A true American war hero has died

http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060109/OPINION01/601090304/1006/OPINION

Hugh Thompson Jr. is not a household name. Few recognize the Vietnam War veteran as a genuine American hero whose commitment to duty and human decency never earned him the acclaim that he deserved.
Mr. Thompson, 62, a former Army helicopter pilot, died Friday in Alexandria, La.

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But it was for saving at least nine civilians in a Vietnamese village on March 16, 1968, that he won a modicum of recognition many years after the infamous date.

In shock, Mr. Thompson and his crew witnessed a U.S. Army officer approach a wounded Vietnamese girl, flip her over with a foot, and shoot her. The world would later know the atrocity as the My Lai massacre, which led to the court martial of Lt. William Calley.

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Mr. Thompson's heroism exemplified the most admirable American values - actions that eventually earned him appreciation but also threats from those who considered his behavior disloyal.

Truly sad, Cocoa. That was an act of bravery which ought to have earned him a Congressional Medal of Honor. And if I ever have my way, one will be awarded to him posthumously.

I'm dying to find out who this congressman was. I think I can guess which party he belonged to...

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/1110AP_Obit_Thompson.html

For years Thompson suffered snubs and worse from those who considered him unpatriotic. He recalled a congressman angrily saying that Thompson himself was the only serviceman who should be punished because of My Lai.

just a WAG

AFAIK, he can't be awarded the Medal of Honor since his bravery occured under circumstances other than in combat with enemy forces. I am not sure what medal he did win, but it was richly deserved.

And he and his men should probably have been machine-gunned on the spot.

Hope they are proud of themselves.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/07/national/07thompson.html

"When Mr. Thompson returned home, it seemed to him that he was viewed as the guilty party."

"I'd received death threats over the phone," he told the CBS News program "60 Minutes" in 2004. "Dead animals on your porch, mutilated animals on your porch some mornings when you get up. So I was not a good guy."

but if any Hugh Thompsons emerge from Iraq, they will be merciless in their abuse.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1553205/posts

To: SJSAMPLE
Stopping the massacre was a good things.

It's exposure certianly was not. This was the sort of thing that should have been handled by transferring Calley to some stateside post and telling him and his men to keep their damned mouths shut, or else, combined with the destruction of as much evidence as possible.

The truth was not worth the price.



9 posted on 01/06/2006 11:35:30 AM PST by furquhart (God is not dead)
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To: furquhart
I agree that in war -- in the PR game -- sometimes something needs to be covered up.

Once out, a firing squad could have finnished Calley in My Lai. Then the Army's PR could ask where is similar justice for the much larger Hue massacre brought about by the communists.



10 posted on 01/06/2006 11:45:30 AM PST by Monterrosa-24 (France kicked Germany's teeth out at Verdun among other places.)
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To: furquhart
I'll not honor him any more than honoring the person who sent the Abu Grahib photos to the media.



11 posted on 01/06/2006 11:52:47 AM PST by OldFriend (The Dems enABLEd DANGER and 3,000 Americans died.)
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and we continue the atrocities heros like this exposed 30 some years later. :cry:

:mad:

A true Professional.

Doesn't matter how long I live I will never NEVER

Understand how people can do this.

"In shock, Mr. Thompson and his crew witnessed a U.S. Army officer approach a wounded Vietnamese girl, flip her over with a foot, and shoot her"