The Past Has Effect on Present

In response to: “From Saigon to Baghdad: The Vietnam Syndrome, the Iraq War and American Foreign Policy”

Jason Luong

Section A01

Knowing enough about history does not necessarily bring comfort. That statement could be said for many living in early post-Vietnam War days.  In Andrew Priest’s article, “From Saigon to Baghdad: The Vietnam Syndrome, the Iraq War and American Foreign Policy”, he spoke of the historical, economical, and social “quagmire” left behind after the U.S. retreat from the war. In the wake of the U.S. involvement in the Middle East, many critics and ordinary citizens alike are very well reminded of the affects the past created. During the Vietnam War era, the near-end of the war, and later the loss, created riots, protests, and a sense of insecurity among many American citizens. On one end, many were devastated by the thought of their country losing a war. Others severely remarked on the US involvement causing more deaths in another country and later the withdrawal when the self-losses felt too great. Priest spoke of how, “in the wake of the US defeat, American public discourse focused upon learning lessons so as not to repeat the supposed mistakes of the Vietnam era”. The U.S. involvement in the Middle East began decades before people of my age were even born, but the “War on terror“, as a result of the 9/11 attack, even sparked similar sentiments to my generation that could have only been given words identical to the reviews and texts that portray similar occurrences during the post-Vietnam era.

 

What exactly are the necessary measures currently in place, or must be created, in order to avoid the same atrocities and “national malaise”? Also, what are the reasons, as of recent years, for the US to be involved in other countries’ affairs within the ideas of conflict and intervention?