Argument without End
In Search of Answers to the Vietnam Tragedy
PublicAffairs,U.S. (Publisher)
Published on 22. April 1999
Book
Hardback
512 pages
978-1-891620-22-5 (ISBN)
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Description
Former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara is the lead author in a remarkable study of how the Vietnam War happened and why it could not be stopped before three million people died.. Did the Vietnam War have to happen? And why couldnt it have ended earlier? These are among the questions that Robert McNamara and his collaborators ask in Argument Without End, a book that will stand as a major contribution to what we know about the Vietnam War. Drawing on a series of meetings that brought together, for the first time ever, senior American and Vietnamese officials who had served during the war, the book looks at the many instances in which one side, or both, made crucial mistakes that led to the war and its duration. Using Vietnamese and Chinese documents, many never before made public, McNamara reveals both American and Vietnamese blunders, and points out ways in which such mistakes can be avoided in the future. He also shows conclusively that war could not be won militarily by the United States. Did the Vietnam War have to happen? And why couldnt it have ended earlier?
These are among the questions that Robert McNamara and his collaborators ask in Argument Without End, a book that will stand as a major contribution to what we know about the Vietnam War. Drawing on a series of meetings that brought together, for the first time ever, senior American and Vietnamese officials who had served during the war, the book looks at the many instances in which one side, or both, made crucial mistakes that led to the war and its duration. Using Vietnamese and Chinese documents, many never before made public, McNamara reveals both American and Vietnamese blunders, and points out ways in which such mistakes can be avoided in the future. He also shows conclusively that war could not be won militarily by the United States. McNamaras last book on Vietnam was one of the most controversial books ever published in this country. This book will reignite the passionate debate about the war, about McNamara, and about the lessons we can take away from the tragedy.
These are among the questions that Robert McNamara and his collaborators ask in Argument Without End, a book that will stand as a major contribution to what we know about the Vietnam War. Drawing on a series of meetings that brought together, for the first time ever, senior American and Vietnamese officials who had served during the war, the book looks at the many instances in which one side, or both, made crucial mistakes that led to the war and its duration. Using Vietnamese and Chinese documents, many never before made public, McNamara reveals both American and Vietnamese blunders, and points out ways in which such mistakes can be avoided in the future. He also shows conclusively that war could not be won militarily by the United States. McNamaras last book on Vietnam was one of the most controversial books ever published in this country. This book will reignite the passionate debate about the war, about McNamara, and about the lessons we can take away from the tragedy.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
maps, ports.
Dimensions
Height: 236 mm
Width: 156 mm
Weight
500 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-891620-22-5 (9781891620225)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions

Herbert Schandler | James Blight | Robert K. Brigham
Argument Without End
In Search of Answers to the Vietnam Tragedy
Book
05/2000
PublicAffairs,U.S.
€24.70
Shipment within 15-20 days