ABSTRACT
The United States war in Vietnam ended some 30 plus years ago. It was a
war that ended in disaster for the United States and a complete triumph for
the Communists.
America’s military intervention in Vietnam resulted in being our long-
est (to date), most costly, and most divisive war in our history. At one point
over a half-million U.S. forces were deployed across Southeast Asia with
contingents from other ‘‘Free World Forces.’’ From 1954 (you could actually use the end of the Second World War in
1945) to 1975, Vietnam dominated five presidential administrations and
plagued the American conscience. When the French colonial empire in
Indochina collapsed, with their bitter defeat at Dien Bien Phu, the United
States took up the gauntlet. Without giving heed to any of the lessons that
could have been learned from the French experience the United States made
the fateful decision to intervene and, consequently, repeated many of the
same mistakes. What happened? Using the 1954 date the United States embarked upon
a road that kept it embroiled in Southeast Asia for 21 years. Not only did
we have to fight in Vietnam, but the war eventually moved into the neigh-
boring countries of Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. Over time, at least
seven other countries allied with the United States, sent in military forces
while many other countries provided non-combat support.
