A Better War: Creighton Abrams and Vietnam

[USS Utah]

Four years ago I read a book about the Battle of Midway (74th anny today, btw) which completely changed the way the battle was viewed. Ever since I have been using Shattered Sword as an example of why history is never done. I can add another example with Lewis Sorley's A Better War about General Creighton Abram's years in command in Vietnam. Under Abrams, U.S. and South Vietnamese forces actually won the war on the battlefield, only to see that victory given away at the peace table an in Washington D. C. After Tet '68, no one outside of Vietnam could believe the mounting evidence that victory was being achieved -- some seemed to be invested in Vietnam being a lost cause because of their opposition to the war, while others seemed to never recover from the psychological impact of the Tet Offensive. Even today, there are those who argue that Vietnam was an unwinnable war, an argument made easier to sell because the post Westmoreland phase of the war has been all but ignored by historians, journalists and others. A closer look at the four years Abrams was in command demonstrates that the war was winnable, and in fact that it was won, only to have that victory squandered by decisions in Paris and Washington.

I posted some excerpts of Sorley's book at my history group. Here is the link:

http://flattopshistorywarpolitics.yuku.com/topic/3477/master/1/?page=1#.V1NGCyHSN3F