Vietnam in Iraq: Lessons, Legacies and Ghosts (Contemporary Security Studies)
by David Ryan
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Book Summary Information
Author: David RyanEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2006-12-06
ISBN: 0415405637
Number of pages: 240
Publisher: Routledge
Book Reviews of Vietnam in Iraq: Lessons, Legacies and Ghosts (Contemporary Security Studies)
Book Review: Illuminating series of essays
Summary: 5 Stars
John Dumbrell, Professor of Politics at Leicester University, and David Ryan, of the History Department at University College, Cork, have edited a collection of essays on the similarities and differences between the Vietnam and Iraq wars. They describe the lessons learned, and not learned, and show the Vietnam War's continuing legacy in US politics, culture and diplomacy. In particular, the essays show how the Vietnam War induced a populist challenge to ?lite control of strategy.
The essays show major similarities between the Vietnam and Iraq wars. As in Vietnam, the occupying force's position is desperate. The war is unjust and unwinnable. The Bush government lacks international support. The USAF conducts ever more air strikes, unmentioned in the major newspapers, unshown on TV. The insurgency continues, fuelled by US abuses. The US state sets conditions of peace and security for exit, in order to block an exit. The American dead die in vain.
Just as Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon did, Bush talks of unwavering resolve and commitment, and lies with unswerving conviction that the war is in the USA's interest, that it is just and that the public supports it. Yet increasingly the American people oppose the war.
In Britain, the government is panicking because it is losing public support for its war. Recruitment to the armed forces is down, morale is low, suicides are up, and equipment is inadequate. Hence the current calls for respect for the armed forces, the promotion of uniform wearing, the proposed oath of allegiance to the Queen, and the proposal for an Armed Forces Day.
We can all see that the war in Iraq is boosting terrorism, not defeating it. The root causes of terrorism are social, political and economic, and the Brown government's support for the Israeli-US military suppression of the Palestinian people only fuels terrorism. As with Vietnam, some elements in the US and British states want to solve the problem by enlarging it - attack Iran now, attack Cambodia then.
The Vietnam and Iraq wars were both wars of choice not necessity - and bad choices at that, wars of aggression, unwise and reckless.
Summary of Vietnam in Iraq: Lessons, Legacies and Ghosts (Contemporary Security Studies)
The Vietnam War has exerted a considerable influence over US foreign policy, its method of engagement, and its sense of credibility, military tactics and overall strategic initiatives since 1969. The Bush administration's intervention in Iraq 2003 departed significantly from the accumulated lessons acquired since the 1970's. Though Vietnam has been a frequent point of reference in regional conflict, various facets of that war have returned with even more frequency and persistence both within the United States, Iraq and elsewhere. This book aims:-To examine the impact of the Vietnam analogy on the war in Iraq
-To assess the military tactical lessons that were learned from the Vietnam War
-To examine the broader strategic lessons and the US concern with their credibility in fighting 'ground wars'.
-To examine the influence and persistence of Vietnam's legacy in US politics, culture and diplomacy and its ability to continue to exert influence on Washington's tactics.
-To examine the impact of US foreign policy on both Vietnam and Iraq.
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