"You should be stripped of your stripes, you chicken-livered traitor, for the trouble you have caused our country and our military. What do you think war is? A game of ping-pong? That village was a threat to our own men. Would you rather see our men mowed down by the enemy? Your kind is our worst enemy, the rat commie within our country... You are a disgrace to the South (which is a producer of patriots), a disgrace to the nation... You are through in the service whether or not you get kicked out. If you were in the Marine Corps I don't think you would last very long. However, you will have to pay the full price of all traitors. For every man you have caused to be locked up and punished, you will walk in shame the rest of your days... May our country always be right (which is not easy when dealing with international communism). But our country right or wrong. If you don't believe that way, you are no American; you are no better than the fanatic communist animals who have trapped and killed all the U.S. military to date. You are worse than they, as you are supposed to be an American. I was proud of my town until (now). You have disgraced us all."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
"Jane Q. Citizen," anonymous author of a letter postmarked from Atlanta, Georgia, where Thompson had been born, sent in the months following the My Lai Massacre. As quoted by Trent Angers, The Forgotten Hero of My Lai: The Hugh Thompson Story, p. 178
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Hugh_Thompson%2C_Jr.
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Hugh Thompson, Jr.
Hugh C. Thompson, Jr. (April 15, 1943 – January 6, 2006) was a US Army helicopter pilot who rescued Vietnamese civilians during the My Lai massacre during the Vietnam war and campaigned to bring those responsible to justice. After receiving the prestigious Soldier's Medal he became a popular speaker on military ethics.
20 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Hugh Thompson, Jr. →
Related Quotes
"I'm going to go over and get them out of the bunker myself. If the squad opens up on them, shoot 'em."
"Don't do the right thing looking for a reward, because it might not come."
"Something terrible happened here 30 years ago today. I cannot explain why it happened. I just wish our crew that day …"
"I'd received death threats over the phone. Dead animals on your porch, mutilated animals on your porch some mornings …"
"These people were looking at me for help and there was no way I could turn my back on them"
"They said I was screaming quite loud. I threatened never to fly again. I didn't want to be a part of that. It wasn't …"
"Thompson landed again. Glenn and I got out of the aircraft, took out the guns. Hugh walked over to this lieutenant [B…"
"He was treated like a traitor for 30 years, so he was conditioned to just shut up and be quiet. Every bit of informat…"
"In the same months that Thompson was becoming increasingly sensitive to the disapproval of others, Lt. Calley was gai…"
"Hugh Thompson, Larry Colburn and other men of goodwill- who cooperated in the Peers Inquiry and who testified repeate…"