...One Million Dead for Naught The involvement of U.S. military forces in the Vietnam Conflict was neither justifiable nor demonstrative of sound judgment by the American government. Many books, magazines, and other forms of commentary on the Vietnam War have surfaced in the half century since the war’s end. Historian and author Stanley Karnow suggests that such publications generally attempt to make sense of the horrific “war that nobody won” (Karnow 9). It is a subject that will continue endlessly to divide historians and others as they attempt to draw lessons from the conflict that might then be used to justify, condemn, or promote America’s involvement in modern day Vietnams. Because of the magnitude of complexities surrounding the war, some may find it difficult to formulate an unwavering opinion about the war’s causes and effects. According to Robert McNamara, who served as Secretary of Defense for Presidents Kennedy and Johnson, mankind has often struggled to find solutions to even simple problems related to the unification of values and ideologies spanning diverse cultures (McNamara 323). In order to fairly judge why the American government put our troops in the jungles, swamps, and fields of Vietnam, one might first closely examine why our government claims to have committed our troops to Vietnam. One of the reasons most adamantly advanced by our government to justify a full scale assault on the Vietcong of North Vietnam was an incident that is said to have occurred...
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...The Vietnam War Karthik Rao AP World History 3/28/14 The Vietnam War, fought between 1959 and 1975, was one of the most controversial and debated wars in American history. The war was the prolonged struggle between nationalist forces attempting to unify the country of Vietnam under a communist or democratic government. The Vietnam War was part of the Cold War, during which the United States and the Soviet Union were in a sustained state of political and military tension. U.S. involvement in Vietnam created tension among the America public, leading to debates about some of the horrific acts of war that the United States army committed against the civilian population of Vietnam. Authors Nick Turse and James Westheider, provide very different points of view regarding the war. Turse’s novel, Kill anything that moves: The Real American war in Vietnam, draws upon emotion and particularly sympathy for the Vietnamese civilians. His novel describes the unjust military actions that the U.S. army committed against the Vietnamese public. On the other hand, Westheider’s novel, The Vietnam War, provides a point of view showing sympathy for the United States soldiers fighting a war facing horrid conditions. Overall, both books provide different views of one of the most controversial wars fought in the 20th century. The war in Vietnam was perhaps one of the biggest military failures in the United States. Between 1954 and 1964, the United States was merely providing aid to the forces of...
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...Assignment 1: The Cold War and U.S. Diplomacy Annette Hickson Dr. John Cronin Strayer University POL300 – International Problems February 9, 2014 Introduction The Second World War forever changed how the United States viewed its role in foreign affairs. America understood it could no longer stand by and watch countries abroad occupy other nations without feeling any impact. In order to combat this threat, several presidents introduced ideologies to prevent the spread of communism and position America as a leader of the free world. America looked for ways to promote democracy around the world but it was met with opposition. The Soviet Union was not willing to conform to America’s way of life and this battle was the basis for the Cold War. The Sixties was an era in which the Freedom Movement gained momentum and Americans began to question whether or not the government was honest with the public (Schultz, 2012). Meanwhile, foreign policy would dominate as President Lyndon Johnson inherited the U.S. involvement in Vietnam. To better understand President Johnson’s ideals, this paper will summarize the situation that required U.S. diplomatic efforts during President Johnson’s time in office. Furthermore, President Johnson’s diplomatic doctrine will be analyzed with reference to specific actions and events. Finally, the effects of these diplomatic efforts for the U.S. and other countries will be described to assess its impact...
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... September 28, 2015 Martha Rosler’s Gender Perspective During the Age of War As a form of art, photography expresses documents, personal visions, and memories that can often define images as very powerful and iconic. In the series Bringing the War Home: House Beautiful (1967-72), Martha Rosler, an American artist specializing in video, performance, installation and photo-text about art and culture, compiles ten photomontages from different magazines in order to convey the controversial issue of war during the early second part of the 20th century. Rosler uses a variety of mediums, but her most recognizable medium is photomontages and photo-collage. Constructed during the peak of U.S. military engagement in Vietnam and an outgrowth of Rosler’s self involvement with anti-war activities, these photographs are a response to the artist’s “frustration with the images we saw in television and print media, even with anti-war flyers and posters. The images we saw were always very far away, in a place we couldn’t imagine.” Through her choice to use colored images, she assembles photos together from homemaking women’s magazine such as Life Magazine and images from war. She accentuates the dominance of domestic representation and intersects it between war imagery by juxtaposing in a brutal and sometimes incongruous way. Rosler’s montages reconnect the two sides of human experience: the war in Vietnam, and the everyday-life in America. One of Rosler’s iconic image: Cleaning the...
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...United States could not have won the Vietnam War. There are a few instances where the United States faced hardships, yet did not complete or take the necessary steps to overcome them. For example, the U.S. soldiers were unfamiliar with the terrain, the fighting tactics the soldiers had been taught were not adequate, and the soldiers were all young and inexperienced (Bernstein). To better understand how the U.S. would have lost the Vietnam War, it’s best to look at what went wrong and what contributed to the impending loss. Unbelievably, but almost all of the U.S.’s failures can be traced back to the failed leadership by politicians and generals, specifically by not...
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...Significant Events Lauren Smith 4 March 2012 Significant Events The social, economic and political events in the United States throughout the years have shaped the way we live today. After World War II and up until the 1990’s, the United States has gone through major tragedies, schools and jobs have integrated, and President’s have been assassinated. 1950’s Central High School in Little Rock, AK, forced to integrate became known as the little rock 9. September 20, 1957, Judge Ronald N. Davies granted the NAACP lawyers, Thurgood Marshall and Wiley Branton the right to stop governor Faubus from using the National Guard to stop the nine black students from entering the high school. After finally agreeing to not use the National Guard, he wished the students would stay away until integration could occur without violence. He knew there would be violence African Americans in their school. September 23, 1957 the nine black students were off to school. Being smart, they went in through the rear so they could avoid as many conflicts as possible. White mobs joined together to protest the new students while reporters met to support the black students. All of the white mobs went crazy when they finally heard that the new students were in their high school. The nine black students actually exited out the rear of the building the minute the mobs came so they would not get hurt. The following day President Eisenhower actually sent the 101st Airborne Division so the...
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...Anyone know about the symbolism in ‘A Quiet American’ by Graham Greene? | Pyle represents the idealistic New Age America, thirsty for heroism. Phuong represents pre-war Vietnam, passive, innocent. What exactly does Fowler represent? Is it the wisdom and world-weariness of Old Europe or Britain’s involvement in the war simply for personal gain? | The symbolism of the individual characters has to be placed within the context of colonialism, since that was the relationship between the nations they each represented. Pyle's motives are far from heroic. An idealism that is motivated by interventionism in a Third World country's affairs can be dangerous and destructive, not only in the way Graham Greene saw it in the early fifties, but as history proved it by the events that unfolded years later, leading to the US war in Viet Nam. Or for what is happening now in Iraq, if you will. Fowler had the "old colonialist" wisdom that questioned Pyle's justification for violence. He had already learned that "democracy" is something many countries neither understand nor want, and any foreign attempt to impose it is doomed to failure. I don't know that this helps, but I can't see the novel any other way. | | Outline of characters | Thomas Fowler is a British journalist in his fifties who has been covering the French war in Viet Nam for over two years. He meets a young American idealist named Alden Pyle, who is a student of York Harding. Harding's theory is that neither Communism...
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...contributed to the My Lai Massacre’s reputation as one of the darkest moments in the Vietnam War (Morelock 60). Part of the effectiveness of this presentation to the public is due to its constant featuring in major news outlets. For example, the story was featured on the front page of TIME magazine in 1971. Also, photos captured by combat photographers helped present people with images of the event, painting a vivid image of the murders (Wilberding 31). All this knowledge was accompanied by the building disapproval of America’s involvement in the Vietnam war, and My Lai served as evidence of America’s failure (Wilberding...
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...for Ethical Politics In America Each decade brings about important events that shaped and affected the political status in the United States. The exploration of the effects of McCarthyism on the Cold War shows the evolution of the political tone in the United States. The United States’ political control over Communist takeover was elevated until approximately midway through the Vietnam War. At which time, the United States’ involvement in Vietnam and the fight against communism was questioned. Following this period, the threat of socialism seemed to diminish, and Watergate caused many people to distrust political officials. When this scandal finally settled down, a new leadership brought about the biggest change in the Cold War since its inception, and a new respect for political power. Senator Joseph McCarthy: Fight Against Communism After World War II, the threat of Communist takeover was real. By 1949, Communists took control of Eastern Europe and Asia, and by 1950, China had succumbed to Communist rule (Davidson, Gienapp, Heyrman, Lytle, & Stoff, 2005, p. 812). The United States’ involvement in the fight to save China, led some Republicans to believe the Democrats let the Communists win (Davidson, Gienapp, Heyrman, Lytle, & Stoff, 2005, p. 813). To further complicate matters, in 1949, the trial of Alger Hiss, the man accused of selling secrets to the Russians in the 1930s, was convicted for lying about his association with known Communist, Whittaker Chambers...
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...The Vietnam War was one of the most divisive events in American History. While half the country believed that the United States had a right to defend capitalism and contain communism by fighting in Vietnam, the other half felt that since the concern was far away and the United States had not been directly attacked, there was no reason for 500,000 Americans to be over there fighting and dying. The divisions deepened in November 1969 when news broke that American soldiers had massacred an entire village of South Vietnamese civilians near the border of North Vietnam. On 16 March 1968, Charlie Company of the United States Army invaded the Son My region of South Vietnam because, according to the commanding officer Lieutenant William Calley, and...
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...The Cold War and U.S. Diplomacy Assignment 1 Sheba James Dr. Tayo Penosen Strayer University Contemporary International Problems 300 January 29, 2015 “A View From The Outside Looking In” Lyndon B. Johnson was elected the 37th Vice President of the United States in 1960 and became president on November 22, 1963 aboard Air Force One following the assassination of then-President John F. Kennedy. Kennedy was said to have added Johnson to his ticket to ensure Southern votes, and that may have been the thought, but in reality the right man inherited this great undertaking. During his initial administrative tenure under President Kennedy, Vice President Johnson endorsed the Kennedy doctrine of Vietnam. Oversaw the equal opportunity programs for minorities, and headed the space programs; all while spearheading the negotiations of the Limited Test Ban Treaty of 1963 with the Soviet Union which became the first arms control agreement (Peters and Woolley, 1999-2015, & Bio,2015). With most doctrines, they are started by one president and finished by his successor and Johnson did what was expected. What wasn't expected was the fury in which he led each endeavor. On January 20, 1965 Lyndon B. Johnson began his first term as the elected President of the United States; holding true to his oath, he picked up where Kennedy left off. Moreover, he put out some doctrines of his own; the passage of the Medicaid and Medicare acts, and voting rights for minorities. In 1965, Johnson...
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...Gladys Vint 11/20/2011 Following World War II there have been many social, economic, and political events that have taken place during this decade. Different people may have various opinions of what event had the most impact or effect on the American people than other events within the same decade. I will attempt to explain the events that I believe are the most significant events of this era. 1950’s Civil Rights Movement The Civil Rights Movement began in the late 1940’s and extended throughout the late 60’s. Many people can recall some of the key events that took place during this time. For example, we all remember reading about Ruby Bridges, Martin Luther King Jr, Rosa Parks, and Malcolm X, and many others that played an important role in the Civil Rights movement. However, Ruby Bridges is the small 6 year old little girl that comes to mind when I think of the beginning of the Civil Rights movement. This young brave little girl was escorted on her first day to school by U.S. Marshalls, as her parents stood close by. She endured being called names and threatened and feared being poisoned if she ate anything besides a packaged bag of potato chips (Davidson, Gienapp, Heymann, Lytle & Stoff, 2006). Ruby was the only students for several weeks until white students finally began coming back to school during the first year since the segregation of the schools (Davidson, et al., 2006). Ruby’s parents had different views about her being the only black child to attend...
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...Schenck V. United States was a court case that developed out of the opposition of the United States involvement in World War I. Antiwar sentiment was so popular among certain groups it cause Congress to Act on this opposition of the war. In response to this, Congress passed the Espionage and Sedition Acts. These acts stated that a person could be fined up to one hundred thousand dollars and sentenced to twenty years in jail for interfering with the war effort or saying anything disloyal, profane, or abusive about the government or the war effort. The acts also made it illegal to interfere with recruitment efforts of the U.S. armed forces. These laws were a direct violation of the First Amendment, which led to many of arrests and convictions of...
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... BERNATH LECTURE The New International History of the Cold War: Three (Possible) Paradigms* The Cold War is not what it once was. Not only has the conflict itself been written about in the past tense for more than a decade, but historians’ certainties about the character of the conflict have also begun to blur. The concerns brought on by trends of the past decade – such trifles as globalization, weapons proliferation, and ethnic warfare – have made even old strategy buffs question the degree to which the Cold War ought to be put at the center of the history of the late twentieth century. In this article I will try to show how some people within our field are attempting to meet such queries by reconceptualizing the Cold War as part of contemporary international history. My emphasis will be on issues connecting the Cold War – defined as a political conflict between two power blocs – and some areas of investigation that in my opinion hold much promise for reformulating our views of that conflict, blithely summed up as ideology, technology, and the Third World. I have called this lecture “Three (Possible) Paradigms” not just to avoid making too presumptuous an impression on the audience but also to indicate that my use of the term “paradigm” is slightly different from the one most people have taken over from Thomas Kuhn’s work on scientific revolutions. In the history of science, a paradigm has come to mean a comprehensive explanation, a kind of scientific “level”...
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...commonly known by his initials JFK, was an American politician who served as the 35th President of the United States from January 1961 until he was assassinated in November 1963. After military service as commander of Motor Torpedo Boats PT-109 and PT-59 during World War II in the South Pacific, Kennedy represented Massachusetts's 11th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953 as a Democrat. Thereafter, he served in the U.S. Senate from 1953 until 1960. Kennedy defeated vice president and Republican candidate Richard Nixon in the 1960 U.S. presidential election. At age 43, he was the youngest to have been elected to the office,[2][a] the second-youngest president (after Theodore Roosevelt), and the first person born in the 20th century to serve as president.[3] To date, Kennedy has been the only Roman Catholic president and the only president to have won a Pulitzer Prize.[4] Events during his presidency included the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Space Race—by initiating Project Apollo (which would culminate in the moon landing), the building of the Berlin Wall, the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and increased U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas on November 22, 1963. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested that afternoon and charged with the crime that night. Jack Ruby shot and killed Oswald two days later, before a trial could take place. The FBI and the Warren Commission...
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