Ground troops and bombing

Discuss the situation which led the United States to send ground troops to South Vietnam. Also discuss the theory behind the American decision to make continual bombing runs over North Vietnam after February 1965. In each case, what did American leaders hope to accomplish? In particular, what impact did each of these actions have on the conflict? 

Leadership and Policy

Discuss the significance of leadership decisions and changes in leadership in the U.S. and Vietnam. In particular, what impact did the changes from JFK to LBJ and Ngo Dinh Diem to the series of generals have on the conflict? Also, discuss the significance of the incident in the Gulf of Tonkin and it's repercussions on the conflict. In particular, what impact did it have on North and South Vietnam?

After Tet
This week's question involves one very big question to discuss.

How did the Tet Offensive and its aftermath affect American politics, society, and the military and diplomatic course of the war in Vietnam?

Entire books have been written on this single event that occurred during the war. I do not want you to attempt to replicate that level of detail in this forum, especially in a single post. But I do want you and your group members to address each of the four areas (politics, society, military, diplomacy). When addressing these four issues, don’t jumble all of your ideas together in a single post. Be sure you address each in separate/individual posts. Use a descriptive subject lines, such as "Effect on Politics", "Societal Influences", "Military Policy", or "Diplomatic Results". These will make it much easier for your classmates to respond and it will keep the online discussions clearer and easier to follow.