tightenupvolume1 wrote: ↑Mon May 09, 2022 4:19 pm

tears_in_rain wrote: ↑Mon May 09, 2022 2:50 pm

tightenupvolume1 wrote: ↑Mon May 09, 2022 1:26 pm I am about to start on "The war on the west" by Douglas Murray

Douglass Murray goes around the world saying; 'Europe is dying and there's nothing we can do about it'. Everyone knows Europe will be majority Muslim in a few generations... May as well read something else.

So you have read it already then ?

"The Ravens were American forward air-controllers who directed strikes from vulnerable, low-flying spotter planes, mainly in support of a Meo general named Vang Pao in Laos. "Advised" by the CIA, this fierce warlord fought to keep the North Vietnamese out of the strategic Plain of Jars. Robbins (Air America) conveys the unique flavor of Raven-style combat and also explains how the diplomatic-military dynamics of the clandestine war in Laos fit into the overall American effort in Southeast Asia. The cast of characters is memorable: a swaggering, rowdy bunch of mavericks whom their parent service (the U.S. Air Force) had great difficulty controlling... According to the author, they suffered the highest casualty rate of the Indochinese War. Robbins describes the poignant plight of displaced Meo/Hmong hill tribes who have settled uneasily in the United States including General Pao and their ongoing struggle to "propitiate the alien spirits of America."

sigmoid wrote: ↑Fri May 13, 2022 8:38 am I introduced this book to a friend of mine yesterday and started reading it again.

"The Ravens were American forward air-controllers who directed strikes from vulnerable, low-flying spotter planes, mainly in support of a Meo general named Vang Pao in Laos. "Advised" by the CIA, this fierce warlord fought to keep the North Vietnamese out of the strategic Plain of Jars. Robbins (Air America) conveys the unique flavor of Raven-style combat and also explains how the diplomatic-military dynamics of the clandestine war in Laos fit into the overall American effort in Southeast Asia. The cast of characters is memorable: a swaggering, rowdy bunch of mavericks whom their parent service (the U.S. Air Force) had great difficulty controlling... According to the author, they suffered the highest casualty rate of the Indochinese War. Robbins describes the poignant plight of displaced Meo/Hmong hill tribes who have settled uneasily in the United States including General Pao and their ongoing struggle to "propitiate the alien spirits of America."

Apparition wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 1:38 am

Good tip, I'll give that a go.

Some incredible books out there about the secret war in Laos/Cambodia. I'm going to try and re-read this before I leave the UK:



Also Vietnam war aviation stuff, Chickenhawk is an amazing read:

Apparition wrote: ↑Thu May 19, 2022 4:38 pm Added Air America to the list.

There's another helicopter book I really liked called Low Level Hell, which was by a guy who flew a scout helicopter:



Those guys were REALLY crazy.

sigmoid wrote: ↑Thu May 19, 2022 5:24 pm
Haven't read this one yet (as far as I remember).

With regard to the bookseller girls, I forgot to mention that that was in Saigon, in the Pham Ngu Lao area, which most people just call "Bui VIen" these days.

There's one book I'd like to find again about an American guy stationed in Vientiane, Lao PDR with his wife and kid who would fly stuff out to the Hmong and then return to Vientiane in time for dinner. It was like a 9 to 5 job for him, and he was kind of clueless about the fact that there was a war going on and what was in the shipments.

Anyway, I've searched for the title to no avail. Does it sound familiar to you?

Our aging anti-hero is at it again, dating college-age girls and having a grand time in the tropical islands.