re: Vance v Walz Debate Thread - with intro thoughts

Growing up me and my sisters knew that our father was highly decorated. He survived the amphibious landing at Iwo Jima as a Marine in the 3rd wave landing at the base of Mt. Suribatchi. Went back to home and went to the board of education to get his high school diploma. They said due to volunteering and not being drafted he had to go another semester to graduate from High School and get his diploma. He then went the college. Got married and got his commission in the Army. As a 2LT his first duty station was in Japan. Soon after Korea was attacked and was one of the first to be shipped to Korea as a part of the 1st Cavalry. Wounded twice there and volunteered to go to Vietnam as a LTC and injured his back and ended up having to retire.
We all knew he was awarded Silver Star w/ 2 Oak Leaf Cluster, Bronze Star V, Purple Heart w/ Oak Leaf Cluster. We never really knew the real stories till he had a stroke in 2003 when he opened up on a family history video that his younger brother was putting together. With tears flowing he talked about Iwo and his friends in his unit he lost. How Korea was so horrible and beyond description. He gave a verbal history of each of his awards and I was able to purchase the 1st Cavalry year book and reading it you can follow the engagements that his unit was involved in. He was one of six to survive from entire rifle company that was overrun by the communist. He remembered the engagements, towns, roads, extreme heat and cold that caused so many casualties. In Vietnam he was in a Huey that was coming into a landing zone that was supposed to be safe. As they came in they started taking fire and the younger solders started jumping out. He was 42 at the time and it was it further off the ground than he had figured and ended up injuring his back. He ended spending 6 weeks in the hospital in Japan before getting sent home. That was the only time he spoke about the battles. I wish I had been there but am glad that he opened up for my uncle and he was able to save it!