My just released book

[headmount]

Well PDX's stats from the famous Wes Moore contradict my saying little has been on the table in the way of actions to help vets.  5 billion dollars is a huge number but my source has been guys I know that are out and frustrated with their Veterans Affair experience.  Where all that dough goes is a wonder.

[pdxmike]

The young guys I know are coming back to broken relationships, jobs in mall security, living with a bunch of roommates, etc.  This war is also different with being able to hear from them daily on facebook, etc.  You hear a bunch, then there'll several days of silence, then more.   Even when they're painting an optimistic picture for the folks back home, you can tell they're going through tough times there, and again when they get back.

[headmount]

Wing Suit,  I want to express my appreciation to you challenging me in how I express this stuff.  The wonderful aspect about writing a book is just putting down on paper chronological events and POVs that I had at each time period which of course evolve.

[lucabrasi]

Been reading some every day and at where you are just getting to Maui. This is where I think it starts getting to where I have been curious about and I can honestly say, with my mouth hanging open........WOW!. How do I say this.........good for you and congratulations on telling so much of the story to lead up to.....well, I guess that's the story. The big stuff for sure but also all the little things.....the dentist,........
Yes, the different voices and pov is a good way to put things.
Your take on the demeanor, (and why they were there) of the kids during the summer of love in The City, (wow, you were there too) is something in itself too. Now I wonder if without WW2 if that whole.........hippie thing would have happened like it did. All the kids of all the people that were in the war............
I was curious so went back to the Amazon site to see some reviews.....blonde kid from Aspen I think.....and you is moving up the charts too.
I would love a hard copy too.
Nice writing and telling of a story.

Well that blond kid is 68 now and lives on Kauai.  And you have the same take as me about WWII.  That "Greatest Generation came out repressed, alcoholic and smoking cigs like crazy.  That's what we grew up with.  And it spun us out into an orbit that included surfing some of the best waves in the world by ourselves.  If we'd grown up with a Dad who was a grocer at the A&P we would have probably stayed in one place and toed the line.  You never know but when a whole generation rebels the way the hippies did, you know something was on the table.  Thanks for reading.

Hmm...   really?  that whole generation wasn't a bunch of hippies.  My dad saw some heavy combat in WW2 (he was the only survivor of his B-17).  he wasn't an alcoholic.  and he didn't smoke.  a few of those guys did pretty well.  like Dwight Eisenhower, John Kennedy to name two.  while all the hippies were out smoking pot and not working, some of us spent decades in the military and/or the intelligence service, keeping you safe.  as my sons do.  in my opinion, the "Greatest Generation" (your quotes) was in fact the greatest.  unless you think hundreds of thousands of American dying to eradicate Nazism, Fascism, and Imperial Japanese aggression is of no consequence.         

Yes, you're correct.  All the post WWII vets weren't alcoholics and all, in my age group, weren't smoking pot. But those were generational habits  that were significant enough to be noticed as a whole.   For instance in the realm of being able to return from combat and resettle into civilian life, the divorce rate in post WWII was twice what  it was before.  My mention of alcohol and cigarettes were to show that many of these men were trying to cope.

Please don't get me wrong.  I came from a long family background of military service and totally appreciate all the sacrifices made during any war.  They were of consequence.  The point I attempted to make (and was obviously misunderstood) was that the consequence of one facet of that sacrifice was that many of these vets came home with the deeply embedded memories along with an inability to cope with the lack of order in civilian life. 

The thing I thought was insightful was (at least as I interpreted it) that the 60s were a result of things that happened decades before, when the soldiers who came home later as heroes left their homes to join the military.  Even if only a few percent of returning heroes came home with problems, that's enough to impact the next generation.  And the 50s were pretty deaf to psychological problems, anyway.  The solution seemed to be to drink, smoke and suck it up.  The world at that point just didn't understand things like PTSD, let alone know what to do about it.

 
Bingo......

I never thought, nor meant to say, nor took it as, and never could imagine imagine anyone taking it as......most people were this or that. 
I wanted to read because I am curious about this G Land place and all of the myths and mystery that surrounds it. To get the real scoop. What I have opened up and am reading is an extremely well told story of............life. It is told, by one person (two??) from many viewpoints......a child, a son, a brother, even a bystander. I can relate to some things in it............I can not even come close to relating nor even somewhat fathoming many of the things in it. It says I am half way through and I don't even think anyone involved in the story has a clue about this G Land yet. Well, I THINK I am to a part where a clue starts to form by Mike.
Wing, I hope you do read it. I think you will take much from it. I think you would relate to it more than I with your background it seems. I can not imagine anyone reading it not taking away from it.......
Thank you for writing and getting my brain thinking.
Life is a journey..........what a trip it is.

[Weasels wake]

Not really sure where to post this, but I thought this place is probably the best.
I went to see "American Sniper" last night,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, holy crap, what an amazing movie!!!!!!

When watching it, I was thinking about this thread with its discussion about PTSD, that movie really illustrates it very well.  You want to get into the mind of our modern day worrier, and what they have to go thru when coming back to "the world", and then back to battle, assuming they re-up?  Then you have to see this movie, maybe the best true war movie I have ever seen, Clint Eastwood knows how to make a movie, damn!

I saw the movie in a small town near by, and it was just about sold out, something very rare for that movie theater.  Most of the people were older than me (64), figuring that there were many vets in there, it was great to be amongst that crowd, and it was especially great to be amongst them at the end of the movie, they applauded.  When leaving I looked around and almost everybody had swollen eyes but with smiles on their faces at the same time.  There was an older gentleman sitting on the other side of my wife, he came by himself, and was obviously very effected by what he saw, we could both hear him.  Turns out he was walking just in front of us on the sidewalk after the movie, and he was still very emotional, my wife went up to him and asked if he was alright, he said "yes, it's just that it really got me".  She then asked if he was a vet, he said "yes", she said "thank you", he said "thanks, but I was just a soldier".

BTW, Bill, I'm going to get a couple of copies when it comes out on paper.

[paddlejones]

Wow, really enjoying this book. 16 in aspen heaven.

[pdxmike]

Weasel--your comments got me thinking--one of the biggest differences between WWII and now is that WWII ended so cleanly.  People went over, fought, won, had an formal surrender ceremony to make it official, and all came home together to parades.  I know that's somewhat simplified, but in any case it's a contrast to today, where people go over, fight, come back one at a time while the war still goes on, and not even the enemy or the  location stays the same. 

Certainly your friends and family can celebrate that you made it back, but when it's one person coming back at a time, with no end in sight to the war, and his buddies still back there, that's a whole different thing that coming back in a huge block where your friends and family are not only glad you're back, they're surrounded by thousands of others doing the same thing, and you're also celebrating the relief that the fighting's over for just about everyone. 

It's like the WWII soldiers are the guys who build a bridge.  Then they finish it and there's a ceremony and everyone cheers, and they go home.  The soldiers today are the guys who come to paint the bridge so it doesn't fall apart.  They know they'll never finish, because when they get to one end, they or someone who replaces them has to start over at the beginning on another coat.  They don't leave after it's done, they just leave and hand over the brush.

A big difference too is that now there's the whole issue of re-upping.  I know guys who never intended to do that, but they do, out of a combination of coming back and not adjusting to life here and having poor opportunities here, and at the same time feeling like they've abandoned their unit.

So the events in headmount's book--the whole combination of having a war so huge, with huge popular support for fighting it, then having it end so cleanly--is something that may never happen again.  That also means there may never be a generation like the baby boomers, since they are the result of all that, as the book describes so well.

[PonoBill]

Every war is different, and every participants experience and viewpoint is unique. I have a crap memory, but I don't have any problem remembering what it was like coming home from Vietnam and leaving the service. I was only in-country once--for a few weeks. Other than that few weeks I was on the Enterprise in Tonkin Gulf, so really never in danger, never all that uncomfortable. I didn't think much of it coming back, but it was pretty easy to see that a large part of the population thought I was too stupid to avoid the draft, or some kind of fascist. It didn't bother me, my service was lightweight, but seeing the reaction to the guys on the ground that fought was pretty hard to stomach.

I like to see people in airports jump to their feet and applaud when soldiers in uniform file by. I like to hear people thank people in the military for their service. But it's a new thing, and kind of strange to me.

I really like Bill's book, it's a different perspective of the time, and a clear look at a different life. That's what I read for.

[headmount]

Today I was thinking about buzz words that have emotional baggage, like hippies.  For me most hippies I knew and saw were in the pre-work era of their life, usually school age runaways, students and young teachers, people of draft age.  Along with them, I saw many surfers and skiers in Aspen and Lahaina who had all the appearances of the counter culture but also worked hard in restaurants or on the mountain as instructors.  Basically they were athletes with long hair who smoked a bit of pot.  But along with that marginal habit the counter culture I knew focused on eating better than than the TV dinners we had grown up with and though they smoked pot, they didn't drink booze.  Many were tuned into what we know now to be very healthy eating habits.

On the other hand it's obvious that some have an entirely different vision of what a hippie was.  I saw some of that as well.  Unhealthy runaways, emaciated slumped shoulder characters who sometimes went off the deep end with varying high impact drugs, roaming the streets of big cities.  Protesters shouting vile things, rebels parroting something someone else told them.  People that lived on 'muchie' food and had no regard for their health.

So even though the multi faced versions of hippies may have enjoyed some of the same music and outward style, there were vast differences in who they were.  Really the main unifying concept among young people of that time, who were stereotypically called hippies, was the resistance to our involvement in Vietnam and that included many who went.  That voice was so strong that in the years after the end of the war, the draft was eliminated.  Now the government can conduct military involvement without as much political fallout as occurred back then.  I guess history will tell us how that worked out.

[spookini]

Also in this day when people are so gung ho with talk about supporting the troops there is surprisingly little on the table in the way of actions... people can accept war without too much emotional attachment to its consequences... except for the ones and their families doing the fighting.

Whew, that is fuel for a whole 'nother thread (and one which would quickly turn to heated partisan sniping.    )
Yes, IMO the majority of 'support the troops' rhetoric is hollow and lacks any real meaning.
If you wore a flag lapel pin you're a "great American" (to borrow a certain TV/radio commentator's jingo).. if you questioned things, you're something less.
Meanwhile, few make ANY real sacrifice.. the President's instruction to the public after 9/11 was to go out and go shopping.
Anyhoo, won't go there; better to keep this thread on-topic!

[LaPerouseBay]

Just finished the book, thanks for that HM.

Your Dad and Mike were such standouts in their life choices.  Pop on the leading edge of discipline and order in the military - sort of a 'Patton' character.  Mike the 'Indiana Jones' - out in the hazardous frontier, making deals.  So different, yet so alike - on the edge.

Great storytelling and nicely tied up.  You sir, have been around!  Thanks so much for writing it down and trying to make sense of it all.  Your discipline to pull it off and continued adventures in the water are a nice link to Jack and Mike.  Keep it up and stay healthy so we can continue to enjoy your wisdom and company.

[surfcowboy]

I'm gonna offer that headmount's book might stay the topic here and that since a guy put his whole life out for us to read, that we keep this congratulatory and perhaps hold opinions for our own several hundred page books.

Also, his book is full of great surfing. Other pop culture that might mention similar subjects might be best put into "random" threads of their own.

I'd hate to see one of our true brothers here have to defend his life and experiences online.

Now, who wants to talk about him trekking into Java to find G-land or surfing Kuta when they didn't even have electricity?

Or the paddle out to Uluwatu? Could you even do that with a SUP?

Or finding Gerry on the path and showing him how to GET TO ULUWTU!!! Yes, our boy here showed the legends the spots where they built their legends.

My bucket list includes the island in the Philippines where Mike spent his last days. I want to see that place and hoist a toast to true adventure.

[littleray]

I'm gonna offer that headmount's book might stay the topic here and that since a guy put his whole life out for us to read, that we keep this congratulatory and perhaps hold opinions for our own several hundred page books.

Also, his book is full of great surfing. Other pop culture that might mention similar subjects might be best put into "random" threads of their own.

I'd hate to see one of our true brothers here have to defend his life and experiences online.

Now, who wants to talk about him trekking into Java to find G-land or surfing Kuta when they didn't even have electricity?

Or the paddle out to Uluwatu? Could you even do that with a SUP?

Or finding Gerry on the path and showing him how to GET TO ULUWTU!!! Yes, our boy here showed the legends the spots where they built their legends.

My bucket list includes the island in the Philippines where Mike spent his last days. I want to see that place and hoist a toast to true adventure.

Exactly!!!

[PonoBill]

I agree with the sentiment guys, but Bill is pretty bulletproof. Nice guy, and sensitive in his way, but he knows himself. When he thanked Wingsuit for challenging him, it's just Bill being Bill. Open to other ideas, but still grounded.

The very best thing about the zone is that it's all family. We can talk about stuff like this and still like each other.

[LaPerouseBay]

Now, who wants to talk about him trekking into Java to find G-land or surfing Kuta when they didn't even have electricity?

Or the paddle out to Uluwatu? Could you even do that with a SUP?

Or finding Gerry on the path and showing him how to GET TO ULUWTU!!! Yes, our boy here showed the legends the spots where they built their legends.

Easy on the use of the word 'legends' !!!  HM hinted at the over use of that word earlier in the thread!  (Maybe you are being facetious, If so - apologies).

As for the surfing, that's the stuff dreams are made of.  HM ain't no legend, he's a mean motor scooter. 

My bucket list includes the island in the Philippines where Mike spent his last days. I want to see that place and hoist a toast to true adventure.

Indeed.  That spot was a big link.  Jack's flying - Mike's final days - The Japanese troops... 

Woo hoo HM! Inspiring stuff!  Your Dad and Mike raised you well - you tough old bastard!