chapter 10 Flashcards
flexible response
prepared US to fight any type of conflict
Peace Corps
1961, sent American volunteers around the world on “missions of freedom”
Alliance for Progress
promised to resurrect America’s Good Neighbor policy towards Latin America
Bay of Pigs invasion
April 17, 1961, CIA-led force of Cuban exiles, almost strengthened Castro
Cuban missile crisis
Soviets built nuclear missile sites in Cuba to “protect” Castro from US
hot line
telephone system between Moscow and DC to improve communication during Cuban missile crisis
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
US, Great Britain, and Soviet Union signed, ended above ground nuclear threats
Berlin Wall
separated Germany’s democratic west and communist east
domino theory
idea that if Vietnam fell to communism, its closest neighbors would follow (Japan, Australia, Philippines)
Ho Chi Minh
demanded independence for Vietnam, involved in anti-French organizations
napalm
jellied gasoline dropped in large canisters, exploded on impact, clung to anything
hawk
supported Johnson’s war policy, believe strongly in containment of communism and domino theory
dove
broke with Johnson’s war policy, questioned war and how morally correct it was along with if it was a strategic plan
William Westmoreland
General, American commander in South Vietnam, believed US needed to increase military presence in Vietnam
draftee
young men drafted into military
Students for a Democratic Society (SDS)
founded in 1960, originally an anti-racism group, led campus teach-ins
“credibility gap”
referred to American public’s growing distrust of statements made by the government
tet offensive
assault on 36 provincial capitals and 5 major cities, communists take hold of cities until urban population took up arms in their support
Robert Kennedy
democratic senator, ran for president against McCarthy
vietnamization
US forces withdraw as ARVN troops assume more combat duty
My Lai
unit began shooting and killing unarmed civilians, killed between 400-500 Vietnamese
Pentagon Papers
classified government history of America’s involvement in Vietnam
Paris Peace Accords
North and South Vietnam agreed to a ceasefire and US troop withdrawal from South Vietnam, America would get their POWs
Roy P. Benavidez
green beret sergeant, many many injuries, saved at least 8 people’s lives
Which military strategy did William Westmoreland advocate?
increasing U.S. military involvement in Vietnam
What was the goal of President Nixon’s “Vietnamization” plan?
to withdraw U.S. troops gradually and let Vietnamese soldiers fight the war
Critics of the Selective Service System were concerned that
many draftees were from working-class or poor backgrounds.
From 1964 to 1968, he was the commander of U.S. forces in the Vietnam War.
William Westmoreland
American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969.
Lyndon Johnson
He joined the army at the age of 19 and eventually went to Vietnam in 1965. For his bravery while wounded during a rescue mission in Cambodia in 1968, _________________ was awarded the Medal of Honor (in 1981).
Roy P. Benavidez
Assassinated after winning the California primary in the 1968 presidential campaign.
Robert Kennedy
Served as the 37th president of the United States from 1969 until 1974.
Richard Nixon
Was one of the most influential anti colonial leaders in Asia. He led North Vietnam’s fight to reunify North and South Vietnam, serving as president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) from 1945 until his death in 1969.
Ho Chi Minh
How did the United States respond to Ngo Dinh Diem’s crumbling anticommunist regime?
The United States helped to remove him from power.
What objective did American military leaders hope to achieve in North Vietnam with military campaigns such as Operation Rolling Thunder?
They believed that the strikes would lower the enemy’s morale and drive the North Vietnamese to negotiate a peace treaty.
In 1968, violence erupted outside the Democratic National Convention in _________.
Chicago
Ho Chi Minh’s military doctrine hinged on fighting only when victory was assured, which meant never fighting on his opponents’ terms. He compared his troops to a tiger, while the Americans were like an elephant. If the tiger stands still, the elephant will crush it. But if the tiger keeps moving and occasionally jumps on the elephant to take a bite out of it, the elephant will slowly bleed to death.
What did Ho Chi Minh believe this strategy would ultimately accomplish against the American military?
He believed that if the North Vietnamese wore the American forces down enough they would eventually leave.
Why did Green Beret Sergeant Roy Benavidez receive a Congressional Medal of Honor?
for risking his own life in order to save the lives of at least eight men
Why did the United States become involved in the Vietnam War?
to defend Vietnam and its neighbors from communism
What can you infer from the map about the nature of the Tet Offensive?
It was a coordinated series of attacks on American military outposts.
To what did the “credibility gap” refer?
the contradiction between official statements and media reports
How did the domino theory influence United States foreign policy?
It suggested that the United States would need to support governments fighting communism.
The violence that erupted outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago in 1968 and the confusion inside gave the impression that
the nation was in disorder and the Democrats had lost control.
The Tet Offensive was a strategic blow to the U.S. military because
it showed that the communists were still strong and determined.
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution affected the relationship between branches of the U.S. government because it
gave the president, instead of Congress, the power to declare war.
Why did the hawks support U.S. military efforts in Vietnam?
They believed that Vietnam was a crucial front in the Cold War.
1973 Peace agreement between the United States, South Vietnam, North Vietnam, and the Vietcong that effectively ended the Vietnam War
Paris Peace Accords
A person who opposed U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War.
dove
Classified U.S. government study that revealed American leaders involved the United States in Vietnam without fully informing the American people; leaked to the New York Times in 1971.
pentagon papers
Defense policy allowing for the appropriate action in any type of conflict.
flexible response
A village in South Vietnam where in 1968 American forces opened fire on unarmed civilians. U.S. soldiers killed between 400 and 500 Vietnamese.
My Lai
1973 law passed by Congress restricting the President’s war-making powers; the law requires the President to consult with Congress before committing American forces to a foreign conflict.
War Powers Act
Idea that if a nation falls to communism, its closest neighbors will also fall under communist control.
domino theory
