Douglas C. Zwank, a Madison, Wisconsin native, discusses his service in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. Zwank graduated from Edgewood High School in 1965 and went to the University of Wisconsin. Zwank recalls becoming aware of the Vietnam War in 1963 when an acquaintance, Rocky Versace, was captured by the North Vietnamese and later executed. In 1966, Zwank dropped out of college and joined the Marine Corps. He mentions his correspondence with a friend serving in Vietnam inspired both envy and guilt in Zwank, prompting him to enlist. He reveals his parents reacted negatively to his enlistment, preferring Zwank finish college. He describes in detail his enlistment: the physical exam, IQ testing, haircut, and the "Buddy Plan." Zwank was sent to San Diego (California) for basic training; it was his first trip outside Wisconsin. He characterizes the boot camp experience as "part fear and part pride that you could survive." Next, he analyzes his fellow Marines: volunteers were separated from draftees during basic training; however, Zwank states his volunteer unit included juvenile delinquents who had chosen the military over prison. He feels basic training was an "awakening experience." Serving with African Americans from the South and troops from poor socioeconomic backgrounds revealed to Zwank the extent of discrimination in the U.S. After boot camp, Zwank attended Infantry Training at Camp Pendleton (California) where he learned basic fighting and tactics. Zwank was then assigned an occupation specialty in Bulk Fuel, transporting gas to the frontlines. He was initially disappointed, explaining: "if you weren't a grunt, it was an embarrassment because everybody was so conditioned to be infantry." In summer 1967, during his Bulk Fuel training at Camp Pendleton, Zwank joined a regimental football team. He implies he was promoted to corporal because he blocked for his lieutenant, a former All-American college football star. After a year at Camp Pendleton, Zwank reveals he was worried he would not be called to Vietnam. He emphasizes that fighting in Vietnam was the goal of his service. In September 1967, Zwank got his wish and was assigned to Vietnam. He outlines his journey on a commercial jet via California, Hawaii, and Okinawa (Japan). Zwank describes landing in Chu Lai (Vietnam) on his nineteenth birthday and being surprised to find it was "like any other place in the world" with very few signs of war. He was then stationed in Phu Bai. He relates his job in Bulk Fuel put him in contact with South Vietnamese civilians, mostly older women, who taught him about Vietnamese culture. Zwank discusses at length transporting different types of fuel from tanks on Cocoa Island to an outpost in Hue using Mike boats and pipelines. His duties also included guarding fuel tanks against attacks. Zwank describes how the war escalated dramatically after the Tet Offensive in 1968. On the eve of the Tet Offensive, Zwank was on detail in Hue, but he returned to Phu Bai the afternoon before the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) attacked. Before Tet, Zwank claims he never heard shooting or saw dead bodies. He describes the city of Hue as having a "fullblown economy," a new university, and a vibrant nightlife. Zwank explains that when the NVA attacked, a group of ten or fifteen Marines in his Bulk Fuel unit were stranded in Hue. He praises the Navy Seabees for their heroics in rescuing the stranded Marines. Meanwhile, the base at Phu Bai was rocketed all night, and Zwank took cover in trenches. According to Zwank, when he returned to Hue after the Tet Offensive, the "devastation was incredible." A Catholic cathedral and the university had been destroyed by the NVA, and students were killed at their desks. Zwank also relates a few instances where his fuel truck was ambushed by the NVA. He feels the most difficult part of the war was that "there was never closure"-- his buddies would drive off in a truck in the morning and never return. Zwank comments that strong bonds formed in a short period of time between Marines regardless of ethnic and socioeconomic background. Zwank also discusses drug and alcohol use at length. He states marijuana use was very common and claims one Marine reenlisted twice because of the cheap, high quality marijuana in Vietnam. Zwank implies smoking marijuana was a response to low morale after the Tet Offensive. Zwank admits to drinking a lot during the Vietnam War and mentions he used to trade fuel for alcohol with the Seabees and the Vietnamese. He also touches upon racial tensions, describing an incident where a White Marine stabbed a Black Marine in the shoulder. Zwank remarks that one of his best friends in the Marine Corps was Mexican and that there were no racial tensions when Marines were on duty--only during downtime. He states that the African American troops mostly "stayed to themselves." Zwank briefly comments on racial slurs used by some Marines towards the Vietnamese but states he found the Vietnamese to be "creative, energetic, and hardworking." Zwank reports he did not have access to American news media, so he did not realize how divided U.S. citizens were about the war. In March 1968, Lyndon Johnson stopped the bombing of North Vietnam, which Zwank reports angered the Marines. Zwank began to realize that the U.S. was meddling in a civil war. He says he respected the NVA and Viet Cong as fighters and "felt sorry for the Vietnamese people." Zwank admits his views of the war changed after talking to South Vietnamese civilians who supported Ho Chi Minh. Zwank reveals that he came to realize the role of French colonialism in the plight of Vietnam and feel that, if left alone, the Vietnamese would have unified under Ho Chi Minh and eventually given up communism. Zwank compares the Vietnam War to conflicts in Bosnia and Grenada and shares his stance that the U.S. should not intervene in civil wars in other countries. Zwank graphically describes seeing air assaults, a napalm drop that destroyed a forest, crop destruction caused by Agent Orange, and mutilated corpses of South Vietnamese casualties. As the end of his tour approached, Zwank remarks he became "crusty and hardened" towards nightly rocket attacks. Zwank tells a story of getting drunk one night and mouthing back to a gunnery sergeant, saying "I'd give up my citizenship before I'd put in another year in this place." Zwank returned home in August 1968 and was discharged just after Labor Day. Ten days after his discharge, Zwank was sitting in a classroom at the University of Wisconsin. He used the G.I. Bill to finish his B.A. and, later on, get an M.A. in public administration. He calls returning to school so soon after serving in Vietnam a mistake and expresses frustration at the immaturity of his classmates and anti-war protestors. Zwank states he became a target of rage, resentment, and protest, reflecting: "I realized that this thing I accomplished, that I had this pride in, was something to be ashamed of by their standards and that I had to hide." Zwank discusses readjusting to civilian life and meeting his wife shortly after his homecoming. He feels losing the "adrenaline high" of the Marines was the hardest part of returning to the States. Zwank suggests searching for the adrenaline rush led to his career as a narcotics agent. He feels fortunate compared to other Vietnam veterans who were unable to readjust after the war. Zwank repeatedly emphasizes that he holds an anti-war stance today, but he also states going to Vietnam taught him self-confidence, discipline, and empathy for people in underprivileged, developing nations.
