TLW Objectives 1. Explain the reasons for the escalation of the Vietnam War. 2. Explain the draft policies that led to the Vietnam War becoming a working-class war. 3. Describe the military tactics and weapons used by U.S. forces and the Vietcong.
"We were wrong, terribly wrong. We owe it to future generations to explain why." McNamara, writing in his 1995 memoir, In Retrospect, on the management of the Vietnam War.
3 Major Mistakes Made In Vietnam: 1) The U.S. believed stopping communism from spreading into Vietnam would stop communism from spreading throughout the rest of Asia. 2) The U.S. failed to bomb the Ho Chi Minh trail and stop the transportation of troops and supplies from North Vietnam into South Vietnam. 3) The U.S. underestimated the Vietnamese, used WWII tactics to fight a different war in a different part of the world, and allowed the media full access in reporting on the war.
How would you feel if student privileges at FHS-the best classes, schedules, parking, spot in lunch line, etc.-were awarded according to the wealth or prominence of the student s family? What would you do about it?
PRESIDENT LYNDON B. JOHNSON President Johnson won the November 1964 election by promising to not escalate the war in Vietnam. In reference to Vietnam he said It s their war. And I will not send American boys to Vietnam to do what Asian boys should do for themselves. However by March of 1965 LBJ will use the Tonkin Gulf Resolution to begin sending U.S. troops to Vietnam. 180,000 sent by end of 1965.
TONKIN GULF RESOLUTION LBJ had authorized secret raids to be conducted into North Vietnam. In response to the raids the North Vietnamese twice attack the USS MADDOX in the Gulf of Tonkin on different nights. Torpedoes miss, but according to our government the U.S. navy returns fire and sinks the North Vietnamese boat. Government claims the Maddox was attacked again the next night but there is no evidence of an attack. LBJ gets congress to pass the Tonkin Gulf Resolution on August 7, 1964=allows the president of the U.S. to take military action against any armed attack without having to officially declare war.
Did the Tonkin Gulf Incident ever occur OR was it faked so that the U.S. had an excuse to go to war?
RESULT OF TONKIN GULF RESOLUTION 1) LBJ orders Operation Rolling Thunder in February 1965=bombing of North Vietnam by the Air Force. We dropped more bombs in the first month than we did in all of WWII. (ordered to not bomb any North Vietnamese ports or anywhere near China.) 2) In March the first American combat troops arrived in South Vietnam. 3) By June 50,000 U.S. soldiers were fighting the Vietcong.
ROBERT MCNAMARA Secretary of Defense McNamara (no previous military training; president of Ford Motor Company) worked closely with LBJ and suggested the use of Operation Rolling Thunder Sent combat troops into South Vietnam even though he did not believe either would work unless we established a stable and secure government in South Vietnam. This guy is totally the wrong guy for the job.
PROBLEMS WITHIN THE WHITE HOUSE Members of LBJ s cabinet in the White House all openly disagreed on what to do about the war in Vietnam. The disagreements not only created bigger disagreements within Congress but it made the White House and all other politicians look incompetent. The military also openly disagreed with the war tactics and decisions used by the inexperience in the White House. What does McNamara know? Dissatisfaction spread within the White House Congress-Military-American People.
CREDIBILITY GAP 1) Vietnam became known as the living room war because the media was (specifically TV) showing nightly combat footage. 2) The U.S. government kept telling the American people that VC surrender was imminent. However the media was telling a different story. 3) Credibility Gap=Public distrust of statements made by the government.
GENERAL WESTMORELAND General Westmoreland was in charge of the Vietnam War. Highly decorated officer from WWII and Korean War. Requested U.S. combat troops to be sent to support the incompetent Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN- South Vietnamese Army). Received 500,000 by 1967. Thought the U.S. could break the morale of the Vietcong by racking up a high body count total (Attrition). Claimed the U.S. never lost a battle.
Vietcong Tactics "The enemy advances, we retreat; the enemy camps, we harass; the enemy tires, we attack; the enemy retreats, we pursue. The imaginative use of booby-traps by the NVA and VC caused many casualties amongst their opponents. Between January 1965 and June 1970, 11% of the fatalities and 17% of the wounds among U.S. Army troops were caused by booby traps and mines. To give one historical example, Charlie Company of the First Battalion, 20th Infantry sustained over 40% casualties in 32 days. They scarcely saw the enemy and took the casualties mainly from booby-traps and snipers. The effect on morale was such that these losses in men and the fact that they included virtually all of the experienced NCO's was said to have been more than partly responsible for the My Lai massacre that occurred.
Guerilla Warfare The guerilla army wins by NOT losing. The traditional army loses by NOT winning.
Write the following statements in your notes ( 2 slides): 1) War Powers Act: Passes in November 1973. Amendment to the Tonkin Gulf Resolution. This is the power the President currently possesses. A) President must inform Congress within 48 hours of sending troops into battle without a declaration of war. B) The troops may remain there no longer than 90 days unless Congress approves the president s actions or declares war.
Partner Up: Use your technology to fill out the chart: Vietcong Fighting Tactics What is it? Effective? Why or why not? U.S. Fighting Tactics 1. Bouncing Betties 9. U.S. firepower and technology 2. Toe Poppers 10. Strategic Hamlet Program 3. Punji Stake Pit 11. Search and Destroy 4. Punji Bear Trap 12. Large Scale Bombings 5. Non-Explosive Trips Wires 6. Explosive Trip Wires 13. Helicopters 14. Zippo Raids 7. Tunnels 15. Attrition 8. Hanging onto the belts Vietcong 16. Napalm and Agent Orange
VIETCONG TUNNELS 1) The Vietcong used guerilla warfare fighting tactics to frustrate the Americans. Most VC stayed in the tunnels during the day but came out at night to attack the U.S. soldiers. 2) The VC used elaborate tunnels to connect villages throughout the country side. 3) They also used the tunnels to withstand air strikes and to launch surprise attacks and then disappear quickly. 4) The VC also laced the terrain with booby traps and land mines. 5) Today 3.5 million mines remain active in Vietnam, causing 160 civilian casualties each month.
The Battle for Hearts and Minds Napalm-gas bomb dropped from airplanes to set fire to the jungle (40,000 tons used in the Vietnam War). Agent Orange-toxic leaf killing chemical sprayed from airplanes. Found to cause cancer and birth defects. South Vietnamese civilians turned against the U.S.
Effects of Agent Orange
9 year old Kim Phuk was burned by American Napalm. She suffered 3 rd degree burns and endured 17 grueling operations.