The U.S. struggles against the Communist in Vietnam

1. Now think about the overall picture - how the strengths and weaknesses work together.



a) Were the armies finely balanced or was the balance strongly weighted to one side or the other?



The main factor which somewhat balanced the war was the US numbers, otherwise the Viet Cong soldiers were stronger and more determined than US soldiers. The Viet Cong soldiers had more effective tactics than the US, causing the balance to lean more toward them.



b) Which quality was most important in determining who won the war? Was one feature so important that being ahead in that area meant that other advantages or disadvantages did not matter?



The most important quality in the Vietnam war determining who won the war would most likely be 'Effective Tactics' because the Viet Cong soldiers were severely outnumbered, yet their war tactics made them superior to the US soldiers.



Stage 3: Explaining your conclusions

The failure of the U.S. army to beat the Communist in Vietnam was the result of its own weaknesses and Viet Cong strengths.



2. Now write up your answer. Use this structure:



a. The U.S. weaknesses were: their lack of determined and motivated soldiers and their lacking war tactics. The US had less support from the Vietnamese population which also helped add to their failures.



b. At the same time, the Communist strengths were: having stronger, more motivated, and more determined soldiers. The Communists' war tactics such as guerilla warfare helped them significantly to lower the morale of US soldiers.



c. The U.S. forces did have some successes. For example: The US forces had some effective "weapons" to help find people hiding in the jungle, like Agent Orange and Napalm, which also killed. The bombing raids on military and industrial targets in North Vietname were also somewhat successful, just as the use of Search and Destroy.



d. However, there were some major failures as well. Examples of these were: The My Lai Massacre, which was a failure as the soldiers involved failed to complete their objective and killed many civilians. Another US failure to some extent was the policy of Search and Destroy, as the missions did kill Vietcong soldiers, yet there were some problems, such as attacking incorrect sites and having soldiers running into traps.



e. The Viet Cong had some major successes, such as: Their Guerrilla Warfare tactics, which included to retreat when the enemy attacks, raid when the enemy camps, attack when the enemy tires, and pursue when the enemy retreats, which was one of their most major successes.



f. However, they also suffered defeats, for example: the Tet Offensive, as the South Vietnamese who were expected to rise up and help the communists did not help, and they lost 10,000 experienced fighters.



g. If I had to identify one major American weakness, it would be [Effective Tactics] because:

the tactics the Americans used throughout the Vietnam War proved to be no match for the Vietcong's use of Guerrilla Warfare. I feel that if the Americans had chosen alternative tactics throughout the war, they would've been successful of demoralizing the Vietcong army and eventually winning the war.

h. The key Viet Cong strength was [Effective Tactics] because:

the Vietcong proved to overpower the American army with their use of Guerrilla Warfare, with their always ready and very experienced fighters, and they always had back up fighters which were ready to give the Americans hell. Their soldiers were very motivated, determined, and strong which caused them to outfight the American soldiers and overpower their tactics.

The U.S. Enters the Vietnam War

1. Many neutral observers in Vietnam were critical of US policy. Explain why.

Many neutral observers in Vietnam were critical of US policy because democracy was subsided to capitalism, keeping these observers back so that communists will not easily win elections in Vietnam.

2. Explain how US politicians would have defended their policies.

US politicians would have defended their policies by not only exposing the true evils of communism, but also by emphasizing the domino theory.

3. The following events are not listed in correct date order. Place them in the correct chronological order. (Write the year inside the parenthesis, i.e. (1965). Then note the reason for each U.S. action, and how it brought the U.S. into deeper involvement in Vietnam.

The reasons you can choose from are: No direct involvement; financial support; political involvement; military involvement. Also, note what events triggered the increased involvement.

(1954) Formation of South Vietnam_____No direct involvement: It triggered the increased involvement

(1954) U.S. stops elections in Vietnam_____Political Involvement

(1960) Viet Cong formed_____No Direct Involvement: It triggered the increased involvement

(1960) Viet Cong attacks on U.S. and South Vietnam bases_____No direct involvement: It triggered the increased involvement

(1962) JFK sends military advisers_____Military Involvement

(1962) Number of 'advisers' reaches over 11,500_____Military Involvement

(1963) U.S. supports South Vietnam government after army overthrow Diem_____Financial Support

(1963) Assassination of JFK - Johnson becomes president_____No direct involvement: It triggered the increased involvement

(1964) Gulf of Tonkin Incident_____No Direct Involvement: It triggered the increased involvement

(1965) U.S. Marines land at Da Nang_____Military Involvement

4. Choose two events that you think were critical in getting the U.S. involved in a war in Vietnam. Explain

your choice.

1)

2)

The Cuban Missile Crisis

1. Kennedy described Wednesday, Oct. 24 and Saturday, Oct. 27 as the darkest days of the crisis. Use the information on page 350 to explain why.

On October 24, the blockade of Cuba begins, and on October 27, tension builds as an american U-2 plane is shot down, Kennedy is forced to accept the terms suggested by Khrushchev the day before, and he threatens an invasion if the USSR didn't withdraw.

2. Do you think that nuclear war was ever a possibility in this crisis?

Because of the extreme growing tension between the US and the Soviet Union, I feel that nuclear war was indeed a possibility in this crisis, because if tension continued to grow more and more, more severe actions could be taken until nuclear war became the only option.

3. Is Source 26 a Soviet or an American cartoon? Explain your answer by referring to the details in the cartoon.

I think that Source 26 is an American cartoon for a few reasons. First, it seems as though more detail is drawn for Kennedy, which leads me to believe that since it is easier to draw someone easier to see, such as your own president, this would be the drawing of an American. Second, it seems like the details of the bomb under Kennedy are more complex, which may be for the reason that an American writer doesn't know the details on the look of a Soviet bomb.

4. Using Source 27 list any evidence you can find for and against each of the explanations.

To bargain with the USA- Khrushchev tried to bargain with the United States and was promised that the US would not invade Cuba

To test the USA- Testing the US could only increase tension between the two countries.

To trap the USA- This most likely was not the case, as Khrushchev knew that nuclear war would not be good for anyone

To get the upper hand in the arms race- Although this would cause tension, it seems a possibility as it would make nuclear war less of a threat to the Soviets

To defend Cuba- I feel that this could easily be a reason why the Soviets put missiles on Cuba because Cuba was crucial to the Soviet Union, and protecting Cuba would be a smart action

5. I think that Khrushchev most likely put missiles on Cuba to defend Cuba, because Cuba was the only communist country in the West, and it was necessary to protect Cuba to keep it communist.

The U.S. Attempts to Contain Cuba

1. Cuba was important to the United States not only was Cuba close to the US, but it could be used for missile launches.

2. I think the Americans chose to equip Cuban exiles rather than invading themselves because they thought that if they were to directly invade, the Soviet Union would take equal actions toward the US.

3. The invasion failed because the US feared that if they supported the Cuban exiles to a greater extent, they would be shown to be a large part of the invasion, so the US did not supply them well enough.

4. The Soviet Union missiles on Cuba changed the Cold War balance of power because it showed that the Soviet Union could be just as able to attack the US as the US would be able to attack the Soviet Union.