Vietnam, After All? (The only similarity between Iraq and Vietnam is the sound of the critics.)

National Review Online ^ | June 9, 2006 | Victor Davis Hanson

[namvet66]

As with the formulaic type scenes of Homeric epic, there now arises a sense of familiarity with the current outcries over Haditha.

We do not really know yet what happened in that terrorist-infected hellhole, but it seems not to matter. Those who customarily decry the supposed loss of civil liberties are now the first to rush to judgment—reminding us that it is not always principle per se that they embrace, but a partisanship to be advanced at all costs.

Once we leave, the killing starts in earnest, not 20 or 30 per day, but wholesale slaughter of any Iraqis who taught school, or were clean shaven and wore Western dress, or fought to save Iraq.

[namvet66]

Those of us who were around (and especially those like myself who had friends/acquaintances left behind in Vietnam, who had trusted us and worked with us) in the 70's are not likely to soon forget the bloodbath that followed our "unilateral disengagement" from Vietnam--leaving all those millions (including those in Laos and Cambodia) to fend for themselves and the consequences of our [in]actions.

The victims of "re-education camps," prisons, outright executions, pogroms, genocide (as well as the casualties of the boat people trying to escape) numbered in the MILLIONS!

There are other consequences to consider should we "bug out" as we did in Vietnam.

What would be the affect on our Military (most who gave much--some who gave all) as a result of this type of outcome?

Speaking from experience, I can venture to posit that we would see a profound disillusionment and a sense of despair, from those who believed in what they were fighting for ONLY, to have the rug pulled out from under them, leaving them to ponder, "Was it worth it?"

And, the answer would be self-evident; the same as the majority of us Nam Vets now believe. HELL NO!!!

Our cause was just; our duty and service was honorable; however, the cost--when measured against the outcome--can never, be justified.

[OldFriend]

Partisanship to be advanced at all costs!

[freema]

USMC and Irey Ping

[Roccus]

As a VN era vet, the only similarity I see with todays conflict is the micro-management by Washington and the media. So long as the American people allow this to continue, I see small hope of victory.
Of course, my idea of victory is the eradication of islam, much as was done to Nazism and Japanese militarism.

[petercooper]

Dump Murtha! Click the logo and donate to Diana Irey for Congress!

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[goldstategop]

Liberals want us to lose. We must ensure that doesn't happen. For them the U.S is no good; for us, America is the last best hope of all mankind. Let that be a ringing call to arms in the defense of freedom and of our homeland so every patriot grave all over this broad Union will rest content with the knowledge their sacrifices ensure that government of people, for the people and by the people shall not soon perish from the earth.

(Denny Crane: "Every one should carry a gun strapped to their waist. We need more - not less guns.")

[p. henry]

Great article. VDH is one of the best writers of our day.

[maica]

More comments on the same article here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1646141/posts

[MountainMenace]

It is a telling trait of liberals that they want ever more freedoms for themselves but not for others. They are selfish and self-centered egoists. They have never understood that freedom is not free nor is it for the few. As long as tyranny exists anywhere we must be vigilant everywhere. I agree with this post, it is just another data point that proves Michael Savage is right - liberalism is a mental disorder. It has not always been this way but our "cutting lose from the base" values of our founders has corrupted this ideology and it is becoming like a cancer on the body politic.

[freema]

It lifts my heart and spirits so, every time I see FReepers pick up this torch!

[sergeantdave]

What frustrates me is that these media traitors won't leave their Marxist compounds so they can be confronted face-to-face in our communities.

A few years ago a half dozen hippy scum marched in our small community to protest the war.

Two weeks later the vet groups organized a march to support the troops. About 3,000 showed up. And not a word in our MSM left wing press, although the local newspaper did a good job covering it.

[Canedawg]

Irey bookmark

[ALOHA RONNIE]

.

NEVER FORGET



Pictures of a vietnamese Re-Education Camp

http://www.Freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1308949/posts



Signed:.."ALOHA RONNIE" Guyer
Veteran-"WE WERE SOLDIERS" Battle of IA DRANG-1965, Landing Zone Falcon

http://www.lzxray.com/guyer_set1.htm

http://www.lzxray.com/guyer_set2.htm

http://www.lzxray.com/guyer_set3.htm

http://www.lzxray.com/guyer_collection.htm



NEVER FORGET

.

[Doctor Raoul]

One of the "Faker Quakers" at the Saturday anti-war protest in Olney, Maryland likes to carry a "Is It Vietnam Yet?" sign.

So we chant, "Is It Kent State Yet?"

[namvet66]

"NEVER FORGET."

Don't worry friend, I (and many others) never will.

As a covert (USAF) Intel Agent(s), we often used Vietnamese Interpreters -- as most of us only spoke French and some Vietnamese -- when debriefing VC/NVA captives and Chieu Hoi as well as other operations and missions.

I can only imagine what happened to these men and women after we withdrew?

[ALOHA RONNIE]

.


This morning a brilliant man of CLARITY...

.. Mr. ANTHONY CORDESMAN of http://www.csis.org ..

...appeared as a C-SPAN guest on 'Washington Journal' correctly stating about Iraq that:


1) There are will be no turning points in the Iraq War, only steady progress, even though our Media keeps looking for turning points (i.e. their constant Vietnam War 'Light at the end of the tunnel' media syndrome)

2) Setting deadlines in Iraq would guarantee the defeat of Freedom there

3) Helping a new government Democracy in Iraq succeed is the only good answer there, no matter what time frame it takes

4) Failure to succeed in Iraq will bring very bad things down upon an entire region of the world (in this case that contains 60% of the world's oil)

JOHN KERRY knows all this about Iraq, and knew it then about Vietnam's fight for Freedom as well, and yet he continues to call for deadlines for our withdrawal from Iraq. Always purposely helping our terrorist enemies in the process

In this process...

JOHN KERRY came back from the Vietnam War to call us American Soldiers fighting for the Freedom of others there...

...rapists & terrorists,

...instead the actual ones we were fighing there.


MEL GIBSON came back from filming our real Vietnam War story titled

.."WE WERE SOLDIERS"..
http://www.WeWereSoldiers.com

...very deeply inspired to finally film his long planned ultimate story of LOVE & Sacrifice titled...

.."The PASSION of the Christ"..!!
http://www.ThePassionOfTheChrist.com


I wonder who got it right..??

---

MEL's -PASSION- sparked by -WE WERE SOLDIERS-

http://www.Freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1085111/posts

.

[ALOHA RONNIE]

.

As the old song goes..

"It's not your imagination"..!!

While staffing a Republican Party Election Campaign headquarters in Little Saigon, CA during the 2004 Presidential Election...

...I personally had my fingers placed in the long deep scars of now Free Vietnamese-American men and women who had had their stomachs maliciously cut open by Vietnamese Re-Education Camp prison guards. Scars that ran from the middle of their stomachs all the way down to their navels.

Men and women who were coming in by the droves to register to vote against a JOHN KERRY running for President ...that helped defeat Freedom for Vietnam long ago.

"Why did they do this to us?" these men and women asked me about their scars.

"Because they COULD" was my answer.

This cannot be allowed to happen again in this new LIBERTY Century, no matter the cost.

And it WILL NOT.


.

[Savage Beast]

"—followed by the old predictable liberal silence when the real killing begins."

Yes. How many tears did the Left shed for the victims of Pol Pot? The victims of passenger train, hospital, school bombings by NATO? The victims of "the bloodbath that followed our 'unilateral disengagement' from Vietnam"?

One of the most odious things about the Left is its dependble subordination of everything to the advancement of its morally vacuous agenda--which, in the final analysis, amounts to nothing more than a ruthless grasp for power.

[perfect stranger]