I believe if LT McDonough had gone to beach, he could have prevented disaster. His decision was logical and could have benefited Soldiers’ hygiene. As LT McDonough recounts his duty as pay officer where a jeep is flipped and its four occupants drowned, Vietnam was a very dangerous place. I am not surprised by the lack of consequences for his actions.

The expression, “the road to hell is paved with good intentions,” captures the tragedy of the beach mission. They patrolled to maintain the initiative and save American lives but those very same patrols led to more Soldier deaths. Within this struggle LT McDonough remembered his tactics and tried to maintain his men’s welfare without letting them grow lazy or indisciplined. Initiative is a blessing and a curse. His efforts at the beach ended in disaster while the company level attack went as well as it could. I will remember his fortitude and hope to shoulder such a disaster as well as he did.