Effects Of The War On The Vietnam War Essay - 1478 Words

The calamitous American involvement in the Vietnam war exposed a plethora of social and political ambiguities in 1960s society. The loss of the war can be attributed to a number of things - poor foreign policy, Johnson’s failure to adequately justify American involvement, the lack of direction for the war or viable strategy, and U.S. troops being unable to compete with the foreign terrain of Vietnam. In this essay I will argue that among the numerous reasons the war was lost, three were the most notable: American arrogance and the â€Å"disease of victory,† the incompetence of the U.S. government to handle a war of such scale, and, at a more practical level, the insoluble mix of American troops with Vietnamese territory and foliage. As a combination, it can be discerned that the Vietnam War was a war America could never win. The confidence of America in its strength and durability of institutions harks back to the early years of the republic, with the nation feeling it was its duty to ‘spread the blessings of liberty and plenty to other lands.’ This rhetoric of their ‘providential destiny’ only grew stronger over the twentieth century, and as a result of the victory of World War II, America entered Vietnam as a ‘crusader state’ with a skewed perception of their military capabilities and strength as a nation. The post-war prosperity of 1950s America carried with it a particular ideology that was exemplified in Kennedy’s inaugural address – the notion that going to war was aShow MoreRelatedEffects Of The Vietnam War On America1559 Words   |  7 Pages3H, Pd. 8 20 January 2015 Effects of the Vietnam War The Vietnam War is one of the most debatable and controversial wars in U.S. History. To this day people are questioning why we ever entered a war that was over 8,000 miles away. Why would we put our soldiers through such harsh fighting conditions and why would we spend so much money on a war that was not ours? Some people say that U.S. involvement was necessary to help end Communism and important to keep South Vietnam from coming under North VietnameseRead MoreThe Effect of Vietnam War on the Soldiers1679 Words   |  7 Pages The Vietnam War was the longest and the most unpopular American war of the twentieth century. The United States was involve in the Vietnam from 1944 to 1973, but it was only during the last years that the U.S deployed ground troops (Lawrence 1). For the first time the United states was the aggressor. Vietnam is situated thousands of miles from the United States, so Vietnam was not a direct threat to the United States’ safety. The Vietnam leader Ho Chi Minh seem to look up to the United States,Read MoreEffects of the Vietnam War on America1293 Words   |  6 PagesThe Vietnam War, from first hand point of thought is where a great deal of the confusion had started in the United States. It was certainly a rough decade during that time period, ranging four presidencies during the war itself with the exception of Harry Truman helping the French in the beginning. When in class we talk about the national approval rating for the American people towards their government and it is surprisingly low, about a quarter of the population. Through first hand interviews ofRead MoreSocial Effects of the Vietnam War2247 Words   |  9 PagesThe Vietnam 1 Running head: SOCIAL EFFECTS OF THE VIETNAM WAR The Vietnam Wars Effects on American Society Halley E. Moore Metro High School- St. Louis The Vietnam 2 Abstract The Vietnam War had a profound effect on American society. It changed the way we viewed our government, the media, and our Constitutional rights. Because of this shift in perspective, the country was torn apart and yet still came together in new and different ways. The Vietnam Wars contraversialityRead MoreThe Vietnam War And Its Effects On America2000 Words   |  8 PagesRiding on the democratic stallion of equality with triumphant fervor from World War II, the United States of America prioritized the containment of communism as its foreign policy outlined by the Truman Doctrine in 1947. The U.S eventually found itself in the middle of rising communist nations in the Pacific and European theaters. In an increasingly expensive and hopeless effort to prevent communist Ho Chi Minh unifying Vietnam under the red flag of the hammer and sickle, America officially sent troopsRead MoreEffects Of The Vietnam War On America2038 Words   |  9 PagesThe Vietnam War is an event in history that resonates through time way past the period of its actual occurrence. Aside from being the only war that the United States has ever lost, the Vietnam War resulted in around 58,000 American deaths, 3 to 4 million Vietnamese deaths, hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars spent, and a nation divided over its purpose and worth. Although the effects of the Vietnam War may not be a common or pressing topic in current times, the Americans who were involved in theRead MoreDetrimental Effects of the Vietnam War2579 Words   |  11 PagesThe Vietnam War was, and continues to be, one of Americas darkest moments, one that nearly tore the nation apart. In order to stop the spread of communism in Europe and Asia, the United States aided French imperialists and their reoccupation of Vietnam. At first, the U.S took a position of neutrality to both countries, but by early 1947, they began fighting in support of France. This war, lasting over 20 years, became the longest and most unpopular war in the 20th century. Overall, the Vietnam WarRead MoreEffects Of The Vietnam War On The United States1673 Words   |  7 Pages The effects of the Vietnam War with the United States and Vietnam had devastating effects for both sides. The United States entered this war as a way of proc laiming that it was the world power and to help out a country that split into the North and South Vietnam. One side was communist and the other side was a republic. The Viet Cong tried to oppress and take over. The United States reacted to this threat as a communist act and decided to step in and aid the people of Vietnam. This war was classifiedRead MoreThe Vietnam War And Its Effects On American Society894 Words   |  4 PagesThe Vietnam War was one of the costly war which starting in 1959 and ending in 1975. It began as an attempt by the Vietnamese of the north which known as the Viet Cong to overthrow the Southern Vietnam Government. The United States and other democratic countries were afraid the Domino effect, which described as the failure of democratic government would be a stepping stone for other communistic countries around the world. Therefore, the United States interrupted by sending soldiers into the war andRead MoreEffects Of The Vietnam War On Australian Society20 72 Words   |  9 PagesThe Vietnam War beginning on November 1st 1955 and ending April 30th 1975 was a highly controversial war that originally took place as a civil war between Northern and Southern Vietnam. Northern Vietnam was backed by Russia and China while Southern Vietnam was backed by the USA. This war made a hugely divisive impact on Australian society a few months after they entered in July 1962 as allies to the USA and Southern Vietnam. Some factors of the Vietnam War contributed to cohesion among the Australian