I've watched the first two episodes. It's good and all. I haven't learned anything new really except a few things about Ho.
Sorry to do this to you, but I have seen the top secret memo Kennedy wrote not long before his death that said he was going to begin to withdraw American troops. I've posted it here a couple of times over the years. I'll see if I can find it. We went through this 4 years ago: I haven't seen that episode of the Burns documentary, but I'm surprised that he ignored it. I'm a fan of Burns, by the way, who produces great stuff. I think he dropped the ball here. This memo is dated less that a month before the assassination.
The plan was to withdraw 1000 troops. They believed the situation was stabilized. The situation fell apart months later when Diem was overthrown. Kennedy was committed to Vietnam.
Burns has portrayed Ho as some gentle uncle who got railroaded by the young Turks in the North Vietnamese leadership. Based on what else we know it does not appear right and it certainly does not pass the smell test. The portrayal of Ho by Burns is too sympathetic.
Yeah, as hard as it may be for some here to understand, not everyone just mindlessly swallows whatever the TV programmers trawl out without a second thought, or even a first. I imagine you think that is pretty strange that anyone would dare to question the veracity of a program like this, much less challenge certain points straight up. Amiright?
FWIW, I've also seen criticism of this documentary as being too sympathetic to US war planners. I have watched the first three episodes, and personally so far I'm impressed with the breadth of perspectives it covers and the artistry in which it does it.
Well, he is portrayed as cultivating that image for political reasons. How true that is to his actual personality is less clear. It does say that the more aggressive military actions taken by the North Vietnamese against the US early on was not his preference, and that was driven by others. You believe that is inaccurate?
Ho Chi Minh has been presented in what appears to be an overly sympathetic way in this documentary. Here are some links to a few articles that provide more perspective on that. Who Was Ho Chi Minh? A Deceitful Mass Murderer. Ken Burns' Vietnam: Episode 1. Very Good, But 2 Omissions THE REAL HO CHI MINH There is plenty more out there. This is a good documentary, but it should be viewed with some skepticism and with the brain turned on.
Viewing things with skepticism and the brain turned on is always a good practice, including when reading the links you posted. The documentary doesn't shy away from the fact that people considered to be political enemies in the North were being mercilessly killed with his consent. It doesn't hide that Ho was a great admirer of Lenin and Mao. Or that the NLF, with his support, engaged in terrorist actions in the South. It shows all of that, and additionally that he was considered a national hero by most people in his country and the leader of a popular uprising and unification movement. The objection seems to be less about omission regarding Ho Chi Minh, and more that the documentary includes the perspective of the North Vietnamese without judgment.
Kennedy felt a deep personal responsibility for Vietnam after the Diem assassination. Do you really think he would have pulled out when South Vietnam so desperately needed us...especially after his administration essentially gave the go ahead for the coup against Diem? It would have been considered Bay of Pigs 2 and crushed his hopes for re-election.
Ken Burns disagrees with you then. Not that Ken is right about everything, but he is a proud lefty and probably for the same reasons as you, would have preferred not to believe this about John. But, there it is. Watch episode 2 and see for yourself. There is a marathon on starting Sunday at 10:30 AM, in case you missed it, which it sounds like you probably did.
