Vietnam: A Negotiated Settlement?
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Authors
Fishel, Wesley R.
Issue Date
1970-12-08
Type
Other
Language
Keywords
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Abstract
BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE|Fishel had been involved in Vietnamese affairs since 1954 when he spent a year there as a consultant on government reorganization. He was Chief of the Michigan State University Vietnam Advisory group in public administration and public safety from 1957-1958. He was also an active participant in the efforts of the American Friends of Vietnam to help keep the American public informed regarding issues there. He obtained his B.S. at North Western University, his A.M. at Michigan University and his Ph.D. at Chicago in 1948. After teaching Political Science at UCLA for three years, he joined MIchigan State University on 1951 and became Chief Advisor, University Vietnam Program, in 1956.
SUMMARY| Fishel speaks from deep personal and academic knowledge of Vietnam history and leaders. He considers the current (1970) Paris diplomatic engagement to be "talks," not negotiation and sees little prospect yet for actual negotiation because participants still think they can gain through military effort. United States has serious internal problems: no administration has systematically informed Congress, news media, and citizens of the nature of the Vietnam conflict. This is because "Washington does not appreciate that the United States can understand the conflict as having more than a single cause." Further, the war should never have been "Americanized,"
SUMMARY| Fishel speaks from deep personal and academic knowledge of Vietnam history and leaders. He considers the current (1970) Paris diplomatic engagement to be "talks," not negotiation and sees little prospect yet for actual negotiation because participants still think they can gain through military effort. United States has serious internal problems: no administration has systematically informed Congress, news media, and citizens of the nature of the Vietnam conflict. This is because "Washington does not appreciate that the United States can understand the conflict as having more than a single cause." Further, the war should never have been "Americanized,"