A Vietnam War Lesson

A Vietnam War Lesson
By convicted felon Oliver North | May 03, 2010

Just before first light on April 30th, thirty-five years ago this week, a U.S. Marine CH-46 helicopter from HMM-165, call-sign "Lady Ace Zero Nine" landed on the roof of the American Embassy in Saigon to pick up Ambassador Graham Martin. Moments later, a message -- classified "secret" by the National Security Agency -- was flashed to the Oval office informing the president: "Lady Ace 09 has the ambassador and his immediate staff on board . . ."

Over the next several hours, dozens more messages were transmitted to the commander in chief, detailing in near-real-time, herculean efforts to evacuate the remaining Americans from the city as North Vietnamese Army regulars closed in on our last diplomatic, military and intelligence missions in the Republic of Vietnam.The now declassified "Operation Frequent Wind" intercepts in the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library read like a novel.

Nineteen minutes after the first transmission: "Lady Ace 09 reports feet wet… Lady Ace 13 reports outbound with 16 USA... Lady Ace 10 going in for landing..." Two of the cables describe CS tear gas that nearly blinded the pilots. A half hour into the evacuation: "Lady Ace 14 is on the roof. He reports small arms fire on the north east corner of the building in a small clump of trees at ground level. Lady Ace is loading at this time." Then, three minutes later: "Spectre reports numerous fire fights all around the building. Swift 33 inbound feet dry. Lady Ace 14 reports off with 21 pax." The abbreviation "pax" is military-speak for passengers.

At 0753, the final helo off the embassy roof, a Marine CH-46 from HMM-164, call-sign "Swift Two Two," brought out Major James Kean, the Marine Security Guard commander and the last ten of his Marines. Less than four hours later NVA armor and infantry captured the presidential palace in Saigon.

~snip~

On this 35th anniversary of that event, Mr. Obama and his advisors would be wise to remember where the Vietnam War was really lost. It wasn't the rice paddies and triple canopied mountains of Southeast Asia. Vietnam was lost in the corridors of power in our own nation's capital. That should never happen again.



unhappycamper comment: STFU Ollie.

The Vietnam war was lost when Johnson escalated the conflict on bogus information in the Gulf of Tonkin. You can never, never 'win' based on a lie. And you damn sure can't kill Americans on college campuses and expect to keep the war machine going.

for winning a battle or a war.

You go in, you pummel the enemy and you get out. The longer you hang around... the harder it is to get out.

because he doesn't look insane and spews his poisonous revisionism to Veterans groups all the time. Brian Lamb has him on repeatedly every time he puts a book out.