The Vietnam War leaves many dark legacies described in the superlatives: the most unpopular war, the most bombs dropped compared to all prior wars combined, the worst loss in U.S. military operation, and the list goes on. However, a legacy that is acutely palpable today as many Americans protest against the war in Iraq is the phobia about sending American troops abroad - otherwise known as the Vietnam syndrome.
The Vietnam War is a black hole in U.S history that Americans do not want to revisit. This is evident through the U.S.’s concentrated and decisive attacks during the Persian Gulf War in 1991 (perhaps soon to be Persian Gulf War I) that never eradicated the Saddam regime and its brief involvement in the Yugoslavia ethnic cleansing crises. Now, the possibility of war is near. The fear still resonating from Vietnam and the hope for peace prompt Americans to take a place in demonstrations. However, we must ask ourselves, how effective are protests and demonstrations in changing the minds, the policy of the people who ultimately decide the course of events and are resolute to do so by force? This is not to discredit the necessity of protests and demonstrations, but to question as to how one gauges the effectiveness of su
. . .
Demonstration refers to a passive manifestation while protest refers to a more forceful one. However, new technology allows the fighting to go on around the clock. They are an important part of the democratic process in which citizens can publicly voice their opinions and demand changes in other issues. In the United States especially, protests are big political statements that can influence local politics and policy making. In the 1960’s Martin Luther King’s pacifistic demonstrations contributed significantly to the achievements of the Civil Rights movement. It was the first time American fought in a guerilla war in which the enemy seemed invisible and most persistent. People around the world are protesting, but we all know that if Bush wants war, he will get it, perhaps not only to get rid of the threat of Saddam, but to finish what Bush Sr. However, it takes a long time for the change to reach the top and given the nature of war, by the time it gets there, the war is already fought and the effort seems futile.
Various protests and demonstrations in history yielded different results. Fast-forwarding to the present where the Bush administration seems to have already made up its mind to attack Iraq, war seems inevitable.
Today, as the world demonstrates against Bush's policy on Saddam, one has to ponder on the effectiveness of such movement in the year 2003 as compared to the 1970's; they are not the same. The change of policy has to come from the bottom up. Perhaps one can argue that the success of the Vietnam anti-war movement was that it brought an earlier end to the war, but it is still disputable.
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