"Lessons from the Village: The Vietnam War and...." Topic

…American Counterinsurgency Tactics

Of possible interest?

Free to read

link

Armand

I gave it a quick look-see. From the article:

"…Routine inspections by military squads, often noted as "search and clear" missions, often had the unintended consequence of angering local villagers. When conducting tactics like those mentioned above, which required the displacement and removal of hundreds of villagers, anger and anti-American sentiment began to flourish. Coupled with high tensions and suspicious beliefs held on both sides, these incidents began to coalesce into deep consequences. The most iconic of such incidents occurred in December of 1967. Dubbed the My Lai Massacre, this event highlighted the mounting tensions that were beginning to spring up between Vietnamese villagers and American troops.22 Described as a "massacre of more than three hundred civilians… in which American soldiers viewed all Vietnamese as the enemy," this incident had the unintended effect in damaging American relations with these villages."

I always thought My Lai occurred in March of 1968. But I am the stupidest person I've ever met.

(smile)

Armand

Extraordinary error.the kid was an undergraduate, so I would have expected especial care in peer review and editorial scrutiny before putting in print.

There was a massacre in Dec 67 but it was by the VC killing about 200 Montagnards in the village of Đắk Sơn. But who will remember that when we have Pinkville?

Thanks my good friend…

Armand