Yes, Tom. First, I don't think U.S. leaders care about culture and history of other peoples. It's irrelevant to them. And the "objective" of war is often simply to have one (or more). How else to keep the MICC fully funded? How else to keep the "warriors" busy?
This is spot on, one of the things US failed to understand is how difficult it is to train people who don't know how to read or write they learned this the hard way in Afghanistan.
The US objective was certainly TOTAL MILITARY VICTORY. Does this come as a shock?? I have never bought the notion that JFK planned to wind down the war in a presumed second term. I think his brilliant advisers had led him to believe that with sufficient guidance and material support, the puppet regime in the south of Viet Nam could hold the line. Perhaps ultimately ceding the northern part of the country to Uncle Ho--the division of Korea model--but retaining the south as a US vassal state. To be perfectly clear: there was NEVER a legitimate entity called "South Vietnam"/"Republic of Vietnam." PURE U.S. FICTION!!! If folks on this thread cannot grasp this truth, what hope is there for Truth to ever emerge triumphant in the struggle with the Big Lie??
Bravo, Bill. I read your Substack daily, finding your voice among the clearest expression of the tole the military has, and continues to play, in the demise of the U.S.A.
I would just like to add two minor points to that analysis.
1. They learned that the “best” wars (and weapon systems) were not those that resulted in a Clausewitz type victory ( ie icompelling another to submit to one’s will). Rather than” best” is defined by how how much wealth can be transferred from the civilian to the military sector, as you described in your previous articles on “ war as a money laundering operation”.
2. The above point was learned in the false narrative that goes back to the decision surrounding the building , and use, of the atomic bomb. THAT, as the late Stewart Udall wrote in “The Myths of August” and subsequent interviews, goes back to the atom bomb:
“ There is nothing comparable in our history to the deceit and lying that took place as a matter of official Government policy in order to protect this industry. Nothing was going to stop them annd they were willing to kill our own people. The atomic weapons race and the secrecy surrounding it crushed American democracy. It induced us to conduct government according to lies. It distorted justice. It undermined American morality.” – Stewart Udall, NYT, June 8, 1993.
Once it was learned how to implement a project of that scale, with minimal involvement of the public or elected leaders, the means for military control of the nation was learned. As Leslie Groves testified at the hearings to strip a Oppenheimer “there was never from about two weeks from the time I took charge of this Project any illusion on my part, but that Russia was our enemy, and the project was conducted on that basis.”
“The way of peace is the way of truth. Truthfulness is even more important than peacefulness. Indeed, lying is the mother of violence.” — Gandhi
This attitude re: atomic weaponry was a manifestation of the utterly INSANE notion of "American Exceptionalism" long before that phrase came into common usage. "In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, we must maintain the biggest and deadliest arsenal of nuclear weapons." Amen, brothers and sisters!
What did the American People learn? With this report in The Washington Post TODAY, they didn't learn very much. This plan will bring more chaos to American streets, the next American WAR ZONE!
'Trump budget would cut NONDEFENCE programs by 23 percent and increase defense spending by 13 percent next year'
The White House released a partial budget proposal Friday calling for $163 billion in cuts to federal spending in the next fiscal year, pushing reductions to health care, education and many other government programs while boosting spending on defense and homeland security by more than $1 trillion.
The White House’s 2026 fiscal budget plan would codify for next year many of the spending cuts already unilaterally implemented this year by President Donald Trump or billionaire Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service. The administration has struggled to convince Republicans in Congress to enshrine even a small portion of those cuts into law, and the courts have also ordered the White House to resume much of the spending, leaving the fate of the changes unclear for now.
Let's help the zionist jews kill a few more Palestinians today. Kill a few more tomorrow and the next day and the next...till they get those fu*king Arabs get the message message: For jews only. Long live Israeli apartheid zionism. Long live white supremacist Christian Nationalismin America.
One thing they didn't learn is how to have a cohesive evacuation, it's sad that 13 US servicemen and women needlessly perished because their leaders failed to learn the lessons of April 1975. The most important lesson from that experience is to keep the airport functional.
Excellent, disturbing, disheartening analysis! We have seen how the "lessons" have been acknowledged and incorporated into the endless war narrative in the 24/7/365 spewed by the MSM and government, we must now attempt to steel ourselves against. It's a daunting task for sure. I say we do an end-run and talk about how the hyper-militarization is compromising the quality of life for Americans and impoverishing the country as a whole ... https://warismakinguspoor.com
1.) The "fall of Sai Gon" is Establishment BS, Bill. Sai Gon was LIBERATED, after decades of terrible suffering forced upon the Viet people by 3 imperialist exploiters: France, then Japan, France again and finally dear old benevolent Uncle Sam. Will anyone here dispute this statement: Americans have NEVER been subjected to such sustained brutality and the resulting suffering, we could not bear it!! I view Viet Nam's ultimate victory as, to quote Woody Guthrie, "about the biggest thing that man has ever done"!! [from song "The Great Historical Bum"] An internet friend of mine, a 'copter pilot stationed in Thailand during the war, post-war spent decades searching the US National Archives (now under control of Marco Rubio, so we can expect a lot of stuff to get erased!) to uncover the real roots of US interest/involvement in the region. Turns out this activity dates back to 1865!! Viet Nam once exported so much rice to rest of the world that a famine at home developed. Brian Roesch is soon publishing his second book (an e-book initially) on his findings, demolishing the claim that the US only got involved after the French were defeated, in the name of a "noble" effort to roll back the alleged domino-toppling march of the International Communist Conspiracy. His website: briandroesch.com 2.) I remind any youngish readers here that conscription is merely in a state of suspended animation, it has not gone away. With the incumbent POTUS believing he can do anything he wishes to via Executive Order, like revoking Harvard's tax-exempt status, he could easily renew the draft with strokes of his pen, scrawling his absurdly large (as befits an egomaniac) name on it; 3.) the current mercenary US military has not exactly racked up a winning record in recent undeclared wars, has it? The Taliban may have been a rag-tag group of guerrilla fighters under extremist leadership, but they were fighting ON THEIR OWN TURF to repel foreign invaders. And they WON. They had the MOTIVATION to fight that US troops simply could not muster, regardless of how many chest-thumping macho exercises they were put through or how much Heavy Metal "music" they filled their little ears with. And that is the REALITY, folks. Like it or lump it!! [The author of these comments was court-martialed twice for refusing to be a part of the US attempt to hold the people of Viet Nam in bondage. Long live the spirit of Ho Chi Minh!!]
Yes, Karl. A big lie that provides solace, e.g. America really didn't lose in Vietnam, repeated over and over again, has remarkable persuasive power. The Rambo myth is especially compelling, i.e. the idea of betrayal, and that America fought with one hand tied behind its back.
As "Dr." Goebbels taught, the more a lie is repeated by authority figures the easier it is for the populace to absorb it. This 50th anniversary of the US defeat in Viet Nam, I am sure, has dredged up the old UTTER B.S. about the US military having had its hands tied by politicians back home. 26 MILLION BOMB CRATERS inflicted in the US failed effort to shut down the Ho Chi Minh Trail suggest the US was certainly "trying to win"!!
Bill, absolutely correct in each of your points - each echoes down through every conflict through today.
Could I add two things the elites didn't learn (or more likely had no interest in learning)?
The first was not understanding the culture and history of the people it sent young Americans to fight.
The second was not having a well defined objective for the war and the conditions of 'victory' or withdrawal.
Yes, Tom. First, I don't think U.S. leaders care about culture and history of other peoples. It's irrelevant to them. And the "objective" of war is often simply to have one (or more). How else to keep the MICC fully funded? How else to keep the "warriors" busy?
This is spot on, one of the things US failed to understand is how difficult it is to train people who don't know how to read or write they learned this the hard way in Afghanistan.
The US objective was certainly TOTAL MILITARY VICTORY. Does this come as a shock?? I have never bought the notion that JFK planned to wind down the war in a presumed second term. I think his brilliant advisers had led him to believe that with sufficient guidance and material support, the puppet regime in the south of Viet Nam could hold the line. Perhaps ultimately ceding the northern part of the country to Uncle Ho--the division of Korea model--but retaining the south as a US vassal state. To be perfectly clear: there was NEVER a legitimate entity called "South Vietnam"/"Republic of Vietnam." PURE U.S. FICTION!!! If folks on this thread cannot grasp this truth, what hope is there for Truth to ever emerge triumphant in the struggle with the Big Lie??
Bravo, Bill. I read your Substack daily, finding your voice among the clearest expression of the tole the military has, and continues to play, in the demise of the U.S.A.
I would just like to add two minor points to that analysis.
1. They learned that the “best” wars (and weapon systems) were not those that resulted in a Clausewitz type victory ( ie icompelling another to submit to one’s will). Rather than” best” is defined by how how much wealth can be transferred from the civilian to the military sector, as you described in your previous articles on “ war as a money laundering operation”.
2. The above point was learned in the false narrative that goes back to the decision surrounding the building , and use, of the atomic bomb. THAT, as the late Stewart Udall wrote in “The Myths of August” and subsequent interviews, goes back to the atom bomb:
“ There is nothing comparable in our history to the deceit and lying that took place as a matter of official Government policy in order to protect this industry. Nothing was going to stop them annd they were willing to kill our own people. The atomic weapons race and the secrecy surrounding it crushed American democracy. It induced us to conduct government according to lies. It distorted justice. It undermined American morality.” – Stewart Udall, NYT, June 8, 1993.
Once it was learned how to implement a project of that scale, with minimal involvement of the public or elected leaders, the means for military control of the nation was learned. As Leslie Groves testified at the hearings to strip a Oppenheimer “there was never from about two weeks from the time I took charge of this Project any illusion on my part, but that Russia was our enemy, and the project was conducted on that basis.”
“The way of peace is the way of truth. Truthfulness is even more important than peacefulness. Indeed, lying is the mother of violence.” — Gandhi
Thank you for your outstanding voice , Bill.
This attitude re: atomic weaponry was a manifestation of the utterly INSANE notion of "American Exceptionalism" long before that phrase came into common usage. "In the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, we must maintain the biggest and deadliest arsenal of nuclear weapons." Amen, brothers and sisters!
What did the American People learn? With this report in The Washington Post TODAY, they didn't learn very much. This plan will bring more chaos to American streets, the next American WAR ZONE!
'Trump budget would cut NONDEFENCE programs by 23 percent and increase defense spending by 13 percent next year'
The White House released a partial budget proposal Friday calling for $163 billion in cuts to federal spending in the next fiscal year, pushing reductions to health care, education and many other government programs while boosting spending on defense and homeland security by more than $1 trillion.
The White House’s 2026 fiscal budget plan would codify for next year many of the spending cuts already unilaterally implemented this year by President Donald Trump or billionaire Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service. The administration has struggled to convince Republicans in Congress to enshrine even a small portion of those cuts into law, and the courts have also ordered the White House to resume much of the spending, leaving the fate of the changes unclear for now.
This link enables you to read the article for free: https://wapo.st/4lXMzyP
Let's help the zionist jews kill a few more Palestinians today. Kill a few more tomorrow and the next day and the next...till they get those fu*king Arabs get the message message: For jews only. Long live Israeli apartheid zionism. Long live white supremacist Christian Nationalismin America.
To all readers: Jazzme is being sarcastic here. Just in case it's not obvious ...
One thing they didn't learn is how to have a cohesive evacuation, it's sad that 13 US servicemen and women needlessly perished because their leaders failed to learn the lessons of April 1975. The most important lesson from that experience is to keep the airport functional.
Excellent, disturbing, disheartening analysis! We have seen how the "lessons" have been acknowledged and incorporated into the endless war narrative in the 24/7/365 spewed by the MSM and government, we must now attempt to steel ourselves against. It's a daunting task for sure. I say we do an end-run and talk about how the hyper-militarization is compromising the quality of life for Americans and impoverishing the country as a whole ... https://warismakinguspoor.com
1.) The "fall of Sai Gon" is Establishment BS, Bill. Sai Gon was LIBERATED, after decades of terrible suffering forced upon the Viet people by 3 imperialist exploiters: France, then Japan, France again and finally dear old benevolent Uncle Sam. Will anyone here dispute this statement: Americans have NEVER been subjected to such sustained brutality and the resulting suffering, we could not bear it!! I view Viet Nam's ultimate victory as, to quote Woody Guthrie, "about the biggest thing that man has ever done"!! [from song "The Great Historical Bum"] An internet friend of mine, a 'copter pilot stationed in Thailand during the war, post-war spent decades searching the US National Archives (now under control of Marco Rubio, so we can expect a lot of stuff to get erased!) to uncover the real roots of US interest/involvement in the region. Turns out this activity dates back to 1865!! Viet Nam once exported so much rice to rest of the world that a famine at home developed. Brian Roesch is soon publishing his second book (an e-book initially) on his findings, demolishing the claim that the US only got involved after the French were defeated, in the name of a "noble" effort to roll back the alleged domino-toppling march of the International Communist Conspiracy. His website: briandroesch.com 2.) I remind any youngish readers here that conscription is merely in a state of suspended animation, it has not gone away. With the incumbent POTUS believing he can do anything he wishes to via Executive Order, like revoking Harvard's tax-exempt status, he could easily renew the draft with strokes of his pen, scrawling his absurdly large (as befits an egomaniac) name on it; 3.) the current mercenary US military has not exactly racked up a winning record in recent undeclared wars, has it? The Taliban may have been a rag-tag group of guerrilla fighters under extremist leadership, but they were fighting ON THEIR OWN TURF to repel foreign invaders. And they WON. They had the MOTIVATION to fight that US troops simply could not muster, regardless of how many chest-thumping macho exercises they were put through or how much Heavy Metal "music" they filled their little ears with. And that is the REALITY, folks. Like it or lump it!! [The author of these comments was court-martialed twice for refusing to be a part of the US attempt to hold the people of Viet Nam in bondage. Long live the spirit of Ho Chi Minh!!]
True, Greg. The "fall of Saigon" was something far different to NVA/VC forces and to North Vietnam. It was "victory."
Just as the "massacre" at Little Big Horn was "victory" for Native Americans.
The info below came out in the last months of Trump's 1st term.
The Leading Indicators tell those paying attention, it may become the rule soon in this 2nd Trump term
https://rayjc.com/2019/10/17/leaked-us-military-manual-for-policing-homeland-internment-camps-for-political-dissidents/
Yes, Karl. A big lie that provides solace, e.g. America really didn't lose in Vietnam, repeated over and over again, has remarkable persuasive power. The Rambo myth is especially compelling, i.e. the idea of betrayal, and that America fought with one hand tied behind its back.
As "Dr." Goebbels taught, the more a lie is repeated by authority figures the easier it is for the populace to absorb it. This 50th anniversary of the US defeat in Viet Nam, I am sure, has dredged up the old UTTER B.S. about the US military having had its hands tied by politicians back home. 26 MILLION BOMB CRATERS inflicted in the US failed effort to shut down the Ho Chi Minh Trail suggest the US was certainly "trying to win"!!
See my previous long comments referencing US's alleged "noble" reason for involvement in Viet Nam.