This section was about why the US chose not to bomb “its way to victory” in Vietnam. The main reason they held back, even though they had “more explosives than they had in WWII,” was because the decision makers were against massive bombing. Operation Rolling Thunder was a bombing mission but it didn’t start out immediately with heavy bombing. This strategy was designed to protect innocent civilians and keep the USSR from intervening. Also, choosing not to completely destroy Vietnam with bombs averted criticism of the US by other countries.
Why was it so important to keep the USSR out of the war?
Why did some military officials think it would have been better to start Operation Rolling Thunder with “all-out massive bombing”?
