Rules of engagement for the Unites States in the Vietnam War were a framework put into place by military authorities to define the limitations and circumstances that combat will be initiated or continue with enemy forces. (Georgia Tech College , n.d.). The rules are put into place to be compliant with international law for conducting war, minimize friendly fire accidents, and protect civilians. All of these regulations also had political motivation and each level of rank within the army from foot soldiers to the President were micromanaged under these political constraints; this paper will examine six key participants.
The field soldiers in the Vietnam War were the lowest ranking; they were expected to follow command without question. Their …show more content…
They are “responsible for everything that happens or fails to happen in their organizations” (Holmes, n.d.), and therefore spread thinly. They prepare for missions, provide guidance to subordinates, while also implementing tough training to enforce military standards. The Battalion Commander Douglas Smith (Keeley, 1969) stated the most difficult part was “deciding when you’re going to win an engagement with the enemy and what price you’re going to pay for it”. This included wiping out villages of innocents as Vietcong took cover there, while shooting at the …show more content…
He is one who encouraged President Johnson to go into battle, agreeing it could be an easy win using traditional military force, of which the Unites States had in plentiful supply. However, as the war raged on, with no real progress being made, he had to retract his original findings, and admit his mistaken opinion “exploded into an open-ended and massive commitment of American men, money, and materiel(sic)” (Moss, 2010.p.172) He advised the President to either begin to withdraw from Vietnam or increase the amount of troops fighting there, but overall, he had begun to lose faith that winning this war was
The field soldiers in the Vietnam War were the lowest ranking; they were expected to follow command without question. Their …show more content…
They are “responsible for everything that happens or fails to happen in their organizations” (Holmes, n.d.), and therefore spread thinly. They prepare for missions, provide guidance to subordinates, while also implementing tough training to enforce military standards. The Battalion Commander Douglas Smith (Keeley, 1969) stated the most difficult part was “deciding when you’re going to win an engagement with the enemy and what price you’re going to pay for it”. This included wiping out villages of innocents as Vietcong took cover there, while shooting at the …show more content…
He is one who encouraged President Johnson to go into battle, agreeing it could be an easy win using traditional military force, of which the Unites States had in plentiful supply. However, as the war raged on, with no real progress being made, he had to retract his original findings, and admit his mistaken opinion “exploded into an open-ended and massive commitment of American men, money, and materiel(sic)” (Moss, 2010.p.172) He advised the President to either begin to withdraw from Vietnam or increase the amount of troops fighting there, but overall, he had begun to lose faith that winning this war was