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I'm 33 and consider myself well versed in history in relation to the average person but for some reason the Vietnam War has never really interested me.
I graduated from high school in 1964 and, like my father before me, enlisted in the Army shortly thereafter. I completed Basic, Advanced Basic and Airborne in less than a year. In every sense, the Vietnam War was MY WAR. I arrived incountry in July of 1965, and experienced it (directly or indirectly) from that moment all the way to the end. I have spent a large percentage of my time, from my return to The World until this very moment, trying to make sense of it all.
With all respect due to the "whippersnappers" among you, you don't know sh*t about Vietnam. What you've read in the books doesn't begin to explain it. Hell, I was there and I still can't explain it -- not in words anyway.
I graduated from high school in 1964 and, like my father before me, enlisted in the Army shortly thereafter. I completed Basic, Advanced Basic and Airborne in less than a year. In every sense, the Vietnam War was MY WAR. I arrived incountry in July of 1965, and experienced it (directly or indirectly) from that moment all the way to the end. I have spent a large percentage of my time, from my return to The World until this very moment, trying to make sense of it all.
With all respect due to the "whippersnappers" among you, you don't know sh*t about Vietnam. What you've read in the books doesn't begin to explain it. Hell, I was there and I still can't explain it -- not in words anyway.
Well, that's all that folks born after you who did not serve in Vietnam are trying to do--make sense out of it. I don't think anywhere on this post anyone has claimed that they know what it was all about. No one is asserting that they are all-knowing on all things Vietnam. Further, I've read quite a few books on Vietnam and not once did an author claim that they knew what it was all about--rather these authors merely presented evidence about the war so as to draw larger conclusions about America in the Cold War.
Perhaps you should calm down just a little. This is a forum, not WWF.
Well, that's all that folks born after you who did not serve in Vietnam are trying to do--make sense out of it. I don't think anywhere on this post anyone has claimed that they know what it was all about. No one is asserting that they are all-knowing on all things Vietnam. Further, I've read quite a few books on Vietnam and not once did an author claim that they knew what it was all about--rather these authors merely presented evidence about the war so as to draw larger conclusions about America in the Cold War.
Perhaps you should calm down just a little. This is a forum, not WWF.
My post was, or attempted to be, respectful. Your last paragraph, which I placed in bold italics, crossed the line big-time.
1. You started this thread. Correct?
2. You chose the title "The American Experience in Vietnam." Correct?
3. So far, neither you nor anyone else has asked those Americans who actually served about their Experiences. Nor has anyone asked those Americans who, in the 60's and early 70's, opposed and protested the War about their Experiences. Neither has anyone bothered to cite interviews concerning the Experiences of either group.
Perhaps you either need to re-focus your efforts or re-name the thread.
Regards as always,
-- Nighteyes
BTW, the WWF was folded into the WWE back in 2003. If you're going to attempt an insult, you should at least use up-to-date acronyms. You probably also need to pack a lunch, 'cause its gonna take a while...
Last edited by Nighteyes; 06-29-2011 at 05:39 PM..
With all due respect to Nighteyes, the view you get from the stomach of the whale doesn't fully describe the whale. It's a valuable insight, to be sure, but there were things going on that you did not know about, and much of that did not come to light until long after the fact.
With all due respect to Nighteyes, the view you get from the stomach of the whale doesn't fully describe the whale. It's a valuable insight, to be sure, but there were things going on that you did not know about, and many of those came to light with much later investigation.
Good point.
That wasn't the initial question, though. It was "The American Experience in Vietnam." From where I sit, no one has addressed the experience itself.
Okay, since I pretty much pooh-pooh'ed the earlier posts for not addressing the actual experiences in (and about) Vietnam, allow me to go first.
I was born in the South in June of 1946, literally in the advanced guard of the true post-war baby boom (do the math). I grew up in the euphoria and good times that followed the conclusion of WWII. Life was GOOD, and the good ol' US of A could do no wrong. (Never mind those reports from Korea, y'all...)
I graduated high school in 1964. That means my Senior year began in September of 1963. We had a new teacher that year, a former Navy fighter pilot named (if you can believe it) John Kennedy. His middle initial wasn't "F"; it was "H." That didn't prevent us from giving a rousing cheer for him, and his name, in the first assembly!
Fast-forward from September to November 22nd, 1963. President Kennedy's assassination shook all of us down to our cores. How could this happen? What does it mean? What will we do? The black-and-white images of the assassination, of a blood-spattered First Lady, and of Lyndon B. Johnson assuming the Presidency, are still very clear in my mind.
Upon high school graduation I enlisted in the Army, just like my father before me. I was following in the footsteps of "The Greatest Generation" and determined to do my part in furthering the legacy.
Fast-forward to the Republic of South Vietnam in the summer of 1965. For that climate we were poorly equipped. Our clothing and load-bearing gear -- belts, pouches, packs -- were made of cotton-based fabrics. Cotton absorbs moisture like a sonuva -- well, you know -- so it was REAL heavy and rotted REAL fast. Our metal canteens and other equipment couldn't stand up to the climate either. The first doubts began to surface...
I'll finish this in another post, but I think you can see where its headed...
I did not interpret the OP to mean the personal 'experience' of American troops on the ground, but 'experience' defined as what did America as a whole think and feel during our national involvement in and commitment to the Vietnam War, what did we think in retrospect afterward, and what lessons did or could we have learned as a consequence of that event. Every American "experienced" the Vietnam War---some on the ground in Asia, some in Canada, but most at home.
When the USA pulled out military units from Vietnam we stripped the units of equipment and weapons to leave behind for ARVN. When we left South Vietnam had enough weapons to equip several hundred thousand American troops plus the bases and aircraft, ARVN had more planes and helicopters than the army and airforce of the United Kingdom. Guess what happened in 1975 when ARVN folded and the Army of Democratic Republic of Vietnam moved into the South. Most of that equipment ended up in the hands of the North Vietnamese. It was a key reason the North Vietnamese made short work of Pol Pot and Democratic Kampuchea in 1978. The Vietnamese used air mobile tactics learned from us when they were on the recieving end. They had more than enough hueys to do the job plus M113s and M-48 tanks also a lot of M-16s. Then when the Chinese decided to teach the Vietnamese a lesson for disposing of their ally Pol Pot, the Vietnamese gave Beijing a bloody nose. Today North Vietnam still lovingly cares for the UH-1s and still uses them.
My post was, or attempted to be, respectful. Your last paragraph, which I placed in bold italics, crossed the line big-time.
1. You started this thread. Correct?
2. You chose the title "The American Experience in Vietnam." Correct?
3. So far, neither you nor anyone else has asked those Americans who actually served about their Experiences. Nor has anyone asked those Americans who, in the 60's and early 70's, opposed and protested the War about their Experiences. Neither has anyone bothered to cite interviews concerning the Experiences of either group.
Perhaps you either need to re-focus your efforts or re-name the thread.
Regards as always,
-- Nighteyes
BTW, the WWF was folded into the WWE back in 2003. If you're going to attempt an insult, you should at least use up-to-date acronyms. You probably also need to pack a lunch, 'cause its gonna take a while...
If you'd have read the OP carefully, you'd notice that I was seeking thoughts on American grand strategy regarding the war. In other words, I am hoping responders evaluate U.S. goals and objectives for engaging in such a long conflict in a place that was relatively isolated and far away. That is all.
I'm sorry you feel so insulted that I'm not interested in American soldiers' experiences and jtur (in a subsequent post) explained why.
The last line on my response to you was not so much an insult as it was a re-directive. My intent with this thread was not to second-guess the soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen who served in Vietnam, but to analyze the leaders' main reasons for engaging in war in the first place. I'm sorry you took it the wrong way.
Sorry, but you not mention strategy or policy in the Op. You cannot implement strategy or policy without boots on the ground, and those boots are the ones who know if it is a sucess or failure. Those Americans who were not involved in the war only experienced what we were told by those who were there, the government, and the media. Did we get the whole story? If we did, could we understand it without the experience of being on the ground? Yes, I would like to have a better understanding of this war, but to do that , I have to understand all sides.
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