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Columbus man answers the call for
Agent Orange Study
By Cort Waltemath Columbus - Richard A. West is a patriot. He served 20 years in the Air Force, three years in Vietnam and was even a prisoner of war for three months. First and foremost he is loyal to his country. Even when his troops were commanded to spray the countryside of Vietnam with Agent Orange he did what he was told. "I have no regrets." West said."I worked for the commander in chief. Whatever he said, I did. He was the president and he was my boss. I worked for the red, white and blue." West, 67, of Columbus, joined 2,300 other volunteers in 1983 to participate in a governmental study on Agent Orange. Agent Orange was the code name of a herbicide developed for the military to prohibit enemy concealment in dense terrain by defoliating trees and shrubbery where the enemy could hide. "We would spray it on the field and in two or three days, everything would be dead," West said. The product - Agent Orange - was a code name for the orange band used to mark the drums it was stored in. Over the past few decades, health concerns have
arisen about the herbicides contamination with TCDD. TCDD is one of the
family of dioxins that have been thought to cause cancer, diabetes The governmental study on Agent Orange began in
1983 and is set to conclude in 2003. About once each year, the men in
the study are given a physical and a series of psychological tests to
see how Agent Orange has affected them. After each series of tests the
participants are updated on the findings. So far, the government has
found no direct link between Agent Orange and cancer. West still says the decision to use Agent Orange was probably a good one. "It probably saved lives in the long run. A lot more people could have died," West said. As a ranch hand in Vietnam, each troop was
asked to serve a year on year on Agent Orange duty. "There were times when our tanks and planes got hit, and we were covered with it," West said. "We are living proof that it does not cause cancer." For West, Agent Orange was the least of his
worries about his Vietnam experiences. There is an unwritten rule among
the soldiers that a person doesn't talk about the atrocities they
encountered "It still bothers me sometimes, but those are things you just don't talk about," West said. West said he participated in the study so he could help others. "We do it so we can help our fellow man," West said. "I also wanted to know why I can't sleep a solid six or seven hours, why my mind sometimes wanders and why I lose feeling in a certain arm sometimes." After serving his tour of duty in Vietnam, West stayed in the Air Force for several years and flew a D-6 for the ambassador to Vietnam. West says he misses flying and especially being an aircraft mechanic but no longer misses the Air Force. "I missed the Air Force for about six months, but I spent 34 years in aviation and I miss that. To do a job and be able to see it fly and land safely gives you a real sense of accomplishment," West said. The participants in the study stand to gain little individually from the study. Even if the government does find direct links to diseases from Agent Orange, the military cannot sue the government and all the money raised from the lawsuit against the manufacturers was already distributed in 1992. Title 38 of the United States Code prohibits veterans from suing for injuries suffered while in the military. West was born and raised in Providence R.I. , and now works at the Sleep Inn & Suites in Columbus as a maintenance facilitator. He and his wife R. Ellen, are semi retired. West enjoys woodworking and does volunteer work. |
| Distributed through the P.O.W. NETWORK in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107. |
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On August 24, 2000 the NETWORK called Mr. West. We allowed him the chance to correct the "captivity" story. He stated: "I stand by my
story. Do what you have to do." |
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On September 7, 2000 a
letter dated September 1, 2000 was received from the Columbus Police
Department by the P.O.W. NETWORK - the letter states
"... The investigative division checked with our local veterans affairs and determined that Mr. West is a 20 year veteran of the US Air Force.... The veterans affairs officer COULD NOT SUBSTANTIATE (emphasis added) Mr. West's claim that he was a P.O.W. ... "...In other words he may have misled he media about his P.O.W. status, however, that is not a crime..." {signed} |