Vietnam War buffs?

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Is anyone on the site a history nerd, more specifically one on the Vietnam War? I have huge issues with my obsession over the American conflict there *twitch* and it'd be fun to talk to someone who also is an *expert* on the 'Nam.

From the Tet Offensive to the My Lai Massacre, come here if you want to talk about, or learn more about the Vietnam War.

[rednax]

My dad is Vietnamese. I don't know all of the details of the Vietnam War (despite being a history buff), though I could provide you with some background information on it.

~Rednax

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Originally Posted by rednax

My dad is Vietnamese. I don't know all of the details of the Vietnam War (despite being a history buff), though U could provide you with some background information on it.

~Rednax

I'm sorry?

[rednax]

Originally Posted by The Deadliest Warrior

I'm sorry?

That should be I. Sorry for the confusion.

~Rednax

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Really? What sort of stuff do you know about the war?

May I ask if your father participated in the war?

[The Deadliest Warrior]

I wrote a speech for my public speaking class about the North Vietnamese general, Vo Nguyen Giap. Would you guys be interested if I put it here?

[rednax]

Originally Posted by The Deadliest Warrior

Really? What sort of stuff do you know about the war?

May I ask if your father participated in the war?

If you count fleeing to America, then yes.

To be honest, I don't know as much as I should, mainly because my father's family has never been one to tell stories.

Here's what I know (off the top of my head):

Grandfather was in the army (pretty sure).
All they pretty much brought to America was a picture of my grandfather.
Before they boarded the boat, there was some confusion because one family wished to bring guns on the boat. The boat couldn't wait, so it left without the people who wanted to bring the guns . . . And my fathers cousin.
Father's family got on a boat to Guam where they stayed a couple months.
First cousin once removed born there.
Took a plane to California, got relocated to Arkansas, and then eventually to Michigan.

If you have any questions, I could try to ask my dad.

~Rednax

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Originally Posted by rednax

If you count fleeing to America, then yes.

To be honest, I don't know as much as I should, mainly because my father's family has never been one to tell stories.

Here's what I know (off the top of my head):

Grandfather was in the army (pretty sure).
All they pretty much brought to America was a picture of my grandfather.
Before they boarded the boat, there was some confusion because one family wished to bring guns on the boat. The boat couldn't wait, so it left without the people who wanted to bring the guns . . . And my fathers cousin.
Father's family got on a boat to Guam where they stayed a couple months.
First cousin once removed born there.
Took a plane to California, got relocated to Arkansas, and then eventually to Michigan.

If you have any questions, I could try to ask my dad.

~Rednax

Oh, so he was never actually in combat...

Yeah, even though the Communists had the majority of the common peasants in their favor, when the capital, Saigon, fell, thousands of people fled in terror of what the Communists might do to them. When the Communists captured Hue seven years earlier they massacred people who were prominent anti-Commnist figures in the city. People probably didn't want that happening to them now that they had lost the war.

[rednax]

Well, he wasn't even ten at the time, so it would be hard for him to be in combat.

~Rednax

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Originally Posted by rednax

Well, he wasn't even ten at the time, so it would be hard for him to be in combat.

~Rednax

That would make sense. One of my classmates has an uncle and a father who were in the ARVN (South Vietnamese Army). He says his uncle was forced to join the NVA (North Vietnamese Army) but his father escaped to America with his mother. I haven't really asked him about much because I don't want to bring up something sensitive with him.

[Wonderball68]

I am by no means a vietnam war buff, but in Social Studies we have been studying the human pyschology of cruelty/inhumanity towards others after learning about WWII, the Nazis, and watching Schindler's List. We started out by looking at the Milgram experiment (VERY interesting, google it or I can post a vid if you want), the Stanford Prison experiment, and finally watched a video on the massacre at Mi-Lai. Very intense and very sad seeing the footage and interviews with the men of Charlie co.

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Originally Posted by Wonderball68

I am by no means a vietnam war buff, but in Social Studies we have been studying the human pyschology of cruelty/inhumanity towards others after learning about WWII, the Nazis, and watching Schindler's List. We started out by looking at the Milgram experiment (VERY interesting, google it or I can post a vid if you want), the Stanford Prison experiment, and finally watched a video on the massacre at Mi-Lai. Very intense and very sad seeing the footage and interviews with the men of Charlie co.

Yeah, the My Lai Massacre came on the heels of Public Relations nightmares like the Tet Offensive and other similar events like the revealing of the Pentagon Papers dropped support for the war and forced Nixon to call about the Paris Peace Accords, ending the war.

Did the video talk about the way U.S. POW's were treated in North Vietnamese prison camps like the Hanoi Hilton or the Zoo?