They wore those because the "grunts" in the field told them they didn't want anyone in their battle zone standing out dressed differently and drawing the eyes of the enemy. It's not silly. The grunts also didn't like anyone who didn't carry a weapon (like journalists); they even preferred their medics to carry them (unlike in WW2), even though this is a violation of the Geneva Conventions. But the "sky pilots" (chaplains) in Vietnam didn't carry weapons. They were the only accepted exception.
"He blesses the boys as they stand in line The smell of gun grease and their bayonets they shine He's there to help them all that he can To make them feel wanted he's a good holy man Sky pilot.....sky pilot How high can you fly You'll never, never, never reach the sky https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=e833def03aa227c2&rlz=1C1VDKB_enNZ1153NZ1153&sxsrf=AE3TifOVKClVF5y0g4Xvwt7BIw76UfmkDw:1748034771370&q=sky+pilot&udm=7&fbs=AIIjpHxU7SXXniUZfeShr2fp4giZud1z6kQpMfoEdCJxnpm_3WBcADgXS0kQ7L92bqYkFCGs4piG0mmPDgZFV1TtUMvZylWLac4HWHOf637Sr7sPA3Sl4CX2lYIkrfA8EzXYxbUS1Y_1skn-RLYYOqO9mZKP7drFMMyfOz22eFkSyXGhUgWjikta3xpfJxQi-LBBBwXvUVezE6Nb_NCB3rVbJvFBcGVWvQ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwix5Oj8wLqNAxWcgFYBHaQMCeQQtKgLegQIEhAB&biw=1920&bih=911&dpr=1#sv=CAUSGQoIY2EwYTc4YzQSC3ZJYktsQ245VGtnGAAg8JXcjAMwAUAB
Former IRA volunteer and ex-prisoner, spent 18 years in Long Kesh, 4 years on the blanket and no-wash/no work protests which led to the hunger strikes of the 80s. Completed PhD at Queens upon release from prison. Left the Republican Movement at the endorsement of the Good Friday Agreement, and went on to become a journalist. Co-founder of The Blanket, an online magazine that critically analyzed the Irish peace process. Lead researcher for the Belfast Project, an oral history of the Troubles.
They wore those because the "grunts" in the field told them they didn't want anyone in their battle zone standing out dressed differently and drawing the eyes of the enemy. It's not silly. The grunts also didn't like anyone who didn't carry a weapon (like journalists); they even preferred their medics to carry them (unlike in WW2), even though this is a violation of the Geneva Conventions. But the "sky pilots" (chaplains) in Vietnam didn't carry weapons. They were the only accepted exception.
ReplyDelete"He blesses the boys as they stand in line
ReplyDeleteThe smell of gun grease and their bayonets they shine
He's there to help them all that he can
To make them feel wanted he's a good holy man
Sky pilot.....sky pilot
How high can you fly
You'll never, never, never reach the sky https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=e833def03aa227c2&rlz=1C1VDKB_enNZ1153NZ1153&sxsrf=AE3TifOVKClVF5y0g4Xvwt7BIw76UfmkDw:1748034771370&q=sky+pilot&udm=7&fbs=AIIjpHxU7SXXniUZfeShr2fp4giZud1z6kQpMfoEdCJxnpm_3WBcADgXS0kQ7L92bqYkFCGs4piG0mmPDgZFV1TtUMvZylWLac4HWHOf637Sr7sPA3Sl4CX2lYIkrfA8EzXYxbUS1Y_1skn-RLYYOqO9mZKP7drFMMyfOz22eFkSyXGhUgWjikta3xpfJxQi-LBBBwXvUVezE6Nb_NCB3rVbJvFBcGVWvQ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwix5Oj8wLqNAxWcgFYBHaQMCeQQtKgLegQIEhAB&biw=1920&bih=911&dpr=1#sv=CAUSGQoIY2EwYTc4YzQSC3ZJYktsQ245VGtnGAAg8JXcjAMwAUAB