Week 8
ASA150E
In this week's theme of Legacy of Environmental Degradation, Fred A. Wilcox emphasized the traumatic events of chemicals used that led to the detrimental effects of the chemical used in the Vietnam War. Wilcox's Scorched Earth: Legacy of Chemical Warfare in Vietnam, provided an insight of the use of agent orange. Throughout this reading, it has made me realize the long procedures it takes for militaries to use certain chemical weapons. In the beginning of 1969, they believed that "ORANGE is relatively non-toxic to man and animals. No injuries have been reported to personal exposed to aircraft spray. Personnel subject to splashes from handling the agent need not to be alarmed [...]". However, later that year they realized that the chemicals used can cause birth malformations. What I never understood is that why would they spray civilians and their crops to cause widespread of hunger. The U.S had no sympathy of children, knowing the affects of families and the children, but the political motive was way more important. Winning the war and proving that Vietnam "needed" US to intervene to save them was more important than the lives of thousands of women and children and innocent families. Till this day the US has still not taken responsibility for the effects of what agent orange has done to Vietnam and the communities within them. The leading question I have is how will we stop the wars with chemical use? The greed for political empowerment and economic advancements is not worth the lives of innocent people. Will we ever reform our politics and military to actually have peace between countries?
Image: https://climateandcapitalism.com/2015/02/08/pentagon-pollution-3-chemical-warfare-and-agent-orange/
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