Effects on Society
The Vietnam war had a huge effect on the people living in Vietnam. North Vietnam forced South Vietnam into their communist rule. After the war the country of Vietnam was very poor and had lots most of their agriculture. During the time of the war South Vietnam sprayed "Agent Blue" on the Northern crops to deprive them of their everyday food. Also another Agent used in the War was "Agent Orange" which was a herbicide gas that would kill plants, clear land and would take the leaves off the trees. In the years of 1967- 1969 there was the most amount of "Agent Orange" sprayed in Vietnam. The exposure to these Dioxins created lots of health issues to Vietnam Veterans.
Unfortunately not everyone can survive in a war. The United States lost over 58,000 brave soldiers. South Vietnam lost over 200,000 troops and North Vietnam lost about 1.1 million servicemen. There was also about 2 million Vietnamese civilians killed during the war. The Vietnam war was a big loss for the United States. From this loss they decided to be less involved in foregin policies. The war cost America about $111 billion dollars, American decided to no longer be part of wars that were not derectly related to them and instead the fighting countries should determine their own destinies.
Unfortunately not everyone can survive in a war. The United States lost over 58,000 brave soldiers. South Vietnam lost over 200,000 troops and North Vietnam lost about 1.1 million servicemen. There was also about 2 million Vietnamese civilians killed during the war. The Vietnam war was a big loss for the United States. From this loss they decided to be less involved in foregin policies. The war cost America about $111 billion dollars, American decided to no longer be part of wars that were not derectly related to them and instead the fighting countries should determine their own destinies.
Effects on Individuals
There were a lot of Veterans that came home and didn't live a normal life anymore. Some of these Veterans were diagnosed with PTSD which is short for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. Veterns diagnosed with PTSD were often different people than they were before they went to the war. They often had changes in personality and were very alert and hostile when not needed. Also the people exposed to "Agent Orange" lived in fear of having health problems. Some developed cancer throughout the years because of "Agent Orange". They also got skin rashes, psychological symptoms also their families also had an effect from this chemical. These effects included birth deffects in their children or premature births.
Casualty Notification
By the time of the Vietnam War, the U.S. Army didn't have a set up process to let people know that their loved ones had been killed in action. The military would hand a letter to a taxi cab driver to deliver to the next of kin of the deceased soldier. Julia Compton Moore, wife of Hal Moore, would follow the letters in order to help the families mourn the loss of their loved ones. Moore attended every funeral of the soldiers buried at Fort Bennings under her husband's command while at the battle of la Drang. Frequent complaints from Julia resulted in the U.S. Army developing a system to let the families know of their loved ones passing.
Vietnam Government Today
Vietnam nowadays has a communist government thatbelieves in equality and equal reward. Vietnam's official of name is the Socialist Republic Vietnam, meaning that everything is owned together as a country instead of individual power.
The Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was a policty set by Harry Truman stated that the U.S. would aid Turkey and Greece with military and economic help to prevent their fall to Soviet Russia. The Truman Doctrine become the voice for preventing the spread of a communist environment. With keeping the Truman Doctrine in mind, America surged forward into combar during the Vietnam war, aiding South Vietnam against North Vietnam.