LIFE AND DEATH ON THE WATER . . . STORIES FROM THE MEN WHO FOUGHT THE VIETNAM WAR ON THE COAST AND IN THE MEKONG DELTA Developed specifically for the Vietnam War (and made famous by the 2004 presidential campaign), Swift Boats were versatile craft -big enough to outrun anything they couldn't outfight- but too small to handle even a moderate ocean chop, too loud to sneak up on anyone, and too flimsy to withstand the mildest of rocket attacks. This made more difficult an already tough mission: navigating coastal waters for ships and sampans smuggling contraband to the Viet Cong, disrupting...