Previous blogs discussed LBJ’s failed efforts to get the North Vietnamese to capitulate following Operation Rolling Thunder’s graduated bombing of targets in North Vietnam. Why did they fail? Our 7th Air Force pilots flying Wild Weasel missions quickly noted many vital targets were off-limits. They complained to command they were bombing the wrong targets, nonessential […]
More Vietnam Myths – Fate of the Draftees
Like many issues regarding the Vietnam Era (1964-1975) misconceptions persist. Some are actually perpetuated to promote an antiwar agenda or ideology. Others represent just plain myths – Hyperbole to support a viewpoint. A case in point, the draftee issue became a major factor in LBJ’s failure to run for reelection in 1968 and contributed to […]
50th Anniversary of the Tet Offensive – Part 2
50th Anniversary of the Tet Offensive – Turbulent Times The North Vietnam invasion of South Vietnam on the Chinese New Year in 1968 went on for a year and was marked by the most intense and sustained fighting of the war. (I detailed more about this in my first post, 50th Anniversary of the Tet […]
11 Common Myths About the Vietnam War
– 11 Myths About the Vietnam War – 1.) Most who served were drafted. Actually, most were volunteers – 75% volunteer rate is the generally accepted number. The selective service lottery draft was not instituted until December 1, 1969, for men born between 1944 and 1950. This service represented 9.7% of that generation compared to […]
