Julius Becton was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania in 1926. He joined the Army Enlisted Reserves right after graduating high school in 1944 and received his commission through OCS the following year. With previous combat experience during the Korean War, he went to Vietnam at the end of 1967, just before the Tet Offensive, as a lieutenant colonel, commanding the 2nd Squadron, 17th Cavalry Regiment. He notes that “Tet did not occur in our province, because we cleaned their clock when they were coming through.” Becton shares his thoughts on tactics, strategy, command, leadership, and the occasional fun that could be had as a black squadron commander.