A blurb appeared in the Smoky Mountain News on Wednesday announcing a statewide commemoration of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which, according to the article “ended the Vietnam War.” An attempt by Bill Sterrett to contact the person listed in the article only got a woman in the office working the phone. When he explained to her that that resolution began the war, she didn’t understand what the big deal was. Upon investigation of the NC Veterans Affairs office the declaration (posted below this article) was signed by McCrory. It does state the beginning, not the end of the war. When, in God’s name, did people start celebrating the beginning of a war? And this sham especially? I understand the need to recognize the Vietnam vets, those vets treated so horribly for fighting for what their country told them was a defense of our country. But to use this sham resolution, a fraudulent use of coercion to get Congress to allow Lyndon Johnson to use U.S. military power for his own benefit, in order to show Barry Goldwater, who was running against him in the 1964 election, and who called him weak on Communism, that he was not weak on Communism. It has been well documented that what really happened in the Gulf of Tonkin was no more of an attack than three North Vietnam fishing boats being shot at, two being sunk, by a U.S. Destroyer. Then, when that wasn’t sitting well with some in power, they fabricated a second attack. And this is being used as recognition for our vets, those people who caught hell and were shamed the first time around. Is this someone’s idea of a joke? Could John Kerry have his ugly hand in this? I hope no vet dares show up for this idiocy Saturday, the 9th.
http://www.doa.nc.gov/vets/documents/VietnamVeteransRecognitionDay2014.pdf
