Analyze The Causes Of The Vietnam War

The war of 1812 was an unpopular war, particularly in the New England States. The US had difficulty financing the war because it had disbanded its National Bank and private banks in the Northeast were opposed to the war and made financing difficult. Most New England States refused to allow their state militias to cross the state’s border, thus hampering a major invasion of Canada. 6 The Army consisted of fewer than 12,000 men. Congress authorized expansion to 35,000 but service was voluntary and unpopular and pay was low. There were few trained and experienced officers. By 1814 with the British blockading the US, the American economy was near bankruptcy. Within a few decades the US was again at war, this time the Civil War. The Northern forces outnumbered the South by 4 to 1; approximately forty percent of the Southern Army were slaves. Despite this greater population, the

9 “The Army of the 1970s was a terrible organization” said Conrad Crane, retired army officer and chief of historical services at the Army Heritage and Education Center.10 Racial tensions and drug abuse were significant issues for the military during the Vietnam War. The draft, which should have been a social equalizer, aided affluent young men to avoid service through college and other deferments. “Some of the Vietnam Era problems were exaggerated” Crane said, “but there is no question that the Army coming out of Vietnam was largely demoralized and lacked discipline.” 11 Morale of the US Army was already lowered by the Tet Offensive, the My Lai incident brought further decline as hundreds of unarmed Vietnamese women, children and elderly were killed by US troops. Once the information was released to the public, antiwar protests increased and Americans pushed to end the war.12 The American People had little trust in the Army at this