"The Vietnam War" on PBS

[Schaumburger]

I have watched most of the 5 episodes of "The Vietnam War" on PBS. A very well done series. I was just a child when most of these events occurred, but as the series is now up to 1967, I am starting to remember some of the events. There are 5 more episodes yet to air on PBS, and I am looking forward to watching them.

When South Vietnam was defeated in 1975, my hometown in Iowa took in many Vietnamese refugees. Iowa was the first state to offer resettlement assistance to Vietnamese refugees in 1975. By this time I was in high school, and my high school had a number of Vietnamese students enrolled.

Most of the Vietnamese who came to eastern Iowa in 1975 only stayed for a few years because of the harsh winters. I believe a lot of them eventually moved to Texas and California.

[Taltarzac725]

I have them taped but have not watched any of the episodes just yet. Good to see that you review it well. Ken Burns usually does very good work. And I expected that these would be up to his usually top standards.

[thelegges]

Since I am in Nam Vet I rarely watch anything on TV read an article or a book on Vietnam. I also have no desire to revisit Vietnam as a vacation.

But my life has changed greatly since my only three grandchildren are Vietnamese. Life can be funny that way

[eremite06]

I've watched 4 of the episodes. So glad I joined the Navy and not been drafted.

[Carla B]

The first episode was aired here last Sunday. I turned it on and my husband, a Viet Nam draftee and vet, was not thrilled to watch but he did. It delved into the history behind the conflict that we never knew and at the end he was happy to have seen it.

[manaboutown]

I am taping the series and last night watched the first two episodes which filled me in on Viet Nam's history - about which I knew little. When I visited there I noted many rubber tree plantations which IMHO was what the French were doing there. Michelin!

Many Vietnamese settled in the city of Westminster, Orange County. These days some of the finest MDs in The OC are Vietnamese.

[raynan]

eremite06, My husband joined the Navy in 65 and was sent to Vietnam to serve on the Swift Boats, brown water navy 67-69. Not what he had planned. A lot of people assume that the Navy was only offshore.

[Challenger]

Since I am in Nam Vet I rarely watch anything on TV read an article or a book on Vietnam. I also have no desire to revisit Vietnam as a vacation.

But my life has changed greatly since my only three grandchildren are Vietnamese. Life can be funny that way

I will be there in ten days at a condo on China Beach, near Danang. The people are amazingly friendly and the international hotels are being built on dozens of
sites. People are very friendly and welcoming.

Still a Communist country(whatever that means today) but with ambitious capitalistic tendencies. As an aside , if you check much of the clothing that you think is Chinese, you just might find that it was made in Vietnam. Apparently cutting into the Chinese dominance of finished textiles to a significant degree.

[Miles42]

Watched and wept at the wasted lives of a few of my HS friends.

[Schaumburger]

For me, the most moving parts so far have been listening to the veterans speaking of their experiences and the interviews of the mother and sister whose son and brother was killed in Vietnam.

[collie1228]

I'm a Vietnam vet and I've enjoyed the first two episodes for their reaching back into the history of the would-be conquerors who tried to exploit that beautiful place. I'm a little bit sceptical of the (mostly) friendly treatment Burns has given to Uncle Ho Chi Min so far, but hopefully I'll see some balance there in the next few episodes.

[Coal Miner]

great series

[CFrance]

Since I am in Nam Vet I rarely watch anything on TV read an article or a book on Vietnam. I also have no desire to revisit Vietnam as a vacation.

But my life has changed greatly since my only three grandchildren are Vietnamese. Life can be funny that way
My husband is with you. He never even wants to go to Hawaii (where he took R&R). He sees nothing personally good for him to rehash that time of his life, in books, movies, or conversations with others. Yet many people do.

I'm sure you love your Vietnamese grandchildren. My husband's #2 gal was from Vietnam. We still keep in contact with her and her husband. But she was very young when that was going on.

[saratogaman]

I am taping the series and last night watched the first two episodes which filled me in on Viet Nam's history - about which I knew little. When I visited there I noted many rubber tree plantations which IMHO was what the French were doing there. Michelin!

Many Vietnamese settled in the city of Westminster, Orange County. These days some of the finest MDs in The OC are Vietnamese.

I agree on the Michelin reference...overlooked in Burns' account, but not in the history presented by others.

[eremite06]

eremite06, My husband joined the Navy in 65 and was sent to Vietnam to serve on the Swift Boats, brown water navy 67-69. Not what he had planned. A lot of people assume that the Navy was only offshore.

I was desperate to get off my newly commissioned DLG with all the spit & polish. The Navy was looking for Quartermasters to man PBR's in Vietnam. I volunteered but later rescinded after I heard their crews were sitting ducks. I guess I was much safer on the destroyer with two US senators' sons, Hollings and Pell.

Gee, maybe your husband served with the super"HERO" John Kerry.

[villagerjack]

Another view which needs to be considered.


NEW YORK POST
Missing from Ken Burns’ ‘Vietnam’: the patriotism and pride of those who fought

By Bing West September 19, 2017

To understand Ken Burns’ 18-hour Vietnam documentary, listen to the music. The haunting score tells you this will be a tale of misery. Burns and his co-author Geoffrey C. Ward conclude their script by writing, “The Vietnam War was a tragedy, immeasurable and irredeemable. But meaning can be found in the individual stories . . .”

The film is meticulous in the veracity of the hundreds of factoids/stories that were selected. Everything depicted on the American side actually happened. But that the chosen facts are accurate doesn’t mean the film gets everything right. Instead, the brave American veterans who are portrayed speak with a keen sense of regret and embarrassment about the war, a distortion that must not go unanswered. The film implies an unearned moral equivalence between antiwar protesters and those who fought.

Burns’ theme is clear: A resolute North Vietnam was predestined to defeat a delusional America that heedlessly sacrificed its soldiers. The film follows a chronological progression, beginning in the ’40s. Right from the start, harrowing combat footage from the ’60s is inserted to remind the audience that a blinkered America is doomed to repeat the mistakes of the French colonialists.

The main focus of the documentary is the period of fierce fighting from late 1965 to 1972. Against a gripping assortment of close-up photos and combat video, dozens of American and Vietnamese voices offer snippets of personal insights about history, geopolitics, families, ideologies, politics, battles, casualties and, above all, frustrations.

Most of the interviewees talk in the lugubrious tones of the defeated. We all know the story ends badly. But when it’s over, we aren’t told why we lost. The music is more memorable than the pictures, and the pictures are more compelling than the narration. Indeed, the North Vietnamese agree in 1972 to negotiate only because our B-52s have shattered their defenses and are pummeling them at will. We are deluged by sights and sounds but not enlightened as to cause and effect.

An American lieutenant who fought there in 1965 is quoted at the end of the film saying, “We have learned a lesson . . . that we just can’t impose our will on others.” While that summarizes the documentary, the opposite is true. Wars are fought to impose your will upon the enemy. If you don’t intend to win, don’t fight.

Our civilian and military leaders were grossly irresponsible. At the height of the war in 1968, Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford is quoted as telling President Lyndon Johnson, “We’re not out to win the war. We’re out to win the peace.” That is giving up. Our senior leadership granted the enemy ground sanctuaries in Cambodia, Laos and North Vietnam and bombing was severely restricted.

The North Vietnamese were superb light infantry. The film points out that we grunts called the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) the ‘Dead Marine Zone’ because we were pounded from North Vietnam and forbidden to attack. The real lesson: Never fight on the enemy’s terms.

The documentary includes a modicum of footage about the South Vietnamese military. The South Vietnamese soldiers I fought alongside were brave and determined. Yet in 1973, sick of the war, Congress forbade any further bombing in Southeast Asia. Military aid to South Vietnam was slashed, while Soviet-built tanks and Chinese-made artillery poured into North Vietnam. It is moot whether South Vietnam could have survived had our aid continued. But the video of our panicked final pull-out in 1975 is flat-out depressing.

The film casts the antiwar movement in a moderately favorable light. Air Force pilot Merrill McPeak (who retired as a four-star general) is quoted as saying, “the antiwar movement itself, the whole movement towards racial equality, the environment, the role of women . . . produced the America we have today, and we are better for it.” Why are the protesters the real heroes here? What about the valiant US soldiers, 75 percent of whom were volunteers?

This documentary succeeds in vividly evoking sadness and frustration. But that is not all there was to the story. “The Vietnam War” strives for a moral equivalence where there is none. The veterans selected to speak are sad and detached for their experience, yet 90 percent of Vietnam War veterans are proud to have served. So there’s a large gap between what we see and the attitude of the vast majority of veterans.

Their sense of pride — so vital for national unity — is absent from the documentary. And that’s a glaring omission.

Bing West served in Marine infantry in Vietnam. He is the author of “The Village,” which has been on the Marine Commandant’s reading list for 45 years.

Missing from Ken Burns’ ‘Vietnam’: The patriotism and pride of those who fought | New York Post (http://nypost.com/2017/09/19/missing-from-ken-burns-vietnam-the-patriotism-and-pride-of-those-who-fought/)

[tagjr1]

"patriotism and pride of those who fought" ???? We fought for each other! Many of us were confused as to why our leaders got involved in this mess in the first place. The only Vietnamese who wanted the war were the rich. Our "leaders" were out of touch with reality and continuously trying to appease the "peaceniks" with bullcrap tactics and command decisions that were not going to win the war. When I returned from the Southeast War Games and went right back to work I was asked by a senior co-worker, who was a WW2 vet, "how does it feel to lose the only war in US history?", to which I replied, " people of my generation were not the ones making the command decisions, it was your generation!" To which he quickly shut up. If We are not going to fight a war to win, and win as quickly as possible in order to limit American casualties, we shouldn't get involved. Go in with overwhelming force, get the job done and get out, World Opinion be dammed! "Gunships, GOD bless 'em"!

[CowBubba]

As a decorated Vietnam combat veteran in my opinion we should not have been there.. Bad political decision that killed 58000 Americans.

[Miles42]

too many sacrificed for LBJs ego. He knew this was failing didnt have the guts to stop the killing

[manaboutown]

too many sacrificed for LBJs ego. He knew this was failing didnt have the guts to stop the killing

:agree:

[manaboutown]

Another view which needs to be considered.


NEW YORK POST
Missing from Ken Burns’ ‘Vietnam’: the patriotism and pride of those who fought

By Bing West September 19, 2017

To understand Ken Burns’ 18-hour Vietnam documentary, listen to the music. The haunting score tells you this will be a tale of misery. Burns and his co-author Geoffrey C. Ward conclude their script by writing, “The Vietnam War was a tragedy, immeasurable and irredeemable. But meaning can be found in the individual stories . . .”

The film is meticulous in the veracity of the hundreds of factoids/stories that were selected. Everything depicted on the American side actually happened. But that the chosen facts are accurate doesn’t mean the film gets everything right. Instead, the brave American veterans who are portrayed speak with a keen sense of regret and embarrassment about the war, a distortion that must not go unanswered. The film implies an unearned moral equivalence between antiwar protesters and those who fought.

Burns’ theme is clear: A resolute North Vietnam was predestined to defeat a delusional America that heedlessly sacrificed its soldiers. The film follows a chronological progression, beginning in the ’40s. Right from the start, harrowing combat footage from the ’60s is inserted to remind the audience that a blinkered America is doomed to repeat the mistakes of the French colonialists.

The main focus of the documentary is the period of fierce fighting from late 1965 to 1972. Against a gripping assortment of close-up photos and combat video, dozens of American and Vietnamese voices offer snippets of personal insights about history, geopolitics, families, ideologies, politics, battles, casualties and, above all, frustrations.

Most of the interviewees talk in the lugubrious tones of the defeated. We all know the story ends badly. But when it’s over, we aren’t told why we lost. The music is more memorable than the pictures, and the pictures are more compelling than the narration. Indeed, the North Vietnamese agree in 1972 to negotiate only because our B-52s have shattered their defenses and are pummeling them at will. We are deluged by sights and sounds but not enlightened as to cause and effect.

An American lieutenant who fought there in 1965 is quoted at the end of the film saying, “We have learned a lesson . . . that we just can’t impose our will on others.” While that summarizes the documentary, the opposite is true. Wars are fought to impose your will upon the enemy. If you don’t intend to win, don’t fight.

Our civilian and military leaders were grossly irresponsible. At the height of the war in 1968, Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford is quoted as telling President Lyndon Johnson, “We’re not out to win the war. We’re out to win the peace.” That is giving up. Our senior leadership granted the enemy ground sanctuaries in Cambodia, Laos and North Vietnam and bombing was severely restricted.

The North Vietnamese were superb light infantry. The film points out that we grunts called the DMZ (Demilitarized Zone) the ‘Dead Marine Zone’ because we were pounded from North Vietnam and forbidden to attack. The real lesson: Never fight on the enemy’s terms.

The documentary includes a modicum of footage about the South Vietnamese military. The South Vietnamese soldiers I fought alongside were brave and determined. Yet in 1973, sick of the war, Congress forbade any further bombing in Southeast Asia. Military aid to South Vietnam was slashed, while Soviet-built tanks and Chinese-made artillery poured into North Vietnam. It is moot whether South Vietnam could have survived had our aid continued. But the video of our panicked final pull-out in 1975 is flat-out depressing.

The film casts the antiwar movement in a moderately favorable light. Air Force pilot Merrill McPeak (who retired as a four-star general) is quoted as saying, “the antiwar movement itself, the whole movement towards racial equality, the environment, the role of women . . . produced the America we have today, and we are better for it.” Why are the protesters the real heroes here? What about the valiant US soldiers, 75 percent of whom were volunteers?

This documentary succeeds in vividly evoking sadness and frustration. But that is not all there was to the story. “The Vietnam War” strives for a moral equivalence where there is none. The veterans selected to speak are sad and detached for their experience, yet 90 percent of Vietnam War veterans are proud to have served. So there’s a large gap between what we see and the attitude of the vast majority of veterans.

Their sense of pride — so vital for national unity — is absent from the documentary. And that’s a glaring omission.

Bing West served in Marine infantry in Vietnam. He is the author of “The Village,” which has been on the Marine Commandant’s reading list for 45 years.

Missing from Ken Burns’ ‘Vietnam’: The patriotism and pride of those who fought | New York Post (http://nypost.com/2017/09/19/missing-from-ken-burns-vietnam-the-patriotism-and-pride-of-those-who-fought/)

This sums this series up succinctly. Thank you.

[tagjr1]

What a disappointment ! I was away during the initial presentation of this series and upon return forced myself to patiently watch from the first episode. I was particularly interested in the episode that dealt with the timeframe when i was there. I saw no mention of the largest air assault in Army Aviation history, Lam Son 719! All that was mentioned were the ineptness of the ARVN, their casualties, and the egos of their leaders. So many Americans were affected by this operation that I can not understand why it was not mentioned. Did I fall asleep and miss it? Darn! I hate when that happens! "Gunships, God Bless 'em!".