Bad Ass Vietnam Vet

Comments

MSgt Edd Prothro, USMC Ret. 1964-1984 - July 2, 2020

I’m so happy that everyone enjoyed the poster as much as I did. Of course, their not Marines, and the photo is certainly staged, but it’s the idea that is prominent. Semper Fi!!! Top Pro

John Schmidt - July 2, 2020

Picture is appropriate. Everybody carried M-60 ammo and a damn 60mm mortar. Those teams could not possibly carry enough by themselves so us grunts Carried it too. I’ve also carried 81mm mortars, radio batteries, and extra water when going into a hot spot.

tiny - July 2, 2020

A lot of memories in that photo

Murray M. Hermanson - July 2, 2020

Henry, what unit were you with? I am speaking from experience more than 10 operations with 1/9,2/9,3/9 ,2/26 and others. The M-79 man was a thumper not a gunner and he always had his ammo around his neck. This is a staged picture, probably taken in Tenn. or some other state. Just my opinion though. Murray 1371

JIM OTIS SGT 1st AMTRACT bn CUA VIET RIVER. - July 2, 2020

WHERE DO I SIGN UP FOR THIS T-SHIRT.

MSgt Edd Prothro, USMC Ret. 1964-1984 - July 2, 2020

Suzanne,

I hope your father, The Gunny, is doing well as I too feel his pain and the constant reminder of exposure to Agent Orange. I contracted non-Hodgekins lymphoma in 2008, endured 12 rounds of CHOP chemotherapy, developed peripheral neuropathy in my feet and hands, had a bout with polypcythemia vera (and I never even knew a girl named Vera.) Now the pulmonologist says the severity of emphysema is also probably related to this exposure. And to think that we did this to our own troops.

I remember sitting in an ambush at a ford along the Song Cu De river, near the Namo bridge, when we heard the drone of an aircraft. He was flying low along the course of the river and liquid was spraying out the tips of his wings. We thought he was having an emergency, dumping fuel to make a crash landing in the river, so we reported it to COC. Well, they told us not to worry because he was just killing the vegetation on the river banks. In 1969, that was the first that I had ever heard of defoliant agents. But, I do remember there we fewer bugs and creepy crawlers than usual.

Aging, especially for Vietnam veterans, isn’t for sissy’s!! Semper Fi!!! Top Pro

Ed Leidy - July 2, 2020

Hey – Even as a Corpsman I humped whatever was needed in addition to my Unit One Med Kit & back-up Battle Dressings, etc. Figured they may need extra ammo to cover my young butt when I had to do my Corpsman thing. The M-79 (Blooper) man likely had his ammo distributed around as well. I rigged up some M-16 bandoleers with battle dressings & a tourniquet and passed them out to my Grunts.
They were more than happy to have their “own, personal” supply (‘Course, they didn’t weigh very much!) “You ain’t gotta like it, you just gotta DO it!”
Semper Fi – “Doc” Lima 3/1 1st. Mar Div. ’70-’71.

Henry Wire - July 2, 2020

Just about everyone carried some belt-fed ammo. The 0331 Gunner needed that ammo in a firefight …. Most of the time the M-79 Gunner was just a little too close …
Don’t know these things unless you got ofo your butt and went.

Ernie Strong - July 2, 2020

Murray I humped the elephant gun. Just my rounds and a 45
Your gunner observation… In the bush I’m going with the Gunner support just not in the picture

Murray M. Hermanson - July 2, 2020

Why would you want this on a T- Shirt? The saying is as phony as the picture. Just my opinion, why does the M-79 man have M-60 rounds where is his ammo? Is he the A gunner too? You don’t get between the A gunner and the gun. Murray 1371