pathtowar


 * [[image:http://www.wikispaces.com/i/edit_nopermission.png height="37" caption="Protected"]]=**VIETNAM - THE PATH TO WAR **=

You all know that the United States was involved in a major military conflict during the Cold War ... but why? What was America's "path to war"? Using the resources below and Creating America, your task this evening is to write a description in YOUR OWN WORDS of the causes of American involvement in Southeast Asia. Pretend you are writing it as a summary for on online encyclopedia or textbook. Your description should ...


 * be between two and four paragraphs
 * continue the following terms - France, Ho Chi Minh, communism, Ngo Dinh Diem, military advisors, Gulf of Tonkin
 * be IN YOUR OWN WORDS (remember, it's easy to check this online)
 * contain two images THAT RELATE TO YOUR WRITING
 * Should end with the first Marines landing in Vietnam in 1965

Need some help? How about ... //Creating America// [|Into Vietnam (Overview)] from ABC-CLIO [|**Vietnam War** - the **Causes**] [|Timeline of the Vietnam War] [|Vietnam Online Timeline] Causes of the Vietnam War video below tafts past to war website ||

The United States has had a long history of getting involved in other country's affairs, but one of the most controversial affairs of all time was American involvemnet in Southeast Asia. It all started in 1954, when French troops were removed from Vietnam after having ruled there for about one hundred years. This act of removal completely divided the country into the north and the south. while the south was supported by the US, otherwise known as the arsenal of democracy, a communist government was slowly creeping up in the north. The north's communist party then tried to unify the north and south in 1960 by holding a free election. Ho Chi Minh was the communist leader who lead the North. Ngo Dinh Diem was the leader of the South. Diem refused to allow the election to take place, fearful that if Minh won, the entire country would become a communist nation. The US, under the leadership of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, supplied to south with military equipment and advisors in 1961. This was the starting point of the Vietnam War. Though Diem's government was not communist, it was very corrupt. He gave government positions to people within his family and because of this, the government was also wildly unpopular. His army, known as the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, was equally unpopular. Diem was then killed by his own generals in a coup. Allegedly, the US had known about the ploy to assassinate the leader but did nothing. Without a strong leader, the South of Vietnam's government was left extremely unstable.
 * Causes of American involvement in Southeast Asia**

Vietnam was not a communist country yet, but the US was fearful that it was just a matter of time until it would be. They were afraid that if Vietnam became a communist country, other countries in the surrounding area would become 'red' as well.

The war became even more serious after north Vietnam tried to attack 2 American vessels located in the Gulf of Tonkin, and the US reported that their vessels were again attacked 2 days later [the second attack actually did not happen. Many saw the lie as an excuse to send troops to Vietnam]. Congress than past the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which allowed the US to increase their war effort in Vietnam. On March 1, 1965, the first of many what was soon to be many US combat troops had been sent to Vietnam.