Transcript Preliminary Oral Defense

Vietnam
War
By Lauren
Spears
Overview
-The war began in 1954, when South Vietnam refused to
take part in an election that would unify the country, with
both the communist North Korea and the democratic
South Korea together as one. War broke out between the
two, with the Soviet Union backing the North with
military supplies.
-The United States, fearing that the fall of Vietnam to
communism would trigger a domino effect in Eastern
Asia, quickly got involved.
-They began by sending supplies and soldiers to train
the South Vietnamese military, and eventually got fully
involved in the war.
-The United States, after struggling for 13 years, took
their soldiers out of Vietnam in 1975. Not only did they
lose the war, but they abandoned the South Vietnamese
after the damage had been done.
-The North won, and the country was taken over
communists. The Vietnam War is known as one of the
bloodiest wars in history, with countless Vietnamese
and American deaths. I intend to analyze the reasons
why the U.S. should never have taken part in the war,
and why their initial reasons for going were not justified.
Questions Being
Addressed
What prompted the Americans to first get involved with
Vietnam?
What threats did the U.S. feel would be imposed if South
Vietnam was taken over by the communist North Vietnam?
Why did the United States fear communism?
Why were so many Americans against the war, and why did the
government not take into consideration the opinions and
views of its’ own people?
Was it unrealistic and ignorant of the U.S. to believe they could
win a war half way around the world in a foreign country?
Did the U.S. properly train their soldiers to defend and fight
against the guerilla tactics of the North Vietnamese?
Were there other forms of action the U.S. could have taken
rather than going to war?
Was it worth it to go to Vietnam?
Thesis
The United States was wrong to get
involved in the Vietnam War as they
were at a crucial disadvantage
because Vietnam was a foreign and
politically unstable country, the
American home front was widely
against the war, and they were not
willing to fully commit to the war.
Argument #1
U.S soldiers were prepared to fight a conventional war, were very
set back by the foreign guerilla tactics of the Viet Cong (no distinct
battle lines)
They fought in thick jungles, swamps, mountainous terrain,
insufferable humidity/heat (major struggle to adapt and fight at full
potential). In this way the VC had a clear advantage
Americans did not know the language or culture, leading to difficulty
distinguishing friend from foe
South Vietnam devastated economy, destroyed traditional and
political order, made up of conflicting ethnic, religious and political
forces
Ngo Dinh Diem (South leader) was more popular with the American
politicians than the Buddhist peasants (large population of South
Vietnam)
The U.S. administration’s strategy was to gradually increase military
pain until Vietnam saw the costs as too great, did not know Vietnam
could withstand more loss than Washington could inflict
Argument#2
Government and political leaders failed to provide a convincing
explanation and justification of American involvement to their own
country
Spoke of light at end of tunnel while troops were dispatched and
casualties steadily increased
As volunteers for military decreased steadily in numbers,
conscription for the war was introduced
How could a war be won when men who did not believe in the
cause were being forced to fight
Public morale in the U.S proved to be a crucial “dominoe”,
influenced poor military spirits on the field, sped up disengagement
of the war
North Vietnam took advantage of anti-war protests ”conflict in the
U.S generates impatience in the States. Unfortunately it also
generates patience in Honai”
Argument#3
U.S did not want to invade North Vietnam (never officially declared
war) as this could have led to war with communist Russia/China
They fought a limited war, with limitations beyond borders of South
Vietnam
For North Vietnam the war was total
Many American military leaders who look back, blame the U.S.’s
failing military strategy on the geographic restraints imposed
For example, If the military had taken action in Laos and Cambodia,
blocking the Ho Chi Minh Trail, then they could have cut off North
Vietnam’s main supply routes
Counter
Arguments
The United States, under the Truman doctrine, believed it was their
duty to protect all countries from communism
Policy of containment
“Truman used disease imagery not only to communicate a sense of
impending disaster in the spread of communism but also to create a
"rhetorical vision" of containing it by extending a protective shield
around noncommunist countries throughout the world.”
The “Dominoe Effect”. If Vietnam fell to communism, many other
south eastern Asian countries would soon follow.
There is no real evidence, as history cannot be changed, that
proves that if the U.S had used different military strategies, they
would have been more successful in winning against the North
Sources
Berman, Larry. Planning a Tragedy: The Americanization of the
War in Vietnam. U.S.: Penguin Books Ltd., 1982.
Grant, Reg. Atlas of Conflicts: The Vietnam War. Milaukee:
Arcturus Publishing Ltd., 2004.
Cavendish, Marshall. The Vietnam War: People and
Politics.Long Island, NY: Marshall Cavendish Ltd., 1988.
Lomperis, Timothy J. “To a Baghdad Victory via Saigon”.
World Affairs 168. 4(2006):147
Sources
O’Malley, Michael. The Vietnam War and the Tragedy of Containment.
1996. 27 Sep.
2006<http://chnm.gmu.edu/courses/122vietnam/lecture.html
Gibson, James W. The Perfect War: Technowar in Vietnam. U.S.: Library
of Congress, 1986.
McNamara, Robert S., James Blight, and Thomas Biersteker. Argument
without End. New York: Perseus Books Group, 1999.
Fall, Bernard B. Last Reflections on a War. Garden City, NY: DoubleDay
& Company, INC., 1967.
Lewy, Guenter, and George C. Herring. "Could the United States Have
Prevented the Fall of South Vietnam?" Forest Ecology and
Management .15 (1992): 326-343.