d Vietnam become an American War by 1968, and what problems did the United States have in winning the “Hearts and Minds” of the Vietnamese people?
By 1968 American politicians committed hundreds of billions worth of resources and nearly half a million personnel to the Vietnam War. Which was a war based on fabricated research and statistics, blatant lies to the American public, and cherry-picked threats. Americans provided most of the financial assistance, resources, over half a million soldiers, along with an unlimited availability of these resources for the South Vietnamese war effort (Vietnam in HD: Episode Three). The American presence in Vietnam had expanded to amounts that the Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, had deemed “outrageous” …show more content…
Furthermore, the American presence in Vietnam vastly multiplied. Allowing the Vietnam War to become less about the South Vietnamese defending democracy, and more so about Americans being a global opponent of communism. As American politicians eventually pooled hundreds of billions of dollars into the war effort, and over half a million men by 1968, the South Vietnamese were continuously looking for an end to the war (Herring, 181-182, and 196-197). Even with intense bombing operations such as Operation Rolling Thunder from 1965 to 1968, which released more bombs into Vietnam than in World War II, had poor results. Due to the resourcefulness of the North Vietnamese, as they had elaborate underground networks of tunnels and continuously held strong. As the Vietnam War approached 1968, the South Vietnamese war became completely Americanized. In fact, there was potentially far too much American presence in Vietnam. As White House aide John Roche sarcastically spoke how “cutting [the aid] by two-thirds might increase its efficiency by 50 percent” (Herring, 197). Though the statistical information was meant in a joking manner, the context of his comment was not. Not only were the American military the dominating democratic force in Vietnam, South Vietnamese civilians were affected by the American presence and becoming …show more content…
With over half a million American soldiers in Vietnam by 1968, there was a demand for activities to spend money on. Many brothels and bars sprung open. As American soldiers continuously spend their money in the vulnerable and weak South Vietnamese economy, prices would increase up to “170 percent during the first two years of buildup” (Herring, 197). However, the opposite effects occurred as well. As American troops pulled out of Vietnam, the loss of American spending had disastrous effects on the vulnerable
By 1968 American politicians committed hundreds of billions worth of resources and nearly half a million personnel to the Vietnam War. Which was a war based on fabricated research and statistics, blatant lies to the American public, and cherry-picked threats. Americans provided most of the financial assistance, resources, over half a million soldiers, along with an unlimited availability of these resources for the South Vietnamese war effort (Vietnam in HD: Episode Three). The American presence in Vietnam had expanded to amounts that the Secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, had deemed “outrageous” …show more content…
Furthermore, the American presence in Vietnam vastly multiplied. Allowing the Vietnam War to become less about the South Vietnamese defending democracy, and more so about Americans being a global opponent of communism. As American politicians eventually pooled hundreds of billions of dollars into the war effort, and over half a million men by 1968, the South Vietnamese were continuously looking for an end to the war (Herring, 181-182, and 196-197). Even with intense bombing operations such as Operation Rolling Thunder from 1965 to 1968, which released more bombs into Vietnam than in World War II, had poor results. Due to the resourcefulness of the North Vietnamese, as they had elaborate underground networks of tunnels and continuously held strong. As the Vietnam War approached 1968, the South Vietnamese war became completely Americanized. In fact, there was potentially far too much American presence in Vietnam. As White House aide John Roche sarcastically spoke how “cutting [the aid] by two-thirds might increase its efficiency by 50 percent” (Herring, 197). Though the statistical information was meant in a joking manner, the context of his comment was not. Not only were the American military the dominating democratic force in Vietnam, South Vietnamese civilians were affected by the American presence and becoming …show more content…
With over half a million American soldiers in Vietnam by 1968, there was a demand for activities to spend money on. Many brothels and bars sprung open. As American soldiers continuously spend their money in the vulnerable and weak South Vietnamese economy, prices would increase up to “170 percent during the first two years of buildup” (Herring, 197). However, the opposite effects occurred as well. As American troops pulled out of Vietnam, the loss of American spending had disastrous effects on the vulnerable