[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Mail]  [Sign-in]  [Setup]  [Help]  [Register] 

Utopian Visionaries Who Won’t Leave People Alone

No - no - no Ain'T going To get away with iT

Pete Buttplug's Butt Plugger Trying to Turn Kids into Faggots

Mark Levin: I'm sick and tired of these attacks

Questioning the Big Bang

James Webb Data Contradicts the Big Bang

Pssst! Don't tell the creationists, but scientists don't have a clue how life began

A fine romance: how humans and chimps just couldn't let go

Early humans had sex with chimps

O’Keefe dons bulletproof vest to extract undercover journalist from NGO camp.

Biblical Contradictions (Alleged)

Catholic Church Praising Lucifer

Raising the Knife

One Of The HARDEST Videos I Had To Make..

Houthi rebels' attack severely damages a Belize-flagged ship in key strait leading to the Red Sea (British Ship)

Chinese Illegal Alien. I'm here for the moneuy

Red Tides Plague Gulf Beaches

Tucker Carlson calls out Nikki Haley, Ben Shapiro, and every other person calling for war:

{Are there 7 Deadly Sins?} I’ve heard people refer to the “7 Deadly Sins,” but I haven’t been able to find that sort of list in Scripture.

Abomination of Desolation | THEORY, BIBLE STUDY

Bible Help

Libertysflame Database Updated

Crush EVERYONE with the Alien Gambit!

Vladimir Putin tells Tucker Carlson US should stop arming Ukraine to end war

Putin hints Moscow and Washington in back-channel talks in revealing Tucker Carlson interview

Trump accuses Fulton County DA Fani Willis of lying in court response to Roman's motion

Mandatory anti-white racism at Disney.

Iceland Volcano Erupts For Third Time In 2 Months, State Of Emergency Declared

Tucker Carlson Interview with Vladamir Putin

How will Ar Mageddon / WW III End?

What on EARTH is going on in Acts 16:11? New Discovery!

2023 Hottest in over 120 Million Years

2024 and beyond in prophecy

Questions

This Speech Just Broke the Internet

This AMAZING Math Formula Will Teach You About God!

The GOSPEL of the ALIENS | Fallen Angels | Giants | Anunnaki

The IMAGE of the BEAST Revealed (REV 13) - WARNING: Not for Everyone

WEF Calls for AI to Replace Voters: ‘Why Do We Need Elections?’

The OCCULT Burger king EXPOSED

PANERA BREAD Antichrist message EXPOSED

The OCCULT Cheesecake Factory EXPOSED

Satanist And Witches Encounter The Cross

History and Beliefs of the Waldensians

Rome’s Persecution of the Bible

Evolutionists, You’ve Been Caught Lying About Fossils

Raw Streets of NYC Migrant Crisis that they don't show on Tv

Meet DarkBERT - AI Model Trained On DARK WEB

[NEW!] Jaw-dropping 666 Discovery Utterly Proves the King James Bible is God's Preserved Word

ALERT!!! THE MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION WILL SOON BE POSTED HERE


Status: Not Logged In; Sign In

United States News
See other United States News Articles

Title: EXCLUSIVE: He fought the Vietcong, the Sandinistas, Saddam, the Taliban, and finally ISIS but the last Vietnam veteran in uniform is finally retiring and says: 'I'm going to go where people don't shoot me'
Source: Daily Mail Online
URL Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art ... onig-people-don-t-hate-me.html
Published: Jul 2, 2015
Author: Daniel Bates
Post Date: 2015-07-02 21:39:42 by cranky
Keywords: None
Views: 2480
Comments: 4

  • Sergeant Major Michael Jarnevic became a Marine at 17 and deployed off Vietnam in 1974
  • He joined the Army as a reservist after his service in Vietnam, became a Green Beret and served with US Special Forces
  • As a soldier he trained young men in the Honduras to fight the Sandinistas - then was deployed to Kuwait for 1991 Gulf War
  • Served in Afghanistan in support operations against the Taliban and final mission was analyzing intelligence in the fight against ISIS
  • Army says they can't be sure he is last Vietnam vet in active duty but odds of another still serving are tiny
  • Jarnevic, of Missoula, Montana, has to retire at 60 under Army rules and says: 'It's going to be tough leaving. I have met so many good people.'

When Sergeant Major Michael Jarnevic finally retires from the Army on July 8, it will be the end of a career that began in 1973 when he enlisted as a Marine and was deployed to Vietnam.

He is now nearing his 60th birthday and has spent three quarters of his life fighting for his country.

In fact, Sgt Major Jarnevic appears to be the last Vietnam veteran on active duty in the whole of the Army.

During his 42 years of service he has served in Honduras during the Contra wars in the 80s and Kuwait in the 90s during the Gulf War where he survived a chemical weapons attack.

He was also in Afghanistan after 9/11 and has been awarded 17 medals/ribbons, two badges and one Special Forces tab.

SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO

Teenage soldier: After graduating Marine Corps boot camp in 1973, Michael Jarnevic deployed to the Vietnam theater. He served on the USS Ranger patrolling off the coast of Da Nang

Teenage soldier: After graduating Marine Corps boot camp in 1973, Michael Jarnevic deployed to the Vietnam theater. He served on the USS Ranger patrolling off the coast of Da Nang

Inspiration: This was the recruiting leaflet which inspired Michael Jarnevic to become a Marine - starting a service which will end on 8 July when he retired aged 60 as the last man known to have served in Vietnam

Inspiration: This was the recruiting leaflet which inspired Michael Jarnevic to become a Marine - starting a service which will end on 8 July when he retired aged 60 as the last man known to have served in Vietnam

Central America: Deployed in 1985 as part of a Special Forces A-Team to train Tigre soldiers in the Honduras. They were to go into combat against the left-wing Sandinistas of Nicaragua. 'A lot of them were kids who had been grabbed off the street and told they were in the army,' says Sgt Major Jarnevic

Central America: Deployed in 1985 as part of a Special Forces A-Team to train Tigre soldiers in the Honduras. They were to go into combat against the left-wing Sandinistas of Nicaragua. 'A lot of them were kids who had been grabbed off the street and told they were in the army,' says Sgt Major Jarnevic

Green Beret: In full uniform as a Special Forces Master Sergeant. he was later made Sgt Major.

Green Beret: In full uniform as a Special Forces Master Sergeant. he was later made Sgt Major.

It is only the mandatory retirement age that is forcing Sgt Major Jarnevic to quit - but he now admits that he is ready to go.

Speaking from his home in Montana, the longtime Army reservist said that he is looking forward to writing, being a personal fitness trainer and following his passion for environmental conservation.

He said: 'It's going to be tough leaving, when you have spent three quarters of your life doing something and it's not there.

'But I have reached the point where I will really enjoy getting out.

'I have a masters degree in creative writing from the University of Montana and I want to pursue that.

'I want to travel too. I want to go to places where people don't shoot at me or hate me.'

As to whether he is definitively the last Vietnam veteran, Army spokesman Wayne Hall said there was 'no way to query the Army personnel database specifically to identify Vietnam service' because the total Army force is more than one million soldiers.

Marine, Air Force and Navy personnel records have the same difficulty.

Sgt Major Jarnevic agrees it is impossible to know, but says 'age and numbers' make it likely he is.

He said: 'I joined up in 1973. I will be 60 on July the 8th. For somebody to have been over there in Vietnam they could be no younger than 57.

'Somebody like myself who came in at 17 and retired at 60 is extremely rare.'

Normally being a Sgt Major involves a lot of administrative work, but Jarnevic has been doing essential work right until the end of his career.

His last tour lasted 16onths at Fort Lewis in Tacoma, Washington, with the Joint Reserve Intelligence Support Element, part of US Special Operations Command.

He was analyzing intelligence from Syria, in particular relating to ISIS - the grim daily reports are one thing he will not miss after he retires.

Sgt Major Jarnevic said: 'I would not have stayed in this long if it was not for the wonderful people I have met in my career.

'I have met so many good people, people have become lifelong friends. I wanted that association with those fine people.

'I like to be around people who are smarter than me, and hoped somehow that would rub off.

'I will still be able to stay in contact with them and some are coming to my retirement ceremony from places like Germany and New Zealand.'

Back in combat: Deployed as a medic as part of the Special Forces presence in Kuwait and Iraq during the Gulf War, he was with Egyptian troops which were part of the multi-national coalition against Saddam when he experienced an apparent gas attack.

Back in the combat zone: Deployed in 2012 in Afghanistan, with Special Operations Task Force East

Back in the combat zone: Deployed in 2012 in Afghanistan, with Special Operations Task Force East

With the flag: Deployed in Afghanistan in 2012

With the flag: Deployed in Afghanistan in 2012

Analyzing intelligence on ISIS is a very long way from March 28 1973 in Kansas City, Missouri, when 17-year-old Mike Jarnevic signed up.

he enlisted on the Delayed Entry Program to graduate from high school that May, and on 28 Aug 1973 went to boot camp.

He got in three months before the last soldiers were drafted, on June 30 that year.

As Sgt Major Jarnevic recalls, standards were somewhat different back then.

He said: 'The draftees were a completely different kind of animal and were everything from people with a fourth grade education to people with multiple felonies to those with college educations.

'I saw some really scary dudes. People that were barely literate and everything in between. It was a really different time.'

He signed up after seeing a kiosk advertising the Marines at his local post office and was so eager to get on with it that he filled out his papers two months before he graduated high school, going to boot camp in August.

His Marine Corps boot camp series was the last to use the M14 rifle which was adopted before Vietnam. Today's troops use the M16, its successor.

Sgt Major Jarnevic was assigned to the USS Ranger and was sent to south-east Asia, hearing on the radio on the carrier that President Nixon had resigned over Watergate.

After Nixon's resignation, the Ranger was sent to patrol off the coast of Da Nang to potentially carry out a 'NEO', or non-combatant evacuation of any Americans in the city, because Communist forces were set to take it over.

Ultimately, Da Nang did not fall, and the ship continued on back to Yankee Station, an area in the South China Sea off the coast of Viet Nam.

In October, 1974, the Ranger was sent back to California because the 20-year-old aircraft carrier had a crack in her hull.

Sgt Major Jarnevic believes that, had the ship not been damaged, he would have been among the soldiers who took part in the Saigon evacuation in April 1975.

Following his return to the US he took advantage of the GI Bill and trained as a gunsmith in Denver.

He got out of the active Marine corps after becoming 'disgruntled' and found that Vietnam had been 'hard on the troops'.

Vietnam service: USS Ranger departs Pearl Harbor for operations off the Vietnam coast in November 1969. Sgt Major Jarnevic served on it four years later

Vietnam service: USS Ranger departs Pearl Harbor for operations off the Vietnam coast in November 1969. Sgt Major Jarnevic served on it four years later

Horrific scene: Oil wells set alight by Saddam's forces as they retreated from Kuwait, defeated by the overwhelming US-led forces in the 1991 Gulf War, which ended the dictator's invasion of his oil-rich neighbor

Horrific scene: Oil wells set alight by Saddam's forces as they retreated from Kuwait, defeated by the overwhelming US-led forces in the 1991 Gulf War, which ended the dictator's invasion of his oil-rich neighbor

He spent two years in the Marine Corps Reserves but in October 1979 after meeting some Green Berets whilst working as a military policeman in Colorado he joined the Special Forces, and has been with them ever since.

Over the past three four decades Sgt Major Jarnevic has split his time between the Army Reserve Troop Program Unit and the Army Reserve Individual Mobilization Augmentation (IMA) Program.

He also got a degree in history and political science from the University of Montana and moved to Missoula where he resides today with his Filipina-American wife Maria, 53.

By his count he has served in at least 15 countries including Morocco, Korea, Philippines, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Mauritius, Great Britain and Germany.

In 1985 he was sent to Honduras to train troops loyal to the deposed Contra government fighting the Sandinista regime in neighboring Nicaragua.

Sgt Major Jarnevic said: 'We were working with the Honduran Tigre battalion teaching them basic infantry tactics, just very basic stuff. A lot of them were kids who had been grabbed off the street and told they were in the army.'

Allie: An Egyptian soldier with Iraqi prisoners of war in 1991 as Egypt's forces took part in the first Gulf War

Allie: An Egyptian soldier with Iraqi prisoners of war in 1991 as Egypt's forces took part in the first Gulf War

Enemy: Saddam Hussein has ordered the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and was defeated in 1991 but stayed in power until 2003

Enemy: Saddam Hussein has ordered the invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and was defeated in 1991 but stayed in power until 2003

In 2012 he was sent to Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan to work with Special Forces troops after being hired by a civilian contractor.

He was attached to Special Operations Task Force-East and his job was to interview Special Forces soldiers about their experiences for a 'lessons learned' program that was to be distributed to them afterwards.

But it was his experience in the Gulf War in 1991 which still stays with him the most.

He was working as a medic with the 5th Special Forces which was attached to the Egyptian 3rd Mechanized Division.

He did not think the Egyptians were up to the job, and his fears were realized whilst they were taking a break and they were dancing around to rock music.

Suddenly two men ran towards him shouting: 'Gas!' - they thought it was an attack of deadly sarin gas.

Sgt Major Jarnevic immediately went to 'MOPP 4,' or Mission Oriented Protective Posture 4, which meant putting the gasmask on his full protective body suit he was already wearing.

There was nothing he could do, other than hope the gear worked.

The attack turned out to be a false alarm but it later emerged there were chemical weapons in the area which they had almost certainly been exposed to.

Sgt Major Jarnevic said: 'We think Saddam took the chemical weapons and dumped them on the ground in a likely area we would drive through, so we would have been exposed to low levels of chemical weapons'.

In 2004 having served 34 years in the Army, Sgt Major Jarnevic was facing being forcibly retired but he convinced his superiors to let him stay on.

In the 11 years since he has become a member of AARP and taken full advantage of the free entry to National Parks and other perks that come with being an active serviceman.

Asked why he stayed in so long, he said: 'I have often asked myself that question and I did when a buddy of mine called me recently. I said: "You know, it's amazing how the years sort of slip away."

Final mission: Fort Lewis in Tacoma, WA, was where Sgt Major Jarnevic was deployed for his final tour of duty, an an analyst of intelligence reports int he fight against ISIS

Final mission: Fort Lewis in Tacoma, WA, was where Sgt Major Jarnevic was deployed for his final tour of duty, an an analyst of intelligence reports int he fight against ISIS

Latest campaign: Before and after pictures of an air strike on an ISIS target in Syria. Sgt Major Jarnevic was involved in intelligence analysis, based at Fort Lewis - making ISIS the last enemy in a career which began in Vietnam

Latest campaign: Before and after pictures of an air strike on an ISIS target in Syria. Sgt Major Jarnevic was involved in intelligence analysis, based at Fort Lewis - making ISIS the last enemy in a career which began in Vietnam

'Suddenly you wake up and think: "Holy s***, it's been four decades."'

His former colleague Tim Lewis, who is currently an Intelligence Operations Supervisor with the Department of Defense, had his own take on it.

He said: 'Mike is a consummate special forces soldier.

'A mixture of outdoorsman, adventurer, intellectual, and ever adaptable professional. He quickly assesses situations and always has things under control.

'He set the standard for professionalism almost daily. To this day, he is one of fittest people I know.

'He can run rings around younger soldiers, physically and mentally. His dedication to the military is unsurpassed.'

Since the 1970s not only has the enemy the Army faces changed, the institution itself has become radically different.

Sgt Major Jarnevic said he thinks that the quality of people serving their country is higher than ever, and even more patriotic than ever too.

Gone are the recruits counting the days until they get out, now they are planning careers in the Armed Services instead.

Another change has been the increased role of women, something Sgt Major Jarnevic welcomed though he does not want the standards lowered, even if it means few of them join the front line troops.

Keeping himself fit has helped keep him in a good place mentally, and helped him though the many 'difficult times'.

He said: 'I'm a physical fitness kind of person and have been certified as a personal trainer and work specifically with military forces.

Fighting fit: Placed 124th overall and seventh in the over-40 male military light category in the 2005 Bataan Death March, held annually in New Mexico to commemorate the notorious Japanese World War II war crime.

Fighting fit: Placed 124th overall and seventh in the over-40 male military light category in the 2005 Bataan Death March, held annually in New Mexico to commemorate the notorious Japanese World War II war crime.

Family: Sergant Major Michael Jarnevic and his Filipina-American wife Maria, 53. The couple live in Missoula, Montana, and look forward to spending more time there and traveling - to places where 'people don't want to shoot me'

Family: Sergant Major Michael Jarnevic and his Filipina-American wife Maria, 53. The couple live in Missoula, Montana, and look forward to spending more time there and traveling - to places where 'people don't want to shoot me'

'So much that is physical as well as psychological is getting your mind to the right point of view.

'Somehow in the recesses of my mind I have a place I can retreat to and hopefully keep my sanity because there have been times when sanity was slipping away.'

Now Sgt Major Jarnevic is finally hanging up his uniform, he plans to spend more time on his environmental campaigning, something that might to some appear at odds with his career in the military.

However he does not see the two as mutually incompatible and has long worked with the Sierra Club, and sat on the Montana Wilderness Association's state council more than 20 years ago.

Sgt Major Jarnevic said: 'The place that you live should be important to you which is why I've been an environmental conservationist since the 80s.

'People like to say that's a contradiction with being in the military. But it's not. Part of what I'm fighting for is to protect not only my state but the planet. We don't have any place we can go after this.

'I was there when Saddam Hussein unleashed all that oil [in the Gulf War] and set it on fire. Terrible stuff. That's always been the driving force with me, what can you do to preserve the planet.

'In some cases it means destroying things and killing people, but that's the world we live in.'(15 images)

Post Comment   Private Reply   Ignore Thread  


TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

#1. To: cranky (#0)

He fought the Vietcong

He didn't fight the VC,and he is not a VN veteran. He is a VN ERA veteran. He never set foot in the country.

Why is democracy held in such high esteem when it’s the enemy of the minority and makes all rights relative to the dictates of the majority? (Ron Paul,2012)

sneakypete  posted on  2015-07-02   22:16:28 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#2. To: sneakypete (#1)

He didn't fight the VC,and he is not a VN veteran. He is a VN ERA veteran. He never set foot in the country

Apparently, he deployed with USS Ranger on a tour off RVN in 1973. Maybe as a fleet marine.

That probably counts.

There are three kinds of people in the world: those that can add and those that can't

cranky  posted on  2015-07-02   22:23:57 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#3. To: cranky (#2)

Apparently, he deployed with USS Ranger on a tour off RVN in 1973. Maybe as a fleet marine.

That probably counts.

Being able to see the country through a pair of binoculars from several miles away is NOT the same thing as being there,and it damn sure ain't the same thing as fighting the Viet Cong there.

I've argued with Marines and sailors that swear they fought in VN because they were floating around offshore and the ship they were on was firing their big guns towards the shore.

Anybody that thinks that is the same thing as going on a combat patrol or assault in the jungle against a fortified NVA position is delusional.

You might as well claim you fought in VN because you saw battle scenes on your tv on the nightly news in your parents house.

Why is democracy held in such high esteem when it’s the enemy of the minority and makes all rights relative to the dictates of the majority? (Ron Paul,2012)

sneakypete  posted on  2015-07-03   1:04:09 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


#4. To: sneakypete (#3)

Being able to see the country through a pair of binoculars from several miles away is NOT the same thing as being there,and it damn sure ain't the same thing as fighting the Viet Cong there.

Maybe not.

But if he got a ribbon for serving in that theater of operations or he drew combat pay, then he can claim to be a vietnam vet, imo.

Not everyone who serves in combat gets a cib. And some who got a cib never got closer to combat than the officer's club in Saigon.

And by he way, clearing minefields, providing air or artillery support from the deck of a ship, etc, also counts as 'combat duty', afaic.

There are three kinds of people in the world: those that can add and those that can't

cranky  posted on  2015-07-03   7:27:16 ET  Reply   Trace   Private Reply  


TopPage UpFull ThreadPage DownBottom/Latest

[Home]  [Headlines]  [Latest Articles]  [Latest Comments]  [Post]  [Mail]  [Sign-in]  [Setup]  [Help]  [Register] 

Please report web page problems, questions and comments to webmaster@libertysflame.com