SwiftVets.com

[bob3443]

ROBERT HAYES HALFPENNY
7319 HIDDEN VALLEY TRAIL S. COTTAGE GROVE, MN 55016
PHONE: *******FAX: *******
E-MAIL: ******
October 29, 2004

To: the Officers and Crew of the Swift Boat Veterans

Gentlemen:

I just viewed the documentary Stolen Honor. I am as a rule, very much in control of my feelings and emotions. However, the accounts of what happened to many of you brought tears to my eyes on several occasions. I did not until now; truly realize the ramifications of the actions taken by the protesters, the involvement of the Jane Fonda types, and the betrayal of your honor by John Kerry and his ilk.

I was pleased to note that at no time in the film was it ever said that we lost the Viet Nam war, which we of course did not. Unfortunately, the total ineptitude and incompetence of the Johnson administration had them waging a war they had no intention of winning. Had this war been fought with the intention of winning, many fewer lives would have been lost, it would have ended far sooner and the suffering you endured might never have happened. Certainly the integrity and honor of our country would have been upheld and we would have been looked upon with greater respect by the nations of the World.

My participation in the war amounted to checking to make sure my draft number was in the high 340’s to 350’s. It wasn’t! Often times it was much lower. This is a fact of which I am ashamed to admit, but it is nevertheless true. In fact I was fairly successful at avoiding anything that related to the war. Of course I could not help being affected by the death of a friend’s brother, or feeling guilty for not recognizing a high school classmate because of the scars and injuries he received in Viet Nam just 5 years after we graduated. I thought it was to my credit that I did not criticize the war, taking the attitude, “My country, right or wrong; my country.”

I learned to late that bad things really do happen when good people do nothing. I did nothing to defend my country in the attack by the bleeding heart liberal left. I did not speak out against the horrible treatment of our returning service men. I did not put myself in harm’s way to defend the principles of our nation that I claimed to hold so dear. In short, I did nothing. I can not begin to express the shame I feel for not taking some sort of proactive role in this period of our history. Worst of all, I never even bothered to thank those returning service men who gave so much and received so little from an ungrateful nation.

Today, at my wife’s hotel, I see your children either returning from or going to Iraq. I make it a point to thank them for their patriotism and their bravery and to wish them all Godspeed. I am also very active in attempting to bring about the re-election of President Bush. If John Kerry were to be elected, all I can see is a repeat of Viet Nam and the same colossal failure of a Democratic Administration as we had with Johnson.

In conclusion, and I know it is 30 years late, but I want to thank each and every one of you who served our nation so bravely. My greatest regret is that I may not be part of your community.

Most Sincerely,

Robert Hayes Halfpenny

[Wolfgang]

Robert,

That's a courageous and moving note--thank you for sharing your feelings, and I'm certain that they will move and inspire many others.

Whatever your--and everyone's--various failures in the past, you're setting a wonderful example for the future.

Godspeed.

[pneal]

Robert,

Your letter was touching and heartfelt. I feel much as you do. I was not really aware of what these men and women were sacrificing for us all. I was a very young teenager, but can't believe how oblivious we were. When the military ID braclets were a fad at my junior high school, I wore one. Not fully realizing it represented a brave human being, fighting for me to be a safe, stupid teenage girl in a free world. What these people went through during that war, the painful return home, and yet again, to bring the truth about John Kerry to us all, is no less than heroic. Words can't express my gratitude. I can only promise that I will never again sit silent while other Americans fight the fight for our freedoms. Being pro-active in my country's future and instilling that feeling in others, is my new life goal. The "silent" majority has been awakened and I don't think after such a long rest, we will go silently away.

Thank you for having the courage to write this letter, and thank you makers of "Stolen Honor", authors of "Unfit for Command", SwiftVets & POW's. You are inspiring!!!!

Pam Neal
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Born on the Fourth of July