Helsing provides a unique perspective on the escalation of the Vietnam War. He examines what many analysts and former policymakers in the Johnson administration have acknowledged as a crucial factor in the way the United States escalated in Vietnam: Johnson's desire for both guns and butter--his belief that he must stem the advance of communism in Southeast Asia while pursuing a Great Society at home.

He argues that the United States government, the president, and his key advisers in particular engaged in a major pattern of deception in how the United States committed its military force in Vietnam. He then argues that a significant sector of the government was deceived as well. The first half of the book traces and analyzes the pattern of deception from 1964 through July 1965. The second half shows how the military and political decisions to escalate influenced--and were influenced by--the economic advice and policies being given the President. This in-depth analysis will be of particular concern to scholars, students, and researchers involved with U.S. foreign and military policy, the Vietnam War, and Presidential war powers.

The Vietnam War: An Encyclopedia of Quotations presents the story of this seminal conflict as told through the words of the famous, infamous, and anonymous. All sides of the controversy are presented in chronological resource that starts with a look at Vietnamese history, then traces the events preceding France's war, continues through America's entry into the conflict, and concludes with the war's aftermath. This is the story of the Vietnam War told through quotations in chronological sequence. Starting with the beginnings of Vietnamese history, it traces the events preceding the French war, continues through the American war, and ends with its aftermath. All sides of the controversy are represented. Here are the voices of warriors, presidents, generals, government leaders, civilians, aid workers, pilots, infantrymen, nurses, historians, war correspondents, sociologists, POWs, peasants, draft dodgers, guerillas, and war resisters. They speak from government capitals, hooches, hospital wards, jungle trails, landing zones, aircraft carriers, draft boards, Buddhist temples, and prison cells. They talk of firefights, ambushes in the jungle, bombing raids, coups, assassinations, suicides, demonstrations, atrocities, and teach-ins. Here are Ho Chi Minh, Lyndon Johnson, Giap, Westmoreland, Kennedy, De Gaulle, Eisenhower, Nixon, McNamara, Kissinger, and many people you have never heard of. Meet Hanoi Hannah, who broadcast propaganda from the North Vietnamese capital; John McCain tells you what it was like to be shot down over enemy territory and taken prisoner; John Kerry tells a U.S. Senate committee why he opposes the Vietnam War. You will learn about My Lai, Agent Orange, Kent State, the Pentagon Papers, and the plan to free American POWs that went awry. Features include a chronology, biographical sketches, Medal of Honor winners, bibliography, nineteen photos, and an index.

SOS and then stopped the ship. Seven Khmer Rouge soldiers boarded the Mayaguez and their leader, Battalion Commander Sa Mean, pointed at a map indicating that the ship should proceed to the east of Poulo Wai. One of the crew members broadcast a Mayday which was picked up by an Australian vessel. The Mayaguez arrived off Poulo Wai at approximately 4pm and a further 20 Khmer Rouge boarded the vessel. At 12:05 EST (21:05 Cambodia), a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) was convened to discuss the situation. The members of the NSC were determined to end the crisis decisively, believing that the fall of South Vietnam less than two weeks before and the forced withdrawal of the United States from Cambodia, (Operation Eagle Pull) and South Vietnam (Operation Frequent Wind) had severely damaged the U.S.'s reputation. They also wished to avoid comparisons to the Pueblo incident of 1968, where the failure to promptly use military force to halt the hijacking of a US intelligence ship by North Korea led to an eleven-month hostage situation.

Month by month, Witcover re-creates 1968 as he travels with, and reports on, the political fortunes of Lyndon Johnson, Eugene McCarthy, Richard Nixon, Robert Kennedy, George Romney, and Hubert Humphrey. He conveys the actual words of national figures and commentary by rock artists, media people, economists, Vietnam veterans, and Haight-Ashbury hippies. That year Witcover crossed the country from New Hampshire to California; he was standing on the rioting streets of Washington with Robert Kennedy after King was shot; he was in the kitchen of the Ambassador Hotel the night Kennedy was gunned down. An eyewitness to history, he presents a unique perspective that captures the mood of a nation and the life of ordinary people as shattering news erupts from assassins' bullets and backroom deals. Witcover broadens our understanding of how that year sowed the seeds of liberalism's demise, the shame of Watergate, Reagan's long reign, and today's new Democratic agenda.

Esteemed journalism historian James Startt has crafted an intriguing case study of the relationship between political leadership and the mass media during its early days, using the political ascendancy of Woodrow Wilson as its focus. Wilson's emergence as a major political figure coincided with the arrival of a real mass media and a more independent, less partisan style of political coverage. While most nineteenth-century presidents remained aloof from the press, Wilson understood it could no longer be ignored: "The public man who fights the daily press won't be a public man very long."

A New York Times bestseller, The Conquerors reveals how Franklin Roosevelt's and Harry Truman's private struggles with their aides and Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin affected the unfolding of the Holocaust and the fate of vanquished Nazi Germany.

With monumental fairness and balance, The Conquerors shows how Roosevelt privately refused desperate pleas to speak out directly against the Holocaust, to save Jewish refugees and to explore the possible bombing of Auschwitz to stop the killing. The book also shows FDR's fierce will to ensure that Germany would never threaten the world again. Near the end of World War II, he abruptly endorsed the secret plan of his friend, Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau, to reduce the Germans to a primitive existence -- despite Churchill's fear that crushing postwar Germany would let the Soviets conquer the continent. The book finally shows how, after FDR's death, President Truman rebelled against Roosevelt's tough approach and adopted the Marshall Plan and other more conciliatory policies that culminated in today's democratic, united Europe.

When John Burdick received his orders to ship to Vietnam in 1967, he was certain his life was over. His goal was to return to the United States alive and on his feet no matter what it took. He had been recruited by the military to become an intelligence agent, and for a college graduate student from California, it sounded intriguing. But serving in Vietnam would require all of his skills to stay alive. Dressed as a civilian and with little formal training, Burdick learned quickly and executed missions effectively. He fulfilled several purposes in Vietnam-from infiltrating the Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army command infrastructure to searching for American prisoners of war. The war hit hard. The deaths of all the young men haunted him. He could trust no one, including the military establishment who tried to squash each success the intelligence personnel achieved. In A Sphinx, author John Burdick recounts a powerful and emotional narrative following his duty in the Vietnam War in the 1960s. It uncovers behind-the-scenes footage of a military intelligence agent and his quest to help more American soldiers come home alive.

Spartanburg County gave generously and selflessly to World War II. Local men and women participated in almost every significant engagement, in almost every imaginable capacity, and in every branch of service. Distinguishing themselves with bravery, dignity, and loyalty, county veterans received every commendation, including the Medal of Honor. At Pearl Harbor, Carpenter's Mate Wayne Alman Lewis and Seaman Vernon Russell White died on the USS Arizona and Fire Controlman First Class Hubert Paul Clement died on the USS Oklahoma. Such sacrifices continued from December 7, 1941, through 1945. At home, window banners displayed blue stars for each person who served in the military. Many of the stories of these heroes from Spartanburg County have never before been told.

Decades ago, political struggles buried the truth about the Vietnam War in a tangle of myths, half-truths and lies, and the truth is still hard to find today. No matter which side of the argument you favor, the truth is not all that pretty, but the one constant was the faithful and capable service of the troops America sent to fight that war. They never received the nation's gratitude they had earned, and many kept their story and even their service to themselves since the American public believed the worst about them. By refusing to see how well these troops had served their country, America lost a generation of heroes. The public still knows for sure things about the Vietnam War, and its vets, that have never been true. In this book, Terry L. Garlock helps a number of Vietnam veterans tell a piece of their own story and lets the reader decide what to believe. Some of these stories have never before been told. When we send soldiers to war, we owe them our fidelity and our gratitude, and we owe them a truthful history of what they endured for us. This book helps a number of vets tell their truth, the good and the bad.

I sat in the tall elephant grass waiting. I knew the gooks were out there, I could smell them. For once I wished it was raining, because anything would be better than this thick fog that was engulfing everything in the jungle. It was now 0500 hrs and I was waiting for the word to move out and kill this band of gooks.

The Vietnam War ended over thirty years ago. Yet, it continues as a cultural reference point, shaping contemporary American society and culture, its impact felt in many different contexts. Vietnam precipitated a crisis in national self-confidence and a breakdown in political consensus out of which new ideological perspectives, including neo-conservatism, emerged. This book offers fresh perspectives on a defining event in "the American Century," examining its historical and political significance as well as its continuing cultural relevance.

While the Cold War is over, many of the problems it spawned live on. One of the worst of these is the continued presence of vast nuclear arsenals in the United States and Russia. How did the thousands of American bombs come into existence and how did they so rapidly become the United States' first line of defence?;Drawing extensively on previously classified material, Samuel R. Williamson Jr. and Steven L Rearden have written a history of this crucial period. They show how American policymakers, and least of all President Truman, never expected nuclear weapons to play such a major strategic role. Yet by relying on the atomic bomb time and again to shore up US defences in the face of worsening relations with the Soviet Union, rather than accept seemingly more costly conventional alternatives, Truman found himself ultimately with no other choice.;The authors not only document and analyze the origins and early evolution of US nuclear strategy, but they also demonstrate the close relationship between decisions affecting such diverse matters as foreign policy, new technologies and the budgetary process. The result is an analysis containing new insights and timely reminders of the myriad complications created by reliance on nuclear weapons.

Throughout American history, Christianity has shaped public opinion, guided leaders in their decision making, and stood at the center of countless issues. To gain complete knowledge of an era, historians must investigate the religious context of what transpired, why it happened, and how. Yet too little is known about American Christianity's foreign policy opinions during the Cold and Vietnam Wars. To gain a deeper understanding of this period (1964-75), David E. Settje explores the diversity of American Christian responses to the Cold and Vietnam Wars to determine how Americans engaged in debates about foreign policy based on their theological convictions.

Settje uncovers how specific Christian theologies and histories influenced American religious responses to international affairs, which varied considerably. Scrutinizing such sources as the evangelical "Christianity Today," the mainline Protestant, "Christian Century," a sampling of Catholic periodicals, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Southern Baptist Convention, and the United Church of Christ, "Faith and War" explores these entities' commingling of religion, politics, and foreign policy, illuminating the roles that Christianity attempted to play in both reflecting and shaping American foreign policy opinions during a decade in which global matters affected Americans daily and profoundly.

Hope and Healing For All Who Have Been Touched by War

"Made in America, Sold in the Nam" brings together the writings of more than two dozen Vietnam-era veterans who have never before had the chance to speak their peace. Through diaries, essays, and poems, each contributor brings a unique first-person perspective that will be appreciated by veterans, their families, and historians. Taken together, this book represents the conscience of a nation: patriotic, duty-bound, and mired in a swamp of confusion and pain.

New Second Edition includes material by the spouses, adult children, and other survivors of the war. "Made in America, Sold in the Nam" is Book #2 in the Reflections of History Series from Modern History Press.

• For Viet Nam Vets: an opportunity to verify their experiences against experiences of others leading to validation and perhaps even an airing of their suspicions and fears about themselves. No matter how long it has been, healing is possible.
• For Families of the KIA: peace and understanding about the experiences of their loved one and if they have letters from their loved ones, perhaps a way to fill in what could never be spoken.
• For Adult Children and Spouses of Vets: empathy for their war experience, in spite of whether or not there has been communication about how it really went down.
• For Vets of Recent Conflicts: a shortcut to understanding the overall experience of war and how one copes with its indelible marks. Discover the commonality of those who have endured their time as warriors.
• For Society and Generations to come:
  . Learn what really happens during a modern military conflict.
  . A plea for wisdom in how we deal with other peoples on Earth.
  . A chance to break the cycle of doing the same things and hoping for magically different outcomes.
  

"That there is conflict and confusion over how we are to view the Viet Nam War and how we are to feel about those who sacrificed for this effort, makes this book all the more important. These pieces give the average person insight into what really happened to those that served and what they thought that they were trying to accomplish. There is some personal truth, buried emotion, and a few heroes in their own right." -Tami Brady, TCM Reviews

Modern History Press is an imprint of Loving Healing Press (www.LovingHealing.com)