"The Best and the Brightest" by David Halberstam

[Zorro]

It's been on my reading list for years, and I finally got around to it this summer.

It is a remarkably detailed account not only of the political environment in the late 40s/early 50s that created the environment that the USA would step in to after the French defeat (think yammering anti-communist Republicans), but also of the personalities involved in the decisions that led the country into committing to action in Viet Nam. These were well-accomplished people in business, government, and higher education who completely underestimated the resolve of the North Vietnamese to rid their country of foreign domination, and who also ignored the analysis of Asian experts and preferred the assessments of political operatives.

It's both enlightening and depressing to read how the country squandered a great opportunity to fully implement Great Society policies by wasting not only vast funds of money to a futile cause, but also sacrificing government credibility on policy and finances. The country has never recovered from the effects of that war.

[virgogal]

1. You mention yammering Republicans but the Dems were

in charge......both parties were responsible.

[Zorro]

4. Joe McCarthy was a Republican

The Democrats had no effective way to counter his wild assertions without becoming targets themselves, and the Republicans just sat back and let him have at it, since it served their political purposes.

So I would agree that the Democrats were too timid, but I also believe it's a stretch to assess equal blame to both parties.

Halberstam actually discussed this situation in depth around page 187, if my memory serves me.

[brush]

2. Thank you. We keep being lead into disastrous international engagements by so-called...

policy experts. Billions wasted that could've been invested into the country. Same thing happened with the Iraq war. And I hate to think of what could happen if trump ever actually tries to go to war.

[SharonAnn]

3. I read it 30 years ago. It really opened my eyes. I've

been paying way more attention to politics and "what's behind the story" ever since.

I was actually horrified at what was actually happening compared to what I had thought was happening.

[kairos12]

5. Read it many years ago.

Systems analysis, data driven wars by guys in white shirts and thin ties didn't work. Won't work now either, even if the fashion has changed.

Signed an infantry soldier.