TFC: MP (1964) 
March 15, 2019
“I’m 77 plus and in my mind I’m still 25”
Lou Williams on the mentality of getting older & reflection
Biographical
Lou Williams: Born December 7th 1941, from Marion, NC. Mr. Lou Williams was a TFC (trooper first class) in the Army as a MP (military police). Mr. Williams was drafted in 1963 when he was 23. He went through basic at Fort Gordon in Georgia and was assigned to the MP school at the same base. He originally wanted to be a Medic and to be stationed in Europe; he was sent to Vietnam instead. After his assignment he was sent to Fort Benning, Georgia, with the 11th Air Assault Division, which was going to be the 1st Air Cavalry Division. .
Pleiku & We Were Soldiers
Mr. Williams landed in Quan An and worked out of Pleiku which was the center for the Army and Air Force. Their unit shifted somewhere else and two days after he and his platoon left Pleiku, Pleiku got hit with mortars. In his pup tent he saw 50 helicopters take off, and the U.S. soldiers thought they were going to meet 500 soldiers but it ended up being closer to 4,000, and they were overwhelmed. The movie We Were Soldiers was based off of this battle and the division he was a part of.
From Military Duty To Police Duty
“The first night it was a lot going on, everybody was scared, there were shooting flares up and firing off rounds; I woke up and he was sitting up with his rifle, and his name was Goosby, and I said, ‘Goosby, have they broke through yet?” Mr. Williams was in Vietnam for about 6 months before coming home, and after he got out of the Army he became a state trooper. Mr. Williams still lives in North Carolina.”You asked me what I think about it and I think it was a waste” I asked Mr. Williams if he thought his time in the Army helped prepare him for his career as a state trooper and he doesn’t think so. His optimistic view is what got him through Vietnam and is what is still getting him through today.
Agent Orange
Agent Orange (a herbicide and defoliant chemical) was used as a deforestation tool, but had lasting side effects on both sides. There are still those today with side effects and receive compensation from the VA. Which can be located by clicking the link connected to the words “Agent Orange”. The chemical was devastating; within a matter of hours entire jungles would be wiped out.
“I had no fear, I mean, I was 20-something and bullet proof.”
Lou Williams on one of his first nights in Vietnam
“We’ve talked, I’ve got a couple troopers that.., one went through Tet and one had been wounded several times, he gets a lot more than I do, of course he deserves a lot more than I do, but anyway he was willing to serve, and he said one time, ‘you know if I would’ve gotten killed over there, I really would’ve been pissed off’, you know. It was a waste, I hadn’t been to the wall yet, I just hadn’t been. Think about how many wasted lives, were over there. The First Methodist Church son was a year behind me in high school and he got shot down over the North, and they finally found his remains, he’s now in Charlotte buried there, but you know, it’s a waste. One of these days I’m going. You asked what I think about it and I think it was a waste.”
On the question of what Mr. Williams thought of the Vietnam War in hindsight
“Well, unfortunately I doubt if we learned anything, but the biggest thing is what a waste it was. I mean, the people are still dying, course I’m 77 and there’s a lot that came after me, cause I left in ‘66 and it didn’t end until ‘73 or whenever it was, and there was a lot of people, a lot younger than I am. It’s, *sighs* I don’t know, it’s, if anyone ever learns that, look at what we did, we went into the Middle East after 9/11, so. And then we made things worse, probably, you know. So, but I mean, just *pauses* kids, just like me, I didn’t have a clue I was about to get drafted, so you don’t think that. You were thinking about of courses you had to have something in on time or what are you going to do this weekend and that’s the way it should be, you know.”
On the question is there anything our generation (Millennial/Gen Z) should know about the Vietnam War
“Yeah, you know as a veteran coming back you resented these people. But you know, were they not right? Possibly, we should have listened to them more.”
On the question of the protests that were occurring in the States