The Fog of War (Vietnam)

The Vietnam war was called the longest and most controversial war ever. This was mostly because of the deaths of the soldiers was so high that one in ten of every man send over, came back wounded or killed. The war started on November 1st, 1955, and ended on April 30th, 1975. That means the war lasted 19 years, 5 months, 4 weeks, and 1 day. The total minimum of people killed from this war was one million, seventy nine thousand, eight hundred forty six.

President Johnson was a firm believer, and main starter of the Vietnam war. He believed that if they stopped fighting in Vietnam, the communist would march over and they would be fighting in Hawaii, then San Francisco. Nearing the end of the war, Johnson saw how many lives were lost for nothing, and refused to be re-elected even if the people wanted him. Johnson wanted the war to end, but Nixon had some of his advisers go over to south Vietnam and encourage them to keep fighting and told them they would get a better deal with him. I think we entered the Vietnam war because we still were holding on to the fear of the Cold War, about communism taking over.

The Chinese and Vietnamese had always been fighting, and it was like their thing. They didn't want the US to come join the war. In the end all the fighting and death was pretty much for nothing, today there is no South and North Vietnam. They are the combined country of Vietnam under a communistic government.

The Vietnam war also had a impact on pop culture. After the war, the "Crazy Vietnam Veteran" who suffered from PTSD, also know as post traumatic stress disorder, became a common stock character seen in everything from movies to video games. There were also many movies featuring the Vietnam war like: The Deer Hunt, We Were Soldiers, Rescue Dawn, The Green Berets, and many more. The Vietnam war even influenced music, one of the most popular was: I Feel Like I'm Fixin' To Die Rag, also know as, The Fish Cheer.

One of my favorite songs came from this era. It's called: Tie a Yellow Ribbon 'Round Ol' Oak Tree. You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjqBhZj_37U . It's a song about a soldier coming home from the war, and he's not sure if he'll be welcomed home because of how hated the war was. He writes his girlfriend and tells her If she wants him to tie a ribbon around the oak tree.

The most surprising part of this assignment was my parents input. Both were surprised the Vietnam was one country. I feel like the war is a very bitter topic for our parents, and grandparents generation. My mom was talking about how weird it was when my generation started saying "The bomb." I feel like my generation and younger are so oblivious to any war or attack, unless it goes national. I didn't even know if we were in a war or not until this year. We need to make sure to teach our kids and learn from History's mistakes so we don't do them again.

The latest 2015 version of the Vietnam Flag.




Vietnam War protests




The Vietcong flag



A picture of soldiers running to the helicopter.



A young Marine waits on the beach for his orders.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? (Facing racism)

In the movie Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, Many social barriers were broken. This is shown very plainly because the two main character Doctor John Wayde Prentice Jr. and Joanna "Joey" Drayton are a black and white couple who plan to get married. The only thing is they want the approval of both sets of parents. Both parents experience a shock, but only the fathers seem to have the trouble with it in the end. Every time a new character was introduced you could tell within seconds if they were racist or supportive.

The first character I'm going to talk about is Hilary St. George. She was one of (Joanna's mom's) Christina Drayton's employees. When they first met her, Hilary's face said it all. Later she even stopped by the Drayton's house to tell her disapproval of the relationship. Christina quickly fired her on the spot because of her racism even though she herself didn't know where she stood on her daughter's relationship. I laughed really hard when she fired her, Hilary deserved it, "she was acting like a *Le Beep*" as Joanna put it.

The second character I'm going to talk about it Matt Drayton, Joanna's father. He struggled with blessing the marriage when he knew that people would act hurtful towards his daughter. He respected John and had fought for the civil rights of all skin colors. He finds that he wants his daughter to be happy, but he is afraid for her. In the end he decides that if they love each other enough no one can hurt their relationship, and he puts faith in them that they will be alright. The actor that played him, Spencer Tracy, died the same year this movie came out from a sudden heart attack.

Another person I'm going to talk about is Doctor John Prentice Jr. Even though Joanna said that they would get married even if her parents said that they disapproved, John had other ideas. He was such a kind guy that he quietly told the parents that if they did not bless the marriage that he would call it off. He didn't want to offend his love's parents, especially when Joanna was so close to them. He showed them that even though he was a different race, he respected them and their authority.

Another person I'm going talk about is Joanna. She falls in love with John, and is confident in that decision. Even when she knows people are going to be rude about it. She doesn't question if it's really the right choice to marry a black man, and she certainly doesn't think herself above anyone of colored skin. Joanna also is always happy, and made me laugh a ton.

All the characters's view on Joanna's and John's engagement is reflected from what they were taught growing up. The Drayton's taught Joanna that all people were created equal, and people who thought so were wrong. The Drayton's maid Tillie was horrified because she thought John was using Joanna to get above in life. She probably saw people doing this when she was growing up. Mr. Drayton was all for civil rights, but had seen the violence that had taken place because of it and was worried for his daughter.




Joanna (Katharine Houghton, Left) and John (Sidney Poitier, Right) announce their marriage plans to Joanna's parents.



A poster for the movie that is "A love story of today."



John's parents are shocked to find that his fiance is a white girl.

 

Joanna's parents are still in shock that John is a black man.