Last actual day of class.
My semester test time is 10:15 to 10:25.
I gotta finish my semester blog or i might die.\
Vietnam Conflict.
Vietnam wants independance. France does not want to give it to them.
starts with eisenhower sending over military advisors.
Jfk sends over green berets and more advisors in the early 60s.
Lyndon Johnson, in 1964, Gulf of Tonkin Resolution-> sending combat troops. '66, more combat troops. '67, more combat troops.
The government was telling the people for years that "the war was almost over", so the people supported it.
Escalation up until that point, peak at 1968, with the Tet Offensive (when the vietnamese launched a big attack, and lost- when the american citizens figured out the government was lying to them) and My Lai Massacre (murderd 500 civilians). War protests and "draft dodgers"
Kent St. Massacre (baby-killers, rapists, maiming of the vietnamese citizens by american soldiers)in 1970.
So, the american citizens were really against the war now. because their soldiers were doing horrible things.
Diem vs the Buddhists. Diem, the leader we supported, was catholic and hated buddhists, which made up 99% of Vietnam's populations....he was despised. so the vietnamese supported "uncle ho", the communist revolutionists.
How to get out of being Drafted: "Draft Dodgers"
go to canada or sweden. go to college or get married. be medically unfit for service. Join National Gaurd or Peace Corps. claim to be homo. Be rich.
Johnson refuses to run for a second term. Nixon becomes pres and says he's gonna end the war.
So Nixon starts pulling troops out, then puts in a last ditch effort to win the war by bombing Cambodia and Laos with the goal of stopping Ho Chi Minh's supply lines. the problem? it was a jungle path, so they just went around the area being bombed.
1973. USA pulls out completely. "peace with honor". we promised we'd go back and help the non-communists if they were attacked again. Ford was pres when they did, and we did not go back. Therefore, all of Vietnam is now communist.
recap of persian gulf wars.
abu grey (sp?) prison scandal. came to the media. kinda like in vietnam. how can we do these horrible things to people we are mad at for doing horrible things to us? ours is worse, actually. therefore, the war lost a lot of support. very unpopular.
Why do we have to take care of everybody else?
Because we're the only world superpower. Because if we don't, look what happens -> WW2. Other countries go to war and mess the world up. If we don't, who will, really?
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