...Chris Crowe had multiple purposes throughout this book. One specific purpose is to show the different views on the Vietnam War. The main character, Ashe, has an anti-war activist mom and his father on the other hand, supporting the war. Ashe’s parents don’t get along and get divorced partly because of this. Another purpose is shown with Ashe’s teacher, Mr. Ruby. Every week Mr. Ruby writes the estimated U.S deaths in Vietnam. The death toll is also written on the beginning of every chapter along with weeks spent in Vietnam during the year 1968. After 52 weeks, the death toll has climbed to staggering 16,592 estimated U.S deaths. This was only estimated because there was likely more. This book had many purposes that were meant to give the reader...
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...letter Ngo Dinh Diem, the leader of anti-communist South Vietnam. His purpose was “to assist the Government of Vietnam in developing and maintaining a strong, viable state, capable of resisting attempted subversion or aggression through military means” (Eisenhower). Many consider this letter to be one of the initial communications with Vietnam that led to our entrance into what became one of the most controversial wars in American history. However, most were not directly connected to the war until a draft notice arrived in the mail. This was the case for Tim O’Brien, author of The Things They Carried, who received his draft notice in 1968. Having grown up in small-town Minnesota, O’Brien was able to have a normal, peaceful childhood. He prospered in school and was eventually Harvard-bound, until the Vietnam War threw him off-course. Tim opposed the war just like so many other Americans, and gave serious consideration to the idea of fleeing to Canada. However, he eventually decided to go to war, albeit reluctantly, and it was his first-hand...
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...the American public’s opinion affected by events such as the Vietnam War or Watergate? Part Two: What search engine did you use? Google What words did you type into the search engine to get your results? “american public opinion on watergate scandal” “american public opinion on vietnam war” What sources did you choose? Provide the web address and title of each source. Watergate Scandal: Nixon Resigns http://ropercenter.cornell.edu/the-american-publics-attitudes-about-nixon-post-watergate/ The American Public’s Attitudes about Richard Nixon Post-Watergate http://ropercenter.cornell.edu/the-american-publics-attitudes-about-nixon-post-watergate/ Vietnam War Protests http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-protests/...
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...In an article, Robert Elegant, a former Vietnam War reporter, wrote: "For the first time in modern history, the outcome of a war was determined not on the battlefield but on the printed page and, above all, on the television screen . . . never before Vietnam had the collective policy --no less stringent a term will serve--sought, by graphic and unremitting distortion, the victory of the enemies of the correspondents' own side." His point of view on the war summarized the effect of media on ending the Vietnam War. To obtain understandable on the roles that media played during this war, it is important to first explore the history of the war. The longest war in the history, a proxy war between those that support communism and those that did not. The United States supported the South against the North that advocated for communism. In 1954, Eisenhower wrote a letter to Ngo Dinh Diem offered to aid Diem in preventing Vietnam from being a communist country. Following Eisenhower’s promise to Diem, Kennedy aided South Vietnam with military support to fight against North Vietnam. The Vietnam War was a catastrophic since it fought against itself and destroyed its own people. It is significant to take notice of the fact that at the beginning many Americans supported United States in this war. Many Anti-war protests occurred on college campus across the nation because of events like the Tet Offensive and My Lai Massacre. United States finally withdrawn in 1973. Therefore, without the media...
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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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...IDENTIFICATION AND EVALUTAION OF SOURCES The focused question of this internal assessment will be “ To what extent was U.S. military strategy in Vietnam effective?” and will will analyze the extent of how useful military strategies used by the U.S. was in the rural country of Vietnam. The United States first arrived in Vietnam region during the mid 20th century with a main focus of stopping the spread of communism. The U.S.’s wish to stop communism stemmed from the fear that it may spread to their country where democratic values are held high. With the determination to stop communism, the U.S. immediately backed South Vietnam in the fight against the communist North Vietnam, which became the longest war in U.S. history until the Afghan War...
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...Executive Summary This report explores the question of what role the United States (U.S.) television media played in forming public opinion on the Vietnam War. The research, based on reviewing other primary and secondary sources, shows various opposing theories regarding this subject. Firstly, that television media was blamed for the U.S. loss in Vietnam. As Vietnam was the first televised war, it was argued that television swayed public support for the war by projecting the footage of conflict into the lounge rooms of Americans. One counter-theme showed that other factors such as opposition to the prolonged war and military policy were more likely to have changed public opinion. This report discusses how television media during the Vietnam war was just one aspect of how the public would have formed an opinion on such a complex issue, however concludes that further research is required to arrive at a definitive argument on such a controversial topic. Research Question This report explores what role the media played in forming public opinion within the U.S., regarding America’s involvement in the Vietnam War. The research is particularly focused on the level of influence the introduction of television journalism had on forming public opinion during the war efforts. Escalation of U.S. involvement from aid to major deployment within Vietnam began after the Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964 (Gifford 2007, p. 18). This period also saw television established as a mass medium across homes...
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...amongst the generation itself, and the Vietnam War could be considered the hottest issue. The personal interviews presented in Discovering the American Past conducted on baby boomers, asking about their experiences revolving the Vietnam War, effectively displays the variety of reasons young individuals at the time believed the war was being fought for; some individuals shared similar reasons and others had differing reasons. In...
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...Unwinnable war II The unwinnable war speech is a speech that is written and spoken by Robert F. Kennedy, which will say, that he is the sender of this text. The speech was hold under the circumstances of the Vietnam War. At the time the speech was hold, USA was loosing in Vietnam and Robert F. Kennedy was presidential candidate. Which will say that he by some knew about the war and its consequences. The speech is turned against the explicit audience of the USA population, who assumed that the US was winning the war in Vietnam. He is using rhetorical devises as logos and Ethos, he is well formulated and trying to make his points as clear as possible and do it with a passion about the topic. He uses logos when he want’s to make a point clear to his audience: ‘’Imagine the impact in our own country if an equivalent number—over 25 million Americans—were wandering homeless or interned in refugee camps, and millions more refugees were being created as New York and Chicago, Washington and Boston, were being destroyed by a war raging in their streets.’’ (l. 58-61, p. 3) So as we can se in this example, he both use some sort of figurative language because he compares the Vietnam situation in a American perspective and while he do that, he is emphasizing he’s argument by putting numbers to the bigger picture and appealing to people with logos. He does also uses pathos in a smaller degree as here, when he both appealing with logos and pathos at the same time: ‘‘you cannot expect...
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...Vietnam War Vietnam had been part of a French colony in Indochina. French Indochina was established when France took control of northern Vietnam following their victory over China.1 The northern part of Vietnam was controlled by Ho Chi Minh and his communist Viet Minh party.2 The Vietcong was a political organization and army in South Vietnam that fought the U.S and South Vietnamese governments during the Vietnam War. ith the W Cold War intensifying, the United States hardened its policies against any allies of the Soviet Union, and by 1955 Presidentwight D. Eisenhower D had pledged his firm support to Diem and South Vietnam.3 John F. Kennedy sent a group to south vietnam and advised a build up of American military. U.S politicians believed in the domino theory which is the belief that if one country fell to communism, its neighbours would follow.4 The U.S was depending on this theory and by the time the military grew. The U.S was trying to get rid of communism and with this the U.S and other countries took part in forming the SEATO ( Southeast Asia Treaty Organization). The purpose of SEATO was to prevent communism from gaining ground in the region.5 The USS Maddox was a destroyer ship and in August 1964, MADDOX was one of the leading actors in the Tonkin Incident that eventually lead to the Vietnam War.6 The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed by congress to promote the maintenance of peace and security in southeast asia...
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...Abstract This paper discusses how the Vietnam Conflict impacted American society. The topics explored involve how the U.S. was affected socially, economically, and politically. Impact of Vietnam Conflict on American Society The enormity of the damage caused by the Vietnam Conflict is still felt in American society today. While public attitude toward Vietnam Veterans is changing, and faith in the military has returned, there is still a lot of skepticism toward the U.S. Federal Government. Americans don’t want to send their sons and daughters into another seemingly pointless war. One of the major consequences on U.S. society created by the Vietnam Conflict was the enormous strain on the American economy, due to the estimated $167 billion spent on the war. Inflation and increasing federal debt had a major negative effect on the US economy and seriously lowered living standards from the late 1960’s until the 1990’s. Another consequence on society was the public rejection of the war and the soldiers who fought in it. Vietnam vets were considered vicious killers, immoral human beings, drug addicts; they were treated like the lowest form of human existence ("Cold war in," 2011). The Vietnam conflict was a viewed as a devastating loss and resulted in a loss of pride and self- confidence in the American people. The U.S. experienced a reappraisal of American power and glory. At the beginning of the war the American public supported it, because they believed it was part...
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...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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...or loved one feels when a loved one goes to war. Valdez supports his protest by showing us flashbacks of Johnny’s life and what family endured because he enlisted in the Vietnam war. The author’s purpose is to condemn the war and encourage all young men to serve in the war. The author writes in a darkly humorous tone for every family who has gone through the same. Although in some ways Johnny is a tragic hero, some characteristics of his life suggest that he is not a hero. Johnny is a good person with many positive characteristics. He shows this to us when his actions are sweet to his mother and Cecilia. Johnny...
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...The Vietnam War was a bloody, violent war that many disagreed with. The use of napalm, agent orange, “daisy cutter” bombs, and guerrilla warfare in tunnels perforating Vietnam generated fifty thousand American casualties, as well as horrible side effects from exposure to agent orange. Furthermore, to many, the war had no real purpose, and America was stepping out of their place by getting involved. This led to a huge anti-war movement, in which everyone from students to veterans were involved. Out of all of these groups rebelling, the most notable is some of the veterans of the Vietnam war. They spoke out openly, and spearheaded massive riots in metropolitan areas such as New York City and Washington D.C. The veterans spoke out against the war because, unlike previous wars, they saw this one as immoral and unnecessary....
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...Orange County, California inside or outside a residence because it is illegal. However, you can smoke inside and outside a residence in Riverside County, California. These are just laws in California. In war, these are called Rules of Engagement (ROE). These rules were designed to “control the response of troops in combat and to protect friendly, civilian, and sometimes enemy troops from harm and danger.” ("Soldiers Perspective - The Purpose of Military Rules of Engagement (ROE)," n.d.) There are two basic reasons ROE was developed. The first main reason was to prevent killing and injuring innocent people. The second is to allow troops to defend themselves from real threats and to prevent friendly fire. ROE also focused on mission accomplishments and obedience of law and policy. The ROE for the individual soldiers left them with their hands tied. They were unable to defend themselves at some times by commands far above them. Their largest worry was their primary job properly while maintaining a heightened level of alertness, which borderlines paranoia (E. Higgins, personal communication, March 30, 2015). Within the ROE for the Vietnam War, the troops were not allowed to use indirect fire, as well as constrained air support. Logically, this furthered the stresses of war and paranoia. Battalion commanders also had complex issues as well. These higher-ranking troops needed to ensure the troops under them were ready for combat mentally, physically, and spiritually. At all...
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