Deep, I couldn't get your link to come up but the general gist of what you said it unfortunately too damn true. I got out in August of 67 after 4 years active duty in the Air Force and my buddy got out a month later after 4 years active duty in the Army. After we got out, for about the first 6 months or so, my buddy and I had several " meetings of the mind" with a number of loud mouthed, anti war hippies in various places and we couldn't believe the hate those idiots had for us and our uniforms. It slowed down for us after that because both of us got married and had other responsibilities to worry more about. Those friggin' hippies had nothing to do but smoke weed and do other drugs and goof off. By that I mean we basically no longer put ourselves in situations around those aholes. My brother got out in 70 after 4 years active duty and was in a college class with his very shy girlfriend when the professor, a draft dodging hippie with a pony tail got really mouthy and out of line with his girlfriend over her refusing to repeat in class some vulgar words in a book the class had read. As this professor pushed harder, my brother told him to back off, The professor made some comment about my brothers military service and walked up to my brother and dared him to do anything. My brother promptly accommodated him and cold conked the SOB right there in class. No charges were ever filed and the college apologized to my brother and his girlfriend.
As a result of the hate and outright distain felt towards all of us vets by many in the public I just kind of forgot about all that hippie BS and went on about my business and life. It wasn't until 9/11 and afterwards and how the public began treating our vets with the honor they deserve that I again started talking about being a veteran again. Hell, it wasn't until that time that I started to wear a veterans hat out in public for the first time again. I never used the VA Medical system until 2010 either.
I am just so thankful that the majority of the American public got their heads out of their butts and started giving vets the honor and thanks they deserve after the Iraq War started , even though it was kind of a delayed thank you for us vets from Nam. Hey deep, at least the public FINALLY realized their mistake with us and tried to make up for it the best they could now. Ive even had some apologize to me for the way we were treated back then. However, many of those die hard hippies have turned into something under a different name today and I still cannot stand them and they cannot stand me either. The way most of them think, I consider it an honor not to be like them or around those fools!!
Later Deep and Welcome Home Brother!
