by Morley Evans
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| William Blum |
The new Vietnam documentary
At the beginning of Ken Burns’ new documentary on the American war in Vietnam, the narrator says the war “was begun in good faith by decent people out of fateful misunderstandings, American overconfidence and Cold War misunderstandings.”
The early American involvement in Vietnam can be marked by two things in particular: (1) helping the French imperialists in their fight against the forces led by Ho Chi Minh of North Vietnam and (2) the cancellation of the elections that would have united North and South Vietnam as one nation because the US and its South Vietnam allies knew that Ho Chi Minh would win. It was that simple.
[So much for Washington's devotion to freedom and democracy. If 'duhmockricy' doesn't produce what Washington wants, regime change is required to install a government Washington does like. - ed]
Nothing of good faith or decency in that scenario. No misunderstandings. Ho Chi Minh was a great admirer of America and its Declaration of Independence. His own actual declaration of 1945 begins with the familiar “All men are created equal. They are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” But Ho Chi Minh was what was called a “communist”. It was that simple. (See the Vietnam chapter in my book Killing Hope for the details.)
Daniel Ellsberg’s conclusion about the US in Vietnam: “It wasn’t that we were on the wrong side; we were the wrong side.” (emphasis added)
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The Vietnam War was not a mistake. The War in Vietnam was business as usual. Look around. Read Bill's books. Deprogram yourself. -ed
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