So, what is a combat vet???

[LoboGunLeather]

On 2 May 2005, the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army (CSA) approved the creation of the CAB to provide special recognition to U.S. soldiers who personally engaged, or are engaged by, the enemy.[3] The CAB is intended to serve as a companion to the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) and Combat Medical Badge (CMB) and was created to recognize the greatly expanded role of non-infantry soldiers in active, ground combat.[4]

U.S. Army infantrymen or special forces soldiers with the rank of colonel or below and who are a member of a brigade-sized or smaller infantry or special forces unit, receive the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) instead of the CAB.

CIB, posted in honor of Pop..and all the rest who " Saw the Elephant "

Excellent post! For those of us who served in infantry units in combat and received the CIB, it was a source of pride that sometimes bordered on arrogance. Many of us did not wear any other decorations unless specifically ordered to do so; the Combat Infantryman Badge says everything that needs to be said, long before the trite jingo "been there, done that" came along.

Only one way to earn it.

 

[Golddollar]

I had to deal with a situation going the other way. For the record, I was never in the Armed Forces either.

I was at a fast food place ordering lunch including coffee. I was wearing some sort of service related wristband or bracelet. I'm the right age to have been a Vietnam era veteran. The nice young man at the cash register said we give free coffee to veterans. I told him that I was never in the service . I might have told him my grandfather served in World War I. He then said he would pay for my coffee, either in recognition of my grandfather's service or my support for the military. I don't want even an accidental bestowing of valor that I never earned.

 

[lihpster]

My uncle was a Cpl. in the Second Armored Division during WWII. His fruit salad wasn't as impressive as Audie Murphy's, but it did have a CIB and a purple ribbon. He qualified.

 

[Greyman50]

To be an Actual Vietnam Veteran one had to have Boots On The Ground.
By chance one does not know what color the VC & NVA tracers were, never got knocked down or had to sit down from an ARC Light strike ,never saw the flame from a 122 mm rocket, never had to run to a bunker due to incoming, heard/ saw ammo dump blowing up, saw smelled a POL blowing up, never smelled Nouc Maum , saw shot dead dogs being drug to cook I don’t know what to say…..

 

[LoboGunLeather]

To be an Actual Vietnam Veteran one had to have Boots On The Ground.
By chance one does not know what color the VC & NVA tracers were, never got knocked down or had to sit down from an ARC Light strike ,never saw the flame from a 122 mm rocket, never had to run to a bunker due to incoming, heard/ saw ammo dump blowing up, saw smelled a POL blowing up, never smelled Nouc Maum , saw shot dead dogs being drug to cook I don’t know what to say…..

Nuoc mam is going too far. That stuff will gag a maggot, drop strong men to their knees from 50 yards downwind. Vietnamese people grow up with this as a part of their daily diet, perhaps even a delicacy to be savored and enjoyed.

For the uninitiated, nuoc mam is a very common condiment throughout Vietnam. Probably as many recipes and methods as there are villages and tribes, but the primary ingredients are fish heads and entrails combined with veggies, herbs and spices in an earthen crock, buried on the sunny slope of a hill and left to ferment for months. Usually served over rice or noodles, whatever is making the meal of the day.

Predictably, like everything else we consume the essence becomes part of our bodies and is exuded through the pores of the skin as a distinctive bodily odor.

The coastal areas of Vietnam have very active fishing industries, and I suppose some trade takes place with outlying areas. In much of the country the source of fish is the rice paddies, commonly used for human waste disposal as fertilizer.

Tourists may wish to exercise some restraint in their culinary adventures while in Vietnam.

 

[STCM(SW)]

Interesting opinions here.
I just don't think ground pounders are the only ones who see combat.
Does the NGFS of the big "J" on the Ho Chi Minh trail count as combat?
Maybe by some here but they did move the trail further in by 50 miles!
And I do know of one DD that took on NVA artillery and did take a hit on mount 53 killing some sailors....
Was that combat? I think so......

 

[riverrat38]

......"fish heads and entrails combined with veggies, herbs and spices in an earthen crock, buried on the sunny slope of a hill and left to ferment for months....."

Sounds like Viet Nam Haggis!

73,
Rick

 

[raljr1]

Dad spent a year and a half on the USS Rathburne in WWII. Shelled the beaches at Leyte Gulf. Took a kamikaze thru the front of the ship.

Uncle landed with the 4th Marines on Tinian, Sai Pan, Roi Namur and Iwo Jima. Left Iwo with mortar shrapnel in his back.

Cousin spent 12 months in the jungle in Vietnam.

Son spent a a year hanging out of the open door of a Chinook helicopter behind a machine gun, flying missions in Iraq.

Those are combat vet. Not minimizing the effort of others who supported. but combat vet seems to be very clear.

I was 18 in 1973 and my government didn't call me. I am forever grateful to those it did, even if they did not end up directly in harms way.

I eat dinner each month with three Vietnam vets. When we get up to pay, they get the veteran discount. I make sure the cashier knows that I did not earn that and don't take it.

 

[Retired W4]

BTW, their tracers were green. 12.7 tracers look like big green footballs when they are bouncing past you.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

Plenty of frauds and poseurs within the military. In 1970 an Assistant Division Commander of the 1st Cav received the Silver Star for a fictitious event. The clerk was told to write up the citation, when he protested he was told to shut up and do as he was told. He took another citation, changed names, place names, dates. On the day the supposed act of valor took place, that general was not in-country. That led to a torrent of allegations of unearned and undeserved awards.
With the War on Terror having made military service fashionable again and a resume enhancer all sorts of attempts by people to pass themselves off as "combat vets". There was that Senator Harkins from Iowa, he flew damaged planes from Vietnam to Japan for repair, tried to claim he was a Vietnam vet. Jesse Ventura made a big deal of his being a Navy SEAL, finally admitted he had never been in combat.

 

[Greyman50]

VA used to require “ Boots on the Ground” to qualify as Vietnam Veteran for agent orange claims.
Nouc Maum was just thrown in for fun. Many years ago had a good friend that was 11 B and saw a bases 4 times in his tour. Sadly he passed last year. He said he never smelled the four smelling stuff.

 

[PatriotX]

Thanks to everyone who served, hostile fire or no.

You’re heroes in my book.

 

[Retired W4]

I could not stand picking up ARVN's after their lunch break. The smell of nuoc mam permeated the air.

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

Who qualifies as a combat veteran?

How Can I Tell if I'm a Combat Veteran?
Eligibility Explained

The VA lists several different ways in which a Veteran can prove he or she was in combat:
If you received a combat service medal.
If you received hostile fire pay, imminent danger pay, or tax benefits.
If you received military service documentation that documents combat theater.

I was stationed on a carrier (not aircrew) that flew combat missions into Laos, etc. I do not consider myself a combat vet.

I agree 100% with deadin. I was in the same situation. I seem to recall that we got hostile fire pay, although I don't know why. We got tax benefits. I have our RVN Service Medal with four stars for four tours. Our carrier (CVA-31) got a couple of decorations from the RVN. But nobody ever shot at me, and I never set foot in Viet Nam.

The VA has their definitions for their reasons, and so does the IRS. It is not my nature to start arguments with people who are handing me money, or taking less of it than they were fixing to, but there is no way that I consider myself in the same class as people who were getting shot at. We both did honorably what we were told to do, but they did more.

That's it.

 

[Smoke]

I have a friend who lives in Israel. Her daughter (Just turned 18) is EMS. every time there's a rocket attack her daughter is in it. Her daughter was also picking up wounded on October 7th. Is she a Combat vet?

 

[ameridaddy]

The Brits have an old saying, “ to see the elephant”. By chance one can not figure it out look it up. I wear a RVN Veterans hat few times a week and when I asked for the Veterans discount the girl asked to see my ID. She said she has seen several guys wearing the hat but were not there. I told her” , “just send them to the local VFW”…….

I've heard "Seen the elephant and and touched 'is hide."
And also "Seen the bear and smelt his fur."
Both of these imply not only having been there but also involved up close and personal.

 

[ameridaddy]

Nuoc mam . ...the primary ingredients are fish heads and entrails combined with veggies, herbs and spices in an earthen crock, buried on the sunny slope of a hill and left to ferment for months. .

If I were to go there and not want to offend the locals when offered their delicacy, is it OK to pick the maggots out before eating that goo?

 

[CH4]

I am a proud vet who didn’t serve in combat or during any military conflict. However, as a DoD and DoS contractor, I served down range with military personnel in Afghanistan, carrying arms, but I am in no way, a combat vet. That said, I’ve see more combat than some political candidates.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

It amuses me to see all the frauds and poseurs who tell stories but don't bother to do their homework, get the dates, details of equipment, uniform, etc. right. The noted FBI profiler Robert Ressler was an MP officer in Vietnam, maintained his reserve status, cited one poseur whose DD-214 showed medals from every service, every award for valor save the MOH. At least that phony knew he had to have a DD-214.
Again, it goes back to paperwork.

 

[max]

I was in Vietnam (Long Binh) for 11 months. I only carried a weapon when going to Saigon with documents. I never fired a weapon. Long Binh was a huge base and there were several cases of rockets, 122's mostly, and mortar rounds hitting the base. I saw a lot of green tracers at night.

My daughter was born 10 years after I returned and she suffers serious birth defects due to my exposure to Agent Orange. Almost 40 years after I returned, I suffered prostate cancer due to Agent Orange. I still suffer some effects of the surgery. My daughter and I both get disability payments from the VA.

I do not consider myself a combat veteran, I am a Vietnam vet.