You see, the death
You see a lotta destruction
You see a lot of villages being burned and you know people are being killed
And... you shoot in bushes and you hear screams and you know that people have been hit
But to see someone get hit with a high-velocity steel-jacket round - designed by people, to kill other people, is the most degrading experience a human being can udnergo
There is no more obscene way to die than to be shot to death in a war
The Vietnam war
The Vietnam war
When the caps start flying, you get confused
I wasn't really sure what was goin' on
The Vietnam war
In 1965, Vietnam seemed like just another foreign war, but it wasn't
It was different in many ways and so where those who did the fighting
In World War Two, the average age of the combat soldier was 26
In Vietnam, it was 19
According to a Veteran's Administration study, half of the Vietnam combat veterans suffer from what psychiatrists call Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
Many vets complain of alienation, rage, or guilt
Some succumb to suicidal thoughts
Eight to ten years after coming home, almost 800,000 men are still fighting the Vietnam War
Rage
The Vietnam war
The Vietnam war
These were the baddest dudes I ever saw in my life
These guys were certified bad
During World War Two, the Sixth Marine Regiment served four years in the Pacific but only engaged the enemy for about six weeks
In Vietnam, the combat soldier typically served a 12-month tour of duty but was exposed to hostile fire almost every day
When the caps start flying
I wasn't really sure what was goin' on
The Vietnam war
You're 18 years old and you're wearin' somebody's brains around on your shirt because they got their head blown off right next to you
And that's not supposed to affect you
God, what happened to those guys over there?
Gee, I saw them marching around the parade ground and they all looked so nice and clean cut and they all had smiles
And then you come back and you're not smiling anymore
We did what we had to do and people wanted us to be ashamed of what it made us
The Vietnam war
And you're not smiling anymore
Some succumb to suicidal thoughts
Why?
What did we do it for?
What was our reason?
WAs it worth it?
WAs it worth you going, risking your life out there, putting your life on the line like this
Was it worth me going out there, getting shot at, getting wounded, trying to save another man's life
There was no reason
You see, I wish I could see it
Why?