Vietnam-+the+path+to+war

=VIETNAM - THE PATH TO WAR =

You all know that the United States was involved in a major military conflict in Vietnam 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 complete, well written paragraphs
 * contain the following terms - France, Ho Chi Minh, communism, Ngo Dinh Diem, military advisors, Gulf of Tonkin, Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Rolling Thunder
 * 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 media type="youtube" key="Fd8wKKfN7sM" height="344" width="425"

and this voicethread, made by your favorite 8th grade American history teacher that you have this year (I like to limit my chances)

media type="custom" key="6213255" Info: Summary of the cause of war: First France ruled Vietnam until Japan took it over during World War Two, after the war France took back Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh was revolting against the France during this time because he believed in communism; he created the Vietminh party it was made to liberate Vietnam. After fighting Vietnam wins against France, but the U.S. does not like the communism growing so they split Vietnam, and south becomes Democracy and is under the leadership of Ngo Dinh Diem.
 * international peace conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland. The Geneva conference drew a temporary dividing line across Vietnam at the 17th parallel.
 * In 1956, the entire country would hold elections to choose a new government that would rule a reunited Vietnam.
 * ** Ho Chi Minh **, leader of the revolutionary army, led the northern part of the country.
 * Ngo Dinh Diem became prime minister in the south. Diem, believing that the popularity of Ho Chi Minh and the Viet Minh would lead to a communist win in the elections
 * United State supported the French and Diem.
 * Both sides could not agree on peace and went back to war, Diem asked for U.S. military assistance and advisers —and got them.
 * The government of Ngo Dinh Diem was corrupt and unpopular . His army, the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) was equally unpopular.
 * Viet Cong guerrilla fighters and the National Front for the Liberation of Vietnam emerged from both sides of the 17th parallel. They saw themselves as patriots trying to reunite their country and throw out a corrupt leader who had refused to hold democratic elections. The U.S. government saw them as dangerous communists.
 * U.S . advisers knew in advance about a military plot to assassinate Diem but did nothing.
 * November 1, 1963 Diem died, but the South Vietnamese government remained unstable . The Viet Cong grew stronger as it brought more soldiers from the north and recruited more supporters in the south.
 * U.S. government officials feared a communist takeover of Vietnam . They predicted that if Vietnam went communist, the other countries in the region would follow.
 * In the U.S. the nation was split in thought. Some thinking it was good and other not.
 * The U.S. was not in the war yet, but then the USS //Maddox// an American ship was attacked by the North Vietnamese forces in the Gulf of Tonkin.
 * In response President Johnson ordered U.S. war planes to begin bombing targets in North Vietnam.
 * The Tonkin Gulf Resolution was not a legal or formal declaration of war, it approved U.S. participation in the war in Vietnam. [|Tonkin Gulf Resolution]

The president during the time where Truman, Kennedy, and Johnson. Truman sent money to the France to help them rule Vietnam, he also believes in the domino effect with communism. Kennedy wanted the over throw Ngo Dinh Diem because of what he is doing, but is worried he will look soft on communism, so he send military advisors to Vietnam. Johnson sends more advisors, but does not want to get to involve, but he does not want communism to spread. In 1964 there are ships at the Gulf of Tonkin that were attacked by North Vietnam this let Johnson ask congress to let him do anything he needs to do with the war without declaring war. The first plan was Rolling Thunder were the just kept bombing the land hoping for talk about peace from North Vietnam, but it did nothing, Then in 1965 the first Marines came to Vietnam showing that they were going to start fighting.