No wars are so furious and bloody, or of so long continuance, as those occasioned by difference in opinion, especially if it be in things indifferent. The friend-like skill we display in the invention of all manner of death-dealing engines, the vindictiveness with which we carry on our wars, and the misery and desolation that follow in their train, are enough of themselves to distinguish most humans as the most ferocious animal on the face of the Earth. Warfare, it has the ability to dramatically alter the lives of people for many generations. War is usually a long-term armed conflict amongst politically organized groups, which results in extensive violence, traumatic injuries, and substantial fatalities.

Although war usually involves two different nations, sometimes conflicts arise between to different political or religious groups in the same country.  Conflicts arise because of overpopulation, land, inequality, limited resources or emotions. Prior to the 16th century, combats were typically small, they did not consist of more than 50,000 people and they did not last for a long.  However, because of new technology developed in the 19th and 20th centuries, which include nuclear weapons, machine guns, mass transportation and superior communication devices, war now drag on years, and even decades.  The Vietnam War is an example of a long lasting conflict.

The Vietnam War began in 1954 and ended in 1975. It took place in Vietnam, which is located in Southeast Asia.  This conflict was caused by the Geneva Accords, which split the country into two parts. Ho Chi Minh ruled the communist north and Ngo Dinh Diem was the leader of the south. Ho Chi Minh wanted to unify the country under communist leadership.  Nevertheless, the United States was determined to stop the spread of communism. The U.S. trained the Army of the Republic of Vietnam and provided military advisors to help rebuff Ho Chi Minh’s efforts of unifying Vietnam under communistic dictatorship. The summer of August 1964, a U.S. defense ship was attacked by Ho Chi Minh’s army, which led to deployment of U.S. troops, and March 2, 1965, U.S. aircrafts started bombing targets in North Vietnam.  

Because Vietnam is a tropical country, with dense vegetation, it was like fighting a war in the jungle. To make matters worse, Ho Chi Minh’s troops, the Viet Cong, knew the land of Vietnam; they would set traps for the Americans, sneak up on them and kill them, then duck into an underground escape tunnel and get away. Americans realized that if they were going to have a chance of winning the war, they would need to level the battle ground by killing the vegetation. From 1961 and 1972, Agent Orange was a herbicide that was used, it burned the leaves off of trees and caused the vegetation to die. However, many soldiers were also sprayed by this toxic Agent Orange.  The battle raged on for a few more years, and on April 30, 1975, South Vietnam eventually surrendered and the country of Vietnam was reunited under communist rule.  About 58,156 Americans lost their lives during that war, and 3.8 million Vietnamese perished. After U.S. troops returned from Vietnam, many of them had to fight a war of a different kind, and so did their families.

The side effects of Agent Orange afflicted several veterans with extensive health problems; countless Veterans suffered from neurological disorders, loss or burning of eye sight, constipation, violent vomiting and general loss of sensation. Others came down with intestinal problems, hepatitis or inflammation of the liver, ulcers, gastric hyperplasia. Skin problems were also reported. Increased sensitivity to heat and sunlight, hair loss, nails that fell off, changes in skin color and rashes. Numerous veterans developed other side effects including, Parkinson’s disease, heart disease, hypertension, hemorrhages, and cancer. Some veterans were even told that they would only have a few years to live, and that they would never be able to have children. But the buck did not stop there.  One of the most unfortunate side effects is Vietnam veterans passed on birth defects to their children, who would have otherwise been born health. The children of Vietnam veterans were often born with enlarged heads, abnormal livers, cleft palate, abnormal or missing digits, missing body parts or organs and Spina Bifida.   Spina bifida, meaning ‘cleft spine’, is a birth defect characterized by malformation of brain, spinal cord and their coverings. This is perhaps one of the most common neural tube disorders in the US. This disorder occurs when the fetus does not develop the spinal column properly. The occurrence of spina bifida ranges from 1 to 10 per 10,000 births. 30 percent of children with Spina Bifida die, when they are children and 10 percent do not make it past the age of 35.

It is clear to see that the impact of war has consequences, which can last many generations, and countless lives can be lost. War can also cause major changes to the environment, which could make some areas uninhabitable.  When people sign up to defend their country, they do so because they care, they want to protect freedom, and because they want to provide a future for their families. Wars are very serious, and maybe one day we will all be able to live in peace.  Through conflict resolution, maybe society will learn to work together. No matter what, someone will always lose a war, but the unborn should not have to spend the rest of their lives suffering.  Sometimes these disabilities, in the offspring, of Vietnam veterans cannot be seen, and they try to live “normal” lives, but just imagine how hard it is to live a normal life when one’s body does not function the same as everyone else’s, yet they are still held to the same standards. Many of them may even be ashamed that they are disabled and it is not their fault, but society is very judgmental of those who are different or work at a different capacity. It is not funny that people are hurt or born hurt. A mind which has once been opened by knowledge can ill endure the contraction of dark and perpetual ignorance.