Nixon wanted to drop a nuclear bomb on N. Vietnam?

[Dis]

that wouldn't have been good. Apparently that is what he discussed with Kissinger.

[Gatekeeper]

Dissident, et al.:

Good God. And just when I was beginning to have a few "warm, nostalgic" thoughts about the man. It's a good thing Henry Kissinger dissuaded Nixon from using nuclear weapons, but it isn't going to do much for the permafrost I'm starting to grow again in regards to Nixon.

CYBERAmazon

[Urban Ranger]

It seems that the possibilities of the US using themonuclear devices were discussed internally whenever the US is involved in a conflict.

Were there some talks about the US using a nuclear weapon in Afghanistan?

[Provost Harrison]

...and Iraq, and Korea, and the early days of the Cold War before the USSR had means of retaliation, and Afghanistan...

Good job those fingers weren't any closer to the red button or had nuclear weapons earlier...we could all be glowing toast by now

[Goingonit]

WTF? Are you serioous?

I though that was Truman in Korea, but Nixon too...

There would have been no world left.

EDIT: I just saw this on the front page of the paper.

[Tolls]

It was Macarthur in Korea wasn't it?
I thought Truman said "no"...

Anyway, that's what the rest of the Presidents advisers are there for...to tell him not to be an idiot. Works the same over here for PMs...Churchill was told not to be an idiot over his idea to gas German cities.



Though of course any mention of Henry Kissinger causes this to go through my head:

Henry Kissinger
How I'm missing yer
You're the Doctor of my dreams
with your crinkly hair
and your glassy stare
and your Machiavellian schemes
I know they say that you are very vain
and short and fat and pushy
but at least you're not insane
Henry Kissinger
How I'm missing yer
and wishing you were here

Henry Kissinger
how I'm missing yer
you're so chubby and so neat
with your funny clothes
and your squishy nose
you're like a German par-a-keet
alright so people say that you don't care
but you've got nicer legs than Hitler
and bigger tits than Cher
Henry Kissinger
How I'm missing yer
and wishing you were here

[Giancarlo]

The US would of won the war in Vietnam for sure, but would of sparked a nuclear war with the Soviet Union.

[Provost Harrison]

Yeah, I got the impression that it was Macarthur who was generally keen on using nuclear weapons but was declined by Truman; in the early days of the cold war and Korea, but it is well known that this man is a complete and utter warmonger.

[KrazyHorse]

Yup. Truman sent MacArthur packing over that and related issues. MacArthur was like a sovereign state unto himself, until Truman reined him in a bit.

[Sikander]

I heard the actual exchange on television last night. It went something like this:

Nixon: I'd rather drop the bomb on them. How would you feel about dropping the bomb on North Vietnam?

Kissinger: Mr. President, I feel that would be a vast overreaction.

Nixon: I'm just trying to get you to think big Henry.


Nixon was not seriously contemplating using nuclear weapons, but he was trying to give Kissinger some ammunition to use while persuing the peace talks with North Vietnamese, which dragged on for a very long time. Eventually Nixon started a massive bombing campaign in the North and invaded Cambodia and got the North Vietnamese to agree to a peace treaty, which they violated very quickly. In 1972 they tried a massive attack and Nixon crushed it with massive air strikes.

[Lancer]

Kennedy was considering sending in the marines to support the Bay of Pigs operation. Castro had a nuke ready in case the US invaded. He would have nuked the invasion area, possibly starting WW3.

[blackice]

Originally posted by Provost Harrison
...and Iraq, and Korea, and the early days of the Cold War before the USSR had means of retaliation, and Afghanistan...

Good job those fingers weren't any closer to the red button or had nuclear weapons earlier...we could all be glowing toast by now

http://msnbc.com/news/717299.asp?pne=msn

Feb. 28 — Preliminary research shows that 15,000 cancer deaths in the United States might have been caused by radioactive fallout from Cold War nuclear weapons testing, according to a progress report on a long-delayed government study. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, released part of the report Thursday as activists accused the government of deliberately stalling and demanded congressional hearings into the matter.

Maybe this reality is what stopped them...

[KrazyHorse]

Kennedy was considering sending in the marines to support the Bay of Pigs operation. Castro had a nuke ready in case the US invaded. He would have nuked the invasion area, possibly starting WW3

I've never heard that before. The missile crisis was a year after the bay of pigs. Where did castro get a nuke?

[Giancarlo]

Originally posted by Sikander
I heard the actual exchange on television last night. It went something like this:

Nixon: I'd rather drop the bomb on them. How would you feel about dropping the bomb on North Vietnam?

Kissinger: Mr. President, I feel that would be a vast overreaction.

Nixon: I'm just trying to get you to think big Henry.[/b]

Yeah that isn't being serious... Truman on the other hand did a lot of thinking when dropping the Bomb on Japan.... "big Henry"? :LOL:

Eventually Nixon started a massive bombing campaign in the North and invaded Cambodia and got the North Vietnamese to agree to a peace treaty, which they violated very quickly. In 1972 they tried a massive attack and Nixon crushed it with massive air strikes.

That is true. The North Vietnamese were so fast violating it... and did not follow what Nixon said in an address: "We will let the South Vietnamese decide for themselves". Saigon fell in 1975.

I got a lot of respect for Nixon, and I think he truely was sorry for mistakes he made. I can see why he past away from a stroke in 1994.

[our_man]

~~~