Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day

[Doc7505]

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day​

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day | Zero Hedge
11/11/2019 ~ By Kelli Ballard via LibertyNation.com,
Throughout history, there have been conflicts and wars, and the attitude about the engagements – and its warriors – change depending on the public opinion at the time. Consider the medieval era where being a knight was romanticized. They were considered chivalrous with a code that expected them to be pure in both thought and deed. When the brave knights returned after a battle, they were honored and celebrated. Great feasts were given in their name and the ladies swooned and threw lace, ribbons, and other personal effects to show their support – and hopefully catch a legendary hero husband in the process.
But now, let’s flash forward to the Vietnam War and the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect. Whether being drafted into service or signing up on their own, young men, boys, and women, did their duty and served their nation. They went into unfamiliar and hostile territory to fight against the enemy; some being injured or even losing their lives. They witnessed atrocities, saw their platoon brethren die, and dreamed of the day when they could return home, to their loved ones. However, when that day came, instead of open, welcoming arms, many veterans were met with anger, people spitting on them, calling them “baby killers.” Far from being worshipped as heroes, as their former soldiers were, Vietnam veterans were harassed and made to feel ashamed for their patriotic service. It took another 20 years after the Vietnam War for Americans to return to respecting their warriors. The first step in the healing process began in 1982 with the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. After the Gulf War (1990-91), people began waving flags and celebrating soldiers. Langenus, who had suffered as a Vietnam veteran, and also a veteran of Desert Storm, couldn’t believe the change around.


Comment:
Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

 

[buttercup]

Comment:​

Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

The older I get and the more I learn, the more I realize that just about every single war is based on lies and deceit. It is the worst crime, constantly sending our young men and women in uniform off to die for unjust globalist wars based on false pretexts. I can't wait for the day when more people will wake up.

 

[Natural Citizen]

I think around 2/3 of our troops in Vietnam were cooks, clerks, and other staff behind the battle lines. The actual soldiers fighting were greatly outnumbered. They were doomed from the start.

I don't fault veterans themselves for our failed foreign policy. Thats not saying that there aren't some who expect automatic hero worship for simply putting on combat gear and doing the bidding of special interest groups. There are, of course. And that's not to say that there aren't some who politicize their time served. There are, of course. Those types generally are on a power trip and I wouldn't doubt they'd turn a gun on an American citizen in a hot second if some bureaucrat running interference for Kellogg Brown and Root told em they'd be seen as a hero. That's just human nature. Man is a mixture of good and evil. But they are fewer and farther between. And I'd surmise that in most cases, they're just victims of the same propaganda fed to the electorate more than anything.

Generally speaking, though, my heart bleeds for our veterans. Many enlist only to find out later it was all just a lie.

I remember when Ron ran in the '08 and '12 elections. He received more money from active duty military personnel than all other candidates combined...combined...combined.

He was, of course, the candidate who said we marched right in there, we can march right back out. He's the candidate who ran on bringing our troops home and building more bases here. That's real national defense. That's real defense spending. The media blacked him out, of course. But it was refreshing to see that more military personnel supported what he was saying, rather than the propaganda the hawks running interference for the MIC were flooding us with on the cable news entertainment programming networks.

 

[Jackson]

Once we are attacked, I will be willing to do what I can for a war effort. Let some country attack us and the division we see in this country will be on the mend. The words "Democrat" and "Republican" will change to "Us"

 

[Gdjjr]

Comment:​

Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

The older I get and the more I learn, the more I realize that just about every single war is based on lies and deceit. It is the worst crime, constantly sending our young men and women in uniform off to die for unjust globalist wars based on false pretexts. I can't wait for the day when more people will wake up.

Amen!

 

[jwoodie]

Veterans Day began as Armistice Day (1918) - the end of the war to end all wars.

 

[depotoo]

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day​

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day | Zero Hedge
11/11/2019 ~ By Kelli Ballard via LibertyNation.com,
Throughout history, there have been conflicts and wars, and the attitude about the engagements – and its warriors – change depending on the public opinion at the time. Consider the medieval era where being a knight was romanticized. They were considered chivalrous with a code that expected them to be pure in both thought and deed. When the brave knights returned after a battle, they were honored and celebrated. Great feasts were given in their name and the ladies swooned and threw lace, ribbons, and other personal effects to show their support – and hopefully catch a legendary hero husband in the process.
But now, let’s flash forward to the Vietnam War and the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect. Whether being drafted into service or signing up on their own, young men, boys, and women, did their duty and served their nation. They went into unfamiliar and hostile territory to fight against the enemy; some being injured or even losing their lives. They witnessed atrocities, saw their platoon brethren die, and dreamed of the day when they could return home, to their loved ones. However, when that day came, instead of open, welcoming arms, many veterans were met with anger, people spitting on them, calling them “baby killers.” Far from being worshipped as heroes, as their former soldiers were, Vietnam veterans were harassed and made to feel ashamed for their patriotic service. It took another 20 years after the Vietnam War for Americans to return to respecting their warriors. The first step in the healing process began in 1982 with the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. After the Gulf War (1990-91), people began waving flags and celebrating soldiers. Langenus, who had suffered as a Vietnam veteran, and also a veteran of Desert Storm, couldn’t believe the change around.


Comment:
Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

Communism is not economically feasible for a long period? How long has China been communist? Cuba? North Korea? If it spreads, how long is it acceptable to wait for its collapse? Why has its tenets spread to a the least a third of the Democratic party already?

 

[DGS49]

A pox on those who diminish our role in the world. We are, and have been for more than a century, the leading country that is willing to risk and devote its money, assets and Youth to battles in which we have nothing whatsoever to gain.

From Europe to Korea to Vietnam to the Middle East, we have heeded the requests of those threatened by tyranny, people who lack the resources to fully protect their own vital interests. If not us, then who? The fucking GERMANS? Swedes? French?

The "Domino Theory" was absolutely valid, and the ultimate result in Vietnam bears it out. Are you not aware of the truckload of VIETNAMESE refugees who were found last week in England? Do you think they were TOURISTS?

And none of it would work without young American men who are willing to go, fight, and risk their lives in furtherance of our national objectives. All volunteers or not, they are literally heroes and they deserve our respect...draftees just as much.

All the more reason by President Trump is to be commended for seeking to reduce our presence in unwinnable wars and conflicts where the equities are uncertain (e.g., Syria).

 

[rightwinger]

A pox on those who diminish our role in the world. We are, and have been for more than a century, the leading country that is willing to risk and devote its money, assets and Youth to battles in which we have nothing whatsoever to gain.

From Europe to Korea to Vietnam to the Middle East, we have heeded the requests of those threatened by tyranny, people who lack the resources to fully protect their own vital interests. If not us, then who? The fucking GERMANS? Swedes? French?

The "Domino Theory" was absolutely valid, and the ultimate result in Vietnam bears it out. Are you not aware of the truckload of VIETNAMESE refugees who were found last week in England? Do you think they were TOURISTS?

And none of it would work without young American men who are willing to go, fight, and risk their lives in furtherance of our national objectives. All volunteers or not, they are literally heroes and they deserve our respect...draftees just as much.

All the more reason by President Trump is to be commended for seeking to reduce our presence in unwinnable wars and conflicts where the equities are uncertain (e.g., Syria).

Our military influence around the globe has more to do with our capitalist interests than national defense

Vietnam was a Civil War that we turned into a Cold War

 

[Pogo]

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day​

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day | Zero Hedge
11/11/2019 ~ By Kelli Ballard via LibertyNation.com,
Throughout history, there have been conflicts and wars, and the attitude about the engagements – and its warriors – change depending on the public opinion at the time. Consider the medieval era where being a knight was romanticized. They were considered chivalrous with a code that expected them to be pure in both thought and deed. When the brave knights returned after a battle, they were honored and celebrated. Great feasts were given in their name and the ladies swooned and threw lace, ribbons, and other personal effects to show their support – and hopefully catch a legendary hero husband in the process.
But now, let’s flash forward to the Vietnam War and the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect. Whether being drafted into service or signing up on their own, young men, boys, and women, did their duty and served their nation. They went into unfamiliar and hostile territory to fight against the enemy; some being injured or even losing their lives. They witnessed atrocities, saw their platoon brethren die, and dreamed of the day when they could return home, to their loved ones. However, when that day came, instead of open, welcoming arms, many veterans were met with anger, people spitting on them, calling them “baby killers.” Far from being worshipped as heroes, as their former soldiers were, Vietnam veterans were harassed and made to feel ashamed for their patriotic service. It took another 20 years after the Vietnam War for Americans to return to respecting their warriors. The first step in the healing process began in 1982 with the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. After the Gulf War (1990-91), people began waving flags and celebrating soldiers. Langenus, who had suffered as a Vietnam veteran, and also a veteran of Desert Storm, couldn’t believe the change around.


Comment:
Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

Point well taken --- when I read "the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect" I could not remember the MIC and Bell Helicopter and Raytheon et al, the citizens they put their lives on the line to protect, disrespecting them. The whole picture they paint here is one that frankly I don't recall at all and I have to wonder if it's an ongoing historical revision.

Curious that you single out Lyndon Johnson, when Vietnam spanned two decades that started well before he was POTUS and continued well after. If there's a single figure upon whose feet to lay the blame it should be John Foster Dulles, who threw a hissyfit when France admitted defeat and left Indochina and maneuvered this country into a twenty-year morass, conveniently dying before the shit really hit the fan.

Finally, the military is a tool of the MIC regardless whether there is a draft or not. That's not even related. Orders come from the same direction either way.

 

[Pogo]

A pox on those who diminish our role in the world. We are, and have been for more than a century, the leading country that is willing to risk and devote its money, assets and Youth to battles in which we have nothing whatsoever to gain.

From Europe to Korea to Vietnam to the Middle East, we have heeded the requests of those threatened by tyranny, people who lack the resources to fully protect their own vital interests. If not us, then who? The fucking GERMANS? Swedes? French?

The "Domino Theory" was absolutely valid, and the ultimate result in Vietnam bears it out. Are you not aware of the truckload of VIETNAMESE refugees who were found last week in England? Do you think they were TOURISTS?

I suspect you also believe in the Easter Bunny, amirite?

There is no "battle in which we have nothing whatsoever to gain". And while we're at it why don't you tell us how we got Hawaìi. And Puerto Rico, and Guam. And how the Philippines got to be our colony. Then you can tell us how Panama came to exist, and what happened to Mohammed Mossadegh, Jacobo Árbenz, Patrice Lumumba, João Goulart, Salvador Allende and the Vietnam national elections of 1956.

 

[Doc7505]

I think around 2/3 of our troops in Vietnam were cooks, clerks, and other staff behind the battle lines. The actual soldiers fighting were greatly outnumbered. They were doomed from the start.

I don't fault veterans themselves for our failed foreign policy. Thats not saying that there aren't some who expect automatic hero worship for simply putting on combat gear and doing the bidding of special interest groups. There are, of course. And that's not to say that there aren't some who politicize their time served. There are, of course. Those types generally are on a power trip and I wouldn't doubt they'd turn a gun on an American citizen in a hot second if some bureaucrat running interference for Kellogg Brown and Root told em they'd be seen as a hero. That's just human nature. Man is a mixture of good and evil. But they are fewer and farther between.

Generally speaking, though, my heart bleeds for our veterans. Many enlist only to find out later it was all just a lie.

I remember when Ron ran in the '08 and '12 elections. He received more money from active duty military personnel than all other candidates combined...combined...combined.

He was, of course, the candidate who said we marched right in there, we can march right back out. He's the candidate who ran on bringing our troops home and building more bases here. That's real national defense. That's real defense spending. The media blacked him out, of course. But it was refreshing to see that more military personnel supported what he was saying, rather than the propaganda the hawks running interference for the MIC were flooding us with on the cable news entertainment programming networks.

~~~~~~
Logistics for supporting front line soldiers has become greater with each war. Today it takes nine people to supply one front line trooper. During WWII the ratio was 3 to supply one man.

 

[Rambunctious]

 

[Natural Citizen]

Logistics for supporting front line soldiers has become greater with each war. Today it takes nine people to supply one front line trooper. During WWII the ratio was 3 to supply one man.

If I'm not mistaken, I think there were around 550,000 troops in Vietnam at its peak with around 50,000 actual combat troops. So, that's half a million of those troops of the 550,000 performing administrative and logistics functions, if true.

I think we have several Vietnam veterans who post here regularly. Perhaps they might chime in and add some perspective on those numbers.

 

[Rambunctious]

 

[Gdjjr]

Project 100,000

The “typical” Project 100,000 recruit was Caucasian in his early 20s and a high school dropout with sixth grade reading and mathematics abilities. Black and Latino men, however, were vastly overrepresented in Project 100,000. Of the New Standards Men, over 40% were African Americans and of that number, 65% were from the South. Some recruits were unable to speak English, others were considered too short or too tall under standard requirements.

Their most common military assignments were as infantrymen, artillery men, cooks, clerks, and truck drivers, with an overwhelming majority of them seeing combat. Out of the New Standards Men, African Americans were 44.5 percent of those who received combat assignments as opposed to 38.8 percent of whites. In the early years of the project, African Americans also comprised an overwhelming majority of New Standards battle deaths. In the Marine Corps alone, blacks comprised 58% of the marines in what were considered dangerous military occupations in Vietnam.

 

[Gdjjr]

War profiteering in World War I was mammoth: The gunpowder giant DuPont saw its fortunes increase nearly 10-fold during the World War I and wartime profits of General Chemical Company soared by 1,400 percent. Leather, bootmaking, garment and metals industries; airplane, engine and ship builders – all the outfitters of armed conflict – enjoyed immense profit.

Of the estimated $52 billion cost of World War I, industry war profiteers pocketed nearly one third. More than 21,000 new American millionaires and billionaires emerged from the human ashes of the war, while the federal government was mired in postwar debt – a debt paid for by working people’s taxes.

Little has changed with regard to war greed except that war industry profits have grown exponentially together with the national budget for the military. Today spending on military defense greatly exceeds the total spending for our real national security needs, namely education, transportation, housing and community development, diplomacy, environment, science and energy, and health and human services. As a country, the US has moved from being a reluctant, late entrant into World War I to being the premier merchant of death in weapons sales and premier militarist nation, engaged in a perpetual state of war waged from an empire of military bases.

November 11: Remembering the Tragedy and Legacy of World War I

 

[Natural Citizen]

Project 100,000

The “typical” Project 100,000 recruit was Caucasian in his early 20s and a high school dropout with sixth grade reading and mathematics abilities. Black and Latino men, however, were vastly overrepresented in Project 100,000. Of the New Standards Men, over 40% were African Americans and of that number, 65% were from the South. Some recruits were unable to speak English, others were considered too short or too tall under standard requirements.

Their most common military assignments were as infantrymen, artillery men, cooks, clerks, and truck drivers, with an overwhelming majority of them seeing combat. Out of the New Standards Men, African Americans were 44.5 percent of those who received combat assignments as opposed to 38.8 percent of whites. In the early years of the project, African Americans also comprised an overwhelming majority of New Standards battle deaths. In the Marine Corps alone, blacks comprised 58% of the marines in what were considered dangerous military occupations in Vietnam.

It didn't help that a lot of them were stoned. Notwithstanding the decline in morale after sending riflemen into the hills where the NV were toting long range Soviet howitzers. McNamara was a joke.

That was a good read. Thanks for posting.

 

[Doc7505]

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day​

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day | Zero Hedge
11/11/2019 ~ By Kelli Ballard via LibertyNation.com,
Throughout history, there have been conflicts and wars, and the attitude about the engagements – and its warriors – change depending on the public opinion at the time. Consider the medieval era where being a knight was romanticized. They were considered chivalrous with a code that expected them to be pure in both thought and deed. When the brave knights returned after a battle, they were honored and celebrated. Great feasts were given in their name and the ladies swooned and threw lace, ribbons, and other personal effects to show their support – and hopefully catch a legendary hero husband in the process.
But now, let’s flash forward to the Vietnam War and the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect. Whether being drafted into service or signing up on their own, young men, boys, and women, did their duty and served their nation. They went into unfamiliar and hostile territory to fight against the enemy; some being injured or even losing their lives. They witnessed atrocities, saw their platoon brethren die, and dreamed of the day when they could return home, to their loved ones. However, when that day came, instead of open, welcoming arms, many veterans were met with anger, people spitting on them, calling them “baby killers.” Far from being worshipped as heroes, as their former soldiers were, Vietnam veterans were harassed and made to feel ashamed for their patriotic service. It took another 20 years after the Vietnam War for Americans to return to respecting their warriors. The first step in the healing process began in 1982 with the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. After the Gulf War (1990-91), people began waving flags and celebrating soldiers. Langenus, who had suffered as a Vietnam veteran, and also a veteran of Desert Storm, couldn’t believe the change around.


Comment:
Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

Point well taken --- when I read "the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect" I could not remember the MIC and Bell Helicopter and Raytheon et al, the citizens they put their lives on the line to protect, disrespecting them. The whole picture they paint here is one that frankly I don't recall at all and I have to wonder if it's an ongoing historical revision.

Curious that you single out Lyndon Johnson, when Vietnam spanned two decades that started well before he was POTUS and continued well after. If there's a single figure upon whose feet to lay the blame it should be John Foster Dulles, who threw a hissyfit when France admitted defeat and left Indochina and maneuvered this country into a twenty-year morass, conveniently dying before the shit really hit the fan.

Finally, the military is a tool of the MIC regardless whether there is a draft or not. That's not even related. Orders come from the same direction either way.

The Indo-Chinese war began in 1946, Truman created and sent the first Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG).
Dien Bien Phu fell to the Viet Minh in 1954 with the French were required to leave under a partitioning of the country at the 17th parallel . The U.S. directed by Dwight D. Eisenhower assisted South Vietnam with arms and small cadres MAAG to train the new S.V. Army. During the years of 1955 to 1960 U.S. MAAG personnel were rotated out every 90 days to 180 days and they had to speak French fluently. Personnel were taken from all segments of the military. There were never more than 1,000 Americans in Laos or Nam until the Kennedy Administration 11,000 until his assassination and then exploded under Lyndon B. Johnson.
Oh, there's no doubt that the CIA was heavily involved in Nam and their numbers in SE Asia were more than MAAG.
Yes, I singled out LBJ because he expanded the assistance to Nam from small cadres to 500,000 men.

 

[Pogo]

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day​

Changing Attitudes On Veterans Day | Zero Hedge
11/11/2019 ~ By Kelli Ballard via LibertyNation.com,
Throughout history, there have been conflicts and wars, and the attitude about the engagements – and its warriors – change depending on the public opinion at the time. Consider the medieval era where being a knight was romanticized. They were considered chivalrous with a code that expected them to be pure in both thought and deed. When the brave knights returned after a battle, they were honored and celebrated. Great feasts were given in their name and the ladies swooned and threw lace, ribbons, and other personal effects to show their support – and hopefully catch a legendary hero husband in the process.
But now, let’s flash forward to the Vietnam War and the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect. Whether being drafted into service or signing up on their own, young men, boys, and women, did their duty and served their nation. They went into unfamiliar and hostile territory to fight against the enemy; some being injured or even losing their lives. They witnessed atrocities, saw their platoon brethren die, and dreamed of the day when they could return home, to their loved ones. However, when that day came, instead of open, welcoming arms, many veterans were met with anger, people spitting on them, calling them “baby killers.” Far from being worshipped as heroes, as their former soldiers were, Vietnam veterans were harassed and made to feel ashamed for their patriotic service. It took another 20 years after the Vietnam War for Americans to return to respecting their warriors. The first step in the healing process began in 1982 with the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. After the Gulf War (1990-91), people began waving flags and celebrating soldiers. Langenus, who had suffered as a Vietnam veteran, and also a veteran of Desert Storm, couldn’t believe the change around.


Comment:
Vietnam was a tragedy based on a lie, and had ZERO to do with protecting America from any sort of threat, because duh, despite horror FAKE NEWS of "Domino Theory" Communism is inherently economically incapable of sustaining itself long term. Those boys were used by the government plain and simple. Those boys were used by Lyndon B. Johnson (D-Tx) and the government plain and simple.
I firmly believe that our military would be given more respect and honor if the draft was reinstated. Today, Americans don’t give a damn because the military is currently a tool of the MIC and Deep State. When families have skin in the game they'll pay attention to where/why their children are. Vietnam taught the Elitist Progressive Democrats there is blowback when war is fought and lost for profit and not for Country if there was a draft no friggin way we’d be in the ME

Point well taken --- when I read "the veterans who suffered not only from wartime injuries (both physical and mental), but also from hostility and disrespect from the very citizens they put their lives on the line to protect" I could not remember the MIC and Bell Helicopter and Raytheon et al, the citizens they put their lives on the line to protect, disrespecting them. The whole picture they paint here is one that frankly I don't recall at all and I have to wonder if it's an ongoing historical revision.

Curious that you single out Lyndon Johnson, when Vietnam spanned two decades that started well before he was POTUS and continued well after. If there's a single figure upon whose feet to lay the blame it should be John Foster Dulles, who threw a hissyfit when France admitted defeat and left Indochina and maneuvered this country into a twenty-year morass, conveniently dying before the shit really hit the fan.

Finally, the military is a tool of the MIC regardless whether there is a draft or not. That's not even related. Orders come from the same direction either way.

The Indo-Chinese war began in 1946, Truman created and sent the first Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG).
Dien Bien Phu fell to the Viet Minh in 1954 with the French were required to leave under a partitioning of the country at the 17th parallel . The U.S. directed by Dwight D. Eisenhower assisted South Vietnam with arms and small cadres MAAG to train the new S.V. Army. During the years of 1955 to 1960 U.S. MAAG personnel were rotated out every 90 days to 180 days and they had to speak French fluently. Personnel were taken from all segments of the military. There were never more than 1,000 Americans in Laos or Nam until the Kennedy Administration 11,000 until his assassination and then exploded under Lyndon B. Johnson.
Oh, there's no doubt that the CIA was heavily involved in Nam and their numbers in SE Asia were more than MAAG.
Yes, I singled out LBJ because he expanded the assistance to Nam from small cadres to 500,000 men.

And Nixon expanded into Laos and Cambodia after, and in the other direction Eisenhower got us in there in the first place by being Dulles' yes-man, and that's where it starts. I just said that. No Dulles, no Vietnam.

Thanks, I don't need a history lesson.