Re: The War on Drugs

EDWARD P. MORGAN (epm2@Lehigh.EDU)
Wed, 24 Jan 1996 09:46:08 -0500

I think this is from drieux...
> I will not debate the effectiveness of meditation on ending
>the war, since clearly the other efforts were about as effective.

It certainly FELT like antiwar activism wasn't having much or any effect on
ending the war, but you can sure argue that the antiwar movement (along with
Vietnamese resistance, etc.) created the climate that (a) constrained
Washington in various ways, (b) shaped the Govt. debate by 1968 to the end of
getting the U.S. OUT, (c) helped LBJ see the light in March 1968, (d)
plagued & harassed the Nixon administration with a multitude of outcomes
(including Watergate & the downfall of the Trickster himself), (e) created a
wellspring of public opinion that subsequent administrations liked to call the
Vietnam Syndrome which helped to prevent a U.S. invasion of Central America,
among other things.... etc. Check Tom Wells' recent book for the impact on
consecutive administration's thinking.

At least there's some hard evidence here that we CAN debate, whereas with
meditation, uh....

So, drieux, I'd be interested in your response to my earlier post re. U.S.
invading Vietnam, bombing So. Vietnam, and other historical "inaccuracies."

Ted Morgan