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From: John G. Kalil, Jr.
Date: 6/30/2002
Time: 5:25:25 PM
Remote Name: 209.161.68.133
Thanks for you thoughts. I great deal of discussion occurred in the U.S. over whether we should have been involved in the Vietnam war. Some said it was a civil war that we should not have been involved in and that it was morally wrong for us to be there. Of course these same people refused to accept the atrocities and murder committed by the Viet Cong. Most American soldiers and advisors that were there knew the truth about the Viet Cong. The American liberal press refused to admit that in the papers and the carryover effect is reflected in how the Vietnam War is remember in American History textbooks. The only U.S. mistake was getting into the Vietnam war without a valid, strategic plan to win the war. Lyndon Johnson did not have a clue. What caused the NVA and Viet Cong to succeed (not win) in taking over was that the majority of the American people QUIT. People like Jane Fonda, the Chicago Seven, etc. convinced enough people that we should not be in Vietnam. The lack of support from the American public, poor strategic objectives, poor leadership from many U.S. officers, and (I'm sorry to say this) poor motivation by the South Vietnamese soldiers allowed the Viet Cong to succeed.
When I was discharged and went to college at Penn State University, I was shocked at the apathy and anti-war sentiment on campus. Ask any G.I. who went to college after the service.
And that is a shame. For all of the U.S. military personnel killed or disabled. What a terrible waste. When the American public QUIT on the U.S. military, the Viet Cong gained a great deal of strength to carry on. I am so bitter today that I refuse to call the capital anything other than Saigon. I refuse to accept something called Ho Chi Minh City. Fuck Ho Chi Minh.