EARLY EPISODE: The Battle of Hamburger Hill
Francis joins Joe to talk about one of the most memorable battles of the Vietnam War, which was completely and utterly pointless.
Sources:
https://www.history.com/news/hamburger-hill-controversy
Frank Boccia. The Crouching Beast: A United States Army Lieutenant's Account of the Battle for Hamburger Hill
Robert L. Durham. 101st Airborne fight for Hamburger Hill. Military Heritage. Vol. 21, No. 4
Comments (35)
Spider holes are doing damage to the IOF.
Joe’s comments about the “barefoot farmer” trope reminded me of The Lawrence of Arabia series of Behind the Bastards, which has a great discussion of the use of irregular and conventional troops. In fact, he starts out with an anecdote about how Vo Nguyen Jap - leader of the Vietnamese military from 1946 - 1972 - always carried Lawrence’s book with him.
I don't know if it would work, but if I had been forced into the Vietnam War, I probably would've tried to switch sides by fervently telling the North Vietnamese Army that I was a communist. Or would the U.S. not send you if you were a communist for that very reason? I'll need to look into that.
Speaking of Vietnamese tunnel networks: https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2024/12/22/historic-achievement-vietnams-ho-chi-minh-citys-first-metro-line-opens “Back on the train, 84-year-old war veteran Vu Thanh told the AFP news agency he was happy to experience below-ground in a more positive way after spending three years fighting American troops in the city’s famous Cu Chi tunnels, an enormous underground network.”
I've had an idea for years now to write a book focused entirely on the Au shau valley. It's a fantastic microcosm of the entire war effort in Vietnam, starting at that green beret camp that got schwacked in (iirc, can't find my notes) 1965 and following it up to (possibly past) Lam Son where some of the 101st got sent into the Au Shau as a diversion and kept getting ambushed. If any one place could become cursed by virtue of the bloodshed therein, it would be Au Shau valley.
The "Cum Burger" is just called a "Juicy Lucy" in Minnesota. And it is freaking delicious.
That name is possibly less appealing than "cum burger".
It is a Rhode Islander.
Bad News: Looks like Honeycutt failed upwards and retired a General. I found a picture of him dated 2011.
Mmm I can’t wait to hear all about the tasty cookout these guys all had.
You guys gotta do the battle of Hue!
I love the part of Dispatches where they go to Hue. Man, what a great book.
It's worth noting that the Vietnamese tunnel network was built up for decades before the Americans ever got there. They used it to fight the Japanese, and then the French. The amount of engineering and thought put into them is amazing. For a great book about them, check out The Tunnels of Chu Chi.
If you fill a valley with corpses, it becomes a Blood Bowl. And then Orkz show up
Bœrgêr
YESSSS
ERP is the final evolution of the death blossom.
In answer to your questions, we are Rhode Islanders, our official name is the State of Rhode Island, and we are responsible for both the Seabees and friend of the pod the Mk 14 torpedo!
...and Rhode Island was originally chartered as The Colony of Rhode Island and Providence PLANTATIONS! America's Rhodesia
Comrade diglette used “Packing dat heat” It was super effective
ERP: Explosive Reactive Personnel
Remember to leave out white monster and vapes for Joe this Christmas.
my favorite christmas tradition was always staying up late to hear joe kassanta clogs' wooden shoes tiptoe across the roof with his bag full of presents* *tales of unmatched depravity and horror
The best burger is a hamburger with feta cheese.
No cap
Did Francis get the movie Hamburger Hill confused with The Deer Hunter? It was one of those rushed out to capitalize on Platoon doing so well. So, basically 20 years after the battle. Had Don Cheadle and Dylan McDermott
Ye Olde Vietnam ERP is something else altogether. 👀
Given scoobydoo & batman are both owned by WB bane scoobydoo is ... not implausible. Lets get David Zasparilla on it
Vietnam War ERP: pops up behind you. shoots you cutely.
Perfect thing for the "need a break from this crowd house time to walk the dogs" holiday tradition.
Also Cum burger is gonna be in my new lingo now thanks Francis
Jerking off your best friend in the draft office so you don’t get agent Orange is something I could see myself doing. Great Uncle was exposed to it and got cancer from that stuff.
Christmas time hearkens brutal memories for me anyway. Huzzah?
Lets do it!
Perfect just in time to download it before my flight!