Devin Minix
September 25, 2017
Assignment #1
Rambo: First Blood The 1980s in America was a time when the country was struggling with tough issues and the aftermath of the Vietnam war. The overall view was that America could no longer involve itself anymore conflicts and general confrontations across the globe. With this in mind as we look back at the 1960s, we see a completely different world. We see an America that is knee-deep in the battle of a lifetime, fighting an enemy of unknown power and strength with many unwilling men and women at war. We see this most evident in the movie “Rambo: First Blood”, where we are presented with Rambo, a Vietnam war veteran who returns to finds his friends after the war and instead enters another war but this time with the American government. Throughout this movie, Rambo can be viewed as a representation of American values during the 1960s with a combination of standing for the young men and women who fought in Vietnam and their struggle coming back to war as well as standing for old American values pre-Vietnam, where the United States viewed itself as a positive force for good that had to get in struggles for freedom. We see the idea of him being another vet is easily understandable when you see the film. Rambo comes back to America looking for his lost friends from the Vietnam war and wonders around the town. He is met immediately with a harsh response by many people including the government. When you look back at the 1960s, we see a rise in anti-establishment views and a hatred for the American government. We see a clear demonstration of these political views in the movie, when Rambo is defiant to the police chief who tells him to leave town so he will not disturb their carefully constructed peace. Rambo through the film is defiant because he blames the army and through blaming the army ultimately blames America for neglecting their troops and seeing him as a relic of the past. All throughout the movie, rather than reason with Rambo and talk through their problems, they choose the more violent routes that only lead to more turmoil and ultimately pain for the people who fight against Rambo. Between the PTSD flashbacks that Rambo experiences and the corrupt government
The 1960’s and 70’s were filled with turbulent changes. The US was still reeling from containment and its domino policy, leading it to believe that it had the right to exercise influence in foreign affair. One foreign affair was known as Vietnam. The Vietnam War was the longest war in the nation’s history. This war, from both abroad and at home, drastically changed the society of America, socially, economically, and politically. It caused for much anti-war sentiment and fueled the counter culture movement, it caused inflation and contributed to the stagflation, and brought down Johnson’s reputation and caused for several changes in legislation.
Throughout America’s history, few things have left the nation in such controversial turmoil as the Vietnam War. With an American death toll of almost 60,000 troops, the Vietnam War has gone down in infamy as one of the most tremendous struggles Americans have faced both overseas and on the home front. Because of the tumultuous controversies caused by the war, Americans split into two social factions – those against the war and those who supported it. During the years of 1961-1975 - the era in which the war had its greatest effect on Americans - the population of citizens from 18-35 years old and the Presidency were both affected irreversibly.
The Vietnam war brought many changes to the United States in the 1960’s and the 1970’s. Some of the changes were for the better of the country, take the rediscovered Women’s Rights movements and the ever growing Free Speech movements inspired by New Left, while most of the other changes brought on tensions between government and their people. The Domino Theory pushed our leaders to the edge. In order to stop the Domino Theory in Vietnam, the U.S. invaded. The war was useless for the American government to get involved with. Even Robert Kennedy described our presence in Vietnam as ‘... sending a lion to halt an epidemic of jungle rot.’ (Doc E) From new groups forming to rebel, to inflation and loss of trust in the Government, from 1960’s to
The Vietnam War and the war against terrorism are highly unpopular and controversial wars amongst American citizens. The United States went to war in Vietnam to keep their sphere of influence and to stop the spread of communism, and they went to war against ISIS to stop terrorism. Even though these wars don’t provide any direct benefits to us, the government deemed them to be necessary. However, many American citizens believe that these wars did not need to happen in the first place. Despite differentiating opinions, the Vietnam War and the war against terrorism are very comparable because of their similarities, but also their differences.
In the 1960s, America found itself divided among various social matters. Conformity, civil rights, and the Vietnam war. While the older generations viewed fighting in the war as a civic duty and a true testament to what it meant to be an “American”, the counterculture did not share this belief. Regardless of how anyone felt about the war, it had escalated to epic proportions and as one citizen put it, “It was on our mind every single hour of the day” (PBS CITE). Vietnam was the first war ever to be televised, and with that came constant coverage and a growing concern from young Americans. In addition, the military draft made matters worse by forced the youth America to fight. “By 1968, the war in Vietnam had claimed over 15,000 American lives”(CITE PBS). Between the draft and the growing American casualties, greater tension in the US was created. Young Americans had to ask themselves if the war was worth fighting.
It was the late Beatle, John Lennon who once said that “We live in a world where people must hide to make love, while violence is practiced in broad daylight.” This refers of course to his distain of the Vietnam War and frankly when you ask someone who was a citizen in America at that time, you will most likely get the same melancholy response. For the better part of 15 years, the Vietnam War was at the forefront of American society in ways that were political, social, and economical. As time went on, public opinion plummeted, leaving President Lyndon Johnson no choice but to decline the Democratic Party’s nomination for the 1968 presidential election. As the Johnson administration
The 1960s in America was a decade filled with controversy and calls for change. During John F. Kennedy’s time as president, an era of protest and rebellion was underway. Race riots, anti-war protests, and an uptick in drug usage plagued the lifestyles of many Americans. Lyndon B. Johnson ascended to presidency as a result of Kennedy’s assassination, and unfortunately inherited these problems. Johnson was successful working with domestic social and economic issues, but the inability to deal with the Vietnam and the political scheme scheme as a whole stained his resume as an effective president.
For many individuals in the United States, the late 1970s were a troubled and disturbing time. The Watergate scandal, the Vietnam War, ambiguity in the Middle East and the economic crisis in the Nation had weakened the confidence of Americans in their government and in their fellow residents as well. Many Americans supported a new conservatism in social, economic and political life during the 1980s, distinguished by policies of President Ronald Reagan. Politically, the United States experienced numerous changes during the 1970’s. There were liberal Democratic administrations for most of the 1960’s followed by a conservative
Being a young American in the 70s meant living in a decade burdened by political disillusionment after Vietnam, Watergate, and the Cold War.
In conclusion, the 1970s were a time in history that will be remembered for many years to come. The Vietnam War was full of controversy and frustrated the American pride the country obtained after World War II. The colleges in the U.S. were a popular location for anti-war protestors and even resulted in the death of several students. The draft was in full effect and created “draft-dodgers” which mostly fled to Canada to escape the war. Many Americans felt our military should not have even been in Vietnam, but the government feared the communist domino
Regarded as one of the most controversial and polarizing military conflicts in U.S. history, the Vietnam War has left a deep and lasting impact on American culture, politics, and foreign policy. From 1964 to the present day, the Vietnam War redefined the scope of U.S. influence both at home and abroad, and caused a fundamental shift in American society that dramatically changed the way in which Americans viewed their government and the role of the United States as a world power. For an entire generation of Americans, who watched as the horrors of the war in Vietnam unfold before the spotlight of the national media, the Vietnam War directly challenged the superiority of the American way and the infallibility of U.S military dominance. In truth, the U.S government, U.S. military, and the American people as a whole struggled to accept the lessons of America’s greatest military failure and the sobering reality of the war’s consequences. To this day, the legacy of this so-called “American War” continues to resonate throughout the fabric of American society as a cautionary tale of U.S foreign intervention and blind acceptance of open-ended conflict.
Today, our World is a lot safer than 1960s. With emerge of civil rights; The United States was at its own War in 1960s. Despite, the differences and political crisis inside the Country, American politicians denied the fact that Americans were at their own War. Chronically, the Government threatened most of Civil rights Movement leaders to death, but they fought for people’s rights against discrimination. Meanwhile, the United States was unrest with emerging Vietnamese War. With the help from Soviet Union, the Communist Government of Vietnam was trying to destroy Southern Vietnamese. To stop spreading out the Communism in Vietnam, the United States intervention required. In this essay I will talk about how American Government
The 70’s themselves were defined by political changes and failures; whether directly or indirectly through new government perspectives, the termination of the Vietnam War contributed to each one. Because the closing of the Vietnam War inspired the political events that define the 1970’s, I believe that it best embodies the era as a whole.
When the Vietnam War finally came to an end in 1975, it left a lasting impression in minds of many Americans. Not only did about forty-seven thousand American soldiers lose their lives, but the United State government also spent a hundred and seventy-three billion dollars for a failed war effort. With intervention in Vietnam becoming increasingly ineffective, America decided it was time for a change in its military strategies. The most important changes that following the Vietnam War were: a more restricted foreign affairs policy, a decrease in defense spending, and a transition to an all-volunteer force.
The era of the 1990’s was an explosive time in American history both figuratively and literally. In the 90’s there was an extreme variety of different failures and also advances in technology. We as a nation had new advancements in space travel, our military and the way of life preparing for the turn of the century. As a country we didn’t know what the new millennium had to bring for us, but we were ready. Most significantly changing America though was from our creativeness that took place, the fear we had, and our militaristic ways.