What Went Wrong With The Vietnam War?
The Vietnam War was one of, if not the most controversial wars to date, including the wars on terrorism still happening today. There are many views and opinions on what went wrong with the Vietnam War and after reading Where the Domino Fell: America and Vietnam 1945-2010 and “Article 46 & 47” in America Firsthand I will tell you what my views are. The main issues that I see with the war was the lack of the United States government to know the history of Vietnam and learning from the French’s mistakes in the first Indochina War, the combination of South Vietnamese government corruption backed by the U.S. government and finally the government trying to cover up parts of the Vietnam War that eventually came to light.
As a country, Vietnam has …show more content…
was among many other issues that plagued the Vietnam War. Once the U.S. finally got someone to lead South Vietnam that they thought they could trust, he quickly turned and became just as corrupt as the leaders before. “In 1955 Diem called for the abdication of Bao Dai. He set up a national referendum to decide the question. In an election in which 605,000 of Saigon’s 405,000 registered voters cast ballots, Diem received 98.2 percent. On October 23, 1955, he proclaimed the Republic of Vietnam, with himself as president.” Diem wasn’t the only South Vietnamese leader who was corrupt; his youngest brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, was also corrupt. “...Nhu hated the Buddhists and wanted to ‘put the monks in their places.’ He was commander of the Vietnamese Special Forces and transformed them into his own personal army of henchmen, hit men, and spies. Nhu, a heavy opium user and a chain smoker, admired Adolf Hitler. Next to Diem, Nhu was the most powerful man in South Vietnam.” Even the ARVN had huge issues with corruption. In Where the Domino Fell the authors write, “Too many officers were promoted because of political connections, not tactical abilities...Corruption was rampant. In some ARVN units half the roster consisted of ‘potted-tree soldiers,’ men who had bribed their way out of active service... The government still sent monthly pay and allowance checks in their names, which ARVN officers pocketed.” There was no place in the South Vietnamese government that was safe from
As a country, Vietnam has …show more content…
was among many other issues that plagued the Vietnam War. Once the U.S. finally got someone to lead South Vietnam that they thought they could trust, he quickly turned and became just as corrupt as the leaders before. “In 1955 Diem called for the abdication of Bao Dai. He set up a national referendum to decide the question. In an election in which 605,000 of Saigon’s 405,000 registered voters cast ballots, Diem received 98.2 percent. On October 23, 1955, he proclaimed the Republic of Vietnam, with himself as president.” Diem wasn’t the only South Vietnamese leader who was corrupt; his youngest brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, was also corrupt. “...Nhu hated the Buddhists and wanted to ‘put the monks in their places.’ He was commander of the Vietnamese Special Forces and transformed them into his own personal army of henchmen, hit men, and spies. Nhu, a heavy opium user and a chain smoker, admired Adolf Hitler. Next to Diem, Nhu was the most powerful man in South Vietnam.” Even the ARVN had huge issues with corruption. In Where the Domino Fell the authors write, “Too many officers were promoted because of political connections, not tactical abilities...Corruption was rampant. In some ARVN units half the roster consisted of ‘potted-tree soldiers,’ men who had bribed their way out of active service... The government still sent monthly pay and allowance checks in their names, which ARVN officers pocketed.” There was no place in the South Vietnamese government that was safe from