Major problems in the history of the Vietnam war : documents and essays

Note: Each chapter concludes with Further Reading.Commonly Used AcronymsMap of Southeast Asia1. Vietnam and America: An IntroductionESSAYSMichael H. Hunt, The Wages of WarMichael Lind, The Necessary WarRobert Mann, A Grand Delusion2. French Colonial Rule and the Development of Vietnamese NationalismDOCUMENTS1. Jules Ferry Justifies French Colonial Expansion, 18842. Phan Boi Chau Resolves to Continue Fighting for Vietnam's Freedom, 19143. Ho Chi Minh Deplores Imperialist Crimes," 19204. Ho Calls for Revolution, 19305. A Vietnamese Writer Recalls the 1944-1945 Famine, 19566. Vietnam Declares Independence, 1945ESSAYSWilliam J. Duiker, France's Imperial Dreams, Vietnam's TraumaMark Philip Bradley, America's Symbolic Importance for Vietnamese Nationalists3. The Roots of the American CommitmentDOCUMENTS1. George C. Marshall Expresses Concern About Indochina Dispute, 19472. Statement of U.S. Policy Toward Indochina, 19483. The United States Praises the Elys�e Agreements, 19494. The State Department Recommends Military Aid to the French, 19505. The National Security Council Identifies Important U.S. Security Interests in Indochina, 19506. Dean Acheson Urges Aid for Indochina, 19507. Ho Chi Minh Denounces U.S. Intervention, 1950ESSAYSRobert J. McMahon, Cold War Strategy and U.S. InterventionMark Atwood Lawrence, The European Influence and America's Commitment to War in Vietnam4. Dwight D. Eisenhower, Ngo Dinh Diem, and the Deepening U.S. CommitmentDOCUMENTS1. Dwight D. Eisenhower Appeals for British Help, 19542. Eisenhower Explains the Domino Theory, 19543. Vo Nguyen Giap Assesses Dienbienphu's Importance (1954), 19644. The Geneva Conference Signatories Issue Their Final Declaration, 19545. South Vietnam Renounces Negotiations with North Vietnam, 19556. Elbridge Durbrow Assesses the Diem Regime, 19578. Ngo Dinh Diem Pledges to Continue Fighting Communism, 1957ESSAYSDavid L. Anderson, The Tragedy of U.S. InterventionSeth Jacobs, The Religious Roots of U.S. Support for Ngo Dinh DiemGareth Porter, Exploiting U.S. Dominance5. John F. Kennedy and Vietnam: Incremental EscalationDOCUMENTS1. Maxwell Taylor Recommends the Dispatch of U.S. Forces, 19612. Dean Rusk and Robert S. McNamara Present an Alternative Plan, 19613. An Early U.S Army Adviser Remembers His Experiences (1962-1963), 19814. Mike Mansfield Questions American Policy, 19625. John F. Kennedy Criticizes the South Vietnamese Government, 19636. Kennedy Reaffirms the Domino Theory, 19637. Henry Cabot Lodge Discusses Coup Protests, 19638. McGeorge Bundy Expresses Reservations, 19639. Diem Makes a Desperate Appeal for U.S. Help, 1963ESSAYSDavid Kaiser, Kennedy's Prudent and Cautious PolicyPhilip E. Catton, The Limits of U.S. Influence6. Lyndon B. Johnson's Decisions for WarDOCUMENTS1. Robert S. McNamara Reassesses of U.S. Policy in South Vietnam, 19642. Lyndon Johnson and Richard Russell Ruminate about the U.S. Dilemma in Vietnam, 19643. The Tonkin Gulf Resolution, 19644. Lyndon B. Johnson Explains Why Americans Fight in Vietnam, 19655. McNamara Recommends Escalation, 19656. George Ball Dissents, 19657. Philip Caputo Remembers His Idealism (1965), 1977ESSAYSRobert Dallek, Fear, Ambition, and PoliticsFredrik Logevall, Choosing War7. U.S. Military StrategyDOCUMENTS1. Robert S. McNamara Urges Additional Troop Deployments, 19652. George F. Kennan Criticizes the American Military Commitment, 19663. William C. Westmoreland Reviews Military Operations in South Vietnam, 19664. The Central Intelligence Agency Critiques the Bombing Campaign, 19675. McNamara Sees an Improved Military Outlook, 19676. Westmoreland Defends the Attrition Strategy, 19777. Westmoreland Reflects on the Vietnam War's Meaning, 2003ESSAYSRobert K. Brigham, An Unwinnable WarJohn A. Nagl, The Failure of Counterinsurgency Warfare8. Americans in CombatDOCUMENTS1. A Cross-Generational Conversation About Joining the Army2. "Dear Mom," 19663. Infantryman Salvador Gonzalez's Letter Home, 19694. A Soldier's Perspective on Combat in Vietnam, 19775. Herbert Carter Testifies About the My Lai Massacre, 19696. Varnado Simpson Testifies About the My Lai Massacre, 19697. Colin Powell Remembers His Two Tours of Duty in Vietnam, 19958. Robert Conner Reflects on His Vietnam Experience, 1993ESSAYSChristian Appy, A Working Class WarGerard J. DeGroot, A Grunt's Life9. The Enemy: North Vietnam and the National Liberation FrontDOCUMENTS1. Ho Chi Minh Rallies His Supporters After the Geneva Agreements, 19542. Truong Nhu Tang on the Origins of the National Liberation Front (1957-1959), 19853. The National Liberation Front Issues Its Manifesto, 19604. A Vietcong Recruit Explains Why He Joined the Revolution (1961), 19865. A South Vietnamese Peasant Girl Becomes a Vietcong Supporter (c. 1961), 19896. Vo Nguyen Giap Celebrates People's War, 19617. Nguyen Chi Thanh Outlines Communist Strategy, 19638. Ho Vows to "Fight Until Complete Victory," 1966ESSAYSWilliam J. Duiker, North Vietnam's Diplomatic StrategyRobert K. Brigham, The Role and Significance of the National Liberation Front10. The Tet OffensiveDOCUMENTS1. The CIA Offers an Early Assessment of the Tet Offensive, 19682. A North Vietnamese Officer Reconstructs the Attack on a U.S. Marine Base (1968), 20033. Robert F. Kennedy Calls Vietnam an Unwinnable War, 19684. Walter Cronkite Criticizes a Policy "Mired in Stalemate," 19685. Senior U.S. Officials Weigh Policy Options, 19686. North Vietnam's Communist Party Evaluates the Successes and Failures of the Offensive, 19687. A U.S. Air Force Nurse Remembers the Tet Offensive (1968), 19878. Robert Komer Recalls Tet's Impact (1968), 19879. Clark M. Clifford Remembers His Post-Tet Questions (1968), 196910. Johnson Calls for Negotiations, 1968ESSAYSRobert Buzzanco, A Crippling Defeat for the United StatesWilliam Hammond, Tet and the Media11. Richard M. Nixon's Strategy for WithdrawalDOCUMENTS1. Henry A. Kissinger Reflects on the Nixon Administration's Dilemma in Vietnam (1969), 19792. Richard M. Nixon and Nguyen Van Thieu Discuss U.S.-South Vietnamese Relations, 19693. Nixon Warns About the Consequences of a U.S. Defeat in Vietnam, 19694. Nixon Appeals for Soviet Help in Ending the Vietnam War, 19695. A Guerrilla Leader Remembers 1969 as the "Worst Year" (1969), 19866. Nixon Advocates Vietnamization, 19697. Le Duc Tho Lectures Kissinger About North Vietnamese Determination, 19708. Nixon Justifies the Cambodian Incursion, 19709. Henry A. Kissinger Reveals the U.S. Negotiating Position, 197210. The Provisional Revolutionary Government States Its Negotiating Position, 1972ESSAYSMelvin Small, Nixon's Flawed Search for PeaceLewis Sorley, A Better War12. The Antiwar Movement and Public OpinionDOCUMENTS1. Students for a Democratic Society Opposes the War, 19652. Martin Luther King, Jr., Declares His Opposition to the War, 19673. Women's Statement of Conscience, 19674. Proclamation of the Antidraft Resistance, 19675. A Popular Protest Song, 19676. James Fallows Reflects on the Draft's Inequities (1969), 19757. A Veteran Remembers His Bitter Homecoming, 19818. A Vietnam Veteran Opposes the War, 1971ESSAYSMelvin Small, The Peace Movement on the CampusesRhodri Jeffreys-Jones, Woman and Antiwar ActivismAdam Garfinkle, Movement Myths13. The Paris Peace Accords of 1973 and the Fall of South VietnamDOCUMENTS1. Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger Discuss South Vietnam's Fate, 19722. Richard M. Nixon Reassures Nguyen Van Thieu, 19733. The Paris Peace Accords, 19734. Henry A. Kissinger Appeals to Congress for Emergency Aid, 19755. James R. Schlesinger, Jr., Recalls the Collapse of South Vietnam (1975), 19876. A South Vietnamese Pilot Reflects on His Country's Defeat (1975), 19907. A South Vietnamese Civilian Remembers His Last Days in Saigon (1975), 19908. A North Vietnamese General Celebrates the "Great Spring Victory" (1975), 19779. Nixon Blames Congress for the Fall of South Vietnam (1975), 1978ESSAYSLarry Berman, The Betrayal of South VietnamPierre Asselin, A Doomed Agreement14. International Dimensions of the WarDOCUMENTS1. French President Charles de Gaulle's Statement on Vietnam, 19632. Secretary of State Dean Rusk and French Ambassador Herv� Alphand Discuss U.S.-French Differences over Vietnam Policy, 19643. The Johnson Administration Assesses the Attitudes of Allied and Nonaligned Nations, 19644. British Prime Minister Harold Wilson Warns President Lyndon B. Johnson about the Perils of Escalation, 19655. Canadian Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson Calls for a U.S. Bombing Halt, 19656. Mao Zedong Exhorts His North Vietnamese Allies, 19657. Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt Expresses Firm Support for U.S. Policy, 19668. Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi Declares That the Vietnam War Must End, 19669. Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin Explains Moscow's Reaction to the North Vietnamese Offensive (1972), 1995ESSAYSFrank Costigliola, The Vietnam War and the Challenges to American Power in EuropeQiang Zhai, China's Crucial Role15. Legacies and Memories of a WarDOCUMENTS1. Gerald R. Ford on the Lessons of Vietnam, 19752. Jimmy Carter Sees a "Profound Moral Crisis," 19773. Ronald Reagan Calls Vietnam a Noble and Just Cause, 19884. An American Veteran Helps to Dedicate the Vietnam War Memorial (1982), 19855. An African-American Draftee Reflects on the War's Impact, 19846. A Former Army Nurse Considers the War's Impact, 1987ESSAYSPaul Kennedy, The Impact of Vietnam on America's World RoleArnold R. Isaacs, Competing MemoriesRobert D. Schulzinger, Viewing Foreign and Military Policy Through the Prism of Vietnam"