Recent American History FINAL Epic Study Guide

7/31/2019 Recent American History FINAL Epic Study Guide

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Epic Study GuideRAH Semester 2 Final Exam

[Test Description: Short Answer, Fill-Ins, Quotes In Your Notes (Vietnam Unit ONLY), Short Essay,Chronology Topics (Events from Americas Involvement In Vietnam or General Events covered

during the course of the semester.)]

Vietnam: Beginning History Through 1963

Vietnam Has Been Occupied For Centuries:

1. The Chinese (1000 years)2. The French (1885-1954) in an attempt to convert to Catholicism, they turned it

into a colony (called Indochina).

During The French Rule:

The French were oppressive, and the Vietnamese were poorly treated.The literacy rate was lowbecause if you didnt know French, you didnt go to school. 70% of the Vietnamese had no landbecause those bastards took it, along with their rice,coal, etc. for France. There were foodshortages, mainly rice shortages (Sent to France to be made into rice wine)

It was like Jim Crow laws! Mr. D

The Vietnamese Nationalist Group:

Their goals were to resist the French and to kick them out of Vietnam!

Ho Chi Minh:

Gets kicked out of school cause hes troublemaker.At age 16/17, he witnesses drunk Frenchsoldiers raping women and other horrors. He is faced with a decision in 1911: either go jail orleave the country.He leaves Vietnam, getting a job on a freighter as a pastry chef.He comesback after 30 years, after making 3 stops.

What Is The Driving Force of Ho Chi Minhs Life?

Vietnam is for the Vietnamese, and NO ONE ELSE.

Ho Chi Minhs 3 Stops:

1. New York City, USA: Hangs out in Chinatown, and sees Asians like himself free and equal to others. He

is mesmerized by this.

Reads American history, and admires us because we beat our oppressors, theBritish. Hes practically on his knees for Thomas Jefferson.


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2. Paris, France: There are 100,000 Vietnamese in France (helping in WW2 war as lackeys) Ho tries to meet the President at Versailles and give him a note. He was ignored. He reads a document by Lenin (1920) on Marxism and Communism. He loves the distribution of land and anti-colonial, anti-imperialism. This is what we need. This is the path to our liberation Ho Chi Minh, afterreading Lenin (Marxism) in 1920.

3. Moscow, USSR: Studies Marxism, etc. Quite impressed. The US remembers this visit and paints Ho as a communist, so therefore he is

now an enemy of the US.

After 30 Years of Travel:

In 1941, Pearl Harbor just happened, and the Japanese are hopping all over Asia, taking overVietnam, China, etc.Because the Japanese are taking over Vietnam, who does Ho ask for help

from? The USA, who will work with him for 4 years.In 1945, the Japanese surrender, and Hoannounces a free and independent Vietnam.Everyones happy! We, Vietnam, are free, the USAis our friend! Celebrations happen in Hanoi.

But Appearances Can Be Misleading >:D

In 1946, the French (those bastards), decide to take over Vietnam again.What will the USA do?

USAs Decision To Help The French:Why?1. Theyre white and European.2. Weve been bros way longer.3. They arent communists.

Where Will Ho Go For Help To Defeat The French? (1950)

He turns to China. To aid the French, Truman sends military aid, money, and advisors. We fund80% of the war for France. This is where our involvement begins.

When Did American Involvement in Vietnam Officially End?

January 27th, 1973.

Progression of American Involvement In Vietnam (The 4 Steps Outlined In Class)

1. Money2. Advisors3. Bombing4. Troops

The Presidents During the Vietnam War:

1. EisenhowerPaid expenses for the French when they were battling the Vietnamese.2. John F. KennedySent money and advisors to aid the French.3. Lyndon B. JohnsonSends ground troops and bombs.4. Richard NixonBeings reducing troops, but still bombs NV with B-52s.


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5. Gerald FordWithdrew US from the war.

The Domino Theory:

If you lose one country to Communism, youll lose them all.And we cant have that.Because of

this theory, we decided not to pull out, and even after we knew there was a problem, we didntabort it, causing problems for us for many years to come. Hintedy hint hint.

Dienbienphu a.k.a. (Dien Bien Phu):

1. Where is it?a. Located in the upper North Vietnam, west of Hanoi.

2. When was it?a. March 13th, 1954May 7th, 1954

3.

What was it?a. The last stand for the French! Basically, the French garrison were digging themselves alittle hole, and were being surrounded for months by the Vietminh.

4. Results?a. The French surrendered, because they were outnumbered 13,000 to 50,000.

The Tiger vs. The Elephant:The strategy of the Vietminh:

Tiger (Vietminh): Quick, fast, and speedy. Dont attack unless you have certain successand dont attack if outnumbered. Jump out, take a bite, and run.

Elephant (French): Though big and strong enough to defeat a tiger, it isnt fast enough towin when outnumbered.

French Assumptions at Dien Bien Phu:

1. The Vietminh were poorly trained.a. Falsethey were very skilled with shovels and tunnels

2. The Vietminh could not match the firepower of the French.a.

Falsethey were supplied by the Chinese/USSR

3. The Vietminh had no long-range artillery guns.a. Falsesee above

4. The Vietminh had no way to transport supplies through the mountains.a. Falseagain, the USSR and Chinese


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If the Vietminh come down, weve got him! We have a target that we can smash! FrenchGeneral at Dien Bien Phu.

The Geneva Conference (1954):

1.

Establishes a ceasefire between the French and Vietminh.

2. Divides Vietnam at the 17th parallel; North (Vietminh led by Ho Chi Minh) and South(Anti-Communists and Catholics led by Ngo Vinh Diem)

3. Election to be held in 1956 between Ho and Diem. (The US sends $ and military advisorsto Diem, so hell win the election).

President Diem:

Hes a suckish leader. The US supported him because hes Anti-Communist. Sure, hes Anti-

Communist, but he also: Is a Dictator. Arrests anyone who opposes him. Cracks down on the Buddhists. Is an embarrassment to the US.

Americas Commitment in Vietnam by the end of1963: (at the time of JFKs death)

16,000 advisors in Vietnam teaching ARVN forces. 108 Americans killed so far.Peter DeweyFirst to die in 1946. Hes from the OSS and going home, drives to the airport

in an unmarked Jeep. He needs directions and speaks to the Vietnamese. He knows theywont know English, so he tries French. Thinking hes a French soldier, the Vietnamese killhim.

Also:

Buddhists set themselves on fire in opposition to Diem. Diem is killed by army generals in November of 1963. Three weeks later, JFK is assassinated in Dallas, TX. LBJ becomes president.

Vietnam from 1964

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident / Resolution:

1. When?a. The incident occurred on August 2nd, 1964 (attack on USS Maddox) and on August

4th, 1964 (mistaken radar information on the Turner Joy).


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2. What?a. On August 2nd, three NV torpedo boats attacked the Maddox, which quickly sank two

of them. On the 4th, the two ships reported (from radar readings) that they were beingattacked again, and returned fire.

3.

How did LBJ Respond?a. LBJ responded harsly to the second attack. Stung by criticism that he should havereacted more strongly to the first attack, he took advantage of the second attack toorder an aerial assault on the NV coastline, as well as an oil storage facility. He alsoused them to get the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution going.

4. What does the Gulf of Tokin Resolution State?a. The Resolution states that Johnson has the power to take all necessary measures to

repel and armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent furtheraggression.

5. Why was it controversial?a. This resolution was controversial because it gave Johnson the power to do basically

anything he wanted to. Drop napalm, launch attacks, etc. without having to consultCongress or whatever first. It was like a blank check for LBJ.

Its like grandmas nightshirt it covers everything! LBJ on the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

President Johnson (LBJ)s Three Options:

1. Americanize The War, and Fight To Win! (Robert McNamara/Dean Rusk) Blow them to smithereens!

We have to stop the communists! We made a promise to the South Vietnamese! Remember what happened when we didnt blow up Hitler? The Domino Effect!

2. Limit Our Involvement and Negotiate A Withdrawal: (George Ball) We should definitely leave slowly, because we dont want to look weak on

communism.

However, this is a war we cannot fightwe should pull out our troops within thenext few years.

If they want freedom, they should get it themselves. Theres no proof we can win a guerilla war.

3. Unilateral WithdrawalPull Out Now! (Wayne Morse/Ernest Gruening) Why are we even here? Halt any further deployment of forces to Vietnam. Withdraw forces immediately! Theres no way to win we will lose.


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LBJ picked Option One!

LBJs Speech To The Nation: (July 28th

, 1965)

Read it, skim it, do whatever. It was on the guide.

Why must young Americans, born into a land exultant with hope and with golden promise, toil and sufferand sometimes die in such a remote and distant place? The answer, like the war itself, is not an easy one,but it echoes clearly from the painful lessons of half a century. Three times in my lifetime, in two WorldWars and in Korea, Americans have gone to far lands to fight for freedom. We have learned at a terribleand a brutal cost that retreat does not bring safety and weakness does not bring peace. It is this lesson thathas brought us to Viet-Nam. This is a different kind of war. There are no marching armies or solemndeclarations. Some citizens of South Viet-Nam at times, with understandable grievances, have joined inthe attack on their own government. But we must not let this mask the central fact that this is really war. Itis guided by North Viet-Nam and it is spurred by Communist China. Its goal is to conquer the South, todefeat American power, and to extend the Asiatic dominion of communism. There are great stakes in the

balance. Most of the Non-Communist nations of Asia cannot, by themselves and alone, resist the growingmight and grasping ambition of Asian communism. Our power, therefore, is a very vital shield. If we aredriven from the field in Viet-Nam, then no nation can ever again have the same confidence in Americanpromise, or in American protection. In each land the forces of independence would be considerablyweakened, and an Asia so threatened by Communist domination would certainly imperil the security ofthe United States itself. We did not choose to be the guardians at the gate, but there is no one else. Norwould surrender in Viet-Nam bring peace, because we learned from Hitler at Munich that success onlyfeeds the appetite of aggression. This, then, my fellow Americans, is why we are in Viet-Nam.


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1968: A Year Things Fell Apart:

Four-Star General William Westmorland was the Commander of Vietnam. He has 538,000 menand says we need 250,000 more.

January 1968 - The Tet Offensive beginsthe VC/NVA attack over 100 cities in South Vietnam. The

toll; 5,000 VC, 200 Americans, and 300 ARVNs. Some manage to get into our embassy.

Ho Chi Minh coordinated the attacks simultaneously for the night of Tet, a day whichwas supposed to be peaceful.

The Anti-War movement growsLBJs popularity sinks to 26% approval rating, thelowest approval rating for any president ever.

Febuary 1968 -

A VC (Bay Lop) is executed and TV brings it into living rooms across America. Walter Cronkite (the man America trusts on everything), speaks out against Vietnam.

Johnson is now screwed.

March 1968 -

Eugene Mccarthy (Anti-War dove) candidate vs. LBJ in the New Hampshire primary. Robert Kennedy enters the race (Anti-War dove) LBJ decides not to run again for Presidenthe is defeated by Vietnam. I shall not seek and I will not accept the nomination of my party... LBJ, March 31st

1968

Hubert Humphrey(LBJs VP) enters the race. Unfortunately, hes so loyal to LBJ hegoes against his belief against the war, and decides to go pro-war.

In Vietnam, (My Lai) A massacre of 504 SV civilians takes place by American soldiersunder the command of Lt. Calley.

April 4th

1968 -

MLK is assassinated.June 5

th1968 -

Robert Kennedy is assassinated after winning California primary.August 1968 -

Democratic Convention in Chicago, Hubert Humphrey nominated. Republican Convention in Miami, Richard Nixon nominated. IndependentGeorge Wallace. Though Humphreygradually begins to speak out against the war, its too late. Nixon

claims that if hes elected, he has a secret plan to end the war in Vietnam with honor.

October 31st

1968 -

LBJ announces total bombing halt in Vietnam (to help Humphrey).


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November 5th

1968 - Election Day Results!

Nixon 43.2% Humphrey 42.7% Wallace 13.6%

1968 -Nixon is President.

30,000 Americans are dead. 30,000 die in 4 more years. Nixon intensifies the bombing. Is this guy ending or extending the war?

Vietnamization:

Nixons plan to gradually withdraw American forces from Vietnam and replace them withARVN forces.

Agent Orange / Its Use In Vietnam:Used from 1962-1971, over 20 million gallons of it was sprayed on South Vietnam; over 20% ofthe land on South Vietnam was sprayed with it. These spray jobs were called Operation RanchHand It was called Agent Orange because of the orange stripes on the barrels it was kept in.Over 3 million Vietnamese were affected with 200,000 severe birth defects in Vietnam as a lowestimation. 25% of veterans were exposed to Agent Orange, causing 250,000 US soldiers to filefor compensation. Only 10-15k were ever compensated.

Amerasians:Amerasians are people who have American dads and Vietnamese moms. A lot of soldiers whofathered the children had to abandon them, and many of these came back to find their kid. These

kids couldnt find a place to fit in the Americans hated how they were Vietnamese, and theVietnamese hated that they were Americans.

VietnamThe Final Years:

1968Nixon is elected President. 536,000 American troops in Vietnam.

1969Vietnamization begins. Gradual withdrawal of American troops in Vietnam to bereplaced with ARVNs. Also, Ho Chi Minh dies.

April 30th

, 1970President Nixon extends war into Cambodia. Anti-War protests erupt on 115

college campuses.

May 4th

, 1970Four students killed at Kent State University.

August 1970Sterling Hall on the UW campus bombed. One student killed by the blast.

End of 1970334,000 American troops in Vietnam.


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November 1972 -- Richard Nixon re-elected. Defeats George McGovern (A South Dakotasenator Democrat. Hes the most liberal guy ever. Cut defense! Pull out immediately! Legalizeweed! Give everybody in the US $1,000!). One week before election, Nixon declares peace isat hand in Vietnam. Negotiations with the NV breakdown.

December 1972Extensive bombing of NV begins. This is known as the Christmas Bombingsof 1972. (December 18th-30th).

January 1973Negotiations begin again. Ceasefire agreement reached.

January 27th

, 1973 -- American military involvement in Vietnam officially ends. All Americanforces withdraw.

February 1973American POWs begin to come home. President Nixon proclaims peace withhonor has been achieved in Vietnam. Fighting resumes between the ARVN forces and theNVA/VC.

April 30th

, 1975The South Vietnamese govt. surrenders. The VC and NVA claim victory.Vietnam united, and the Communist govt. comes into power.

George McGoverns Speech to the Senate:

Every senator in this chamber is partly responsible for sending 50,000 young Americans to anearly grave. This chamber reeks of blood. Every senator here is partly responsible for that humanwreckage at Walter Reed and Bethesda Naval hospitals and all across our landyoung menwithout legs, or arms, or genitals, or faces, or hopes. There are not many of these blasted andbroken boys who think this war is a glorious adventure. Do not talk to them about bugging out,or national honor, our courage. It does not take any courage at all for a congressman, or asenator, or a president to wrap himself in the flag and say we are staying in Vietnam, because itis not our blood that is being shed. But we are responsible for those young men and their livesand their hopes.


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Robert McNamaraLessons Learned in Vietnam:

Everything We Had: Celebration Without Victory

Read page 200-203

A General Course Overview:

The First Test of Containment: The Berlin Airlift:When the USSR wanted to test us (and wanted us to give Berlin exclusively to them), they putup the Berlin wall. With thousands escaping to the West, it seemed like a good idea to put up


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the wall. By cutting power, supplies, and everything else to the West side of Berlin, the Sovietshoped they would starve to the point of giving in to their demands. But the US started the BerlinAirlift to prevent this. They also boosted morale by dropping packets of candy from the planes.At its high point, one plane landed every minute in the day in Berlin.

The Events of 1949A Year of Shocks:

1. China turns red (communist) because Mao Zedong wins the election. We were pouringour money into the other candidate, desperately trying to prevent this from happening. Itdid.

2. The Soviets get the Atomic Bomb on August 29th (First Lightning).The Doomsday Clock:

5. What is it?a.

An actual clock (based at the University of Chicago). The closer it is to midnight, thecloser the world is estimated to global disaster.

6. When and Why was it closest to Doomsday?a. In 1953, the clock was 2 minutes to midnight. This was due to the US and the USSR

testing thermonuclear devices within 9 months of one another.

7. When and Why was it furthest from Doomsday?a. In 1991, the clock was 17 minutes from midnight. This was due to the US and the

USSR signing the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, a treaty which reduced theamount of nuclear weapons between the two superpowers.

Reagan and Gorbachevs Role In Ending the Cold War:

They were the ones who first negotiated the peace talks. They visited each other, and while stillregarded one another with caution, they reduced nuclear arms and created a lot of publicapproval. They didnt just hate one another back in their home countries like everybody else did.

Challenges To The Box (1950s):

1. Youth Music(Rock & Roll, Rhythm & Blues). Music from the other side of the tracks,a big influence being Elvis.

2. Playboy (1955), their first issue with Marilyn Monroe.3. BeatsThe people who sat in Cafs and read poetry and other stuff. People like James

Dean.


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Creation Of The Peace Sign:

The peace sign was first drawn up by Gerald Holtman in 1958. He attended an anti-bomb banrally in London, and he was depressed afterwards. He started doodling, and he began by drawinga line with two arms sticking out of it, palms out, because he was depressed, almost like in a

shrugging manner. Then he drew a line through the arms as a supporting line, like the support themovement needed to keep going. Then he drew a circle around these lines to represent the world.

I drew myself a man in despair.. and put a circle around it to represent the world

Gerald Holtman

How Woodstock Symbolized The Values Of The Counterculture Movement:

It was three days of peace and music. There was not a single fight, everyone bound together andhelped each other out, toughed it out through storms, etc. There was no violence, only love.

A Word From The Author:Ive decided to change this bit up just to see if anyone would notice. In case you havent read this before, (Who knows? Mayb e youvebeen too busy studying, or maybe this is the first time youve used my guide. If the latter is true, that sucks for you, cause you probably really couldve used theseguides for, I dont know, every other test youve ever taken in this class. Oh we ll, whats done is done. Hopefully you paid attention in class) then you should knowthat this area is where I place the small font that proposes to make a fool out of everyone who might complain about my guide. Really? There are people who dothat? Yeah, its not like Ive spent hours typing this guide up not only for myself, but for the convenience of others. And obviously Im just the greatest note-takerever, have a photographic memory, and a Masters in American History. I also have no life or other c lasses. But seriously though. If youre going to use my guides,dont be an idiot and complain if I missed something. Its not l ike I purposely tried to screw you up by giving you the wrong dates and historical events. My God, thatwould be absolutely wicked. Can you imagine? But I wouldnt do that to you. That would probably take too much work anyways. This, you say? This isnt work. This

is fun. Just look at you. Look how much youve read already. Nah work is my antipathy I wouldnt work this hard for no reason. No. This is procrastination. Mymust undesirable trait, I suppose. Backto what I was saying : Dont come crying to me if you get a bad grade. Dont be that guy. Im trying my hardest here typing upmy notes. And granted, they should be right. Im not saying any of these are wrong. If I knew that, I wouldnt post them online for everyone to download. Butseriously, if I screw up dont be that guy.

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Recent American History FINAL Epic Study Guide