johneharrison
johneharrison
| Forum role | Member since | Last activity | Topics created | Replies created |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Member | May 19, 2014 (12 years) |
- | 1 | 4 |
- Forum role
- Member
- Member since
May 19, 2014 (12 years)
- Last activity
- -
- Topics created
- 1
- Replies created
- 4
Bio
During the Vietnam War I enlisted in the Army as a private. I was commissioned as an Infantry Lieutenant upon completion of Officer Candidate School at 20 years old. I was assigned to Company A, 3rd Battalion (Airborne), 506th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division. Initially I was the Executive Officer, later I assumed the additional duty of Rifle Platoon Leader. While in Viet Nam I served as a Rifle Platoon Leader, Executive Officer and Rifle Company Commander, including combat operations incidental to the Tet ‘68 Offensive.
Upon returning from Vietnam I graduated from Georgetown University and worked in real estate while going to law school at night. While practicing law I also worked in real estate and mortgage banking for about 30 years. Finally, I achieved my lifetime ambition to be a high school history teacher.
Several readers have asked me about the genesis of the two articles, “Cone of Violence” and "The Day Smith Died". "The Day Smith Died" was written first many years ago, probably right after I saw mini-series "Gettysburg" on television for the first time. I was struck by the similarities in raw courage of the Union Colonel Joshua Chamberlain, MOH, and the VC Province Chief I had run into near Phan Thiet, RVN. So, I wrote that article soon after.
While I have never regretted shooting the Province Chief, I have almost always regretted the necessity that required me to shoot him. It was probably the death of Jim Bunn and Smith, and the killing of the Province Chief that drove me from the Army—I have always hated killing people and people dying too young. Unfortunately, that is part of the business of the Army.
I refight that day, February 2, 1968, every day in my mind’s eye. At one point when I was doing that in front of a computer, I just started writing and “Cone of Violence” was what came out. It came out all at once, complete. That was several years after I wrote "The Day Smith Died".
To me: one is history, what happened, and the second is emotion, what I felt.
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