Commanding General of the Delta Military Assistance during the Vietnam War. ALS signed "Hal D. McGown," one page both sides, 7 x 8.5, personal letterhead, July 24. Excellent content as the major general outlines his thoughts on why the Vietnam War was lost. In part: "I'm no smarter than millions of other Americans who read the papers but if you really want my two cents on why we lost the war in brief-here goes…Poor strategic guidance for war. A war of attrition which was what the US fought is difficult for a democracy because it entails a long time, many casualties, and lots of money. We should have taken the war to North Vietnam early and gotten it over with before political opposition made continuing the war impossible…Injection of US ground troops. Our support of the Vietnamese should have included advisory support…Support of coup against Dziem [South Korean President Ngo Dinh Diem]. This was John F. Kennedy's greatest mistake and nearly lost Vietnam in the next 6 months…Americanization of fighting. A grievous error was the decision to treat Vietnamese as 2nd class." In fine condition, with intersecting mailing folds. RRAuction COA.
