Google Alert – “military religious”

Pat Robertson was assigned eventually from safe liquor officer to a more protective assignment at Camp Fisher Japan (3rd Marine Division Japan) through his senator father. He has never fired back at an enemy as practically every Marine First Lieutenant has who was ordered to Korea at the time he was briefly in Korea. He never came under enemy fire. I was in Korea as a corporal and several times heard scuttlebutt about a Marine Lieutenant who was a senator’s son and had escaped combat duty due to his fear, cowardice and privileged position. News of that type travels among Marine warriors. Having volunteered for Korea and later volunteered for combat duty to fly the F-4 Phantom in Vietnam although my Congressman had appointed me to my home state’s South Dakota Law School, I just could not ‘Coward out’ and had to tell my Congressman, Ben Reifel – R- SD that I would have to postpone my law school acceptance beyond a Vietnam combat tour first. My country was short on trained MarineF-4 Phantom Fighter Bomber pilots and believed strongly it was my duty to stay ‘with the ship in time of need’ probably much like ‘Private Ryan’ in the Capt. Tom Hanks movie. He could not leave his ‘New combat brothers’ although all of his were dead. I flew 110 combat Close Air Support missions, taking heavy ground fire repeatedly to save thousands of Marines, Airborne and Army Infantry. My commander wrote me up for a DFC for miraculously flying 5 missions back to back, last two, under flares at night in the Highlands Mountains to save two loaded Marine H -46s. We did get one out late into the night, losing a Spad, an A-4 and two gunships to an NVA battalion. One H-46 and the Marines within were murdered in the Highlands never appearing on the POW roles. Back and back my section leader and I, Major Tom Duffy, later KIA, returned individually to suppress a relentless, stubborn NVA battalion. My BIO- Warrior’s Odyssey is on Amazon and Kindel if you want t o read details. I hold my head up high to this day for doing so. I am a Sioux Indian and we detest Cowards and not too respective of Syndrome either. A Warrior is a Warrior. A detestable Coward a low lying Coward. We were HONORED by our tribe when we returned and given eagle feathers. Maybe why we Sioux have much less Syndrome. Dean Scarlett, my former Law School Dean, now retired at Duke University, Chapel Hill can verify my delaying my law school for combat duty first as can his former beautiful secretary Shirley Hanson- address upon request- So Carolina can also verify.
I tell of this in my BIO. Major Ed McGaa (Chief) Oglala Sioux Marine F4 Phantom Pilot, Chu Lai Vietnam, VMFA 115 Fighter/Attack Squadron, Chu Lai, So Vietnam- 1967- [email protected]