The book I read was titled Here There are Tigers, The Secret Air War in Laos, 1968-69. It was written by Reginald Hawthorn and is his personal experience as a Major in the Air Force. I wanted to know an Air Force pilot’s perspective since I read about so much bombing going on during the Vietnam War. He was an FAC (Forward Air Controller) and flew an O-2 single prop airplane during Vietnam from 1968-1969. Major Reginald Hathorn was an instructor at Laughlin Air Force Base when he got the call on Friday of January 1968 that he would have to leave his wife and two daughters to fight in Vietnam.…
The book, ‘The Killing Zone’ by Frederick Downs, is an autobiography of his own experiences in the war of Vietnam 1967. He splits the book into multiple sections and is in the format of diary inserts describing his journey from start to finish of his time in Asia and his physical and mental incidents. The first chapter is titles ‘The Bridges’ and his journal entries start September 8, 1967 when he arrives to Vietnam. He describes looking down at the war zone and being surprised by how many lights were actually illuminated and that the aircraft to be shot down. Downs didn’t expect the war zone to look so inhabited and visible from the skies. He thought that he was physically prepared for what he was getting himself into, but mentally he struggled. Downs was very confident in his abilities but didn’t know where he would fit into the war and what toll it would bring onto him.…
Operation Ranch Hand; 1961-1972; The heart of the Vietnam War, and the U.S. needs an advantage. “[The military] sprayed more than 19 million gallons of herbicides over 4.5 million acres of land in Vietnam...Agent Orange, which contained the chemical dioxin, was the most commonly used of the herbicide mixtures, and the most effective,” (“Agent”). In total, this agent accounted for 11-13 million gallons of the total herbicides released. Agent Orange was later found to be the origin of various health problems; these include tumors, birth defects, skin irritation, psychological changes, and cancer. The herbicides main purpose was to clear the vegetation, allowing the front line to detect approaching enemies in time for defensive action; the…
* In reflection, Vietnam is described as the cause of the greatest political and social dissent and upheaval…
This war between the Australians, Papuans and the Japanese took place around the Kokoda Trail and specifically Port Moresby on the 21st of July 1942 and ended in November in the same year. It was also apart of World War II. The Kokoda Trail is a pathway that stretches out about 96km long. (Show parts of the trail) At one end, there is Ower’s Corner, which is 40 kilometers North East of Port Moresby (Show image of Owers Corner) and on the other side is a small village named Wairopi…
The United States strategy in Vietnam from 1965 to 1968 went through various changes and revisions as leadership tried to find a feasible plan of action. US Army General William Westmoreland and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara were two of the major forces in US leadership that would shape the war effort. They devised a military strategy of attrition through tactics of search and destroy, covert operations, and other factors in hopes of wearing out the enemy. While their strategy found some success on the battlefields, the ineffectiveness of search and destroy missions, the over emphasis on body counts, and the disconnect between everyday soldiers and their superiors about defining success would doom the US war effort.…
I was asked to talk about the 50-year anniversary of the Vietnam war. And as most of you can probably tell, I wasn’t alive 50 years ago, so I went to my grandfather who fought in that war and I asked him to recount his experience. I asked him if he lost any friends during that time. He responded with “Hunny, all the guys you are with are your friends. And it hurts to lose any of them.” He recalled for me one individual. Greg. He said “losing that one was hard.” He told me he was a good man who found a Vietnamese child that he wanted to take back to the states with him. My grandfather said that man was later killed in action and the child, lost track of. Ladies and gentlemen. 58, 220 American soldiers died in that war. To some, these numbers aren’t more than graphs, statistics, or numbers on a chart. But to the brave soldiers who fought, each number is a face, a name, a story or a memory. Every number, every digit matters. Let us not forget the 2.5 million soldiers who fought for us. Who fought against communism, against an ideal they felt to be…
This heartwarming story is about a young boy and his father who take a trip to visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. The father is looking for his father’s name on the giant memorial. While searching for his grandfather’s name, he young boy can’t help but notice everyone else around them. he sees wounded soldiers, people crying and hugging each other, a teacher and her class, and flowers that are now drooping. His own father also seems sad after visiting the monument, and he too feels a little sad because he doesn’t have a grandfather. His father expresses that he’s thankful that his father’s name is on that wall, because it just proves he was a hero to…
Vietnam was an actual war, not just a singular battle such as Verdun, therefore, it lasted much longer. The campaigns and battles fought during the Vietnam War lasted from a couple of years to several months with the war itself lasting nearly two decades (“Operation Rolling Thunder” 2010). Operation Rolling Thunder was planned as a bombing campaign against North Vietnam. The first round of the bombs were dropped in March of 1965 and lasted until late 1968. This operation produced three years of continuous bombing on the North Vietnamese in hopes of crippling their ability to wage war against the US and South Vietnam (“Operation Rolling Thunder” 2010). This is nearly identical to what was done to the French at Verdun. One of the differences is that the Germans wanted to drain France of their soldiers, while capturing Verdun was secondary. Without any kind of public eye looking at Verdun, both sides were free to carry out necessary actions to gain victory. The Vietcong used the dense jungle to transport small arms, munitions, and soldiers to the front line of the war. One of the trails that the Vietcong heavily used during the war was the Ho Chi Minh Trail, which consisted of multiple routes as well as fake trails to confuse the United States and other enemies. It was vital that the U.S. destroy the hidden trails in order to prevent more weapons from being transported (Trueman, “Ho Chi Minh Trail”). Cutting off the enemy’s supply lines are top priority in any kind of war or battle. One of the main reasons why the Battle of Verdun lasted almost a year and was able to use an excessive amount of amunitions was that both sides had stable supply lines deploying necessary troops to the front lines. Instead of trenches, Vietnam had a dense jungle that offered a source of great camouflage for the Vietcong and hindered the United States ability to…
During the Vietnam War, a radical protest group rose up on the campus of the University of Michigan. Weathermen, as they became called in everyday vernacular, were actually nothing like weathermen at all – they protested, rioted, bombed, and broke people out of jail, to mention a few of their actions. The name was formally changed to Weather Underground Organization a year after the founding, and their acts of terror followed shortly after. Earlier in the semester, a documentary about the Environmental Liberation Front was viewed. In this documentary, titled If a Tree Falls, a radical protest organization rises up to confront…
The Tet offensive began January 30 1968. The battle was one of many during the Vietnam War. There were many countries involved in the war; one side was Viet cong and North Vietnamese against the South Vietnamese and the United States with their allies. The battle got its name from the Vietnamese New Year, called Tet; it was when the first major attack took place. There were many minor attacks throughout the battle. Most of the attacks caused the U.S. along with their allies to lose power over states, they quickly reassembled and fought right back gaining back control. The U.S. inflicted many casualties upon the North Vietnamese. A particular battle, the Battle of Hue had lasted for several months and the North Vietnamese particular took full control of this battle, executed thousands. The victory had a strong effect on U.S. government; the public were shocked not thinking the enemy was capable of such a victory. The public showed zero support for the government, putting them in a situation where they had to negotiate to end the war.…
The Vietnam War officially ended in April of 1975 for the United States, but the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was not constructed and dedicated until March of 1982, seven years later. The viewer would notice the memorial is a black granite wall stretching around the Constitutional Gardens in Washington, D.C., which display the names of the service men and women who served in the Vietnam War. On the other hand, the Korean War officially ended in July of 1953, but the Korean War Memorial was not constructed and dedicated until July of 1995, forty-two years later. The viewer would notice the memorial is a combination of a large black granite wall surrounding nineteen stainless…
Enveloped in a state of domestic and international crisis, 1968 America was divided. The Tet Offensive ended the country’s feint hope that the war could be over soon, and racial tensions left many Americans either feeling ignored or fearful for their lives. Constant protest and riots concerning race and the Vietnam War brewed a feeling of insecurity in the country. The feelings of intense nationalism and American pride seemed to have dissolved in the wake racial conflict and Vietnam. The American virtues of freedom and equality seemed to fall wayward, and the government did not act like it was any concern. The dirge of protests concerning Black Power, the Vietnam War, and civil rights were nearly unacknowledged by Lyndon Johnson. The people…
Obviously, we live in quite interesting times when technology is progressing but wars are still going on. It is a well-known fact that forty years ago there was basically just mail. Mapes points to the fact that nowadays there is a number of options, among them are cell phones, messengers, Internet including Skype as well as social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter (2010). Thus, the soldiers have easy access to all these services and are able to use them at any time, wherever they may be. Of course, some technical difficulties may occur. Nevertheless, it would be crazy to imagine all of this during the Vietnam War times.…
when I researched about Vietnam and learned a lot of interesting facts. Like the weather there how it was always raining. 89.71 million people live-in Vietnam. In Vietnam there is many trails to hike. There is scuba diving and parasailing also.…