Thanks to those readers who persevered and read my new script on the Cold War and 9/11. And special thanks to those readers who took issue with some of the facts and interpretations. More than one reader thought I did not give enough attention to the Vietnam War and its negative effects. One friend and fellow graduate was upset about my critical remarks about Antioch College. Still another reader was critical of my praise of Ronald Reagan. And my son Andrew felt that the 70/90 sale might make people think we were going out of business!
One Vietnam critic insisted that “right-wing ideologues” like Ronald Reagan were behind the tragic losses in Vietnam. I pointed out that it was actually left-of-center presidents like Jack Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson who got us into the Vietnam War and that for the first few years of the war the vast majority of Congress and the majority of the American public were supportive of the war.
I am working on an expansion of this script which I hope to publish as a book. I point out there important differences between the two hot wars–Korea and Vietnam.
Even though the Korean “police action” ended in a military stalemate, the stalemate was a significant victory for South Korea and a nearly total disaster for North Korea. In North Korea, for instance, (one of only two Marxist-Leninist communist countries in the 21st century, the other is Cuba) up to 2 million people died of starvation in the 1990s. That was out of a total population of 22 million. The life of the survivors was, in the words of one survivor, “worse than a pig’s life in China.” Life expectancy in North Korea today is 48 years while in South Korea it is 71 years. The GDP per capita is $900 in North Korea, $13,700 in South Korea. So no, our “police action” was not in vain and the loss of 50,000 troops in Korea was tragic but, as in WW2, no one died in vain.
Vietnam was different. It was a humiliating defeat for the United States and left a bitter legacy that has still not completely dissipated in 21st century America. Unlike the Korean War which eventually laid the foundation for prosperity in South Korea, the Vietnam defeat laid foundations instead for tragic times in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. Over a million Vietnamese were sent to harsh “re-education camps” where thousands perished; hundreds of thousands of refugees fled Vietnam in small boats, many thousands dying in the attempt; hundreds of thousands of Hmong people were persecuted by communist governments in Laos and Vietnam, some escaping to become immigrants in the U.S.; and most tragic of all, a holocaust came to Cambodia when over 2 million Cambodians died at the hands of fanatic Khmer Rouge communists led by the madman Pol Pot.
Only now in the 21st century are Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos beginning to recover economically. Like China, these southeastern Asian countries, after suffering through many decades of poverty are belatedly but slowly and surely moving from the command-economy of communist days to a modified free-market capitalist economy. As with China, it remains to be seen whether they will also move in democratic political directions and treat their own citizens with more respect.
As for Antioch, I stand by my report that in my days it was a stimulating wonderful place. As it moved sharply leftward in the late 20th century it lost most of its students and most of its financial backers. I am sad about that and hope it can recover and begin again to reconstitute itself as the stimulating wonderful place I knew.
As for Ronald Reagan I admit that it is an exaggeration to claim he “won the cold war.” I make no such a claim. If any one person deserves this credit it has to be Mikhail Gorbachev. In the end, as I do say in my script, it was the internal contradictions in the Marxist-Leninist camp that eventually caused their downfall.
Finally as to my son’s remark – definitely no. We are not going out of business at Hawkhill. Like many other large and small media producers I admit these are tough times and business is slow. I also realize that school budgets are hurting world-wide and the funds available for media purchases are slim. These hard facts led to our new 2010 Hawkhill sale where we offer a 70% discount on all DVDs and a 90% discount on all VHS video tapes. We are trying to liquidate our VHS inventory but not the DVD one. In fact we are expanding our DVD production with new programs that have received strongly positive reviews in national publications like the one reprinted below from School Library Journal.
Capitalism and Democracy (Democracy: The Basics Series). DVD. 50 min with tchr’s. guide, quiz. Hawkhill Assocs. 2008, 2009 release. ISBN 1-55979-222-1. $109. (70% discounted in 2010 sale)
Gr 9 Up—While many individuals may assume that capitalism and democracy are only possible when mated with each other, this well-crafted program presents a comprehensive examination of the relationship between the two theories. Consisting of two distinct divisions, the nicely paced and superbly narrated film reviews the historical development of both the economic theory of capitalism and the governmental concept of democracy and explains how capitalism and democracy are connected today. The historical account begins at the earliest stages of human society and smoothly progresses to today’s complex world with hints at what might occur in the future throughout the world. A rich variety of artwork, video, and photographs help illustrate the connections between capitalism and democracy and enhance the impact of the presentation. New terms are subtitled as they are introduced. There are two interactive review tools for post-viewing use. The guided questions option reviews key points to generate discussion, while the mastery quizzes focus on essential topics and themes from the program. While most teachers will find these assessment devices lacking in substance, their inclusion is a nice bonus. A valuable resource.—Dwain Thomas, formerly Lake Park High School, Roselle, IL
Bill Stonebarger, Owner/President Hawkhill
P.S. Please check out our web site: www.hawkhill.com for over 100 up-to-date DVD programs in science and social studies. You won‘t be sorry. I guarantee it.