Religion kept US married to Vietman conflict

[dArKeR]

Seth Jacobs suggests that the US' long and bloody involvement in Southeast Asia was mostly about Christian fundamentalism

By Bradley Winterton
CONTRIBUTING REPORTER
Sunday, Mar 06, 2005,Page 18

In the 1950s there were three prominent Asian leaders who were also Christians -- Taiwan's Chiang Kai-shek (???), South Korea's Syngman Rhee and South Vietnam's Ngo Dinh Diem. This excellent book tells the story of how the US became involved so deeply in supporting the last of these men.

But before looking at what it has to say about him, it's important to explain just what is Seth Jacobs' ruling theory.

Jacobs believes that religion played a far greater part in American involvement in Vietnam's affairs than has hitherto been realized. Asia was perceived by the policy-makers on Capitol Hill as an area about to be taken over by atheists, Communists receiving their orders from the godless citadel of Moscow.

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2005/03/06/2003225763

[EVDebs]

1. Check into Roman Catholic influences like the CIA/KnightsofMalta

and the postWWII OSS/CIA leadership. Wild Bill Donovan, James Jesus Angleton, etc. all KOM, including some of the Operation Paperclippers. Then look into Cardinal Cody of Chicago and his relations with the So. Vietnamese and the 1950's resettlement of Catholics from No.Vietnam into the Mekong Delta especially...displacing locals, who got p.o.ed and became guerrilla fodder later on.

Interesting....A new group now comes on scene, Opus Dei.

[starroute]

2. Keep an eye on the Knights of Malta

I've been collecting notes on the Knights of Malta lately, though I'm still not sure whether it all amounts to anything or is just another would-be conspiracy theory that doesn't quite add up. But there are a lot of CIA connections, ties to French intelligence and the P-2 Lodge in Italy, and links to the shadier side of US involvement in Latin America. James Jesus Angleton was a member, and apparently William Buckley (who was himself a CIA officer in the early 50's) as well.

There's a page on the Knights of Malta at http://www.mosquitonet.com/~prewett/caqsmom25.3.html which implies that they were involved in General Edward G. Lansdale's getting Diem installed as Vietnam's president in 1955. And there's some stuff on the CIA at http://www.umsl.edu/~skthoma/cm.htm which names Lansdale as the prototype for both The Quiet American and The Ugly American, two books mentioned in the piece cited in the original post.

There's also the fact that the Christian Anti-Communist Crusade, founded in Iowa in 1953 by Australian evangelist Fred Schwarz, was underwritten by Schick razor king Patrick J. Frawley, who was a Knight of Malta and a leading figure in right-wing Catholic circles. CACC was active in Honduras and El Salvador in the early 80's and had many connections with the World Anti-Communist League.

Although the details still aren't clear to me, it's apparent that the close political ties between evangelical Protestants and right-wing Catholics go back to the early 50's and have been tangled up from the start with fanatical anti-communism, with the CIA, and with other covert operations abroad.

[dand]

3. Religion corrupts everything it comes in contact with,

or obliterates it.

[dArKeR]

5. Look at the Philippines compared ALL of SE Asia and the PI has

been receiving USA money, knowhow, and technical expertise for 70-80 years. Then look at all of South America and the firm Christian grip and their plight is the same as the PI. (plus remember aWol running from American in one of his scandles and giving the speech that the PI is the model for all the world to follow. Just go there and take a look for yourselves! Little children being sold for intercourse with foregin white men one block from Aroyo's palace. Children beaten and all cut up, diseased begging for money on every street in the country.) Most of SA is not much different.

Then compare this all to the non-fanatical non-Christian regions of SE Asia and look at their great progress and society. China, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Vietnam(even though America dropped every kind of bomb and chemical on the country).

[dbeach]

4. 11/2/63 Diem and his brother were assasinated in a military coup

11/22/63 JFK assassinated..What are the connections? Did JFK give silent approval of the killing of Diem ,a fellow Catholic...?
I had read and this is not supported that the Jesuits in Rome don't like the killing of another Catholic leader...



http://25thaviation.org/history/id549.htm