Course Details
973: Vietnam: Echoes and Answers
July 6-8
1:45 PM -
3:15 PM
In-Person
Session One sources the emergence of the Cold War era and the objectives and purposes of the principals engaged in it, with an emphasis on East Asia. Session Two discusses the value system of the West as it tracks U.S. interests and efforts to contain the expansionist efforts of the USSR and the People’s Republic of China in the installation of Leninist-Marxists regimes throughout the region. Session Three tracks the moral aspects of US engagement in Vietnam (going in, being there, getting out), the peace process through to the Peace Agreement of January of 1973, and the subsequent withdrawal of US forces. The class is based on the book ENDURANCE: A Parallel History of the American Experience in Vietnam.
Class Type: Lecture and Discussion
Class Format: In-Person
Hours of Reading: Reading prior to first session (See Description.)
Study Group Leader(s):
Paul BelfordPaul Belford earned a BA from Boston College and an MA in economics from Fordham University. He served in the CIA’s Office of Economic Research and later as Financial Attache at the US Embassy in Saigon with the Treasury Department. He held positions at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association before founding the Association Executive Resources Group and later leading executive searches at JDG Associates. His publications include The Swampoodle Trilogy, Saigon Passage, Association CEO Handbook, and Notes from a Passage. Guest speakers include David Passage, retired US Ambassador and career foreign service officer; Bernard Casey, former US Army JAG in Vietnam; and George Chaconas, former US Marine officer in Vietnam.
Reading List:
ENDURANCE - A Parallel History of the American Experience in Vietnam - the Why, the How, and the What of it All: Echoes and Answers (Paul Belford) | 2025: Whitich Press | ISBN: 979-8218941710 | Required