Eisenhower's Domino Theory

The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien is a book containing a compilation of short stories that take place in Vietnam during the Vietnam war. These stories depict the horrors and atrocities that take place during war. General history shows that the US spent lots of time and money. The US involvement in Vietnam divided Americans into the hawks and the doves. The hawks were people who supported the war while the doves were people who opposed the war. The conflict between the hawks and doves raised the question, “Was the US justified in going to war in Vietnam?”. This question has been brought up many times in recent history all the way up to the present day. This topic is widely discussed because of the long-lasting effects of the war such as immense debts brought on the US, veterans left with PTSD, as well as a lost generation of men who died in the war. Although the effects of the war are mainly negative, the US government was justified in interfering in Vietnam because of the domino effect, world trade, and the Soviet Influence on Vietnam.
The domino theory was presented by President Dwight Eisenhower in 1954 during a news conference, He stated,
“You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one of the certainty that it …show more content…
Eisenhower’s domino theory presented the fear of spreading communism in Southeast Asia, while the US was responsible to protect world trade, and prevent the expansion of Soviet communist influence. These reasons ultimately justified the US invasion of Vietnam. With the US going to war in Vietnam, this action set a precedent of protecting nations in conflict and those that are at a risk to become communist. These efforts are seen in the Korean war as well, which occurred a few years before the start of the Vietnam war. Without the invasion of Vietnam, US history from then up until now may have been changed for the