What I Would Say to the Men and Women on The Wall

You fought and died for a seemingly injust cause that was derogated by an enourmous group of protesters. Nevertheless, you served your country, either by enlisting, or being drafted. For that, you are some of the most noble men and women this nation has ever created.

Times of Change 2

Jack Smith by Ron Steinman
9 pages - complete by Wednesday May 23

What challenges does Jack Smith face as a soldier in Vietnam? (a bulleted list is fine)
he lost all of his friends in battle, he wasn't well-trained, he didn't have any combat experience, his officers didn't have any combat experience

How does Smith’s attitude toward war change?
at the beginning, he thought it would be an easy way to grow up, everyone joined the army to become a man, at the end, two words could me used to describe his attitude "War Stinks"


I Feel Like I’m Fixing To Die Rag by Joe McDonald
2 pages - complete by Wednesday May 23

This song by Country Joe and the Fish became one of the first protest songs of the Vietnam Era. Read the lyrics to the song, and then respond to the following:

What is the song asking the “big strong men to do”? fighting in the war

… the “generals” to do? going out and winning the war, killing commies

… “Wall Street” to do? supplying the army

… “mothers” to do? sending their sons to Vietnam

Write down four specific lines from the song that display sarcasm, cynicism, or anti-war sentiment.

"The only good commie is the one who's dead"

"Woopee! We're all gonna die!"

"Be the first one on the block to have your boy come home in a box."

"So put down your books and pick up a gun, we're gonna have a load of fun."

Times of Change- first three readings

A Dubious Crusade by James A. Warren
2 pages - complete by Tuesday May 22

Look up both words in the title of the short essay. What do they mean?
Dubious means uncertain, or doubtful. A crusade is any aggresive movement towards the destruction, defense, or advancement of an idea.
Relate the title to the reading. What is Warren saying? How do you think this will relate to the rest of our study if Vietnam?
Warren talks about how questionable the Vietnam war was, and how it helped nothing but communism. It relates to our study of Vietman, because it's important to realize that Vietnam was an undeclared war that we lost to the communist cause that The Truman Doctrine swore to contain and end.


History by Thuong Vuong-Riddick
2 pages - complete by Tuesday May 22

What is the overall theme of Vuong-Riddick's poem?
He/she is saying how incredibly unreasonalbe these circumstances are for the Vietnamese. They had been at war for centuries with countries helping them, then attacking them, then losing to them, and this cycle will repeat until the end of time.


The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution … by Goldberg
2 pages - complete by Tuesday May 22
What is the main thesis of the essay?
That the Vietnam war was controversial.
What was the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution?
What president Johnson thought had to be done after U.S. ships were attacked in the Gulf of Tonkin.
What evidence does the author give to support his thesis?
He has no real evidence, only the thought that President Johnson lied about the Gulf of Tonkin, only to get troops sent into Vietnam to start the war.
How does this link to the theme of the first reading, “A Dubious Crusade”?
It helps the controversy of the war, how it was started for no big important reason.

Jack Smith by Ron Steinman
9 pages - complete by Wednesday May 23

What challenges does Jack Smith face as a soldier in Vietnam? (a bulleted list is fine)


How does Smith’s attitude toward war change?



I Feel Like I’m Fixing To Die Rag by Joe McDonald
2 pages - complete by Wednesday May 23

This song by Country Joe and the Fish became one of the first protest songs of the Vietnam Era. Read the lyrics to the song, and then respond to the following:

What is the song asking the “big strong men to do”?

… the “generals” to do?

… “Wall Street” to do?

… “mothers” to do?

Write down four specific lines from the song that display sarcasm, cynicism, or anti-war sentiment.

10 Important facts about the Korean War

1. The Korean War was kicked off in September 1949 when the Communists defeated the Anti-Communist nationalists in a civil war in China.
2. North Korea and South Korea were seperated by the 38th Parallel, the line was crossed in June 1950 when the communist North Koreans, aided by the USSR invaded South Korea.
3. The Anti-communists of the world tried to stop this in the UN, but the resistance didn't help.
4. 16 Nations of the UN provided soldiers, even though most soldiers were American.
5. US General Douglas MacArthur, a WWII hero, served as commander of all UN Forces.
6. The North Koreans pushed the South Koreans down near the southern-most tip of South Korea, where they were trapped.
7. MacArthur ordered sent in his army just south of the 38th parallel, trapping the North Koreans between the US and South Korea.
8. The UN army invaded North Korea, hoping that this would unite the two Koreas, it didn't.
9. In 1953, US president Dwight D. Eisenhower formed a truce with the Communists, a cease-fire was ordered in July 1953.
10. The Korean War ended in a stail-mate, neither side could claim it as a victory, but the US did contain communism in the war.

Has MLK's "Dream" been realized?

I believe that MLK's "Dream" has been realized in education, because in most cases, the number of enrollments for African-American children has, in some cases, doubled since 1980. Also, the number of African-American high school graduates has increased substantially sinse 1960, it has gone from 18.2% to 84%. Even the number of college graduates continues to rise, going from 10.3% in 1960 to 30% in 2004. Also, the high school dropout rate has halved sinse 1960 from about 8% to about 4%.

Time 100: Martin Luther King Jr. Questions

Why does the author feel that whites owe King the greatest debt?
For liberating them from the burden of America's centuries-old hypocrisy about race.

Was King "the right man at the right time"?
Yes, because he was an educated, powerful speaker. The Civil Rights movement would never have ended if he wasn't leading it.

Would King be upset with the current use of his most often quoted line? Why or why not?
I think so, because when he said those words, those were the most important words in the world to him. Now, they are used in movies, and even for jokes.

Would you have been able to use civil disobedience and non-violence?

I don't think i would be able to do something like that, i see myself watching from the sidelines. Doing something like that takes a lot of vanity and audacity during those times. Also, the punishments were cruel. Many were sprayed with firehoses causing them to fall over, or be pushed back into a building. Many were assaulted by riot police using clubs and tear gas. Even though it ended with civil rights to all citizens, i would never have been able to think up the courage to use civil disobedience and non-violence.