On Racism. One of thee finest teachers i ever had was black my first PLT SGT. [View all]

[Duncanpup]

Having coffee this morning decompressing after five day turn to Cali and back home. Anyway a Dunc pup bad punctuation dyslexic ramble 20 is away with his girlfriend at some romantic resort a weekend getaway i was not invited nor was Dunc the golden retriever.

I asked twenty WTF man Dunc and father we can cuddle is four a crowd.

Anyways so we ran southern route out of Cali and coming through Barstow middle night down California route 58 making for route 15 i started thinking as I drove about my first rifle platoon and my first time up at N.T.C. Fort Irwin and my first Plt SFC Lee maybe 1984 or 85. This man was fine N.C.O. a warrior and he had quite the resume two tours Vietnam first tour rifle platoon 101st second tour he was L.R.R.P.

As young kid in Eighty deuce it was great place to be always on the move i remember first time i met SFC getting to 325 PIR (PIR is parachute infantry regiment. I said excuse me Sgt Lee I think there is mistake and I’ve been trying to explain it since reception and in getting assigned to rifle company.

See SFC I’m pathfinder qualified after jump school I was sent to pathfinder school so shouldn’t I be in pathfinder company i didn’t ask I just got orders after jump school for pathfinder school and In his office he let out a huge loud laugh he said young airborne welcome to the white falcons 2/325. he then said i need knew RTO and you’re that trooper.

So for twenty some months before I caught PCS to West Germany i served with these men first humping the radio then on gun team M-60 machine gun then as fire team leader a lot of us were only 18-19 year old kids young alpha males we all wanted be in 82nd we volunteered.

I’m not bragging I’m trying to explain in that world there was no racism to quote SFC Lee he would say men.

There are those who can and do and that is us. And then there are those who think they can and can’t and they the fucks running the program.

Or men we are a wolf pack we live together we eat and sleep together one day we may hunt and kill together and God forbid we may Die together yet we are all we have.

And it was not blind allegiance in serving with these men it was a dedication a brotherhood we walked the razors edge as airborne infantry. I would jumped out any C-141 or C-130 four fans and trash can insulated to keep the noise in and I’d followed them falling to earth middle night to gates of the Kremlin.

And in carrying the radio i learned a lot about Lee he was obviously Jim Crow southern and he shared with me some of his life stories in racism. One in that he gave a white older lady a ride once after first tour Vietnam and her sons I think her sons said Nigger i quote SFC Lee don’t you ever give our mama a ride again or will hang you.

That’s fucked up I thought you survived year rucking up against NVA and you get home and deal with red necks. And we were out at Irwin in middle of the Mojave dark were all exhausted yet him and i sharing cigarette perhaps a shitty canteen cup of C-rat or MRE coffee under poncho liner in fighting hole we dug together for night.
Both of us giggling cuz the LT Lieutenant from first platoon is getting his ass chewed out by the captain over radio cuz he’s got his men lost trying to make for ambush site yea im old 58 in age i come from compass red lens flashlight and map navigation.

Yet SFC Lee was a Warrior Ranger Qualified he was S.F qualified yet he was a mystery here was a man who had no diploma high school dropout. He had GED yet he spoke two languages fluently he taught us how to Hotwire cars pick locks set up mechanical ambushes with claymore mines he’d say you may need these skills someday men thinking back now we were kids.

I think he came we don’t know I never asked he came from what you’d call Delta those guys over at JFK warfare at Bragg. I think he got sent down because of alcoholism the man had lot of demons I know I’d drink with him in garrison. Our NCO’s helped us make E.I.B. Course a fine award eight of us in my platoon if I remember three of us passed i was so proud I received that EXPERT INFANTRY BADGE.

And I owe my success to my NCO’s who stayed after 17:00 or came in on weekends to help us train to excel. Yet where I’m going with this ramble is i remember shooting the shit and saying to Lee who knows someday we may evolve as primates Sgt and not judge others cuz of skin color.
And here we are 40+ years later and we ain’t gotten anywhere in not hating others because of race this last election shows this let’s vote for orange moron billionaire and not a woman who is bi racial who wants corporations and wealthy to pay taxes.

Fucking Reagan both Bushes and Trump have bled us the middle class.

Ok D.U. Community headed gym remember love those you with hard and tight.