Part 1

            The story that had the greatest impact and caught my attention was the story about Phan Xuan Sinh. This story caught my attention because it made me think of all the casualties that there was during the Vietnam War. So many were lost who were just bystanders. One example from the story that was extremely sad was when they were getting ready to ambush the Viet Cong boats coming in that night. That night, they could not see very well because of how dark it was. When they started to see boats coming in, what they thought they saw was a full company of Viet Cong. Instead, they were firing on a large group of fishermen. I believe what this speaker has to say, because these things happen during a time of war, and it is extremely sad. Just think back to when we bombed Japan during World War Two. We killed a lot of civilians. Also, I cannot imagine forgetting a story like that. I think a lot of the veterans in the Vietnam War have credible stories. Like I mentioned, when you see something so graphic and horrible, it is hard to forget it. I think with some stories, some of the details may have been forgotten, although, the main points of the story will most likely still be there.

Part 2

            The story I thought was the most disappointing was the story about Malcolm Browne. One part of the story that really made me disappointed, was when in ’61 Malcolm went to Bien Hoa to have a look at the airfields. He would see two-seated T-28s fully racked with bombs leaving, and then they would come back with the racks empty. Along with that, it wasn’t even the Vietnamese in the back seat. There would be an American in the front driving the plane. At that time, American’s were only supposed to be helping advice the Vietnamese and train them. They were not to shoot or attack the Viet Cong, unless they were shooting in self-defense. This made me disappointed in how the American’s were acting. They were told to do one thing, and then going ahead and doing another. Not to mention, when Malcolm reported this incident, he was threatened with expulsion. Another part of the story that caught my attention was how the South Vietnamese treated the monks. Diem would not even fly the Buddhist flag. They were upset that Diem was only allowing the catholic ways, and not even considering the Buddhist way of living. The Buddhist protested in the streets and had demonstrations. Some were even killed. One death from a Buddhist really caught my attention. The monk Quang Duc was in the streets and burned to death. He just sat in the middle of the road. I got the impression that the monks just wanted to stop being ignored. The fact that it took this big incident to get some attention really disappointed me.

            I believe after reading these stories, that there is some good in people. I think that we can all learn from these stories that things are going to be kept secret. Or, at least they will try to be kept secret. Some things just should not be secret. For example, the fact that in the Malcolm story he tried to report the bombings by the Americans. He tried to show everyone how the monks were being treated and wanted someone to listen to them. This shows that there is still some good in people and compassion for the human race. Another example would be how Ngo Vinh Long explained how he saw how wrong things were being done in the Diem government. He made maps and traveled through the country with a small army. Traveling really opened his eyes to the horrors that were going on. Heads were being chopped off and put on steaks like in the middle ages. He was disgusted. It is relieving to know that the people in these stories realized how things were going. It is nice to know that they saw and did not agree with the treatment of the people. Knowing this, helps me believe that there is still some good in people.