Vietnam War Turning Points

1. Why was the Tet Offensive a turning point? Explain your answer.

The Tet Offensive was a turning point because it made the USA ask questions about the war in America. This happened because America sent over 500,000 troops and spent over twenty billion dollars, and the communists and North VIetnamese were still able to make a surprise attack. America needed to think about why they had so many troops and spent so much money but the communists and north VIetnamese people were stil able to make a surprise attack. Even though the U.S. was able to take these sites and bases back the U.S. used a lot of artillerary and air power and killed many civilians, the U.S. questioned themselves about if this was really how it should go and if they were doing the right thing even though they were using so much force and killing civilians.


2. Are Sources 51 and 52 making the same point about the My Lai Massacre?

Sources 51 and 52 are not making the same point about the My Lai Massacre. In source 51 Ronald Ridenhour refers to the U.S. soldiers as being Nazis during the massacre. He says that they didn't go there to be Nazis, and he also refers to how there were soldiers there that had never been away from home before and thought that they were being courageous. The point Ridenhour is making about the My Lai Massacre is that nastalgic men were there acting like Nazis, that it was a horrendous act. However, in Source 52 the point Lieutenant Calley makes is that it was for the better of mankind, that he wasn't killing innocent civilians he was killing communism. This is the complete opposite of Ridenhower's point; Calley sees nothing wrong with the massacre while as Ridenhower and a few others saw it as being like Nazis.

3. Why do you think it took 12 months for
anyone to do anything about the massacre?

I think that it took 12 months for anyone to do anything about the massacre because Charlie Company had recorded only 20 civilians deaths and took it as a normal and inevitable part of war; so the US also thought civilian deaths were a inevitable part of war however they had the wrong information. It wasn't until someone in the war front had told Congress that they should investigate this event. Ronald Ridenhour had sent the letter to Congress saying that this event should be seriously looked at and investigated, and so then Congress investigated it.


4. Why was the massacre so shocking to
the American public?

The massacre was so shocking to the American public because there were so many innocent civilians that were killed, almost four hundred. This massacre showed the America public how wrong the war had gone. They thought that they'd be containing communism or getting rid of it, but thought that less people would be killed. This event showed how the war had taken a bad turn and went down the wrong road, America was no longer there helping the people but killing them.