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Tuesday, March 12, 2019

Conditions of the Vietnam War Essay

When chip in a war, the brave soldiers atomic number 18 not sole(prenominal) up against their enemy, but also against the chaotic obstacles born on the battlefield. The constant racket of slaughter, the gut-wrenching weather and the omnipresent fear of death were all elements of war that the soldiers had to coexist with. The odds of walking home after a war be extremely rare and those who were lucky large to survive were unlucky enough to wee had witnessed indescribable scenes of blood and murder. Those who have confronted the wrath of war are left psychologically traumatised and mentally unstable.The fighting conditions during the Vietnam fight were excruciatingly tough. The Australian and American troops were forced to fight in a miscellanea of weathers, including the tropical rains and blazing heat. Fighting in environments and conditions they were not yet attached to, they were drained of their energy and were demanded high levels of endurance. For some soldiers, the dr y season was particularly difficult to fight in. they were required to fight through a shock of dust that penetrated their clothing, filled their pores and worked its way through their eyes and ears, outgrowthing in conjunctivitis and ear infections.One soldier stated, It can be a probe of human endeavour inside a noisy metal boxful all day in forty degree heat, with eighty per centime relative humidity and no one has showered for a week. Soldiers fought with damages to their bodies such as blisters, sunburn and dehydration, making it very difficult to move about and fight to the best of their ability. Other difficulties they faced were the threat of diseases such as malaria and dysentery which is ca employ by lack of sanitation and dehydration. Spiders, poisonous centipedes, snakes and leeches were some of the deadly creatures the soldiers well-tried their hardest to avoid.Proper food and clean water was very difficult to nurse as well. Soldiers ate from hired cans and drank from dirt covered drink bottles. In a land where the ground explodes and it rains bullets, death is inevitable. Soldiers would be knee-deep in massacre and the vicinity would be infested with the body parts of comrade soldiers. warfare does not give time for soldiers to grieve and is constantly tainting the earth in the colour of red.Witnessing the death of a comrade is one thing, but to have to crawl, walk and run knowing that you may die a unappeasable death at any moment is just as distressingly terrifying. Soldiers who survived the Vietnam war were diagnosed with permanent paranoia and insanity. Whilst fighting an enemy on the battlefield, soldiers must at the same time fight fear in their minds.Guerrilla WarfareDuring the Vietnam War, Guerrilla manoeuvre were being put into action. Guerrilla Warfare consisted of small surprise attacks and sand trapes or else of operating in major gunfire battles. Setting up dumbbell-traps and tripwires were the preferable option a s well as digging up change arrangings of thermionic tube tunnels in and around small villages. The Vietcong had the home field advantage, they used the rough terrain, thick forests and uneven landscape to their advantage against the American soldiers as they were unfamiliar to such difficult landforms. The Vietcong used their intelligence and stealth to outgo the Americans and win the war. They did not wear any uniform so the Americans only saw them as villagers with guns.The Vietcong would also hide behind innocent civilians and use them as a shield against their enemy. They would also dig up American land mines and use the explosives as bombs of their own. Hit-and-run attacks were common and very useful in the fight against the Americans. With dangerous deft, the Vietcong would stealthy attack the Americans and leave in the first place risking capture- incorporating the element of surprise. The Vietcong would evasion through a complex network of underground tunnels, oblivi ous to the Americans. At the start of the war, the American soldiers had no idea of the tunnels earth and their unawareness produced great advantage to the Vietcong.The most extensive of the tunnel system laid in the Iron Triangle in the Cu ki distract, which covered approximately 400 kilometres. The Americans highly relied on their helicopters to combat the Vietcongs skilfully hidden death traps. However, the Vietcong turned to heavy machinery as a form of retaliation against the Americans aerial attacks. The Vietcong would set up multiple booby-traps, hidden among the jungle floor of the forests. Majority of the booby-traps were covered in poison and venom which will increase the risk of infection. Some booby traps that were crafted and handmade by the Vietnamese villagers included * The Bear Trap- when stepped on would ferociously clutch ones foot by impaling it with sharp claws* Grenade Traps- a grenade strapped to a tripwire which will instantly explode, leaving no time to es cape when triggered * Bouncing Betty- designed to cut someone in half, when stepped on would result in either paralysis or the complete amputation of a sleeve * Foot Trap- a hole that was dug knee deep and set with stakes coated in poison pointing downwards, making it unescapable * Tiger conflagration/ Punji Spike Pit- a hole approximately 5-6 feet deep, with the bottom covered in piercing, venomous stakes.It also has a grenade lying in await to ambush those who try to escape The fighting conditions in the Vietnam war were inhumane for some(prenominal) parties. Soldiers put their bodies through irritatingly uncomfortable situations and fought in fearsome scenarios, all whilst attempt to keep their limbs intact. Battles arose within battles, whether it be the vicious weather or the staunch fear of death, soldiers endured an admirable amount of physical and mental struggle. The rage of the Vietnam War claimed many courageous lives and defiled the minds of those who were able to w alk away with the extravagance of breath.Bibliography* http//vietnamawbb.weebly.com/guerrilla-warfare-and-war-of-attrition.html * http//history1900s.about.com/od/vietnamwar/a/vietnamwar.htm * http//www.pbs.org/battlefieldvietnam/guerrilla/index.html * http//www.vietnam-war.0catch.com/vietnam_war_nature.htm * http//vietnam-war.commemoration.gov.au/combat/viet-cong-tunnels.php * http//www.securenet.net/3rdbn5th/mike35/booby.htm* http//www.echo23marines6569.org/BoobyTraps.html* http//vietnam-war.commemoration.gov.au/armour/conditions.php * https//session.wikispaces.com/1/auth/auth?authToken=03a2e4971076358d2188756c8108eb2b5

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