Throughout its history, the United States has been involved with many wars and conflicts. Some have been to defend an ally nation, and some have been to defend our own freedoms.

In 1964, the United States decided to send troops to the small country of Vietnam. In Vietnam, Americans experienced guerrilla warfare, lies from our government and a harsh exposure to the realities of war via the media coverage.

In 2001, the United States sent troops into Afghanistan and later into Iraq to fight the war on terrorism. Since being there, our country has also experienced guerrilla tactics, lies from our government and a different kind of media exposure.

Vietnam was an eye-opener for the United States. It took many years to understand the tactics of the Vietcong, and still, we could not find them. Today we see the same thing happening. In 2001, President Bush sent American troops into Afghanistan to kill the terrorists. The problem arose quickly. Our troops, with all of our technology and advanced training, could still not find the leaders of the enemy force we were trying to defeat.

In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered 3,500 Marines into South Vietnam. This was brought to the American public as a short-term transfer of military forces and a promise that large-scale military numbers would not be there long. A decade later, American forces finally pulled out of Vietnam with thousands of American lives lost.

Bush sent Marines into Afghanistan to kill al-Qaida troops and get out. Today, we find our countrymen fighting in Iraq instead of Afghanistan for different reasons.

Finally, the media response to the two conflicts has been very interesting. During the era of Vietnam, there was constant media coverage, much like we see today. In fact, it was the media that forced so many Americans to protest the war because people could see what was going on.

There is also constant media coverage of the war on terrorism. Yet, people haven’t turned out in large-scale protests. The difference between Vietnam and now is that the American government regulates what the media shows the public. In the 1960s, the government did not control what the media covered of the war. The media was able to show the American people what the war was about. Now the government dictates what we see on television, so none of us ever really get to see how bad the war is.

The Vietnam War and war on terrorism have many similarities. What scares me is whether Vietnam and the war we are faced with now are similar, or is this war we’re involved with now even worse?

Mike Pentek

Junior

English