Wow that was a lot of reading
The ignorance of America came at a high cost to its people. President Lyndon Johnson was so enthralled with his quest for a “great society” escalated the U.S. presence in Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh, according to Wages of War, admired Americans and was a loyal ally during World War II. Presidents prior had ignored him as he showed determination to making Vietnam a democracy. Unable to get aid, he turned to communism. Johnson’s misunderstanding of Vietnamese culture further thwarted the situation and led to a greater push to prevent a “domino effect” of communism in Asia.
More knowledge about Agent Orange would have prevented many deaths and defects to American Veterans and Vietnamese. The fact that the government used clearly bias sources for their research of Agent Orange and tried to deny for years any negative effects would have outraged me as an effected veteran. I can better understand now why veterans felt so isolated. They were not given a warm homecoming, denied proper medical care, and later stood by and watched the American government welcome home prisoners from Iran years later with the compassion they should have received.
November 12th, 2007 at 4:39 pm
I think the whole Agent Orange denial was terrible! It would have been understandable if there were only a few people claiming it affected them, but there were so many that it just looks like the government slacked off in its duty.
November 12th, 2007 at 10:49 pm
I feel that the government was wrong when they knowingly conducted false research. I think that families of those that were affected should get compensation from the military.
November 13th, 2007 at 9:51 am
I agree, it’s especially ridiculous that they would continue to deny its horrible effects even after so many veterans stepped forward with physical evidence of its side effects.