Was the Vietnam war supported by the American public at first?

Question

thanks

Answer 1

~Only by the stupid ones who didn't know any better. Unfortunately, as with Iraq and Afghanistan, and tomorrow North Korea and Iran, they constituted the majority.

There were, however, those of us who knew the Geneva Accords of 1954 required internationally supervised elections to reunify the country in 1956 and that because Ho Chi Minh and his communist party was the clear choice of the people at the time, the US refused to allow the elections to occur. Those of us who knew actually thought that democracy meant letting the will of the people speak and we thought that even if our lackey wasn't going to get the job, the elections should be held anyway. We should have known better, given what we did in Guatemala in 1953 (Operation PBHISTORY and Operation PBFORTUNE).

There were also those of us who knew a little of the history and traditions of the region and who knew, from the obvious lessons of that history, that a war could end only in defeat or the total annihilation of the Vietnamese people.

There were also those who heeded the words and advice of the French, who advised Ike that a war could not succeed and American intervention would result in failure, defeat and humiliation (unfortunately neither Ike nor his buddies in the Pentagon were among those who considered those sage words). JFK was having second thoughts, but he got dead before he could do anything about it. Giving the almost total lack of control he had over the Joints Chiefs, the Pentagon and the CIA, is it dubious that he could have done anything about it and not at all improbable that those models of American virtue had a hand in his assassination because of his perverted ideas about co-existing with the Communists. Brother Bobby certainly entertained such suspicions.

And there were those of us who considered the French to know what they were talking about when they advised Ike not to support Ngo Dinh Diem because he was not only incompetent but he was also a madman. Once again, the French were right and Ike ignored them and he and JFK ordered the military and CIA to protect Diem until JFK sanctioned his forcible removal from office and his assassination.

Of course, we were called Un-American communist pinko hippie freaks and we were invited to leave the country. At least until history and common sense caught up with us. If Bobby Kennedy and his pals, Joe McCarthy and the HUAC boys, had had their way, we'd have been shot as traitors. Ah, but even Bobby caught up with sanity and common sense (when it became politically expedient). Of course, when he did, he WAS shot.

Not to worry. When the body bags started coming home, everybody figured out that which was so obvious to so few of us at the beginning.

History repeats. The bodies are coming home again and now all the zealots who so vociferously supported (and demanded) the unjust, immoral and illegal (not to mention unwinnable) invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan and who so proudly watched the Nintendo war and cheered the senseless slaughter of Iraqi civilians want to throw in the towel. Trouble is, it would not only be immoral to pull out now; it would be stupid to the point of criminal. The power vacuum we have created by the murder of the only stabilizing (I didn't say fair or just, or even civilized, I said stabilizing) force in the region begs to be filled. When we pull out and the Shiites and Sunnis are busy killing themselves and the Kurds, the Saudis, Syrians and Iranians will make their move. Then we'll go back in force to fight the real war. Watch the bodies drop then.

If we do betray the Iraqi people once again and abandon them to the miasma we have poured over their once sovereign and independent nation, you better sell your SUV and buy a hybrid or an electric car because you ain't gonna be able to feed even a moped when the oil shuts off or the fields are burned. And if you want to see the Wailing Wall, do it now because you won't be able to then, assuming it's even still standing. And don't give me that bull about al-Qaida and WMDs. That joke didn't outlive the air war. Check into the pipeline in Afghanistan and the Iraqi oil and reconstruction contracts if you want to know why we went in in the first place (not to mention Boy Georgie's desire to make his daddy proud by going after the guy who wanted Papa George dead).

And before condemning the Middle Easterners too much, check into what the CIA did to Mohammed Mosaddeq with Operation TP-Ajax in 1953, which led directly to the seizure of the embassy and hostages in '79 and, along with countless other stabs in the Middle Eastern back so deftly administered by Uncle Sam over the decades has led to the current level of hatred toward us.

Ah, but what do I know. I was wrong 6 years ago according to 98% of the population and I was wrong in the 60s, and I'm probably wrong again now. At least this time I hope like hell that I'm wrong. I'm really tired of being right when it takes so many corpses to prove me so. There is really no satisfaction in the "I told you so". Why oh why won't people in power (and the minions who put them there) learn, for once, from the lessons of history?

By the way, the thumbs down I know I'm sure to get don't hurt. What hurts is the folks clicking them don't know any better and refuse to recognize and accept the simple and documented truth about Uncle Sam. It's all there in the declassified documents if you'd only get off your lazy butts and look for it. I suppose it's easier to listen to those paradigms of wisdom and humanity, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly and George Bush rather than to hear the ugly truth. Such is life.

Answer 2

Yes - and for those who don't recall, more Americans supported the war in Iraq at the beginning, too. The problem (in additon to actual mistakes made in the prosecution of the war, which have occurred) is that people forget how terrible war really is, and they expect it to be quick and easy. The Civil War, the bloodiest war in American history, was thought by both sides to be a short skirmish. Ditto WW1, WW2, Korea, and Vietnam. Everybody forgets that the other side is just as adamant about winning, and usually better prepared than most people think.

Answer 3

Almost right. Vietnam was the first war to be broadcast into the American home. Eat dinner and watch the horrors of war. TV coverage had a lot to do with changing the opinion of the war and helped turn americans against the soldiers.

Answer 4

Yes, at least at first a majority did support the war. That didn't take long to change, however. Long before it ended, even those of us who fought it knew it was the wrong thing to do. I'm very proud of my service in the U.S. Army - but not of the war itself.

Answer 5

In a word, yes. Much like todays conflict in the middle east, the original message to the American people was one of keeping the US safe from foreign powers, Viet Nam being Communism instead of todays war on terror. President Eisenhower began by sending advisors over after the defeat of the French, and it was secretive at first. After more troops were sent over, he, and then president Johnson started the PR campaign of saving the world from communism and the "domino effect" (once one country topples, so do more one by one), and the people were supportive, until more and more boys came home in body bags.

Answer 6

international conflict 2 became right into a 'widespread conflict' fairly after some demanding fought battles assured human beings that they might win - - - - at last. the arrogance point became into there from the get pass - - - in comparison to a undeniable different President, American s on no account lost faith in FDR. even whilst FDR became into knock-knock-knocking on Heaven's door a majority of human beings voted him to 4 extra years in place of work!!! in case you like a guestimate, below fifteen p.c. of human beings detrimental international conflict 2 as quickly as the jap blundered into/over Pearl Harbor and Hitler stumbled after them...... additionally international conflict 2 became into between the main suitable 'controlled' wars and the financial device became into leaping. For the 1st ever in residing reminiscence definitely everyone who needed a activity had a activity and hundreds upon hundreds of blacks have been waiting to commerce the important-Heck down South for the extra Genteel-Heck up North and in California and factors West----- that prosperity translated into the post conflict era returned through smart managedment returned through fact of FDR... Pax----------------------

Answer 7

yep; it took almost 6 years of consciously choosing nothing but bad news to broadcast before the press convinced most Americans to abandon those in Vietnam who trusted and believed in us, and to leave the South Vietnamese to the re-education camps and the Cambodians to the Killing Fields.

and, of course, those who were in junior positions in the media in the 60's are now the senior editors choosing what you see about Iraq......

Answer 8

Yes, and that's a fact.

Answer 9

yes it actually was untill they start seeing what was actually goin on