1. US military tactics in Vietnam-
I thought that the U.S's tactics in Vietnam were unknown. The U.S went into Vietnam without a plan of action, they knew what they wanted but they didnt know how to defeat the Gurilla Warfare that they were against. The U.S had good weapons and trained soldiers but they could not figure out what to do with what they had, which is why they just bombed the heck out of everything. In source 39 in the Vietnam pdf file it shows the increase in the troops in Vietnam under different Presidents, it also shows the causilitys of U.S troops there. In Source 40 in the Vietnam pdf it is a discussing of a officer of the Marine Corps talking to one of his troops about how he doesnt know how the U.S is going to win this war.
2. The unpopularity of the South Vietnamese regime-
The U.S lost respect from the Vietnamese people when they appointed Diem as the leader of South Veitnam. Diem hated communism so the U.S though it would help their people oppose it to, but Diem was a really bad man who appointed his family into powerful postions and treeated the people like dirt. In source 33 in the Vietnam pdf file it shows a buddist prist burning himself to death becasue the buddish shrines were being burned by Diem (who did not like Buddists.)
3. The experience of the Viet Cong and the inexperience of the American soldiers-
The Vietcong had the home field advantage knowing the forests that they were hidding in, they also had thoes underground hideouts to avoid teh U.S troops and bombs. The Vietcong had better moral than the U.S soldiers, even though their weapons werent as advanced (backed by China and the USSR.) The U.S troops had no way of finding the Vietcong because of the Gurilla warfare and they blended in with the villiagers. The U.S lost support from the people there and other countrys becasue of all the civilan causlaties during the war. In source 36 it shows a picture of the tunnelish caves the Vietcong had, source 43 shows why the troops were sent home ( died in the first month or were sent home after a year which was just when they were gaining experience, and the commanders were stuck with a whole new spatoon again.)
4. Domestic opposition to the war in the U.S.-
People in the United States were not happy with the war, they felt that they were losing their sons, brothers, fathers to the war who were being killed by the thousands. In sources 43 it shows how fast troops were killed, and in source 36 it shows the anmount of deaths. Sources
5. Chinese and Soviet support for the Viet Cong-
The Chinses and USSR wanted the Vietcong to win becasue they were pro communist. The Chinese and Soviet Union were also supplying them with war supplies like food, ammo, and weapons. In source 38 it shows that the Chinese want to get imperilasim out of Vietnam.
6. 'But did they really lose?' Summarize the argument put forward in Source 57, and your view on it.
I dont believe that anyone really won or lost this war. There were other battles that were not covered in this lesson that show that the U.S really did have th upper hand such as the battle of Dakto, the battle Hue, and Iadrang. The U.S was able to gain back land in South Vietnam that was taken by the Vietcong, and they were able to stop the "domino theroy" from ever happening. The Vietcong in the end still had their land in North Vietnam and the support of the Communsit powers (USSR and China) and they were able to make the U.S look bad to the world. There were no clear winners like WWII in these confrontations on the U.S and the Vietcong, they would be defeated and then move on.
Showing posts with label Vietnam_War. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vietnam_War. Show all posts
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Vietnam War Opposition
You are an opponent of American involvement in Vietnam. Use the evidence in this chapter to begin formulating ideas to make a poster or a leaflet putting forward your views. You will work on this in class on Friday. You can include stories and images from pages 353-61. However, you must also include an explanation that will convince the supporters of containment that the policy is not working in Vietnam. OPTIONAL: Instead of opposing the war, you can support it. Feel free to make a COUNTER-ARGUMENT that the war is necessary to contain Communism.
1. Note all of the reasons why you feel the war in Vietnam is wrong.
I believe that the war in Vietnam is wrong because its killing innocent civilians instead of the Vietcong. It is also a waste of our soldiers lives seeing we do not have good enough tactics to defeat the Vietcong effectily. Mia Laia
2. Note what you re trying to achieve with this poster. (e.g. to convince people to write to their Congressmen to get the troops out.)
If we get the troops out of Vietcong we could save American lives. Yes we need to stop the spread of Communism, but we are killing more innocent people than we are killing Vietcong. IF the U.S was able to stop the threat posed by the communist Vietcong and defeat them effectily then it would be ok to be at war, but right now its a waste of our countrys people.
3. List possible images for your poster. Think about: background (e.g. destroyed villages); the central image (e.g. picture of a young soldier); whether you will need words to explain your image.
Monks burning themselfs in protest of the war, the little girl without close on because of the agent orange, dead civilian bodies on the side of the road, American soldiers either wounded or dead because they were killed.
4. List some possible slogans for your poster.
"Stop the massacer! Think Peace Man"
"Dont kill your neighbors sons hubans ect. keep them home think peace"
1. Note all of the reasons why you feel the war in Vietnam is wrong.
I believe that the war in Vietnam is wrong because its killing innocent civilians instead of the Vietcong. It is also a waste of our soldiers lives seeing we do not have good enough tactics to defeat the Vietcong effectily. Mia Laia
2. Note what you re trying to achieve with this poster. (e.g. to convince people to write to their Congressmen to get the troops out.)
If we get the troops out of Vietcong we could save American lives. Yes we need to stop the spread of Communism, but we are killing more innocent people than we are killing Vietcong. IF the U.S was able to stop the threat posed by the communist Vietcong and defeat them effectily then it would be ok to be at war, but right now its a waste of our countrys people.
3. List possible images for your poster. Think about: background (e.g. destroyed villages); the central image (e.g. picture of a young soldier); whether you will need words to explain your image.
Monks burning themselfs in protest of the war, the little girl without close on because of the agent orange, dead civilian bodies on the side of the road, American soldiers either wounded or dead because they were killed.
4. List some possible slogans for your poster.
"Stop the massacer! Think Peace Man"
"Dont kill your neighbors sons hubans ect. keep them home think peace"
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Vietnam War Turning Points
1. Why was the Tet Offensive a turning point? Explain your answer.
The Tet Offensive was a turning point for the war becasue it was a disaster for the communist becasue they hoped the people of Souh Vietnam would rise up and join them, but they didnt. It was a turning point for the war because "it raised hard questions about the war in the USA." There were almost 500,000 Vietnam and the USA was spending $20 billion a year on the war. The US took back towns but becasue they were using lots of bombs and guns, in the process lots of civilians were killed, and the ancient city of Hue was destroyed.
2. Are Sources 51 and 52 making the same point about the My Lai Massacre?
Source 51 is shpwing how innocent boys from the US were taken and
used to kill thousands of people (a whole villiage.) The boys refer to their actions as Nazi, Killing just to kill. THe boys didnt want to go to Vietnam to be NAzis they wanted to get away from home and serve their country becasue it was the American Ideal.
Source 52 shows how the killings were "justified" as killing to get rid of an idea. But you cannot defeat an idea with guns. This source is making up excuses for the killings such as destroying communism, and they were there to kill "blobs pieces of flesh" which shows that the fact that they were killing meant nothing to them.
3. Why do you think it took 12 months for anyone to do anything about the massacre?
I think that it took 12 months for anyone to do anything about the massacre because the commanding officer lied about the event and the unit was praised. But later (1 year) the men who fought were problay shiped home and were able to tell their stories, which was then collected and made into the case by Ronald Ridenhour.
4. Why was the massacre so shocking to the American public?
The massacre was shocking to the American public because they could not believe that the Americans would killing innocent people like that. They thought that America was winning and was able to stop raiding as much. They saw the horrors inflicted apon the villagers by the US and were horrified that they could do such a thing.
The Tet Offensive was a turning point for the war becasue it was a disaster for the communist becasue they hoped the people of Souh Vietnam would rise up and join them, but they didnt. It was a turning point for the war because "it raised hard questions about the war in the USA." There were almost 500,000 Vietnam and the USA was spending $20 billion a year on the war. The US took back towns but becasue they were using lots of bombs and guns, in the process lots of civilians were killed, and the ancient city of Hue was destroyed.
2. Are Sources 51 and 52 making the same point about the My Lai Massacre?
Source 51 is shpwing how innocent boys from the US were taken and
used to kill thousands of people (a whole villiage.) The boys refer to their actions as Nazi, Killing just to kill. THe boys didnt want to go to Vietnam to be NAzis they wanted to get away from home and serve their country becasue it was the American Ideal.
Source 52 shows how the killings were "justified" as killing to get rid of an idea. But you cannot defeat an idea with guns. This source is making up excuses for the killings such as destroying communism, and they were there to kill "blobs pieces of flesh" which shows that the fact that they were killing meant nothing to them.
3. Why do you think it took 12 months for anyone to do anything about the massacre?
I think that it took 12 months for anyone to do anything about the massacre because the commanding officer lied about the event and the unit was praised. But later (1 year) the men who fought were problay shiped home and were able to tell their stories, which was then collected and made into the case by Ronald Ridenhour.
4. Why was the massacre so shocking to the American public?
The massacre was shocking to the American public because they could not believe that the Americans would killing innocent people like that. They thought that America was winning and was able to stop raiding as much. They saw the horrors inflicted apon the villagers by the US and were horrified that they could do such a thing.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
The U.S. struggles against the Communist in Vietnam
1. Now think about the overall picture - how the strengths and weaknesses work together.
a) Were the armies finely balanced or was the balance strongly weighted to one side or the other?
The United States was much greater in size and power than the Viet Minh. The United States had new tech, money to support the troops, and the troops were trained for what they were going to do. The Viet Minh was small in size and had dated weapons.
b) Which quality was most important in determining who won the war? Was one feature so important that being ahead in that area meant that other advantages or disadvantages did not matter?
I think that the moral of the soldiers was the most important and how far the countrys were going to let this war go on. You can destroy an army, but you can never destroy an idea; I believe that the Viet Cong would keep fighting until they got what they wanted because each soldier was fighting for what they believed in. The U.S soldiers on the other hand wanted out, their moral was hurt from the Gurillia warfare, and they were not fighting for personal gain, they were there because their commanding officer told them to go.
a. The U.S. weaknesses were:
Their moral was hurt from theGureillia warfare. They didnt know how to win against them, becasue the armys blended in with the peasants. The U.S decided to use chemical weapons and bombs to find the Veir Cong, but this just upset the peaseants causing them to lean more to the communist side rather than with the U.S.
b. At the same time, the Communist strengths were:
The Communists were gaining "votes" from the people in the South becasue of the crule government of Diem, and what they saw the U.S doing to the civilians while looking for the Viet Cong. If the communists were to win in Vietnam then they could take over all of South East Asia.
c. The U.S. forces did have some successes. For example:
The U.S was able to put Diem in power, who was so anti communist that he was perfect for the position. The U.S was able to attack Communist forces in Vietnam after 1969. The bombings of Haiphong ( North Vietnams Captial) from 1970- 1972 allowed the US to bring negotiating up.
d. However, there were some major failures as well. Examples of these were:
In bombing raids the communists were only slowed down. The cost of the air raids were horrible Communists shot down about 14000 planes. The United States was also losing the support of the Vietnamese people becasue while looking for the Viet Cong they were destroying villages, and killing people with the bombs and chemical weapons.
e. The Viet Cong had some major successes, such as:
Making the U.S troops lose all their moral becasue of the Guriella warfare attacks on the camps at night. The Viet Cong also had the support of the peaseants/villagers. They helped them in the fields and were told to be curterous and respectful.
f. However, they also suffered defeats, for example:
The Viet Cong lost to the U.S becasue their supplies were heavly bombed, their weapons and numbers were far less than thoes of the U.S and the U.S was securing groung in Southern Vietnam to ensure that they would have land if the country went Communist.
g. If I had to identify one major American weakness, it would be [Lack of Tactic] because:
The U.S had everything it needed to win the war at the beginning. They had weapons, troops, support from the villagers etc. But because they didnt know how to adapt to the Guerilla Warfare they were being killed. They also needed to come up with a way to find the Viet Cong without risking the lives of villagers. This lost the U.S support from the villager and pushed them toward communism, it also wasted larger amounts of U.S money to support operations that were not succesful at all.
h. The key Viet Cong strength was [Gurilla Warfare and High Moral] because:
This tactic worked against the U.S forces it made them scared no matter where they were. The U.S also could not adapt to this method so the Viet Cong got a lot more out of it than they should have. The high Moral of the troops made it so they wanted to fight, and they would be willing to give their lives.
a) Were the armies finely balanced or was the balance strongly weighted to one side or the other?
The United States was much greater in size and power than the Viet Minh. The United States had new tech, money to support the troops, and the troops were trained for what they were going to do. The Viet Minh was small in size and had dated weapons.
b) Which quality was most important in determining who won the war? Was one feature so important that being ahead in that area meant that other advantages or disadvantages did not matter?
I think that the moral of the soldiers was the most important and how far the countrys were going to let this war go on. You can destroy an army, but you can never destroy an idea; I believe that the Viet Cong would keep fighting until they got what they wanted because each soldier was fighting for what they believed in. The U.S soldiers on the other hand wanted out, their moral was hurt from the Gurillia warfare, and they were not fighting for personal gain, they were there because their commanding officer told them to go.
a. The U.S. weaknesses were:
Their moral was hurt from theGureillia warfare. They didnt know how to win against them, becasue the armys blended in with the peasants. The U.S decided to use chemical weapons and bombs to find the Veir Cong, but this just upset the peaseants causing them to lean more to the communist side rather than with the U.S.
b. At the same time, the Communist strengths were:
The Communists were gaining "votes" from the people in the South becasue of the crule government of Diem, and what they saw the U.S doing to the civilians while looking for the Viet Cong. If the communists were to win in Vietnam then they could take over all of South East Asia.
c. The U.S. forces did have some successes. For example:
The U.S was able to put Diem in power, who was so anti communist that he was perfect for the position. The U.S was able to attack Communist forces in Vietnam after 1969. The bombings of Haiphong ( North Vietnams Captial) from 1970- 1972 allowed the US to bring negotiating up.
d. However, there were some major failures as well. Examples of these were:
In bombing raids the communists were only slowed down. The cost of the air raids were horrible Communists shot down about 14000 planes. The United States was also losing the support of the Vietnamese people becasue while looking for the Viet Cong they were destroying villages, and killing people with the bombs and chemical weapons.
e. The Viet Cong had some major successes, such as:
Making the U.S troops lose all their moral becasue of the Guriella warfare attacks on the camps at night. The Viet Cong also had the support of the peaseants/villagers. They helped them in the fields and were told to be curterous and respectful.
f. However, they also suffered defeats, for example:
The Viet Cong lost to the U.S becasue their supplies were heavly bombed, their weapons and numbers were far less than thoes of the U.S and the U.S was securing groung in Southern Vietnam to ensure that they would have land if the country went Communist.
g. If I had to identify one major American weakness, it would be [Lack of Tactic] because:
The U.S had everything it needed to win the war at the beginning. They had weapons, troops, support from the villagers etc. But because they didnt know how to adapt to the Guerilla Warfare they were being killed. They also needed to come up with a way to find the Viet Cong without risking the lives of villagers. This lost the U.S support from the villager and pushed them toward communism, it also wasted larger amounts of U.S money to support operations that were not succesful at all.
h. The key Viet Cong strength was [Gurilla Warfare and High Moral] because:
This tactic worked against the U.S forces it made them scared no matter where they were. The U.S also could not adapt to this method so the Viet Cong got a lot more out of it than they should have. The high Moral of the troops made it so they wanted to fight, and they would be willing to give their lives.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
The U.S. Enters the Vietnam War
1. Many neutral observers in Vietnam were critical of US policy. Explain why.-
There were many neutral observers in Vietnam who were critical of US policy because the United States did not allow the people there to have a vote on what form of government they wanted becauswe they were afraid that communisum was to popular with the people there. In southern Vietnam the U.S didnt let the people choose their leaders, even local ones such as mayors.
2. Explain how US politicians would have defended their policies.-
U.S politicians would have defended their policys as protecting the world from the domonino effect of Communism. The US was preventing Vietnam from becoming communist so that the rest of South East Asia would not follow behind it.
3. The following events are not listed in correct date order. Place them in the correct chronological order. (Write the year inside the parenthesis, i.e. (1965). Then note the reason for each U.S. action, and how it brought the U.S. into deeper involvement in Vietnam.
The reasons you can choose from are: No direct involvement; financial support; political involvement; military involvement. Also, note what events triggered the increased involvement.-
(1964 ) Assassination of JFK - Johnson becomes president- Political Involvment
(1955) Formation of South Vietnam- Political Involvment
(1964 August after JFK ) Gulf of Tonkin Incident-Military involvment, North Vietamise ships stared to open fire on US ships on the coast, which triggered more involvment
(1962) Number of 'advisers' reaches over 11,500- Military
(1964) JFK sends military advisers- military
(1965) U.S. Marines land at Da Nang- military involvment
(1954) U.S. stops elections in Vietnam- Political Involvment, stop spread of comunism
(1963) U.S. supports South Vietnam government after army overthrow Diem-
There were many neutral observers in Vietnam who were critical of US policy because the United States did not allow the people there to have a vote on what form of government they wanted becauswe they were afraid that communisum was to popular with the people there. In southern Vietnam the U.S didnt let the people choose their leaders, even local ones such as mayors.
2. Explain how US politicians would have defended their policies.-
U.S politicians would have defended their policys as protecting the world from the domonino effect of Communism. The US was preventing Vietnam from becoming communist so that the rest of South East Asia would not follow behind it.
3. The following events are not listed in correct date order. Place them in the correct chronological order. (Write the year inside the parenthesis, i.e. (1965). Then note the reason for each U.S. action, and how it brought the U.S. into deeper involvement in Vietnam.
The reasons you can choose from are: No direct involvement; financial support; political involvement; military involvement. Also, note what events triggered the increased involvement.-
(1964 ) Assassination of JFK - Johnson becomes president- Political Involvment
(1955) Formation of South Vietnam- Political Involvment
(1964 August after JFK ) Gulf of Tonkin Incident-Military involvment, North Vietamise ships stared to open fire on US ships on the coast, which triggered more involvment
(1962) Number of 'advisers' reaches over 11,500- Military
(1964) JFK sends military advisers- military
(1965) U.S. Marines land at Da Nang- military involvment
(1954) U.S. stops elections in Vietnam- Political Involvment, stop spread of comunism
(1963) U.S. supports South Vietnam government after army overthrow Diem-
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