What does it mean to Swift Boat someone?

What does it mean to Swift Boat someone?

The term swiftboating (also swift-boating or swift boating) is a pejorative American neologism used to describe an unfair or untrue political attack.

Why did veterans oppose the Vietnam War?

Peace movement leaders opposed the war on moral and economic grounds. The North Vietnamese, they argued, were fighting a patriotic war to rid themselves of foreign aggressors. Innocent Vietnamese peasants were being killed in the crossfire.

What is a Navy PBR?

Patrol Boat, Riverine, or PBR, is the United States Navy designation for a small rigid-hulled patrol boat used in the Vietnam War from March 1966 until 1975.

Does Vietnam Veterans Against the War still exist?

VVAW still exists today. The VVAW of the 1990s is quite different from the VVAW of the 1960s, but still maintains an active presence as a veterans’ peace organization. As the number of American soldiers in Vietnam decreased in the early 1970s, membership in the VVAW (along with antiwar activism in general) waned.

How fast were the swift boats in Vietnam?

50 caliber machine guns and AK-47s, often fired from behind earthen bunkered positions. Though most cruising and patrolling was done at 8 to 10 knots, the boats could reach a top speed of 32 knots.

Are there any PBRs left?

The PBR Mark II on display at the New Jersey Naval Museum is one of only a few remaining examples of the boat left in existence, and is the only one in the Northeastern United States.

What was fragging in the Vietnam War?

In the Vietnam War, the threat of fragging caused many officers and NCOs to go armed in rear areas and to change their sleeping arrangements as fragging often consisted of throwing a grenade into a tent where the target was sleeping.

What did swift boats do?

Patrol Craft Fast (PCF), also known as Swift Boats, were all-aluminum, 50-foot (15 m) long, shallow-draft vessels operated by the United States Navy, initially to patrol the coastal areas and later for work in the interior waterways as part of the brown-water navy to interdict Vietcong movement of arms and munitions.

Are there any working PBR boats left?

The PBR is the U.S. Navy designation for a small, rigid-hulled patrol boat that was used in the Vietnam War from March 1966 until the end of 1971. The boats were deployed in a force that grew to a peak of 250 vessels. Today, only 36 PBRs exist in the United States. About six of them are seaworthy.

What was the Brown Water Navy in Vietnam?

The Brown Water Navy boats serving in the Vietnam War were a departure for the U.S. Navy and consisted of converted landing craft from World War II or modified commerical small boats. The boats were part of the River Patrol Force and Mobile Riverine Force, joint-operations between the U.S. Army and the U.S. Navy.