The American people of the early 50's, and their media, often seemed unaware that they were sending young men to fight and die in Korea. But they never betrayed us.
Questionable Media accuracy, as about No Gun Ri, suggests it may be prudent to evaluate the objectivity of today's media.
To many veterans, specific media elements during Vietnam and Iraq consistently made reports of questionable truthfulness. Some consider media treatment of Vietnam veterans as shameless character assassination.
One media favorite has always been Jane Fonda, a person so loathed by veterans that her image decorates many Veterans' Club urinals even today.
In fact, as with all human activities, Ms. Fonda's actions are subject to differing interpretations. The problem is to find interpretations which suggest objectivity, the principal requirement for intellectual honesty, and the principal duty of a free press.
In the case of Ms. Fonda, that problem seems insurmountable.
With Jane Fonda ... nee movie queen, nee pampered child of privilege, media mega-mogul Ted Turner's former spouse, ever a media darling ... one basic truth should be kept in mind:
Ms. Fonda was dubbed by Viet Nam vets with another name. It shouldn't be forgotten how she earned it.
Jane Fonda gave aid and comfort to our enemy, while ordinary American citizens were fighting and dying. She did great emotional injury and injustice to all Viet Nam veterans, and their families.
Far worse, she did great harm to all American citizens, because she helped polarize us against our government, and against each other.
"Truth", is all too often only subjective opinion, even with the best of intentions. The polarization Ms. Fonda helped encourage has gone far beyond expectation of legitimate differences in interpretation, it has led to general distrust. Distrust of those with differing political and religious convictions, of those with differing skin color, of our elected officials.
One positive by-product, it has helped make us aware of the need to always keep in mind the possible bias of those empowered to decide what can be presented to us as fact and significance, in today's current events.
That is the point of this site.
Healing will only come with truth
As with all times of contradictory philosophies surrounded by violence and death, there is much biased opinion, unverified information, and disinformation about the Viet Nam war.
Typical is the portrayal Ms. Fonda made of the idyllic life under Communism, and her attribution of the war as an effort of colonization by a Republican administration and President Nixon.
She, and indeed all of today's Media, uses "McCarthyism" as synonymous with hysterical Red Bashing, and regards the blacklisted Communist Sympathizers of his era as heroic idealists. Ignored is that the Truman administration refused to indict Alger Hiss for treason and instead attempted to crucify Whitaker Chambers, who exposed Hiss as a communist. The USSR's own records show there were countless murders of political opponents in all communist countries. Not least so in South Vietnam after we betrayed and abandoned them.
The facts were always obvious, if ignored by Ms. Fonda:
- It is historical record that our involvement in the Viet Nam war occurred long after North Viet Nam had fully committed to Communist "colonization" of the South.
- It is historical record that a Republican administration refused to enter Vietnam.
- President Eisenhower relied on the judgment of our finest advisors (the Ridgeway Report) rather than political expediency, in deciding that the military requirements for such a war exceeded the probable importance to our National interests.
- It is historical record that our entry into the war, and its total mis-management, was initiated and prosecuted by a Democrat administration, and President Johnson.
- The agony of the Vietnam war was finally ended during a Republican administration, under President Nixon.
- South Vietnam was only defeated, with tens of thousands of subsequent deaths in "Re-education Camps," after the Anti Vietnam movement encouraged a feckless Congress to ignore our promises of logistic support to South Vietnam and, ultimately, betray them.
All these facts have consistently been ignored by Ms. Fonda in her continuing derision of the ordinary Americans who make our country the bulwark of Democracy we are.
Indeed, " Ms. Fonda was dubbed by Viet Nam vets with another name."
Indeed, "It shouldn't be forgotten how she earned it."
Sadly, Ms. Fonda has herself been the target of deliberate untruth. As though her actions were not contemptible enough without embellishment, a number of totally false stories about her have been circulated lately, involving POWs.
The terrible loneliness and vulnerability of those who were captured by an inhumane and alien enemy is self-evident to all. Perhaps for that reason the POWs were selected by some sick person or group to try and magnify the evil of her actions.
To keep an objective awareness of Ms. Fonda's actions, and help fairly evaluate our media, you should attempt to verify personally any pertinent accounts, pro or con.
