4 - The Black Vault

THE BDM CORPORATPON
Distribution of Casualties Between RA
Volunteer and Draftee in Vietnam
1968 1969 1970 Percentage Rate of
Incr. or decr.
Draftee 1968-1970
o'f-Army in VN 42.0 39.0 39.0 -3.0
% of Casualties 58.0 G2.0 65.0 +7
Volunteer
Sof Army in VN 58.0 61.0 61.0 +3.0
% of Casualties 42.0 38.0 35.0 -7.0
a. Conqressional Record, August 21, 1970, pp. 29700-29704
"Disintegraticn and Cohesion," pp. 37-8.
123. As noted in Chapter VII-1 th2se manpower programs were not on the wnOle
to be .'lamed on the military. Parks comments:
In the midst of the war the military--through Project
100,000--became a uniformed Job Corps. 7n striving tu
develop a professional military force to fight a complex
war, the idea worked much like that of toss'ng
water on a drowning man.
"Crires in Hostilities," p. 35.
124. Major Parks, "Crimes in Hostilities," p. 19 NWchols agrees: "Training
and indoctrination were insufficient to prepare soldiers of all
ranks for the type of unconventional warfare they would have to fight."
"Characteristics of the U. S. Soldier," p. 13
125. For example, "On March 1, 1969, a Marine ambush patrol came upon four
Vietnamese youths, one male, three females, ranging from ten to twenty
years in age. Suspecting the yau'i*• had alerted area Viet Cong of
their ambush position. the Marines killed the four, placed their bodies
in ac abandoned bunker, and collapsed the bunker with explosives.
Tried by general court-martial, both the Marines and their commanding
officers testified of toe relentless patrol requirements forced upon
them by personnel shortages. This argument was heard in every case
of misconduct tried in Vietnam."
Parks, pp. 34-5.
126. Ibid. Note: The Army suffered from similar sell-inflicted problems.
4-68
:z, 7,