Vietnam War and the History of the Globe - Essay Example

Vietnam War While analyzing the history of the globe at large, it becomes crystal clear that war has always brought death, destruction and turmoil in its wake to both invader and invaded states and societies. Although the losses and causalities faced by the invaded areas are generally far more than the intruders, both in men and material, yet war also adversely tells upon the nerves and mental condition of the intruder forces, and even sometimes cost their lives, physical fitness and psychological harmony during the course of war. The same state of affairs had been undergone by the American soldiers and military officers during the Vietnam War fought between the USA and Vietnam for two long decades from 1955 to 1975, leaving heavy losses in men and material. Though Vietnam experienced massive devastation in all parts of the country, yet the brave Vietnamese fought tooth and nail to protect their geographical boundaries. Thus, every going year aggravated the problems of the USA, and not only increased their losses, but also accelerated the pace of her forces’ disappointment. “Almost 3 million US men and women were sent thousands of miles to fight for what was a questionable cause. In total, it is estimated that over 2.5 million people on both sides were killed.” (Quoted in Vietnampix.com) The history also reveals that the majority of the US youth appeared to be standing against the war designs, and viewed it to be unproductive, futile and useless; the same was the case with the present day writer and journalist James Fallows. Being the undergraduate student at world reputed Harvard University, Fallows considered war as the wastage of time, energies and resources. He was of the opinion that there existed several other fields and departments, rendering services for those could be more beneficial and fruitful for the country, nation and humanity at large. If someone fights from his country’s side and dies at a young age, his services would remain confined to battlefield only. Hence, he would not be able to utilize his gifted capabilities in multiple fields particularly during his mature years and later part of life. Similarly, he would be deprived of all the blessings life offers to man in the form of a settled and peaceful professional, domestic and matrimonial life. If critically analyzed with historical facts and figures, the points raised by Fallows certainly carry weight on logical basis. The chronicle of world events prove that humanity has always made rapid developments in the days of peace in all fields of life including science, technology, medicine, astronomy, law, social sciences and much more. Hence, the nations are deprived of the great brains in the battlefield that could add to the progress, prosperity and development of the nation in later years. Thus, sending the youth to the battlefield for the endless and fruitless war stops the wheel of progress on the one hand, and intellectual and mental growth of the nation on the other. Another important point raised by Fallows in his article under the title “What Did you do in the Class War, Daddy?” (1975) is the cultural, ethnic and especially the class diversity prevailing in the USA during the 1960s. Fallows is of the view that though apparently it was the governmental policy to recruit the young undergraduates to send them in the battlefield, yet it was actually the lower and working classes, the youth of which was being deployed to fight the futile war for the gratification of the war lover statesmen. Being a rational and intelligent student, Fallows had acknowledged the very reality that the lower stratum of the US society was being treated as the scapegoat for the entire nation in the name of sacrifice, bravery, courage and fortitude. The Naval medical officers also played the part of the cat’s paw of the Johnson government by declaring the Harvard and MIT students physically disabled to fight war and display valor in the battlefield against the poor Vietnamese. Fallow is of the opinion that the Johnson government deliberately deployed the poor and unprivileged classes into war, where the elite and privileged used to be declared medically unqualified for the same. Fallows and the young people of his community knew it very well that they were fighting the war machine by escaping military service, yet they were not forced to become the part of the battalion to be sent to Vietnam to fight from the American side. On the contrary, the thick, dark-haired young students from Chelsea were speedily recruited for the same. Fallows very rightly declared in his article that the American government has deliberately taken such nasty steps of dividing the nation into classes and communities on the basis of wealth and resources, which would go a long way in determining the future social roadmap and cultural characteristics of the USA. And the same happened with the US society for the future decades to come. His present writings and statements endorse his very viewpoint he had maintained in 1969 as an undergraduate student, and had written in the Washington Monthly Magazine in 1975. Although James Fallow and other fellow students belonging to his community vehemently stood against participating in the war, there existed another stratum of society that had little knowledge regarding the intrigues of politicians as well as the consequences of war; the young and ambitious Ronald Kovic was also one among such young students. Kovic was a die hard patriot youth, passionate to offer his services and even sacrifice his life just for the cause of his nation and beloved motherland. Being an intelligent, energetic as well as dedicated to his soil, he was easily recruited by the military authorities. Since Kovic was a true patriot, neither could he see the humiliation of the US flag in a photograph, not could he tolerate the anti war demonstrations being launched in the New York City against the Vietnamese War. He volunteered for his first tour of duty in Vietnam in 1965. “I remember tears coming to my eyes when I saw a photograph in the newspaper of the American flag being burned at an antiwar rally in New York City. I was outraged and became determined to set my own example of patriotism and volunteered to go to Vietnam a second time, ready to die for my country if need be.” (Kovic, 2006) Soon after his recruitment, he was sent to Vietnam, where he rendered valuable services at various fronts, against which Kovic was awarded with Purple Heart and other distinctions. However, his views took taking drastic turn as soon as he was fired in a small Vietnamese village in January 1968 making him injured and then paralyzed subsequently. It is not true that Kovic was a coward or vindictive; nor did he take his physical injury too personally in such a way that would make him from a blunt patriot to an arch traitor, who started taking very active part in protests and demonstrations against the US war policies. On the contrary, his receiving the wound and getting paralyzed was the turning point in his life that realized him how obnoxious and horrible the war was. Even this day after celebrating the 40th anniversary of his injury, he looks standing as determined as rock to condemn and censure war mania of the US rulers. Hence, he got the tip that war is just a curse that makes the strong, powerful, determined, ambitious and intelligent confined to hospital beds, wheelchairs and supporting sticks, where they appear to be unable to perform any physical obligation even at their young age. Kovic expresses deep feelings of his grief in his poem in these words: “I am the living death the Memorial Day on wheels I am your Yankee Doodle Dandy your John Wayne come home your fourth of July firecracker exploding in the grave.” The major reason behind his opposing war tooth and nail is the horrible consequences of war that Kovic has personally experienced at the prime of his youth. The same pain and agony compels him not to sit idle, but go to streets and roads and convey and communicate to the world that they should pay due heed to stop criminal offences of horrible massacre in the name of so called democracy and civilization. Actually, Kovic and other intellectuals of his taste have acknowledged the very reality that there are no sacred motives behind the war ambitions of the USA as well as her allies and rivals even. On the contrary, these countries wage wars and drag poor civilians and foolish youth to the battlefield for the accomplishment of the nasty expansion schemes designed and launched by the cruel rulers. It is partly due to the fact that Kovic has realized that the hidden agenda of one and the only superpower i.e. the USA to dominate over the world cultures, economic systems and politics through her might, IT advancement, technological equipments, economic strength, WMD and the nefarious designs articulated by her think tank. Thus, she has neither any concern in respect of providing small or secular states with justice, freedom or equality; nor does she has any plan to be worked out for the prosperity of these countries. Rather, the entire drama of Vietnamese war staged just to confine the Communism to the boundaries of Soviet Union of Russia, so that Socialism and Communism could not put the Western economic system i.e. Capitalism into grave jeopardy eventually. The same was the US motive behind entering in both the Great Wars from the Allies side in 1917 and 1941 respectively. The same was the situation in 1950s and 1960s where the poor Vietnamese were being brutally killed and massacred at the name of peace, justice and democracy. Vietnamese War has given birth to such terrible and dreadful events that humanity is still ashamed of them; My Lai Massacre is also one of these most tragic war incidents of the entire Vietnamese War, which startled the victim country and global observers alike to find how savagely and brutally the innocent Vietnamese civilians were butchered at the hands of the American troops in the small village of My Lai on 16th March 1968. It is therefore, both James Fallows and Ronald Kovic realized the darkest aspects of the war as well as the condemnable designs behind it, though there is slight difference in the approaches of both these individuals under analysis. Being a visionary, talented and insightful writer and intellectual, Fallows has acknowledged the very fact that it is not mere dedicated efforts and commitment with one’s nation that earns sound respect and financial stability in human life. On the contrary, being rational and visionary earns pelf, power and possession for the individuals. It is not the case with the American society; rather, it is universal law that applies to all and sundry as well as on all human societies at large without any discrimination on the basis of race, region, ethnicity and religion. Somehow, the poor Kovic got acquaintance with this bitter truth after receiving deadly wound in his heel and becoming paralyzed for the rest of his life. Hence, war actually carries out the hidden agenda of the fulfillment of the lust of the opportunist politicians and statesmen of big countries, which has perhaps been being achieved through the innocent and poor patriots for hundreds of years even in ancient civilizations of Greece, Rome, Egypt, China, Babylonia and India. Since war is synonymous with cruelty, butchery and inhumanity, the world must take notice of it to protect the innocent people from its awkward and nefarious clutches forever. Works Cited: Fallows, James. What did you do in the Class War, Daddy? Washington Monthly 1975 Quoted in http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/features/2009/0911.fallows.html Ron Kovic: Breaking the Silence of the Night 2005 Retrieved from http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/200601009_ron_kovic_breaking_silence_night/ The Vietnam War Retrieved from http://www.vietnampix.com/intro.htm Read More