Michael "Mike" Schott, a Madison, Wisconsin native, discusses his service in the Vietnam War with the 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 25th Infantry Division of the Army. Schott was born and raised in Madison, graduating from Central High School in 1966. He states he enrolled at the University of Wisconsin in September 1966 but learned in October that, despite his student-status, he was classified 1A and would soon be drafted. Schott left college and worked for the City of Madison Parks Department until he was finally drafted in March 1968. He recalls four other Parks Department employees were drafted on the same day. Schott describes in detail his basic training at Fort Campbell (Kentucky) and his advanced individual training at Fort Polk (Louisiana). He touches upon regional differences and interactions between Black and white soldiers at Fort Campbell. Schott emphasizes that Louisiana was hotter and more humid than Vietnam. He lists the weapons he was trained to use and assemble, including: M-16, M-60, .45, and the Light Anti-Tank Weapon. He feels his basic training field exercises did not adequately prepare him for real combat in Vietnam. Next, Schott describes his deployment overseas. He comments on his and his family's reaction to his deployment, stating that the antiwar protests in Madison had not picked up yet and that he had expected to be sent to Vietnam all along. Schott describes taking a commercial jet from San Francisco to Tan Son Nhut. His first impression was that Vietnam was more modern than he had expected. He comments that "it wasn't what John Wayne saw. It looked too built up, too commercialized already in '68." Schott was assigned as a replacement to the 4th Battalion, 23rd Infantry, 25th Division in Cu Chi (Vietnam). He recalls having "no idea what was going on" as a young soldier and feeling apprehensive when his buddies from basic training got their orders before him. He states veteran soldiers in his platoon treated him well and taught him survival tips he had not learned in basic training. For example, savvy soldiers rode on top of the track vehicles, not inside, so they could escape more easily if the vehicle hit a mine. Next, Schott describes a typical day in the field with his platoon. As a light weapons infantryman, his duties involved securing roads, minesweeping, and guarding the perimeter around Cu Chi and other villages. Schott describes in detail how the Army clear-cut all roadside vegetation and pulled down rubber trees with Rome Plows. Schott mentions he was assigned to live in a Vietnamese village, mingling with civilians by day and pulling guard duty at night. He states he was fortunate to have that experience because it made him appreciate the quality of life in the United States and exposed him to Vietnamese culture. While living in the village, Schott explains he also realized that the Vietnamese people "didn't want us here." He notes only old men, women and children lived in the villages because all the young men had joined either the North or the South Vietnamese armies. Schott compares the North Vietnamese and South Vietnamese fighters, stating he respected the NVA but felt the AVRN were not serious soldiers. He also criticizes the Army for giving better equipment and newer track vehicles to the AVRN than the U.S. Infantry. After seven months on the front, Schott was sent to the rear guard due to a perforated eardrum and chronic ear infections. He spent the remainder of his tour of duty driving ration trucks to the front lines, which was dangerous because he often drove alone through villages to get to the troops. Schott tells of a few close calls and ambushes and notes ironically that with rockets hitting the showers and hooches, he often felt safer on the front lines than on base. In addition, Schott remarks upon interactions with Vietnamese civilians. In the village near Cu Chi, he attended the funeral of a South Vietnamese civilian casualty. He also tells of befriending two brothers who wanted to immigrate to America. Schott states the Americans learned not to go out on patrol if the merchants, who usually followed their units, did not come out. Next, Schott addresses military life and recreation. He mentions taking R&R in Tokyo and Taipei and passing a colorful temple in Ton Son Nhut. He also touches upon food, stating he ate mostly C-rations and popcorn sent in care-packages from his mother. Schott discusses at length marijuana and alcohol use among the troops. He reveals beer was hard to get except on the black market. He tells of smoking marijuana with his platoon sergeant and other soldiers before going on perimeter duty in the village near Cu Chi; however, he states he did not feel impaired on duty. Schott also comments on friendships between officers and enlisted men, which the Army discouraged. He was friends with his platoon sergeant ("the best platoon sergeant we ever had"), who was demoted after he was caught with marijuana. Schott also recalls officers who were not as well-respected. He describes how a new "shake and bake" platoon sergeant was killed in front of him while on a patrol. Schott also speaks negatively about a company commander who made the troops spit-shine their boots and march in formation in a combat zone, implying that this was against Army policy and that the commander's plane was shot down by friendly fire, leading to the his resignation. Throughout the interview, Schott remembers several incidents of cruelty and poor judgment in combat: his platoon fired in the air to scare Vietnamese civilians who were driving ox-carts on a road after curfew; the Americans "ravished the land" by excessively burning grasses around Viet Cong base camps; and one night when soldiers in his platoon were high, they radioed in an air raid on a group of moving bodies who turned out to be civilians. In March 1970, Schott returned to the United States with "no reception." He reflects on the long-term effects of the Vietnam War, stating it made him "grow up in a hurry." After the war, Schott had many college friends who were veterans, but he states nobody discussed their combat experiences. Shortly after his homecoming, Schott joined the Vietnam Veterans Against the War because he felt the Vietnamese did not want the Americans in their country. He shares his view that he "didn't understand" why the U.S. was involved in Vietnam, but that "somebody was making a boatload of money" from the war. Schott reveals that he joined the VFW post in Middleton (Wisconsin) in 1986 along with his brother-in-law who fought in Vietnam as a Marine. Schott states he was the youngest VFW member at the time and initially felt wary about joining, but today is an active member. Schott sums up his Vietnam experience by stating: "It was probably fifty-fifty, good and bad" for him personally, but that politically "we didn't accomplish a thing except lose fifty, sixty thousand people, because Communism is now in control."
