How Do We Know Which To Trust
One of the main things that captured my attention was the series of events that take place one after another. The contrast between American Pride and Vietnamese Destruction. A question I cant help ask myself is, Can Americans feel proud of where they come from and their military if such destruction is happening in a country we are responsible for "helping"? Watching this video honestly baffled me. At one point a solider was sitting and speaking to a group of mothers about how they are responsible for teaching their CHILDREN not to care about Vietnamese people. Another man, was quoted saying "the action he is taking is the action one would expect from the president." REALLY? The president is expected to start a War while devastates a country with out reason to constitute his actions? That interesting. The images were just graphic all around, we were able to see bombs being dropped and the effects it had on the Vietnamese people. At one point in the filmed it showed a women trying to throw herself into the grave of a deceased Vietnamese solider. Surrounding her were children holding pictures of whom I presume to be their fathers. It was sad as a whole.
The way the images were placed created a flow. The football scenes for instance served a purpose to show that after a while the war was continued for one purpose. To prove that the United States was number one. "This is no longer about the football game, this is about showing those suckers they can not win." That is exactly how the United States viewed the war after a while. It was no longer about aiding the Vietnamese people, it was about showing them they could not win. They was a scene at the brothel, which honestly caught me off guard. I didn’t really understand it's place meant at first, but as they video went on I made the connection. The government officials and American soldiers spoke of how "uncivil" and disgusting the Vietnamese people were but when it came to their entertain and pleasure these people were used to their advantage. These uncivil and disgusting women were suitable to serve American soldiers.
Hi Celeste - Yes, I was really struck by that scene with the mothers as well. He says something like, whatever values I have are the ones you gave me. I think it's the filmmaker's way of saying that all of us who were part of this culture are part of what we did in Vietnam even if we weren't there. Sadly, it's very possible to love your children and teach them to love their country without making the connection that the people they're fighting are also some mother's child.
ReplyDeleteI'm curious about what you say about the brothel. Do you think we're meant to see the women in the brothel as 'uncivil and disgusting'?