Posted on 08/30/2007 8:26:30 AM PDT by Interesting Times
In the past week, the criticisms swirling around the President's VFW speech have provided much less insight into the President or the speech than into the critics. Rather than address the speech's central issue -- the 1975 debate over the ramifications of abandoning Vietnam -- these individuals have tried to push their own views on Iraq by mentioning other aspects of Vietnam. Emblematic of the attackers was Senator John Kerry, who said that the President's comparison of Vietnam with Iraq was "irresponsible" and "ignorant of the realities of both of those wars." Kerry explained that in Iraq, as in Vietnam, "more American soldiers are being sent to fight and die in a civil war we can't stop and an insurgency we can't bomb into submission." Senator Ted Kennedy, another opponent of both wars, backed this interpretation with the comment that the United States lost the Vietnam War because the South Vietnamese government "lacked sufficient legitimacy with its people."
Kerry and Kennedy missed key facts about Vietnam, some of them long obvious, others newly emerged from historical studies. The New York Times and NBC News and CNN and so on missed them, too, because they chose to rely on outdated historians or their own prejudices. The insurgency in Vietnam was dead by 1971, thanks to South Vietnam's armed forces, America's forces, and a South Vietnamese civilian population that overwhelmingly viewed the South Vietnamese government as legitimate. During 1972, after all American combat units had departed, South Vietnamese forces defeated a massive North Vietnamese invasion with the help of American air power. The so-called Christmas bombing of 1972 bombed North Vietnam into submission, resulting in a peace treaty. Had the antiwar Congress not slashed aid to South Vietnam and prohibited the use of American aircraft over Vietnamese skies...
(Excerpt) Read more at spectator.org ...
“The insurgency in Vietnam was dead by 1971, thanks to South Vietnam’s armed forces, America’s forces, and a South Vietnamese civilian population that overwhelmingly viewed the South Vietnamese government as legitimate.”
Incorrect. The VC were largely defunct by 71 due to their over reach and repulse by American forces during the Tet offensive and subsequent attacks. For the author of this piece to claim that South Vietnamese civilians were suddenly all for their government and thus played a role in the impotence of the VC is wrong.
The premise of the massive '68 Tet uprising by the VC in all major cities of the South was that the people would join them against the government. That didn't happen, which allowed U.S. and S.V. forces to decimate them.
If Dr. Moyar says S.V. civilian support of the government was an important factor, you can take it to the bank. His research is meticulous.
You were gone?
JK
Thanks for the ping, stick around ok?
Granted the Southern population didn’t cross over to the VC / NVA side. However, according to Ronald Spector’s “After Tet” as well as James Arnold’s “The Tet Offensive,” confidence and support in the govt collapsed as they witnessed their govt being unable to defend them without American help.
You can always tell the people who want to control others. Somewhere inside you is a communist trying to get out.
Do you really think the majority of us on FR give a rat's butt whether Vietnam or Viet Nam is the correct spelling? We know what country he is talking about and that is what matters. I'll bet you are one of the myriad posting police also. Get a life.
And yet the S.V. Army held up very well against the massive invasion of 1972, by which time we were down to a few thousand ground troops in country. U.S. air power made a big difference, of course.
I took an extended break after the virulent FR purges this spring.
The focus was on the support from the civilian populace, not the ARVN and its fighting abilities.
FR Spring purge?
Fair enough, although I think the two were probably intertwined.
FR Spring purge?
If you missed it, consider yourself lucky...
I think this means I should be added to your ping list. If you please. Thanks.
Bump
Thanks for the ping
Pray for W and Our Troops
Done, and welcome.
Thanks for the ping!
Leni
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