The legacy of the American involvement in the Vietnam War is a memory that will live on forever. After reading the book titled Vietnam in Remission by James F. Veninga and Harry A. Wilmer, my first statement has been strengthened ten-fold because of the deep persuasiveness and informative nature of this book. I will begin by summarizing and interpreting the overall thoughts and perspectives that this work brings forth concerning the initiation and justification of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Next, I will paraphrase the authors’ views on legacy that this war leaves behind and provide comments dealing with what can be learned from this book and the points it raises. This study of the effects of the Vietnam War is an stirring and an instructive perspective on this sorrowful moment in history.The authors of Vietnam in Remission begin with their thoughts on why the United States first proceeded to become involved in this overseas war, whether justified or not. This seems to be almost rhetorical because they mainly provide reasons why we shouldn’t have started the war. Many people in Vietnam did not like the idea of being under French control at all. They resented the fact that a country that knew little to anything about them held control over their actions in an attempt for its own gain. Therefore, it was a very easy task for Ho Chi Minh to rally support for his cause. None of this was instigated by Communist influence, however. It is a known fact that the North Vietnamese regarded the Russians as “Americans without money,” and the Russians did not even assist much until the U.S. had committed itself. This is not even to say that the Russians did intervene much; most of the help received by the Vietminh was from the Chinese, which the U.S. was trying to make friends with at the time.This leads the author to the question of why the U.S. even wanted to get involved. They were trying to befriend th...
