Coulda been MacArthur who said an army travels on its medals. Such a statement sure would have fit the man. Way back in my teen years I read a biography of the general. In the footnotes of the book it listed each and every medal he received. One at a time. Good thing he had himself a man to pin those ribbons on for him or he'd a been facing a regular nipple piercing every time he wanted to look spiffy. What I most recall is that he issued most of those silver stars to himself. And they all arrived about as quickly as he could dream 'em up. Must of been nice. Of course my memory might be faulty.
Down in the Delta she didn't quite work that way or when it did, those medals sure took their time arriving. In my DD 214, that's the orders of separation from regular duty, it says the Army in its infinite wisdom issued me an Army Commendation Medal. That's the Army's version of an atta boy. As to the medal itself, I still ain't seen it. No matter, I'd have probably stuck it in the back of a drawer or pissed on it some other way.
Most every man jack of us in Bravo Company qualified for an Air Medal seein' as how we were air mobile. Rode choppers a couple of dozen times a month. Not a one of saw any of the medals for that.
'Bout the only one of us who received a medal for heroism that didn't involve bein' shot, either Silver or Bronze Star, was Bobby Woolwine. His was silver. All the rest called for a hole in the body and a clerk with a creative typewriter. That's the way most of the Bronze Stars were earned in Vietnam to my recollection. Trip a booby trap and get yourself fragged. The report has you defendin' fellow troops or assaultin' a heavily armed position. Thats' just the way she was.
Anyhow, as we were all fixin' to head back to the world, we got to thinkin' about the medals we didn't get but had comin' to us. About how when we went home on leave, we wanted to look like the bad-ass heroes we truly were. And right there in Dong Tam, at the tailor's shop - only we didn't call any of the Vietnamese shops by their real names, we called 'em gook shops, not necessarily politically correct but that's what we called them - was the answer to our prayers. Couldn't buy medals but that didn't matter 'cause no one ever wore medals. But we could buy ribbons. Coulda bought enough to look like a Macarthur startin' at the top of the left pocket, then risin' up and over the shoulder and so far down the back so that our CIB's - that's Combat Infantryman's Badge - woulda been pinned to a pants pocket.
A whole bunch of us shopped there. As far as I know none of us bought more than we had coming. That's where my ArCom and Air Medal ribbons came from. Was tempted to buy a Purple Heart ribbon for the one I turned down but thought better of it. Woolwine got the Oak Leaf Cluster that went on his Purple Heart. Probably his Air Medal too but I can't say that for sure. Bobby, he looked like Robert DeNiro in The Deer Hunter, only without the beard and the Hollywood bullshit.
There's a lot more weight behind the medals from Vietnam than I bring up here. Not my story to tell. But for sure some were thrown away by Vietnam Veteran war protestors after they got back. A whole lot are in the ground in National Cemeteries attached to rotted uniforms. Thousands are stuffed in the back of drawers. Tons were never issued. Truth behind it all, for me at least, the only one that matters is the CIB. Says a body was there, for whatever reason, and dodged a bullet or two.
Anyhow, as we were all fixin' to head back to the world, we got to thinkin' about the medals we didn't get but had comin' to us. About how when we went home on leave, we wanted to look like the bad-ass heroes we truly were. And right there in Dong Tam, at the tailor's shop - only we didn't call any of the Vietnamese shops by their real names, we called 'em gook shops, not necessarily politically correct but that's what we called them - was the answer to our prayers. Couldn't buy medals but that didn't matter 'cause no one ever wore medals. But we could buy ribbons. Coulda bought enough to look like a Macarthur startin' at the top of the left pocket, then risin' up and over the shoulder and so far down the back so that our CIB's - that's Combat Infantryman's Badge - woulda been pinned to a pants pocket.
A whole bunch of us shopped there. As far as I know none of us bought more than we had coming. That's where my ArCom and Air Medal ribbons came from. Was tempted to buy a Purple Heart ribbon for the one I turned down but thought better of it. Woolwine got the Oak Leaf Cluster that went on his Purple Heart. Probably his Air Medal too but I can't say that for sure. Bobby, he looked like Robert DeNiro in The Deer Hunter, only without the beard and the Hollywood bullshit.
There's a lot more weight behind the medals from Vietnam than I bring up here. Not my story to tell. But for sure some were thrown away by Vietnam Veteran war protestors after they got back. A whole lot are in the ground in National Cemeteries attached to rotted uniforms. Thousands are stuffed in the back of drawers. Tons were never issued. Truth behind it all, for me at least, the only one that matters is the CIB. Says a body was there, for whatever reason, and dodged a bullet or two.
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