Word: tet
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...treat it that way, it becomes pretty hard to reverse the trend." To G.I.s, South Vietnamese soldiers were a joke. They were referred to as "gooks," as "them Nugents" (from Nguyen, a popular Vietnamese surname), or as "the little people." A favorite epithet was "Marvin the Arvin." After the Tet offensive of February 1968, however, the sneers began to vanish. ARVN units stood and fought-and in many cases fought well. Last year the South Vietnamese lost 17,466 men, the U.S. 14,592. As American arms reached South Vietnamese units in steadily increasing numbers, the performance of the troops...
...hour period, the enemy launched coordinated attacks against 137 towns and U.S. installations across much of the country. In the sharpest fighting since last February's post-Tet offensive, Communist rockets and mortar shells rained down on Saigon, Hue and Danang. Rested and re-equipped North Vietnamese divisions assaulted American fortifications and important towns in South Viet Nam's central provinces. The most intense attacks were aimed at three vulnerable provinces some 75 miles above Saigon-Tay Ninh, Binh Long and Phuoc Long...
...During the period between October 1968 and February 1969, U.S. casualties were relatively low and there was talk then, as today, of a lull. At the time, U.S. commanders warned that the Communists were preparing for another push. Indeed, the lull ended abruptly-and bloodily-with the Communist post-Tet offensive. This time, however, more seems to be involved. "This lull is not merely one of statistics, but more of gut feeling," reports TIME Correspondent Burton Pines from Saigon. "Some of the highest American military commanders, after citing caveats drawn from previous lulls, will admit that something is now different...
...chief ideologue, Truong Chinh, has been advocating that plan for a long time. - It is Hanoi's intention to lure the allies into reducing patrols and easing general pressure, thus facilitating an unhindered Communist buildup that would culminate in another large offensive such as the 1968 Tet attack that irreparably disillusioned the American public about the war. U.S. commanders still concede the Communists the capability of launching a drive that could easily boost U.S. battle deaths to more than 300 a week. It is precisely for this reason that field commanders have resisted suggestions to lessen pressure...
While White was dashing among the candidates-a day here with Nixon, a day there covering Romney (remember Romney?), with Rockefeller, with Robert Kennedy, even Johnson-the events that ultimately shaped the election were taking place elsewhere. In Viet Nam, the Tet offensive was finally shattering hopes for a clear-cut American military victory. On campuses across the country, a young political amateur named Allard Lowenstein was meticulously organizing a network of students to a force that would decisively help unseat the President and carve a niche in history for Eugene McCarthy. In cities a continent apart, two maimed minds...