Tom Hayden, cofounder of SDS and still a leader of the New Left, passed through Detroit in February, 1971, while Vietnam Veterans Against the War was staging its Winter Soldier Investigation (in fact he first met Jane Fonda, his future wife, there). He claims that until he listened to veterans speaking about their war experiences, it had never occurred to him that the United States might lose the war. In other words, before Winter Soldier, the war for him was chiefly a foreign-policy issue. Afterward, at least in part because of what the vets said there, he began to see more clearly that "losing a war is a state of mind." The major loss for individual soldiers, he learned, was not of the territory they were holding, but a loss of their own mental peace:
We included the "losing a war is a state of mind" quote by Hayden on the WS.com quotes page.
Afterward, at least in part because of what the vets said there, he began to see more clearly that "losing a war is a state of mind." The major loss for individual soldiers, he learned, was not of the territory they were holding, but a loss of their own mental peace:
Sounds like revisionist history. Hayden visited Hanoi in Dec 1965 for the first time. He was mainly responsible for the shift of the New Left from anti-war to pro-Hanoi. Far from being a foreign policy matter, Hayden wanted Hanoi to win. He was Fonda's Svengali. I also wonder where Hayden's insights were when he was posing with our POWs in Hanoi.