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I attended SERE in ‘67 on the way to VN. Our E&E was in the Phillipines was a blast. Being chased by Negritos through the jungle/mountains, bug/snake/root eating, was informative but fun. The resistance portion, on the other hand, was NOT.

Being rousted out ot the barracks at 2AM, being hooded and taken to the camp, stripped, de-loused, stress positions, beatings, boxes, sleep-depravation via the incessant interrogations and the continuous screeching from the camp’s PA system. Living with your waste until such time the guards allow you to clean your cell. Wore a hood and restraints whenever out in the common area. I swore that when it was over I would find this ‘one’ guard, whom I could only recognize by his voice and boots, and beat the living snot out of him. But when it was over, I was glad to have been able to see how much I could endure. I shook the guy’s hand.

I attended SERE in Whidbey Island, WA in 1967. They gave us two rabbits for 72 people and whatever we could forage, which wasn't much given the fact that there were plenty of groups before us. We slept outside in the rain. I lost 15 pounds in a week.

They had to relieve the guards of our POW camp not long after we left. They started playing their roles too realistically and enjoying it too much. The rules were revised later about the amount of violence they could mete out to the "prisoners." I wish we could have retaliated against some of the more sadistic ones. Still, a worthwhile experience.