Tuesday, April 01, 2014

Viet Cong Booby Traps - WW

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Swing door trap

I find the Cu Chi Tunnels in Ho Chi Minh city a fascinating place. The site was crowded with tourists from all over the world. But my tour group, mostly senior citizens, was not interested in learning about the Vietnam war.

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simple pit with sharpened bamboo spikes

So I tagged behind a European group whose tour guide spent his time explaining what we were seeing. We came to a display of 7 booby traps in front of a large mural of American soldiers falling into them.

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sticking trap

What chilled me to the bone was the guide's demonstration and explanation of the booby traps and other improvised warfare deployed by the Viet Cong during the war.

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Clipping armpit trap

Each of the body-piercing traps were designed to target vital parts of the body, causing great damage to the victim and also to demoralise the other soldiers.

It's sickening to know that the spikes or nails were frequently smeared with faeces, urine or other contaminants to infect the wound which was created as the sharp objects penetrated the soldier’s skin.

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Rolling trap

These traps frustrate the enemy and put great stress and psychological fear in the minds of soldiers. Any step they took might be their last.

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Folding chair trap

Although these traps don't kill but they did work on my nerves as I went around the site. I became overly cautious, fearful of moving around and touching things after hearing the guide's stories. :P

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Fish trap and swinging trap

I have left out the gruesome descriptions of the damage these traps could cause the victims.

I pray that we can live peacefully and there are no more wars in the world so our men need not have such horrible experiences.

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See-saw trap

World Peace.


20 comments:

  1. I read some books about this too. Not sure if I have the stomach to go and see.

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    1. The Cu Chi Tunnels is fun and interesting, can bring your kids for an outdoor history lesson. Nothing gruesome here.

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  2. the difference in perspective between Asian and Westerners in what kind of places to visit.. well, would be nice to learn more about the history if there are still real history sites that survived through time than plainly relying on books right?? i've been to HCMC once and that was just a very rush 3D2N business trip, basically i was either in office or hotel room only, haha!!

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    1. You visited HCMC just seeing office and hotel. haha.... Make another trip to explore the city.

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  3. Really an interesting place, so many different types of traps!

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    1. The traps are just a part of the exhibits. There are more interesting sections to see.

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  4. I wonder why humans become so vicious and cruel and creative in torture and killing. They were all born as innocent babies, what did turn them to monsters ? No living creature is so vicious in the animal world. Only humans are !

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    1. I agree with you Gattina. My personal experience, I have met as vicious and cruel human beings in my life. They have no conscience and qualms about hurting others.

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  5. as I mentioned in FB, my friends tried to go into the rat hole.

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  6. I agree. These are scary traps. I never knew about these horrors.

    http://joycelansky.blogspot.com/2014/04/a-z-meets-babies-with-letter-b.html

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  7. Ooh..really scary looking traps. They certainly must have given a lot of nightmares to people back then.

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    1. Imagining how these traps must have hurt people, it's bone chilling.

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  8. Its horrible to think of what human beings are capable of and on all sides. I am with you ECL I wish for a lasting world peace.

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    1. There were lots of gruesome photos (not going to upload) on the Vietnam War, the cruel things human beings could do to their fellow men. Depressing.

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  9. A chilling reminder of the bloody 20th Century and of the horror wrought by totalitarian left wing governments across the world.

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  10. Fascinating and awful I didn't realise this either it makes you wonder how people can be so cruel to each other doesn't it ...very scary

    Have a tanfabulous day & thanks for sauntering by. :-)

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  11. It never seizes to amaze me how cruel and inventive people are to hurt other living beings. So very sad... It really must have been a horrible time - for all involved.

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  12. Hmmm... very interesting, would love to have a couple of these traps in my room, shall punish those intruders LOL

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