[Magdalen] Viet Nam Series.

Ginga Wilder gingawilder at gmail.com
Wed Sep 20 12:02:39 UTC 2017


John was in Viet Nam in '69-'70, Army Quartermaster Corps, Phu Bai, 7 miles
from the DMV.  I was 7 months pregnant with Jay, our first child.  John did
not meet his son until he was 9 months old.

We are definitely watching it.  Yes, ti is emotional, especially since we
are going through the war in the same room.  Last night as the episode
wound down, each of us was in tears.  Hugging helped.

I am glad to get this in depth bit of history - a history I did not know,
only lived through.  Political ego is an evil thing.  (In 2017 we know this
up close and personal.)

Anyhow.
Ginga Wilder

On Wed, Sep 20, 2017 at 5:33 AM, Sally Davies <sally.davies at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Might be same for me. The Vietnam war shared many characteristics with the
> Zimbabwean bush war/Chimurenga. Too much sadness, too many triggers.
>
> Sally D
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> > On 19 Sep 2017, at 10:39 PM, Jay Weigel <jay.weigel at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > I. Just . Cant. Too emotional for me.
> >
> > On Tue, Sep 19, 2017 at 1:04 PM, Marion Thompson <
> marionwhitevale at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> I watched it Sunday night and have set the recorder.  However, I didn't
> >> realise until this moment that it's on every night, not weekly.  I'll
> get
> >> to it all in due course, but I'm out a lot during the week.  Very
> >> interesting so far!!!  A lot of 'who knew?' moments.
> >>
> >> Marion, a pilgrim
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>> On 9/19/2017 12:05 PM, Cantor03--- via Magdalen wrote:
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> I'm surprised that no one has commented on the ongoing USA
> >>> PBS Network series (Burns, et al) about the Viet Nam War.
> >>> This is a very much in depth group of mostly 2 hour sessions
> >>> on that difficult and unpopular conflict and extending through
> >>> two weeks.
> >>>  I suppose that any American under, say, 45, would have relatively
> >>> less interest in the series, and even for those of us who lived
> through
> >>> and remember the Viet Nam War, the subject is often approached
> >>> with ambivalence.
> >>>  In any case, I am watching and following this documentary series
> >>> with considerable interest, as it is calling into question many of my
> >>> opinions and beliefs about the War.  For example, I always  thought
> >>> of the leader of North Viet Nam, Ho Chi Min, as a routine Communist
> >>> thug, but the series paints a much different picture.
> >>>  The Viet Nam War had a profound affect on me because I was
> >>> drafted and then allowed to accept a commission as a Captain
> >>> in the US Army Medical Corps in February of 1966, and was then
> >>> allowed (nicely!) to finish my dermatology residency at  UM-Minneapolis
> >>> Medical School and entered active duty at Ft. Sam Houston, San
> >>> Antonio, TX in August, 1966.
> >>>  I was assigned to a duty station at Frankfurt/M, Germany after a
> >>> two month entrance training, but discovered that to take this
> position,
> >>> I had to give them 3+ years instead of the usual draftee two years.
> >>> It was considered a "plum" assignment.  It was.  Living in  Europe
> >>> for more than three years made a profound impact on me and the
> >>> family, and it was all "thanks" to the Viet Nam War.
> >>>    David S.
> >>>
> >>>
> >>
>


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