What was the reason behind the Vietnam war?

You really have to understand the post WWII historical situation. We were in the "Cold War Era" in that the Soviet Union was a Communist nuclear power seemingly dead set on spreading their influence and control throughout the world. Krushchev had remarked that the USSR would bury the USA and never fire a shot.At the time, our military philosphy was built around two theories, "The Rimland Theory" and "The Domino Theory".

In the case of the Domino Theory, it was believed that if one nation in an area fell to communism, the surrounding countries would follow suite. Under the Rimland Theory, the thinking was that the country who controlled the largest amount of warm water seacoast lines would ultimately control the continent. Both theories came into play in Vietnam as other countries in the region had already fallen to communism.

In many ways, the conflict was a civil war between factions of the north and south of Vietnam. We teamed with the south to stave off the communists takeover of the north. Unfortunately, as the war progressed our philosphy was more and more guided by LBJ's fear of both China and the USSR in terms of escalation and retaliation.

On the one hand he cried over the dead boys on television; on the other hand he did not have the stomach or the balls to do anything about it. WB.

To stop the communist ideology from spreading to the whole of South East Asia. But the activists, leftists and other Anti-Americans blamed the grand design of conquest by Uncle Sam. In the contrary, my Vietnamese friend blamed the communist north or Vietcong( V.C.), USSR and China for the Vietnam War.

I'm not American and I don't know what they say there for Americans, but what I believe is that Vietnam was just one of many places where Americans were sent to fight against communism. Against Soviet Union to be exact. The same was about Korea and Afghanistan.

But that's just my opinion, and i' not telling this is the only answer. :).

During the Cold War American politicians came to believe in a doctrine known as the 'domino' theory. This doctrine argued that communism would spread from one country to another unless checked- and with China going Red in 1949 countries bordering China were seen as vulnerable.

Through the 1950s, Communists made gains in Laos and North Vietnam leaving the US with what policy-makers thought of as a need to prop up other countries.

When S Vietnam appeared on the brink despite massive American aid US troops increasingly had to pick up the slack.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.