Why didn't the U.S. nuke N. Vietnan and why didn't Ho CHi Minh capture Indochina cause he won the independence

Question

The American's oftered the French the A. Bomb to nuke Diem Bien Phu, but the French were afraid it might kill its own people. -History Channel "Declassified: Viet Cong"

The U.S. was losing the war, politically, moral, military besides the U.S. was owning the skies. The U.S. military were using descisions to burn down innocent villages and were careless to use Agent Orange on inocent people.

HANOI SHOULDVE BEEN NUKE, the U.S. nukes Japan, Hanoi SHOULDVE BEEN WIPED OFF THE FACE OF EARTH. The war couldve been won easily. The Viet COngs would give up, the war lost. Vietnam united.

Ho Chi Minh won the independence Cambodia, and Loas didn't even help. Vietnam should own Cambodia and Loas cause Ho won the independence from the French. How come????

Answer 1

First you sound very young which I don't hold against you. I'm only 18 myself. What I know about the Vietnam War I learned mainly from my grandparents. Also from asking a few questions on Yahoo and getting great answers from people with a lot of good information.

One set of my grandparents were anti war protestors and were often referred to as hippies. My grandma showed me some pictures of her and my grandpa when they were young and was actually very shocked by the way they looked. My other grandpa is a Vietnam combat veteran. He met my grandma on a blind date. She immediately fell in love with a man that she saw a lot of good in even though he was painted as one of those "crazies" who saw service in Vietnam.

Vietnam was a sad chapter in American history; the first war that we lost. The Vietnamese people suffered enough so I don't think mass murder caused by nuclear bombs would have been the moral choice to pursue.

When my grandfather returned from service in Vietnam instead of receiving the gratitude of his country, he was vilified and treated very badly. Finally in the 1980s, President Reagan welcomed home all the Vietnam Veterans like my grandfather.

Anyway I hope we never use nuclear weapons to wipe anyone off the face of the earth. I see many wonderful people of Vietnamese extraction and could not possibly see myself ever wanting my country to harm them.
Chow!!

Answer 2

This is probably not the answer you wanted, but you'd want me to be honest, right?

We didn't use nukes in Vietnam because they wouldn't have helped. They would have galvanized the entire world against us. We would have become the rogue nation and everyone would shun us.

Besides, there wasn't really a target for nukes. Destroying Hanoi would not have won us the war. It's not easy to get all your enemy to get together in one city so you can take 'em out with a nuke.

In fact that's the reason nobody's used nukes since WWII. No national leader can imagine a scenario whereby he could use nukes and -win-. Anyone who uses them will immediately become the world's enemy, the unstable monster, etc. etc.--all the things we said about Saddam and Osama.

The only people who might use nukes are terrorists who have no country to retaliate against. They're also the same people who would dare pull off an attack of the size of 9/11 on a country as powerful as the US. If a -nation- had done that, we would have beaten them to a pulp. But Al Quaeda did it and got away scott-free! They got everything they wanted, including us beating up their old enemies for them.

There's an old saying: "We are always fighting the last war." In Vietnam we were fighting WWII, but the North Vietnamise and Viet Cong wouldn't play by those rules. You'd think we'd have learned from that experience, but noooo, we're doing exactly the same thing in Iraq.

Answer 3

Think more realistically - imvraisemblablement - nuking cities is already a great crime and to nuke such a historic city such as Hanoi is wrong. Remember, the US wasted more bombs on NVN than the entire WW2.

But the Viet Cong were fighting in the South you nut! - It would've been better to continuously bombard their settlements.

Say for example, bombard Haiphong and Hanoi until they surrender. God knows the Vietnamese don't surrender that easily.

Answer 4

Using nukes during the Vietnam War was a very risky thing to do. The Soviet Union was backing the North Vietnamese and were the main supplier of their weapons (they were Soviet allies, although no Soviet troop fought in that war). With the Soviet Union's own vast nuclear arsenal at its disposal, would the US risk using nuclear weapons against any Soviet ally?. Definitely not.

Ho Chi Minh was villified and portrayed as evil in the Western media. But the fact is that he is a nationalist, who only wanted a free and unified Vietnam. He wanted to free Vietnam from 300 years of French colonial rule, and later from the American occupation of the South.

When the last American troop pulled-out of Vietnam, a unified Vietnamese government was established. Not wanting to become a puppet of any foreign power, the Vietnamese never allowed themselves to become a Soviet satellite state nor be dictated by the communist Chinese central government (in fact, they didn't even allowed the Soviets or the Chinese to set up any military bases on Vietnamese soil). In this aspect, they became truly independent. Having achieved this goal, the Vietnamese never aspired for any territorial expansion. They didn't took any territory belonging to Cambodia or Laos, nor were they interested in making Cambodia and Laos to become part of Vietnam, as the Vietnamese recognized Laos and Cambodia as distinct sovereign nations.

Answer 5

First any Nuke used in Indo-china would have lead to the risk of starting a nuclear war with Russia, who were allies of the North Vietnamese

The French have always developed their own nuclear strategy and still do.

And the French left Indo-china long before the USA got involved.

You rant is really pointless, Vietnam is long over and done with, the U.S. lost.

You really should research the subject more and not rely on mini tv programes to tell you about history.

Answer 6

Flyflinger, According to his past questions he is 15.

Spooky kid I would gladly bring you to a meeting with several ARVN Officers. The one I know meets with some of his old buddies. However, I don't really want to meet you and they would likely eat YOU for lunch, then I would have to explain that to your mommy. These OLD guy's are tough little SOB's and know just a bit more than you about the 20 years they fought the NVA/VC and all the BS that has been published. They all have first hand experience at being Political prisoners. Many of their wives, sisters, daughters, sisters in law can explain systematic rape and other fun things after the communist takeover in 75 too.

Keep trying you might just convince some other child of all this crap.

Answer 7

We did not nuke northern vietnam because we were in the cold war at the time and north vietnam was being supplied and reinforced by china who had stolen our nuclear secrets. we were afraid of provoking china into nuclear war and WWIII

Answer 8

well the no country no matter how strong can just go into war and use nukes,when a country uses a nuke it causes world attention and could cause a war that you never wanted to entered, nukes make other countrys not like you when you use them just to use them.

Answer 9

you lack of knowledge about the vietnam war is appaling. your lack of understanding about use of nuclear weapons is too.

i am not going to explain it all to you, you need to research it for yourself.

one thing, Ho Chi Minh died in 1969, the outcome of the war was still in question. next thing, it was north vietnams desire to unite vietnam, south vietnam wanted to remain independant.

look up cold war politics, pol pot, domino theory, hanoi bombing, ..........just too many other subjects to list..........gl.

Answer 10

In a few words. WORLD OPINION>Russian nuke strike at USA