Soldier

I read this shortly after its release and was moved by its honest assessment of the war. Lt. Col. Herbert stands in the ranks of Civil War's Col. John S. Mosby (see Ranger Mosby by Virgil Carrington Jones) to understand the correct tactics of guerrilla warfare. But of most importance, Herbert had the guts to tell it like it was at the time. It's time for our Government to tell it like it was and apologize to the Vietnamese people for the atrocities created by poor leadership. It was this leadership that tried to silence Lt. Col. Herbert at a military trial in Georgia. With the new revelations surrounding Sen. Bob Kerry, this book elevates itself to a must read.

I served in col. Herberts batt. while he was our 6.The 2/503rd was not doing much until he arrived.He really shook it up from top to bottom.I read the book when it was first released in 73,or74 and it is very true.The army railroded him. He wouldn't tolerate My Lai type sitituations and was hurt when he stopped them from being apart of his command. He was the best 6 I ever served under.He actually participated in company,platoon and squad size operations while our 6.He gained all of the grunts trust and respect by doing so.A must read for any soldier.

When I was a young Marine I was given a copy of this book by one of the Soldiers who served under Lt. Col. Herbert. He was mother-in-law boyfriend at the time. Well, as a young Marine I did not think much of it at the time, until I was over seas and read it. I could not stop reading it. I must have spent every minute I had free reading it. It was simply an OUTSTANDING book. I know I would have loved to serve in his Army. That's pretty hard to say being a Marine an all.

While I served 20 years in the Marines, and had little respect for the Army, I as did many other Marines in the seventies found that we could believe in this Man and would have followed him through the gates of Hell. LtCol Anthony Herbert stands for the ideals that made America great: Truth, Justice, and the American Way. I served in Vietnam with the Marines north of LtCol Herbert's Area of Operations, in the same area that produced Lt Calley and the My Lai massacre. Knowing how the Americal Div operated (Calley's Div), I have no reason to doubt what Anthony Herbert says, nor should anyone else. Vietnam was a war we should have never been in fighting it the way we did, and it cost us many lives of fine young American boys for the very reasons that this book points out. I personally lost two foster brothers, but I believe the war was right. I understand that the tactics, inefficiencies, and bureaucracy that this fine Officer reveals cost us the war, and tainted the respect of the American people towards it's own fighting men for many years. Had our own Military leaders followed up on his allegations, and removed the corrupt and inept officers he was talking about, things in Vietnam could ahve been a lot different. His asessment of the Leadership in Vietnam is absolutely correct, and if any of our leaders today had courage they would reopen the investigation of the allegations made by LtCol Herbert. Far from hurting the military, I believe that correcting these injustices and stating the truth, for once, will make our military stronger. We can ill afford to allow inept leaders to ever get us involved in another such operation as Vietnam, yet we have ample opportunity to do this: Bosnia, East Timor, Ethiopia, etc.

What appears on the surface to be the story of how Lt. Col Anthony Herbert, clearly one of the last true American heroes, was railroaded out of military service is in actuality a textbook look into the inner workings of Machiavellian corporate structure. Herbert is an old-fashioned, principled American who still believes in integrity and practices what he preaches. In contrast, look no farther than our national response to the antics of our current commander-in-chief (as translated by approval ratings) to see how we as a nation regard our principles in our time of greed. How did we get there? This book sheds many insights on that question.Spin doctoring is not a new art form. Its just a new phrase. Anyone who has wrongly lost a promotion, or a bid or an account to a lesser individual or firm, or who has been wronged by police, the legal system, false advertising, the government, or the credit bureau should by now undertsand that spin doctoring is the key to power and control.How we have been lulled into slumberland by media manipulation is the subject of other books, but to see spin doctoring in action on a personal level, you have no better example than "Soldier". First published in 1973, a paperback copy was given to me by a friend. I am ordering the 1998 hardcover edition as a permanent addition to my library. That it should resurface at this time after 25 years is no surprise. Thank you, Colonel Herbert.