Great video. I'm an American older dude living in Vung Tau, Vietnam (I wasn't a veteran...I'm 61 yo, draft stopped when I was 15) I've been living/teaching English here 7 years. I agree with Fred about the industriousness of Vietnamese, their toughness, and also about how rich the soil/nature is..you can grow anything here, it's amazing.
This guy was pretty funny. Straight forward too. I enjoyed his story. In fact, I love all these Vietnam veteran's interviews. They really open a world that most history books, movies, documentaries, etc. don't quite show you. They are very vivid, entertaining and detailed and it almost puts you right where they were. They all have similar experiences, but with twists that only they themselves personally experienced. Thank you for your service and for sharing your story.
Thanks for your service Fred ! Great interview from a guy that kept it simple and in terms a citizen can understand. Fred seems to have a great sense of humour and I’m sure helped him get through the bad times.
Many thx Fred and Darrel Some very sincere thoughts on life. I definitely do not understand the negative and almost hate comments from some…. Cheers Glenn
As an R.N. and having a great interest in WW2, I had a very very hard time getting patients were in combat to talk about it. I had the pain meds and the interest, so he finally gave in. He was a Ranger who went up Pointe du Hoc. I just kept asking "How did you climb a ladder that was made of rope and pieces of wood?!?!." He said "You were told and train what to do. You didn't focus on the ridiculousness of it. You simply were ordered to do it, so you do it."
Love this interview. I enjoy his honesty. Tells it like it was and I enjoy his story telling. A credit to the USA. Be well and thank you for your service!
Fred Dietz reminds me of speaker Newt Gingrich, he seems to have to make sense of everything he encountered and his analogy always has some non conformist wisdom/humor in it. Under his breath he just calls someone an idiot or asshole then tells his story. Great interview! It's entertaining and educational. Vets are our teachers with a degree in war.
This was a good one! I watched the whole shebang in one sitting. Thanks for your reflections MR. DIETZ. Being a Vietnam era vet I always say Paul hardcastles 19 gets me everytime. I too got sucked in to the war machine.
These interviews are so good not just to hear the story’s but some of the history too and it’s always great too see the guys who can still laugh n smile after what they did
guy who lived next door to me came home in a box. my mother saw the official black sedan pull up in front of their house & a couple of guys in dress uniform got out & went to the door. his parents gave some of his letters home to the local newspaper for publishing. what a shame and a waste by the politicians and generals.
This is one of the closest Vietnam stories to my Fathers account of Vietnam. He was in the 3/12 4th infantry, in the same area. I bet he was thinking of the black syph when he couldn't think of the name of the disease. I appreciate this interview
The mechanical potato peeler and KP stories took me back as I have done these. I was in Vietnam as a draftee from Oct 67-May 69 but had a relatively safe job. We had a guy who had been in the 4th Infantry on his first tour but had reenlisted after coming home and finding his wife had screwed around on him. He had his choice of duty and reenlisted to work in Long Binh (huge Army base). He drank a lot to drown his sorrows which caused him to fall asleep on guard duty. They pulled him off his safer position and sent him back to the 4th Infantry. I hope he survived.
I love where Fred talks about the Psychiatrist and said, "no I like men." Then how he paraphrases by saying that was the strongest thing he had to try and get out essentially. Lol. Great interview, I love these stores and listening to all these Veterans sharing their experiences. Thanks for your service.
people are so easily offended these days....being polite does not belong in any war! how can one possibly be 'sensitive and considerate' to people who use 80mm Rockets to blow you up? back PhuCat 1969 derogatory names were just of the fun!
Dinks is the name nickname they used ,it is expected.Why would he change it now?I guess are one of those people who think by removing a statue will change history right?They also used 'DINKS' in the movie platoon.The way the Army trains it's soldiers to kill the enemies is to make them into something like an object not a human.
I've watched a few of these and Mr. Dietz's interview is very interesting, and enjoyable. He briefly mentions his experience with Montagnards. Why has no one taken the time to interview any of the Montagnard veterans here in the States? I know there are populations of Montagnards in North Carolina and elsewhere, go out there before it's too late and get their stories. Ask SF veterans how they feel about the "Yards" and then ask the "Yards" how they feel about SF, the war, and (those few who were lucky enough to come here) about America. There's a story for you. This is just a suggestion. I REALLY do think people who know something about the War in Vietnam would be interested in this subject.
Good point greg. There was one story in Chu Lai where a woman was taken and the husband followed the squad several miles, days. These peoples were indigenous and very tight knit. The US used them as trackers, They ate dinner at the old compound built there in 1947, The cool thing is about these guys who were actually there , some of them had the privilege of seeing the real Vietnam. The Delta.
My cousin served in Vietnam on the Mekong Delta, and he was in the CoastGuard. I like listening to these stories. Strangley enough, my late father probably would have enjoyed that C4 trick. He served during WWII in the Philippines and they would scrounge powder bags from captured Japanese shore batteries and blow stuff up for fun. My father was a chemistry major that liked things that go boom.
He can rag on the M16 all he wants, and it did have it's issues at the time, but there's a reason the AR platform has been in service now longer than the M1 and M14 combined.
It’s about $$$. The 14 was heavier, but far more accurate and didn’t jam. The piece of crap 16 is cheaper, lighter and jams. Got a lot of guys killed, but made Colt firearms executives RICH $$$!
Dear Fred, I am 69yo from Oz. Never had to face the US patchinko machine of inevitable loss to slavery to your military. I must say that your survival gives me joy.
A older family friend of my dad's, he was bitten by a Scorpion that was in his boot, when he was in the Philippines during WWII. I wonder if they're a similar sting as the ones in Vietnam.
Very nice interview. Respect! I like this man a lot, it's good to hear how things made sense, that there were goals, and things we organized---that leads to mutual respect and people willing to do their jobs properly. Also the fencing sergeants: the people who run things get away with theft, while the whistleblowers get shafted. Par for the course. It’s also enlightening to see so many people with experience (poker players, vets...), including this gentleman, understanding that process is the important part, not the individual results: "Quicker and quieter is the best . It may not turn out the best, but it's the better than ...". Wish more people understood this, would solve a lot of the stupidity one sees around. "Hey GI. Sister, number one boom-boom" Cracked me up too. Awesome to hear how much respect this man has for the industriousness of the Vietnamese people---glad history has given them the chance to put that to good use now. Also nice to see that he has come to terms with the dark side of humananity: that there are some motherfuckers, no bones about it. And that there are better ways to deal with disagreements than violence. I can understand why he does not like weapons, although I personally absolutely do not agree with him on that point.
M14 7.62mm (.308 Winchester) M16 5.56mm (.223 Remington) basically a .22 on steroids were the 7.62 is a .30 caliber similar to the 30-06 which has 5 times the knock down power...!
Thank you Daniel and thank you Billings Gazette ans more importantly thank you Mr. Dietz. These interviews are so important. Please continue this series with Iraq vets.
I herd a statistic one time. It took 50,000 bullets to kill one enemy. I have often wondered what the true statistic would be. Because many of those bullets were never fired. Lost, stolen, sold......
@@jeanlignereux275 I spent thirteen years with a chick that was desperate to have a child. Regardless of the fact she could not get pregnant she insisted we keep practicing regularly. In spite of the fact there was no target to even hit. I bet a lot of those soldgers bullets were shot at targets that did not even exist also.
That 'statistic' sounds like nonsense. There have been studies done about rounds expended per confirmed kill, and they are definitely in the thousands of rounds for Vietnam. When you've got an automatic weapon and no idea where you are getting shot at from you're going to expend a ton more ammo than if you have a Garand or an Enfield.
This guy had it like we did. Boot camp was like that, all kinds of internal things going on. There was always internal theft after boot camp. Guys stole uniforms, food, money, etc. They bribed the supply room controllers or had ways of climbing in and out of the cage and steal things. They would even steal gas out of the planes or support vehicles. Many guys when I was in would do anything to get another medal or ribbon. Some of those people saw it as a competition, like the next guy was one of their opponents and those people were nasty to be around. Many kept their head low their mouth shut and were just another number. Nobody really knew them. A few guys could always see and interpret what was really going on and it was screwup after screwup and really stupid decisions were being made and many stupid people in charge. Somehow we managed and pulled through it all. We did have some good people in charge about half the time and when we had good leaders we were good. They switched out leaders like a pair of socks, we could not stand some of the nut jobs but knew they wouldn’t be around long. Some times we had rejects or mental health rehabs in charge of us and guess what, that is not fun or good for your morale or life expectancy. If they got bad directions or coordinates they were so dumb they would not be able to realize that and we would get into a huge argument that we might win but he would later punish us with extra duty or additional night watches. How dare any or all enlisted peons question and argue with a superior officer. It didn’t matter if you were right and saved everyone’s day. In his little pea brain we didn’t follow orders and needed to be punished. Next thing you know a great one would come in or another nut job would suddenly show up. We never knew what we would get.
“I thought I was pretty slick, but it turned out I was pretty naive.”
Man, I can relate to that.
I really liked how he talked so unfiltered about a great many little details.
Great video. I'm an American older dude living in Vung Tau, Vietnam (I wasn't a veteran...I'm 61 yo, draft stopped when I was 15) I've been living/teaching English here 7 years. I agree with Fred about the industriousness of Vietnamese, their toughness, and also about how rich the soil/nature is..you can grow anything here, it's amazing.
He actually is reliving his experience and thinking about it. Great insight.
This guy was pretty funny. Straight forward too. I enjoyed his story. In fact, I love all these Vietnam veteran's interviews. They really open a world that most history books, movies, documentaries, etc. don't quite show you. They are very vivid, entertaining and detailed and it almost puts you right where they were. They all have similar experiences, but with twists that only they themselves personally experienced. Thank you for your service and for sharing your story.
A man
Love these interviews now too many ads. :(
Make sure you listen to Les Dykema
Thanks for your service Fred ! Great interview from a guy that kept it simple and in terms a citizen can understand. Fred seems to have a great sense of humour and I’m sure helped him get through the bad times.
I've watched a lot of these. This is definitely one of the best.
definitely not for me.
A guy who finally talks like the folks I know
I second that, great bloke and best interview I’ve seen yet!
Any other good ones you can recommend
First one I have personally related with, I feel like we could be family....
This guy is the best voice of ‘Nam. He is the best interview you’ve done. You just know he’s telling the truth about his time.
One of the best ones. Really liked this guy.
"Hurry up and wait"🥴
Thank you Darrell . hope I spelled your
name right . Thank you Fred for your
Service, and all that you went through in Vietnam. Deeply appreciated
I’ve found that I’ve become addicted to VV. I love listening to all these stories. Thank You 👍👍🇺🇸
Me too and I'm from Serbia, Europe.
One of the best stories from this channel. Fred thanks for your service
Many thx Fred and Darrel
Some very sincere thoughts on life.
I definitely do not understand the negative and almost hate comments from some….
Cheers
Glenn
I like this guy. honest portrayal to the core. thanks Fred. I salute you !
Would you hire him if you owned a company..I sure as HELL wouldn't.. No frickin way
Such an honest interview, SIR thank you.
Thank you for your service sir. Welcome home
You rock Fred , thank you for your story and your service , thank you Sir
Great interview, I enjoy the sincerity of both!
As an R.N. and having a great interest in WW2, I had a very very hard time getting patients were in combat to talk about it.
I had the pain meds and the interest, so he finally gave in.
He was a Ranger who went up Pointe du Hoc.
I just kept asking "How did you climb a ladder that was made of rope and pieces of wood?!?!."
He said "You were told and train what to do. You didn't focus on the ridiculousness of it. You simply were ordered to do it, so you do it."
Thanks for posting these historical interviews.
This is the best one yet
Ive listened to dozens of these. One of my favorites. This is a guy you want to have a beer and chat with. Thank you for your service!
Lol this guy cracks me up!! Asks a question… Vet: well…… hahahaha right!? Lol love this channel
Fred gives it to you just the way it was without any shining medals .Thanks Mr. Veteran , I liked this interview very much.
Kluk Ztopolovky
Couldn’t have said it any better, Sir.
Thank You Mr. Dietz for your service and great stories.
This is the kind of interview that rounds out all the others you've heard. It helps give a fuller picture. An essential interview.
Thank you for your service sir
This guy is one of my favorite interviews!
Fred did an amazing job thank you for your service.
It’s an honor sir to hear your story
I have watched some other Vietnam veteran interviewers here. You are the best.
Fred was one of the best interviews for Vietnam Voices.
This is just the best channel, with the best content.
Thank you!!
Love this interview. I enjoy his honesty. Tells it like it was and I enjoy his story telling. A credit to the USA. Be well and thank you for your service!
Brilliant stuff. Thank you Fred for your candid and authentic self. Respect.
Fred Dietz reminds me of speaker Newt Gingrich, he seems to have to make sense of everything he encountered and his analogy always has some non conformist wisdom/humor in it. Under his breath he just calls someone an idiot or asshole then tells his story. Great interview! It's entertaining and educational. Vets are our teachers with a degree in war.
Thank you for your service
Loved it. Thank you Sir for you’re story and you’re Blanket Truth!!! Amazing!
Thank you for your service Fred, damn good interview! Funny as hell !!
This was a good one! I watched the whole shebang in one sitting. Thanks for your reflections MR. DIETZ. Being a Vietnam era vet I always say Paul hardcastles 19 gets me everytime. I too got sucked in to the war machine.
Best. Story. Ever. Fantastic work sir!
Great interview
Thank you for your service
Love the laughter
What a character, i could listen to him 7 days a week. Reminds me of an interview i saw with Ed "Babe" Heffron. Thank You, Sir!
God bless you Fred. I was with the 4th Infantry in Vietnam. 1969-1970. Best interview, so honest, Fred tells it, the "Grunt" in everyday Vietnam.
These interviews are so good not just to hear the story’s but some of the history too and it’s always great too see the guys who can still laugh n smile after what they did
I totally agree.
One the best interviews I’ve heard
Thank you for your service.
I respect this guy he's funny and ultra honest thank you for you service
guy who lived next door to me came home in a box. my mother saw the official black sedan pull up in front of their house & a couple of guys in dress uniform got out & went to the door. his parents gave some of his letters home to the local newspaper for publishing. what a shame and a waste by the politicians and generals.
Food, sleep, showers, and strange is what you want in the field.
Insightful interview
This is one of the closest Vietnam stories to my Fathers account of Vietnam. He was in the 3/12 4th infantry, in the same area. I bet he was thinking of the black syph when he couldn't think of the name of the disease. I appreciate this interview
Maybe, but I think he was thinking of Hepatiis
@@YahooMurray Or cellulitis which is a skin and tissue infection that could cause you to lose a limb or your life if it got septic.
The mechanical potato peeler and KP stories took me back as I have done these. I was in Vietnam as a draftee from Oct 67-May 69 but had a relatively safe job. We had a guy who had been in the 4th Infantry on his first tour but had reenlisted after coming home and finding his wife had screwed around on him. He had his choice of duty and reenlisted to work in Long Binh (huge Army base). He drank a lot to drown his sorrows which caused him to fall asleep on guard duty. They pulled him off his safer position and sent him back to the 4th Infantry. I hope he survived.
If you know the guys name there are several Vietnam casualty databases you can search, if he's not listed then he made it out alive.
Welcome home ❤
Your footage deserve so much attention
I love where Fred talks about the Psychiatrist and said, "no I like men." Then how he paraphrases by saying that was the strongest thing he had to try and get out essentially. Lol. Great interview, I love these stores and listening to all these Veterans sharing their experiences. Thanks for your service.
He still says ‘dinks’. In this day and age you need balls of steel to come out with something like that. Refreshing, well done!
He’s old school bro that’s how they said it. Wasn’t a big thing then. Now it is
Even Lt dan called them dinks he’s an american hero
I can't remember which one, but I watched another one of these where the vet was always saying 'gooks' and then correcting himself with 'vietnamese.'
people are so easily offended these days....being polite does not belong in any war! how can one possibly be 'sensitive and considerate' to people who use 80mm Rockets to blow you up? back PhuCat 1969 derogatory names were just of the fun!
Dinks is the name nickname they used ,it is expected.Why would he change it now?I guess are one of those people who think by removing a statue will change history right?They also used 'DINKS' in the movie platoon.The way the Army trains it's soldiers to kill the enemies is to make them into something like an object not a human.
I was a grunt in Vietnam 1971. Intense year of my life.
I've watched a few of these and Mr. Dietz's interview is very interesting, and enjoyable. He briefly mentions his experience with Montagnards. Why has no one taken the time to interview any of the Montagnard veterans here in the States? I know there are populations of Montagnards in North Carolina and elsewhere, go out there before it's too late and get their stories. Ask SF veterans how they feel about the "Yards" and then ask the "Yards" how they feel about SF, the war, and (those few who were lucky enough to come here) about America. There's a story for you. This is just a suggestion. I REALLY do think people who know something about the War in Vietnam would be interested in this subject.
Good point greg. There was one story in Chu Lai where a woman was taken and the husband followed the squad several miles, days. These peoples were indigenous and very tight knit. The US used them as trackers,
They ate dinner at the old compound built there in 1947, The cool thing is about these guys who were actually there , some of them had the privilege of seeing the real Vietnam. The Delta.
I 2nd that
Thank you Fred,. From an Aussie.
Just when I thought I knew, this man informed me.
Great life story ..
As we say in the UK forces he’s a loveable rogue. Always one in any unit. Take care mate.
My cousin served in Vietnam on the Mekong Delta, and he was in the CoastGuard. I like listening to these stories. Strangley enough, my late father probably would have enjoyed that C4 trick.
He served during WWII in the Philippines and they would scrounge powder bags from captured Japanese shore batteries and blow stuff up for fun.
My father was a chemistry major that liked things that go boom.
Fred's speaking mannerisms remind me of relatives in Waterbury Connecticut. When he mentioned Blackies it almost confirmed it.
This guy was great - funny and direct
Good job Fred!! Thanks 4 u're service!!
i love you fred, thanks for doing this.. we need to know what it was like thank you
Thank you Fred!
Very high level of self awareness, this one! 96% of soldiers in Vietnam, didn't see who shot or wounded them, mostly from bootstraps!
He can rag on the M16 all he wants, and it did have it's issues at the time, but there's a reason the AR platform has been in service now longer than the M1 and M14 combined.
And the reason is money, it's cheap, they have a sh it pile of them, it would be too expensive to change to something else, something better..
It’s about $$$. The 14 was heavier, but far more accurate and didn’t jam. The piece of crap 16 is cheaper, lighter and jams. Got a lot of guys killed, but made Colt firearms executives RICH $$$!
I like Fred, one of many great interviews.
I Like Men! Lmao. Fred cracks me up. Thanks Fred
Dear Fred, I am 69yo from Oz. Never had to face the US patchinko machine of inevitable loss to slavery to your military. I must say that your survival gives me joy.
Glad you made it home Fred, hope you are doing well.
THANK YOU FRED !
It was Robert Duvall from Apocalypse Now who said I love the smell of napalm in the morning!
Very good, description and insightful. Thank you for ur service.
Would love to know how fellow soldiers felt about Dietz
A older family friend of my dad's, he was bitten by a Scorpion that was in his boot, when he was in the Philippines during WWII.
I wonder if they're a similar sting as the ones in Vietnam.
Thank you Mr. Dietz
show service pictures
Thank you.
Outstanding
His voice reminds my of my uncle's, he was a paratrooper.
Tk you fred for your service
Love this guy👍
Very nice interview. Respect! I like this man a lot, it's good to hear how things made sense, that there were goals, and things we organized---that leads to mutual respect and people willing to do their jobs properly. Also the fencing sergeants: the people who run things get away with theft, while the whistleblowers get shafted. Par for the course.
It’s also enlightening to see so many people with experience (poker players, vets...), including this gentleman, understanding that process is the important part, not the individual results: "Quicker and quieter is the best . It may not turn out the best, but it's the better than ...". Wish more people understood this, would solve a lot of the stupidity one sees around.
"Hey GI. Sister, number one boom-boom" Cracked me up too.
Awesome to hear how much respect this man has for the industriousness of the Vietnamese people---glad history has given them the chance to put that to good use now.
Also nice to see that he has come to terms with the dark side of humananity: that there are some motherfuckers, no bones about it. And that there are better ways to deal with disagreements than violence. I can understand why he does not like weapons, although I personally absolutely do not agree with him on that point.
M14 7.62mm (.308 Winchester) M16 5.56mm (.223 Remington) basically a .22 on steroids were the 7.62 is a .30 caliber similar to the 30-06 which has 5 times the knock down power...!
Love this guy!
It is never silly to have even 5 minutes shared with a Vet to hear their story.
Thank you Daniel and thank you Billings Gazette ans more importantly thank you Mr. Dietz. These interviews are so important. Please continue this series with Iraq vets.
Lol thus dude is for real ...love him
Thank you from a vet
I herd a statistic one time. It took 50,000 bullets to kill one enemy.
I have often wondered what the true statistic would be. Because many of those bullets were never fired. Lost, stolen, sold......
Well, when it's a one shot one kill ratio you want the manufacturers won't be too pleased.
Waste costs money .
I do practice shooting in a club...if you need a million bullets to get close to bullseye,you'd better start all over again...love,from France😂😍
@@jeanlignereux275 I spent thirteen years with a chick that was desperate to have a child. Regardless of the fact she could not get pregnant she insisted we keep practicing regularly.
In spite of the fact there was no target to even hit.
I bet a lot of those soldgers bullets were shot at targets that did not even exist also.
That 'statistic' sounds like nonsense. There have been studies done about rounds expended per confirmed kill, and they are definitely in the thousands of rounds for Vietnam. When you've got an automatic weapon and no idea where you are getting shot at from you're going to expend a ton more ammo than if you have a Garand or an Enfield.
@@funstuff2006 I just googled it and that's what it came back with. Must be Google got there information from the same documentary?
Coast Guard fought in Vietnam
Not Deniro. Robert Duvall was the character.
It's funny how these old stories are so familiar in the same army
There Magazines not clips as the only weapon that takes a clip is the M1 Garand...
I was surprised about how many army vets called magazines clips.
this type of interviews should be done and disseminated within every country who has ever experienced war, including here in portugal. thank you.
It’s nice seeing a human stay human through that ...I don’t think I could.
in the AF short was FIGMO
This guy had it like we did. Boot camp was like that, all kinds of internal things going on. There was always internal theft after boot camp. Guys stole uniforms, food, money, etc. They bribed the supply room controllers or had ways of climbing in and out of the cage and steal things. They would even steal gas out of the planes or support vehicles. Many guys when I was in would do anything to get another medal or ribbon. Some of those people saw it as a competition, like the next guy was one of their opponents and those people were nasty to be around. Many kept their head low their mouth shut and were just another number. Nobody really knew them. A few guys could always see and interpret what was really going on and it was screwup after screwup and really stupid decisions were being made and many stupid people in charge. Somehow we managed and pulled through it all. We did have some good people in charge about half the time and when we had good leaders we were good. They switched out leaders like a pair of socks, we could not stand some of the nut jobs but knew they wouldn’t be around long. Some times we had rejects or mental health rehabs in charge of us and guess what, that is not fun or good for your morale or life expectancy. If they got bad directions or coordinates they were so dumb they would not be able to realize that and we would get into a huge argument that we might win but he would later punish us with extra duty or additional night watches. How dare any or all enlisted peons question and argue with a superior officer. It didn’t matter if you were right and saved everyone’s day. In his little pea brain we didn’t follow orders and needed to be punished. Next thing you know a great one would come in or another nut job would suddenly show up. We never knew what we would get.