Leaving Kham Duc after a couple months of battle with the NVA, Army units were being redeployed to LZ Judy. It was a disaster that caught everyone by surprise - especially those who missed certain death by 10 minutes.

The draft brings out humanity's best and worst during war. My experience was mostly positive. In combat, courage is colorless, as is cowardice. This is my experience as an infantry platoon leader in Vietnam.

4 Things to Remember on Memorial Day

This is the story of a 21-year-old who volunteers to go to Vietnam to fight for American soldiers, his own survival, and to test his metal as a man. He takes the time to finish college, get two years of intense training, and then leave his wife and baby to fight in a war halfway around the world. He recounts the music from that time that leaves an indelible mark on his memory and those who gave all.

How much can a soldier take in war? This article details the costs of war and humanity’s continued struggle with devastating war. There is a thirst for war all over the Globe. Humanity is a long way from becoming civilized and its endurance for death, destruction, and debilitation continues unabated.

PTSD is a complicated subject. It is real, and it is debilitating. As one former combatant, I am asked why I don’t have PTSD. Everyone is different but I give one perspective that helped me. I pray for all Gold Star Families who experience loss and grieve for a lifetime. I also pray for all those afflicted with PTSD.

It was a time of great conflict domestically and internationally for America. This brief story gives a personal view of the Vietnam War from a veteran who valued his time in the infantry. It meant risking everything. It gives a realistic of what it was like and the mix of emotions endured. Most importantly, it gives the reasons for his survival.

Watching children playing hide and seek is not always a walk in the park. This was a deadly game in a Free Fire Zone in an ugly war.

This is one man’s life summary: from childhood to college, marriage, war, career, and beyond.

In 2020, I reflected on the Pandemic/COVID War and the contagion that was killing millions. I then recounted my time in another war that was in the killing fields of Vietnam.

Daydreaming on a drive to Cape Cod, it took me back in time to our battle on the beaches of the South China Sea in Vietnam.

A tour of duty in Vietnam lasted 12 months. They would be defining moments in any man or woman’s life. Some would not make it out alive. This is s story of the last days before coming home.

With 103 confirmed kills and 216 probables in Vietnam, Chuck Mawhinney was 'just doing my job' as the deadliest sniper in Marine Corps history. (Picture Courtesy of Chuck Mawhinney)

The Lord was my Shepherd with me on the Ho Chi Minh Trail with my platoon in the summer of 1970. I was the 1LT 3rd Platoon Leader with Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry, of the 196th Light Infantry Brigade in the Americal Division headquartered in Chu Lai, I Corps.

What it was like for a platoon of soldiers in Vietnam on patrol in the rice paddies and villages surrounded by guerrillas trying to kill you.

War is unforgiving. No matter what side a soldier is on when he or she loses the battle, the family continues to feel the loss for the rest of their lives. This is the story of one family that finally got closure after 50 years.

Making “contact” with the enemy was a deadly game. Those NVA who lost on the battlefield were lost forever.

On a river, memories flash back to war and then back to peace.

I stared out the tall terminal windows at the Zurich airport in Switzerland…

Ex-infantry platoon leader satisfies need for adventure