From: jewell@mace.cc.purdue.edu (Larry Jewell)
Subject: 'NamVet Newsletter, Vol.4, no.3 (1/8)
Organization: Purdue University
Date: Mon, 14 Dec 1992 17:32:08 GMT

     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     .                                  __                           .
     .                             ____/  \_                         .
     .  -*-  N A M   V E T  -*-   (      *  \                        .
     .                            \    Quang Tri                     .
     .       G. Joseph Peck        \_/\       \_ Hue                 .
     .       Managing Editor           \_Ashau    Phu Bai            .
     .                                   \_*       \_                .
     .        Jerry Hindle                 \      *  )               .
     .    Distribution Manager            /    Da Nang               .
     .                                   (            \_             .
     .        Section Editors             \_    ------- \__          .
     .        ---------------               \_  I Corps    \         .
     . PTSD:  Kathleen Kelly, Ph.D.           \ -------     !        .
     . AGENT ORANGE:   Martin J. Kroll, Sr.  /\_____        !        .
     . MIA-POW:   Glenn Toothman            /       !        \       .
     . HOMELESSNESS:  Lefty Frizzell        !       !___      \      .
     . FEDERAL BENEFITS:   Jim Hildwine     !           \/\____!     .
     . INCARCERATED VETS:  Todd C. Looney   !                 !      .
     .                     Joyce Flory     /  Dak To          !      .
     . MEMORIALS:  Aaron Schmiedel        /     *            /       .
     . MEMORIES:   G. Joseph Peck         !                  \_      .
     . CHAPLAIN:   Rev. Ed Brant          !             Phu Cat\     .
     .                                     \    *            *  )    .
     .   -**-  N A M    V E T   -**-        \ Pleiku            )    .
     .                                       \                  \    .
     .                                       /                  /    .
     . "In the jungles of 'Nam, some of us  (       --------    !    .
     . were scared and wary, but we pulled  _\      II Corps    !    .
     . one another along and were able     /        --------     \   .
     . to depend on each other.  That has  \                      \  .
     . never changed.  Today, free of the   !                 *  /   .
     . criticisms and misunderstandings   _/          Nha Trang /    .
     . many veterans have endured,      _/                     /     .
     . NAM VET is a shining beacon,  __/                       !     .
     . a ray of hope, and a    _  __/  \                       !     .
     . reminder that the _____( )/      !              Cam Ranh Bay  .
     . lessons learned  /               !__                    !     .
     . at such a high  /                   \                  /      .
     . price shall not \          Bien Hoa  \                /       .
     . be forgotten  -  !  Chu Chi       *   \            __/        .
     . nor the errors    \_   *   ---------   \       ___/           .
     . repeated!!!"  ____  \      III Corps    \    _/               .
     .       / \_____)   )_(_     ---------     !__/  Duplication in .
     .       !               (               ___/ any form permitted .
     .  _____!                \__      * ___/      for NONCOMMERCIAL .
     . !                          Saigon/             purposes ONLY! .
     .  \___   --------           /  \/                              .
     .      \  IV Corps          /        For other use, contact:    .
     .       ) --------         /   G. Joseph Peck, Managing Editor  .
     .      /                   !  P O Box 2056 Pittsfield, MA 01202 .
     .     /               ____/            (413) 442-1660           .
     .    /         Mekong/                                          .
     .    !         Delta/  This newsletter is comprised of articles .
     .    !        ____/     and items from individuals and other    .
     .    !       /       sources.  We are not responsible for the   .
     .    !      /      content of this information nor are any of   .
     .    !   __/        NAM VETs contributors or Section Editors.   .
     .     \_/                                                   gjp .
     .                                                               .
     
     NAM VET Newsletter                                      Page    i
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     

     =================================================================

                     T A B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S

     
     1.  EDITORIALS
          Trail Through The Boonies ...............................  1
          Fraud alert! ............................................  4
          AL Candidate Turner goes to Central America .............  5
           Why Go to Central America in the First Place? ..........  6

     2.  Brother-to-Brother
          One man's healing... ....................................  8
          The war comes home - AGAIN! ............................. 15

     3.  Veteran Benefits & Info
          Back Pay For Veterans ................................... 16
          Montgomery: "The Vet's Friend?" ......................... 17
          VA Announces Scholarships! .............................. 24
          President Bush proposes down payments for VA loans! ..... 25
          VA Medical Recruiting Campaign .......................... 26
          Who NOT to count on if you've been injured... ........... 27
          VA Programs for Homeless Veterans ....................... 29
          Military Service - A Step Up? ........................... 32

     4.  Missing!!!
          Is the government STILL... .............................. 34
          MIA/POW List N through Z ................................ 38
          The Blackbird Syndrome? ................................. 47
          Bo Gritz and the POW issue .............................. 51
          They haven't forgutten US!!! ............................ 53

     5.  Our Nam Vets around the world!
          NY Vet helps in Nicaragua Election Process .............. 54
          Nam in '90 .............................................. 57
          Nicaraguan voters wanted end to war ..................... 58

     6.  Remember Them!!!
          Pen Pals for Incarcerated Veterans ...................... 60
          A visit or note once in awhile? ......................... 61

     7.  The NamVet Chaplain's Corner
          A Pastoral Response to troubled Viet Vets ............... 62
          The Electronic Chapel ................................... 78

     8.  IVVEC Alice in Boonieland!
          "Imposter Vets" exploit our brothers and sisters! ....... 79
          Wife find 'hero' husband wasn't ......................... 84

     9.  Hearts n' Minds
          A Veteran Speaks Against The War ........................ 86
          Vietnam Vets wife shares her pain ....................... 91

     10.  Concentrated Service
          Concentrated Service .................................... 92
          Letter from The White House ............................. 93
          Congressman Responds to Service Request ................. 94
          Veteran Service Commissioners/Directors ................. 95
          Break out the Clearsil <tm>! ............................ 97
          Vietnam Veterans Conference! ............................ 98

     11.  Marine Corps Reunions!
          Marine Reunions! ........................................ 99

     12.  IVVEC & NamVet - WHERE?
          NamVet Roll Call ........................................ 110
          Parameters of IVVEC and NODELIST ........................ 112
          Some Gave All... ........................................ 117











































     NAM VET Newsletter                                      Page   ii
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990



     =================================================================
                            E D I T O R I A L S
     =================================================================

                         Trail Through The Boonies
     
                            By: G. Joseph Peck
                         NAM VETs Managing Editor
                       VETLink #1 - Pittsfield, MA
                              (413) 443-6313
     
       Hmmmm...  March Forth - 'er 4th.  ONLY day of the year that's a 
     command to go forward.  I remember the excitement and enthusiasm I 
     felt when I wrote the March 4th editorial last year.  It looked 
     like everything good was on the horizon for many of us.  My family 
     and I, particularly, were a tad bit hopeful that after receiving 
     my long-delayed bachelor's degree, OUR situation would change too.
     
       Our situation DID change - but not too much for the financial-
     better (although I DID and HAVE learned much about HOW to survive 
     in a civilized world when everythin' seems to be goin' from worse 
     to worse... <grin>).  Years-end found us facing the prospect of 
     being homeless as the bank which granted us a home equity loan 
     began foreclosure proceedings against us.  Years-beginning found 
     the Vietnam_Veterans EchoConference filled with text-file copies 
     of letters to the DAV and others relating some historical 
     background on the difficulties I've seen concerning a disabled 
     veterans inability to acquire employment other than sweep-the-
     floor, take-out-the-trash type jobs no matter what his/her 
     education.  
     
     Our January 1990 issue of NamVet heralded a new focus and 
     concentration on the Veteran Service IVVEC and NamVet have been 
     providing for the past few years: TEXT-FILE, make-it-public, 
     copies of letters written to responsible parties concerning 
     veteran service - or lack thereof.  The POSITIVE results obtained 
     from both The White House and my local Congressman are 
     encouraging.  The NEGATIVE results (no telephone calls, no 
     letters) from either the State of Massachusetts or Washington DC 
     Disabled American Veterans' Commanders address an area of veteran 
     service that definitely needs some attention.
     
     Some lights are beginning to show at the end of this tunnel my 
     family and I have found ourselves in!
     
     There is a type of bankruptcy a person can claim and still manage 
     to retain their house/home called a Chapter 13 (Wage-Earner's) 
     Bankruptcy.  Chapter 13, as I understand it, presents a plan to 
     the court whereby the debtor (me, in this instance) is allowed to 
     enter into a payment agreement with the court and weekly makes 
     payments to either an attorney or the court (I'm not sure which at 
     this point) and that entity then redistributes the amount 
     submitted amongst the various creditors.  If the plan is 
     acceptable to the court, our house and home will be saved. 
     (There's a lot more about this, but this month's NamVet is already 
     big! <grin>)
     
     On the employment front:  "If ya can't find a job - make one."  I 
     know a little bit about computers and a lot about human service.  
     
     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  1
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     Employers that I've found seem not to want to hire me for fear my 
     disabilities (or age) may become their liabilities.  So...  I've 
     opened my own computer consulting business.  Heck, I've got plenty 
     of time to learn software applications; a good background in 
     electronics (a Master Technician here in MA); a good sense of 
     public relations; and a deep commitment to honest public service.  
     Ain't no better place to start than right where I'm at... <grin>  
       Small advertisements in the local throwaway (PennySaver, 
     Shoppers Guide, etc); business cards printed and handed out; lots 
     of effort and planning.  I have two clients already!  And its only 
     been two weeks!
     
     But the Bankruptcy judge ain't gonna allow a person to go bankrupt 
     so's they can start their own business!  So... I'm still lookin' 
     for somethin' that will provide the "secure" income they'll need 
     in order to say "Yes" to the wage-earners plan that I'll be askin' 
     permission to enter into (I've managed to acquire the services of 
     a local attorney <cost wasn't cheap - he want's 1500-2000 to do 
     it... but, shux, if it'll save our house...)
     
     On the Berkshire Veterans' Center, Inc. front...  We (Berkshire 
     Veterans' Center, Inc.) were incorporated and registered in 
     Massachusetts January, 1985.  We've been workin' very hard at 
     providing veteran service since.  There are many grants which can 
     be applied for to provide even better, more concentrated veteran 
     services.  As I've read notices about the grants, my eyes would 
     water and I'd sigh, "Oh if only..."   Most of the grants required 
     that the organization be a Tax Exempt one.  Nice thing, too, about 
     a Tax Exempt Organization:  YOUR donations to it can be deducted 
     from your income taxes!
     
     In December, 1989 I chatted a bit on-line at VETLink #1 with Alex 
     Humphrey, the attorney for Friends of the Vietnam Veterans' 
     Memorial, regarding BVC's effort to obtain its tax exempt status.  
     "If you'll send me the stuff you HAVE prepared up to this point," 
     said Alex, "I'll sit down and try to prepare for you what I've 
     done previously for Todd."  That afternoon (12/20/89), an Express 
     Mail package was on its way to Alex!
     
     Alex spent a LOT of time on the volumes of documentation I sent to 
     him; waded through 140 pages of the "book" about the efforts 
     involved in getting Vet Center services into Pittsfield, MA; 
     applied his lawyer expertise and knowledge to all that we've done 
     and that we want to do, and came up with one BEAUTIFUL set of by-
     laws that will enable us to take that final step towards obtaining 
     our tax exempt 501(c)(3) status!  (Alex:  God bless you, m' 
     brother - and thank you for all that you've done to help us up 
     here!)
     
     We are now in the final stages of setting a solid national 
     veteran-service oriented, computer-based, structure in place.
     Through NamVet and IVVEC, I will keep you informed - and probably 
     let ya know about HOW to become a member of Berkshire Veterans' 
     Center, Inc's "VETLink" services...
     
     In kinda "outline" form, for me, this is what's happened:  
        Denied federal and all kinds of other employment - primarily 
          because of my service-connected disabilities; 
        Wrote to and involved my Congressman in many of the issues; 
     
     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  2
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

        Notice of foreclosure - letters to Congressman and DAV; 
        Development of Concentrated Veterans' Services of IVVEC and 
          NamVet; 
        Donation of a used PC XT to help us (me) do the NamVets 'cause 
          my old one died (thanx Lefty and Bob!); 
        Chapter 13 Bankruptcy suggested; 
        Opened own computer consulting business; 
        Near-final paperwork received for Tax Exempt status of 
           Berkshire Veterans' Center, Inc.
     
     There's a lot more that's happened - and a lot more about to 
     happen to my family and I - but somehow I think I'll be able to 
     deal with it.  I think I see lights along the tunnel!
     
     Somethin's helped me all along:  the Vietnam_Veterans 
     EchoConference ... and NamVet.  I hope it helps you folk as much
     as it has me!
     
     Ya might say that, for me,  following the trail through the 
     boonies has led me home!  I'm really glad to be here!
     
                              'til next month
                     show a brother or sister veteran
                             that YOU care!!!
     
                              Ci'ao for Ni'ao
     
                                   -Joe-
     






























     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  3
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

        FRAUD ALERT FRAUD ALERT FRAUD ALERT FRAUD ALERT FRAUD ALERT
        =========== =========== =========== =========== ===========
     
                           Input by: Rick Stolz
                            Okauchee, Wisconsin
                      at: VETLink #1 - Pittsfield, MA
                              (413) 443-6313
     
         Please share this with other members of your organization
         =========================================================
     
     Name      : Shawn Richard Beale "Rick"
               : White Male -- 6ft 2in  aprox 270 lbs
               : DOB 12/25/46  Gray & Brown Hair
               : Beard
     
      Alias    : Tracy J. Williams, John Tracy Williams, Donald Moore
               : John Binelli, Christopher Shawn Scott, Scott Harris
               : Brian Scott Mac Gregor
     
     Vehicle   : Late Model Jeef CJ, Black with Blue highlights
               : Plates are either IOWA, ILLINOIS, or TENN
     
     Last seen : Phoenix, Glendale, Sun City Arizona area.
     
     Rick Beale is wanted by the State of Illinois for Felony Theft, 
     warrent #89CF896 20,000 bond, resulting from misapproprating funds 
     from Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 299 in Rock Island 
     Illinios, The DAV of Rock Island Illinois as well as other private 
     individuals.  In all, several Thousand dollars have been stolen.
     
     Mr. Beale is known to associate with Vietnam Veterans groups of 
     all types and has claimed to be the Memphis TN. chapter president 
     of the Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club.
     
     Mr. Beale is quick to tell people that he was Prisoner of War and 
     held in the SonTay facility outside of Hanoi, and that he served 
     with the 101st Airborne Division.
     
     An investigation by the POW Network has shown that Mr. Beale WAS 
     NOT a Prisoner of War, was NEVER in Vietnam, and NEVER served in 
     the Army.
     
     Mr. Beale has the ability to quickly gain the confidence of ANY 
     veterans group that would welcome him into their organization.  He 
     rises quickly in an organization by volunteering for everything.  
     As soon as your bank account is cleaned out, he moves on.
     
     Anyone having information on "Rick Beale" is encouraged to notify 
     the POW Network or...
     
                               Lt. Buechler
                    Coal Valley, Illinois Police Dept.
                         (309) 799-5416 Work Hrs.
                   (309) 794-9111 Dispatcher (After hrs)
     



     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  4
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

          GEORGIA'S CANDIDATE MAKES TRIP TO CENTRAL AMERICA WITH
                            NATIONAL  COMMANDER
     
                       From: The Georgia Legionnaire
                 January - February 1990  VOL. 40, NO. 14
     
                         Input by: Martin H. Kroll
                   NAM VETs Agent Orange Section Editor
                 Fort Mountain BBS - Chatsworth, Ga. 30705
                              (404) 695-8703
     
     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     Please read this article carefully and then read the editorial
     following by Martin Kroll, our Agent Orange Editor.
                                                 -Joe-
     -----------------------------------------------------------------
     
     Georgia's  candidate  for  National  Commander,  Bob  Turner,  has 
     recently returned from a trip to the Central American countries of 
     Honduras  and  Costa  Rica.   The  trip  was  made  with  National 
     Commander Miles Epling and National Adjutant Robert Spanogle.
     
     The  group  was hosted by the American Embassy personnel  in  both 
     countries; however, they also had the opportunity to meet and talk 
     with  the  individual country leaders,  including members  of  the 
     Nicaraguan   resistance  movement.    Candidate  Turner  expressed 
     concern  for those Contras who are now living in other  countries, 
     many realizing that, under the present regime,  they will never be 
     able  to return to their homes.  With the current  A.I.D.  program 
     terminating at the end of February, most of them will be unable to 
     have food or shelter.   The group visited one refugee camp housing 
     more  than  2,000 men,  women and children.   They also visited  a 
     rehabilitation  center,  taking care of approximately 200  Contras 
     who had been wounded in the war.  These people are well aware that 
     the  funding  will  soon come to an end,  and they  are  extremely 
     concerned  about their future.   Many of the refugees pleaded with 
     the  Legion  visitors to do everything they could to assist  them, 
     many  wanting to be brought to the United States for treatment  of 
     their  injuries,  while  others asked for help with the  political 
     situation in certain areas of Central America.
     
      Both National Commander Epling and Candidate Turner expressed the 
     feeling  that the trip was worth the effort,  and gave them a much 
     deeper  understanding  and appreciation for the problems  in  that 
     part  of the world.   Both also agreed with The American  Legion's 
     position  on  Central America and that we should continue with  as 
     much support as possible,  particularly to those who are away from 
     their homes, and those who are sick and wounded.
     
     Candidate  Turner stated that he will discuss the Central American 
     issues  with members of Congress and that he is looking forward to 
     returning  to that area of the world if he is elected our National 
     Commander...
     





     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  5
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

               WHY GO TO CENTRAL AMERICA IN THE FIRST PLACE?
     
                            By: Martin H. Kroll
                   NAM VETs Agent Orange Section Editor
                 Fort Mountain BBS - Chatsworth, Ga. 30705
                              (404) 695-8703
     
     To begin with I would like to state that this is not a blast aimed 
     at Bob Turner, Miles Epling,  or Robert Spanogle.   There are many 
     things  that I don't understand about this issue and I would  like 
     for  Bob  Turner to enlighten us.   I have been told by many  that 
     know him that Bob Turner is a very fine man and deserving of being 
     elected  as  the  National Commander.   On the  other  hand,  many 
     questions  remain unanswered and I feel that Bob is the person  to 
     give us the answers.   This is an open invitation for a reply from 
     Bob  Turner to be published for the readers of our April issue  of 
     Namvet.
     
     First  off,  I would like to know why a delegation of our American 
     Legion's leaders are traveling to places like Nicaragua, Honduras, 
     and Costa Rica.  Do we have American veterans living there?   What 
     do  the Contras have to do with the American Legion to begin with?  
     Is  the  American Legion supporting the Contras with donations  of 
     money or other "in kind" services?
     
     I  was  under  the  impression  that the  American  Legion  is  an 
     organization  that  is  designed to help veterans  of  the  United 
     States Armed Forces.  I returned from Viet Nam in October of 1967.  
     I  was  told  in  1971  that there was  no  proof  that  my  "skin 
     condition" was related to my tour of duty in Viet Nam,  and turned 
     down for benefits or health care due to what I believe to be Agent 
     Orange related ailments.   Not once has any member of any Veterans 
     organization  or  the government come to see me or even called  or 
     written a letter to "get a better understanding"  of my situation.  
     Untold  thousands of American Veterans have also been treated  the 
     same way.  We are in a period of time where Congress votes fat pay 
     raises  and  other benefits for themselves while the GOA tries  to 
     find ways to exclude even disabled Veterans from receiving their
     just  and  due  benefits.   Now  I find that the  leaders  of  the 
     American  Legion are traveling to countries in Central America  in 
     order  to  gain  a better understanding of the  situation  of  the 
     Contras and pledging to discuss their issues with Congress.
     
     This  is  not  to say that I am not sympathetic to  problems  that 
     people  face  in  Central  America.   The point is  that  I  can't 
     understand what business the American Legion has in Nicaragua when 
     we  have  countless numbers of homeless Veterans here in  our  own 
     country.   We  have incarcerated Veterans who need help with their 
     problems.  We have Veterans suffering from PTSD who need help.  We 
     have  over 2000 unaccounted for POW -  MIA's whose families  would 
     like to know something.  We have over 2,000,000 Veterans that were 
     exposed  to  Agent Orange while in Viet Nam.   We have an  extreme 
     lack  of acceptable health care for our Veterans.   The Government 
     has  dilly  -  dallied around for almost 25 years with  the  Agent 
     Orange issue and still there is nothing for us that served in Viet 
     Nam and were exposed.   Agent Orange exposure seems to be an issue 
     that the Government would like to sweep under the rug and forget!
     
     It is my opinion that the American Legion should concentrate their 
     
     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  6
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     efforts  upon  our own Veterans here in the good old US of  A  and 
     quit wasting time and money on issues that they should not even be 
     concerned with!  Of course I already said that I do not understand 
     the issues and I do remain open-minded.
     
     If  I am wrong about how I feel,  then I would like  justification 
     for  these  trips  to Central America and the involvement  of  the 
     American  Legion there.   I would also like to know just where Bob 
     Turner  stands on the issues of homeless American Veterans,  PTSD, 
     Incarcerated Veterans, POW-MIA's, and Agent Orange.   I would like 
     to  know  what efforts Bob Turner has made in the past to  address 
     these  issues  and what efforts he intends to make in the  future.  
     Has  the  American Legion become such a political force that  they 
     find it necessary to help the Contras while our own Veterans are
     doing without?
     
     Bob  Turner  has a very long and distinguished record  of  service 
     with the American Legion dating back to soon after he was released 
     from  active duty in 1968.   I think that Bob is in a position  to 
     answer these questions for us.
     






































     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  7
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990



     =================================================================
                    B r o t h e r - t o - B r o t h e r
     =================================================================

                AN IN-COUNTRY CIVILIAN'S HEALING EXPERIENCE
     
      A 16 July 1988 Conversation with Kirk Balcom and Beth Ertz Lee
                      With introduction by Ray Moreau
     
                      Input by: Ray "Frenchy" Moreau
                    Herndon Byte eXchange - Herndon, VA
                              (703) 471-8010
     
     Kirk  is  a former CIA agent (the official title was  Agency  Case 
     Officer)  who  served in Vietnam from '64 to '65.   He spoke to me 
     from  his  7-acre  farm in Virginia,  where he bases  his  current 
     occupation as a computer law consultant.  He's a wise and down-to-
     earth  thinker who has worked hard to come to terms with his  life 
     and   generously   volunteers  his  spare  time  helping   others, 
     especially  Vietnam vets,  to do the same.   He's intelligent  and 
     funny,  and  by the end of our over 2 1/2 hour conversation I felt 
     like I had a new friend.
     
     Kirk  majored in Development Economics of Underdeveloped Countries 
     at  Michigan  State,  intending to play some role in  our  federal 
     government  in connection with a 3rd World country.   He'd  always 
     admired the CIA,  and in 1963,  during the Kennedy Administration, 
     he entered the CIA's Junior Officer Training program.
     
     The program admits 40 people per year,  half of whom go abroad and 
     the  others  staying at Langley at the year's end.   The  first  9 
     months  are  spent in Case Officer Training and general  Communist 
     Party  theory.   The  last 3 months are in paramilitary  training, 
     similar  to Airborne Ranger training.   Only 25 people make it  to 
     this  phase,  where  they learn about demolitions,  rubber  boats, 
     survival training, "air stuff",  and lots about weapons,  (Weapons 
     Kirk routinely carried in Vietnam included: a 357 Magnum always in 
     his  brief  case,  a 25 concealed in his back pocket,  and in  the 
     field, an Israeli Uzi. Also had a Swedish K submachine gun,  and a 
     sawed-off shotgun.  "You name it, we had it.")
     
     At  the  end of the training when the staff decisions  were  made, 
     Kirk was given a choice: Laos or Vietnam. He chose Vietnam, having 
     had  professors  at Michigan State who'd been there as part of  an 
     exchange  program and had told him much.  But there was no way  to 
     prepare for the actuality of the culture.
     
     Kirk  and  his  wife  arrived  in Vietnam  in  1964,  and  set  up 
     housekeeping in an apartment in Saigon.  She taught English there, 
     leaving  the city only once to join her husband at the resort town 
     of Nha Trang.  He was able to come "home"  every 2 weeks and spend 
     2  to  4 days with her.  Saigon in those days was "pretty  civil". 
     They even had many French Poodles still residing there,  left over 
     from the earlier ties to France. (When I was there in 1970,  all I 
     saw  were some pretty strange-looking mutts.)   The only  briefing 
     Kirk's wife received was basically:  "Keep your door locked around 
     Tet,  and  if a prowler does enter,  don't make any  noise".   The 
     Vietnamese  were  very  activist  in  the  cities,  but  the  main 
     activities  at  the  time  were student  demonstrations  of  civil 
     
     NAM VET Newsletter                                        Page  8
     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     rights,  and  the Buddhists and Catholics struggling for political 
     and religious control.
     
     But  in  Feb  1965,  9 months  after  the  Balcoms'  arrival,  all 
     dependents were given a 2-day evacuation notice,  with a choice of 
     Bangkok,  Hong  Kong,  or the States.   One month pregnant at  the 
     time, Mrs.  Balcom chose the States.  In March 1965,  the American 
     Embassy was bombed. Barbara Robbins,  a 19-yr.  old secretary from 
     Kirk's orientation class, a minister's daughter,  become the first 
     Americal  civilian casualty in Vietnam.  Two other male classmates 
     were blinded. Kirk noted how many civilians were in Vietnam,  with 
     jobs as dangerous as the military's.
     
     The  CIA  (Central Intelligence Agency)  has always had  a  rather 
     ominous,  "Big  Brother is Watching you"-type image to too much of 
     the  American  population.  Kirk pointed out how we tend  to  fear 
     anything  that's  unknown and/or secretive,  but that by its  very 
     nature  as an intelligence-collecting agency,  the CIA  'must'  be 
     secretive.  It is chartered by the U.S.  government to go into any 
     country  where there's a threat of Communist influence and to stay 
     in  touch  with  and help maintain an  anti-communist  government.  
     This is its federal role.
     
     In Vietnam, this role translates into locating,  befriending,  and 
     working with dissidents throughout the country.  In the late '50's 
     and early '60's that meant working with the tribal groups, setting 
     up  programs  that would ensure loyalty to South  Vietnam,  rather 
     than  the Communists.   One of the earliest of these programs  was 
     the Phoenix Program, which sent small teams into North Vietnam and 
     Laos, along the Ho Chi Minh Trail,  before there was much military 
     presence.  They also built all the Vietnamese Special Forces camps 
     along the Cambodian border, eventually turning the program over to 
     the  Special Forces.  They worked closely with mountain tribes  in 
     Vietnam  and  Laos,  getting  to  know  the  chiefs,   structuring 
     provincial   training   programs  early  on.   The  training   was 
     "unorthodox",  really  querilla  training  of  counter-terror  and 
     assassination  teams.  These teams were like the U.S.  Navy SEALs, 
     the "hit and run", small squad tactic group organized to go in VC-
     held areas and let their presence be known.  They'd either capture 
     or  kill VC cadre in the central highlands and along the Cambodian 
     border. The CIA would go in and live with these people, getting to 
     know  their customs and taboos,  establishing trust to the  extent 
     that  they  agree with the program and will bring in more  people, 
     establishing  a long-term relationship.   As trust is established, 
     its  passed on to new Agency people coming into the  field.   They 
     also  built Chieu  Hoi (amnesty)  centers,  rallying centers,  and 
     interrogation centers.
     
     Kirk's  role  as an "Agency Case Officer"  was to help  to  build, 
     staff and train a Vietnamese CIA,  trying to help them establish a 
     decent  intelligence  network  and  program  so  that  they  could 
     understand their own opposition. He helped to train, staff and set 
     up  the Vietnamese police to do the same,  since they were in each 
     district.  He  made them his counterpart.  He worked with these  2 
     groups, travelling from province to province.
     
     Once  he was invited to dinner by an important Agency  man,  being 
     told  that a special surprise dish was to be served:  Roast  Delta 
     Squirrel. Kirk knew there weren't any squirrels in the Delta,  and 
     
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     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     even  if  there  were,  they  wouldn't be so  black  and  stringy. 
     Figuring it was probably a "test", he ate it, and passed.
     
     On  a  typical  day,   Kirk  would  meet  with  his  police  chief 
     counterpart  and they would fly somewhere and perform one of their 
     primary duties:  monitoring,  reading,  intercepting cable traffic 
     between  the  Central  Office  of  South  Vietnam  (the  political 
     structure that  supported the VC in the South) and Hanoi. He would 
     read  UPI  articles  as  a  balance,  and report  it  all  to  his 
     supervisor.  They usually flew twice a week,  in all kinds of STOL 
     (short takeoff & landing)  aircraft onto Agency-build airstrips in 
     every province. Occasionally they caught rides on military planes. 
     The  STOL  planes were part of Air America,  the civilian  airline 
     used  by the CIA.  They chartered their own flights so as to  have 
     control over who was flying, and where. After all, "it wouldn't be 
     much fun to be in the CIA and go down somewhere and get caught."
     
     ANY SCARY FLIGHT OR OTHER STORIES?
     
     He  told me about the time the door opened in midair and the  time 
     they  ran out of gas.  Also about the time they crashed in a  rice 
     paddy on the Cambodian border and the pilot left him stranded.  He 
     managed  to  borrow a Vietnamese military unit jeep and drove  150 
     miles  and couldn't inform his office,  for fear of  interception. 
     Another  time he was poisoned in a restaurant by a VC infiltrator. 
     And  ;taking  a  swig of beer preserved with formaldehyde  in  Nha 
     Trang was not an uncommon experience.
     HOW OFTEN DID KIRK REPORT IN TO THE AGENCY OFFICE?
     
     Weekly  or  bi-weekly.  It  was pretty loose in '64  &  '65  until 
     President  Johnson  ordered a full military  buildup.   When  Kirk 
     arrived there were 17,000 GIs.   When he left a year later,  there 
     were 350,000.
     
     One  day Kirk happened to be in an office in Can Tho observing  as 
     Vietnamese  General  Duc  was recruiting Nguyen Cao Ky's  help  in 
     taking  the  military  junta  into  Saigon  and  taking  over  the 
     government. Kirk immediately reported this plan to his supervisor, 
     who didn't believe him.   One week later,  it all happened just as 
     Kirk  had  reported.  He was immediately called in for praise  and 
     questioning.
     
     Another  time  he  intercepted a cable that  read:  "Time  to  re-
     establish contact with _____? and take him up on his promise of 10 
     years  ago".   (the  person  in  question  was  an  administrative 
     assistant  to  Nguyen  Van  Thieu,  who was about  to  become  the 
     president  of South Vietnam.  The assistant had been recruited  by 
     the  Vietminh 10 years earlier and placed in South Vietnam and now 
     was about to be re-recruited.)   Kirk,  realizing that the highest 
     level  of  government  was about to  be  penetrated,  rushed  this 
     important  cable  over to friends in  Staff  Communications,  then 
     wrote it up and gave it to his boss. The boss was outraged that he 
     didn't  get  it  first.   Kirk,  in his panic  over  the  imminent 
     penetration,  had forgotten about the intense rivalry that existed 
     between the Operational and the Reporting divisions of labor,  and 
     did what made sense,  saving precious time,  instead of writing it 
     up, taking it to the boss so that the boss could then report it as 
     his own discovery.  After that,  Kirk tried not to overlook "human 
     nature", but the boss made life difficult for him thereafter.
     
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     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     
     HOW EFFECTIVE WAS THE VIETNAMESE MILITARY?
     
     Some were highly trained, such as the Montagnards with the Special 
     Forces.  Only  problem  here was that the Viet  government  wanted 
     control  over the tribes,  and as the program was gradually turned 
     over to the government, it became less effective.  The Montagnards 
     were considered "ethnically inferior",  and the government was not 
     interested  in  autonomy  for them.  There  was  jealousy,  and  a 
     definite "caste system", with the tribes at the bottom.
     
     As for the North and the South Vietnamese, Kirk made an analogy to 
     the U.S. division of labor, calling the North Vietnamese the tough 
     industrial  factory worker mentality (like the  U.S.  North).  And 
     about  the South,  he said,  "If you were to pick a group to go to 
     war with, you wouldn't pick a bunch of happy-go-lucky rice farmers 
     who  make  great baskets and other crafts".  "But that's  what  we 
     did." Kirk said and "I felt useless, ineffective.   Trying to turn 
     rice farmers into intelligence collectors the next day just didn't 
     work".  (And  the  older  I get,  the more I like them  and  their 
     lifestyle, in retrospect.) We, and half a million GIs were part of 
     a  very confusing foreign policy,  trying to get the ARVN to  work 
     with us, to no avail. In effect,  it became "our"  war.  We didn't 
     know what to do. Our values were in conflict.  Why were we killing 
     civilians?
     
     "Disillusionment  set  in  about halfway  through  the  year.  The 
     complexity  of  it.  You  can't  be involved in war  and  not  get 
     disillusioned. People are getting killed.  Including your friends. 
     But you can't go back. You had to deal with 'Thou Shalt Not Kill'. 
     Your morals and value system take a hit. Take a 19-yr.  old Marine 
     one day in high school,  the next day killing people and answering 
     to  some  officer  who yells at him cuz his boots  aren't  shined. 
     'Sorry sir, but I've been out killing VC.'  Horrible things happen 
     to your value system. Many never recover, or they become jaundiced 
     or subdued."
     
     "I  Gradually  lost  faith  in my  government  leaders  and  their 
     decision-making. I lost my innocence and my trust.  My predominant 
     personal  issue  became Shame.  Shame of having been part  of  the 
     Vietnam experience, being on 'the losing team'.  It was like being 
     a  Watergate functionary.  Tainted,  even without being an  active 
     part of the shoddy stuff.
     
     "To me, the sum and substance of Vietnam was...  a Testing Lab for 
     the  U.S.   We  have  a huge defense establishment and  other  new 
     technology.  So how do you test it all?  You get in a 'scrape' and 
     try  it.  It's a subtle tendency.  Some of the Pentagon  proposals 
     that  were studied and/or tested included:  Helicopter technology, 
     political  policies obviously,  using cobalt in the DMZ,  creating 
     chemical  mudslides  as blockades on the Ho Chi Minh  Trail,  land 
     reform.  Land  reform...  that was an unpopular study done on  the 
     effects  of it on the peasants.  It came out that it would be  the 
     worst   thing  possible  (returning  the  land  as  part  of   the 
     pacification  program)  because  it was a form of bondage  keeping 
     them  tied to South Vietnam through absentee landlords.   Give  it 
     back  and  they'd have no more reason to associate with the  South 
     Vietnamese government,  in fact being more likely to ally with the 
     VC. The U.S. trashed the study and I lost even more faith.
     
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     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     
     "Here's  an  experience that typifies Vietnam...  There's a  dense 
     triple-canopy  forest between Saigon and Tay Ninh that was a major 
     VC stronghold,  a critical staging area between the Central Office 
     and  Saigon.  This  area  allowed them to make the  Tet  Offensive 
     effective...  Another  of  the  U.S.  programs  being  tested  was 
     Defoliation  (Agent Orange).   The plan:  burn down the forest  to 
     remove the camouflage, before the defoliation. The process: take a 
     burnable substance,  kick it out of C-123s,  thereby carpeting the 
     forest.   Then  light  it,  thereby  creating  the  huge  fire.... 
     Remember  how humid Vietnam is?   Well,  fire effects the moisture 
     particles in the air.  After about a half hour, a huge black cloud 
     (created unnaturally by the fire and the humidity) formed over the 
     top  of  the fire,  it started to rain,  and put out the  fire!... 
     This, to me, was the frustration of Vietnam in a nutshell."
     
     When Kirk returned home in '65, he wrote a political column called 
     "The Political Situation in South Vietnam" for the Agency, thereby 
     remaining  immersed in Vietnam for another 2 years.  This was part 
     of CIA's in-house newspaper delivered at 6 AM daily to the Cabinet 
     level.   From  this was distilled the "Presidential Daily  Brief", 
     which starts off the president's day.
     
     In 1967, having had enough of Vietnam,  Kirk left the CIA and went 
     back to Michigan State, this time to law school.  Got a job in the 
     computer business by day, went to law school at night.  He watched 
     student  demonstrations  against  the  war  in  Vietnam,  with  no 
     feeling. He buried it, deeply.  No one at school knew he'd been in 
     Vietnam or with the CIA.
     
     He started dealing with the "Vietnam stuff"  only 2 1/2 years ago. 
     He  was  assigned to take a church class to the Vietnam  Memorial, 
     the  Wall.  "My  blood ran cold and I had a  severe  physiological 
     reaction. I'd often passed the Wall,  but never stopped.  I knew I 
     had  to do 'something'.  I went to Elizabeth Kubler-Ross's  'Death 
     and  Dying'  workshop.   My parents had both died of cancer,  so I 
     went  to  deal  with  that,  but then  Vietnam  poured  out."  (He 
     described the workshop process,  intense and powerful.   Also told 
     of Kubler-Ross's theory of Vietnam,  being that it was "necessary, 
     to stop nuclear destruction and because it took the 'arrogance out 
     of 'us'. A "global view".)
     
     "My  problem  wasn't with the CIA.  It was a great place to  work. 
     Great  people,  treated you well,  they were fair,  we were close-
     knit.   I  just  could no longer deal with our government  leader, 
     their  policies  and decisions.  But I'd love to see some  stories 
     come out about some of the characters in the CIA"
     
     A FEW OF KIRK'S FRIENDS THAT HE'D TELL US MORE ABOUT INCLUDE:
     
     Stu Methven, "The CIA equivalent of Bull Simon". (Bull was the man 
     hired  by Ross Perot to get his EDS'ers out of Teheran.)  Stu  led 
     raids  on Son Tay prison in North Vietnam to get some of our  POWs 
     out.  He  was a "charismatic field leader,  a hard  drinker,  hard 
     fighter  and gave great parties.  One of the last ones featured  a 
     guest  duck  and python,  and the guys bet heavily on how long  it 
     would take for the python to swallow the last tail feather.  Well, 
     boys will be boys."
     
     
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     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

     Then  there was Jack Shirley,  Kirk's first boss,  who helped them 
     buy  Scotch and San Miguel beer by the planeload.  He was a  tough 
     "guerilla" in Laos, and was sent to Vietnam to "take a break".  He 
     married  a Thai princess (still married)  who was the "best bridge 
     player Saigon ever saw".
     
     And Sam Adams, "an American here,  kicked out of the CIA",  a good 
     friend  currently living on a farm near Kirk's.  Sam was a primary 
     witness  in  the Westmoreland trial,  having blown the whistle  on 
     Westmoreland's  staff after they lied about troop strength and the 
     morale of the North Vietnamese.  He also testified in the Ellsberg 
     (Pentagon Papers) trial. Kirk is sure that Sam would talk to us if 
     we're interested.
     
     And  he told of his roommate in paramilitary training,  a surgeon. 
     "He 'adored' paramilitary training... flitting around the country-
     side with guns and explosives. Great stuff.  (better that the real 
     thing)"   This  man  now runs a helicopter rescue service in  L.A. 
     with  a former Air American (the civilian airline the CIA used  in 
     Vietnam) pilot.
     
     Kirk  said  that there were so many unsung CIA heroes that  worked 
     "hand-in-glove" with the tribes and their chiefs.  "Their level of 
     courage  and mentality was stratifying.  They were characters that 
     were  at home in a place like Vietnam,  destined to run  difficult 
     operations."  He  suggested reading 'The Ravens',  by  Christopher 
     Robbins  (published  by Crown Books).  It's about the forward  air 
     controller pilots of OV-1's.  It's about the CIA in Laos,  working 
     ground  operations with the Laotian tribes,  but the flavor is the 
     same as Vietnam, and gives much useful info on how it worked,  day 
     to day.
     
     Kirk  noted that at 'China Beach'  you would be likely to see many 
     CIA   people  and  Air  America  pilots,   since  Da  Nang  was  a 
     Pacification center, and interrogation center, a Logistics center, 
     a  resupply  center,  and  a center for all  waterborne  activity. 
     "Agency  people are easy to spot...  civilian clothes  (anti-dress 
     code), they carried unusual weapons, and flew in on Air America".
     
     Kirk  suggested  a  possible story on a SEAL (the  'hit  and  run' 
     guerillas  that penetrated VC territory)  and his CIA  counterpart 
     who have formed a bond, disappear on a mission, and are rescued by 
     a  Montagnard  tribesman,  acting  as an  unseen  guardian  angel. 
     (Interesting side note: Kirk said that the best guards were exiled 
     Chinese tribesmen known as Mnongs,  that they were the only people 
     you could rely on to stay awake all night.  Culturally,  they were 
     warriors.)
     
     Interesting  piece  of  religious  symbolism that  could  be  used 
     somewhere: the "Ace of Spades".  As a small group fear tactic, the 
     hunter/killer  teams  used to pin an ace of spades onto the  chief 
     they'd just killed.
     
     In   'China  Beach',   Kirk  liked  "the  dichotomy  between   the 
     entertainer and the field squad leader she befriends. I understand 
     the  dark side of the guy".  "I'm glad you're 'telling the story'. 
     There  are  a  lot of good things to say about some  real  special 
     Americans."  Kirk  has offered to round up some of his colleagues, 
     as  well as some that were there later.  "We've got some  exciting 
     
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     Volume  4, Number  3                               March  7, 1990

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