Vietnam Veteran News

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American Legion in action

Episode 2512 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a story about what the American Legion is doing to encourage a national attitude of appreciation for our Vietnam Veterans and to help prevent veteran suicides. The featured story appeared on the American Legion website and is titled, Welcome home, Vietnam veterans and was submitted by Henry Howard.

The mission statement of the American Legion is: To enhance the well-being of America’s veterans, their families, our military, and our communities by our devotion to mutual helpfulness. The American Legion’s vision statement is “The American Legion: Veterans Strengthening America.”

In the featured story, Howard describes how the American Legion is living up to its mission statement.  He talked about the Welcome Home event that occurred on May 11 to 13, 2023 near the National Mall in Washington, D.C.  It was officially named Welcome Home! A Nation Honors our Vietnam Veterans and their Families, the event was created to honor Vietnam War veterans and their families 50 years after the war.

The American Legion included its INDYCAR activation display at the event. American Legion representatives thanked Vietnam veterans, answered questions and provided resources. Veterans of war eras from World War II to modern day stopped by The American Legion’s display and received some swag items, learned about the Legion’s “Be the One” initiative to reduce veterans suicide and signed their names on a special “Be the One” sign.

One of the Vietnam Veterans who attended the event was John Piwowar. He served in Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Division from September 1969 to September 1970. He said this about the event and its purpose, “This is nice, especially the way we were generally treated after the war. The public has finally come around to realize that we just did what we were asked.”

Listen to episode 2512 and discover more about what the American Legion is doing to show a national attitude of appreciation for our Vietnam Veterans and to help prevent veteran suicides.

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spraying herbicides

Episode 2511 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a look at the PACT Act and the summation of the report on toxic herbicide use the Thailand by the U.S. during the American Vietnam War. The information shared in this episode comes from the report created by the Merry Band of Retirees titled, Use of Agent Purple, Agent Orange and Agent Blue on Royal Thai Air Force Base Perimeters in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

The paper was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the following sections of the paper titled 2.7 PACT Act Established Presumptive Service Connection for Thailand Veterans, 3.0 Summary and Acknowledgments will be featured. According to Olson and Cihacek, with the passage of the PACT Act on August 10, 2022, veterans who served in Thailand are eligible for presumptive service connection, regardless of their MOS or where on the base they were located. The VA now recognizes that any service member with active military naval, air, or space service who served in Thailand, at any U.S. or Thai base, between January 9, 1962 and June 30, 1976 were likely exposed to Agent Orange.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks. Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2511 and discover more about the PACT Act and the summation of the report on toxic herbicide use in Thailand by the U.S. during the American Vietnam War.

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Toxic herbicide storage on Johnston Island

Episode 2510 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a look at the Thailand Veteran Situation. The information shared in this episode is a portion of the report created by the Merry Band of Retirees titled, Use of Agent Purple, Agent Orange and Agent Blue on Royal Thai Air Force Base Perimeters in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

The paper was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the following portions of the paper that is titled 2.5.2 The Thailand Veteran Situation, 2.5.3. The Thailand Veteran Solution and 2.6 In Thailand Cases, VA Faces the Same Challenges of Determining Exposure Details as with Vietnam veterans will be featured. According to Olson and Cihacek, There are no current statutes or VA regulations to automatically concede veteran exposure to Agent Orange while serving in Thailand during the Vietnam Era. The VA’s adjudication manual (M21-1) does recognize Vietnam-era veterans whose service involved duty on or near perimeters of military bases in Thailand anytime between February 28, 1961 and May 7, 1975 may have been exposed to Agent Orange and may qualify for VA benefits.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks. Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2510 and discover more about the Thailand Veteran Situation.

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Udorn Royal Tahhai Air Force Base

Episode 2509 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a look at the VA’s Agent Orange policy toward Vietnam Vets who served in Thailand. The information shared in this episode is a portion of the report created by the Merry Band of Retirees titled, Use of Agent Purple, Agent Orange and Agent Blue on Royal Thai Air Force Base Perimeters in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

The paper was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the following portion of the paper that is titled 2.5 VA Should Presume Exposure to Herbicide Agents for all Thailand Veterans? Thailand Veterans Were Exposed to the Same Agents as Vietnam Veterans will be featured. According to Olson and Cihacek, Before the PACT Act was enacted on August 10, 2022, the Veterans Administration’s (VA’s) application of its Thailand perimeter policy only conceded exposure for service members with a security-related military occupational specialty (MOS), such as military police, who conducted foot patrols at the perimeter.  In such a strict application, the VA arbitrarily ignored its own policy of conceding herbicide exposure for veterans who served near the perimeter.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks. Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2509 and discover more about the VA’s Agent Orange policy toward Vietnam Vets who served in Thailand.

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Thai air for base perimeter during the Vietnam War

Episode 2508 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a look at the question of whether the herbicides used in Thailand were “commercial” or “tactical.” The information shared in this episode is a portion of the report created by the Merry Band of Retirees titled, Use of Agent Purple, Agent Orange and Agent Blue on Royal Thai Air Force Base Perimeters in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

The paper was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the following portion of the paper that is titled 2.4 VA’s Illusory Distinction between “Commercial” and “Tactical” Herbicides is Unlawful and Arbitrary. will be featured. According to Olson and Cihacek, the Veterans Administration (VA), with advice from the Department of Defense, constructed an arbitrary distinction between “commercial” and “tactical” herbicides. They routinely used this “distinction” as justification for denying Thailand exposure claims. 

Historical documentation shows no evidence that the military made any distinction between “tactical” and “commercial” herbicides at the time of the Vietnam War.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks.Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2508 and discover more about the question of whether the herbicides used in Thailand were “commercial” or “tactical”

Cuong Pham started the Red Boat Fish Sauce company 10 years ago after leaving Apple. [RedboatFishSauce.com]

Episode 2507 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a story about Cuong Pham the Vietnamese refugee, who shows how it is done. The featured story comes from Market Watch and is titled: The story of a former Vietnam refugee who went on to become an Apple engineer and a fish sauce entrepreneur.

The story was submitted by Deborah L. Jacobs. She is a lawyer, entrepreneur and award-winning journalist, is a former senior editor at Forbes. She is the author of “Four Seasons in a Day: Travel, Transitions and Letting Go of the Place We Call Home” and “Estate Planning Smarts: A Practical, User-Friendly, Action-Oriented Guide.”

When communist oppression became too much to bear after the take over in May of 1975 Pham made a harrowing escape on a leaky boat out of Vietnam. After three terrifying weeks at sea, with not enough food and the unrelenting threat of attack by pirates, the jam-packed boat reached Malaysia. Pham spent nine months at the United Nations-run Pulau Bidong refugee camp before he was allowed to go to the U.S.

It would be more than 10 years before, bit by bit, his family was reunited. His grandmother and one sister, who escaped in 1984, died at sea. Pham returned to Vietnam five years later to process the paperwork for his mother and another sister to legally immigrate to the U.S. They arrived in 1990.

By then Pham had earned a degree in management information systems at San Jose State. He was also married — to a young woman named Ann who he’d eyed at the refugee camp, and subsequently met in California. They were among the nearly two million people to escape Vietnam after the war.

Listen to episode 2507 and discover more about Cuong Pham the Vietnamese refugee, who shows how it is done.

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Kathleen “Katie” Young, NSWCDD chief engineer

Episode 2506 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a story about the Vietnamese refugee who has done quite well in this country. The featured story comes from the Naval Sea Systems Command [THE FORCE BEHIND THE FLEET]. It was submitted by Dave Ellis, a writer for the NSWCDD Corporate Communications.

The featured story is titled, Growing up in war-torn Vietnam, leads NSWCDD chief engineer in lifelong pursuit of stability. It describes the like of Kathleen “Katie” Young. She lived with her family in Saigon. She was six years old when the communist North Vietnamese rolled into town with Soviet tanks and took over the place.

Her father served as an officer in the South Vietnamese Army. When the commies arrived, he was imprisoned for ten years. She and her family became destitute in the newly arrived communist paradise.

Finally, she and her family made it to America. They settled in Montgomery County, Maryland. Katie Young did not ask for a hand-out but offered a hand to her new home country. She hit the deck running.  She earned a degree in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland and a master’s degree from the University of Southern California. She also holds a master’s in national strategic and securities studies from the Naval War College.

Today Katie serves as chief engineer for the Strategic and Computing Systems Department and as the Conventional Prompt Strike Software lead. Her work at Dahlgren has earned her numerous awards, including the Dr. James Colvard Award and the United States Navy Meritorious Civilian Service Award.

She is happy with her new home country. Katie said about her new country,  “I feel very strongly that the U.S. plays an important role in maintaining stability across the world,” she said. “It’s a very important personal connection for me. What we do here at Dahlgren for the Department of Defense contributes to our country’s efforts.”

Listen to episode 2506 and discover more about the Vietnamese refugee who has done quite well in this country.

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Thai air for base perimeter during the Vietnam War

Episode 2505 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a look at a report about sworn statements claiming exposure to Agent Orange, Agent Purple and/or Agent Blue by US Airmen in Thailand. The information shared in this episode is a portion of the report created by the Merry Band of Retirees titled, Use of Agent Purple, Agent Orange and Agent Blue on Royal Thai Air Force Base Perimeters in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

The paper was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the following portion of the paper that is titled, 2.2 The Historical Record Reveals Substantial Herbicide Use on Air Force Bases in Thailand will be featured. According to Olson and Cihacek, there is ample evidence of the use of toxic herbicides (Agent Orange, Blue and Purple). He cites several veteran’s accounts of those who served in Thailand during the American Vietnam War that seem to verify the use of herbicides to clear bases in Thailand during this period.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks.Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2505 and discover more about sworn statements claiming exposure to Agent Orange, Agent Purple and/or Agent Blue by US Airmen in Thailand.

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spraying herbicides

Episode 2504 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a look at a report about the Historical Record that reveals substantial herbicide use in Thailand. The information shared in this episode is a portion of the report created by the Merry Band of Retirees titled, Use of Agent Purple, Agent Orange and Agent Blue on Royal Thai Air Force Base Perimeters in Thailand during the Vietnam War

The paper was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the following portion of the paper that is titled, 2.2 The Historical Record Reveals Substantial Herbicide Use on Air Force Bases in Thailand will be featured. According to Olson and Cihacek,  due to the density and high growth rate of tropical vegetation in Thailand, mowing was seen as labor intensive and ineffective, so US military personal used herbicides.  Furthermore, there are several reference reports admitting herbicide use throughout bases (on the grass yards next to barracks)in Thailand to control vegetation in Thailand’s tropical environment.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks.Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2504 and discover more about the Historical Record that reveals substantial herbicide use in Thailand.

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Agent Orange inventory storage at Johnston Island.

Episode 2503 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a portion of a report about the findings of the Merry Band of Retirees in reference to the uses of toxic herbicides by the U.S. in Thailand during the American Vietnam War.

The portion of the report that will be featured next is titled, 2.1. Thailand’s Strong Connection to US Air Force Operation Ranch Hand Resulted in a Steady Supply of Tactical and Commercial Herbicides. It was submitted by Kenneth R. Olson and Larry Cihacek. Olson was a professor in the College of Agricultural, Consumer, and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois [krolson@illinois.edu]. He is a US Army Vietnam Era Veteran and professor emeritus of soil science. Cihacek is a professor at the School of Natural Resource Sciences, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. He is US Army veteran and professor of soil science.

In this episode, the findings about the relationship with the U.S. and Thailand during the American Vietnam War is featured. It was found that throughout the Vietnam War, Ranch Hand aircraft utilized bases in Thailand.  Aircraft used for Ranch Hand, C-123s, launched from Vietnam airbases and on numerous occasions from Thailand airbases, including Udorn and Ubon, to conduct missions against targets in Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.

Five bases in Thailand, including Nakhon Phanom (NKP), Ubon, Korat, U-Tapao and Udorn endured sniper fire interdiction, perimeter penetration, and sapper (combat engineer) attacks.Nam Phong an eighth Royal Thai Air Force base was used by the United States Marine Corps air operations starting in 1972. The Rules of Engagement (ROE)  provided authorization and limits for the employment of herbicides throughout the Southeast Asian conflict.

Listen to episode 2503 and discover more about the findings of the Merry Band of Retirees in reference to the uses of toxic herbicides by the U.S. in Thailand during the American Vietnam War.