Reflections on Vietnam

Vietnam is a destination recommended for any history buff or beach lover, culture cravers or nature nerds. There is something for everyone.

The biggest "something" that I'm taking away, however, is a real respect for the human spirit and its ability to forgive and a sadness stemming from the blatant inability of my own government to learn from the past. A few of my thoughts...

From 1959 to 1975 an estimated 3 to 5 million people lost their lives in Vietnam. About 63,000 US troops were killed to protect American interests and limit the spread of Communism. One hundred and twenty billion dollars were spent on the war.

Today as capitalism is alive and well on the streets of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, I am left wondering if it was worth it. While one might argue that an internal struggle to unify a country long divided was unavoidable, I found very little that justifies the escalated warfare, increased hardship and extreme number of casualties caused by American intervention. A natural political evolution brought peace, prosperity and capitalism to Vietnam, not American troops.

If we only knew then what we know now...

We can't change America's actions from 1959-1975, but we can salvage something positive by becoming pupils of history rather than propaganda. Instead 3,806 US troops have died in Iraq since 2003. Civilian deaths are estimated to be over 650,000. And if Bush's request for an additional $196 billion dollars is approved, total spending will exceed $600 billion by next October (all of this happening as he vetoes $35 billion to provide healthcare for 10 million American children and underfunds alternative energy research).

The similarities with what we did in Vietnam are shamefully clear.

Those who know me know how I feel about the war, but at the risk of sounding redundant - let's work for peace and perhaps put that $196 billion towards renewable energy research instead.