BATTLING NATURE IN KOREA AND VIETNAM

In my quest for the truth I stumbled upon a C -Span 3 that rung my chimes. Professor Lisa Brady  of Boise State Univ. fame recapped what just went on in Korea and Vietnam. Korea was all about the incredible winters; Vietnam was the use of defoliants.. AGENT ORANGE! The chemicals were used "against nature." Jungles were emaciated by the likes of Dow Chemical and others.

Back in the Sixties I recall roadside spraying  in my hometown of North Brookfield, Mass. The roadsides of lush greenery turned Brown.I complained to Emo Benvenuti, selectman, but Mr. Benvenuti didn't want to hear about it. I told him anyway.

The Ho Chi Minh Trail was sprayed with dioxins as were the Vietcong.  and the North Vietnamese Army beginning way back in 1961 according to Dr. Lisa Brady. "Sixty-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

percent of the Vietnamese forests were destroyed. Aerial bombardment emaciated the land. Shrapnel and bombs from B-52 planes left pock marks everywhere. Millions of tons of bombs from U.S. planes  leveled everything except the VC will to win.

Agent Orange worked its way into the root systems of vegetation. The Americans said "they wanted to get the enemy into sight." I must say the VC were determined fighters. I wasn't anywhere near "Charlie" though I heard "battle stories" from my soldier friends. Operation Ranch Hand was the name of the AO operation that lasted nearly 10 years.

The government also used "Chemical soap and seeded clouds to cause downpours. This program may be seen on C-Span 3 or on your computer. " BATTLING NATURE IN KOREA AND VIETNAM." It will surely be worth the watching for those who have interests in the Korean War or Vietnam!

Speaking of Vietnam I bought a nice new Vietnam Veteran ball

cap today.

In line with American History from the Sixties I acquired a dozen or so LIFE Magazines. The timing is great given the political race at hand. Each LIFE is a history book in it's own right. It is hard to believe 1964 is over 50 years into the past. The contrast between LBJ and the new SPACE Program foretells where we are in the present moment.

LIFE & LOOK were magazines of the time. No pun intended. People looked at the pictures never mind reading the stories. I once had an estate auction where I had a stack of SATURDAY EVENING POST magazines. I think I got $5 each for the Rockwell covers. Today, special tiny magazines sell for TEN dollars or more. If the cover is exceptional I will pay the freight.

Do people buy magazines any more? The Pope Francis Special lingered on the Dollar General newsstand.

I watched Billy Joel and the Eagles Don Henley chew the fat on You Tube before my cat nap. I hiked up Foster Hill (abbreviated hike) as it was a very good day. The snow is gone here in the Brookfields and seemed to linger in Northampton. And so it goes...another day in February 2016.