VIETNAM MARINES ON MY LAI: Ken Rodgers, LCpl USMC

Then and Now…

Ken Rodgers, LCpl USMC, is a veteran of Khe Sanh.  He joined us to talk about the environment that surrounded him in Vietnam.  Stories of ear cutting, racism and rape are associated with the War in Vietnam more so than any other war America has participated in… what was the truth for those who served?  Ken talks about his experience in Vietnam as a member of Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 26th Marine Regiment.

 

 

SOMETHING I’VE NEVER HEARD: Survivors of Iwo Jima talk about what they lived through

These are the images that we associate with the Battle of Iwo Jima.  Recently, I stumbled on to interviews with Japanese survivors of the battle, something I’d never heard before.

Listen to the conditions they lived and fought in, their combat instructions, the way they treated their wounded and how they ultimately turned to barbaric behavior as their food and water ran out and they knew their end was near.

Amazing audio.  You can watch the source videos here:  Video #1,  Video #2,  and Video #3.

WAS LEADING IN VIETNAM DIFFERENT: MajGen Jarvis Lynch, USMC (ret)

Jarvis Lynch
MajGen USMC (ret)

We had extensive conversations about My Lai last week on the program.  Jarvis Lynch, MajGen USMC (ret) — an operations officer in Vietnam in 1969 in Vietnam joined us to discuss what it was like to lead in Vietnam given the social unrest of the time in our natio.

Jarvis has very interesting things to say about drugs, rape and weak leadership during the Vietnam War and in any war.  We discuss drugs, rape and leadership at My Lai.

We also talk about how the Viet Cong related to the North Vietnamese Army in an area of operations and an interesting story about a leprosy colony that full of healthy young men.  Interesting stuff.