Letters & Such
Lt. William Calley's Response to a Letter of Support.
Background:
“On March 16, 1968 . . . a group of American troops killed hundreds of civilians at the hamlet of My Lai, in what would become one of the most infamous atrocities of the Vietnam War. Months passed before the news of that event began to spread, and it would be years before anyone involved would face possible punishment. Though several of the men involved faced courts-martial, only one—1st Lieut. William Laws Calley Jr.—was ever convicted. He was found guilty in 1971 of murder and sentenced to life. (President Nixon changed Calley’s sentence to house arrest, and he served about three years. He apologized in 2009.)”
From the Time article “Only One Man Was Found Guilty for His Role in the My Lai Massacre. This Is What It Was Like to Cover His Trial“ by PETER ROSS RANGE- https://time.com/5202268/calley-trial-my-lai-massacre/
Mỹ Lai massacre:
According to History.com, “Lt. William Calley is charged with six specifications of premeditated murder in the death of 109 Vietnamese civilians at My Lai in March 1968. Calley, a platoon leader in Charlie Company . . .had led his men in a massacre of Vietnamese civilians, including women and children, at My Lai 4, a cluster of hamlets . . . on March 16, 1968. The company had been conducting a search and destroy mission as part of the yearlong Operation Wheeler/Wallowa (November 1967 through November 1968).
In search of the 48th Viet Cong (VC) Local Force Battalion, the unit entered Son My village but found only women, children, and old men. Frustrated by unanswered losses due to snipers and mines, the soldiers took out their anger on the villagers, indiscriminately shooting people as they ran from their huts and systematically rounding up the survivors, allegedly leading them to nearby ditch where they were executed.”
(https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/calley-charged-for-my-lai-massacre)
MORE: (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%E1%BB%B9_Lai_massacre)
https://nypost.com/2014/03/15/richard-nixon-and-the-my-lai-massacre-coverup/
“A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain men from doing the things men have always done. If a story seems moral, do not believe it. If at the end of a war story you feel uplifted, or if you feel that some small bit of rectitude has been salvaged from the larger waste, then you have been made the victim of a very old and terrible lie. There is no rectitude whatsoever. There is no virtue. As a first rule of thumb, therefore, you can tell a true war story by its absolute and uncompromising allegiance to obscenity and evil.”
― Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
Lt. William Calley's Response to a Letter of Support.
Background:
“On March 16, 1968 . . . a group of American troops killed hundreds of civilians at the hamlet of My Lai, in what would become one of the most infamous atrocities of the Vietnam War. Months passed before the news of that event began to spread, and it would be years before anyone involved would face possible punishment. Though several of the men involved faced courts-martial, only one—1st Lieut. William Laws Calley Jr.—was ever convicted. He was found guilty in 1971 of murder and sentenced to life. (President Nixon changed Calley’s sentence to house arrest, and he served about three years. He apologized in 2009.)”
From the Time article “Only One Man Was Found Guilty for His Role in the My Lai Massacre. This Is What It Was Like to Cover His Trial“ by PETER ROSS RANGE- https://time.com/5202268/calley-trial-my-lai-massacre/
Mỹ Lai massacre:
According to History.com, “Lt. William Calley is charged with six specifications of premeditated murder in the death of 109 Vietnamese civilians at My Lai in March 1968. Calley, a platoon leader in Charlie Company . . .had led his men in a massacre of Vietnamese civilians, including women and children, at My Lai 4, a cluster of hamlets . . . on March 16, 1968. The company had been conducting a search and destroy mission as part of the yearlong Operation Wheeler/Wallowa (November 1967 through November 1968).
In search of the 48th Viet Cong (VC) Local Force Battalion, the unit entered Son My village but found only women, children, and old men. Frustrated by unanswered losses due to snipers and mines, the soldiers took out their anger on the villagers, indiscriminately shooting people as they ran from their huts and systematically rounding up the survivors, allegedly leading them to nearby ditch where they were executed.”
(https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/calley-charged-for-my-lai-massacre)
MORE: (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%E1%BB%B9_Lai_massacre)
https://nypost.com/2014/03/15/richard-nixon-and-the-my-lai-massacre-coverup/
“A true war story is never moral. It does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior, nor restrain men from doing the things men have always done. If a story seems moral, do not believe it. If at the end of a war story you feel uplifted, or if you feel that some small bit of rectitude has been salvaged from the larger waste, then you have been made the victim of a very old and terrible lie. There is no rectitude whatsoever. There is no virtue. As a first rule of thumb, therefore, you can tell a true war story by its absolute and uncompromising allegiance to obscenity and evil.”
― Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
Paratrooper from the 101st Airborne Brigade applying mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to an injured soldier who was airlifted by helicopter to the medical clearing station near Kontum, Vietnam
U.S. Military Pocket Cards Describe the Rules of War:
Throughout the war, the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) distributed information on the treatment of civilians to American soldiers serving in Vietnam. Officers and enlisted personnel received a wallet-sized card entitled "Nine Rules for Personnel of U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam." Another handout, "The Enemy in Your Hands," was also distributed widely among the military during the war.
Pocket Card, "Nine Rules"
Rules: The Vietnamese have paid a heavy price in suffering for their long fight against the communists. We military men are in Vietnam now because their government has asked us to help its soldiers and people in winning their struggle. The Viet Cong will attempt to turn the Vietnamese people against you. You can defeat them at every turn by the strength, understanding, and generosity you display with the people. Here are nine simple rules:
1.) Remember we are guests here: We make no demands and seek no special treatment.
2.) Join with the people! Understand their life, use phrases from their language and honor their customs and laws.
3.) Treat women with politeness and respect.
4.) Make personal friends among the soldiers and common people.
5.) Always give the Vietnamese the right of way.
6.) Be alert to security and ready to react with your military skill.
7.) Don’t attract attention by loud, rude or unusual behavior.
8.) Avoid separating yourself from the people by a display of wealth or privilege.
9.) Above all else you are members of the U.S. Military Forces on a difficult mission, responsible for all your official and personal actions. Reflect honor upon yourself and the United States of America.
DISTRIBUTION -- one to each member of the United States Armed Forces in Vietnam (September 1967).
Testimony:
“The only crime that I have committed is in judgement of my values. Apparently, I valued my troops’ lives more than I did that of the enemy.”
William Calley, ‘Charlie’ Company Lieutenant
In his personal statement, Calley stated that,
I was ordered to go in there and destroy the enemy. That was my job that day. That was the mission I was given. I did not sit down and think in terms of men, women, and children. They were all classified as the same, and that's the classification that we dealt with over there, just as the enemy. I felt then and I still do that I acted as I was directed, and I carried out the order that I was given and I do not feel wrong in doing so.
“It was very sad, he thought. The things men carried inside. The things men did or felt they had to do. ”
― Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
Throughout the war, the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (MACV) distributed information on the treatment of civilians to American soldiers serving in Vietnam. Officers and enlisted personnel received a wallet-sized card entitled "Nine Rules for Personnel of U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam." Another handout, "The Enemy in Your Hands," was also distributed widely among the military during the war.
Pocket Card, "Nine Rules"
Rules: The Vietnamese have paid a heavy price in suffering for their long fight against the communists. We military men are in Vietnam now because their government has asked us to help its soldiers and people in winning their struggle. The Viet Cong will attempt to turn the Vietnamese people against you. You can defeat them at every turn by the strength, understanding, and generosity you display with the people. Here are nine simple rules:
1.) Remember we are guests here: We make no demands and seek no special treatment.
2.) Join with the people! Understand their life, use phrases from their language and honor their customs and laws.
3.) Treat women with politeness and respect.
4.) Make personal friends among the soldiers and common people.
5.) Always give the Vietnamese the right of way.
6.) Be alert to security and ready to react with your military skill.
7.) Don’t attract attention by loud, rude or unusual behavior.
8.) Avoid separating yourself from the people by a display of wealth or privilege.
9.) Above all else you are members of the U.S. Military Forces on a difficult mission, responsible for all your official and personal actions. Reflect honor upon yourself and the United States of America.
DISTRIBUTION -- one to each member of the United States Armed Forces in Vietnam (September 1967).
Testimony:
“The only crime that I have committed is in judgement of my values. Apparently, I valued my troops’ lives more than I did that of the enemy.”
William Calley, ‘Charlie’ Company Lieutenant
In his personal statement, Calley stated that,
I was ordered to go in there and destroy the enemy. That was my job that day. That was the mission I was given. I did not sit down and think in terms of men, women, and children. They were all classified as the same, and that's the classification that we dealt with over there, just as the enemy. I felt then and I still do that I acted as I was directed, and I carried out the order that I was given and I do not feel wrong in doing so.
“It was very sad, he thought. The things men carried inside. The things men did or felt they had to do. ”
― Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
Vietnamese artillerymen fire from a mountain position during field training.
Trial Result:
Though sentenced to life in prison, Mr. Calley ended up serving three years under house arrest after President Richard M. Nixon later reduced his sentence. Of the fifteen officers who were charged, only Calley was found guilty of the massacre.
Support For Calley:
A huge body of American opinion was deeply offended by the idea that an American soldier who went out there in good faith could be put on trial for his life. . . . But it became more apparent as the trial went along . . . one time while he had a layover and an airline agent came up and just handed him a first-class boarding pass. When he went to cash a check in Tennessee, the bank president came out to shake his hand. He received more than 10,000 letters of support. That feeling only increased after his conviction, then the White House was inundated with mail objecting to Calley’s conviction.
From the Time article “Only One Man Was Found Guilty for His Role in the My Lai Massacre. This Is What It Was Like to Cover His Trial“ by PETER ROSS RANGE- https://time.com/5202268/calley-trial-my-lai-massacre/
Here is an example of a response from Lt. Calley:
Though sentenced to life in prison, Mr. Calley ended up serving three years under house arrest after President Richard M. Nixon later reduced his sentence. Of the fifteen officers who were charged, only Calley was found guilty of the massacre.
Support For Calley:
A huge body of American opinion was deeply offended by the idea that an American soldier who went out there in good faith could be put on trial for his life. . . . But it became more apparent as the trial went along . . . one time while he had a layover and an airline agent came up and just handed him a first-class boarding pass. When he went to cash a check in Tennessee, the bank president came out to shake his hand. He received more than 10,000 letters of support. That feeling only increased after his conviction, then the White House was inundated with mail objecting to Calley’s conviction.
From the Time article “Only One Man Was Found Guilty for His Role in the My Lai Massacre. This Is What It Was Like to Cover His Trial“ by PETER ROSS RANGE- https://time.com/5202268/calley-trial-my-lai-massacre/
Here is an example of a response from Lt. Calley:
APOLOGY:
The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reported: “The former officer, William L. Calley, told members of a local Kiwanis Club [in 2009]:
“There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in My Lai,” “I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry.”
“I survived, but it's not a happy ending.”
― Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
“I have tried, of course, to be faithful to the evidence. Yet evidence is not truth. It is only evident.”
― Tim O'Brien, In the Lake of the Woods
The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer reported: “The former officer, William L. Calley, told members of a local Kiwanis Club [in 2009]:
“There is not a day that goes by that I do not feel remorse for what happened that day in My Lai,” “I feel remorse for the Vietnamese who were killed, for their families, for the American soldiers involved and their families. I am very sorry.”
“I survived, but it's not a happy ending.”
― Tim O'Brien, The Things They Carried
“I have tried, of course, to be faithful to the evidence. Yet evidence is not truth. It is only evident.”
― Tim O'Brien, In the Lake of the Woods
Two great books about the Vietnam War and life are Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried and In the Lake of the Woods.