In this Book
- Eagle Days: A Marine Legal/Infantry Officer in Vietnam
- Book
- 2011
- Published by: The University of Alabama Press
summary
Much has been written about America’s war in Vietnam, and an enduring and troubling subtext is the composition of the body of soldiers that made up the U.S. troop deployment: from the initially well-trained and disciplined group of largely elite units that served in the mid-sixties to what has been termed an “armed mob” by the end of that decade and into the early 1970s. Drug use, insubordination, racial antagonism that often became violent, theft and black market dealing, and even “fragging” (murder of officers and senior noncoms by disgruntled troops) marred the record of the U.S. military presence. Don Griffis served in the twin roles of legal officer charged at various times with the task of both defending and prosecuting servicemen, while at the same time leading combat patrols in “search and destroy” missions against the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese enemy. Eagle Days is a remarkable account of Griffis’ personal record of experiencing what the military should do best—meet, engage, and defeat the enemy—and what it becomes when esprit de corps, discipline, and a sense of purpose decay.
Table of Contents
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- List of Illustrations
- pp. ix-x
- 1. The Road to Vietnam
- pp. 1-6
- 2. Going South
- pp. 7-11
- 3. Learning the Ropes
- pp. 12-22
- 5. The Chief of Staff Loses His Jeep
- pp. 37-39
- 7. Typhoon Bess Meets the Chaplain
- pp. 65-66
- 8. Patrols and Alarms
- pp. 67-78
- 9. Night Assault
- pp. 79-82
- 10. Racial Tensions Boil Over
- pp. 83-85
- 12. A Difficult Client
- pp. 91-93
- 14. War in the Christmas Season
- pp. 99-108
- 15. Bringing in the New Year
- pp. 109-112
- 16. R&R Down Under
- pp. 113-115
- 17. Back to Reality
- pp. 116-120
- 18. Looking for Trouble
- pp. 121-124
- 19. Tet 1969 and New Threats
- pp. 125-131
- 20. A Life-and-Death Drama
- pp. 132-134
- 21. Murder at Chu Lai
- pp. 135-138
- 22. Keeping the Pressure On
- pp. 139-145
- 23. Easter and Operations in the Spring
- pp. 146-155
- 24. Final Days
- pp. 156-161
- 25. Going Home
- pp. 162-164
- Glossary of Military Terms and Acronyms
- pp. 165-169
Additional Information
ISBN
9780817380328
Related ISBN(s)
9780817315788
MARC Record
OCLC
182560405
Pages
192
Launched on MUSE
2012-01-01
Language
English
Open Access
No
Copyright
2007