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The Vietnam War
Introduction
Countries and nations faces many things during their lifespan. There are good and bad days in the history of every nation. These days depict the glory and enthusiasm of a nation. Good days glorify them and shows the enthusiasm and valor of the nation while the bad days show the unity and courage in the people belonging to that nation. Good days of a nation or a country refer to the times of prosperity, happiness, and progress. If a country is doing well economically, the export ratio is higher as compared to the imports, the country is earning a well-settled ratio of GDP and per capita income is much higher so that a person can afford all the necessities of life.
The United States of America has also seen many highs and lows in its history. There were good times and there were bad times but the nation stood strong and the people completely supported each other in these tough times. They showed that the people of America are united under the flag, no matter what the circumstances are. One of these tough times was the Vietnam War. Although many leaders, politicians, and political critics were not in favor of it but they still criticize the government heavily for it, still the war happened and the United States participated with full strength in it. Unites States won almost all of its battles but still the communists won at the end.
Discussion
The History of Vietnam War
Vietnam War is the name given to the war conducted by the forces of the United States of America against the resistance of the communists and thus the war is also known as the Resistance War against the United States of America. It is also known as second Indochina War. It was actually a war between Capitalism and communism (Janssen, n.d.). This war did not just start suddenly but the seeds for this war were sown long before the actual war since the initiation of the cold war of the United States. The political tensions, especially the Cold War, between the United States, the Soviet Union, and China led to many grave consequences, out of which Vietnam War was one of the major ones. The war had officially started on November 1, 1955 but the United States of America entered into it on March 8, 1965. The Vietnam War ended on 30 April 1975 with the fall of the Saigon.
Lyndon Baines Johnson: Remarks on the Gulf of Tonkin Incident
Lyndon B. Johnson was an American politician and a great critic of the political situations going on in the country. Johnson also served as the 36th president of the United States of America after the assassination of the famous leader John F. Kennedy. After resuming the office in November 1963, the newly formed president, gave a speech to the congress, just after five days of his predecessor’s assassination. Lyndon promised to carry forward and advance the domestic programs that former president John F. Kennedy had started. He also promised to strengthen the forces of the United States of America at the international fronts in every form.
President Lyndon B. Johnson presented his remarks on the most notable incident of the Vietnam War, the Gulf Tonkin Incident. Gulf Tonkin Incident was one of the major incidents on international confrontation by the United States of America that led the later to indulge more directly into the war. In his remarks regarding the incident, the newly formed president promised to stop the activities of the United States naval forces in the Gulf of Tonkin. But when he left the seat in 1968, the war was still burning and the flames of it had risen much higher than before.
John McNaughton: Plan of Action for South Vietnam
John Theodore McNaughton, was a former politician and the United States Secretary of Defence for International Security Affairs, during the period of Vietnam War. He was the biggest opponent of the war between USA and Vietnam and never wanted the superpower to indulge in the bloodshed. To avoid this fight and create peace in the region, McNaughton, presented a plan of action for South Vietnam in 1965, before the forces of the United States attacked the country in Southeast Asia. The points presented this plan clearly states that the United States of America should not indulge in the war as it would greatly affect the reputation of the superpower. Moreover, the economic and military shout focus on improving it's economy and defence instead of thinking to attack other countries.
Even after four decades of his death, he is still the least understood American officials of the history. He was greatly misunderstood as a clever hawk in the history of the United States of America and most of the people in the American politics and the office, even his own colleagues and the ones very close to him, considered that he wanted to take the advantage of the political situation of the country. It was later revealed through his personal journal and the private papers that he had written along with drafting the plan for South Vietnam that he never wanted the country to involve in a fight or the war.
My Lai Massacre Witness Statements and Testimony
The My Lai Massacre refers to one of the most horrific and cruel incidents that took place during the days of the Vietnam War. It was a huge incident of mass massacre against unarmed civilians of the My Lai village on March 16, 1968. This killing spree was carried on by a company of American Soldiers who brutally killed almost all of the people living in the village including women, children and old men.
A number of people were investigated and asked about the incident after the mass level massacre was carried on. Different statements were given by a number of people and the eyewitnesses who were present there. One of the eyewitnesses, CAM, Stated in his sworn statement that he was working in the fields when he saw three helicopter s land at some distance at different times of the day. These helicopters unloaded American soldiers, who went towards his village. CAM then heard multiple voices of shootings and screams but could not guess exactly who was shooting.
Another eye witness who had personally witnessed and suffered through this whole incident, Pham Thi TUU, states that she was in her home when she heard the voices of helicopters and crowded people. She went outside and saw a crowd of people being hurdled towards a direction. They were taken to the rice field where the soldiers started shooting people. TUU sat down and bodies started falling over her. All these statements were included in the investigation report presented by the joint committee formed in order to investigate the causes and consequences of the incident.
John Kerry: Testimony of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War
John Forbes Kerry, an American politician and a former senator, presented his views about the Vietnam War on behalf of the Vietnam Veterans Against the War, in front of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. This statement or views were presented on April 22, 1971, on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. Being a former Navy lieutenant, Kerry had deep insight on all the political situations during the war and he clearly held a point of view that how things should have been handled during that phase.
John Kerry presented his view that in his opinion, the war was not a string of isolated incidents but a series of criminal activities conducted on daily basis. And these crimes were not only committed by a single soldier or any team under some specific command but by a number of people at different positions. These people included leaders, politicians, commanders, lieutenants, colonels and individual soldiers as well. Kerry was extremely furious that he and his fellows were made to kill innocent people and they got nothing in the end. He also presented a number of testimonials that were written by the soldiers and people at high command and ranks. All these individuals had participated in the Vietnam War in one role or another. In short, John Kerry was of the view that American nation had created a monster by instigating the Vietnam War.
Conclusion
In short, it can be concluded that the Vietnam War was not a good decision by the United States government. Although the war had started a long-ago United States indulgence in it had added fuel to the fire and made the conditions go even worse. The seed for this war was sown long before the war actually started or the United States actually jumped on the battlefield. The political tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union and China proved to be a major cause of this war. The decision of involvement in this war was opposed by many leaders, politicians and even military figures. The veterans who had participated in this war still regret the decision. The speech made by John Kerry in 1971 is a clear example. Although many politicians, including the presidents like Lyndon B Johnson made promises to put an end to the war, the war only stopped with the fall of Saigon in 1975.
Works Cited
Janssen, V. (n.d.). Milestone Documents. [online] Milestonedocuments.com. Available at: https://www.milestonedocuments.com/textbook_articles/view/the-vietnam-war [Accessed 18 Nov. 2019].
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