James R Westergreen
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Slammin' It
Slammin’ It is a very different look at the Vietnam War from those who fought in it and those who fought against it.
This is the story of my journey from a carefree college student to a soldier, to an anti-war GI, to refusing a direct order and finally ending up as an inmate in the army’s Disciplinary Barracks at Ft. Leavenworth Kansas.
It is a historical odyssey that touches on the turbulent times of the 1960s as seen through my eyes and my own personal experiences; the assassinations of King and Kennedy, the Beatles, the Summer of Love, LSD, hippies, the anti-war movement, the GI anti-war movement, My Lai, Agent Orange, and the invasion of Cambodia.
It’s a rollercoaster memoir with colorful characters who went through those turbulent times alongside me. The Long Rifle, Private York of the Horse Marines, the Midnight Navigator, and the Elf King, all went along for the ride and shared the surreal experience of military prison.
Hindsight can be blurred, but this story rings true and my unique experiences relive the tumultuous days of the late 60s with the ever-present backdrop of the Vietnam War.
A note from the Author
"Sometimes one needs time to reflect on the events of the past. As the years pass it is easier to reflect on a time period or one's individual actions at a certain particular event or series of events. The time I spent in the army, in prison, and the friends and experiences that I made there have always been with me and always will.
Slammin' It is my attempt to address those surreal experiences, of both my time in the army and of my incarceration and to make some sense of them."