During the Vietnam era, many of the U.S. Navy SEALs (SEa, Air, Land commandos) never filed for a Purple Heart unless they were severely wounded. Thomas H. Keith, Master Chief, SEAL Team 2, is living proof. He carries a piece of shrapnel behind one lung, a reminder of the day he called in 40 mm mortar fire on the enemy that was trying to catch up to his crew as the crew hauled ass out of the bush. Not only did he never report it, it was never removed---it just wasn't serious enough.
SEAL Warrior is the vivid, gritty, transporting memoir of a man destined for combat, a third-generation soldier for whom serving his country was not only an honor, it was tradition. While his grandfathers fought in France, and his father's position as a U.S. Navy Chief took him all around the world, Tom Keith fought his first war in the jungles of Vietnam.
Fighting a guerilla war on foreign soil for the first time in American history, the SEALS found that there were no front lines; the enemy was an integral part of the entire society. This atypical form of warfare demanded that new tactics, new strategic applications of force, and a new understanding of a complex social and cultural enmity be found.
SEAL Warrior goes beyond the horror and bravado of battle to offer a deeper insight into the ways in which the SEALs fought, learned, reacted, and expanded their understanding of guerilla warfare during the Vietnam War. It's also a personal, riveting account of how one young American survived, and, over time, grew to trust and revere many of those who once had been his enemy.
With America again deeply involved in guerilla warfare, there is no better time to honor the unique abilities, understanding, and courage of these warriors who sacrificed it all to fight for nothing less than peace.
THOMAS H. KEITH retired as a Command Master Chief with 31 years service in the U.S. Navy, twenty nine years with the Navy's Underwater Demolition Teams and Seal Team Two. During his three tours of duty in the Republic of Vietnam with Seal Team Two, he received two Purple Hearts, three Bronze Stars with combat V for valor, two Navy Commendation medals with combat V for valor, one Navy Achievement metal with combat V for valor, two Presidential Unit Citations and two Navy Unit Citations among his many awards. He devoted 29 years of service to Naval Special Warfare and is still involved in active special operations in Iraq and Afghanistan as a civilian contractor.
J. TERRY RIEBLING has been a shooter and hunter for over forty years and a competitive shooter for over twenty years. He is the winner of the Erskine Caldwell Award in Short Fiction and the author of "Sniper's Eyes." His articles have appeared in numerous firearms and hunting publications.
