I traveled around the then Republic of South Vietnam quite a bit as a newspaper reporter. The whole time I did not report on the big war, but instead on men from Indiana serving in that big war. And, it was rather big then in 1970 when some 440,000 Americans still served there.
As I moved around I heard one story four or five times. Each time it was told, it was told as if it happened at the particular fire support base I happened to be at. And, each time the person telling it, pointed to a spot along the perimeter as the specific place where it happened.
The story? The story was how there was a ground attack one night, and the next morning as they were collecting the bodies of the VC oir NVA, one of them turned out to be the or one of the camp barbers. I'll bet I heard that story at least a half a dozen times.
Then, guess what? Just recently I met a man who'd been in the Marines, not sure the exact date, but he'd be at Baldy. Do not know if the Marines called places like that an LZ or fire support base or what. But, anyway, he told me the exact same story. And, he insisted it did happen at his base, and it was the barber at his camp.
Talk about folklore? Now that is true folklore. Wonder if there are stories like that coming out of Iraq or Afghanistan?
As I moved around I heard one story four or five times. Each time it was told, it was told as if it happened at the particular fire support base I happened to be at. And, each time the person telling it, pointed to a spot along the perimeter as the specific place where it happened.
The story? The story was how there was a ground attack one night, and the next morning as they were collecting the bodies of the VC oir NVA, one of them turned out to be the or one of the camp barbers. I'll bet I heard that story at least a half a dozen times.
Then, guess what? Just recently I met a man who'd been in the Marines, not sure the exact date, but he'd be at Baldy. Do not know if the Marines called places like that an LZ or fire support base or what. But, anyway, he told me the exact same story. And, he insisted it did happen at his base, and it was the barber at his camp.
Talk about folklore? Now that is true folklore. Wonder if there are stories like that coming out of Iraq or Afghanistan?
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