(quotes from a column by Karl Garson in the 1-12-07 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
"In 1966, I was a naval aviator in Vietnam. The blood chit was my introduction to the Hmong, who lived in the mountainous regions straddling Vietnam's borders with Cambodia and Laos. A blood chit was a square of silk with a message in many languages, including Hmong, that stated if the person carrying it was returned to the Americans or South Vietnamese, a reward would be paid in gold."
"We carried the chits in our survival gear. But we also knew that the Hmong were so loyal to Americans that reward or no reward they would protect any of us. The Hmong helped many downed aviators. When we left Vietnam in April 1975, we thanked them by abandoning them."
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