Anyone else know that geopolitical-quagmire feel of having a relative who fought in Vietnam...

Anyone else know that geopolitical-quagmire feel of having a relative who fought in Vietnam? It's the main reason I keep my politics to myself at family gatherings.

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My grandmothers brother died in Vietnam so I can't talk about Vietnam with her around. Beyond that anything goes.

Vets can be more left than you might expect. This doc on the GI resistance movement goes into the hidden history of the anti-Vietnam War movement: m.youtube.com/watch?v=3nPJgeg6hpA

My father was an American recondo who ran LRRPs in Cambodia before Nixon expanded the war. He has enough shrapnel in his back from an RPG that he occasionally sets off metal detectors at the airport. Occasionally he will say shocking things out of nowhere like what kind of traps are ideal to set up on your property in case the cops show up (whips and claymores) and why you can't actually pull a knife out of a man's chest like they do in the movie you are watching (you have to step on him and yank).

Now he says that we were fighting for the wrong side. When the two of us get to talking politics it usually ends in us putting together a list of people who need to die. It is disconcerting how similar our politics have become as we have aged.

hahahahahahaha that sounds based. My grandfather was a helicopter pilot. That's about all I know. He doesn't really talk about it. I have a vague memory of asking him about it when I was like 9 and him telling me about how he'd have to transfer caskets and shit.

Vietnam was rough on the people who went there. Maybe take it easy on your family.

He sounds awesome

my dad's a draft dodger

your dad sounds fucking based.

Yeah, one but he's a childish racist so I don't care about offending him. My family has enough bullshit opinions that this hardly matters in the grand scheme anyway.

My dad claimed he was drafted to fight in 'nam even though he was born well too late for that, and he claims he had to leave college because of the draft.

That's funny. My father's brother was a helicopter pilot who carried caskets. My grandmother once said that she had nightmares over the thought of him having to carry my father's body. It was the source of some hard feelings in the family.


He sounds like one of those "Vietnam-era" guys who went to Grenada.

Nah, he never went anywhere. He's just a bad liar and a huge coward.

...

I don't talk to them about it

I mean the military probably does do that to people who went on ultra top secret missions.

My grandpa flew planes in 'nam and probably bombed some gooks. He also gave me Bill O'Reilly's Culture Warrior book when I was 11.
I don't talk to my grandpa about politics.

Nam' vets that didn't get disillusioned with the american government, patriotism and all that shit, are not people.

More like they were not combat infantrymen. Find a Vietnam vet with a CIB, and you will find a guy with a bone to pick with the U.S. government.

Like what? The US government is pretty seedy and shady on their own people, especially during the 70's, that I probably wouldn't be surprised if he was right.

Can't complain I guess

Haha, imagine having your entire family be South Viet refugees and being the receiving end of communist terror? Quite difficult keeping my power level low when they start talking about how based Diem was.

Yea my grandfather was a Vietnam vet, I guess. Was an aircraft mechanic, however he was active for a very long time, throughout most of the cold war.

So unfortunately he's very pro-murika and VERY anti commie. Life a bitch