Donald R. White

Title of Review: Nam Was A Place Where Death Came Every Day In Many Different Forms! Review written by Bernie Weisz, Historian, Vietnam War. Pembroke Pines, Florida, USA Contact: Bernwei1@aol.com
March 23, 2014

Biblically, it is written in "Matthew 7:13" about the narrow "Gate of Heaven." It reads; "You can enter God's Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many that choose the easy way. But the gateway to life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever enter it." Initially titled "The Gate," readers must brace themselves for Don White's true account of his participation in the Vietnam War, and his near death experience of March 12th, 1969. For on that date, White was both the field First Sergeant and Platoon Leader of A Company, 1/8 Infantry, 4th Infantry Division and was involved in a terrifying, point blank shootout in the Plei Trap Valley of South Vietnam's Central Highlands. While almost losing his right leg to a North Vietnamese Rocket Propelled Grenade, White's chilling account describes in graphic detail this battle, his participation in two combat tours of duty, a twenty year narrative of his life in the Army as both an infantryman and recruiter as well as a successful 21 year stint as a real estate broker. The "Gate" was the March 12th, 1969 battle and the "Event Horizon" was when his unit was surrounded by an enemy force many times his numbers and subsequent fight to the death for survival. White likens the emotional impact of point blank infantry combat, i.e. the most common type of combat that occurred in the Vietnam War to riding on a "long black train ride" to hell. The author prefaces this book with the admonition to both squeamish and juvenile readers that this account is violently straightforward and better off not read by those sensitive to this. Ending his military career as a Master Sergeant decorated with the "Silver Star, Purple Heart and Combat Infantry Badge" among other numerous medals, White lamented about his wounding's on three separate occasions the fact that America's technology existed for space flight, yet was worthless for protective "Body Armor" of U.S. infantrymen. Thus you have the title of this incisive book.

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There are other memoirs about the battles occurring in The "Plei Trap Valley," which is viewed historically as "Tet 1969," namely Don Bendell's superb account entitled "Valley of Tears" as well as Jerry Horton's "The Shake 'n Bake Sergeant." Horton was White's "A Company "Noncommissioned Officer who was seriously wounded with the author in the March 12th battle. Nevertheless, White recalls with individualistic rancor the bitterness felt in his thankless "Welcome Home" as well as the deterioration of America's military might after Walter Cronkite's damaging post Tet 1968 Offensive comments, President Johnson's decision not to run for reelection and Congress's abandonment of South Vietnam, which the author describes as one of history's "worst stabs in the back." White dissects the entire Vietnam War, describing what he calls "2 separate conflicts" both adversely affected by an irresponsible leftist inspired press responsible for turning the American public against their own soldiers. Depending on the branch and year of service, there are many different narrations of how America's 1964-1973 involvement in Southeast Asia was viewed. To White, who's first tour was in 1966 with the 1st Battalion, 27th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division, the first war was one of khaki uniformed officers whom lived the best of a tough war at Military Assistance Command of Vietnam in Saigon. Their toughest chore was conducting the "Saigon Follies," i.e. press conferences where correspondents tried to shoot holes in the American war effort. The second war White deemed "The Nam," a somber, wretched place of close combat, ambushes, M-16's and AK-47's, tunnels, Huey's, and snipers. The only constant factor was bloodshed and massacres. The later was the war "No Body Armor" so eloquently describes; descriptive to the last detail of violent encounters Don White witnessed and almost died in.

Recounted are the pros and cons of both American and Communist implements of scrimmage. The U.S. M-14 and 16 assault rifles are discussed and compared, as are M-60 machine guns, Claymore mines and M-79 rocket launchers. These weapons are juxtaposed against the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong AK-47 rifle, B-40 rocket, rocket propelled grenades, etc. Explained are the differences between the southern based Viet Cong and Hanoi's finest, the "North Vietnamese Army." Also finely elucidated are the strategies of General's William Westmoreland, his post Tet replacement Creighton Abrams as well as the Marines top dog, General Louis Walt. Interestingly, White compares the Vietnam quagmire with current American military actions in both Iraq and Afghanistan, insisting the Vietnam War had more justification. As proof White cites Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev's 1960 threat that he would "bury the U.S.," the Cuban Missile Crisis as well as the aggressive Russian Cold War acquisitions of most of Eastern Europe, North Korea and Vietnam. A believer in the "Domino Theory," White asserts that his 531 days of combat were not in vain and our Vietnam effort was only to buy time for South Vietnam to grow strong and defend itself, a fait accompli. When the author left Vietnam, White declares the VC were vanquished and the NVA retreated to its sanctuaries in Cambodia and Laos.

Armageddon occurred after White's war was over. Richard Nixon promised "Peace With Honor" with his doomed "Vietnamization" plan, was reelected and then resigned before impeachment. After the Watergate scandal Gerald Ford became president and South Vietnam's ruination was guaranteed by Congress's democratically controlled act of cutting off aid to the South Vietnamese. White discusses the deterioration of an underpaid, understaffed, poorly led post Tet American military where racial, drug and discipline problems were exposed. Medals were awarded with inequity, officers were afraid of their own troops, fraggings and combat refusals all fueled the fire. The author mentions that Hanoi knew its troops could not defeat the U.S. and intentionally appealed to domestic antiwar protesters and the American Left Wing to force America out of the war. The author righteously declares that this was the first time in history an enemy rallied a large group of Americans against their own people. White also points out that the draft dodgers, Vietnam Veterans Against The War and those that absconded to Canada all but forgot about our still missing prisoners of war. With embarrassing taunts of "baby killer" and "psychopathic murderer," White laments the fact that those who answered the call and fought in combat returned to a nation where a large segment of its citizens shamed and wrongfully vilified the Vietnam Veteran. It is correctly pointed out that an individual who witnessed the carnage in Vietnam went through a horrific trial by combat with many 18 and nineteen year olds growing old fast. This tremendous recollection by Don White is an important contribution to anyone who endeavors to understand what happened in the not too distant past in a place referred to as "The Nam."… (mehr)