On another site, some blow-hard was getting a little shrill about having never smoked dope in the service. Maybe he didn't... I don't actually care.
But I got to thinking about the topic and how it related to Viet Nam. Some folks never tried it, but quite a few did.
Like me. Here I was, 19 years old - 10,000 miles from home - depressed - homesick beyond description... and scared. I confess it; I was often afraid to leave the compound in the morning. I don't think it's a sin to be afraid as long as you actually do the things you are supposed to. So I did. It's not like I was the only person wanting to 'call in sick' but did not do so.
But I was offered the chance to escape reality for a bit one night by way of some native hemp & couldn't think of a reason not to... but one soon became apparent when Uncle Ho's Boyz made a fairly serious attempt to revoke the lease on our little fort.
Which by the Grace of God I survived. I never touched the stuff again and the very smell brings back vivid memories. When I was in college, a girl I knew lit up & I had to break off the date. Odd how that sort of thing sticks in your mind...
Bottom line? I don't think it was actually a sin to try the stuff... just stupid. Very stupid. SW