...Chatman 8/5/2014 The Vietnam Memorial The purpose of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is to honor members of the United States Armed Forces who fought and died during the Vietnam War. The memorial consists of a 250-foot long series of polished black walls sunk into the ground. On the walls are inscribed 58,000 names of servicemen who were declared Killed in Action or Missing in Action during the Vietnam War. The names are listed in chronological order beginning at the top of the wall and visitors who come to view the names are able to see their own reflection in the black walls. The end points of the wall point to the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. A few feet away from the entrance to the wall is statue of three soldiers in clothes that would be exactly as they would have been during the Vietnam War. They are called “The Three Soldiers.” The wall evokes diverse individual reflections on the Vietnam War because of its design. The wall is among the most famous monuments to American history on the Washington Mall, its difference from other forms of memorial reflect the controversy surrounding the Vietnam War. The Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial, are both designed with pillars and white granite, and is are seen. The Vietnam Memorial however, is not visible until you are almost on top of it. If you approach it from behind it almost disappears into the land. The memorial represents the stigma brought upon veterans returning home from the war. The wall reflects the...
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...U.S. Losses in Vietnam What did the United States lose in Vietnam? During the visit in Vietnam the United States lost the support of friends and family at home in the United States, soldiers, and even resources. The conflicts and actions that occurred in Vietnam during the war affected the United States tremendously with the support that was given to our soldiers from family and friends from home. Because of the strategies and the actions that the U.S. soldiers conducted were inhuman in other words cruel to the victims of their actions. The support given to the soldiers in the beginning of the war, did not result in the same way as the war came to a conclusion. There were many events that occurred during the Vietnam war that were injustice crimes that should have never occurred. One event that occurred was, Agent...
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...influence of war, soldiers become intoxicated by the chaotic environment and seize the opportunity to commit immoral acts. However, several factors including politics, the participants, and the concept of war itself, allow for this dangerous environment to exist; this is especially true of the long and brutal war the United States was involved with in Vietnam. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photographs from the war, and the film Apocalypse Now convey the nonexistent boundaries of war in regards to morality. These sources represent how the bureaucratic side of the conflict took precedent over the lives of soldiers and how an environment indifferent to morality lead to the desensitized mentality and loss of humanity experienced by the...
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...The American Experience Since 1945 HIS The Vietnam War The Vietnam War was a Cold War military conflict started in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. The war was from November 1, 1955 to the fall of Saigon on the 30th April 1975. Right after the Vietnam War the first Indochina War was fought between North Vietnam was support by it communist allies and the South Vietnam, was support by the United States.("The Cold Warrior", April 9,2010, p. 1) Student unrest draws a lot attention when the war started; during Vietnam War the draft took place for the first time since 1942. There were two viewpoints in 1960 that evolve. One group felt Vietnam was for a purpose and we should stay until the job was done. The other side felt it was such a burden both socially and economically that United States needed to get out of Vietnam.(Ryan, 2008, para. 1) The Baby Boomers both men and women were eligible to be sent off to fight in a war that was a conflict begin question for the American involvement. Students that could afford going to college went after college they would then be eligible to be sent off to Vietnam. To protest the war large demonstrations took place on college campuses. This was an incentive to protest the war and tried to put a stop to it before they could be drafted. The young men who could not afford collage were outnumbered by the upper class and middle class. The war was long a drug out war as the resentment grew so did the financial cost. With the...
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...The Vietnam war was a ten year war. It was many little battles wrapped into one big war in Vietnam that is why it is called the Vietnam War. The Vietnam war was very bloody and brutal. It had 1,100,000 casualties, over 600,000 wounded and nearly 6,000 missing. One of the bloodiest, most brutal battles, was the My Lai Massacre. The My Lai Massacre was one part of the Vietnam War that happened in the morning on March 16, 1968. It happened in the small village of My Lai in South Vietnam. It was a very brutal and cruel event that happened in history. There were around 347-504 casualties, the exact number was never recorded. It was a very sad and disgusting event, but we can’t change the past. The My Lai Massacre happened on the morning of March 16,1968. It wasn’t a battle, it was where this platoon of Americans went in and just massacred civilians in a village...
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...The Vietnam Conflict Introduction It is difficult to pinpoint the exact reasons why the U.S. became involved in the Vietnam Conflict. Perhaps one of the more convincing reasons can be attributed to the strong disdain most Americans had for Communism. The U.S. government feared that Communism, if not prevented, would spread throughout the nations. The federal government used President Eisenhower’s “domino theory,” which stated, “if one country in Southeast Asia collapsed to Communism then surrounding countries would soon fall” to rally support for their intentions to save Vietnam from Communism (Davidson, 2011, p. 839). The true reasons for U.S. involvement in the Vietnam Conflict is debatable, however one thing is clear, the war caused further division in a country already suffering from its own social issues. There had been conflict in the Vietnam long before the U.S. became involved in the conflict. Vietnam had been occupied by foreign countries for many years, and by 1940, Vietnam was under both French and Japanese rule. Ho Chi Minh, a Communist Vietnamese revolutionary leader, vowed to create a Vietnam that was independent of foreign rule (Davidson, 2011, p. 839). Ho Chi Minh established the Viet Minh whose main purpose was to liberate Vietnam from French and Japanese control. Northern Vietnam supported the Viet Minh efforts to create an independent Vietnam and joined forces with southern communist Vietcong to overthrow South Vietnam and unite Vietnam under one...
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...The Tet Offensive is an important event in American history because it was a battle that marked a climacteric turning point in American participation in the Vietnam War. It was a series of attacks against South Vietnam. Tet is a holiday on the Vietnamese calendar that has been valued by many people. It had been an occasion for an unofficial peace agreement in the Vietnam War between the South and North. On the eve of the holiday, South Vietnam found themselves caught up in war. North Vietnam attacked the city of Hue, on the eve of the New Year holiday, knowing that everyone had let their guards down that night. The attacks were meant to stir up uprising among the South Vietnamese population and scale down American involvement in the war....
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...Vietnam: A History By : Stanley Karnow | April 4 2012 | This paper is about Vietnam: A History a novel on America’s involvement on the war in Vietnam and the policies and feelings surrounding the war. | Book Report | Works Cited Karnow, Stanley. Vietnam: A History. New York: Penguin, 1997. Print. The Vietnam War was not just of interest to the government but the world took great interest as a whole. It was like trying to figure out a magician’s illusion. Before reading this book I only had vague general knowledge of the Vietnam War and how the conflict transpired. I knew about the communist insurgents, the Gulf of Tonkin, Saigon and Ho Chi Mihn. I knew about Presidents Johnson and Nixon, posttraumatic stress disorder and demonstrations. What I did not fully understand was why. Why were the North Vietnamese so resilient? Why did the US make such poor judgment? Why were we really there? What was Vietnam's history prior to our arrival? “History is an organic process, a continuity of related events, inexorable yet not inevitable.” (pg 11) The roots of America's involvement in Vietnam were nurtured by what Professor Daniel Bell has called America's concept of its own “exceptionalism.” George Berkeley, an Anglican bishop and philosopher stated in 1726 as he departed from England to America, “Westward the course of empire.” The phrase, “manifest destiny”, was coined...
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...James Bennett Professor George J. Prokopiak HIS-114-OL010 Written Assignment 5 16 February 2015 Vietnam War and a New World Order with the End of Cold War Written Assignment 5 Question #1: As far as Vietnam is concerned, how did President Johnson "Americanize" the war? What was Nixon's policy of Vietnamization? Was anything achieved at the peace talks? What are the legacies of the Vietnam defeat? President Johnson “Americanized” the Vietnam War by many different avenues of approach taking a more aggressive posture. The president first started by supplying the South Vietnamese army with American military and economic assistance (Roark, 976-981). He significantly increased the American troop presence from 16,000 in 1964 to over 553,000 by 1969 displaying a much larger American presence (Roark, 976-981). America had stepped up bombing throughout Vietnam and neighboring countries (Roark, 976-981). In hopes of getting the backing of the American people and government, he strategically thought out who and where the bombs would be dropped (Roark, p. 980-981). He did not bomb near the northern border of Vietnam (Roark, p. 980-981). President Johnson did not want to provoke China or the Soviet Union into the war (Roark, p. 980-981). He did not want to make the same mistakes as Korea with the Chinese. He also thought about collateral damage. He tried to focus the bombings to low populated areas to minimize civilian casualties (Roark, p. 980-981). The bombing campaign was known...
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...The Fear of Reputation; Reputation vs. Well Being With the way society currently functions, individuals are judged on their appearances and actions, however soldiers are molded to have the same features, uniform, and purpose there is nothing to judge except the people themselves. This is the case for all the soldiers in Vietnam but specifically the Alpha Company of Tim O’Brien’s The Things They Carried. The soldiers in the company bond while serving in Vietnam. However, regardless of how close they become, they always have the inclination to never show fear or weakness and always attempt to maintain their reputations. The soldiers within The Things They Carried struggle to determine what is more important to them, their reputation or well being. This concept brings up the questions: How does Tim O’Brien depict the role of reputation within The Things They Carried and to what extent do the soldiers go to in order to...
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...The 1970’ in criminal justice administration were influenced by various national and political events surrounding situations like the Civil Rights Movement, the Vietnam War, and the Watergate scandal. Those were the concerns that brought public mistrust in the government, economic downturns, and social equity to the forefront of campaigns in the public sector. The American public was becoming increasingly concerned with the extent of the damage that the Vietnam War was causing for the troops and the economy. The United States spent an estimated one hundred and twenty million dollars on the Vietnam conflict from 1965-73. Not to mention the estimated fifty-eight thousand troops that were killed or went missing during the war. American soldiers...
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...The Sons of Guadalupe: The Vietnam era Generation And Their Journey Home Michael R. Ornelas, Chicano Studies Department January 24, 2007 A report to the Mesa College Sabbatical Committee in partial fulfillment of sabbatical requirements, Fall, 2006 “Two of the names that appear most often on the wall of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington are Johnson and Rodriguez. These two names tell us something about the composition of the U. S. military during the war, especially the combat units.” Aztlan and Vietnam: Chicano and Chicana Experiences of the War, George Mariscal, ed. Like all of the other major events of the 20th century, the Vietnam War reached Guadalupe when John Varela arrived there on an early support mission for the advisors to the Vietnamese government in 1963. His visit was brief, perhaps two weeks. He characterized it as a Navy reconnaissance mission. But Varela’s first mission did not involve combat, unlike the first Guadalupan to see combat, Rudy Razo who arrived in July 1965, at a mere eighteen years old, just three months after the first major contingent of 3,500 combat Marines had arrived in Vietnam on March 8, 1965. He had arrived at the earliest stages of the war, when the United States had begun the shift from an advisory role to a combat one. This early trickle of soldiers would shortly turn into a virtual river of draftees and volunteers, peaking in 1968-1969. By the end of 1969, over 135 young servicemen from Guadalupe had been drafted...
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...The Vietnam War Frances Melodye Holloway HIS 135 October 16, 2011 Christine Hooper The Vietnam War The Vietnam War began in 1957 and ended in 1975. It was the longest war running that the United States has ever been involved in. The United State was in Vietnam to help France keep the Communists out of that country. Vietnam had split into two parts in 1954, North Vietnam and South Vietnam, after the Vietnamese fought the French for control of Vietnam. The northern part of the country was Communist and the war was going on to keep the southern part of the country non-Communist. The United States president, Harry S. Truman, came up with a policy that stated the United States would help any nation that is threatened by Communists (The World Book Encyclopedia, 1986). The next few paragraphs will focus on the Vietnam War and the student unrest, as well as the political and social outcome of the Vietnam War’s ending. The military draft is the major connection between the Vietnam War and the student unrest. During the time of this war, every male student was required to register for the military services on his eighteenth birthday. For the next two years, he would be eligible for the draft, also known as conscription (The World Book Encyclopedia, 1986). His chances would increase due to the increase of casualties during the war (University of Miami, n.d.). However, there was a way for the males to postpone his chances of being selected in the draft. This would be for...
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...The Killings of the Korean War The Cold Korean War was one of the most dangerous and the most civilian killings in the world. Over Thousands and in some places millions of people killed. The North and South Korea, China, and the American Troops were killing the Civilians. China was partners with North Korea so when North Korea was killing people China was also killing people that were in their paths. They were being killed with guns and with bombs. They also was holding people as prisoners. The Korean war started on June 25, 1950. That first day it started people were randomly getting killed. While it was going on the Chinese government was keeping information from the public. Even though There was a constant fear of violence nothing ever happened in China. China sended about 300,000 Chinese soldiers to North korea. The grouping of China and North Korea was a surprise to the UN and the United States. Because it was a open stand against both forces. The United States had an even bigger role in the Korean war, because the United States and China had the same believes. At the end of the Korean War there were massive losses on both sides. Even in China and American Troops. When the war started it was North Korea and South Korea fighting against...
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...The Undeclared War Known as Vietnam Akilah K. Berry History 105 Professor Joseph Krulder American Intercontinental University The Vietnam War is considered the longest war. It can also be known as the unnecessary war, the war we lost, and an unofficial war. This war demonstrated to the world that the United States of America will defend its beliefs by any means necessary. It unified yet divided it’s own nation while focusing on the conflict at hand. Despite the fact the US Congress never officially declare war, the most decisive (excluding the Civil War) and America’s longest war is known as The Vietnam War. Around 1950, in efforts to protect the Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia known as the French Empire in Indochina the US initiated their involvement. In addition to protecting the French Empire the prevention of Ho Chi Minh’s Nationalist-Communist Viet Minh forces gaining control of the French Empire was also a key objective. At the battle of Dien Bien Phu, the Viet Minh seemed to achieve independence and national sovereignty in addition to their victory, regardless of great assistance from the US. At the 1954 Geneva international conference, the United States (for whom a Nationalist-Communist Vietnamese government was unacceptable) divided the country in two. The southern half was the birthplace of the Republic of Vietnam (RVN). Americans spent the next twenty years defending the RVN which was an artificial country (Buzzanco, 2010). By 1960 the National Liberation...
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