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Effects Of The Vietnam War On American People Essay

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The Vietnam War greatly changed America forever. It was the longest war fought in America’s history, lasting from 1955 to 1973.The war had two major effects on American people. First, the Vietnam War tarnished America’s self image by becoming the first time in history the United States failed to accomplish its stated war aims, to preserve a separate, independent, noncommunist government. It was the first war ever broadcast on television. The public was able to see what happened on the battlefield. Second, one of the chief effects of the war was the division it caused among the people. Not since the Civil War had America been so divided. This war would have lasting affects on the United States. To better understand the horrors of the war, I will narrate the story from the perspective of my grandfather with a few personal opinions injected in between my grandfather 's thoughts. “It was 1961 in, Jacksonville ,Florida when I first enlisted in the marines at the age of 20. I then served four years and was discharged in 1964. Prior to enlisting into the Marines I had to prep myself mentally and physically. For six months I had to whip myself in shape. In the marine corps, you must pass a physical fitness test every six months. A perfect score of 300 is usually achieved by doing twenty dead-hang pull-ups, 100 crunches in twenty seconds and a three-mile run in twenty-eight minutes. Now that threw me for loop, but my general told me you don’t have to be perfect to enlist, but to

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