Help On Intrepreting Marine Vets Dd 214

[jessejames]

I knew a Marine Vietnam vet for probably 10-12 years, he and I were not close but I helped him file some disability claims and I had never seen his DD 214. I could not stand to be around him very long or for that matter ANYONE who BRAGS of all their Medals etc from Nam. He bragged constantly about his "Recon" duty in Nam, said he received 2 Purple Hearts, Silver Star amd other Medals, I always felt uncomfortable and felt he was doing a lot of exaggerating. His funeral was on May 28, 2007 and I attended.....the Preacher explained how he was a "Hero" serving not one but two tours in Vietnam and receiving two Purple Hearts. Anyway, his wife asked me to help in filing for the VA Life Insurance and Burial Benefits etc. I have his DD 214. It shows a total of 18 months active service with 12 months in Vietnam ending 11/24/1970..... so it was nowhere near the end of war. DD 214 shows NO Purple Hearts! It shows National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Marksman Rifle Badge, Vietnam Campaign Medal w/Device, Combat Action Ribbon.

My questions are:

1. Is the Marine Combat Action Ribbon the same as an Army Combat Infantryman's Badge?

2. After 18 months, he was transferred to Marine Corps Reserve with reason given in line 11. © MCO 1900.2F & MCBul 1910 of 8 June 70 21G CofG Par 6012.1a Marcorsepman

3. Under Line 23a (Speciality Number & Title 0311 Rifleman )

4. Line 13a Character of Service (Honorable) b. Type of Certificate Issued (N/A)

5. Line 15 Reenlistment Code (RE-1B)

Does anyone know what these mean?? I thought active Marine service was 3 years and Nam tour of duty was 13 months???

This DD 214 has a Seal stamped on it and came to him as a result of his request for Discharge Certificate DD 214 from Navy Reference Branch of the National Personnel Records Center, so I assume this is ALL they had on him.

[71M10]

You are only trying to help but don't get yourself in so deep that it becomes personal.

When I came back in 70 after 13 months in Nam no one wanted to talk about it then and I don't talk about it now.

My father-law a Korean vet SSGT was the same way but I won't forget one time up at his hunting cabin in george Washington National forest. He had a guest hunter and this guy had all this camo gear and talked about all these recon mission and ranger crap. Well turns out a little while later we found out the gut was just what we called back then a "weekend warrior" and a whole lot of BS.

Most of us brothers of Vietnam don't talk about it and when we do we can usual tell the truth from the BS!

Take care and help her as Long as you can stand it and if it is getting to you I would do as the others say bow out.

stillhere

PS. "weekend warrior" I means no disrespect to our fine units serving now.

Off topic but, I take no insult to your weekend warrior comment. My son is in Mosul Iraq right now with his guard unit. A screen saver on his computer is a picture of a pickup truck with a sun shade that reads "one weekend a month my A**!"

His unit was supposed to do a joint excercise with the Canadians this summer, when he got off the plane in Kuwait he said out load, "this doesn't look like Canada"

[stillhere]

You made me laugh but I guess those were the good ole days, when you could go in and and do two weeks out of a year and just stand by.

Not only do I say "God Bless Them" but Thank God they are there for US!!

Stillhere

[LarryJ]

And, this is "off topic" also. Sorry.

Had a high school friend of mine that managed to join the Army Reserves after he got out of high school. Now, this is when EVERYbody was being drafted, around 1966 I think.

Anyway, a bunch of us guys went ahead and joined something to keep from being drafted and he was the only one of us that got into a reserve unit (they were REALLY hard to get into at that period of time, due to the fact that that was about the ONLY way to keep from being drafted when you weren't in school).

This guy started razzing us other guys because we were winding up joining the ArmyAirForceNavyMarines with commitments of 4 years active, ect. So he'd been in this Reserve unit for like 4 MONTHS, before they all wound up in Nam. He beat us ALL in getting to Nam in the shortest time span. Yup, Activated that Reserve unit TWO DAYS after he joined.

Hilarious, RITFLMAO FUNNY!

[Chuck75]

Add a third.

My DD214 does not show awards other than the VSM with stars. Yet, a search of the awards website shows two Navy Unit citations, Two Meritorious Unit Citations, and a Combat Ribbon.

At least two of the awards mentioned combat and hostile fire.

2 examples, berta's husband and I. we both had incomplete dd214's upon seperation.

this is a veterans widow needing help

[jessejames]

Maybe it's because I finally finished all the claim forms, gathering evidence, filing insurance etc that I have settled down some now. I know he served in Nam and I know he served in combat...and I KNOW the VA did him wrong!!!! They knew his conditions better than any other Doctors and they REFUSED treatment and I feel are partly responsible for his death. The local Hospital he had to use and the Nursing Home he was sent to are responsible also because they did NOT give him the medicine he had beeen taking for years to control seizures caused by service connected conditions.....so I decided to write the following Letter to Editor of my local paper.

A Local Veteran Died on Memorial Day 2007

On May 28, 2007, a 57 year old 100% Combat Disabled Veteran in Panola County died. I had known him for many years, having taken him to the VA Hospital several times. He almost died several years ago in the ICU at the VA Hospital, but they pulled him through. This time he was rushed to a small rural ER in critical condition with the same problem as years before, only this time the Rural ER Doctor’s record reads, “Called VA Medical Center 7:30 am May 24, VA advised to NOT send him here, we have no bed for him.” He was transferred to a larger Regional Hospital where he lay for the next 4 days without responding and died. He had been admitted to the Nursing Home one day before on May 23rd and was talking, eating, and fully conscious with hopes that Physical Therapy etc. would allow him to return home.

A Press Release by the Secretary of the VA Nicholson on June 15, 2007 announced “Illness doesn’t follow a 9-to-5 schedule,” I’m directing our Medical Centers to provide extended hours to ensure we’re there for the veterans who have earned our care.” This sounds good and follows the line of “best healthcare system in the world” often quoted by Politicians, "some" VA Hospitals do have excellent care, but if it’s not available?? The only problem with this announced Directive by the VA Secretary was that apparently none or few of the Hospitals were notified, see http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/nf07/nfJUN07/nf061907-4.htm

I see no more Yellow Ribbons on cars today? Remember the Lyrics of Pete Seeger’s song “Where have all the soldiers gone? Gone to graveyards every one, When will they ever learn? The Soldiers are still dying every day, but all the Yellow Ribbons are gone, have we forgotten? To me, as a Combat Vietnam Veteran, I see NO difference in Vietnam and Iraq. I have the complete records of every operation of my Unit in Vietnam, the Heading of each is “Lessons Learned”. In my opinion, our Leaders, in going to Iraq, ignored Lessons Learned, not only from a Military standpoint, but also from helping those who are injured standing in harm’s way for us to be able to celebrate freedom on July 4th each year. Promises made sound out loud and clear, but are hollow and only bring an echo when they are NOT carried out. I know this personally from promises made even by State Leaders last year for 100% Disabled Combat Veterans. But, as I was told plainly then by one Leader, I “only hurt myself”, i.e. THE CAUSE OF VETERANS, when I make an attempt to let the People know by writing Letters such as this one. I’ll keep writing because in my opinion our "Leaders" have proven to be not for the people, or for what the people want, but they are for re-election and the one who makes the biggest campaign contribution. Please set aside a little time this 4th of July to remember those who made and continue to make July 4th possible.

---------------------------------

Concerning Lessons Learned, I also sent the Editor a copy of VP Cheney's speech concerning Iraq and his perspective from 1991 on what we could expect if we invaded Iraq. It turned out to be almost prophetic and it bears reading by EVERYONE! The statement was made by Dick Cheney at the Washington Institute Soref Symposium on April 29, 1991 see- http://web.archive.org/web/20041130090045/...oref/cheney.htm

A similiar statement was made by him on April 7,1991, appearing on ABC’s This Week.... see http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGIe1gPaTXY

[RJ5742]

Jessejames

Just read your comments, and can’t help thinking possibility of him taking ”short” for immediate reenlistment after 18 months AD, in which case he would have been issued another DD Fm 214 after his new enlistment period, and the 2 Vietnam tours and service medals would be shown on that new DD 214? In the Army, I was involved with reenlistments, and we lots of “short” discharges for immediate enlistment/reenlistments, and seems like we also used the RE 1B code for “short”s reenlistments. His AD SMR would also give you an idea of his AD time and disabilities.