ABSTRACT
Millions of Vietnamese children grew to adulthood carrying memories of bloodshed, terror, bombing, dislocation—man's inhumanity to man. Vietnam occupied the front page of newspapers and figured prominently in other media consistently for years, more than any other single country. Instead, Vietnam's occupation of Cambodia in late 1978 and China's "punitive" action in Vietnam in early 1979 revived tensions in the region for a decade. These events also highlighted the political interdependence of the three Indochinese states—Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. In terms of political stability, however, North Vietnam contrasted sharply with South Vietnam. The government was headed by a legendary nationalist hero, Ho Chi Minh, who as a onetime Bolshevik also commanded respect in the Communist world. The inevitable consequence of such a policy coupled with the growing US military presence was the militarization of South Vietnamese society. The dominance of the armed forces, numbering 1 million Vietnamese and 500,000 US troops, was evident everywhere.
