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What I Believe

03Fox2/1

03Fox2/1

Corporal - USMC
MI.Net Member
Joined
Feb 22, 2006
Messages
217
Points
38
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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That was a very interesting and moving read mate. It was full of points that I will raise discussion about later but for now I would like to ask your permission to use the following phrase you have used, in future posts here and elsewhere.

Hate the war if you must, don't hate the warrior.
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This means so much to me and really rounds off my intentions when creating this site. It also describes my beliefs that politics do not matter here on this site, only "The Warrior" and what he, or she stands for, has achieved and lives with to this day.

You are a brave, modest and wise man and im glad you have graced our site with your prescence.

I salute you and others like you.

Semper Fi
UBIQUE
Per mare Per terram. sal;
 
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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03Fox2/1 and the rest of the warriors of your ilk...

I salute you allsal;


Your country called, you answered.
 
Fox,
I can’t disagree with anything you wrote except for
03Fox2/1 said:
I only want to bring attention to the subject matter, not myself.
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For me the subject matter does bring attention to myself and I want it that way. The subject of the VN War, how it was prosecuted, the aftermath of the United States political cowards inaction when the RVN was falling and myself are so intertwined I can’t disassociate any aspect of the VN War from my being.

Like you, I feel a deep obligation to honor the fallen for they are the true heroes. I feel it’s up to us who survived, and believe me I know the word survivor is a relative term and subject to each and every VN Vets definition, to make sure that they are remembered and I will continue to do just that until I’m unable to do so or I die. America may have forsaken us and on a certain level, I can live with that but my brothers who paid the ultimate sacrifice deserve so much more. I have made it a point, no a mission if you will, to always remember those I served with by posting memorials on every internet site I’m a member of including those that are not military related and on the anniversary of a brothers death I will bump the post to the forefront whether it’s liked or not. It’s not an easy task and has at times, taken it’s toll but I feel if WE don’t honor those names carved in that piece of black granite in DC, then no one will.

I admire you for letting us into your “perimeter” and even though I withdraw into myself sometimes upon remembering things that very few have lived through at such a young age, I’ve learned that it really isn’t that safe of a place but I respect your feelings and would never suggest a course that you should take in dealing with your own personal demons for only you know what’s best for you.

Welcome Home Brother
 
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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Addendum to, "What I Believe"

disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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03Fox2/1 - A powerful, emotive piece of writing and a fitting tribute. As I've said to a Vietnam Veteran before in these forums, you all have nothing to prove to anyone. You have earned the right to remember with honour and live your life.
 
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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Someone To Watch- Addendum to my last addendum

disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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Nope, its not too political mate.
As ive said before the only politics that bothers me is the politics that betrays our brave troops past and present, such as "should we be in iraq and afghanistan" etc etc. Politics in this sense is fine as youre only reference to it is that of a fellow VN vet becoming a Senator.

Semper Fi
Per Mare per Terram
UBIQUE
 
sal; I salute all who have posted here with such heart felt emotions, emotions which I share, especially the pain through memory of lost brothers. It is during this time of year that I feel this pain the most as it was this month (Nov) in 1967 that I lost so many good brothers of the 173rd Airborne Brigade on Hill 875 in Dak To. Being one of only six from my platoon to survive I carry with me the pain of guilt and the question of why, as I can glean from the post here I share with others on this site. I salute you all my brothers, and you are my brothers no matter what branch or unit you may have served in, we are all bound by our service in a hell none of us will ever forget.
 
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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Very well stated brother! I agree with your words and many of them do, as you mentioned, apply to me as well. I have learned to live with my demons, in fact, we have a rather close relationship and work hand in hand. They help me understand the brothers who are lost and suffer greatly from their own demons by giving me the insight to offer a word of comfort to a brother, a word of understanding based on experience and not from a medical book. I, like you, use this and other boards as therapy. I administer the Charlie Ranger board which is like this one and in it have a PTSD Discussion Group which helps me, and, hopefully, others. It is not about medical BS but about how each of us has learned to live with and cope with our demons . . . a sharing, if you will, of experience so that we might learn ways and means to live with these demons that we brought home from Nam. I have said and continue to say and believe that the only ones who can help us with this thing called PTSD is us ourselves. It is Vets helping Vets that makes the difference, I believe. sal;
 
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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03Fox2/1 said:
The respect freely given and received and returned on this site by our administrator and the members is what keeps me posting here. And I have learned through many years of trial and error that as long as I am talking, I am moving forward. It is when I become silent that I become more lost in the present and more real in the past. Semper Fi
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Your number one's health - your health - should always and forever come first. You're being the bigger man for walking away and you are putting yourself and your mental health first. You should feel really proud of yourself.

You're absolutely correct when you say that you need to keep on sharing your thoughts on this subject. I too loose my foothold in the present if I'm silent, and hell claims my soul although my body's still breathing, and I'll not see what's right in front of me, for all the memories are clouding my vision.

I'm sorry to hear about your friends. One of my dearest friends have had two deaths in the family (a cousin and her father) in the past 2 weeks and her daughter has cancer, but she still has time and concern about others. I've no idea where she gets her strength from. Life keeps knocking her over, but she still keeps on going, even if she can only crawl at times.

She and you, Fox, are my two biggest motivators for keeping going. We all live in our private hell, yet somehow, we are able to count our blessings and take one more step in the hope of tomorrow being a better day.
That Vietnamese-American doesn't understand that kind of mentality. If he did, he would not be so disrespectful to you and other veterans.

As you've said in the past, Fox, "Hate the war, not the warrior". Soldiers don't decide where to go and fight, politicians do. A soldier can only do his duty, or speak up to question the validity of going somewhere to fight and then be brought to court to be heard (as far as I understand), or he will have - in my not so humble opinion - the dishonourable choice of deserting without speaking his mind when he disagrees with a war he's been ordered to go fight in.

I've met deserters, the latest one only a year ago. The way these people lead their lives has everything to do with desertion and deception. It is what they do best. They desert their friends, family, colleagues.
Deserters also talk a lot. Because if they stopped talking, people around them would have time to think about all the BS and lies these deserters tell everyone to justify their dishonourable actions in life, and realise that they too will be deserted/abandoned sooner or later. I have neither respect nor any understanding for deserters, no matter what their "valid" reasons are for deserting.

Having said that, I do have full understanding that in a real life combat situation, people may react very differently than during training. That's why a soldiers training has got to be difficult and hard at all times. It's a necessity to weed out those who cannot cope with real life combat. Every man and woman serving need to know that they can trust everyone of their fellow soldiers with their lives, no matter what they think of these people in private.

I've digressed. I've no idea why.

Fox, I respect you and I'm honoured to call you my friend, albeit an online friend. sal;
 
Fox2/1, first let me say that I am sorry to hear of your brothers ill health. I know the feelings you must have regarding that as I too have brothers who are ill in this manner. Regarding what you wrote, I think you pen your feelings and thoughts very well Jack or not and I feel your from the heart post. I don't understand why your post in reply to this Vietnamese person should have been deleted. I don't know what site you may have been on but it would seem to me that if he was on any American Military Oriented site and speaking against the military and America he should have been banned. I am a believer in freedom of speech however, on a site dedicated to the military one should use some common sense. If this person wishes to debate the merits of the Vietnam War then he would be better served to go to a political site not a military one. This reminds me of the protesters who protest our America Hero's funerals and who we, the Patriot Guard, ride to deter. They have the right to speak but don't do it where it verges on breaking the law of inciting a riot, by demonstrating disrespect for our troops who gave their lives unselfishly for the rights of others. As regards you tactical retreat from this site, I commend you. I do not see you running or even walking away from this fight that this person obviously wishes to engage in, but merely choosing not to participate and directing your energies to other more positive pursuits. I also see you as protecting your on health, which should be the first concern of all of us, in my opinion. I enjoy your post here and would like to invite you to share them with others on a new site just created by my unit Echo LRP-Charlie Rangers Association. We are new on this site having had our old site hacked. Our site is still under construction, however, it is moving on nicely. It is a site run by Rangers but one that is open to all military personnel. If you ever wish to join us on our site you will be more than welcomed. Here is the site address http://www.e20-lrp-c75-rgr.org/ sal;
 
disregard, 03Fox2/1
 
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When I enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in March of '68, I lost my ignorance and unbeknown to me, also my youth. When I arrived in South VietNam, I lost my innocence but I found myself. Since then, I have always realized, the only difference between myself and those men that did not return, is the date of our death. I have spent my entire life, wondering why I am alive and at times, wishing I had not survived, yet I have fought consistantly against the forces that daily tempt me to give up. I am a survivor and a fighter who is determined to face forward while I constantly look backward and wonder, is that where I belong ? I live in the present but I exist in the past and I'm not sure if I care which one controls me. Rest assured, I am too stubborn to leave this world voluntarily, but I am cognizant of forces greater than I that act otherwise. Survivors guilt and the other demons associated with those such as myself, has no limits on when or where it strikes and each time, seems like the first. I have no right to complain, I am alive, and for that I am grateful. When all is said and done in my life, I hope there will be more friends, then enemies, noting my passing. Semper Fi
 
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