Vietnam war?

Question

why did citizens lose support for the war??

Answer 1

First of all, it was never declared a 'war'. It was a 'conflict'. It was viewed as a conflict between North and South Vietnam with of course was touted to us here in the US as a 'civil war'. Many at the time felt that the Vietnamese should have settled their own 'civil' war, but our government felt they wanted to stop the threat of communism spreading. (Now don't shoot the messenger, but I'm only telling you what the American people were told in the 60's.) I had a brother in law and cousin go to Vietnam. My brother in law never was really OK after he returned. Lots of drugs, booze, etc. died in 2000 of a heroin overdose. He was a medic during Vietnam and saw so many killings, etc. it wrecked his life. Our country was very divided durig that time, with mostly younger people opposed to the war and the elders (who had fought during WW2) thinking all of the 'hippies' were crazy. Hopefully the same thing won't happen with the war in Iraq.

Answer 2

Ummm...let's see. From 1958 to 1972, I'd say 14 years of no progress towards winning pretty much did it. I was 8 years old when Eisenhower sent the first troops to Vietnam. I had no idea that 10 years later I'd be in the middle of it.
Iraq has been going on for 4 years now. Do you have a 12 year old? Hug him while you can. He may end up in Iraq.

Answer 3

Three big reasons: (1) The war dragged on so long that the American public was wondering whether any progress was being made, (2) The American public had a hard time understanding why trying to fight off the Communists in this tiny southeast Asian country was so important, and (3) The negativity surrounding military service at that time -- protestors were often converged upon and beaten by police and National Guard members (4 protestors killed at Kent State University is one example) and the bad press the soldiers in country were getting because of drug use and killing innocent civilians (like the massacre at Mi Lai).

Answer 4

We were there losing a ridiculous amount of soldiers daily to a war that had no direction. It is the only war that the U.S. "lost". It was a civil war that many believed should have remained as such. Additionally, veterans were coming home with post-traumatic stress disorder (no one then understood) and having extreme difficulty reintigrating into our society. Basically, Americans lost huge casualties in a civil war that wasn't our own.

Answer 5

2 Sep 1945 - April 1975 and also you want 0.5 a web page? you're conscious there have been 3??????? or are you a member of the rest room Kerry fantasy club? SSG US military seventy 3-80 2 A time line may be found at below. the different 2 are purely fantasy busters. Chuq Mung Nam Moi (Chuke Mung Num Moyee)

Answer 6

Easy. Body bags coming off planes on the 6 pm news - every day, without end. The death toll with no forward progress rammed home just what a big quagmire the whole thing was. Ever wonder why they don't show the coffins of soldiers coming back from Iraq? That's one lesson the Pentagon learned in Viet Nam - hell, maybe the only one.

Answer 7

The Tet Offensive.

We had all this might and a ragtag amry held the US at bay.

Even though the US "won", the severe blow to US credibility showed the citizens that we could never win in Vietnam, and why were we really there in the first place.

It should have destroyed the concept of a "limited war", but did not

Answer 8

Because they weren't on the front line. It is very easy to sit at home on your bum and cry "Bring the troops home" or "unjust war" when you are not there. Isn't it? There is nothing worse than a backseat driver or an armchair soldier. Neither know anything about what they talk. Both will hurt people in the long run.

Answer 9

I wonder who really knows what the war in Viet Nam was about, as it sure was not fought to win, as we had the ho chi mien trail closed at different times in Cambodia and they would pull us out?
then the politicians would not let our men fight to win simple hold the enemy back or contain them, our men fought bravely and smart, and could have won in six months with one hell of a lot less casualties than what we had, on both sides,and to this day I keep asking why why

Answer 10

It was seen as a mistake to try to fight what was essentially a civil war with a large ground army far from the US. This is why Iraq seems very similar.