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The Complexities of a War
Young Men in Harm’s Way recounts combat, leadership, loss, and the brotherhood of Charlie Company, preserving the men and memories that stayed with him long after the war. Why was it important to document not only your personal story but also the history of Charlie Company?
Almost everyone who served in Vietnam, especially in a combat role, never considered keeping a diary or records of their tours. Decades later, in interacting with the men I served with, they often could not recall where they were nor the details of what took place. This was true for myself as well. Upon much reflection, I decided to create a strawman chronology of my own experience. This evolved over time via conversations, reunions and my creation of the website www.212warriors.com into my book. History is important and I wanted to capture both my personal experience and that of the 12th Infantry Regiment I served in. My website contains the full history of the regiment and the 4 ½ years it served in Vietnam.
What do you most want readers to understand about the everyday experience of an infantryman in Vietnam?
Most people do not understand the complexities of a war and everything that takes place from day to day. The gauntlet of emotions a soldier goes through just within a 24-hour period adds to the mental strain aside from what takes place in combat. It is singularly the highest rollercoaster ride one can take in life of extreme feelings. Anyone who has served in the military is NEVER the same person who entered service when they come out. You never leave the battlefield of war, any war. The memories and scars never leave you. They live with you every day. This is why so many struggle to live a normal life and why so many cannot comprehend what we experienced. This book tries to share with the reader what we went through, the highs and lows. The pains, stress, fatigue, and loss of life set against a backdrop of attempting to escape that side of war by the creation of distractions. Listening to the radio, writing home, or sharing stories of past lives lived in a peaceful setting, and sprinkled with an occasional laugh to relieve the tensions.
What did you learn about leadership that military training alone could never have taught, and what qualities distinguished the leaders you trusted most during your service?
For the most part, leaders are born, not created. It is an inherent part of our DNA. They react to situations presented to them throughout the process of life, growing up. I don’t believe they seek out this part of their character; it just comes out. Most people are passive and default to those who seem to always be leading or sharing thoughts that allow those around them to be comfortable in being led. This is a bonding process of life: those who lead and those who pass on the responsibility of leading to others they trust in either character or affirming actions. We had few leaders, officers, or NCOs who had combat experience. Certainly they had experience in Army life, but that is vastly different than making decisions that are grounded in life-or-death outcomes. Those new to Army life and to combat had to quickly judge those leading them. It was easier for the “leader types” to ascertain who to trust than the followers. The officers, for the most part, had enough technical and leadership training. What they had to demonstrate was the confidence and quick decision-making ability that gained the trust of the men they were leading.
Because of how this war was carried out in Vietnam, the turnover of troops and officers evolved around a 12-month tour. This meant we were constantly dealing with new faces, officers, and the enlisted men within the ranks of the companies, platoons, and squads we were assigned to. If you demonstrated any leadership, you quickly rose in rank and were positioned to replace the very NCOs who were leading you because they would soon be going back to the States and home. For me, I arrived a private first class and went home a staff sergeant in a short 11 months in Vietnam. Leadership mattered among an ever-evolving landscape of new faces. That leadership, the trust built, created bonds within the troops that stabilized young men into a fighting force determined to keep everyone safe as best as could be possible in an unpredictable war.
What would you most like younger readers, particularly those with no personal connection to the Vietnam War, to understand about the men who served?
Much has been written about Vietnam. We have analyzed it by age, ethnicity, level of education, and what state we came from. For the most part we served and did what was asked of us in a trying time. What I want, as do other veterans of that war, is for it to have mattered in some way for the sacrifice many endured, especially those who did not come home. Many of us were drafted and may have trained together, but that only lasted through eight weeks of basic training. When we left basic, we individually headed off to AIT (Advanced Individual Training), where we, once again, were in the midst of strangers and trained for another eight weeks before being sent individually to Vietnam. Upon arriving in Vietnam, we, again, were sent out to various units (divisions, battalions) that needed replacement, only to, once again, be in the middle of strangers. Over time, these strangers, like ourselves, became our friends and comrades. People we may have loved or loathed, respected or tolerated, but all bound to us by blood, sweat and tears, theirs and ours. Just about all of us were there when one or more of these men died. In some cases, we held them as their last breath escaped. In other cases, we learned of their passing after the fact. We learned how in war death happens, but life goes on. For these men, it was about duty. When our country called, each of these men answered – some voluntarily, some not – but each man went doing his duty as he saw it. Years later, these relationships manifested into friendships, just like high school friends. They have grown over time and remain a core foundation of brotherhood and love. Forged in battle and never to be forgotten.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | 212 Warriors | Amazon
Drafted in 1967, Arnold W. Krause arrived in Vietnam during Tet in March 1968—thrust into brutal, unpredictable combat. He began as a young PFC rifleman in Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. Within months, his courage and instinct for leadership propelled him through the ranks to Staff Sergeant.
As a battle tested vet, Krause became a steady force for the men around him, guiding new replacements through the psychological and emotional strain of fighting a war they barely understood. His story also stands as a vital historical account of his unit’s legacy in Vietnam War.
Unflinching and vividly told, this memoir plunges readers into intense encounters with the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army, while revealing the deep bonds required to survive and function in combat. Beyond the battlefield, Krause paints a vivid portrait of a soldier’s life away from combat—from moments of unexpected humor to meaningful connections with fellow soldiers.
Gripping and deeply personal, from jungles and rice paddies of 1968 and 1969 to his reflections decades later, as he searches for—and reconnects with—his former comrades-in-arms.
This powerful story of survival, leadership, and remembrance stays with readers long after the final page.
REVISED & EXPANDED SECOND EDITION—WHAT’S NEW:
This fully updated second edition features a major production upgrade to elevate the reading experience for both new and returning readers:
Restructured Narrative: A completely reorganized flow for a seamless, more engaging, and page-turning experience.
Deeper Chapter Insights: Expanded detail, richer historical context, and added information across chapters.
Over 90 Photographs: Rich visual content added throughout the book to bring the narrative, the men, and landscape to life.
Professionally Polished: Thoroughly proofread, meticulously reedited, and beautifully reformatted for high-quality presentation.
I Was a Hero Once
Peter Mahoney’s memoir, I Was a Hero Once, offers a deep reflection on a life shaped by extraordinary experiences and the search for meaning. A Vietnam veteran and activist with Vietnam Veterans Against War (VVAW), Mahoney recounts his journey from an 18-year-old college dropout to an infantry lieutenant deployed to Vietnam. His military service was defined by duty and routine, but his return to the U.S. ignited a deeper battle for justice through activism.
The memoir delves into Mahoney’s later years, including his participation in a veterans’ delegation to meet Soviet soldiers, where he fell in love with and married a Russian woman. He spent nearly a decade raising a family in Russia, only to return to the suburban life he had once sought to escape. Mahoney weaves these extraordinary events with the “ordinary” moments that define his humanity, creating a rich narrative that balances adventure with introspection.
Mahoney recounts his adventures while reflecting on the ordinary moments that underpin them. His candid approach underscores a central theme: life is not solely defined by its extraordinary chapters but by the connections between them. While this narrative style enhances the memoir with depth and detail, some sections could benefit from more concise storytelling, as they occasionally lean toward repetition or feel loosely structured. Yet, Mahoney’s compelling voice and ability to ground the extraordinary in relatable human struggles ensure the reader remains engaged. The memoir resonates deeply because it captures the universality of Mahoney’s quest for purpose and morality amidst a life filled with rare experiences. His heartfelt prose offers a vivid window into both the external events and internal conflicts that have shaped him.
I Was a Hero Once is a powerful and introspective memoir that captures the complexity of a life filled with extraordinary moments and grounded in universal struggles. Mahoney’s ability to intertwine his grand adventures with the quiet realities of everyday existence creates a narrative that is both engaging and human. This is a must-read for those interested in personal stories of resilience, transformation, and the quest for meaning.
Pages: 299 | ASIN : B0D9HST1PM
Confront The Truth
The Saigon Guns shares facts about the final year of US combat operations in South Vietnam from the perspective of someone who was actually there. Why was this an important book for you to write?
This is a history that has not been told. Most people think the US Army involvement in South Vietnam ended in mid-June of 1972. Actually, some of the most intense combat that year for the US Army forces was after June. The US Army Greenbook, which is the official history of the US Army even perpetuates this myth today. A consequence of the lies about 1972 US Army operations was that the military records for those of us there at that time went missing. This plagued me for the rest of my career, as it did for many others, and almost denied me VA benefits. Only recently has the National Archives allowed access to some of these records.
When I attended the US Army War College in 1994, I heard seminar instructors explain that no US Army forces conducted combat operations, only local unit defense, after June of 1972. I pointed out that this was not true. I was asked on what basis I could say that. I explained I was there and that the US Army units still in-country were seriously taking the fight to the North Vietnamese and the Soviets well into December of 1972. The seminar leader was incredulous. He suggested I write a paper, which I did. Never saw that paper again, and it was not to be published.
President Nixon stated that he had pulled out all combat troops of Vietnam in June of 1972 as a re-election ploy, despite the fact that he did not. But no one wanted to confront the truth. After we were actually out of Vietnam as the result of the peace treaty, President Nixon and Congress had no appetite to re-engage even in the face of the massive North Vietnamese violation of that very treaty in 1975.
The Vietnam War is one of those moments in history that is glossed over in textbooks or outright ignored. Your book sheds light on the facts and uncovers the uncomfortable truth of the situation. I appreciated the candid nature with which you told your story and those who were stationed in Vietnam. What was the hardest thing for you to write about?
I suspect that most combat veterans have the hardest time dealing with “survivor guilt.” As a consequence, it was most difficult for me to write about the loss of friends in combat. For the rest of your life, you wonder, “Why them and not me?” But I also found that writing about specific combat actions or engagements sometimes became a bit too intense for me, and I would simply stop and take a break. Then I found that on many occasions it was hard to pick the narrative back up and continue. It might take hours, a week, or even a month to do that sometimes. Of course, then there was research I needed to try and make the narrative as accurate as I could. This took time. My wife and I even traveled to the National Archives in Maryland to research records. Though what we found was scant few records of use for this period of the war. I also reached out to fellow unit members that I served with in Vietnam to pick at their memories and personnel records to fill out details. That is why it took me several years to write this book.
What is a common misconception you feel people have about the Vietnam War and the military forces that were sent there?
The main misconception, now fostered in many high-school textbooks, is that the Vietnam War was an illegal war. This is, of course, the same line that anti-war groups, often assisted by the Soviet-operated World Peace Counsel, publicized to support their anti-war efforts. The truth is that the war was started by the North Vietnamese for two purposes. One was certainly to unify the country under Communist control. The other, less clear reason, was that the Soviets wanted a “warm water’ port on the South China Sea. The Soviets wanted this port because it provided them an all-weather power projection base against the American Pacific Fleet and against the Chinese, with whom they were in direct conflict in the 1960s and 1970s. The US turned down a request by Ho Chi Minh to assist them in unifying the country by force in the early 1960’s. The US refused to assist him with a takeover by force of arms. Additionally, the US had an air base in South Vietnam in Da Hang that was strategic to our defenses against the rising power of the Soviets. So, when the effort to overthrow the government in South Vietnam was begun by the North Vietnamese, supported by the Russians, we sided with the South Vietnamese on the basis that it was illegal for one country to take over another peaceful country by force of arms. It is also interesting to note that most Americans, again as the result of Soviet propaganda and, to a certain degree, the interests of opposing political parties in the United States, were told that we were only fighting poor Vietnamese peasants and the North Vietnamese were simply assisting them. The truth was that the North Vietnamese were who we were primarily fighting and who made up the bulk of what we refer to as the VC or Viet Cong irregular forces. By 1972, with the major North Vietnamese invasion of South Vietnam with conventional armored forces, entire Soviet military units were committed to the way and were engaged against US forces. Today there is a Russian Vietnam Veterans organization!
What is one thing you hope readers take away from your story?
The truth about the war and what those of us who served there tried to do for America and for the poor South Vietnamese is what I hope readers take away from my book. Remember that millions of people died in Southeast Asia upon our pullout of forces and our refusal, after the Spring of 1973, to provide support to the South Vietnamese.
There is an old joke among my contemporaries about that war. We were winning when we left. This was quite true. In the space of 8 months in 1972, four US Army Cavalry troops, the US Air Force, and the US Navy, with an assortment of American military advisors with various South Vietnamese Army and Marine units, wiped out five divisions of North Vietnamese and Soviet armor. This was not old, obsolete Russian Armor from World War II but then state-of-the-art Soviet military hardware. Yet the North Vietnamese offensive combat power was destroyed to the point that the North lacked the capability to continue the war when the Peace Treaty in Paris was signed.
It took the North Vietnamese, and their Soviet supporters two and a half years to rebuild the North Vietnamese offensive combat power and then conquer South Vietnam. With our complete pullout and refusal to provide help to the region, panic set in across all the nearby countries, and dictators and thugs, backed by the Soviets and the North Vietnamese, seized power in Cambodia and Laos. Estimates for the loss of life over the four years following our complete withdrawal and the fall of South Vietnam in these three countries alone run as high as 10 million people! And, to this day, the propaganda of the Soviets and of the anti-war movement here still denies these facts and the reality of that war. We see the same approach to war in Ukraine today, along with the same use of propaganda and ruthless war on a civilian population. The “just war” concept has no place in the Russian way of war. It was so in Vietnam, and it is so in Ukraine. So yes, there are lessons, and they start with recognizing and accepting the truth of what is actually happening.
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The remaining US aviation forces, along with the US Air Force and US Navy and Marine aviation assets, would not be easily removed from the battle. For the US forces still in-country, this is an untold story of heroism, dedication, and refusal to yield the battlefield despite being largely considered by US political leaders as “expendable.”
