Question for Vietnam Vets ~ Do you feel betrayed by America for

[Bandit]

cutting and running from Vietnam after we gave our word to protect them? I realize that the end result was not severe. The people are not terribly worse off today than they were in the fifties, but we gave our word we would stand by them and then abandoned them to the wolves. Could this be a reason that Senator Kerry is so reluctant to withdraw our troops immediately. I know Iraq didn't ask us to be there like Vietnam did but we are there and we need to protect the people we made so vulnerable. I personally feel betrayed. I feel all the things I did there good and bad were for naught.

[mulethree]

1. go back

To Vietnam. Look around and talk to people.

I got the impression that if their present life is what we were there to save them from, that if we won they would be more like Japan, Korea or Taiwan, then we shouldn't have been there.

Of course it's not the same as it would have been without the war. The war certainly relieved some population pressures. It presumably removed more of the warlike people and left the more peaceful.

They have a lower standard of living in terms of health care, education and some social services, but their "family values" are very strong, and their government is not too different from their ancient family/town structure.

I would describe it as "not overdeveloped" in mostly a good way.



Edit - sorry should mention I'm not a vet, a son of a KIA who visits Vietnam with vets and my wife's vietnamese family many of whom are vets of both US and south vietnamese armies.