Vietnam

== =**"You can kill ten of my men for every one I kill of yours,**= =**but even at those odds, you will lose and I will win".**= =**Ho Chi Minh**= On August 2, 1964, North Vietnamese patrol boats attacked the USS Maddox which had been patrolling the coast of North Vietnam. On August 4, 1964, The North Vietnamese feigned another attack. On August 7, 1964 Congress votes to give President Johnson power to authorize more US forces in to help S. Vietnam. This is known as the "Gulf of Tonkin Resolution". Go here for the real story about the attacks in August 1964- [|USS Maddox]
 * [[image:mrjohnsonssclasses/dominoes-fall.jpg]]Domino Theory**

The Vietnam War (in a nutshell) 1964-1973
 * Nationalist (later communist) Ho Chi Minh fought for Vietnamese independence from France after WW2.
 * Vietnam splits into North Vietnam (communist) and South Vietnam (pro-democracy)
 * Communist North Vietnam influences South Vietnam trying to unify both under communism. The North sent weapons, food and supplies down to S. Vietnam on the "Ho Chi Minh" trail. (Really a series of small dirt paths through the jungle)
 * The communists living in South Vietnam were called the Vietcong (VC or Charlie). They were often farmers by day, communist fighters by night
 * The North Vietnamese Army (NVA) also came into South Vietnam to fight with the VC against US and South Vietnamese forces
 * The US becomes very active in Vietnam after the "Gulf of Tonkin" incident in 1964. US soldiers land in Vietnam to fight along side the South Vietnamese in 1965.
 * Fighting is generally on a small scale with the VC using "hit and run" tactics, booby traps, punji traps, etc.
 * 1968 is the turning point of the war as the war become progressively unpopular at home and the body count mounts.
 * The US never loses a major battle in the Vietnam War, but the American public lost the will to fight
 * Last US forces pull out in 1973. North Vietnam overruns the south in 1975 "unifying" Vietnam as a communist country.

Vietcong ("VC") punji traps

Click on this link to learn more about our adversaries in Vietnam. Scroll down to listen to what an [|AK-47] being fired sounds like. [|Donut Dollies of Vietnam]

The photo that changed the war

Jeremiah Denton blinks morse code for "t o r t u r e" while being used for communist propaganda media type="custom" key="9573464"media type="custom" key="23214148" Read more about American hero, Denton here: [|Jeremiah Denton]

Hanoi Hilton "Ropes Torture"

Results of Agent Orange found on Google Images

"Hanoi Jane" Actress Jane Fonda visiting NVA sites in Hanoi above and broadcasting to American soldiers from Hanoi asking them to stop the bombing in North Vietnam. [|Jane Fonda's Visit to North Vietnam 1972]

The photo above is Huey gunship pilot Walter Stewart (Mr. J's second cousin) [|Mrs. Henning's Brother In Law] media type="custom" key="11939434"

[|How the draft lottery worked in the Vietnam period] Click on the photo to read about the Kent State Shootings in May 1970

media type="custom" key="9580764" media type="custom" key="18604526" The remains of a US veteran are found in Vietnam. [|The largest party ever held at the White House!]

"Buo Doi" or "The Dust of Life" They're called Bui-Doi. The dust of life. Conceived in Hell, And born in strife. They are the living reminder of all the good we failed to do. We can't forget Must not forget That they are all our children, too.

Like all survivors I once thought When Im home I wont give a damn But now I know Im caught, Ill never leave Vietnam

War isnt over when it ends, some pictures never leave your mind. They are the faces of the children the ones we left behind Theyre called Bui-doi. The dust of life, conceived in hell and born in strife They are the living reminders of all the good we failed to do Thats why we know deep in our hearts, that they are all ourchildren too

These kids hit walls on every side, they dont belong in anyplace. Their secret they cant hide its printed on their face. I never thought one day Id plead For half-breeds from a land thats torn But then I saw a camp for children whose crime was being born

Theyre called Bui-Doi, the dust of life conceived in hell andborn in strife. We owe them fathers and a family a loving home they never knew. Because we know deep in our hearts that they are all our childrentoo.

These are souls in need, they need us to give Someone has to pay for their chance to live Help me try

They're called Bui-Doi. The dust of life. Conceived in Hell, And born in strife. They are the living reminders of all the good we failed to do. That's why we know That's why we know Deep in our hearts Deep in our hearts That's why we know That they are all our children, too. media type="custom" key="23232000"