Vietnam
fada
Posts: 1,032
Look I know little of the history but what are American's feelings on the matter. The US helped France in the war against IndoChina. By the end of it , it resulted in the US running the show. Vietnam tried to gain its independence from France.The US opposed it and it resulted in the war which was neither pretty or of value.
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I think most Americans would agree that the Vietnam war was a mistake on many levels.
Both, actually. The anti-war movement wasn't directly responsible for ending the war, but it certainly contributed to popular discontent with the conflict which in turn contributed to the ending of the conflict. That said, much of country ignored or marginalized the anti-war movement.
Cool. The Vietnam War was part of a very large sea change in American culture (for better and for worse). 1968 and 1969 are arguably the two most important years in American history since the Reconstruction.
Landing on the moon, the death throws of overt sexism, the continued integration of African-American culture, Namath vs Unitas, the Cold War, Arafat heads the PLO, the burning of draft cards, the list goes on and on.
Meh. The crime rates of the late sixties are more comparable to now. Crime really peaked in the 70s/80s. But I believe the upward trend started in the late 60s though. I'd have to check on that one.
Actually it continues. Every American male still registers with the Selective Service on his 18th birthday. It is the most sexist government policy still in place in the United States. Registration did end in 1975 but in 1980 was reinstated by Carter during the brief period when his administration considered entering the Afghan conflict.
The draft ended in 1973. Personally, I believe there should be a national holiday celebrating this fact since conscription is one of the most immoral domestic policies a nation may hold, IMO.
https://www4.sss.gov/regver/verification1.asp
Namath vs. Unitas................you do know that Unitas was not the starting QB in Super Bowl III??? He had been injured.......he did play, led the Colts to their only touchdown late in the game.
Hearts and Minds.
I guess it all depends on how you look at it. 2 million people were drafted in the United States during Vietnam. Sixty thousand died. That means you had roughly a 0.3% chance of being killed as a draftee. Not terribly high, but bullshit none the less, IMO. The lives and consciences of many Americans were slaughtered in the draft process. That's a crime the American government has not paid for yet.
Shit...can't believe I forgot about the DNC in Chicago. Very big deal.
Yeah...for some reason the images of Namath/Unitas have always been one of my iconic mental pictures of the late 60s. It's kind of silly but there's some truth there.
I don't know. Wouldn't shock me. Thankfully I know one (my father) that didn't, or I might not be here.
There is some truth to the Namath/Unitas thing......Unitas represented the spirit of the Eisenhower years where pro sports was only one of the players' jobs...Namath represented the Modern era of the Superstars, big contracts and players just being players (they did not work a "real" job in the off season).
http://www.chomsky.info/articles/19750612.htm
http://www.chomsky.info/articles/19720615.htm
http://www.chomsky.info/articles/1972----.htm
Sure. Vietnam has long been known as one big opium den!
It's funny and sad to look at Vietnam now though through the lens of the Vietnam war. I know some vets who have been back there recently and talk about luxury hotels sitting on the beaches they came ashore on. Capitalism is slowly taking hold there as the single-party system deteriorates. The millions dead on both sides were the losers, and their deaths really accomplished nothing.
Namath/Unitas thing , don't know what people are referring to?
I'll have to check that out. I remember when I was living in Chicago my friend was working on a thesis revolving around the 68 DNC. Lots of wild stories...
Exactly. Sideburns v Crewcut....tectonic plates of progress or some such bullshit!
Super Bowl III (American football)
UNITAS
http://www.pathguy.com/unitas-2.jpg
NAMATH
http://www.vintagesportsshoppe.com/na.jpg
Namath was the quarterback of the underdog Jets. He was brash and guaranteed a victory, despite long odds. Unitas was the quarterback for the Colts and represented the predominant clean-cut American athelete of the time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Bowl_III
I play a bit with history there because (as another poster indicated), Unitas actually didn't play much that season. But Morrall (the Colts other quarterback) was also pretty clean-cut
Hehe....and sideburns carried the day.
Namath and Unitas were professional (American) football players. Unitas was the older of the two by least a decade. They both played quarterback, which Unitas had helped to make into the marquee role on a team. They (along with others such as Jim Brown, etc.) were partially responible for making our version of football (on the professional level) the king of our sports. Prior to 1958, Baseball was the King of U.S. Sports. This shift is probably one of the reasons that we tend to be more accepting of violence in our entertainment and our lives.
Depends. There are a lot of nasty stories out there of veterans being spit on or assaulted or generally harassed. But that's not to say that all anti-war folk engaged in such acts.
You'll hear a lot of anti-war folks now go on and on about "we still support the troops", etc. That language is largely in response to the treatment of veterans post-Vietnam.