he said, joe galloway? this is vince cantu, don't you know me? [laughter] i graduated in the class of 1959 in high school, 59 of us. and the next time i saw him within the middle of the worst the bloodiest battle, of the entire vietnam war. he sure looked good. joe, if i live through this, i am going home by christmas. vince, go by and see my mom and dad, but do not tell them where we met. i came to be on the battlefield frome engraved invitation the battalion commander. i had marched with his battalion three days before the battle began. toong, hot walk in the sun the east of a special forces camp. i spent the night with him, coldest night i ever spend anywhere in vietnam. in the central highlands at 4000 feet, we were all soaking wet from fording a river. i was trying desperately to get into this battle. there were five other reporters nemesis,cluding my also trying to get in. but i have the edge on him because i recognized colonel matt.s -- i said i need to get in there. he said we are going in with two helicopters full of ammo, but i cannot t

helicopters, they had landings -- hopefully you remember that this is covered well in -- from joe galloway, the news correspondent, in the movie. but that little american force fought that big north vietnamese force. the numbers are always iffy in vietnam. it depends on how you look at the battles, how much you believe the body count, things like that. it is ok to estimate. the enemy lost about 2000 in that battle, we lost about 250. it was indicated to west moreland that is tactics, once fully implemented, would cost the bad guys, the viet cong, so much that if he replicated the valley a couple of times, they would give up. the butcher's bill would be so high, that the north vietnamese would give up. in 1967, that was the year to test it. 1966, they were bringing in american forces and by 1967, the efforts after was built. -- the infrastructure was built. it was time to search and destroy and make this a one-year war. and it would wind up causing them to end the war. the war in 1967, had been broken down into four separate wars. up here, the northern part of south vietnam, along here we h