Many many times during this podcast I thought "this is it, this is where he dies and this is the end of the story," but I had to keep reminding myself that he was here telling this story himself and that he survived it all. Truly amazing!
Agreed. And the two Dick Thompson episodes are the best of all the SOG interviews, imo. The Dakota Meyer interview is awesome too. That was my first exposure to Jocko and I've been hooked since.
You think of yourself as a man with a reasonable set of balls...then you listen to these guys and realize you ain't shit. These guys are astoundingly brave and hard core!
💯🎯...it is truly hard to comprehend going through what they went through..only to return to US soil being spit on & called various insults...incredible men that gave it all & then some.
I showed my father your SOG podcasts, he is a Vietnam vet. He himself still won't talk about his time over there, but he said God bless you for your work getting there story out there. You maybe helping other vets open up and talk about there time over there.
As they said back then conscriptions were a different breed. Your father has my respect and I wish him the best. I would suggest to everybody the Ken Burns documentary on Vietnam. It's a truly masterful and educational series.
Last supervisor I had was a Vietnam vet also. All he said was it was a fucked up situation most of the time. Stories he shared mostly were about his r&r. These men have mad respect from me. I doubt most of us would react like they did... his work partner was sog also, he had some crazier stories, how he got shot about 5 times on an extract once.
🇺🇸❤️ YOUR DAD!!! It’s not easy to relive memories of what feels like another life in another world in another time. God Bless your Dad and every 🇺🇸 veteran. It’s because of these sacrifices that we are the Greatest Country On EARTH. ❤️🇺🇸
These guys are real life super heroes. I mean I’ve seen lots of films of super heroes that do similar shit to what this guy did but it was all fake with stunt doubles. This guy did it alone because it was the right thing to do it order to and there was know one else there to get her done. What a fantastic human being. I’m sure glad he is on our side. I would have loved to work for him.
Cheers from Finland. Awesome podcast about SOGs, I wasn't aware of their existence up until this podcast. If people are interested, you should check out the story of Major Larry Thorne, who was also in SOG. He is famous in Finland for having fought in WWII for the Finnish special forces, then the Waffen SS, and after the war ended, to have escaped to the United States where he became a US Citizen, and joined the US special forces and finally became a SOG. He was KIA in Vietnam in a helicopter crash. Like Dick Thompson, those SOG guys were no joke. Total respect and a lot we can learn from them. Cheers to Jocko and Dick!
0:00:00 - Opening 0:02:22 - SOG Warrior Dick Thompson. 0:02:30 - Finding out Bob died. Slow information. 0:07:00 - Danang, Steaks on Sundays. The Card. 0:09:00 - Chopper. Team in trouble. Sorry ‘bout that. 0:13:50 - Flying into combat, unarmed. This is what’s going to happen. 0:18:00 - It can’t get any worse. Pilot says you are crazy. 100 rds. 0:20:00 - And it gets worse. This is from a stupid action movie. 0:24:11 - Into the Canopy. First Contact. 0:29:00 - Contact with the downed helio. 0:31:00 - The other American team. SOG team takes control. 0:40:00 - Casualty Flight out. Then our turn. 0:43:10 - Get your team and go back. RnR can wait. 0:50:00 - Get off. 0:54:20 - Recover the body, destroy the helicopter. 0:59:00 - Contact. I had a lot of issues with this mission. 1:11:10 - We carried a lot of stuff. Gloves and tricks. 1:17:00 - Weather. 1:23:10 - RnR would have to wait. I didn’t tell you to destroy the chopper. 1:26:00 - King Bee Down. Hamburger Hill. 1:30:45 - Just 2 of us left. Need a captive. 1:37:30 - Team level response to strange leadership decisions. 1:40:00 - State of the world. Welcome home. 1:41:10 - Something wrong. Spine fracture. 1:42:15 - POW Mission. Spike Team. 1:50:00 - Dennis Neil. Wrong location. Some reports say other things. Bill Reader. 1:53:30 - Interesting mission. 2:00:00 - Funeral Music saying our names. 2:04:10 - Combat Sky spot. F4 Guess and Check. 2:06:30 - Keep sake. Pretty Close. 2:12:45 - Cluster bomb on our position. 2:18:00 - Leak inside late 1969. 2:19:00 - Listed as MIA. Drop. 2:21:40 - What is a prairie fire emergency? B-52 Strikes. 2:23:00 - Prisoner Snatch. Silenced 22. Terminator. Dogs. 2:28:00 - End of the year. Helmet and a Jacket. 2:30:00 - Going Home. Staying in. Rocket Pistol. 2:36:50 - Final Thoughts and take-aways. 2:38:45 - How to Stay on THE PATH. 3:10:12 - Closing Gratitude.
LTC Thompson was my Professor of Military Science in ROTC at UGA. He was an intense man, but someone you knew was in command. I saw him just a few weeks ago, still a great man, a warrior and incredibly smart.
Jocko really had it right, even the most ridiculous Hollywood war or action film scenes had nothing compared to what Dick Thompson went through. He is so matter of fact about it as it was all normal for him. I can't really express the degree of respect I have for you and your fellow team members and what you went through. The bar for courage and valour can't be any higher! Such service absolutely needs recognition! Belatedly thank you for your service.
If he got a Medal the US would have admitted he was in countries he wasn't supposed to be. SOG was the secret of secret units, no way in hell they would jeopardize that by acknowledging their actions and existence
The best way I knew to do what you spoke of at 2:41:04 was to join the Marine Corps. I felt that I owed everyone who ever served from the revolution forward that provided a safe comfortable country for me to grow up in to provide the same for their posterity. I get told quite often “thank you for your service” and I truly appreciate them saying that, but the Korean veterans seem to be the forgotten ones and the Vietnam veterans were the mistreated ones. I am a Desert Shield/ Storm veteran and received a great welcome home, but I am the one who is thankful for all those who went before me and all those who volunteered to go after me. Semper Fi !
Jumping out of the helicopter, hanging off a rope, 15 ft above the canopy, bloodied skin melted hands, drops 100 feet through the trees. rescues 4 people from a crashed helicopter. This was an incredible set of podcasts
What an absolute legend this man is. You never really appreciate what these guys went thru, until you hear it straight from them. History books and school teachers could never come close. History classes about wars should just be watching jocko podcast with vets like this.
These guys are some of the most elite troops we have ever had serve in our military. i never get tired of these podcasts with SOG soldiers: so many amazing stories to tell!
Can't thank you enough for bringing this man's stories to the world. Thank you Mr. Terminator. Can you imagine the stories the NVA has about these guys. That would be a good podcast.
Man, there is actually an NVA guy who had a post war convo with a SOG guy. NVA guy mentioned how they shot him like 5 times and wiped their squad. Wish I had the link for you. It was likely from that sofrep.com site. These stories are amazing.
I don't understand how this warrior did not receive a Medal of Honor for his actions. Jumping from a helo into the jungle to rescue 2 down aircraft all with bloodied and rope burned hands, and broken ribs from falling 165 feet to the ground.
Most of their missions are top secret. I mean I assume it must’ve been recently they they were given an ok to even talk about what they did as SOG. You can’t put someone in for a Medal of Honor if the missions they’re doing doesn’t exist lol
Craig Cole true, but those medals aren’t that difficult to put in for even on simple missions. It depends on your CO and if they actually put you in for medals, which could’ve been them supporting conventional units on their missions. It sounds like any of their SOG missions are classified but I agree, this mission was a rescue so idk why he’s been overlooked (unless his CO sucks and didn’t put him in for medals).
Completely humbling and yet so motivating in the sense that today we are soft, because we sincerely have lost the drive the essence of duty the felt to one another. We need to do better to be the men that they lived as. Absolutely amazing to hear they survived in the sense of doing what they believed for the reason of it it was “right.” We have lost that worrying about living rather than just being alive in the moment for the right reasons.
I feel honored to be able to listen to the stories of such an amazing man. My grandfather and his brothers were all special forces in Vietnam and out of the 5 that left only 2 came back. Hearing these stories really helps me understand what they went through and why they were the way they were. I’ll never be able to thank you enough for posting this and for giving me some much needed perspective.
It must be difficult for this guy to constantly have to use a wheelbarrow to carry around those gigantic balls!.... I don't think I've ever been so entranced in a story... What a hero!
I just watched that documentary about Ramadi. I cried all the way thru it. And when you said that you had to go out there and help your army brothers and there was no decision to me made. I broke down like a baby. Thank you for helping save the lives of my brothers.. Army Airborne 68-70 Aloha. C
Imagine thinking your a badass operator (and you are ) and then you discover your talking to one of these guys in a bar. Guy should have been dead 100 times over, someone or something was protecting his team. Should have received the CMH for that one mission, went back to base only to go back out the next day, no big deal. Important History to listen to.
Thank you jocko I have listened to every podcast you have out this one made my day I’ve been plowing snow for 20 hrs lastnight and this one helped me finish her off it’s amazing being able to hear these stories it’s inspired me and many more I can’t wait to serve my country some day PLEASE bring more Vietnam vets they are so interesting and hardcore the stuff they went through is insane much respect from your brothers in Minnesota
@@reconbyfirea-3136 ummm green berets live out in the battlefield continuously behind enemy lines too this man on the podcast is a green beret and SOG operators went further then any unit ever did during the Vietnam war pure badasses.
No.I just want my 16 yrs old introvert loner to find his true courage.And I believe podcasts such as these provide lessons in bravery that simply can't be accessed in the normal curriculum. We are Pacific island New Zealanders. Ps;listened to the first hour with my boy,he loved it.
23:41 lol what a freekin warrior....Thanks Jocko for havin these bad dudes on Thanks to all the service members out there for allowing me to have my Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow...Your sacrifice is not lost with me!
At around 1:27:00 When Mr. Thompson talks about crashing in that bird is exactly what I expressed when I was in a head on collision. Saw it coming and thought "Thats not good. I've done all I can do". Got super relaxed. BAM! Black, smoke, etc. Said "Are we dead yet?" my friend answered back "I don't think so" and I said "Then lets get the hell out of here.". It was surreal but there was never any panic or fear. It was just: This isn't good. I've done all I can. Am I dead? No then lets get out of here. I don't know if everyone is like that in stress situations like that but I felt pretty good. Sure beats losing your ass.
Hurricane I strangely enough have a similar experience. Fell with my bike at 30 miles an hour. I was sliding over the tarmac and seeing the bike sliding next to me and sending sparks all over the place. I then thought: “This looks cool!” (At the same time however I have blanked out while having to present)
Thank you for capturing these oral histories. Reading a book does not allow for facial expressions, voice inflection, or emotional pauses to add their effect to the stories.
Geeeeeez i was on the edge of my seat the whole time listening to this !!! Just amazing we stand in line at the grocery store with these guys and don’t even have a clue.
Thanks for bringing him on the podcast! Definitely an honour to hear his story and thanks to you for capturing their history before time does its inevitable job. Absolute legend
Every time I listen to Your podcast I can put my self in the middle of the operation! This operator Is One of the Best EVER!!!!! I love when you pick His mind. Please bring Him back again and again! I am not much of a reader, I guess growing up in Da Bronx NY , we rather be in Da Streets.Wish I can get this book on audiobook. God Bless You JOCKO. 82nd AA🇺🇸
Thank you for all these interviews with SOG guys. I have read all of their books for years, and I really like them retelling the things from their books. It just makes things really hit you like written word can't. All these guys are the epitome of all things human. If you can get Lynne Black on a podcast that would be awesome.
2:32:26 I know this sounds hard to believe but check out the GYROJET rocket gun. Like he said it shot a round that is roughly the size of a 50 cal. These guns where developed in the late 60's and some did sell on the consumer market. Thank you Sir for your service.
My parents fled vietnam in 75… my father was 8 and my mother was 5.. they don’t talk about it much but they said they were woken up in the middle of the night and was told to board a boat by their parents even though they weren’t coming along.. some how they made it to America and worked their asses off to provide my siblings and I a good life.. We are forever indebted to America and all those that fought for us.. thank you 🙏
So much respect for this great American, as well as all the other great Americans in this world. Awesome podcast! Thanks Jocko, keep them coming please.
The biggest flaw in our society is that we have to find a podcast to find this man. Everyone and their mother should know this man and his stories of bravery. Instead of celebrating actors and musicians we should be honoring men like these. I know Dick will probably never read this however he is one of my hero’s and this country could never repay the debt we owe him and every other vet that served in combat. True hero god bless 🇺🇸
Jocko ... i remember being a kid buying a MacVSog patch ...not really knowing anything about what it really meant other than bad ass Special Forces operator's. But listening to this podcast was amazing , above and beyond what kind of American bad assery was taking place on a daily level. All i can say is God Bless all . 🇺🇸 btw ...how can anyone give thumbs down on any of these podcasts.
I am not a military man but appreciate, as much as a civilian can, what you represent. The lessons in leadership and dealing with adversity are invaluable. Thank you, all
2 hours later my mouth is hanging open. I now realize I do not have the ability to appreciate what these men go through...53 and in tears at this man's bravery.
I loved this podcast. Dick did a great job of adequately explaining the horrors of war while maintaining professional language. I'm glad I could share this with my kids.
If this dude was your uncle or father , youd be so fully prepared for life that nothing would prevent you from an amazing life. Top level. Top level respect
In SOG by John Plaster he goes into detail about how SOG operations had been compromised by a mole somewhere in SOG . Mission intel was leaked teams were lost . If you like these podcast with the SOG veterans I highly recommend this book.
As i was hearing the story about being told Dick Thompson's obituary that's the only way in my mind how those guys we're discovered, my two questions are 1 where did they get the radio (maybe Dennis team or another lost SOG team who had the codes and radio) 2 was the POW mission and ambush? and just BS intel on POW's being moved from SV to NV?
Don't forget the Russians were very much involved in this war. The Chinese did not have the technology yet, but the Russians did and most certainly had a hand in crypto code deciphering technology.
Dick was my ROTC instructor. He really is a bad ass in many, many dimensions. I learned many things from him that kept me alive, and, yes, Dick, I carried a rock in my pocket as my last round in a combat zone and I was often an empty set of fatiques being dragged across the ground.
Dick Thompson, Sir, i am in awe of you. Not only for your badass heroics in all of these missions but your humanity as well to think about the families of the fallen and to protect them from the horrors of your stories to try and edit small phrases to protect them. You sir are an exemplary human being and i wish you could share more of your wisdom with the world, lord knows right now we.need it.
alot of politics are involved and usually MOH recipients for them to get the medal require their story to have alot of corroborating evidence and eye witnesses needed. Also some people dont apply because of the time it takes, or instead choose lesser medals to apply for said reasons, alot of insane acts of courage and bravery go without medals for alot of diff reasons but I think these are some big factors.
This guy is solid gold. I think Dick Thompson might just be my new favorite operator. I'd never heard of SOG prior to part one of this series, but everyone in the comments were right: SOG has the absolute best war stories from the most extreme experiences. I'm so glad there's going to be a part three.
So greatfull that you are document ing these stories like the French men ,that story could have been lost but his great great grandchildren can know who he was ! And that's awesome
So after racking up all the milage in Vietnam and then some, at the age of 70+ this guy does Ironman races?! CHECK! Technically a Terminator is an Ironman...
I have listened to this and the other podcasts several times.. still blows me away every time. What an astonishing man. Inspiring is an understatement.
This guy is an untouchable... fall 120 ft after jumping out of a helicopter just to fall 100' of it ,grab a tree at 50' and insert like a madman,run right in front and into machine gun fire/or getting shot at,drop bomblets in your 15ft perimeter,out gunned ,left for dead multiple times,through all those injuries,always came back ,always kicked ass,always asked for more. Ive met a few and it always amazed me , thank you for getting these guys stories
Getting on a helicopter and flying out to a mission on a day you're supposed to be resting, then taking control of said mission and jumping out of the helicopter with one of the crew's M60's into a jungle full of enemies is some shit so badass a movie couldn't even do it justice.
How this incredibly brave veteran survived so many dire situations is a miracle. He put his life on the line numerous times for our country. I thank him for his service and sacrifice.
How has this man not been awarded the Metal of Honor? If he doesn't deserve it, no one does!!!
0ppp0pp
Many many times during this podcast I thought "this is it, this is where he dies and this is the end of the story," but I had to keep reminding myself that he was here telling this story himself and that he survived it all. Truly amazing!
Same here..
Thing to remember most of the guys in his group aren't.
We're u high when u watched this
Haha! Totally and utterly UnREAL.
If it wasn't for their obvious sincerity and complete inability to be self aggrandizing, you'd never believe them!
These SOG interviews are Jocko Podcast best material.
Tom Gonzalez listened to them from my father if you know what I mean. After I got back from Gulf War he was able to open up
anything with BTF tony or JP dinnell should be considered in that list. also, the chosin reservoir, TU 241 and rape of nanking are crazy
Agreed. And the two Dick Thompson episodes are the best of all the SOG interviews, imo. The Dakota Meyer interview is awesome too. That was my first exposure to Jocko and I've been hooked since.
100%
@@arym1108 what do you mean by tu 241?
You think of yourself as a man with a reasonable set of balls...then you listen to these guys and realize you ain't shit. These guys are astoundingly brave and hard core!
💯🎯...it is truly hard to comprehend going through what they went through..only to return to US soil being spit on & called various insults...incredible men that gave it all & then some.
Oh I know right!
his balls so big thats why he couldnt leave with his team twice they needed a separate heli jus for him and his guy
Good point. I now realize that in comparison, my balls look like vaginal lips.
I showed my father your SOG podcasts, he is a Vietnam vet. He himself still won't talk about his time over there, but he said God bless you for your work getting there story out there. You maybe helping other vets open up and talk about there time over there.
A lot of guys probably don’t wanna relive the hell they experienced over there
As they said back then conscriptions were a different breed. Your father has my respect and I wish him the best. I would suggest to everybody the Ken Burns documentary on Vietnam. It's a truly masterful and educational series.
A lot of guys talked a lot when they got back. As they had time to reflect they clamed up, nobody wanted to hear about this cluster fuck
Last supervisor I had was a Vietnam vet also. All he said was it was a fucked up situation most of the time. Stories he shared mostly were about his r&r. These men have mad respect from me. I doubt most of us would react like they did... his work partner was sog also, he had some crazier stories, how he got shot about 5 times on an extract once.
🇺🇸❤️ YOUR DAD!!! It’s not easy to relive memories of what feels like another life in another world in another time.
God Bless your Dad and every 🇺🇸 veteran.
It’s because of these sacrifices that we are the Greatest Country On EARTH. ❤️🇺🇸
This should have millions of views, people need to hear the sacrifice the military people went through...
they need to make a movie out of this guy....
@@jessejames- this guy is where call of duty stories come from lol
@@Jimsmash171 That's a fact I was thinking shit haven't I played as dynamite during BO1 😭😭🤣🤣😂💯💯.
These guys are real life super heroes. I mean I’ve seen lots of films of super heroes that do similar shit to what this guy did but it was all fake with stunt doubles. This guy did it alone because it was the right thing to do it order to and there was know one else there to get her done. What a fantastic human being. I’m sure glad he is on our side. I would have loved to work for him.
@@jessejames- they did. Rambo.
Cheers from Finland. Awesome podcast about SOGs, I wasn't aware of their existence up until this podcast. If people are interested, you should check out the story of Major Larry Thorne, who was also in SOG. He is famous in Finland for having fought in WWII for the Finnish special forces, then the Waffen SS, and after the war ended, to have escaped to the United States where he became a US Citizen, and joined the US special forces and finally became a SOG. He was KIA in Vietnam in a helicopter crash. Like Dick Thompson, those SOG guys were no joke. Total respect and a lot we can learn from them.
Cheers to Jocko and Dick!
I'll look him up. Love the movie SUSI and Karelian Bear Dogs.
Definitely going to check it out thank you for the info 🙏 God bless.
0:00:00 - Opening
0:02:22 - SOG Warrior Dick Thompson.
0:02:30 - Finding out Bob died. Slow information.
0:07:00 - Danang, Steaks on Sundays. The Card.
0:09:00 - Chopper. Team in trouble. Sorry ‘bout that.
0:13:50 - Flying into combat, unarmed. This is what’s going to happen.
0:18:00 - It can’t get any worse. Pilot says you are crazy. 100 rds.
0:20:00 - And it gets worse. This is from a stupid action movie.
0:24:11 - Into the Canopy. First Contact.
0:29:00 - Contact with the downed helio.
0:31:00 - The other American team. SOG team takes control.
0:40:00 - Casualty Flight out. Then our turn.
0:43:10 - Get your team and go back. RnR can wait.
0:50:00 - Get off.
0:54:20 - Recover the body, destroy the helicopter.
0:59:00 - Contact. I had a lot of issues with this mission.
1:11:10 - We carried a lot of stuff. Gloves and tricks.
1:17:00 - Weather.
1:23:10 - RnR would have to wait. I didn’t tell you to destroy the chopper.
1:26:00 - King Bee Down. Hamburger Hill.
1:30:45 - Just 2 of us left. Need a captive.
1:37:30 - Team level response to strange leadership decisions.
1:40:00 - State of the world. Welcome home.
1:41:10 - Something wrong. Spine fracture.
1:42:15 - POW Mission. Spike Team.
1:50:00 - Dennis Neil. Wrong location. Some reports say other things. Bill Reader.
1:53:30 - Interesting mission.
2:00:00 - Funeral Music saying our names.
2:04:10 - Combat Sky spot. F4 Guess and Check.
2:06:30 - Keep sake. Pretty Close.
2:12:45 - Cluster bomb on our position.
2:18:00 - Leak inside late 1969.
2:19:00 - Listed as MIA. Drop.
2:21:40 - What is a prairie fire emergency? B-52 Strikes.
2:23:00 - Prisoner Snatch. Silenced 22. Terminator. Dogs.
2:28:00 - End of the year. Helmet and a Jacket.
2:30:00 - Going Home. Staying in. Rocket Pistol.
2:36:50 - Final Thoughts and take-aways.
2:38:45 - How to Stay on THE PATH.
3:10:12 - Closing Gratitude.
MVP
Thank you
LTC Thompson was my Professor of Military Science in ROTC at UGA. He was an intense man, but someone you knew was in command. I saw him just a few weeks ago, still a great man, a warrior and incredibly smart.
I’ve watched tilt and dick Thompson’s episodes probably 10 times. Best stories out there! Truly inspiring.
Same. I'll listen to them on repeat. Still amazing every time.
Now we know who all of Chuck Norris's movies in the 80's were based on.
@Justin credible The story about him going out when he was supposed to be on R and R was maybe the most incredible story I’ve ever heard.
this guy was the last american bad ass
LMFAO he's the real fucking deal
chuck norris movies are more believable than dick’s bs story. The guy is so full of shit.
Abd they were accurate.
Have not heard a greater amount of willpower or courage. Hollywood could never capture these moments even if they tried. What a guy.
Jocko really had it right, even the most ridiculous Hollywood war or action film scenes had nothing compared to what Dick Thompson went through. He is so matter of fact about it as it was all normal for him. I can't really express the degree of respect I have for you and your fellow team members and what you went through. The bar for courage and valour can't be any higher! Such service absolutely needs recognition! Belatedly thank you for your service.
Its men and stories like these that make me so proud to call myself an American.🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
The definition of badass. How is this not a movie??? This man's life is incredible.
This dude is the real life Rambo!
Richard Greene well the movie Rambo was based on a SOG guy that lost all his friends
What I find so fascinating about Rambo here is the lack of
Why he never got the Medal of Honor is a mystery to me. What he did and survived is absolutely unreal!
They didn’t exist is why more secret that Delta is today. Also a lot of it is probably fabricated.
Probably the loud-mouth Lt. Colonel he shut down would have complained.
If he got a Medal the US would have admitted he was in countries he wasn't supposed to be. SOG was the secret of secret units, no way in hell they would jeopardize that by acknowledging their actions and existence
The best way I knew to do what you spoke of at 2:41:04 was to join the Marine Corps. I felt that I owed everyone who ever served from the revolution forward that provided a safe comfortable country for me to grow up in to provide the same for their posterity. I get told quite often “thank you for your service” and I truly appreciate them saying that, but the Korean veterans seem to be the forgotten ones and the Vietnam veterans were the mistreated ones. I am a Desert Shield/ Storm veteran and received a great welcome home, but I am the one who is thankful for all those who went before me and all those who volunteered to go after me. Semper Fi !
Jumping out of the helicopter, hanging off a rope, 15 ft above the canopy, bloodied skin melted hands, drops 100 feet through the trees. rescues 4 people from a crashed helicopter. This was an incredible set of podcasts
What an absolute legend this man is. You never really appreciate what these guys went thru, until you hear it straight from them. History books and school teachers could never come close. History classes about wars should just be watching jocko podcast with vets like this.
MOH
These guys are some of the most elite troops we have ever had serve in our military. i never get tired of these podcasts with SOG soldiers: so many amazing stories to tell!
Can't thank you enough for bringing this man's stories to the world. Thank you Mr. Terminator.
Can you imagine the stories the NVA has about these guys. That would be a good podcast.
Man, there is actually an NVA guy who had a post war convo with a SOG guy. NVA guy mentioned how they shot him like 5 times and wiped their squad. Wish I had the link for you. It was likely from that sofrep.com site. These stories are amazing.
One of the best UA-cam videos I’ve ever watched
The fact that he survived is the most incredible thing of all. It is difficult to comprehend. This man went through it. Thanks for the interview.
Attitude, humility, and courage. Very humbling and encouraging that absolutely nobody has an excuse. Very much appreciated!
This guy is so beyond hardcore and his story so gripping , even Jocko is thinking WTF??!!
Totally. WTF barely scratching the surface. Broken ribs, no skin on hands and still kick serious ads again and again.... WTF
*Ass not ads lol
I heard his ads rivalled UA-cam
@@Andy-ss8yg well played...
“Sorry”
Netflix needs to do a series like Band of Brothers on these guys.
Just as well done if not better. Ugh it would be so good
Simply titled "MACVSOG"
No doubt. Almost everything on vietnam was 80s action hero crap
Like the last season of tour of duty
@@robertconklin3850 tour of duty was a good series.
I don't understand how this warrior did not receive a Medal of Honor for his actions. Jumping from a helo into the jungle to rescue 2 down aircraft all with bloodied and rope burned hands, and broken ribs from falling 165 feet to the ground.
I was thinking the same thing. What exactly is the bar for the medal of honor if this does not meet that threshold?
Most of their missions are top secret. I mean I assume it must’ve been recently they they were given an ok to even talk about what they did as SOG. You can’t put someone in for a Medal of Honor if the missions they’re doing doesn’t exist lol
@@d3Stigmata yeah but he said that he received a bronze or silver star with Valor. So doesnt seem like it was a top secret mission.
Craig Cole true, but those medals aren’t that difficult to put in for even on simple missions. It depends on your CO and if they actually put you in for medals, which could’ve been them supporting conventional units on their missions. It sounds like any of their SOG missions are classified but I agree, this mission was a rescue so idk why he’s been overlooked (unless his CO sucks and didn’t put him in for medals).
Check out MSG Roy Benevidez, MACV-SOG, MOH
Dick Thompson is a legend! I could sit here and listen to him recall those events every day!! Awesome interview!!!
Completely humbling and yet so motivating in the sense that today we are soft, because we sincerely have lost the drive the essence of duty the felt to one another. We need to do better to be the men that they lived as. Absolutely amazing to hear they survived in the sense of doing what they believed for the reason of it it was “right.” We have lost that worrying about living rather than just being alive in the moment for the right reasons.
"I got to go" , and that's all I needed to hear. These men are warriors
I feel honored to be able to listen to the stories of such an amazing man. My grandfather and his brothers were all special forces in Vietnam and out of the 5 that left only 2 came back. Hearing these stories really helps me understand what they went through and why they were the way they were. I’ll never be able to thank you enough for posting this and for giving me some much needed perspective.
It must be difficult for this guy to constantly have to use a wheelbarrow to carry around those gigantic balls!.... I don't think I've ever been so entranced in a story... What a hero!
I love how these guys always talk so casually about their missions. “It made a nice display”, lmao 😂 warriors through and through
Humbled and rendered speechless... The quality of this man and his story are what makes this country great.
This man is truly blessed by God a living angel! Thank you Sir for being all in none better! ✝️
We should teach about sog in history classes.
YES
Only now that we're able to get the information is it really possible. Previously there wasn't much to go on.
@@billmcyrus True, I self educate all the time.
They wrap up world war 2 in a day. I agree they should but good luck.
SOG*
Give this man all the medals of honor we have left, jesus christ!
The amount of selfless ness, heroics, and the size of the balls on these guys are incredible. I could listen to these stories for weeks.
I just watched that documentary about Ramadi. I cried all the way thru it. And when you said that you had to go out there and help your army brothers and there was no decision to me made. I broke down like a baby. Thank you for
helping save the lives of my brothers.. Army Airborne 68-70 Aloha. C
I hope thanksgiving finds you and yours blessed and in good spirits.
You know you're a bad ass Right?
Take it easy sir.
Aaron Anderson It doesn’t hurt to cry and it’s not a shame either. I am fine felt good. Aloha and thanks.
@@charlestour4681 the bad ass comment had nothing to do with any of your previous. Respectfully. Aloha.
Imagine thinking your a badass operator (and you are ) and then you discover your talking to one of these guys in a bar.
Guy should have been dead 100 times over, someone or something was protecting his team.
Should have received the CMH for that one mission, went back to base only to go back out the next day, no big deal.
Important History to listen to.
I'm in awe of this podcast, I come back and listen to it regularly
Thank you jocko I have listened to every podcast you have out this one made my day I’ve been plowing snow for 20 hrs lastnight and this one helped me finish her off it’s amazing being able to hear these stories it’s inspired me and many more I can’t wait to serve my country some day PLEASE bring more Vietnam vets they are so interesting and hardcore the stuff they went through is insane much respect from your brothers in Minnesota
I was infantry in Iraq, I feel like I was a cub scout compared to this dude.
you played your part too, don't sell your self short of the work you did
thank you
@@MM-eo2oz Only the Infantry can stay in the field continuously.
No one else can do what the Infantry does.
Robert Rosenberger I was 82AA, I feel like a Cub Scout too compared to this operator. This guy if off the hook!!!!!
@@reconbyfirea-3136 ummm green berets live out in the battlefield continuously behind enemy lines too this man on the podcast is a green beret and SOG operators went further then any unit ever did during the Vietnam war pure badasses.
You served and were willing. This makes you a hero. Many sat on their asses
Want my son to listen to this one,the real deal from a real hero. I'm speechless
Is your son a service member?
No.I just want my 16 yrs old introvert loner to find his true courage.And I believe podcasts such as these provide lessons in bravery that simply can't be accessed in the normal curriculum. We are Pacific island New Zealanders. Ps;listened to the first hour with my boy,he loved it.
Introvert loner? If you call your son that no wonder
@@arradlam sheesh that's harsh man
23:41 lol what a freekin warrior....Thanks Jocko for havin these bad dudes on Thanks to all the service members out there for allowing me to have my Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow...Your sacrifice is not lost with me!
At around 1:27:00 When Mr. Thompson talks about crashing in that bird is exactly what I expressed when I was in a head on collision. Saw it coming and thought "Thats not good. I've done all I can do". Got super relaxed. BAM! Black, smoke, etc. Said "Are we dead yet?" my friend answered back "I don't think so" and I said "Then lets get the hell out of here.". It was surreal but there was never any panic or fear. It was just: This isn't good. I've done all I can. Am I dead? No then lets get out of here.
I don't know if everyone is like that in stress situations like that but I felt pretty good. Sure beats losing your ass.
Hurricane I strangely enough have a similar experience. Fell with my bike at 30 miles an hour. I was sliding over the tarmac and seeing the bike sliding next to me and sending sparks all over the place. I then thought: “This looks cool!” (At the same time however I have blanked out while having to present)
Thank you for capturing these oral histories.
Reading a book does not allow for facial expressions, voice inflection, or emotional pauses to add their effect to the stories.
I've always been fascinated by warrior culture. I realize watching this that my definition of warrior may have been too loose. THIS GUY is a warrior.
I would LOVE more podcasts from Mr.Thompson.
These guys make me proud to be an American. Such an honor to even be able to hear these stories.
This is one of my all time favorites. One hell of a soldier and an absolutely INSANE mission set.
This is probably my favorite episode of your podcasts to date. Mind blowing and amazing. Great work. This man is a true BMF.
The pucker factor i get from hearing these stories is insane I can only imagine being there! God bless you Dick Thompson you are a true hero
What a man what a story. You got two big men looking and listening too a old man experience in disbelief. Best Vietnam interview ever.
Some of the descriptions and details are just crazy. Impressive podcast.
1:11:40 “ It was an exciting afternoon”. Understatement of the Century IMO🤯
Geeeeeez i was on the edge of my seat the whole time listening to this !!! Just amazing we stand in line at the grocery store with these guys and don’t even have a clue.
This episode auto plays for me everyday atleast twice a day and I always listen to it everytime.
Thanks for bringing him on the podcast! Definitely an honour to hear his story and thanks to you for capturing their history before time does its inevitable job. Absolute legend
Every time I listen to Your podcast I can put my self in the middle of the operation! This operator Is One of the Best EVER!!!!! I love when you pick His mind. Please bring Him back again and again! I am not much of a reader, I guess growing up in Da Bronx NY , we rather be in Da Streets.Wish I can get this book on audiobook. God Bless You JOCKO. 82nd AA🇺🇸
That was my favorite guest. So bad ass. So proud of that guy.
One hell of a man, speechless man
He is so calm and has that soft voice. Must have ice water in his veins.
Thank you for all these interviews with SOG guys. I have read all of their books for years, and I really like them retelling the things from their books. It just makes things really hit you like written word can't. All these guys are the epitome of all things human. If you can get Lynne Black on a podcast that would be awesome.
2:32:26
I know this sounds hard to believe but check out the GYROJET rocket gun. Like he said it shot a round that is roughly the size of a 50 cal. These guns where developed in the late 60's and some did sell on the consumer market. Thank you Sir for your service.
My parents fled vietnam in 75… my father was 8 and my mother was 5.. they don’t talk about it much but they said they were woken up in the middle of the night and was told to board a boat by their parents even though they weren’t coming along.. some how they made it to America and worked their asses off to provide my siblings and I a good life..
We are forever indebted to America and all those that fought for us.. thank you 🙏
So much respect for this great American, as well as all the other great Americans in this world. Awesome podcast! Thanks Jocko, keep them coming please.
The biggest flaw in our society is that we have to find a podcast to find this man. Everyone and their mother should know this man and his stories of bravery. Instead of celebrating actors and musicians we should be honoring men like these. I know Dick will probably never read this however he is one of my hero’s and this country could never repay the debt we owe him and every other vet that served in combat. True hero god bless 🇺🇸
Jocko ... i remember being a kid buying a MacVSog patch ...not really knowing anything about what it really meant other than bad ass Special Forces operator's. But listening to this podcast was amazing , above and beyond what kind of American bad assery was taking place on a daily level. All i can say is God Bless all . 🇺🇸 btw ...how can anyone give thumbs down on any of these podcasts.
I am not a military man but appreciate, as much as a civilian can, what you represent. The lessons in leadership and dealing with adversity are invaluable. Thank you, all
2 hours later my mouth is hanging open. I now realize I do not have the ability to appreciate what these men go through...53 and in tears at this man's bravery.
I loved this podcast. Dick did a great job of adequately explaining the horrors of war while maintaining professional language. I'm glad I could share this with my kids.
If this dude was your uncle or father , youd be so fully prepared for life that nothing would prevent you from an amazing life. Top level. Top level respect
I'm thankful for 100% badass Americans like this one. We the people love you! Thank you
The will and skill of this guy are undeniable!!!!.."to those that gave all"....🇺🇸
In SOG by John Plaster he goes into detail about how SOG operations had been compromised by a mole somewhere in SOG . Mission intel was leaked teams were lost . If you like these podcast with the SOG veterans I highly recommend this book.
As i was hearing the story about being told Dick Thompson's obituary that's the only way in my mind how those guys we're discovered, my two questions are 1 where did they get the radio (maybe Dennis team or another lost SOG team who had the codes and radio) 2 was the POW mission and ambush? and just BS intel on POW's being moved from SV to NV?
Don't forget the Russians were very much involved in this war. The Chinese did not have the technology yet, but the Russians did and most certainly had a hand in crypto code deciphering technology.
Thanks
jackson thompson wait is this guy passed on? I think you're talking about the Frenchman
I have no problem listening to this episode full through Everytime ..... Greatest of all military sf history
Thank you for more Mr. Thompson and SOG! Incredible.
Dick was my ROTC instructor. He really is a bad ass in many, many dimensions. I learned many things from him that kept me alive, and, yes, Dick, I carried a rock in my pocket as my last round in a combat zone and I was often an empty set of fatiques being dragged across the ground.
What do you mean "I was often an empty set of fatiques being dragged across the ground."?
Seeing his face and body language while reliving calling the air strike on his position and the attempted prisoner snatches is so informative.
Absolute Hardcore.
These are great men. Im very thankful to hear them tell their stories about sog
Mind Blowing Story.. Thanks for sharing with us.
Salute to you both for your incredible Bravery and Service.
Part II ..... GET SOME.....
Thank you Gentleman......
Happy Thanksgiving EVERYONE....
Cheers
Dick Thompson, Sir, i am in awe of you. Not only for your badass heroics in all of these missions but your humanity as well to think about the families of the fallen and to protect them from the horrors of your stories to try and edit small phrases to protect them.
You sir are an exemplary human being and i wish you could share more of your wisdom with the world, lord knows right now we.need it.
How did he not get a medal of honor for the rescue?
alot of politics are involved and usually MOH recipients for them to get the medal require their story to have alot of corroborating evidence and eye witnesses needed. Also some people dont apply because of the time it takes, or instead choose lesser medals to apply for said reasons, alot of insane acts of courage and bravery go without medals for alot of diff reasons but I think these are some big factors.
um, he didn't exist, SOG guys were covert top secret elite warriors.
@@pd2210 a sog medic got moh from gw bush man. Most moh from sog where awarded posthumously tho.
He did not exist
Col Bob Howard was recommended for 3 MOH. The first two where downgraded and they gave him the 3rd one.
This guy is solid gold. I think Dick Thompson might just be my new favorite operator. I'd never heard of SOG prior to part one of this series, but everyone in the comments were right: SOG has the absolute best war stories from the most extreme experiences. I'm so glad there's going to be a part three.
Bobby Alan I bet you have a subscription to blacks on blondes
Bobby Alan lol
These people were legit spook badasses
2:14 God had his eye on that man. Thank you doesn't come close to the to gratitude in my heart for theese warriors
So greatfull that you are document ing these stories like the French men ,that story could have been lost but his great great grandchildren can know who he was ! And that's awesome
Such Heroism. Worthy of the greatest respect and honor.
So after racking up all the milage in Vietnam and then some, at the age of 70+ this guy does Ironman races?! CHECK! Technically a Terminator is an Ironman...
Well, I think it was a very high-end alloy but, yeh, I know what you mean... lol
@@loucypher9213 same with ironman lol
@@wingerding True.
I have listened to this and the other podcasts several times.. still blows me away every time. What an astonishing man. Inspiring is an understatement.
This guy is an untouchable... fall 120 ft after jumping out of a helicopter just to fall 100' of it ,grab a tree at 50' and insert like a madman,run right in front and into machine gun fire/or getting shot at,drop bomblets in your 15ft perimeter,out gunned ,left for dead multiple times,through all those injuries,always came back ,always kicked ass,always asked for more. Ive met a few and it always amazed me , thank you for getting these guys stories
Just listening to this hero is an honor. Amazing.
Getting on a helicopter and flying out to a mission on a day you're supposed to be resting, then taking control of said mission and jumping out of the helicopter with one of the crew's M60's into a jungle full of enemies is some shit so badass a movie couldn't even do it justice.
M16 not an m60
I've listened to this at least 10 times and will listen to it probably 100 more times in years to come. I've never heard anything like this.
Listened twice. Mind blown from this man and his story. bad ass!
Mr. Perfect
I hear ya. I’ve listened to this podcast several times, it’s just so amazing and super human.
How this incredibly brave veteran survived so many dire situations is a miracle. He put his life on the line numerous times for our country. I thank him for his service and sacrifice.
Hwang brought a coke, that sob. Endangered the whole mission. As serious as this is that made me laugh.
I can imagine the noise the bottle makes when someone opens it 😂
I would of been furious for a min then be like pass that shit hahah
He’s one man outa thousands of men that wouldn’t be able to pull that off, and still be here to tell the s stories of what he’s done!!