/25/1846 to 2/2/1848

This was the Eighth worst war we have ever been in with 13,283 who died to resolve the issue of Texas who had seceded from Mexico. The war lasted 648 days and we lost 20.5 of our military per day. Considering the size of the country at 21.8 million citizens means that this war was 4.3 times more deadly then the current War On Terror.

This ends all the major conflicts.

This day is personal for me!

From my Special Force camp in Vietnam in 1967 and out of the team that averaged fewer that a dozen men and in the order that they died I knew the following:

SP5 Joseph R. Beck, KIA

SFC Elmer Ables, KIA

SGT Michal Miller, MIA

SFC Herman A. McBride, KIA

SFC Ernest O. Broom, KIA

SP4 Gerry D. Schroeder, KIA

That was almost 46 years ago and I still remember them and the others that were wounded in my camp but made it back.

That almost ends my talk and I hope I have conveyed to you the spirit of, and meaning of this day.

So go enjoy your barbecues, your friends, and your communities parades, but remember you do so because those honored dead make it possible.

Sometime today turn your thoughts to the many gardens of stone around the globe where those who gave their all now rest and say a pray of thanks to them.

 

Now I’ll close with a few of the opening lines from a poem I wrote about war, and the purpose of service, shortly after 9/11.

I am the American Soldier.

Liberty never comes free,

and the soldier’s life is the key.

My blood in Lexington first flowed,

giving sweet life to her precious seed.

 

But liberty is a demanding thought,

and its growth with much sacrifice is bought

I am the American Soldier.

Feb 1 2014

Book Review “Starship Troopers”


Starship Troopers is a science fiction novel written by Robert A. Heinlein, first published in hardcover in December 1959 and then much later made into a movie in 1997. This review is on the book since the movie, although a good special effects action movie missed the entire purpose of Heinlein’s book which was as much about political philosophy and morals as it was a Science Fiction novel. The book is a first-person narrative and is about a young soldier from the Philippines named Juan “Johnnie” Rico and his exploits in the Mobile Infantry, a futuristic military service branch equipped with powered armor and futuristic weapons. Rico’s military career progresses from a recruit out of high school (creating a moral dilemma for him with his family for joining, resolved later in the book, and which sets the stage for the real message in this book) to non-commissioned officer and finally to officer all set against the backdrop of an interstellar war between mankind and an arachnid species known as “the Bugs”. Rico and the other characters in the book discuss moral and philosophical aspects of suffrage, civic virtue, juvenile delinquency, capital punishment, and war.

Reading this book shortly after it was first published, while I was in college, I loved the story as it was a simple good guys and bad guys plot. But the hidden message of service, morals and philosophy made an impression on me that never left. It was probably a factor in my opting for OCS after I got my induction notice after graduating from Ohio University in 1965.  The boomer generation and those that followed don’t have the prospective that we did about what happened and how we got into World War II. Political correctness and multiculturalism have made it impossible to discuss any of the issues that most need discussing today. Heinlein, who was very involved politically, set the stage for the book in the 22nd century after a major global war had decimated the planet “again” and the million of veterans who had to fight and die again (being written right after WW II) basically said we have had enough and formed a new world government based on different principles than we have now.

This book reflects the turn in Heinlein’s life from liberal to conservative after WW II when like many i.e. Milton Friedman and Ronald Reagan were discouraged by the social turn to the left started by Karl Mark.  The book to some degree follows Heinlein’s life as he was a graduate of Annapolis and served on the USS Lexington and later a destroyer the USS Roper in the 1930 attaining the rank of Lieutenant (Army Captain) before leaving the service (health reasons?). The story line or plot in the book is only the carrier for the true message in the book.

I think that Heinlein saw that society’s trend to gravitate toward what we call Fascism (Germany in Heinlein’s day) or Communism (Russia the U.S.S.R back then) both back then and now again today.  As W. Cleon Skousen’s writes in his book “The 5000 year Leap” there really is no difference between the two.  Both forms have a powerful central government and the only real difference being that under Communism the state owns the means of production while under Fascism or Socialism the state controls (though rules regulations and laws) the means of production. Powerful central governments are almost all lead by egotistical leaders that end up starting wars of conquest which the military than has to fight and die for.

Contrary to popular belief the American military does not want to go to war General Jack D. Ripper in the Stanley Kubrick 1964 movie Dr. Strangelove does not exist; hence Heinlein’s proposition in “Starship Troopers” that full citizenship could only be had by those that had served in the military.  The logic being that only they understood the reality of war.  Heinlein states through his Characters the principles that he sees important to creating a governmental system that would not be oppressive or war like.  Johnnie Rico relates, mostly though flash backs, these beliefs such as from his History and Moral Philosophy (subjects I have spent that last several years studying) teacher Jean Dubois and later Major Reid while Rico is in OCS (Officers Candidates School) the following ideas.

The collapse of 20th century society was because “their citizens (all of them counted as such) glorified their mythology of ‘rights’ … and lost track of their ‘duties’. No nation, so constituted, can endure. In response, the “reborn” society of the 22nd Century of Rico had previously reformed itself so that only veterans could wield political power, reasoning that, “Under our system every voter and officeholder is a man who has demonstrated through voluntary and difficult service that he places the welfare of the group ahead of his personal advantage.”

One other salient point is a statement that Rico makes when questioned by Dubois who asks him, “What difference exists between a soldier and a civilian?”  Rico’s answer is, “The difference lies in the field of civic virtue. A soldier accepts personal responsibility for the safety of the body politic of which he is a member, defending it, if need be, with his life. A civilian does not.” The first thing that an American military officer does today in accepting his commission is to take an oath to defend the Constitution which is the very core of our society.  Unlike most other societies that swear allegiance to the ruler of their country.

There is much more in Heinlein’s book and it was used in the military academies to show that service and duty were the important keys to the officer core. Whether this book is still used or not I don’t know but in my recent studies of the ancient Greeks the city state of Sparta comes close to what Heinlein wrote about with his Moral Philosophy.  I would be very surprised if Heinlein did not read Plato and Aristotle before writing this book and uses that knowledge as the base along with his service within the backdrop of WW II to form the ideas in his book.

We should also keep in mind that the founders of the United States did not believe in universal suffrage and back then those that created our form of government understood that a Constitutional Republic could not exist for long if everyone could vote. It was universally believed then that universal suffrage would in short order lead to a moral decay of the citizens and an eventual creation of a Tyrant as their ruler. This process is described in much detail when one studies political philosophy and it appears to me to be the track we are now on once more!