Previous | Next :: Robert Dale Stockdale : Vietnam Vet and Homeless Man : Pittsburgh | June 20, 2010, 11:54 pm

I talked to Robert Dale Stockdale at some length when I was in Pittsburgh yesterday ........ he is known to most as Bob........ half Cherokee and half Irish........ he is a 59 year old homeless alcoholic man......... and a Vietnam Vet.......... when he starts to speak of those days in the late 60's early 70's when he served with regiment 8 of the Army....... he becomes a lot less coherent....... sort of drifts away....... " you are never supposed to leave a man behind........ so I didn't........ I carried him all the way out of the fire zone....... " He becomes tearful...... ' He told me to leave him cos he was done........ but I never left him........ all in my platoon got out .......... we all got out. ! " ........ then he starts yelling........ "We are not leaving him!" over and over. He seemed very clear that they all made it out....... his whole platoon got home....... but sadly it seems that a bit of Robert Dale Stockdale did get left behind ........ is still there now....... that he never quite made it back in one piece himself.

Cheers Jez XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

www.jezblog.com