Patriots - forwarding a commentary from Oliver North.

A faulty retelling of ‘The Vietnam War’

Richard Nixon kept his promises, Ken Burns did not

By Oliver North - - Monday, October 16, 2017

ANALYSIS/OPINION:

When Richard Nixon was in the White House, I was in Vietnam and he was my commander in chief. When I was on Ronald Reagan’s National Security Council staff, I had the opportunity to brief former President Nixon on numerous occasions and came to admire his analysis of current events, insights on world affairs and compassion for our troops. His preparation for any meeting or discussion was exhaustive. His thirst for information was unquenchable and his tolerance for fools was nonexistent.

Mr. Nixon’s prosecution of the war in Southeast Asia is poorly told by Ken Burns in his new Public Broadcasting Servicedocumentary “The Vietnam War.” That is but one of many reasons Mr. Burns‘ latest work is such a disappointment and a tragic lost opportunity.

It’s sad, but I’ve come to accept that the real story of the heroic American GIs in Vietnam may never be told. Like too many others, Ken Burns portrays the young soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines of the Vietnam War as pot-smoking, drug-addicted, hippie marauders.

Those with whom I served were anything but. They did not commit the atrocities alleged in the unforgivable lies John Kerry described to a congressional committee so prominently featured by Mr. Burns. The troops my brother and I were blessed to lead were honorable, heroic and tenacious. They were patriotic, proud of their service, and true to their God and our country. To depict them otherwise, as Mr. Burns does, is an egregious disservice to them, the families of the fallen and to history. But his treatment of my fellow Vietnam War veterans is just the start. Some of the most blatant travesties in the film are reserved for President Nixon.

Because of endless fairy tales told by Ken Burns and others, many Americans associate Richard Nixon with the totality and the worst events of Vietnam. It’s hardly evident in the Burns “documentary,” but important to note: When Richard Nixon was elected president in 1968, he inherited a nation — and a world — engulfed in discord and teetering on the brink of widespread chaos. His predecessor, Lyndon Johnson, was forced from office with a half-million U.S. troops mired in combat and fierce anti-American government demonstrations across the country and in our nation’s capital.

Ken Burns may not recall — but my family remembers: It was Lyndon Johnson who sent my brother and me to war. It was Richard Nixon who brought us home. It is very likely we are alive today because Mr. Nixon kept his word.

That’s not the only opportunity for accuracy Mr. Burns ignored. He could have credited Mr. Nixon with granting 18-year olds the right to vote in July 1971 with the 26th Amendment to our Constitution. (Does Ken even recall the slogan, “Old enough to fight — old enough to vote!” He should. Mr. Burns turned 18 that same month.)

President Nixon pressed on to all but finish the war. As promised, he brought our combat units home, returned 591 prisoners of war to their wives and families, ended the draft, leveraged the conflict to open ties with China and improved relations with the Soviet Union. He pushed both Communist giants in Beijing and Moscow to force their North Vietnamese puppet into a negotiated settlement. Yet he is portrayed in the Burns documentary as a cold-blooded, calculating politician more interested in re-election than the lives of U.S. troops in combat.

Contrary to the film’s portrayal, Mr. Nixon had a complicated strategy to achieve “peace with honor.” His goal was to train and equip the South Vietnamese military to defend their own country in a process he called “Vietnamization,” and thereby withdraw American troops.

President Nixon succeeded in isolating the North Vietnamese diplomatically and negotiated a peace agreement that preserved the right of the people of South Vietnam to determine their own political future. Imperfect as the Saigon government was, by 1973 the South Vietnamese had many well-trained troops and units that fought well and were proud to be our allies. This intricate and sophisticated approach took shape over four wartime years but receives only superficial mention in Mr. Burns‘ production.

Despite Democrat majorities in both houses of Congress, Mr. Nixon— a deft political powerhouse — attained consistent support from America’s “Silent Majority.”

If Mr. Burns read President Nixon’s memoir or his two successive books in which the former president recounts his emotional anguish at the war’s toll — “No More Vietnams” and “In the Arena” — there is little evidence in the PBS production. Instead, Mr. Burnscherry-picks from the infamous “Nixon tapes” to brand the president as a devious manipulator, striving for mass deception — a patently false allegation.

By the time President Nixon resigned office on Aug. 9, 1974, the Vietnam War was all but won and the South Vietnamese were confident of securing a permanent victory. But in December 1974 — three months after Mr. Nixon departed the White House — a vengeful, Democrat-dominated Congress cut off all aid to South Vietnam.

It was a devastating blow for those to whom Mr. Nixon had promised — not U.S. troops — but steadfast military, economic and diplomatic support. As chronicled in memoirs written afterwards in Hanoi, Moscow, and Beijing, the communists celebrated. The ignominious end came with a full-scale North Vietnamese invasion five months later.

Despite the war’s end — and the trauma that continues to afflict our country — there is little in the Burns so-called documentary about the courage, patriotism, and dedication of the U.S. troops who fought honorably, bravely and the despicable way in which we were “welcomed” home.

The PBS “documentary” frequently reminds viewers of the “gallant nationalist fervor” among the North Vietnamese. But the South Vietnamese are portrayed as little more than conniving urchins and weak pawns of the imperialist Americans.

In a technique favored by the “progressive left,” Mr. Burns uses a small cadre of anti-war U.S. and pro-Hanoi Vietnamese “eyewitnesses” to explain the complicated policies of the U.S. government. Mr. Burns apparently refused to interview Henry Kissinger, telling the Portland Press Herald he doubted “Kissinger’s authority to adequately convey the perspectives of the U.S. government.” This alone disqualifies this “documentary” as definitive history on the Vietnam War.

Though Mr. Burns and his collaborators claim otherwise, the real heroes of “The Vietnam War” were not U.S. protesters, but the troops my brother and I led. They fought valiantly for our country and the president who brought us home.

Since meeting President Nixon in the 1980s, I have always remembered how he understood the incredible sacrifice of American blood in the battlefields of Vietnam. He was dedicated to ending the war the right way and committed to sustaining American honor. He kept his promise to bring us home.

Ken Burns failed to keep his promise to tell all sides about the long and difficult war in Vietnam. Mr. Burns, like John Kerry, has committed a grave injustice to those of us who fought there.

• Oliver North was a Marine platoon leader in Vietnam, and recipient of the Silver Star, the Bronze Star for Valor, and two Purple Hearts.

Memories from the last half of the last century.......Feel old?

I added some comments at the bottom.  Some memories, some political commentary.

Black and White

(Under age 45? You won't understand.)

You could hardly see for all the snow,

Spread the rabbit ears as far as they go.

'Good Night, David .

Good Night, Chet.'

My Mom used to cut chicken, chop eggs and spread mayo on the same cutting board with the same knife and no bleach, but we didn't seem to get food poisoning.

My Mom used to defrost hamburger on the counter and I used to eat it raw sometimes, too. Our school sandwiches were wrapped in wax paper in a brown paper bag, not in ice pack coolers, but I can't remember getting e.coli.

Almost all of us would

Have rather gone swimming in the lake instead of a pristine pool

(talk about boring), no beach closures then.

The term cell phone would have conjured up a phone in a jail cell, and a pager was the school PA system.

We all took gym, not PE... and risked permanent injury with a pair of high top Ked's (only worn in gym) instead of having cross-training athletic shoes with air cushion soles and built in light reflectors. I can't recall any injuries but they must have happened because they tell us how much safer we are now.

Flunking gym was not an option... Even for stupid kids! I guess PE must be much harder than gym.

Speaking of school, we all said prayers and sang the national anthem, and staying in detention after school caught all sorts of negative attention.

We must have had horribly damaged psyches. What an archaic health system we had then. Remember school nurses? Ours wore a hat and everything.

I thought that I was supposed to accomplish something before I was allowed to be proud of myself. – Trophies were only given to the Champions, sometimes 2^nd and 3^rdbut no Participant trophies.

I just can't recall how bored we were without computers, Play Station, Nintendo, X-box or 270 digital TV cable stations.

Oh yeah... And where was the Benadryl and sterilization kit when I got that bee sting? I could have been killed!

We played 'king of the hill' on piles of gravel left on vacant construction sites, and when we got hurt, Mom pulled out the 48-cent bottle of Mercurochrome (kids liked it better because it didn't sting like iodine did) and then we got our butt spanked.

We also played other rough full contact games without pads like “Kill the guy with the Ball’, Tackle Town, British Bulldog, Capture the Flag and Buck-Buck We got lots  of scrapes and cuts, that is for sure.

Now it's a trip to the emergency room, followed by a 10-day dose of a $99 bottle of antibiotics, and then Mom calls the attorney to sue the contractor for leaving a horribly vicious pile of gravel where it was such a threat.

We didn't act up at the neighbor's house either; because if we did we got our butt spanked there and then we got our butt spanked again when we got home, often with a belt or a paddle.

I recall Donny Reynolds from next door coming over and doing his tricks on the front stoop, just before he fell off.

Little did his Mom know that she could have owned our house.

Instead, she picked him up and swatted him for being such a jerk It was a neighborhood run a muck.

To top it off, not a single person I knew had ever been told that they were from a dysfunctional family.

How could we possibly have known that?

We needed to get into group therapy and anger management classes.

We were obviously so duped by so many societal ills, that we didn't even

notice that the entire country wasn't taking Prozac!

How did we ever survive?

LOVE TO ALL OF US WHO SHARED THIS ERA; AND TO ALL WHO DIDN'T, SORRY FOR WHAT YOU MISSED. I WOULDN'T TRADE IT FOR ANYTHING!

Pass this to someone and remember that life's most simple pleasures are very often the very best

I recall cutting lawns in the neighborhood with our push mower for a small income that kept my bicycle in intertubes that were not all patches.  Then my Father threatened to charge me rent on the tools he had to fix now and then.   Now I have to hire a landscape guy to do this task and it sometimes gets done as needed even through the language barrier.   Mine has a new and very shiny pickup truck pulling his well-stocked trailer filled with all sorts of equipment and tools.  I do not mind paying for things I could do but I am retired and my wife is never happy with the condition of things.  Even after the yard guy leaves, I have to straighten things out.  But I look at this is providing honest work to those who are willing to do it.

At age 13, I got a paper route (Oakland Tribune) where I had to deliver the paper within reach of the customer at their door.  Carrying the papers in the special carrier, an over-the-shoulders canvas carrier, folding the papers neatly as I walked the route or on Sunday, putting a rubber band around it.  No plastic bags back then.  It had to be placed where the rain would not touch it. Not bad money as good service brought good tips.   Bought a bicycle (3-speed) after saving a year for it.  Now I sometimes have to pick mine up from the street from at the 0530 delivery time by some person(s) and vehicle racing around that brings up thoughts that this might be a drive-by shooting about to occur.  This must also pay well as none of the cars I see are older than mine, are usually black and quite loud.

The Black & White TV was replaced by a magical color TV with a 10 inch or so screen as there were boxing on two days a week and Pop was a fan.  It drew neighbors to our living room. Professional football back then was rare as the college game was the big thing.  Kezar Stadium in San Francisco was used by the 49ers.  A 7,000 seat venue they paid rent at.  The big college games drew from 75 to 100,000 fans.  ABC was still black and white then at Monday Night AFL Football.  Then the merger.  It made enough money for ABC to go to color.  If you remember Howard Cosell you have mostly gray hair and arthritis.

Now, a team can move into a new, large stadium supported mostly by my and my neighbor's tax dollars.  Perhaps it is moving back in that direction again.  I hope the Raiders decide to stay in Oakland.   We are spending 1 billion in road capacity enhancement in Vegas and that won't be helped by a 65,000 seat stadium right off the main traffic route through our valley.  After a big sports event here now, there is always a problem serious enough to be noted on TV.

I could watch a news program and viewed-listened to news.   Not many talking heads back then.  Now when I watch "news" on the boob tube, I sometimes substitute the people for comic book characters as every one is an expert that interviews other experts.

So I get most of my news via the internet where I can select stories of interest from some agency that still uses the printed word.  Then there are things like uTube.  Technology, in particular, the Smartphone is great stuff but is apparently affecting our citizenry with reduced attention span, distractions from tasks such as driving and walking across the street.   I was recently at a National Park in Oregon where a sign read - "Selfie Danger Area."  Apparently they lost several tourists over the edge and were trying to reduce their paperwork and body disposals.  I still see drivers apparently texting in freeway traffic.   Personally, I despise telephones of all types although I use mine to give my wife driving directions from home (although she has built-in Nav) and for computer security.  Not all tech stuff is bad.

I read where old school subjects such as cursive writing and arithmetic are being phased out in our grammar schools.  With our local schools ranking in the lower 2% of the USA, and with most administrators drawing six-figure salaries - 3 times that of our teachers - what will they teach?  I can recall the days in grammar school when an occasional new kid from somewhere foreign would show up in class.  We kids taught them English pretty fast - in class and in after-school play and sports.  Mandatory busing has probably stopped this route to learning English.  But when one sees results and costs of teaching ESL, it is apparent that something is wrong. I have often wondered how much money could be saved and that most non-native residents had to learn English as a business language and citizenship requirement.  I believe road sign and traffic laws are available in at least a dozen languages.  This may be for getting more people behind the wheel (more revenue) but I have a feeling that the deep underlying reason for not making newer residents assimilate in language is twofold.  One to garner more votes and to also keep many in that world of second-class citizens economically and socially.

I read of the Swedish approach where they pay immigrants to learn Swedish.  Not just give them handouts.  It seems to reduce their immigrant unemployment rate enough to make it worthwhile.

Lou Rothenstein <loumisgm@yahoo.com>

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Wed 11/8/2017, 8:11 AM

Lou