Jane Fonda Story

[MajMikeW]

I was lucky enough while in the service to hear from many of the POWs of the Vietnam War, and this is story relayed by one of them, who also was awarded the Medal of Honor for his conduct in the Hanoi Hilton.

Jane Fonda, while in Nam, was 'toured' by the prison and several prisoners were cleaned up and given new uniforms and lined up for her to see how well they were being treated. She went down the line and shook hands with these men, one of whom slipped a small piece of paper into her hand. This paper had the names of the prisoners who were unknown to the outside world on it, in an attempt to let the world know they were still alive.

She took it, continued down the line, and when finished turned to the guard escorting and gave him the paper, pointing out the man who gave it to her. He died from the resulting beatings and starvation, and several other prisoners went through more years of knowing their families thought they were dead.

I believed him, the story almost brought tears to his eyes. And so I have no problem with some guy spitting on her, although I would have spit at her feet. She truly is an "American Traitor".

MajMike

 

[foghornl]

I salute the guy who spit on Hanoi Jane Fonda. She certainly spit in the eye of America.

 

[Bartholomew Roberts]

I was lucky enough while in the service to hear from many of the POWs of the Vietnam War, and this is story relayed by one of them, who also was awarded the Medal of Honor for his conduct in the Hanoi Hilton.

Perhaps you could share the name of this person? Since exactly eight Vietnam POWs received the Medal of Honor (three of them posthumously), you have already narrowed the list down pretty well already and no harm would be done by revealing the name.

Snopes claims the story you are telling is false. They go on to quote several POWs (including an Air Force Colonel attritbuted as the source of the story) as saying the story is false.
http://www.snopes.com/military/fonda.asp

 

[Sergeant Bob]

There are plenty of reasons to despise Hanoi Jane, without having to rely on urban legends to do so.

Snopes.com

 

[Robert J McElwain]

Makes me proud to live in Kansas City. If I ever run into that guy, I want to shake his hand.

Bob

 

[Correia]

Second what Bart said. I would also be interested to see some sort of verification of this story which has been debunked by the actual POWs.

Not that I need any more reason to despise Jane Fonda. But I hate lies posted on my board as truth.

 

[Old Dog]

The incident never happened ...

Argh! That particular Fonda story has to be debunked every year for the past few years now. It's simply an outright fabrication.
See:
http://urbanlegends.about.com/library/weekly/aa110399.htm

And, as a veteran (still on active duty actually, since '79) I do NOT support some misguided knucklehead spitting on Fonda in public. We are better than that folks!

If most Vietnam vets (and I'd like to see proof the guy who spit on Fonda was actually ever in RVN) and the authentic former POWs I've had the honor to meet really want to be associated with the guy who spit on Fonda, I'd be surprised. Fonda was a young, immature, spoiled Hollywood brat at the time of her visit to NVN; her actions, while deplorable and certainly regrettable, have not been linked to actual deaths of American servicemen or mistreatment of our POWs. It's time to move on, people.

 

[Byron Quick]

She was 34 years old. That's a mature adult in my book who is totally responsible for their action.

The following is a quote from snopes.com debunking the urban legend that opened this thread:

It is also undeniable that some American soldiers came to harm as a direct result of Fonda's actions, an outcome she should reasonably have anticipated.

her actions, while deplorable and certainly regrettable, have not been linked to actual deaths of American servicemen or mistreatment of our POWs.

This statement is only partially correct. Her actions have been linked to the harm of American POW's held by the communists

Even the debunkers find fault with her. Serious fault.

I believe she should have been charged with treason.

If convicted and sentenced to death, after due process of law, I would have no problem with active participation in her execution.

Barring that, I will leave her in peace. Spitting on her was a discourteous act as well as a violation of everyone's right to be free from assault. Besides, I'm choosy where I place my bodily fluids as I would not want to defile my saliva by having it touch her face.

 

[Risasi]

...Fonda didn't miss a beat. The tobacco juice was wiped off and she continued to sign autographs for the next people in line.

"(Fonda) said, 'Don't worry, I'm fine. He just has issues,' and she just kept on signing books. She didn't even get up out of her chair," Jennings said...

Though the acts of Jane Fonda were treacherous, and unforgivable nationally. I do think she has mellowed out the past several years.

It has also been reported that she is now a born again Christian. Personally I believe she may have changed her ways. I truly would be curious to meet her and hear from her own mouth the accounts of her acts. Not Urban Legends as some here have mentioned. Anything else is just conjecture on our part.

[EDIT] My point in the above quote about what Fonda said, in regards to the incident is she was calm, collected in her words and thoughts. She has lost that screaming bleeding heart liberal edge that most reactive aging hippies have. At one time including herself. Typically she would have been whining and screaming bloody murder. Perhaps she is one of the few who has aged gracefully. She might have got a rough start. The next decade or so will show how she finishes her life.

 

[jdberger]

It's OK to hate Jane for what she has done. Like Robert McNamara, her soul is too stained for a simple mea culpa to exonerate her. However, the spitting thing goes too far. Maybe a pie in the face like was done to Bill Gates?

Maybe not. I'm not really in favor of assaulting people who disagree with you - except maybe Fred.....

 

[Sean Smith]

The topic-starting post is widely considered an urban legend. If true, it would be nice to see some evidence to that effect instead of anonymous hearsay.

As for the spitting, it was stupid as hell. Now the media has a whole new pretext for depicting her as the victim, instead of the victimizer. It was the exact OPPOSITE of what anyone who would like to see her vilified for all eternity should have done... the incident just created positive press for her.

 

[Tinker]

Funny, but not terribly appropriate.

 

[jdberger]

the incident just created positive press for her.

Could have been a publicity stunt? Has anyone done any digging on Spitter? Maybe the media can make him into some kind of flawed hero with PTSD...

 

[Spreadfire Arms]

i am not a Vietnam vet so i can't put myself in the shoes of Vietnam vet and their strong dislike for "Hanoi Jane."

but i can tell you, she doesn't have alot of fans who served in Vietnam, either U.S. or A.R.V.N.

alot of people consider her at traitor to this nation. i guess she is the Vietnam-era "Michael Moore."

 

[jdberger]

yeah -

if FatMike hung out with Saddam and made anti-american broadcasts to the troops fighting there in order to hurt their morale...maybe.

 

[cropcirclewalker]

This is a quandary. Where does the right to free speech, which we all are supposed to enjoy and other acts which the Supremes have declared to be an act of political expression cross the line into treason.

Hey Ms. Pax, please note.......I am talking about the constitutionally protected civil right known as free speech.

So is what HJ did comparable to what Toykyo Rose did? What did they end up doing to her? Anybody know?

My knext question is.........If sitting on AA batteries (no pun intended) in a nation with which, for the lack of some spines in our congress critters, (with the obvious result being at least some harm to our servicemen or at least adding some aid and comfort to out enemy) we would be at war is political expression and non prosecutable (which, of course, we have not), then how come expectoration upon the aforementioned traitor would NOT be considered political expression.

How's that fer a run on?

 

[Bacon]

Tokyo Rose became an American Citizen.

 

[Delmar]

Tokyo Rose-real name Ikuko Toguri was born in Los Angeles, California in 1916. Took a boat ride in the summer of 1941 to Japan without a passport, applied for a US passport which was not granted before WWII started.

She served over 6 years of a 10 year sentence for treason and fought off repeated attempts at deportation. Gerald Ford pardoned her in 1977.

Tokyo Rose was the 7th American to be convicted of treason. Jane Fonda should have been the 8th......

 

[LoneStranger]

Caght one of the radio interviews of the fella that did the spitting. He is apparently on VA disability and did serve in VN with the USMC.

Listening to him it sounded like he had not fully thought out his activity.

Like others I question the efficiacy of his spitting. Myself, I would not take two steps out of my way to do what he did, however, If she got in my face or way I might do the same.

It should be noted that it is for God to forgive, Not me! I just tolerate.

 

[MajMikeW]

To All

I posted this story because I truly believed the gentleman in question, after examining the snopes.com article it seems that he may have been relaying a story heard elsewhere and taken for the truth.

However, from what was on snopes, she did plenty of other things to be held in contempt for without this story being true. I had not seen the snopes information before, now I see that my post, while in good faith, seems to be a repetition of an urban legend.

Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa

MajMike

 

[Bartholomew Roberts]

I posted this story because I truly believed the gentleman in question, after examining the snopes.com article it seems that he may have been relaying a story heard elsewhere and taken for the truth.

Or maybe he knows something Snopes doesn't? Which of the five Medal Of Honor winners did you hear say this? You mentioned they won the MOH for actions during their stay as POWs. Only two people are still living who meet that criteria - Col. Bud Day and VAdm. James Stockdale.

Since you have claimed that one of these two men, both respected Medal of Honor winners, is retelling a story that is not true according to Cpt. Mike McGrath (President of NAM-POWs), I think it would be nice if you would clarify the details a bit more.

 

[YankeeRebel]

As LoneStranger probably did, I listened to the local radio coverage of this incident. My take now on the radio station and the modirator is that they are liberals masquerading as conservaties. The reason I say this is because the modirator has stood up for HJ as if she has done nothing wrong and she has appologized. My understanding of her appology is that it was for one thing and not for all of the things she did. I agree with the stations point that the way Mr Mike Smith showed his displeasure was wrong, but there are a lot that agree with the thought behind the deed. This morning the local paper's opnion page, letters to the editor was dedicated to this act. I refeer to the paper as the Kansas City Red Star, but they provided balanced coverage of the letters sent in to the paper over this act. I just wish that as Tokyo Rose of WW II fame, HJ had been tried for treason and found guilty. Then perhaps this would have been behind all of us.

 

[Cool Hand Luke 22:36]

Or maybe he knows something Snopes doesn't? Which of the five Medal Of Honor winners did you hear say this? You mentioned they won the MOH for actions during their stay as POWs. Only two people are still living who meet that criteria - Col. Bud Day and VAdm. James Stockdale.

Wasn't Stockdale severely beaten and tortured for his refusal to apperar in a North Vietnamese propaganda film with Jane Fonda?

 

[Cool Hand Luke 22:36]

From another website:

John McCain was tortured as a direct result of Jane Fonda's visit as well:

http://www.1stcavmedic.com/jane_fonda.htm


In 1972 Jane Fonda, Tom Hayden and others traveled to North Vietnam to give their support to the North Vietnamese's Government. When she returned to the United States, she advised the news media that all of the American Prisoners of War were being well treated and were not being tortured.

As the American POWs returned home in 1973, they spoke out about the inhumane treatment and torture they had suffered as prisoners of war. Their stories directly contradicted Jane Fonda's earlier statements of 1972. Some of the American POWs such as Senator John McCain, a former Presidential candidate, stated that he was tortured by his guards for refusing to meet with Jane Fonda and her group. Jane Fonda, in her response to these new allegations, referred to the returning POWs as being "hypocrites and liars."

The Wall Street Journal (August 3, 1995) published an interview with Bui Tin who served on the General Staff of the North Vietnam Army and received the unconditional surrender of South Vietnam on April 30, 1975. During the interview Mr. Tin was asked if the American antiwar movement was important to Hanoi's victory. Mr. Tin responded "It was essential to our strategy" referring to the war being fought on two fronts, the Vietnam battlefield and back home in America through the antiwar movement on college campuses and in the city streets. He further stated the North Vietnamese leadership listened to the American evening news broadcasts "to follow the growth of the American antiwar movement."


It's kinda hard to disagree with anyone who would spit in the face of an anti-American low-life like Jane Fonda:

""Jane Fonda applauding an NVA anti-aircraft gun crew. These guns were used to shoot down American planes and contributed to the deaths of American Airmen.""


""Jane Fonda looking admiringly at an NVA gun crew""

 

[JDThorns]

HJ The Traitor

The reason I say this is because the modirator has stood up for HJ as if she has done nothing wrong and she has appologized. My understanding of her appology is that it was for one thing and not for all of the things she did.

I watched the news tape of Hanoi Jane she did NOT appologize for anything she did. She did say she will not apologize for anything that happened during those times. To this day she does not understand why Veterans are still mad at her
JDT Vietnam 71-72