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Under what conditions did the US withdraw from the Vietnam conflict
Anti - war movement in the United States
Under what conditions did the US withdraw from the Vietnam conflict
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The U.S. Public Opinion as a Major Factor in the Withdrawal of American Troops from Vietnam In my opinion, the U.S public was indeed a major factor to the withdrawal of American troops from Vietnam yet not the main reason. The operation in Vietnam was not going as smoothly as the U.S could have hoped. The U.S.A and South Vietnamese armies had a much better equipped and larger army compared to the Communists and Viet Cong. Since the Viet Cong could not beat The U.S troops in open warfare they decided to use guerrilla tactics. This made it impossible for the U.S to be entirely victorious against the Viet Cong. It was hard to tell the difference between civilians and Viet Cong, as they did not wear uniforms. A lot of the time innocent civilians and peasant would be killed instead of the Viet Cong. The Viet Cong would use ambushes and set up booby traps. Whenever the Americans would try and attack the Viet Cong would retreat. The Viet Cong also had good relations with the peasants who would help them hide and give them food. They could also retreat to secret underground paths, which were set with booby traps in case the Americans got through. The Viet Cong also had immense determination and were not afraid to lose and replace troops. This was the opposite of the U.S attitude as the more casualties there were the more Anti-war people became. All of these factors made it extremely hard for the U.S to fight a war. The U.S army was made up of young inexperienced soldiers who got into the army due to conscription. Many of them faced breakdowns and found it extremely hard to cope and were prone to walking into traps. This damaged their mentality permanently so even if they did last the war they would be psychologically damaged for life. U.S tactics weren’t also that effective. Their chemical weapons did kill Viet Cong but many civilians were also hurt. They also applied seek and destroy tactics. The Americans would descend on a village and destroy any Viet
Chris Appy’s s American Reckoning is a book-length essay on the Vietnam War and how it changed the way Americans think of ourselves and our foreign policy. This is required reading for anyone interested in foreign policy and America’s place in the world, showing how events influence attitudes, which turn to influence events.
The Vietnam War was a vicious conflict predominately between the United States and Australia against The Viet Cong and The North Vietnamese. Initially the public supported the war, however the American president of the time, Lyndon B. Johnson, exaggerated how easy and worldwide the war was to attract further support. When he called for “more flags” to be represented in South Vietnam only the Philippines, the Republic of South Korea, Thailand, Australia, and New Zealand indicated a willingness to contribute some form of military aid. By doing this “it enabled Johnson to portray the developing war as international to show it must be dealt with and gain support,” (Hastings, 2003). The outcome of the Vietnam War was ensured because the governments of the United States and Australia could not maintain their publics’ support due to the popular culture of the time. This was because much of the war was shown on television or other popular culture, so events like the Battle of Long Tan could be seen by families and people of all ages in their living rooms; this was the first time they could see how bad a war can actually be.
Vietnam was a highly debated war among citizens of the United States. This war was like no other with regards to how it affected people on the home front. In past war’s, the population of the United States mainly supported the war and admired soldiers for their courage. During the Vietnam War, citizens of the U.S. had a contradictory view than in the past. This dilemma of not having the support of the people originates from the culture and the time period.
Self-Interest and Civilians' Attitudes Toward the Vietnam WarRichard R. Lau, Thad A. Brown and David O. SearsThe Public Opinion Quarterly, Vol. 42, No. 4 (Winter, 1978), pp. 464-483
Throughout history, the American people have, for the most part, stood united during times of war. The people of America always seemed to rally behind each other. Most people were either willing to fight in the war or willing to take up the responsibilities of those who left for war. The majority of Americans supported the decisions of our nation’s government. This was not the case during the Vietnam War. For the first time in American history, widespread revolt against our nation’s decision to fight in the war influenced the outcome. This is what saved our country and the lives of soldiers who were fighting an unwinnable war.
American citizens during the Vietnam War generally equally disapproved and approved of it; many protesting their dissent, and going out of their way to obtain deferments in order to avoid conscription, while many others voiced pro-war statements (Angrist 584-95). Deferments were a way to postpone your chance of conscription, which is being drafted into the military (Angrist 584-95). Although some were indeed anti-war, there was a rather equal or larger amount who voiced supportive opinions for the war, but as the war proceeded this changed (Gettleman). Such diversified opinions were the direct cause for the continuation of the war (Tomes). Peaceful protesters and radicals came into the spotlight as the war progressed, as more and more people voiced disapproving and anti-war statements towards the war (DeBenedetti 321-86).
Due to the volatile conditions of the Vietnam War, the protestors believed that they should not be involved in a war that they cared so little about. Public opinion heavily swayed during the war as only one senator dissented from the overwhelming opinion to fight the war (Amter 45). However, as President Johnson escalated the war and the Draft increased by 25% in 1968, those youths being conscripted were infuriated (Dougan 118). Not only this, the North Vietnamese began a ruthless offensive on American soldiers by merciless attacking our bases. This resulted in US victories, but also US casualties (Dougan 116). Also, the marines stationed at the bases began to use offensive attacks to deter Viet Cong assault against the wishes of General Taylor (Karnov 443). With these new less defensive strategy, Nixon announced plans to start operations in Cambodia, and to increase the bombings overall in Southeast Asia (Dougan 180). Some missions even began t...
Verba, Sidney, Richard A. Brody, Edwin B. Parker, Norman H. Nie, Nelson W. Polsby, Paul Ekman, and Gordon S. Black. "Public Opinion and the War in Vietnam." The American Political Science Review 61, no. 2 (1967): 317-333. http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.rollins.edu:2048/stable/1953248 (accessed March 4, 2014).
The Vietnam War was the longest and most expensive war in American History. The toll we paid wasn't just financial, it cost the people involved greatly, physically and mentally. This war caused great distress and sadness, as well as national confusion. Everyone had that one burning question being why? Why were we even there? The other question being why did America withdrawal from Vietnam. The purpose of this paper is to answer these two burning questions, and perhaps add some clarity to the confusion American was experiencing.
After the Tet Offensive, more protests occurred demanding the withdrawal of US troops from Vietnam. The protestors used it as fuel and began expanding their ideas to the rest of the United States. Even Johnson’s opposing party saw it as his lack of leadership with the army. The media was able to shift the opinions of the people one way or another. With the new information from the Tet Offensive, most people switched to the side of the anti-war
President Dwight Eisenhower conditionally pledged to support South Vietnam’s new nation in 1955. In the time period between 1955-1961 the United States pumped seven billion dollars in aid so that Vietnam would not “go over quickly” like a “row of dominoes” (McNamara 31). In the next 6 years Vietnam would cost America billions of dollars, thousands of lives, and the disaffection of much of the United States public. Yet in the end, South Vietnam would fall to the North less than 2 years after the United States military involvement ceased.
So many things influenced our involvement in the Vietnam War, and Lawrence examines the decisions we made in a greater context than just our own. He argues that international pressures controlled the attitudes and ideas of the United States, for the most part.
In conclusion, the American public turned against the war in Vietnam. because the U.S. military would not have been able to win the war. The war had lasted much longer than anyone had expected and America had lost many of the men. The media coverage of the war also convinced people. war needed to end.
The United States began sending troops to Vietnam to support the French in the 1950’s. During the next 25 years, the ensuing wars would cost 5 million people’s lives and create a series of domestic tensions in the U.S, like the Vietnam War protest movement and the Military Draft. Even though the Vietnam War had been considered the only war that Americans ever lost, many Americans believed it was a noble cause. Like President Johnson had said in 1965, “We have made a national pledge to help South Vietnam defend its independence. To dishonor that pledge, to abandon this small and brave nation to its enemies, and to the terror that must follow, would be an unforgivable wrong.”
Soon after the Tet Offensive, citizens of the United States began having second opinions about concentrating our troops in Vietnam: “Within weeks [of the Tet attacks], many average Americans who previously were supporters had turned against the war” (Omicinski 2). A small cluster of Vietcong forces made their way into the compound of the United States embassy located in Saigon, proving to Americans that even though there were hundreds of thousands of soldiers fighting in Vietnam, the U.S. had progressed only slightly (Dudley 131). The people were constantly being told that the conflict would soon end, however, increased need of military assistance had U.S. citizens questioning the veracity of our government. The phrase "credibility gap" surfaced to describe the growing public scepticism (Gerdes 14). This factor led to the government’s loss of support from most of the population. Ano...