Lessons From The Fall Of Saigon By Shoshana Bryen

 

Lessons from the Fall of Saigon by Shoshana Bryen over at American Thinker

 

The 37^th anniversary of the fall of Saigon today is a good time to review the utility of American security promises -- including those purchased with American blood -- to countries fighting ideologically based insurgencies.

 

There were 540,000 Americans in Vietnam at the peak of the U.S. part of the war in January 1969. Precisely four years later, in January 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, and the U.S. promised continuing support to South Vietnam, where nearly 2.6 million Americans had served and more than 58,000 had died. Eight months later, Congress voted to halt all combat operations, and by December, only 50 American military personnel were left in the South.

 

President Nixon resigned in July 1974, and two weeks later Congress reduced aid to South Vietnam by one third. In late December, the North attacked positions in the South. In January 1975, the cross-border invasion began. The North Vietnamese military expected the war to take two years. On 21 January, President Ford told a press conference the U.S. was unwilling to re-enter the war. Three months and nine days later, Saigon fell.

 

Phuoc Long in January; An Loc, Ban Me Thuot, Quang Tri, Tam Ky, Hue, Chu Lai, and Danang in March; Qui Nhon, Tuy Hoa and Nha Trang on April 1; Xuan Loc held out almost two weeks; Saigon was encircled on the 27^th, and three days later, the war was over. For the South Vietnamese, there was much more horror to come as they fell into the clutches of people who despised their beliefs and their way of life -- into the clutches of violent ideological communists. An estimated 1 million people were imprisoned without formal charges, 165,000 died in "re-education camps," and 2 million impoverished and miserable people fled the country.

 

Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/04/lessons_from_the_fall_of_saigon.html#ixzz1tXIdKjUP

What's On That Ship, And Where Is It Going- By Shoshana Bryen

 

What's on That Ship, and Where Is It Going- by Shoshana Bryen over by America Thinker

 

Once more, it is a tough choice between standing with Amnesty International or with the Obama administration. Once more, Amnesty International wins. Ouch.

 

U.S. arms transfers to third parties are regulated by the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), which provides export licenses only in cases that "will strengthen U.S. national security, promote foreign policy goals, or foster world peace. The Arms Export Control Act is administered by the Department of State."

 

Egypt is a major recipient of U.S. military aid and equipment, and to this point the Secretary of State has always certified that arms to Egypt meet the test. In addition, the administration is required to aver that Egypt is meeting its obligations under the peace treaty with Israel, and to this point, it has done so. However, since the overthrow of Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian government has been extremely heavy-handed in its management of internal security -- with American weapons in its arsenal -- and overtly anti-Israel.

 

Enter Amnesty International.

 

Amnesty reported that from December 2011 to February 2012, the Egyptian military and security forces have killed more than 100 mainly peaceful protesters. During that time, the U.S. shipped "349 tons of military and dual use equipment valued at $35 million to the Egyptian Ministry of Defense." According to Amnesty, some U.S.-made tear gas canisters used against protesters in Suez had an August 2011 manufacture date, suggesting that they were part of a recent U.S. shipment of tear gas delivered to Egypt last fall.

 

Read more: http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/04/whats_on_that_ship_and_where_is_it_going.html#ixzz1qmvuDISh