“From the perspective of nearly half a century, the Battle of Hue and the entire Vietnam War seem a tragic and meaningless waste. So much heroism and slaughter for a cause that now seems dated and nearly irrelevant. The whole… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“It was terribly risky, maybe even hopeless. But one or two properly armed, well-trained soldiers could hold off an undisciplined mob indefinitely. Shughart and… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“Thomas Paine’s The Crisis—“These are the times that try men’s souls. The summer soldier and sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“Steele gave the unapologetic impression that he could break you with his bare hands if it weren’t for his strict devotion to Jesus and… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“In April 1967, Johnson had dispatched General Creighton Abrams to Vietnam as Westy’s deputy. Abrams, a famous tank commander in World War II, had… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“Westin celebrated the New Year by shooting off some hand flares. Orders were “no fireworks,” but you couldn’t expect several hundred thousand men in… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“the Tet surprise was regarded by Westy as proof of Hanoi’s weakness. Nowhere in his understanding of the war was there room for the… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“Hanoi’s leaders were virtuoso songbirds of propaganda. They lived in a bubble. There were no voices of dissent in their society to check or… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“The fifty-three-year-old former Eagle Scout from South Carolina didn’t drink, smoke, or swear; the most colorful expletive in his vocabulary was “dad gum.”7 He… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“The smallest pleasure, like a mouthful of canned fruit or the chance to bathe in an ice-cold river, was a luxury, something to be… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“There were none of the card games marines usually played in downtimes. They were too tired to concentrate, and poker was serious business.” — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“Opposition to the war was becoming fashionable. Popular figures—intellectuals, athletes, musicians—stepped up to announce their opposition” — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
“To me the way they were used, particularly the way their idealism and loyalty were exploited by leaders who themselves had lost faith in… — Mark Bowden Copy Share Image
