Walter Cronkite's Ridiculous Spin on the 1968 Tet Offensive in South Vietnam

[Deadstick]

Wrong.
What the Tet Offensive showed everyone is that the vast majority of the people in South Vietnam were Vietcong or their sympathizers.
The Tet Offensive was not an invasion by the north.
It was a local uprising by the south.
The vast majority of the south did NOT "remain loyal" to the hated South Vietnam government.
The government won the Tet Offensive, but that is only because of all the US weapons they had.
The Tet offensive showed that the South Vietnam government had NO local support at all.
Everyone hated Diem, Thieu, and Ky.
We forced the worst and most unpopular governments in world history on them, and no one liked it.

The so called Vietcong real name NLF WERE South Vietnamese, the NVA were from the North.

 

[Rigby5]

Really? That's why every account of that evacuation describes terrified south Vietnamese trying to claw their way onto American helicopters. The South Vietnamese military and other organized allies of the U.S., if not executed, were too often consigned to 're-education camps' indefinitely where they endured torture, mistreatment, starvation.

Those trying to escape in US helicopters were the wealthy elite who knew they had committed crimes.
No one was "tortured, mistreated, or starved".
But do you think those who collaborated with the French, Japanese, or US should not be punished?

 

[Rigby5]

The so called Vietcong real name NLF WERE South Vietnamese, the NVA were from the North.

Thanks.
Its been about 50 years so I hardly even remember any more.

 

[Deadstick]

The Sage of Main Street is a raving lunatic who makes no sense at all, repeats all the old rightwing lunacy about how the Tet Offensive indicated the Vietnamese were losing the war, and that the U.S. then was “winning.” He also seems to believe that the war was part of a deliberate conspiracy to destroy “the [U.S.] white working class.”

But the U.S. and its working class especially — now as during Vietnam War period — was and remains multiracial. The drafted U.S. soldiers sent to Vietnam, especially the “grunts” doing the fighting in the most dangerous areas, tended disproportionally to be black and minority.

Many officers in the war were actually U.S. middle-class and upper-class “patriots” (most as brainwashed as all Americans were at its beginning). Think flight officer pilot John McCain.

It is also untrue that the deferments of college students remained in force … they were ended in 1968 (iirc), and that was one of the reasons the anti-war movement grew on campuses … just as the later ending of the draft took the wind out of the sails of the student anti-war movement.

The genuine “left” did not call drafted GIs “baby killers” but helped launch Vietnam Veterans Against the War and organized anti-war “coffeehouse” centers outside of military bases across the country. The media, especially the rightwing and pro-war media, exaggerated individual cases where nutty yippies or hippies acted stupidly to create that particular myth.

Finally, both Ho Chi Minh and General Vo Nguyen Gap did not plan and strongly opposed the Tet Offensive. They were at that time sidelined by the impatient Le Duan and Le Duc Tho in nearly all key decision-making positions.

The Tet Offensive was both a successful psychological blow that burst all the lies told by the U.S. media and generals, and also an adventurous move that cost the Vietnamese Liberation Movement dearly. The struggle went on afterwards much as before, however, with the American soldiers based in cities then more fearful and paranoid than ever.

I am sure at the time of Tet it made the people in the US look at their TV and think WTF, so in that respect it was successful.

 

[Rigby5]

You should read up on the history of those two countries. They are not “one country” anymore than North America and south America are one continent.

The leadership that took over the south, like Diem, Thieu, and Ky, were FROM the north.

 

[Deadstick]

Thanks.
Its been about 50 years so I hardly even remember any more.

Yes it's been a long time memories fade although i think anyone who was involved would never forget.

 

[John Edgar Slow Horses]

Really? That's why every account of that evacuation describes terrified south Vietnamese trying to claw their way onto American helicopters. The South Vietnamese military and other organized allies of the U.S., if not executed, were too often consigned to 're-education camps' indefinitely where they endured torture, mistreatment, starvation.

Sources, please.

You are being sway by some very unusual performance art by the losers.

No, it is not a workers' paradise, but neither was it a hell hole.

 

[Rigby5]

Anyone Who Says, "At Least Bush Served" Deserves to Have a Son Die Taking a Richkid's Place

As Deserter Dubya said before 9/11, "Terrorism is just a Jew problem." That's why he canceled all operations Clinton had carried out to attack terrorist bases. WASPs never want to do anything to help Jews, even if not just the Jews are being threatened, whether against Nazis before Pearl Harbor or Muzzies before 9/11.

Real Jews believe in the Diaspora Decree, so are in atonement for the sins of arrogance and pride, and never go to the Mideast until the coming of the Messiah.
You will notice Netanyahu is has no Mideast ancestry, and is an atheist.
There is nothing Jewish about him.

Clinton was not attacking "terrorist bases" but was the terrorist, attacking natives.

The 9/11 was deserved retaliation for the horrendous "Highway of Death" in the illegal Desert Storm.
Kuwait was a fake country created by the British in the 1890, by stealing it from Iraq.
The emir of Kuwait was a Bedouin who was not native.
They were stealing Iraqi oil.
The US, ambassador Glaspie, gave Saddam permission to invade.

 

[Rigby5]

Yes it's been a long time memories fade although i think anyone who was involved would never forget.

My involvement was limited to being clubbed and teargassed in DC.

 

[Deadstick]

My involvement was limited to being clubbed and teargassed in DC.

Well i can say i would have been side by side with you, may have mentiioned it Cousin of mine American my mums sisters youngest was drafted into the Marines and served twice in Vietnam, but to me the real heroes were the guys who told the Governnment where to stick their war which i am sure was not an easy thing to do.

 

[Foxfyre]

They were not slaughtered and they did need re-educating, to take pride in their own Country and not collaborate with foreign Colonialists and occupiers, after WW2 collaborators in Vichy France and other Nazi collaborators were dealt with the same way, although some of them were lined up and shot.

Well you have your 'woke' version of the facts. I'll go with the history. Do have a wonderful afternoon though.

 

[Foxfyre]

Those trying to escape in US helicopters were the wealthy elite who knew they had committed crimes.
No one was "tortured, mistreated, or starved".
But do you think those who collaborated with the French, Japanese, or US should not be punished?

Like Deadstick, you're going with your 'woke' version of the facts. I'll stay with the actual history. But the two of you have a wonderful afternoon.

 

[Foxfyre]

Sources, please.

You are being sway by some very unusual performance art by the losers.

No, it is not a workers' paradise, but neither was it a hell hole.

Were you there? Do you know anyone who was there? I do.

Escape from Saigon: Find out how these refugees fled as their homeland fell 40 years ago today

Twenty minutes. That’s how long Nho Trong Nguyen had to save his wife and son.The day was April 26, 1975 – four days before the fall of Saigon – and the South Vietnamese congressm…

www.ocregister.com

 

[AZrailwhale]

Wrong.
What the Tet Offensive showed everyone is that the vast majority of the people in South Vietnam were Vietcong or their sympathizers.
The Tet Offensive was not an invasion by the north.
It was a local uprising by the south.
The vast majority of the south did NOT "remain loyal" to the hated South Vietnam government.
The government won the Tet Offensive, but that is only because of all the US weapons they had.
The Tet offensive showed that the South Vietnam government had NO local support at all.
Everyone hated Diem, Thieu, and Ky.
We forced the worst and most unpopular governments in world history on them, and no one liked it.

If that was the case, the NVA and VC would have won. That was their mistaken belief. They thought the average South Vietnamese would rise up and support them in their battle with the "class enemies" and their American lackies. The average South Vietnamese citizen stayed home and said essentially "a pox on both their houses". Just like in the American Revolution, at least a third of the people didn't care about the war, they just wanted to be left alone.

Show me even one revolution where the masses rose up in support of a communist force other than Russia and China and even China forced communism on most of the population at the point of a bayonet.

 

[AZrailwhale]

My involvement was limited to being clubbed and teargassed in DC.

Figures that you were one of the cowards protesting the war instead of serving. I had people like you spit on me when I was in uniform.

 

[sparky]

If that was the case, the NVA and VC would have won. That was their mistaken belief. They thought the average South Vietnamese would rise up and support them in their battle with the "class enemies" and their American lackies. The average South Vietnamese citizen stayed home and said essentially "a pox on both their houses". Just like in the American Revolution, at least a third of the people didn't care about the war, they just wanted to be left alone.

Show me even one revolution where the masses rose up in support of a communist force other than Russia and China and even China forced communism on most of the population at the point of a bayonet.

Correct me if i'm off AZ, but i believe the term applicable at the time was vietnamization.....~S~

 

[mikegriffith1]

This one-hour 1985 documentary, narrated by Charlton Heston, gives an excellent overview of how the news media grossly misreported the Tet Offensive, as well as the Battle of Khe Sanh and other events during the war.



And here's an excellent 25-minute documentary on the Tet Offensive and the Easter/Spring Offensive produced by a group of former South Vietnamese:

 

[John Edgar Slow Horses]

Were you there? Do you know anyone who was there? I do.

Escape from Saigon: Find out how these refugees fled as their homeland fell 40 years ago today

Twenty minutes. That’s how long Nho Trong Nguyen had to save his wife and son.The day was April 26, 1975 – four days before the fall of Saigon – and the South Vietnamese congressm…

www.ocregister.com

Of course. Far better than you ever could. Go away.

It was no paradise at all. But I remember when a forward unit called for arty and found out the SV province governor had sold it to the NVA.

We had there a good part of ten divisions, the Airforce, the marines, and the navy, and as long as the flips had three sanctuary countries and Red China and Russia supplying them, we could only win if they gave up. And they never had any intention of doing so.

We could have invaded NV, but we did not know what Red China would do. Turns out, probably nothing, because it was going through the great Cultural Revolution. But... we did not do that.

I get tired of all the crap about this and about that.

It's over. It's done.

 

[John Edgar Slow Horses]

Figures that you were one of the cowards protesting the war instead of serving. I had people like you spit on me when I was in uniform.

Do you know that there is a mini-revising industry of "oh, no, no one ever spit on the troops, it was all a lie" when in fact I saw it at O'Hare airport. I was called a liar.

 

[Foxfyre]

Of course. Far better than you ever could. Go away.

It was no paradise at all. But I remember when a forward unit called for arty and found out the SV province governor had sold it to the NVA.

We had there a good part of ten divisions, the Airforce, the marines, and the navy, and as long as the flips had three sanctuary countries and Red China and Russia supplying them, we could only win if they gave up. And they never had any intention of doing so.

We could have invaded NV, but we did not know what Red China would do. Turns out, probably nothing, because it was going through the great Cultural Revolution. But... we did not do that.

I get tired of all the crap about this and about that.

It's over. It's done.

Thank you for your service. But I mean were you at the Embassy as it was being evacuated? Do you know what transpired their that day first hand? A good friend of mine was there and was among the almost last to leave. His good friend was on the last chopper to leave that day very shortly after dawn. And what he related is heart breaking.