Introduction
According to the article, Vietnam War, the Vietnam conflict between South Vietnam, supported by the United States, and North Vietnam, supported by China and the Soviet Union, was notably a long, costly and divisive conflict perpetuated by international politics. The article mentions that the ongoing Soviet Union intensified the fight between North and South Vietnam (History.com, 2023). The conflict killed more than three million people, including 58000 Americans and more than 1.5 million Vietnamese civilians. The conflict killed more than three million people, including 58000 Americans and more than 1.5 million Vietnamese civilians.
Additionally, Digital History (2023) mentions that Vietnam was the longest war in American history with tremendous repercussions against American military and Vietnamese civilians/soldiers. Historians and researchers still contemplate whether the US effort in the war was necessary, a blunder, or idealistic to save South Vietnam from the totalitarian government (Digital History, 2023). Nevertheless, it is certain that the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, the ongoing Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union, the attack on US forces and equipment in the Gulf of Tonkin and the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution encouraged the US to intensify the fight against North Vietnam forces, leading to the Vietnam War. John F. Kennedy’s assassination, Cold War conflict, attack on US forces and the passage of the resolution occurred at nearly the same time, especially when the intensity of the Cold War conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union had grown substantially.
History
When French-educated Emperor Bao Dai was in control of Vietnam in 1945, Chinese and Soviet communist leader Ho Chi Vinh formed the Viet Minh, a league for the independence of Vietnam to take over the northern city of Hanoi (History.com, 2023). They took over the region and instituted Ho as the president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam in the Northern region. Ho and Bao had different views and ambitions for the country. Bao wanted a nation with close cultural and economic ties with the west, while Ho wanted a nation modeled after other communist countries (History.com, 2023). France backed Emperor Bao, leading to a conflict that lasted for decades. In May 1954, Bao and French forces lost the war, forming a treaty at the Geneva Conference that instituted Bao as the president of the South and Ho as the president of the North (History.com, 2023).
In 1955, US 34th President Dwight D. Eisenhower pledged to support South Vietnam as the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union intensified (History.com, 2023). The war influenced the US to join the war because they believed that communism would spread inevitably and threaten worldwide democracy. As a result, the US restructured its policies to retrain the Soviet Union allies from trading productively with the United States. They also allowed John F. Kennedy to supply equipment and military to capture and torture North forces and Viet Minh sympathizers. In 1955, anti-communist politician Ngo Dinh Diem overthrew Emperor Bao (History.com, 2023). In 1963, his generals organized a coup, killing him and his brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu (History.com, 2023).
Additionally, following the assassination of Kennedy in 1963, Lyndon B. Johnson, the successor, intensified the supply of US military, equipment, and economic support to the South Vietnam forces (History.com, 2023). By 1964, more than 20000 American troops had been supplied to South Vietnam (CVCE.eu, 2023). Soon later, the North Vietnamese forces attacked two US destroyers and military in the Gulf of Tonkin in 1964, intensifying the demand for resolutions on the attack (History.com, 2023). Towards the end of the year, Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin resolution to allow Johnson to unleash his military and use the necessary power to establish peace between the two regions.
Additionally, History.com (2023) mentions that Johnson oversaw 2 million tons of bombs dropped on the North Vietnam military targets neighboring neutral Laos to disrupt Ho Chi Minh’s supply of equipment and other resources. By 1965 and 1973, the US had supplied more than 500,000 American Men to support the South Vietnam forces. Towards 1973, US causalities and deaths were approaching 160000. In 1973, President Richard Nixon signed the Paris Peace Accord, leading to the withdrawal of the US military from Vietnam. Communist forces seized control of the South Vietnam I975 and agreed to end the war, forming a unified country, Vietnam, in 1976 (History.com, 2023).
Theory and Analysis
The Groupthink theory is one of the theories applicable to the Vietnam War. Irving Janis coined the Groupthink theory in 1972 to relate the outcome of group decisions and the decision-making process (Lee, 2019). The groupthink theory believes that groups making certain decisions normally reach consensus without considering any alternatives or decision consequences (Lee, 2019). In the Vietnam conflict involving the United States, a strong sense of irrational decisions is visible, especially when Congress agreed to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution regardless of the consequences. Laos was also bombed severely, and many Vietnamese civilians were killed, including 58000 American troops. Most importantly, the US decision to invade North Vietnam was irrational because they did not consider any alternative ways of approaching the conflict attacks and the intensity of the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union. Similarly, the US did not consider the repercussions of the war besides being conditioned by the Cold War conflict and attacks. Nonetheless, groupthink theory approves that groups normally reach consensus without incorporating critical reasoning, especially under certain conditions.
The Prospect Theory is also applicable in the Vietnam conflict involving the United States and other communists. The theory, developed by Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky in 1979, assumes that individuals normally make decisions based on perceived gains and losses (Werner & Zank, 2018). However, the theory suggests that the probability of making decisions in most cases shifts from perceived loss to perceived gains as the reference point (Werner & Zank, 2018). In our case, the United States decided to spark the Vietnam conflict with North Vietnam with the intention of eliminating the threat against world democracy. Nevertheless, eliminating the threat against world democracy was a gain because few countries got involved in the war. However, the losses were atrocious because more than 3 million people, including 58000 American soldiers and more than 1.5 million Vietnamese civilians. Most importantly, the prospect theory assumes that the perceived gains influence most decisions, such as the US decision to get involved in the North and South Vietnam conflict.
Besides Prospect Theory, Social Identity Theory applies to the Vietnam conflict between the United States and another communist. The Social Identity theory by Henri Tajfel in the late 1970s assumes that individuals tend to maintain a positive image in the groups to which they belong (Kalin & Sambanis, 2018). They tend to improve, maintain and protect their privileged position in the group (Kalin & Sambanis, 2018). This is related to the United States’ entrance into the South and North Vietnam conflict. We may suggest that the United States had previously established a powerful image across continents. Therefore, their presence in the Vietnam conflict could suggest that they intended to protect and maintain their identity as a powerful nation in fighting and restoring peace across conflicting nations worldwide.
Lastly, the Liberal and Marxist theory applies in the Vietnam conflict involving North and South Vietnam, with the US as the primary initiator of the conflict. The Liberal and Marxist theory holds the belief that public opinion will inherently support peaceful coexistence (Devlin, 2021). However, if a state makes opinions that choose war over the desires of the public, political leaders or capitalists are most likely to have made such decisions (Devlin, 2021). The passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution to allow President Johnson to unleash a fierce war against the North Vietnamese forces involved political leaders. Vietnamese civilians and US citizens may have demanded a peaceful approach to resolve the conflict, but the political decisions made by political leaders were the final verdict for the US forces. This approves the theories’ assumption that political leaders are normally behind opinions to encourage state involvement in conflicts when they loom.
Conclusion
In summary, the intensity of the Cold War, the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, John F. Kennedy’s assassination, the communism theory and the attack on US equipment and military encouraged US states to enter the Vietnam conflict and fight the Ho Chi Minh forces. The communism theory made the United States believe that more countries would inevitably be influenced to join the war when the conflict erupted. Nevertheless, they managed to contain the war with the help of another communist towards the end of 1973. However, the repercussions are unmatched by the intensity of the war. More than 3 million people, including 58000 American men and more than 1.5 million Vietnamese civilians.
The theories highlighted apply extrinsically to the Vietnam conflict. These theories provide a philosophical view of the events that took place before and during the Vietnam conflict between North and South Vietnam. For example, the prospect theory philosophically describes how the US decided to participate in the war without considering repercussions or alternative interventions to resolve the conflict and form peace treaties with the Soviet Union. Nevertheless, the application of these theories shall remain informative to the current and future generations. The public and political leaders should liaise before making decisions that would exacerbate conflict and enmity across boundaries. They deconstruct the relationship between emotions, attitudes and beliefs when making critical decisions.
Additionally, the conflict is resourceful for future research. Researchers, historians, political leaders and scientists can study the conflict and develop interventions against looming conflicts to prevent the reoccurrence of such conflicts. Scientists and researchers can utilize the conflict to recommend peaceful coexistence and encourage a rational decision-making approach when handling conflicts.
References
CVCE.eu. (2023). The Vietnam War. The Vietnam War – The Cold War (1945–1989) – CVCE website. https://www.cvce.eu/en/education/unit-content/-/unit/55c09dcc-a9f2-45e9-b240-eaef64452cae/5ad21c97-4435-4fd0-89ff-b6bddf117bf4
Devlin, N. (2023). Hannah Arendt and Marxist Theories of Totalitarianism. Modern Intellectual History, 20(1), 247-269. doi:10.1017/S1479244321000603
Digital History. (2023). Overview of the Vietnam War. Digital history. https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/era.cfm?eraid=18&smtid=1
History.com. (2023). Vietnam War: Causes, facts & impact. https://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history
Kalin, M., & Sambanis, N. (2018). How to think about social identity. Annual Review of Political Science, 21, 239-257.https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-polisci-042016-024408
Lee, Y. (2019). Groupthink as a system of the decision making process. Applied Psychology Opus. https://wp. nyu. edu/steinhardt-appsych_opus/groupthink.
Werner, K.M., Zank, H. A revealed reference point for prospect theory. Econ Theory 67, 731–773 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00199-017-1096-2
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