I am often asked what the Vietnam War was like. Like many returning veterans, discussing it is usually something we prefer to avoid. We tend to suppress those memories and keep them to ourselves. I find it interesting that I often read books about the Vietnam War, as they help me cope with feelings that are hard to express. It’s not easy to explain.
One of the many books I have read is titled “The Iron Triangle.” Although I served in a different part of the country, the sights and sounds described in this book resonate with my experiences. I hope you enjoy the excerpts from this book and consider reading it to journey through the thoughts of infantrymen, each with their own story.
I’m excited to share some excerpts that provide valuable insights into the experiences of an infantryman in the field. These selections are thoughtfully organized to emphasize critical moments and the lessons learned along the way. I aim to honor the author’s work while enhancing our understanding of these experiences. I hope you find the excerpts from “The Iron Triangle” informative and inspiring!
Book Excerpts
“These boys seem so angry. I don’t understand their anger.”
“Look around you. We live like pigs and wallow in our own filth. Give yourself a few weeks out here, and you’ll be angry, too.”
“Sleep on the ground for a month. Don’t shower. Eat shit out of a can. See your friends killed. Then tell me you won’t be angry,” said Doc White. “We push these boys to their very limit every day, both physically and mentally, every day for a year. Of course they’re angry.
Edwards, Douglas L. The Iron Triangle: A Novel of the Vietnam War (p. 124). Kindle Edition.
“It’s the only way to keep track of things. If you know how many days a guy’s got left, you know a lot about him. There are different stages over here. In your first three months, you get used to the weather and the humping.Then things get better. You’re still scared, but able to function. Then the old-timers start to rotate home and you become an old-timer. You’re the veteran and the FNGs look to you for guidance.” “FNGs?” “Fucking New Guys. Where was I? So now, there’s all these new guys, scared shitless, looking to you to save them. So you start acting like John Wayne: strutting around with grenades hanging off you, knives and all kinds of shit, making like a real bad ass. You do some dumb shit, get a little and all kinds of shit, making like a real bad ass. You do some dumb shit, get a little reckless. Nothing is gonna kill you. Then you start getting short, under a hundred days. Now you get scared all over again. You start to slack off. You avoid walking point if you can, maybe try and go on sick call. Go on R&R. You try anything to get off the line. The goal is to last long enough to get on that Freedom Bird back to the world and forget about this place.” “And you guys are…?” “Too fucking short to be playing war games. As soon as they find a Captain to take my place, I’m history. In the rear, with a cold beer. Maybe they’ll make me Executive Officer and I’ll lay around with the REMFs.” “Rear Echelon Mother Fuckers,” White said without being asked.
Edwards, Douglas L. The Iron Triangle: A Novel of the Vietnam War (pp. 125-126). Kindle Edition.
“You know, most of these boys don’t want to be here. But while they’re here, they do their job. They live under conditions that civilians can’t imagine, even in their worst nightmares. They get wounded, and some die. For what? I don’t know why they even obey our orders. We order them to attack a hill, and they do it, over and over, until we win that hill. A useless piece of dirt, and they attack it until we tell them to stop. Why is that? Do they believe they’re defending America? I doubt that. They obey us because they are good boys, brave, patriotic young men taught to respect the flag and authority. We are that authority. You, me, and the Major. And when their year is up, we send them home to a country that hates them. They’re the best we have, and our country despises them. These boys deserve better.”
Edwards, Douglas L. The Iron Triangle: A Novel of the Vietnam War (pp. 134-135). Kindle Edition.
“You see any rich boys over here? Any Senator’s kids? Any Congressman’s kids? Don’t think so. All you see is assholes like us. I may have gone to college, but I’m no different than any of you. Just looking at you, I could guess at your life story and not be too far off. You know why? Because we’re all the same. We’re somewhere between eighteen and twenty. Some older. We’re from lower middle-class families. Our fathers are all farmers, factory workers or some blue-collar job like that.
Who here has a father who is a doctor or a lawyer. Most of our dads were in World War Two. They support the war and the president. They worry about you being here, but they’re proud you’re serving your country.” Garrett paused, warming to the subject. “Most of us graduated high school and got drafted right out of school. All we talk about is girls and cars.”
“What’s the point? You ain’t in college now, and I don’t like being lectured at,” said Ox. “You don’t like it because you know it’s true. It hits too close to home. My point is, we are the backbone of this country: solid, hardworking middle-class kids, and they’re killing us every fucking day. They kill us and then shove us in rubber bags like garbage and nobody gives a damn. Thirty days in the jungle, then three days off and back for another thirty days. Nobody can even tell us what we’re fighting and dying for.”
“We’re supposed to be helping the gooks get democracy,” Wilson said. “You fighting for democracy? For God and the American way of life? Bullshit! You’re fighting like a desperate fucking savage to stay alive, to keep yourself and your friends alive. You’re fighting for the guy next to you regardless of whether he’s black, brown or white. War is big business. While we’re here, there are guys at home getting rich from making all the rifles and bombs and all the other shit we use.”
What are we doing today?”
“Going after the gooks from last night. We’ll probably split up again and see if we can track them down, get more body count. That’s what’s important, body count. Gotta make the officers look good.”
“If you feel that way, why did you come back?”
“It’s this place. It will haunt you for the rest of your fucking life. It’ll kill you inside, even if you make it home. It will stay with you and kill you just as sure as we’re gonna hunt down those gooks and kill them.”
Edwards, Douglas L. . The Iron Triangle: A Novel of the Vietnam War (p. 126). Kindle Edition.
“You know, Gene, after Vietnam, things ain’t ever going to be the same. After this crap, we’re different, changed, burnt out. We look the same, but inside our heads, we’re sour and gone bad. Fuck it, no one gives a shit.
“This place won’t let go. When you’re home, it’s in your head. It will grab you by the balls and squeeze. It will make you hurt.”
Edwards, Douglas L. The Iron Triangle: A Novel of the Vietnam War (p. 116). Kindle Edition.
I hope you have enjoyed these excerpts. This kind of project keeps me sane and functioning. Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
