The Vietnam War

recyclops · 17-05-2012 11:24PM

If ya like reading bout Vietnam you can't get a better book than this a fantastic read

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/0091910110

The Jammy dodger · 17-05-2012 11:25PM

SafeSurfer wrote: »

Your opinion is just as valid as anyone else's even if it is stupid and wrong.

Just as a matter of interest have you found any films on the Vietnam war that you did like, or any general films that you have enjoyed?

I dont think films really give us insight to the Vietnam war. I think documentaries and testimonies from both sides do... even though documentaries are known to have their flaws in them, they are a far sight better than the films.

Corkfeen · 17-05-2012 11:25PM

Canis Lupus wrote: »

Apoc Now... I was told it was the greatest Vietnam War movie ever made.... It's such a load of absolute bollix.

It is... Perhaps you've seen the Redux version which isn't half as good as the theatrical version.

Zebra3 · 17-05-2012 11:27PM

Lumbo wrote: »

There's lots of museums in Vietnam where they'll show you various ways how to kill Americans.

They enjoyed beating the Yanks.

What a terrible phrase.

They paid a huge price for their independence from America.

Tbh, they still are due to the Americans use of chemical weapons.

prinz · 17-05-2012 11:27PM

The Jammy dodger wrote: »

I dont think films really give us insight to the Vietnam war. I think documentaries and testimonies from both sides do... even though documentaries are known to have their flaws in them, they are a far sight better than the films.

Just keep in mind that the war in Vietnam continued long after the USA stopped it's military involvement and withdrew all American forces. The Vietnamese kept killing each other for a couple more years.

prinz · 17-05-2012 11:28PM

Zebra3 wrote: »

They paid a huge price for their independence from America.

Ya what?

Latchy · 17-05-2012 11:29PM

Recently released documentry on the Vietnam war with some personal and never before seen footage ,which was also shown on Sky documentrys last week .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPh1_BH5LXE

gurramok · 17-05-2012 11:30PM

SafeSurfer wrote: »

Just as a matter of interest have you found any films on the Vietnam war that you did like, or any general films that you have enjoyed?

Platoon was an eyeopener in the sense Charlie Sheen's character blasted the racists within his squad by saying about the Vietnamese woman "she's a fcukin human being man!".

Still, the soldiers who massacred 347 civilians at My Lai got away with murder. Sums up their attitude to the Vietnamese people at the time just because they are different.

Larianne · 17-05-2012 11:30PM

Zebra3 wrote: »

What a terrible phrase.

They paid a huge price for their independence from America.

Tbh, they still are due to the Americans use of chemical weapons.

And land mines.

Deus Ex Machina · 17-05-2012 11:31PM

Was Vietnam a cool war? Definitely.

Was it morally justified? I don't care and can you please fuck off.

dlofnep · 17-05-2012 11:34PM

3 words - My Lai Massacre. No - The US can't just randomly overthrow Governments when it pleases.

flutterflye · 17-05-2012 11:34PM

SafeSurfer wrote: »

Your opinion is just as valid as anyone else's even if it is stupid and wrong.

Just as a matter of interest have you found any films on the Vietnam war that you did like, or any general films that you have enjoyed?

Aw thanks!

Many in general, none so far on the Nam war actually, no.
I don't tend to like war films for the most part at all.

sunflower27 · 17-05-2012 11:34PM

gurramok wrote: »

Platoon was an eyeopener in the sense Charlie Sheen's character blasted the racists within his squad by saying about the Vietnamese woman "she's a fcukin human being man!".

Still, the soldiers who massacred 347 civilians at My Lai got away with murder. Sums up their attitude to the Vietnamese people at the time just because they are different.

Definitely. My Lai was a huge turning point for many. I remember reading about it. Sickening. Is it any wonder the people of Vietnam were not prepared to help the US and in fact actively set about fighting with the Viet Cong to get rid of them.

SafeSurfer · 17-05-2012 11:37PM

dlofnep wrote: »

3 words - My Lai Massacre. No - The US can't just randomly overthrow Governments when it pleases.

Well the US can overthrow governments when it pleases. Most recently Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya.

The Vietnam war was not about the overthrow of a government more about propping up the corrupt pro western South Vietnam regime.

Pride Fighter · 17-05-2012 11:39PM

If they run they are VC.

If they stand still, they are well trained VC.

Pedant · 17-05-2012 11:46PM

Better dead than Red.

A good Red is a dead Red.

gurramok · 17-05-2012 11:47PM

And the US military war was largely based on body counts, the kill count in the hope that the enemy would lose hope and morale due to heavy losses. Most US victories in various battles were due to air firepower rather than ground combat, thats where the heavy loss of Viet life was, a tad unfair indeed. If the Vietnamese were about to overrun a military base due to hand on hand combat won fairly, the US sent in the airplanes to bomb them, sort of a cowardly way to win a battle.

The film Battle of Hamburger Hill(and documentary) shows the US strategy whereby it wasn't about holding rural territory but kill as many on that territory.

Latchy · 17-05-2012 11:47PM

If I was going to ask any Vietnam war novice to watch a film on the subject I would choose '' Path To War '' which gives a great insight into the thinking behind closed doors in the Johnson Administration at the time throughout the Vietnam War period, which saw the escalation of troops rise from a few hundred thousend to over a million ,with some fine acting by Michael Gambon as Johnson and Alec Baldwin as secretary of state Robert McNamara .

Path To War

Canis Lupus · 17-05-2012 11:56PM

gurramok wrote: »

And the US military war was largely based on body counts, the kill count in the hope that the enemy would lose hope and morale due to heavy losses. Most US victories in various battles were due to air firepower rather than ground combat, thats where the heavy loss of Viet life was, a tad unfair indeed. If the Vietnamese were about to overrun a military base due to hand on hand combat won fairly, the US sent in the airplanes to bomb them, sort of a cowardly way to win a battle.

The film Battle of Hamburger Hill(and documentary) shows the US strategy whereby it wasn't about holding rural territory but kill as many on that territory.

lol... the US were cheating with superior air power?

Stinicker · 17-05-2012 11:57PM

It was a horrible war that the Vietnamese deserved to win and I don't care if they were Communists no foreign country has the right to dictate to another country and looking at what has become of Europe and the West today I think history will judge the fall of the Berlin Wall as a day in Human History when corrupt thugs took control. The ordinary yank is just as hard working as the Irish but it is what their government allows and their corporate greed and hegemony which is destroying the world and the world economy.

The Russians should have started WWIII and they'd have won it too. This society of billions for the fraudsters and the masses in poverty is not fair and we are living in a "kudos or kang" democracy where there is an illusion of freedom when in fact we are all slaves to the corrupt financial system.

drunkmonkey · 17-05-2012 11:58PM

Yanks disgust me with their "Freedom"

Look at the Orange Kid in this Video, There still having deformed Children in Vietnam today because of Agent Orange.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o3K_E_QKJIo

Any surprise people want to kill the pricks.

Look at what it's doing to Kids being born right now http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_NE-72ZXux-g/Sl4TbwklJ0I/AAAAAAAAKHw/TOnb2u1gDMs/s400/Agent+Orange.jpg

I hate America and It's wars. Let's nuke the bastards!!

The Jammy dodger · 17-05-2012 11:58PM

From watching the DVD's it looked like the Americans really lost a lot of casualties due to the Vietcong because of their underground tunnel system they had going on and booby traps.

prinz · 18-05-2012 12:00AM

Stinicker wrote: »

It was a horrible war that the Vietnamese deserved to win and I don't care if they were Communists no foreign country has the right to dictate to another country...

Good stuff, so South Vietnam should still exist.

Stinicker wrote: »

....and looking at what has become of Europe and the West today I think history will judge the fall of the Berlin Wall as a day in Human History when corrupt thugs took control. The ordinary yank is just as hard working as the Irish but it is what their government allows and their corporate greed and hegemony which is destroying the world and the world economy.
The Russians should have started WWIII and they'd have won it too..

lol.