Herring, George C. Americas Longest War essays

Herring, George C. America's Longest War essays Herring writes a broad and sweeping history of the Vietnam War, fitting it within its historical context. He recounts how two sisters, riding elephants, led a rebellion against China's dominance in the first century A.D. just as they resisted French imperialism in the 20th century. He demonstrates how the roots of the American/Vietnam War were seeded in 1945 when Vietnam first declared its independence from France, and how the United States helped France re-establish itself there while claiming friendship with Vietnam. By the late 40's, the United States was worried about the spread of Communism in Europe. During that time, Herring reports that Vietnam made overtures to the United States that were badly managed and affected by cultural and racial prejudice, setting up a pattern that would result in American concerns about the spread of communism in Southeast Asia as well as Eastern Europe. Communist China saw the advantage and began giving the aid to Vietnam that the U. S. had declined to give, and the U. S. shifted its support more to France, and the outbreak of the Korean Conflict served to confirm U. S. fears about communism. By the time Eisenhower took office, government leaders fully embraced the "domino theory," that if Vietnam became Communist, the rest of the region's countries would fall to communism, one by one. Given actions of Vietnam leaders, such as invading Laos, this view made some sense. Herring wrote a book that told a complex story as compactly as possible while including the political, military and diplomatic influences that led to the events as they took place. He also includes enough information about the Vietnamese view to make their actions and reactions Herring's theme seems to be that we can only look at events as they unfold from the perspective we have at the time. Coming to Vietnam after triumphantly spearheading a monumental mili...