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09-18-2017, 12:36 PM | Topic Starter |
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PBS Vietnam War Documentary
Anybody catch the first episode last night? Interesting background on Ho Chi Mihn. I knew some of that back story, but not all of it. The French are total assholes. I can see why the Vietnamese people hated them. Actually, my French Teacher at Mizzou was a Vietnamese guy in a wheelchair who had fought for South Vietnam in the war. He was fluent in French because his father worked for the French in Saigon.
Next chapter is on tonight. One of the American Soldiers they talked to who was a Marine went to my High School (Van Horn) in Independence. |
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09-18-2017, 01:12 PM | #2 | |
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Really looking forward to this as I've always been a bit fascinated with that war. And it's by Ken Burns. Is there any way to catch last nights episode somewhere? |
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09-18-2017, 01:18 PM | #3 |
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There is a live video booth set up at MCPL Independence- If you are a Vet and have a story about the war- you can record it here and send it to KCPL.
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09-19-2017, 07:22 AM | #4 |
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You can watch them here if you've missed any episodes:
http://www.pbs.org/kenburns/the-vietnam-war/watch/ |
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09-19-2017, 08:12 AM | #5 |
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Most interesting part so far...............When Ho Che Ming took Power and declared a independent country in Vietnam. He wrote several Letters to Truman begging for USA support.
Basically saying They only wanted freedom to decide their own affairs, nothing to do with communism. Support us and we will be friends and trade partners. He never heard back. So he wrote another letter. No response. He wrote a total of 4 letters to Truman. Truman never saw them. The CIA kept the letters and never told Truman of their existence.
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09-23-2017, 10:09 AM | #6 | |
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09-25-2017, 02:04 PM | #7 |
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The first episode was sort of a slog, but I'm about 1/2 through episode 4 now and its really growing legs and becoming extremely interesting.
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09-19-2017, 10:54 AM | #8 |
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What happened to those letters have they since been released? For someone who didnt want communism he sure did embrace it.
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09-20-2017, 08:32 AM | #9 | |
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No. He was never a "true" communist. He was an opportunist, and played the game necessary to get Russian/Chinese support. That war was just a terrible, terrible mistake from every possible point of view. Not just blood and treasure, but strategically and in every other way you can possibly think of. A terrible, terrible misjudgment by America's leaders at that point in time.
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09-20-2017, 10:52 AM | #10 | |
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09-20-2017, 09:50 PM | #11 |
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if the CIA gives those letters to Truman, maybe we back Ming and let him dictator up the country as long as they keep the Russia/Chinese communists out. That's what the hell we did all over the world in that era. Would have saved many lives on both sides.
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09-19-2017, 11:04 AM | #12 |
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The Hamlet Program pissed off all the rural population. Farmers had to leave their land behind and go into these "protected hamlets." Also, there was a city-country split in the South Vietnamese people. The city people (Saigon) didn't understand the desires of the country people, and lots of the men out in the country joined up with the Viet Cong. The leadership in South Vietnam was completely corrupt, and they violated freedoms of religion and peaceful protest. The ARVN didn't want to fight for their own country. Just a total and complete cluster F. Kennedy was trying to stop WWIII over Cuba, and Vietnam took a back burner. Only until US Advisors started getting killed did the country start to notice what was going on there. It just snowballed out of control from there.
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09-19-2017, 11:08 AM | #13 |
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Words and Deeds. My Dad always said words sound pretty and impressive but its the deeds that matter. Documentarians and Historians are never short of the pretty words but seem to be long in stretching and bending the deeds to fit their purpose. Ken Burns is a master at this.
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09-19-2017, 01:39 PM | #14 | |
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I'm not challenging you, I'm just curious. |
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09-19-2017, 09:39 PM | #15 | |
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And he thinks that the parts of American history that aren't actively pursuing/progressing in those areas are universally 'dark times'
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