Whoever keeps clicking the pen should have that pen smacked across the room.

Welcome home and thank you, sir. My dad was an infantry combat medic. Two Purple Hearts and ultimately lost his battle with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma due to Agent Orange exposure. He’s my hero.

An officer's perspective. Very articulate. Interestingly informative. Welcome home sir.

I have seen over 100 interviews on KZread about Vietnam and this is in the top 10.

Thank you for service sir!🙏🇺🇸🎉

Thank you Mr Helmly for your service and sharing your story. It would be interesting in hearing your perspective on what is happening with the military today

This amazing veteran needs to be President of the United States!!!!!!! His story is so heart wrenching. I’m so glad I have watched this and wish I could meet this gentleman! Salute!!!! 🙏

@mikehuynh3284

2 жыл бұрын

Usa tioday we nee need he ro ?

@mikehuynh3284

2 жыл бұрын

Herve

@gsquaredfishing4361

2 жыл бұрын

@@mikehuynh3284 eew

Gen.Helmly reminds me alot of the late great historian Dr.Stephen Ambrose.This mans' interview should be mandatory to all politicians.

Grave,Sober,Vigilant,sound in Faith,sound in Charity,Sound in Patience. Thank you sir.

The best yet from an outstanding combat soldier.

This interview is one of my favorites. I was a 1Lt in Vietnam, and it brought back a lot of memories - Good and bad.

This man gives it in a riflemans perspective and a officer in one...He hit the nail on the head if he is still alive and well that he shows reality of war. A man can be of great caliber yet its human even as a LT to feel the fear and stress of combat as he breaks down. A great way this former LT gives us great detail into just how fierce this area was in 68. I can see why the Govt wanted to keep hism active as he was a well trained intelligent soldier, that he is correct, as the parades and 4th of July fireworks are great, they are no close match to what he and many men had to endure thru there time in Vietnam. I do hope he or someone close reads and understands his value he dedicated to his country.

@melanieariail1177

7 ай бұрын

He is still alive😉 This man is my dad...very proud of him!

@user-qp4sy2dp5b

7 ай бұрын

My gosh, how great it is to know he is alive as he is almost identical to my father's path also. Never did the Pentagon route when he got out, but sure heard the stories of all those nites out on combat patrol and the pure fear, yet the sense of duty they knew inside they carried as a man. When in his interview, he said I Redkin, I said that is a good old southern man,as my father used that term often, and if you dont understand the south from back then, you just won;t get it. But your dad is a true hero! Just about all I can say, as his persona speaks it in volumes. Out of many interviews, your dads was the one that made it really come across of a man who fought out of pure love of his country, and did it for not the glory, but for his true beliefs, and he did it with such honor, and in a certain way, he did it his way. I hope you just tell him, he did make such a impact on so many lives of our generation. I believe in every 18 year old should watch your fathers interview, and maybe just a few of them can see a true Military soldier who never quit, and knew his core values as a man. Please thank him, as He again, is just not a great soldier and leader, but a great human being. Thank you, and I hope he is well and truly enjoying now, what he worked and suffered for many years ago. Kevin.@@melanieariail1177

I’d follow this man to hell and back, and I was an active duty Marine. I’m very impressed with this Lt.Gen. as a leader and warrior.

Thank you for your service.God bless you and your family.You are a true leader.

I am grateful that people like You served . Today the words of Henry the Fifth’s St.Crispian’s Day Speech and General John M. Corse in His letter to the Brother of a Fallen Comrade titled A Death at Ezra Church ring true.

Met Gen Helmly at summer camp at Ft Stewart one year- he was a Battalion Commander of a Maintenance Company- I went to several of his staff meetings - he impressed me with his knowledge

Thanks for your service…and welcome home james you had a unbelievable career I’m glad you made it home…as a infantryman in the 25th infantry division I was in all those places you were talking about in 3 core…when you were down south..cu chi tay ninh…Trang bang Cambodian border…rubber tree plantation yes that was one nasty area….I was there…68/69….

I served in the AU Army. This guy is the exact type of Officer I would follow anywhere. I’d left AU Army years before AFG/IQ and was working with US DoD. At this point of the interview the second tour is over, various appointments and now CoS Res. I’m obligated to comment 03 Iraq fell, my mob were heading 200k SE Baghdad to reinforce a US team led by Col Mark H; a hard charging Ranger, 10th MD guy. Excellent man and Officer As we went south; all 6 of us, news came that Mr Bremer had disbanded the IQ Army, Police and Civil Service. That action is the reason we fought an Insurgency. Nothing else. Arrived at Mark’s loc - a really big IQ Army base - got off the H and wandered in. Mark greeted me with ‘you took your time. I feel safer now as my ground force has just doubled’ 12 of us with 8,000 recently unemployed soldiers. Fortunately we adopted a Dalmatian dog quickly to gain early warning

These interviews are so important in terms of both history and posterity, this one was particularly fantastic. I'd love to see them mastered with much better audio as some of them I simply cannot hear even with my laptop at 100%. Thank you Greetings from Hamilton, Ontario.

Jesus, the guy clicking his pin!!!

Excellent, informative interview. Thank you for your service. I was waiting for you to have someone punch from the back that shakenbake twit!!!! You give credit where credit is due and when your buddy took the place you were slotted for, i hurt with you. Thank you for your service and for such awesome stories.❤🎉

Very exciting. Thanks for your service sir..I'm glad we have a man like this . Defending us.

@ashy7124

3 жыл бұрын

That’s my grandfather

@paulprigge1209

2 жыл бұрын

@@ashy7124 Is he still living your grandfather that is.

@ashy7124

2 жыл бұрын

@@paulprigge1209 Yeah

What a Smart , Intelligent and Caring person....He says "We are representatives of the American People"...truer words were never spoken !!….Thank You Sir for your Service and Dedication to our Country...You Sir are an American Hero !!...WELCOME HOME SIR !!

PHENOMENAL Man. Horrible sound from the people conducting the interview. The sounds coming from who ever was sitting around the mic were incredibly distracting and rude in my opinion. Please consult a proper sound recording professional for future interviews. I love the interviews overall but this Soldier is one of the best EVER. 🙏

Great man and leader with the right stuff. This from a C-130 nav and Captain, RVN Delta to DMZ, 70-‘71.

I honestly feel this man and I have been over his interview a few times, and in the big realm of things, and his perspective of war and men, the Vietnam war would have been ended in a much more honest and honorable ending if men like him with his wisdom and upmost honesty, would have been in charge. God willing honesty will prevail if to happen again.

Very Enlightening

Over the past few years I've listened to literally hundreds of these interviews. The Vietnam war was part of my generation and I find it fascinating to hear these stories. I've commented a few times on these, particularly when we have stories from men who had particularly smart and informative comments to make about the war whether they ended up supporting our effort in Vietnam or deciding that it wasn't a good idea. I am compelled to make a comment on this one because I heard something at the very beginning at about the one minute and 40 second point that just astounded me. At that point this man said, "My father had been in World War II and an uncle in World War II and I always saw that if my country was at war it was inculcated into me that I should participate in some way. " Now comes the truly flabbergasting comment from this gentleman. He said, and this is a direct quote, "It was not right to question my country's decisions and we already had professors speaking disparagingly of the US involvement in Vietnam." Really? In a country who has as its basic tenant that it is run of by and for the people, it is our responsibility as citizens to do exactly what our government tells us to do without question? My father and uncles were both inWorld War II as well, but they taught me a different lesson. In my freshman year in college in 1968 I also had a professor who asked some questions about our involvement in Vietnam. Based on very little information, which is pretty much common for a 17-year-old, I was somewhat disgruntled by this professor's comments. I didn't know much about what was going on in Vietnam beyond what I saw on television, but I believed we had a responsibility to be there and "defend freedom." However, unlike this gentleman, I decided to take action and prove the professor wrong. So I spent several nights in the library researching the history of Indochina and southeast. Asia. Turned out every single thing that that professor had said to us was accurate. We, along with other Western countries, refused to honor our commitment to have an election uniting the country in 1955 because we didn't like who was going to win, Ho Chii Minh was extremely popular in both South and North Vietnam because he had been the equivalent of our George Washington and had defeated the hated French colonial masters. In fact, Ho had asked for help from the United States on many occasions, including attempting to see President Woodrow Wilson during the World War I meetings culminating in the Versailles treaty ending the war. Instead, the United States continued to support the French in their colonial control of the Vietnamese and refused to help the Vietnamese gain their independence. Now history is history, but despite that there will be those who argue those points I suppose. But none of that takes away from the comment I started this with. The idea that it is our responsibility as a citizen to do exactly what the government tells us to do without question is pretty much the scariest comment I've can hear from anybody involved in our military. I'll repeat that I have both admired and appreciated the efforts put forth by the vast majority of the people's stories who I've heard in these interviews. All other comments I've made have been an appreciation of these men's service even though I disagreed with our country's purpose for being in the war. This is the first time I've made a comment that had any negative connotation to it. But, this statement about our duty as a US citizen to blindly follow the dictates of our governmental leaders required some sort of response. Now, have at it.

@melanieariail1177

7 ай бұрын

This man is my dad. You don't have to agree with anything he shares. He has been a soldier his entire life and has done far more than you are aware of, including spending 2 years away from his family in Pakistan in the hunt for Bin Laden. He missed a lot to serve his country and is now retired but still supports the military proudly.

Good man. God bless.

Good interview but one of the interviewers is nervously clicking a pen. Annoying.

@falconmoose1589

4 жыл бұрын

As bad as the obnoxious throat clearing.

It normally works like this: if he gives lots of credit to others, almost slighting his own contributions and owed all his survival to others, you not only got a hero right there but maybe even medal of honour grade hero...for them it’s not about the accolades; it’s about truthfulness to duty as the needle is to the pole....full marks to the gentleman and the characters he speaks so fondly of

@gregsmith4423

Жыл бұрын

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@gregsmith4423

Жыл бұрын

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Thanks for remembering your fellow soldiers. Thanks for your service.

Awesome man! Great story!

Just happened upon this I think this is the best one I’ve heard in a while

Wow. Great man. Great interview. You want to find somebody who's against war? Ask anybody who's been to war. He describes approaching war with reverence and somberness. That is so well said. As long as there is evil, war is necessary,, but let us not forget who pays the price. It's not the politicians.

The politics was always driven by how can it benefit the politician. I know many of the people he talks about. He was a soldier. 🤜🤜🤜🇱🇷

I was a grunt in Vietnam 1971. Crazy time in my life.

I ask my God to bless You forevermore. Thank you for being the man that you made of yourself you are an exceptional hero. You are owed more than this country could ever repay. It did not deserve to have you and the other true men like you. No, it did not deserve you superlative men at all. May you Have perfect peace from now on.

Thank you for your service

Wonderful interview. Thank you for your service. From an I Corp Veteran.

If you're going to interview someone,DO NOT SIT THERE CLICKING AND TAPPING YOUR F 'n PEN!!!!!! It was a good interview,not because the interviewer kept his mouth shut if they would have just did the same with the pen,because the General knew to tell his story chronologically and remembered it in great detail. About quarter the way through I remembered I watched this before,it's still a valuable story I finished for the second time.

what's all the pen clicking about ?? Great guy very informative

No prepared notes! Outstanding! De Oppresso Liber! Take two salt tablets and drive on! Duty, Honor, Constitution!

I give this soldier five stars, *****.

I am humbled to see this interview. As an E-4 on the USS America working the flight deck LOX Pool in the Tonkin Gulf I don’t feel worthy enough to shine his shoes & many others interviewed here. I do hope he has a long healthy life. I wish the interview included some family references - any children? grandchildren? Would love to know what he thinks of today’s world. COVID 19, politics etc.

@paulprigge1209

2 жыл бұрын

If you read the replies one of his Grandson spoke up!

@marcuswhite3628

2 жыл бұрын

@@paulprigge1209 watched it again and found it still worth the 2.5 hours!

Smart guy. Enjoyed the content. Background audio takes away some points.

Gave them a shot of Jack .. what a legend.

This guy was a real infantry officer👍 I was a grunt with 1-327th Infantry (101st Airborne) during the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and our infantry officers lead from the front!

@user-qp4sy2dp5b

Жыл бұрын

very different war...in nam we didnt have starbucks and Burger king Cheney had his back door deal company. I do agree thou a war from the orders of another lying President that ducked a war himself. All Iraq was, was a proffiters war, vietnam, Kennedy actually had good intentions, then the lying began on the backs of 58,000. Dont allow yourself to be so easily brainwashed, your LT was no Helmly..trust me, you werent there.

Thank you for your service. In the Reserves I worked with the 82nd, both as trainers and evaluators. Fun times, actually. (I made my platoon's comm center for the first time in memory one night).

That’s my grandfather

@AtlantaHistoryCenter

3 жыл бұрын

Please don't hesitate to contact us at VeteransHistoryProject@AtlantaHistoryCenter.com if you would like further information about your grandfather's interview.

I am a 68 yo Navy Veteran who salutes every Vietnam Veteran I see.

One of the best recounts of an articulate military professional. The twitch in the room clicking the pen during the interview ruined an excellent program.

@CABINDAD

3 жыл бұрын

Is that what it was? I was thinking who’s using an old typewriter, lol

Excellent interview

Missed my lunch watching this, good luck sir. Sgt Nestor santamaria tank gunner desert storm.

@timothykeefe8566

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you both!

@kendalkenny1843

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you for service..

@alethamobley6688

2 жыл бұрын

Thank You Jojit Santamaria for your service

very good..

Thank you for your service. Welcome Home. I'm originally from Georgia myself. I'm honored I got to hear your story. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸⚓️⚓️⚓️⚓️

Very informative. Thank you!

You would think if you were taping something ypu could show respect Ive watched lots of these Ive never heard so much noise If you're bored leave go get a beer

I would love to know more about Major Bigtime (Bynum?)

Would`ve been a better interview without the pen "clicking"......Thanx for your service,Mr. Helmly....so very impressive career....

I really enjoy this interview for some reason. The voice, it seems like ive heard it before? Hes a good story teller and probably a believer. You know In God We Trust and being under one God is of our highest ideals. Yet so many of us dont even know Him and Them. That Trust is a relationship folks. Eternal Living is coming up next and what you do here with your own life today matters. Lets learn to hold our leaders accountable for failing in negotiations and make sure they step down and help us get the right people in there. This War thing where people are laughing is despicable. Anyway, Heres a good movie for you here in this mans story.

I'd vote this guy for POTUS.

You people that make these videos...do you ever follow up with secondary contacts etc? That is to say, do you ever investigate contacting those that are named by your subject (or the family members of those that are mentioned by them, but are deceased)? I think in some cases it is a real missed opportunity if the families never end up hearing for themselves what was shared about their fallen family member. I said all that to say this - the comments made about Harvey Bear (Real name Donald) were some of the finest compliments a platoon commander ever made about one of his soldiers. It would really mean something to Donald's family to see this. In our age of social media it would be a shame if that did not happen. Please take a minute to see if you can find any of his family on facebook and see that they get a link to this. Thanks for uploading! Great interview, one of the best I have seen. Salute to you, General Helmly, from a Canadian Soldier.

@AtlantaHistoryCenter

4 жыл бұрын

Thank you for taking the time to make this suggestion. All our Veterans History Project interviews are fully catalogued on our website here: album.atlantahistorycenter.com/cdm/landingpage/collection/VHPohr We will include Donald E. Bear (1942-1968) and "Harvey" Bear in the cataloguing of this interview so that researchers looking for his name can find it. And we'll do what we can to reach out to Mr. Bear's family. I had that same thought while processing this interview--how wonderful it would be for the families of Harvey Bear--and Ted Thompson--to hear first-hand how highly their loved ones were regarded.

@ArcticAmaarok

4 жыл бұрын

@@AtlantaHistoryCenter You really are the right kind of people to be doing this job. I wasn't sure what sort of response I would get (or even if I would get one) but I am impressed. I am glad you had the same thought. What a Soldier Harvey Bear must have been. Ted Thompson was spoken of in high regard as well. What a loss of both of those fine men. As an Infantry Soldier, I was particularly bothered by Harvey's death and how unnecessary it was. The story of that Captain and his inflexibility to adapt the the combat/security situation (and his outright incompetence) reminded me of Lt. Dyke in Band of Brothers. What a tragedy to have that man in command.....and what a travesty that he got so many men killed. Anyhow.... I live in Jasper, Alberta and there are a couple of Vietnam Veterans here. I have made a friend of one and the acquaintance of another. After having watched many of your video interviews I cannot help but wonder if it would be of value (to both parties, them and you) to offer to interview them and allow them to share their stories. Would you be kind enough to brief me on the best way of doing so, the best way of approaching and asking? I would share the file with you (give it to you outright, if you like) and the material would be yours to have. I just think (as I am sure you all do) that it would be a waste for their stories not to be saved for such valuable posterity. I truly admire what it is you are doing and I am sure you get this request commonly. I am certain there is no program here to do this...do you have an international or liaison program? I would very much like to be a contributing part (even if only 2 videos - although I would be glad to tavel throughout western Canada and do as many as there are available) Sincerely and respectfully, James james.jasper.canada@gmail.com

@AtlantaHistoryCenter

4 жыл бұрын

@@ArcticAmaarok this is very kind of you, indeed! I will e-mail you shortly. Thank you again!

And I hope Mr.Helmy wrights a book about his service .

I heard once that they once mounted a.50 on a help with big search /landing lights on it and destroying many sampans coming down those rivers at night. But the army made them stop because the recoil was too hard on the airframe of the ship. .50 on a helicopter

Gentleman General

The pen clicking is very disrespectful

This man had the benefit of excellent NCO and Officer leadership. Different military then. Except the Barconi guy. He was elevated to a 2 star because he was a lunatic. Sounds more familiar. I wish this guy was running for office.

None better

Fantastic sir, thank you very much for sharing your military experiences! I must say, your memory of people, places and things is amazing. God bless you, I hope and pray that you have many healthy years ahead of you and that you enjoy your retirement!

All I heard were a few words and lots of pen clicks. It’s a shame because this is one of the good ones.

@bryanfrombuffalo7685

Ай бұрын

Use ear buds

1:46:45

Nice if he spoke as loud as he cleared his throat.

@uhplumber5962

3 жыл бұрын

I think it was the guy clicking his pen who was also hacking into the microphone along with the general.

KLIK KLIK KLIK KLIK.. why is the interwiever klicking his pen !!! ?

Interviewer if you clear your throat back from the mike.

Best interview ruined buy a clicking pen....

Why do you tell them to disclose personal information? Their birthdate should NOT be told to the public! It's bad enough that sociopaths handle our personal information as it is! There is so much violation of people's identity!

Sound is crap!

I have never posted one negative post about our military and respect this man for his service and thank him but he seems very self centered and takes credit for 98 percent of things that happened and the other soldiers were just there to be in the background!! In my opinion he comes across as quite the braggart!! I know it's his story but he never mentioned anyone but himself doing anything heroic!he comes across as a Rambo figure he always references himself as he is the leader and volunteers to lead every mission! And the story about the General flies in a chopper in the middle of a war ZONE to award him a ribbon ! And the combat zone he was in was under constant fire all the time he was there But again I do respect him for his service and anyone that serves!Thank you!

@jbbd1772

Жыл бұрын

I agree with your comment and add that he did not seem to give the soldiers killed any relevance,.. so, he saw combat, he was not a combat officer in my opinion

@melanieariail1177

7 ай бұрын

General Helmly is my dad and your comments could not be further from the truth.

Good interview if that guy wasn't coughing.Very annoying .

i will not listen to another Atlanta history....the interviewer has no respect

He shot a guy 5 yards away and says he had to look at his silhouette? That's like across a room, LOL. So far I'm not finding this an impressive testimony.