My War For Me

[Deleted]

"underlying mystic implications that took me years to sort out." pg. 100 TTOTC.





Up for discussion.



This line in his book kind of disturbs me. Are we just all part of a physiological experiment?



Here is the whole sentence: "I have already said that the whole Vietnam thing was unlikely as far as my participation was concerned. The Philadelphia saga is of no consequence except for the underlying mystic implications that took me years to sort out."



Am I just interpreting the sentence the wrong way?



Can someone help me understand what FF is trying to say here?

[rahrah]

Look at synonyms for "head trip"....that helps to understand things a bit better; at least it did for me as Fenn is trying to get us to 'get' what he's saying and Philadelphia was a 'head trip' for him.

[robjohnson]

May 28, 2018 18:04:05 GMT -5 @gudynuf said:

"underlying mystic implications that took me years to sort out." pg. 100 TTOTC.





Up for discussion.



This line in his book kind of disturbs me. Are we just all part of a physiological experiment?



Here is the whole sentence: "I have already said that the whole Vietnam thing was unlikely as far as my participation was concerned. The Philadelphia saga is of no consequence except for the underlying mystic implications that took me years to sort out."



Am I just interpreting the sentence the wrong way?



Can someone help me understand what FF is trying to say here?

"whole Vietnam thing was unlikely" - ? Unlikely as in did not like? Or unlikely as odds were against it to happen? Odd choice of the word unlikely.

"Both incidents are important only to me..." - Vietnam and the Philly saga? Or both the flight and his sorting out why it was important to him?

"no consequence" no importance or relevance or no result?

[rahrah]

I think the "unlikely" part is that given his age, that he had a family, and the fact the Vietnam War had been in progress for a very long time and he'd not been sent over, it was unlikely he'd be going into battle in Vietnam just a few years before he qualified for retirement.

[robjohnson]

Jun 4, 2018 13:03:31 GMT -5 rahrah said:

I think the "unlikely" part is that given his age, that he had a family, and the fact the Vietnam War had been in progress for a very long time and he'd not been sent over, it was unlikely he'd be going into battle in Vietnam just a few years before he qualified for retirement.

FYI, I recall that the US Airforce was in dire need of fresh troops, and Westmoreland kept asking for more and more troops. Escalation was the theme.

[rahrah]

Jun 4, 2018 16:14:55 GMT -5 robjohnson said:

Jun 4, 2018 13:03:31 GMT -5 rahrah said:

I think the "unlikely" part is that given his age, that he had a family, and the fact the Vietnam War had been in progress for a very long time and he'd not been sent over, it was unlikely he'd be going into battle in Vietnam just a few years before he qualified for retirement.

FYI, I recall that the US Airforce was in dire need of fresh troops, and Westmoreland kept asking for more and more troops. Escalation was the theme.

That's most likely why he wound up going; the military has never been keen on sending soldiers with long-term service and families out in harm's way - they do it as a last resort most times; so I think that's why Fenn used "unlikely" in his sentence.

[LeonardoDecapitated]

Speaking of Forrest's war years.. Has anyone found is strange that when Forrest finds the long forgotten soldiers headstone, the name and rank written on it is that of a French soldier, however the poem on it is written in English?? Any thoughts??

[zaphod73491]

Leonardo: look up "Sage of Baltimore" on Google. See if anything shakes out for you. ;-)

[CJ]

Pay attention to the earlier part. he says it was unlikely that he'd even become a fighter pilot, let alone end up flying in vietnam. i think thats all he meant...he was suggesting that it may not have been coincidence...all of these events....guiding him to this conclusion....