Even years before the war, Vietnam was a hotly disputed territory. Many countries had taken Vietnam over, and after World War II, Vietnam was in the hands of France. Obviously, the Vietnamese wanted their own country, and their long history of being a colony prompted the oppressed people to fight for their independence in the French-Indochina war. 7

Ho Chi Min, a leader of the Communist party, organized the Vietnamese independence movement, Viet Minh. Asking for support from America first, Ho Chi Min did not want to have to turn to communist support for the freedom of his people. Since the United States viewed helping Ho gain his independence from France as a move against their own allies, they declined. It was only after Russia and China offered to

The saddest chapter in American history could easily have been avoided, with a combination of good leadership, planning, preparedness, and morale. Perhaps in the future, American soldiers will know what they are fighting for, be equipped for the conditions, and not be thrown mercilessly into the meat grinder of an already-lost battle. Only the future, however, will tell...

Daily firefights, dead comrades, and officers who were fresher than you were were a few of the troubles grunts had to deal with on the battlefield. Drug use was rampant, soldiers would get high before battles to help them forget about what they were doing. 4 Mutiny was common, and the amount of soldiers who went AWOL was higher than any other war. With soldiers who didn't know what they were fighting for and people at home who didn't support you, what else could go wrong? Only one thing, and it happened to go wrong.

The largest reason why we lost the war is very apparent, and fits in nicely with this section. When one is fighting for a country's independence, and the citizens of that country don't support the efforts, trouble abounds. 7 The South Vietnamese were not happy about U.S. soldiers being in their country, and it showed. Every day, thousands of South Vietnamese joined the Viet Cong, so the American soldiers never knew who to trust, and who to shoot. Not having the support of the people you're fighting for is the worst curse that can be bestowed onto a military.

Some topics in this essay:
War II, Vietnamese VC, VC NVA, Vietnam War, Johnson Westmoreland, Agent Orange, South Vietnam, Westmoreland Johnson, North Vietnam, United Johnson, agent orange, vietnam war, ho chi min, chi min, booby traps, war ii, world war, south vietnamese, north vietnamese, american soldiers, ho chi, world war ii, vietnam world war, won vietnam war, chi min communist,