The Vietnam history you haven't heard

Christian Science Monitor ^ | 1/22/07 | Mark Moyar

[siddude]

QUANTICO, VA. - With ever-increasing frequency, Americans are told that Iraq is another Vietnam, usually by those accusing the Bush administration of miring the United States in a hopeless war. For most who make this comparison, the Vietnam War was an act of hubris, fought for no good reason and in alliance with cowards. But new historical research shows this conventional interpretation of Vietnam to be deeply flawed. The analogy, therefore, must be rethought.

Three journalists handed down the standard version of the Vietnam War in three bestselling tomes. The first two, David Halberstam's "The Best and the Brightest" (1972) and Stanley Karnow's "Vietnam: A History," (1983) each sold more than 1 million copies, while the third, Neil Sheehan's "A Bright Shining Lie" (1988), received the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award.

[siddude]

So many in the US have distorted interpretation of the war in Vietnam because of group think mentality.

[leadpenny]

Posted

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1771587/posts

[elhombrelibre]

It's an excellent article and well worth the time to read.

[Mr. K]

Henry Cabot Lodge was involved in Viet Nam???? Just how stupid was this guy?

[Vaquero]

"President Johnson should learn to use his power and should hit North Vietnam hard," said General Marjadi in explaining why American inaction was discouraging the generals from taking a firm anticommunist position. "The prize for victory in Vietnam is all of Asia. Asia respects power, and has no respect for weakness or for strong people afraid to act." Indonesian generals later said that US intervention inspired them to oust Sukarno and work to destroy the Indonesian Communist Party in late 1965.

those who refuse to learn from history are condemned to repeat it

[Thrownatbirth]

People forget that Vietnam was a strategic victory for the US - the Soviets were never able to secure a warm-water port (Saigon) in the Pacific, thus obviating their expansion into Southeast Asia.

[Interesting Times]

A thoughtful review of Dr. Mark Moyar's important new history of the first half of the Vietnam War.

[Redbob]

"those who refuse to learn from history are condemned to repeat it"

And sad to say, those U.S. Presidents hailing from Texas have generally been dullards.

Pres. Johnson being a shining example of such.

[what's up]

People forget that Vietnam was a strategic victory for the US

Lee Kwan Yew of Singapore credits the Vietnam War and the American effort there as allowing Singapore to have time to grow in strength so that today it is one of the capitalistic powerhouses of Asia.

He says the Domino Theory is no myth.

[gopsue]

Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. (July 5, 1902 – February 27, 1985) was a United States Senator from Massachusetts, a U.S. ambassador, and a candidate for Vice President of the United States.

Kennedy appointed Lodge to the position of Ambassador to South Vietnam, which he held from 1963 to 1964.

The author should have stipulated that it was Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

[Old Seadog]

Henry Cabot Lodge Junior was ambassador to S. Vietnam in the sixties.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[BulletBobCo]

Three journalists handed down the standard version of the Vietnam War in three bestselling tomes. The first two, David Halberstam's "The Best and the Brightest" (1972) and Stanley Karnow's "Vietnam: A History," (1983) each sold more than 1 million copies, while the third, Neil Sheehan's "A Bright Shining Lie" (1988), received the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award.

I thought there was a forth by John Kerry, "Did you know that I was in Vietnam and that I have some Purple Hearts".

[Old Seadog]

Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. should really be Henry Cabot Lodge II since he was named after his grandfather and not his father. Junior usually implies that you were named after your father.

[I. M. Trenchant]

Good for you. I have long wondered why the Vietnam War, which was variously called Johnson's War and Nixon's War, was not, more precisely, called Halberstam's War. The responsibility of Halberstam and the New York Times for 'Americanizing' the Vietnam War was dealt with by Richard Reeves in his President Kennedy. Profile Of Power. Being a journalist himself, Reeves was not as condemnatory of his fellow journalist, Halberstam, as his own outline of the responsibilities plainly justified. Of course Richard Nixon, in No More Vietnam's made many of the same arguments about the folly of the media calls for Diem's elimination.

[SMARTY]

So the question is, are all journalists whores?...or have journalists always been whores?

[piytar]

But then Halberstam and Sheehan published tendentious stories accusing Diem of acting without the knowledge of the military, citing "highly reliable" – but anonymous – sources. They also published stories stating that the officer corps was upset with Diem for his treatment of the Buddhists, based heavily on information from a Reuters stringer named Pham Xuan An who, unbeknownst to them, was actually a Communist agent. The stories were not true.

Sounds exactly like al-AP's reports from their mythical Jamil Hussein. What am I talking about? Look here: http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=24081_Whose_Credibility_Is_Gone_Now&only

One nit: I don't buy that these authors didn't know Phan Xuan An was a Communist agent. Libscum were the fifth column then hoping and working for a Commusist victory over America and her allies, and they are a fifth column now hoping and working for an Islamist victory over America and her allies...

[The Shrew]

based heavily on information from a Reuters stringer named Pham Xuan An who, unbeknownst to them, was actually a Communist agent. The stories were not true.

So, the use of stringers that work for the other side is not a new thing for Reuter's, or for AP, probably.

Regards,

TS

[norton]

the war was lost by JFK,
Johnson is not my hero but he took over a broken effort and had a war at home that Kennedy was spared; not much to work with.