Ken Burns' "Vietnam"

Quote: Wizard

I've been to China five times so can understand why she was defensive. It is hard to explain but they are very defensive about outsiders criticizing the country, especially sensitive topics like human rights. That this student even had a comeback was a little surprising. Normally, in my experience, they will squak some of the socialist line and then put you on their persona non grata list.

I have to agree
I was talking to a person from China. I mentioned how proud I was that somebody from China won the Nobel Prize. Uh oh, I shouldnt have gone there. She shrugged and said a criminal.

Quote: Evenbob

I doubt if I'll see the whole thing. I was 16 in
1965 and from then on it was on the nightly
news till the early 70's.

I was born in 65. The only thing I remember is that it was on the news all the time but I had no clue where Vietnam was or why we were there. However, I clearly remember the fall of Saigon and watching us dump helicopters into the ocean. At the time I had no clue why we were wasting perfectly good helicopters.

In case anyone is wondering, the reason is there was only so much space on the aircraft carriers and we didn't have enough space to park all the helicopters. So we had to dump some to let new ones arrive with their passengers and crew.

Quote: Wizard

I was born in 65. The only thing I remember is that it was on the news all the time but I had no clue where Vietnam was or why we were there. .

Nobody did. It was never explained what
our objective was or what was going on.
They just reported on it. The vets I talked
to who were there were just as clueless.

I gotta say, I'm totally impressed with Peter
Coyote. He's not only narrated 5 previous
Burn's documentaries: The Dust Bowl, National
Parks, The Roosevelts, Prohibition, The
West. He's done over 170 documentaries
since the mid 80's. He's the most sought
after voice in the business.

He's also a zen priest, has been since the
70's. He's didn't even become an actor
till he was almost 40. He wrote a book
in 1998 on his experience as a hippie
for 15 years in the 60's and 70's in
San Francisco. I just ordered it. It's
funny how one thing leads to another.

Quote: Wizard

In case anyone is wondering, the reason is there was only so much space on the aircraft carriers and we didn't have enough space to park all the helicopters. So we had to dump some to let new ones arrive with their passengers and crew.

I always felt really bad for those last civilians in line when the last chopper left. You know they were sent to some kind of prison camp, probably died there. Everyone forgets how bad those Asian "re-education" centers were, as bad as anything the Germans ever had.

On tonight, in case anyone needs reminding.

So far, pretty good
Opens with Bob Dylan's A hard rains gonna fall. One of my all time faves
Unfortunately narration over the wonderful lyrics
Does a good job of the history of Ho Chi Minh.
I like how it shows what France went through just repeated with the US
Closes with another Dylan classic

So far liking it

What France went thru was funded by the USA.

The French Foreign Legion never imagined artillery could be brought to bear on them due to the steep terrain and jungle. The first incoming rounds hit the Legion's artillery and ammunition dump. The officer walked into his tent and pulled the pin on a grenade.

Modern warfare of the Legion defeated by jungle vines twisted into ropes pulling an artillery piece up a steep slope by hundreds of peasants and a teenage boy at the back of the weapon putting a rock behind it at each step.

Pretty much the same thing happened to the US troops.

Quote: Fleastiff

What France went thru was funded by the USA.

The French Foreign Legion never imagined artillery could be brought to bear on them due to the steep terrain and jungle. The first incoming rounds hit the Legion's artillery and ammunition dump. The officer walked into his tent and pulled the pin on a grenade.

Modern warfare of the Legion defeated by jungle vines twisted into ropes pulling an artillery piece up a steep slope by hundreds of peasants and a teenage boy at the back of the weapon putting a rock behind it at each step.

Pretty much the same thing happened to the US troops.

I knew about the history of France and Viet Nam
What i did not know and learned
Was how much we supported the French with our money.

Quote: terapined

Was how much we supported the French with our money.

The French had just come out of five years under Nazi domination, and several years of warfare in their territory. They had no money.

They had the means to play the US like a sucker.