Vietnam War Turning Points

1. Why was the Tet Offensive a turning point? Explain your answer.
The Tet Offensive was not a turning point. Neither side gained anything from it, in fact both sides probably lost an equivalent amount of man power and resources as a result of it. Furthermore, it did not sway public opinion in the US to thoroughly, and public opinion was what in the end decided the outcome of the war. However it was around the point that Johnson decided that the war could not be won militarily, however his successor, Richard Nixon did not share this belief continued to fight in Vietnam. NOTE: The article does not agree with this but Nixon's own memoirs admit that he tried to end the war with the US in a honorable way, however this was not going to be possible without further involvement in Vietnam.

2. Are Sources 51 and 52 making the same point about the My Lai Massacre?
Sources 52 and 2 do not agree. 51 is opposes the reasons behind the My Lai Massacre, calling it a Nazi thing to do. However, it also says that many of the soldiers did not know what they were doing. Source 52 says that it was not a massacre of people at all, just the killing of pawns who supported a bad idea; communism.


3. Why do you think it took 12 months for
anyone to do anything about the massacre?
It probably took 12 months for anything to be done about the massacre because 1), manny people thought that nothing incredibly inhumane or different from anything else in war had happened, and 2) it was greatly discrediting to the US military and would have enraged many antiwar protesters who were already angry about the war.

4. Why was the massacre so shocking to
the American public?
The massacre was so shocking to the American public because no one thought that the US military would ever do something so evil as to kill around 400 innocent civilians, and it was done by ordinary Americans, many who were drafted into the war. Furthermore, it was the type of thing that they were led to believe that Communists would do, not Americans.