Vietnam Essay -- essays research papers

After thinking about all the things we would learn this year in Americanhistory I decided to do my project on the experiences of Vietnam Warveterans. There is a lot of controversy as to whether or not the VietnamWar veterans are given enough recognition for what they went through. I haveheard horrible stories of US soldiers dying from US bombs, face shock, andsoldiers returning to America and not being able to function as activemembers of society due to the horrors of the war. All I really cho usage aboutthe war is what I have seen on television. I treasured to learn about the warthrough the firsthand accounts of those who were there.The Vietnam War was a military struggle fought in Vietnam from1959 to 1975. It began as an attempt by commie guerrillas (or Vietcong)in the South, backed by Communist mating Vietnam, to overthrow the authorities of South Vietnam. The struggle grew into a war between SouthVietnam and North Vietnam and ultimately into an international conflict. TheUni ted States and almost 40 other countries support South Vietnam bysupplying troops and munitions, and the USSR and the Peoples Republicof China supply munitions to North Vietnam and the Vietcong. On nigh(prenominal)sides, however, the burden of the war fell principally on the civilians.1On January 27, in Paris, delegations representing the United States,South Vietnam, North Vietnam, and the tentative RevolutionaryCommunist Government of South Vietnam signed an Agreement on Endingthe War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam. The cease-fire officially went into put in on January 28. Both the US and North Vietnam asserted that therewere no secret peace terms.2All the US fighting forces had withdrawn from Vietnam by March1973, but not without major losses on both sides. Two million Vietnamesewere killed and 3 million were wounded. The extensive use of napalm anddefoliants (such as Agent Orange) left many people badly burned, and destroyed the ecology of a country that was mainly agricult ural.This is an important part of US history because it was the first war inwhich there was no take in winner. 57,685 US soldiers were killed, and triplethat amount were wounded. Even those who returned to the United stateswithout physical damage suffered from depression, and had to live withmemories of the carnage and destruction that they saw. What bothers meabout... ...arried, butinstead decided on throwing it away, so that he wouldnt be able to. So crimsonthis early in the war, the horrors of the POW camps were already known.I believe the pip pain Stafford had to endure was being withoutwater. As time passed, Staffords knowingness shifted away from his physicalpain and the uncertainty of his situation and focused on one single fact andsensation he was thirsty... He got overmatch off the stool, onto his knees, andlicked the floor where he tiles joined, hoping some water had a accumulatedthere. When that failed, he tried licking damaged places on the wall,hopingthat some wat er had sweated through.6 It was only his second day withoutwater, and he had to bide three more.The book continues to describe the horrible conditions in the rooms,the small amounts of food, and the torture that they had to go through onoccasion, but never was any soldiers ordeal described the way Staffordshad been.Its amazing how some people can persevere. After spending eightyears as a Vietnam POW Stafford was released. When he returned homehis wife was still postponement for him, and the only problem he suffered wasoccasional depression.