[Pylot]

Johnson was a coward, terrified of engaging the Chinese and preferring to implement his socialist policy instead.

Rather than rise to the occasion he shirked his duty and killed 50,000 Americans in the process.

The real eye opener is to contemplate what effect a Democratic Republic of Viet Nam, flourishing under capitalism, would have on the region today if we had followed through and not let the communists take over.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The other major error in McNamara's thinking was that the South Viets were no different than South Koreans.
The Koreans wanted to be saved from the Communist north. That was not completely true in South Viet Nam.

[lentulusgracchus]

My impression is that Dean Rusk was the big ball and chain.....my father never liked him, said he thought that "Rusk squats to pee". I never got a medical opinion on the point, but having him around was a disaster in retrospect.

[dfwgator]

The real eye opener is to contemplate what effect a Democratic Republic of Viet Nam, flourishing under capitalism, would have on the region today if we had followed through and not let the communists take over.

Or the many lives that could have been saved in Cambodia. Johnson did more damage to this country than even Bubba did, and that's saying something.