Jump to content

"The Vietnam War" on PBS


jimjimbo

Recommended Posts

 

So far, PBS's The Vietnam War is good, but not quite as good as I wanted it to be.   It doesn't seem to capture the abysmal depth of the disagreements among Americans at that time.    The range seemed to be from a very few who wanted the President to consider using a nuclear bomb in Vietnam, to a very few who wanted a violent revolution to overthrow the United States.  A greater number wanted to foster a nonviolent "Continuing American Revolution."  More yet wanted to see the troops withdrawn.  My impression was that most people -- Americans, Vietnamese, and others -- just wanted it to stop.  Before the bombing started in 1964, I knew almost no one who was against the war, except for committed pacifists and conscientious objectors; most didn't take a stand, and seemed to think they would leave foreign policy to the "experts."  By the time the US lost the war about 10 years later, opposition was truly poly-partisan, and reached across all SES groups.   By then, I didn't know a single person who wasn't against the war.  Their reasons did vary, though. 

 

I'll have to finally read or see The Fog of War (McNamara) -- I'd been avoiding it.  A friend of mine came back from Vietnam still supporting the war, and gradually changed his views over the years.  When he read McNamara's book and realized how thoroughly he had been deceived during the war, he bought multiple copies of the book, and gave them to friends. 

 

As to the variety among the protesters, in one of the mass marches people with signs that said "Negotiate Now!" marched next to others with signs reading "There is Nothing to Negotiate in Vietnam -- Withdraw Now."   Mohammad Ali was with us in San Francisco.  During the second Moratorium, Wayne Morse, Republican senator from Oregon, one of the two members of Congress to vote against the Gulf of Tonkin resolution, marched with us in S.F.  Later in Golden Gate Park, he was relaxing in his chair on the outdoor stage, when David Hilliard, of the Black Panthers, who was at the microphone, presumably in a fit of passion, said something like, "We will kill Nixon."  A wave of boos rolled over the crowd.  Morse leaped to his feet and started to yell at Hilliard.  There was so much noise by then I couldn't make out what he said.

 

A.J. Muste said, "There is no way to Peace ... Peace is the way." 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...