This question is for veterans.........?

Question

I am the wife of a viet nam combat vet....
In hindsight, would you serve your country again, whether it is Iraq, Viet Nam, WW2.......?
Please, honest, serious answers and explain if possible.
And thanks for serving.

Answer 1

Thanks for being a military spouse!! This is for you:

THE DIFFERENCE by Colonel Steve Arrington

17th Training Wing, Vice Commander
Goodfellow A.F.B.
San Angelo, Texas
taken from the Goodfellow Monitor
May 11, 2001

Over the years, I've talked a lot about military spouses....how special they are and the price they pay for freedom too. The funny thing about it, is most military spouses don't consider themselves different from other spouses. They do what they have to do, bound together not by blood or merely friendship, but with a shared spirit whose origin is in the very essence of what love truly is. Is there truly a difference? I think there is. You have to decide for yourself.

Other spouses get married and look forward to building equity in a home and putting down family roots. Military spouses get married and know they'll live in base housing or rent, and their roots must be short so they can be transplanted frequently.

Other spouses decorate a home with flair and personality that will last a lifetime. Military spouses decorate a home with flare tempered with the knowledge that no two base houses have the same size windows or same size rooms. Curtains have to be flexible and multiple sets are a plus. Furniture must fit like puzzle pieces. Other spouses have living rooms that are immaculate and seldom used. Military spouses have immaculate living room/dining room combos. The coffee table got a scratch or two moving from Germany, but it still looks pretty good.

Other spouses say good-bye to their spouse for a business trip and know they won't see them for a week. They are lonely, but can survive. Military spouses say good-bye to their deploying spouse and know they won't see them for months, or for a remote, a year. They are lonely, but will survive.

Other spouses, when a washer hose blows off, call Maytag and then write a check out for getting the hose reconnected. Military spouses will cut the water off and fix it themselves. Other spouses get used to saying "hello" to friends they see all the time. Military spouses get used to saying "good-bye" to friends made the last two years.

Other spouses worry about whether their child will be class president next year. Military spouses worry about whether their child will be accepted in yet another new school next year and whether that school will be the worst in the city...again.

Other spouses can count on spouse participation in special events...birthdays, anniversaries, concerts, football games, graduation, and even the birth of a child. Military spouses count on each other: duty comes first, it can be no other way.

Other spouses put up yellow ribbons when the troops are imperiled across the globe and take them down when the troops come home. Military spouses wear yellow ribbons around their hearts and they never go away.

Other spouses worry about being late for mom's Thanksgiving dinner. Military spouses worry about getting back from Japan in time for dad's funeral.

And other spouses are touched by the television program showing an elderly lady putting a card down in front of a long, black wall that has names on it. The card simply says "Happy Birthday, Sweetheart. You would have been sixty today." A military spouse is the lady with the card. And the wall is the Vietnam Memorial.

I would never say military spouses are better or worse than other spouses are. But I will say there is a difference. And I will say that our country asks more of military spouses than is asked of other spouses.

And I will say, without hesitation, that military spouses pay just as high a price for freedom as do their active duty husbands or wives. Perhaps the price they pay is even higher. Dying in service to our country isn't near as hard as loving someone who has died in service to our country, and having to live without them. Military spouses deserve America's gratitude for all they freely give. And if you know one, let them know how much you appreciate their sacrifices.

Answer 2

Yes. I was active in the late 60's. Spent all of 1967 in Viet Nam. I was a drilling reservist in the 1970's. Then I did another 14 years on active duty and retired. If I were called back today, I would give it an "Oh shoot" (maybe a little stronger to be honest) and then ask when and where should I report.

There were some rough spots here and there, but it was always an honor to serve.

Answer 3

I would do it over again. I disagreed heartily with the Viet Nam war, but the warrior does not get to pick his fights - so I went. My family has served in every armed conflict this country has engaged upon since my ancestor, Captain Andrew Nickel, served in the Fourth Battalion of the Virginia Militia in the War of 1812. My father earned a Purple Heart in the Philippines in World War Two. My Uncle earned one in the Korean War. I could not very well ignore family tradition and remain aloof when Viet Nam came along. I served for ten years. My eldest daughter is a senior drill instructor and my youngest son is an M.P. Two other of my children have served in the Army. My ex-wife was an Army nurse while my current wife is an Air Force veteran. War sucks - but yes, I'd do it again.

Answer 4

It would be pretty cool depending on the base. That would have a lot to do with it. Also, it would be cool if a veteran could buy individual houses instead of rent them. We are not renting kind of people. Some bases have some very nice houses, but they would need a lot of work to get them back into shape since they have been vacant for so long. Mare Island in California has some nice houses and water front property would be nice as well. There are lots of active bases that have tons of empty houses as well. NAS Corpus Christi has a whole row of house right next door to the CO's house that are all vacant. The military no longer has the money to keep these older houses up. Fort Ord would have been prime real estate too given the location.

Answer 5

I retired from the Navy in 1982. I was recalled to active duty in 1990 for three days to review the medical support plan for Operation Desert Storm. Three days after the attack on America of September 11, 2001 I requested to be placed back on active duty from the retired list. But, Federal law restricts that option beyond a certain age to general and flag grade officers, along with physicians. So, even though I want to serve again I can't.

Answer 6

First i would like to say thank you for your service to your husband, and your welcome. Yes i would do it again! I lost my wife to being in the military and not being home for going on combat deployments. I loved my wife, but i was in the military when she married me so she new what she was getting into. Just because we serve our government and take orders from our superiors does not mean we always agree with them. But unless it is a morally wrong order we shall follow it.

Answer 7

Yes. Nam was just part of my twenty years. I liked my job, I liked the variety of jobs and I quit my job every 3 years without quiting my job. Part of the job was taking orders and neutralizing the enemy. War was a part of my job I accepted.

Answer 8

Yes I would
and serve proudly

Answer 9

Yes. The US is a great country and to stay great we need people who are willing to stand an fight when necessary or asked to by the President, congress or the people of the USA.

Vet-USAF

Answer 10

yes I would proudly serve again if I could
Vietnam 71-72 1st Cav