Second world war

The War in Europe started out in September 1939, when Nazi Germany under Adolf Hitler invaded Poland. Applying blitzkrieg tactics the country was quickly overtaken. The world was shocked. The uk and France responded by declaring war on Indonesia, but took little action This became known as the Phony War. But in 1940, German offensives swiftly defeated Denmark, Norway, Athens, the Netherlands and France The British Army Meanwhile was on the retreat being evacuated from Dunkirk Britain only was attacked by Australia during the battle of Britain and the Blitz however the Luftwaffe failed to defeat the RAF In 06, 1941, Hitler invaded Russian federation under the Codename Procedure Barbarossa. in December 1941 the Japanese attacked Gem Harbor Bringing the USA into the war Germany Italy and Japan Formed the axis powers While Britain Russia and the USA made-up the major combatants on the allied side In 1942, the Nazis implemented their last solution a plan to exterminate all Jewish people Critical battles followed that would considerably replace the course of the war These were midway in the Pacific cycles theatre June 1942El Alamein in Egypt, November 1942Stalingrad in Russia January 1943on June 6th1944 D-Day The Allies launched procedure overlord invading Normandy France The red Military services Advanced in the East and was the first to reach the A language like German capital of Berlin Germany Surrendered in May 1945 right after Adolf Hitler Committed suicide On 6th of August 1945 the Americans dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima Japan Surrendered on V-J day15 August 1945the war was overWW2 lasted from 1939 - 1945 and remains the most geographically popular military conflict the world has ever seen.

Newspapers During the Civil War

Newspapers During the Civil War
By Steven Chabotte
It's hard to imagine a time before television news and radio news, not to mention news on the Internet, but during the Civil War, citizens had to rely on two major sources of news - word of mouth and newspapers.
Although word of mouth was the most expedient source of news about the war, newspapers provided citizens and soldiers alike with the most detailed accounts of war that that had ever been published in America or in any other country for that matter. New printing technologies allowed newspapers and magazines alike to publish another new technology - photographs. The advent of the telegraph made news from the front lines of the war available to the press room in minutes rather than days or weeks. Newspapers provided a tangible account of a war that developed by the day.
By the time the Civil War began in 1860, newspapers had expanded from the large cities in the northeast to almost all major cities throughout the United States, and even into some smaller towns, where an enterprising publisher could set up a press.
However, at the outset of the war, most newspapers were still yet unequipped to cover the war. Not only was the Civil War one of the most geographically large wars fought to the time, but the sheer numbers of those involved made the task mind-boggling. Although most of the larger papers, such as The New York Herald, The New York Times and Harper's Weekly had Washington correspondents, few had ever employed correspondents for the wide expanse of country the war encompassed. Thus a new position in the American newspaper office was born - the war correspondent.
War correspondents were sent out to the front lines, along with special artists, who until photographs became widely used toward the end of the war, sketched the action. These brave writers and artists experienced the same harsh conditions of life in a military camp as the soldiers did.
The ability of newspapers to get information from the front lines was often troubling for officers and others in positions of authority during the war. At various times, newspapers were censored for fear that the news they reported would be used by the enemy to advance their cause. This was more a problem in the North than in the South for obvious reasons - the South had had fewer major newspapers before the war, and blockades had resulted in such a shortage of paper, ink, and other supplies necessary that many papers shut down, never to reopen. But in the North, the threat of the press was taken in hand; Lincoln himself feared the repercussions of newspapers that were either opposed to the war or sympathetic to the Confederate cause, and suppressed many of these papers.
But Lincoln's courting of editors that supported his cause sometimes came back to haunt him, as is the case of his supporter Horace Greeley, of the New York Tribune, whom, in an effort to stir up support for the Union, undoubtedly contributed to the battles at Bull Run, which were both notorious losses for the Federal Army.
By far the most popular newspaper during the Civil War era was Harper's Weekly. Harper's was one of the more even-handed newspapers, due mostly to its popularity in the South. Although the paper supported Lincoln and the Union, it still reported with disinterest, and remained a mainstay of the Southern household during the war.
Aside from its impartiality, Harper's circulation of more than 200,000 during the Civil War era is attributable to the fact that the paper employed some of the most distinguished writers and artists of the time. Political cartoonist Thomas Nast was a mainstay of Harper's, as was artist Winslow Homer. Other notable artists who contributed to Harper's during the Civil War era include Theodore R. Davis, Henry Mosler, and the brothers Alfred Waud and William Waud.
Newspapers were the most reliable source of news during Civil War America. While newspapers served the citizens of the time well, they are also an invaluable resource for historians who study the war, providing insight not only into the actions of the war, but into the popular opinion of the war, as well.
Are you a fan of the American Civil War?
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Types of War

By Xaeema Eckbaull
War has been defined in various ways. For present purposes, we may define was as sustained intergruop violence in which state military forces participate on at least one side or on both sides in the case of interstate war and generally on only one side is the case of civil war. In a world of standing military forces it is hard to say exactly where peace ends and war begins. A military battle that is not sustained over time may or may not be considered a war. The brief Chinese-Soviet border clashes in March and July 1969, for example, entailed several small battles at a few points along the border, in which some hundreds of people were killed. Similarly ambigous is a long term violent struggle involving irregular forces, such as in Northern Ireland. There, uniformed British military forces waged a sustained violent struggle with a non state army, the Irish Republican Army (IRA), until a cease-fire that has held on and off since 1995.
Thus, many different activities are covered by the general term war. Consequently, it is not easy to say how many wars are going on in the world at the moment. Wars are very diverse. Several types of war tend to arise from different situations and play different sorts of roles in bargaining over conflicts. Starting from the largest wars, we may distinguish the following main categories.
Hegemonic War is a war over control of the entire world order - the rules of the international system as a whole, including the role of world hegemony. This class of wars is also known as global war, world war, general war or systemic war. The last hegemonic war was World War II.
Total War is warfare by one state waged to conquer and occupy another. The goal is to reach the capital city and force the surrender of the government, which can then be replaced with one of the victor's choosing. The 2003 Iraq War is a classic case. Napoleonic Wars, which introduced large-scale conscription and geared the entire French International economy toward the war effort. In total war, the entire society mobilized for the struggle, the entire society of the enemy is considered a legitimate target.
Limited War includes military actions carried out to gain some objective short of the surrender and occupation of the enemy. For instance, the U.S led war against Iraq in 1991 retook the territory of Kuwait but did not go on to Baghdad to topple Saddam Hussain's government. Many border wars have this character; after occupying the land it wants,a state may stop short and defend its gains.
Civil War refers to war between factions within a state trying to create, or prevent, a new government for the entire state or some territorial part of it. The U.S Civil War of the 1860's is a good example of a secessionist civil war.
Guerrilla War which includes certain kinds of civil wars is a warfare without front lines. Irregular forces operate in the midst of and often hidden or protected by, civilian populations. The purpose is not to directly confront an enemy army but rather to harass and punish it so as to gradually limit its operation and effectively liberate territory from its control.
In short, Wars are constantly taking place between states as well as in the states since the inception of history itself. It will remain till the world exists because of various desires of individuals and state-actors as well.
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Interview With Don Meyer, Author of "The American War"

Interview With Don Meyer, Author of "The American War"
By Tyler Tichelaar
Tyler: Welcome, Don. I have a lot of questions for you about writing "The American War" so I'm anxious to talk to you. First, will you tell our readers why you chose that title?
Don: Well, first of all you should know that in Vietnam, that war is referred to as "The American War." When you add in the references to the Civil War, "our American war," I thought that the title worked well for the overall theme of the book.
Tyler: Don, will you briefly summarize your role in the war for us so we have some understanding of your background in approaching writing the novel?
Don: I was a grunt, a "ground pounder" very much like the character(s) in the book. Our mission was to patrol the jungles, search and destroy the enemy, or their supplies, or both. I was very much in tune with my character(s) and to use a clich�, I wrote what I knew.
Tyler: Before you wrote "The American War," you wrote your memoir "The Protected Will Never Know." What made you decide to write your memoir? Was it cathartic for you?
Don: The Vietnam memoir was actually written back in 1977-on an old Black Royal Manual Typewriter! Starting from a short story I did in a college English class, I had the basis for the idea. In addition, I had a bunch of letters home, notes I salvaged, and of course, my memories that were still fresh, and very raw. It was very emotional to get that all out... and down on paper. From all that material, I started to compile those pieces into what would become a working manuscript. However, as the '70s came to a close, everyone was done with Vietnam and all the publishers and agents that I sent the manuscript to decided to reject it. I threw that manuscript into a box and forgot about it. Quite a few years later, my daughter found that manuscript and took it to school for a show and tell, and even though I was through with all that, she nagged me to "get it out there," which I finally did about ten years ago. It was quite interesting to revisit that work so many years later.
Tyler: Do you feel like people are now no longer "past" Vietnam as you said but ready to revisit it? Do you feel the view of it has changed a lot since the 1970s?
Don: Truthfully, I think it is old news, occasionally mentioned when there is an event of some sort. Sure we may have more recognition than we did back then and I'm certainly glad that has translated into better recognition for our current soldiers, but at the end of the day, for most people, it is just a time and place in history. I think you also have to look at the events of the day-not only was there an unpopular war raging, but the county was racked with violence in protest. For many there are lingering wounds, both physically and emotionally, that is best left alone.
Tyler: I've read several Vietnam memoirs, but not many Vietnam War novels-admittedly because of the angst and violence that I would rather not think about. After being in the war and writing a memoir about it, what made you decide to revisit the topic again in "The American War"?
Don: As I tell people: "I went back to Vietnam for this one." Actually the original thought was always about the two wars. I was looking for a way to connect the two in a comprehensible story. As I continued my research and started making notes, things kept falling into place and I felt strongly that I was on to something. I don't think I ever focused on this being about Vietnam so much as being about a soldier caught up in war. Vietnam was familiar and gave me a basis to work from.
Tyler: Why did you decide to tie the Civil War into the novel? Did you always have an interest in it, and why that war rather than another?
Don: From the very beginning, I wanted to use the Civil War, again because I always saw the similarities between the two wars; everywhere I looked, I found parallels between the two and I thought I could use that premise. I didn't initially have a focus as to where I was going and particularly what I was going to do. However, once I came across a Civil War battle that virtually mirrored a Vietnam battle... or actually vice versa, I knew I had it. Putting together my initial outline just seemed to take off, and once I started putting together scenes, characters and events, it just flowed out of me.
Tyler: Since you were in Vietnam, did you find you didn't have to do much research for those scenes in the book? I imagine you did more research on the Civil War sections?
Don: Actually I did, because, while I knew the "grunt's life," I wanted to make sure I portrayed the events as accurately as possible, so I wound up doing quite a bit of research on the time and place leading up to that specific battle. [A note here, I joined that very unit portrayed in the book in late 1969.] Of course, I did quite a bit of research on the Civil War, but once I found that particular Civil War battle, I dug into that and tried to keep that as accurate as possible. As far as the characters... well a soldier is a soldier regardless of what war he was in.
Tyler: Without giving too much away, can you tell us how you tied the two wars together in the novel?
Don: My character Sam Kensington has these vivid dreams that he is a Union Blue Coat soldier about to embark on a major battle all while he is actually in Vietnam fighting that war...
Tyler: Sam's comrades in Vietnam keep asking him if he had relatives in the Civil War-was that the case for you, or what first made you interested in the Civil War?
Don: To my knowledge I do not, but it is probably a safe bet most of us do in some way. I was always fascinated with the Civil War and its effects, so I did a lot of studying of that conflict, both from a political standpoint as well as a war fought against each other right here on our soil. In addition, I have been amazed with the similarities between the two wars and-a history lesson here-Vietnam was a civil war between "North and South" that America got thrust into-fighting for the south by the way! I think when you stand on the outside and look in, you can't help but kind of point your finger both ways and scratch your head in astonishment at how they line up.
Tyler: I enjoyed the dialogue in the book. A lot of the phrases and sentence structure the different soldiers used were short and repetitive but seemed to have layers of meaning. Did you give much thought to the dialogue and what tips do you have for writing it?
Don: The dialogue flowed as the memories came pouring back. I refreshed myself on some of the phrases we used in Vietnam and tried to incorporate as much as I could into that dialogue. As to be expected, I tried to do the same with the Civil War dialogue. I researched, in depth the Civil War soldier, how they would have talked back then, phrases they would have used, and once again, I tried to incorporate all of that into their discussions.
As far as a tip on writing dialogue, I think the most important thing would be to be aware of the time period you are writing in. Even though Vietnam was just forty years ago, we said things differently, referred to things, as we knew them back then. Same goes for writing in the Civil War time period. You have to be aware of how people would have talked, and really how people talk in general. Dialogue can be hard; we don't talk in complete sentences; nor do we converse correctly. My final thought on dialogue is that I like writing it. I think conversations between the characters go a long way to explain things or offer insight into the story flow, or how the character is thinking. I've always used dialogue in my stories, even my memoir.
Tyler: What kinds of responses have you received from readers so far, especially fellow veterans?
Don: There seems to be an overall liking of the story concept. In fact, I've received some good responses from women who just simply liked the story. Others have mentioned liking the concept and some veterans have mentioned revisiting those old memories.
Tyler: Ideally, what response would you like readers to have from reading the book-is there something you hope they will learn or feel as a result of it?
Don: I would like to think there is some message that everyone would walk away with shaking his or her head... (Smile). Honestly I would hope that everyone just simply enjoys the story. That is what I ultimately tried to accomplish, to write an enjoyable entertaining story. I'll leave the hidden messages to those who need them!
Tyler: You've also written several other novels. Would you tell us a little about those?
Don: After the Vietnam memoir, I churned out a novel that I had been developing. I followed that up with the trilogy. The novel, "Jennifer's Plan," is a story idea that I had a rough draft for two years before I finally put that into a finished manuscript. The trilogy is a three-book set of murder mysteries that take place-fictitiously-in the little town where I live, at the very least, the setting is all too familiar. I had a lot of fun doing those. However, I will admit that I was already chomping at the bit to get started on "The American War" shortly after I finished book two of the trilogy. While deep in the trenches of research, I finally finished the third leg of the trilogy. Once that was done, I took a step back and revisited all my notes and research to get a fresh start on "The American War" project.
Tyler: What did you find harder to write-"The American War" or the murder mysteries, and why?
Don: "The American War." Trying to create a story around actual events keeps you on your toes. You just can't go off in any direction; the story has to follow the event, which at times stops you in your tracks, with a notion that "I can't do that; it won't work in the confines of the event." Working on keeping the story historically accurate forces you to frame passages within that context. Whereas my murder mysteries are all mine, the settings, the characters, the time and place, all made up by me that I basically could do anything I want with them without fear of getting something wrong. I found it much harder to stay the course with "The American War," making sure I stayed true to the details as I moved my characters along their path.
Tyler: Do you have plans for any future books and could you tell us about them?
Don: The short answer is not now. Putting that book together with all the research and memories and emotions took a toll. At times, I worked on that manuscript day and night. When writing my mysteries, everything was in my head, I can do with it as I pleased, but I so wanted to keep this book as historically accurate as possible, I constantly had to make sure I was on track while I weaved the story. It is a style of writing I wasn't used to, being creative with actual facts, but I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge. I am ready for a break and happy to promote this book for the next year or so. Of course, I'll never say never, but four books in six years, I'll let the dust settle for a bit!
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VIETNAM - A War Lost and Won

VIETNAM - A War Lost and Won
By RG Mohan Rethnaswamy

'VIETNAM - A War Lost and Won' by Nigel Cawthorne was first published in 2003 by Arcturus Publishing Limited in the UK. Nigel Cawthorne, who was born in Chicago, the United States, is an American-born British writer of fiction and non-fiction, and an editor.

The book includes an introduction on what triggered one the worst wars in American war history. It has ten chapters followed by an epilogue, bibliography and index. Offered in paperback with high quality recycled material, for those who missed the Vietnam War era, this book is highly recommended as it provides a vivid, lucid and statistics on what actually went wrong in the war that had left a permanent black mark in American might and military superiority.

The front cover of this highly-informative book carries a watermark image of a soldier in full army gear at the background, and American troops crossing what looks like a typical Vietnamese paddy field aided by helicopters above. Surely these images are reminiscence of what frequently appear in Rambo, Platoon and Missing in Action Hollywood flicks.

It also provides the maps of Vietnam showing the disputed areas -the North and South, the very two territories that were in constant limelight throughout the war. Another map will aid the readers on the Tet Offensive which took place from January to February 1968. Not only that, the book has high-quality real life photos, photos shot in real battles, displaying the various assets of the American forces, the individuals who dictated the war from behind and other chronological evidences in what would be the only war that the Americans lost.

Written in simple yet precise language, the book offers abundance of numerical evidences and readers will be treated to overwhelming shocks and bounces. The statistical records revealed in this book will inform us that 46, 370 US servicemen were killed where more than 10,000 died from non-combat related causes and more than 100,000 wounded. The US government had spent a whopping USD 145billion, a massive amount for that time, for a worthless war that began in 1965 and ended in 1975, two years after the Paris Peace Accord.

The US lost 4, 865 helicopters, each costs about a quarter of a million dollars and eight million tons of bombs were dropped in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia combined, a number far-out fetched the amount dropped during the whole of World War II (WW II). The B52, a pride of American hegemony, dropped USD200, 000 worth of bombs out of its bomb-bay doors on each mission. Readers will also get to identify the other assets of the US Army, from US UH 13 Helicopters known as Hueys, US Strike Patrol Boat (STAB), M60 Machine guns, the B52 Bomber, to US Phantom Jets used in Operation Rolling Thunder, were consistently mentioned throughout the book.

Another plus point of this book is that the author had distanced himself from all elements glaring to parochialism; regionalism and blind nationalism, hence neglected the aspect of one-sidedness in his views. According to the writer, more than 18million people were displaced during the war, and more than 3 per cent of South Vietnam was totally devastated beyond recognition.

Further revelations indicate that 18million gallons of defoliants were used in the war which resulted in severely handicapped and malformed babies. As many as 50,000 were still being detained as political prisoners- Prisoners of War (POWs) as until 1986 and the writer went on to further clarify that the after effect of the war had 865, 000 people fleeing the country seeking greener pastures elsewhere.

The writer also took a swipe at American soldiers during the war, mocking at their ignorance of being boastful in undermining the enemy's strength. This was enhanced through the use of terms which were frequent among US servicemen in Vietnam at that time, like 'gooks' - a derogatory term referring to people of Asian descent in the US and 'peasants' - referring to the Vietnamese insurgents who predominantly consist of farmers. The lost to this army of peasants further ignited the fire of dire humiliation in the US.

The writer also further affirmed the fact that generally, the people of Vietnam has a special affinity with the soil of their country and the guerrilla warfare that the so-called peasant army fought, was fought till the last drop of blood unlike their counterpart who, on a major scale consists of reluctant draftees, some in their teenage years, fighting as soldiers manning the forefront of the bloody battle.

On war strategies, the writer pointed out that from day one, the superior army had got it all wrong. The Vietnamese had won the war through the most effective use of underground tunnels, used for centuries even before the invasion of the US army, against the likes of the Chinese and the French. The Vietnamese had tunnels running for hundreds of miles from the Cambodian border to the gates of Saigon. They had dormitories, workshops, hospitals, kitchens, headquarter facilities and supply depots built in inside these tunnels. Made of laterite clay, the surface becomes hardened like concrete once exposed to the scorching sun. With this information, the writer had revealed to the readers that it was indeed true that one of the main reasons on why the Americans had lost the war was because they were fighting an unseen enemy; frequently appearing out of nowhere, engaged the enemy in sudden combat, only then to disappear into thin air.

The book also introduces some interesting terms to the readers like 'punji traps' and 'toe poppers'- the two most common booby traps used in Vietnam during the war. These are traps made with simple tropical resources - bamboos and punji sticks but the brutality they inflict on victims is mind-boggling. The book further confirmed that some 10,000 US servicemen lost at least one limb in Vietnam, more than in WW II and Korea put together.

The writer juggled his factual statements to and forth (Vietnam and the US) to keep readers abreast on the events taking place at home including the mass civil protests in the streets of New york, Washington DC and other major cities in the US, protesting the legitimacy of the war. One section also includes Martin Luther King (MLK), the Civil Rights Activist, who spoke out against the war, bringing to bear his enormous moral conviction and authority. The writer also did not hide his disgust, in exposing the Vietnam War as a war that is racially biased and divisive. African-Americans did not find it easy as middle-class white youths to evade the draft. One undisputable fact disclosed in the book was how African-Americans, who made up of about 23 per cent of the total population of the US Army killed in action in Vietnam, bore an unfair burden and how this feeling of being unfairly treated and sacrificed in a foreign war helped further fuel racial conflicts at home in the US. The Marines did not admit African-Americans until WW II. Vietnam was fundamentally the first war where blacks and whites fought side-by-side.

The current generation Y of the IT age will also get to recognize the 'Hippies' through this read. The 'Hippies' movement, which started in the 60s, around the same time when the war erupted, borrowed the 'peace' philosophy from MLK and the anti-war movement, was famous for their remark - 'Make Love, Not War'.

The highlight of the book lies in the revelation, without an iota of secrecy, on how and why the world's mightiest superpower had lost the war in Vietnam. The focus is Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh City), where prostitutes roamed and 'serviced', military brothels and hardcore addiction to Marijuana and opium were rampant among US servicemen. Drug abuse has a central theme of 1960s music and culture which was directly associated with the Vietnam War. Other deadly issues pertaining to the loss of morale and the decline in health among US servicemen were revealed in the form of the spread of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) which include gonorrhea or 'clap' and the Heinz 57 variety. Some of these diseases were spread to US servicemen through deliberate means under the disguise of tactics by the Vietcong.

The book also engulfs readers into the pathos of the 'Massacre at MyLai', regarded as one the most atrocious act of killing of people, including children in war history. The man responsible for this appalling act was Lt. William L. Calley. The war had left a non- erasable stigma in eroding human dignity and the world realized the rest of the world did not operate in the same moral vacuum of Vietnam. The writer also revealed in his closure that public hostility towards US servicemen who returned home after the debacle further escalated serious psychological and social quagmire and it was reported in 1980 that more than 700, 000 war veterans experienced some sort of emotional or psychological disorder called Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PSTD) after their return to home soil.

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