Communism Against Democracy And The Vietnam War

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What was so big about the Vietnam War? Have you ever been to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington DC? Many causalities happened during the war but what was so significant about it? The main conflict was Communism against Democracy. This conflict split Vietnam into two different sides; North and South Vietnam. Similar to the Korean War, which lasted from 1950-1953, the North was for Communism while the South was for Democracy. The US aided South Vietnam, while the Soviet Union (Russia) and China aided North Vietnam. The Vietnam War is the longest war in American history. It was the only war that the USA has lost. Many were surprised that the US, the biggest country with a mighty economy and military resources, lost against a small country like Vietnam. How did this all happen, though? What sparked the Vietnam War?
The whole idea that started the Vietnam War, and Korean War, was Communism vs. Democracy. Democracy is the idea of a government that gives a “voice” to the people. The people in a Democratic government vote for themselves, not allowing one person to make the people’s decision. People vote in their officials for their government. It also promotes Capitalism. Capitalism is an economic system where anyone can start their own businesses for their own profit. Greeks created Democracy around 500 BC. Communism is basically the opposite of Democracy. Communists believe that the government should control the economic systems of the country. Many people argue that Democracy has a lot more freedom than a Communist government, which is true in my opinion, but Communism tries to get rid of classes in society by pulling out lower, middle, and upper classes meaning there is no such thing as being extremely wealthy nor poor...

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...n before, although not as free as the U.S. However, Vietnam remains to this day as a one-party Communist government.
Americans wanted to forget. They wanted to forget every last bit of the Vietnam War. No one would acknowledge the veterans who had served in the war. Many Vietnam veterans were diagnosed with PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder). PTSD causes severe traumatic memories, flashbacks, or thoughts of an event a victim witnessed or experienced. In the Vietnam War, many of the U.S. soldiers were just 17 year olds. The U.S. troops were basically just young adults. What would happen if you watched your friends die before your eyes, at such a young age? How stable would your sanity be? Even though North Korea lost more lives than the U.S., the U.S. still lost about 58,200. Some troops are still missing; approximately 1,643 people. In 1973, president Reagan

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