Unlike previous wars like WWI and WWII, this war was seen as pointless by the American people. Not only did Vietnam do nothing severe to threaten the United States, but the action of sending in American Troops cost the lives of 47,434 U.S American Soldiers. Americans and even American Soldiers protested this war.
The United States entered Vietnam with the principal purpose of preventing a communist takeover of the region. In that respect, it failed: the two Vietnams were united under a communist banner in July 1976. Neighbouring Laos and Cambodia similarly fell to communists.
Ultimately, the actions of the United States in the Vietnam War were unjust according to the Just War Theory. America failed to meet the requirements of both jus ad bellum, justice of war, and jus in bello, justice in war. The U.S. did not have just cause for entering the Vietnam War.
Many Americans opposed the war on moral grounds, appalled by the devastation and violence of the war. Others claimed the conflict was a war against Vietnamese independence, or an intervention in a foreign civil war; others opposed it because they felt it lacked clear objectives and appeared to be unwinnable.
Many Vietnam veterans claim that most people treated them with indifference and seemed uncomfortable listening to their stories from battle. Some people, however, saw returning soldiers as dangerous, violent symbols of an increasingly futile and terrible war—much like the individual Wowwk encountered.
Other events that made history that year include the Vietnam War's Tet Offensive, riots in Washington, DC, the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1968, and heightened social unrest over the Vietnam War, values, and race. The National Archives holds records documenting the turbulent time during 1968.
As for the countrywide rankings, Vietnam checks in 41st out of 163 countries in the annual Global Peace Index, with the only negatives being the number of security forces in the country. Global Finance's country-safety rankings, which echo those of the World Economic Forum, placed Vietnam 49th out of 134 countries.
Max Boot's latest book, The Road Not Taken, discusses his contention that the Vietnam War could have been avoided if American leaders had listened to a visionary CIA Agent, Edward Lansdale, who called for a focus on hearts and minds, not bombs and body counts.
The justifications for the Vietnam War were seriously flawed. The Central Intelligence Agency had repeatedly informed the Johnson administration that most Southeast Asian countries were not in danger of falling like dominos to communism, even if North Vietnam won. The credibility theory was also exaggerated.
China had become communist in 1949 and communists were in control of North Vietnam. The USA was afraid that communism would spread to South Vietnam and then the rest of Asia. It decided to send money, supplies and military advisers to help the South Vietnamese Government.
Sections of the Ho Chi Minh Trail still exist today, and parts of it have been incorporated into the Ho Chi Minh Highway, a paved road that connects the north and south regions of Vietnam.
History is littered with some truly dumb wars. The Pastry War saw a French pastry chef demand reparations when his shop was looted just outside of Mexico City in 1832. The Opium Wars in the 1840's began when China was trying to stop the British from trafficking opium in their country.
World War Two was the most destructive global conflict in history. It began when Nazi Germany unleashed ferocious attacks across Europe - but it spread to the Soviet Union, China, Japan and the United States.
Anglo-Zanzibar War. The Anglo-Zanzibar War was a military conflict fought between the United Kingdom and the Sultanate of Zanzibar on 27 August 1896. The conflict lasted between 38 and 45 minutes, marking it as the shortest recorded war in history.
The Vietcong had an intricate knowledge of the terrain. They won the hearts and minds of the South Vietnamese people by living in their villages and helping them with their everyday lives. Their tunnel systems, booby-traps and jungle cover meant they were difficult to defeat and hard to find.
In 1969, Nixon ordered B-52 strikes against the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) bases and supply routes in Cambodia, which had been used as a sanctuary by North Vietnam forces. The orders for U.S. bombing of Cambodia were classified, and thus kept from the U.S. media and Congress.
Initially, many Americans welcomed them home as heroes. However, as the war dragged on and became more controversial, some people began to view Vietnam veterans with disdain and even hostility. When they returned home, many Vietnam veterans did not receive the recognition and support they deserved.
There are persistent stereotypes about Vietnam veterans as psychologically devastated, bitter, homeless, drug-addicted people, who had a hard time readjusting to society, primarily because of the uniquely divisive nature of the Vietnam War in the context of U.S. history.
Nearly nine million Americans served during the Vietnam War Era, and as of the 2020 Census, they are the largest cohort of veterans in America, with an estimated 6.4 million living vets at a median age of 71. Out of that number, approximately 2.7 million American men and women served in Vietnam proper.
Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC; Vietnamese: Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, IPA: [tʰan˨˩ fow˦˥ how˨˩ cɪj˦˥ mɨn˧˧]), also known as Saigon (Vietnamese: Sài Gòn, IPA: [saːj ɣɔ̂n]), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of 14,002,598 in 2025.
Viet Cong (VC), the guerrilla force that, with the support of the North Vietnamese Army, fought against South Vietnam (late 1950s–1975) and the United States (early 1960s–1973). The name is said to have first been used by South Vietnamese Pres. Ngo Dinh Diem to belittle the rebels.
