Bear Taylor 
RIPPLE SALVO… #346… THE VOICES OF DISSENT–SENATOR J. WILLIAM FULBRIGHT... but first…
Happy Valentine’s Day: Day THREE HUNDRED FORTY SIX of a remembrance of an American air war like no other...
14 FEBRUARY 1967: HEAD LINES from “The Gray Lady” on a sunny, mild Tuesday in New York City…
Page 1: “U.S. Renews Raids in the North”... “The United States resumed the bombing of North Vietnam today after a pause of nearly six days. In explaining his decision to resume the attacks President Johnson said the United States ‘had no alternative but to resume full-scale hostilities’ in view of the use of the truce by the North Vietnamese for ‘major resupply efforts of their troops in South Vietnam rather than seek a peaceful settlement of the war. The President emphasized however, ‘that the door is open and will remain open’ to a negotiated settlement…From Mr. Johnson’s statement: ‘Despite our efforts and those of third parties no other response has come from Hanoi. Under these circumstances, in fairness to our own troops and those of our allies, we had no alternative but to resume hostilities after the cease-fire period.” ‘… Page 1: “Kosygin Ends British Visit With Pledge to Seek Halt to War”… “The Soviet Union and Britain pledged today to ‘make every possible effort ‘ for peace in Vietnam and to maintain contact ‘to this end’…The British feeling is that the Russians really want this conflict to end.”… Page 1: “Ho Chi Minh asks Pope to Press U.S.”… “North Vietnam called on Pope Paul VI today to urge the United States ‘to respect the national rights of the Vietnamese people.'”…
Page 9: “Kosygin A Factor in Raid’s Timing”… “By delaying the resumption of bombing attacks on North Vietnam for two days after the Lunar New Year truce, the United States made a special gesture to the Soviet Premier Aleksie Kosygin, and his potential as a peacemaker. There was no such gesture tow years ago, when the bombings started.
“On February 7, 1965, when the air war over North Vietnam began, Mr. Kosygin was in Hanoi on an official visit–his first since he assumed Premiership from Nikita S. Khrushchev four months earlier…
“Scarcely had the Premier finished addressing a public rally in Hanoi when the news came of the first American bombardment, an attack by 49 carrier-based fighter-bombers on troop staging areas near Donghoi. That attack, announced as retaliation for Vietcong terrorism against an American base at Pleiku the night before, was the first of repeated bombardments of North Vietnam.
“Communist and Western diplomats have frequently remarked upon the embarrassment to Soviet diplomacy caused by Mr. Kosygin’ presence in North Vietnam as the bombing campaign began, though there is no certain evidence that Soviet aid to North Vietnam is any larger because of his chance timing. The Pentagon’s announcement of resumed bombings after a lull that began February 7 made the point that the bombing continued after the Lunar New Year cease-fire in order to avoid the possibility that earlier resumption would be misconstrued in relation to Mr. Kosygin’s visit to London.
“Previous suspensions of United States bombardment have also coincided with Soviet diplomatic activity that seemed possible avenues to a Vietnam peace settlement. During the first such lull from May 14 to 18, 1965, Secretary Dean Rusk conferred with the Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko in Vienna. Mr. Gromyko was said to have rebuffed Mr. Rusk’s suggestion that they discuss the Vietnamese war. The second suspension lasted from December 23, 1965 until January 31, 1966. During this period a Soviet delegation headed by a member of the Politburo, Alexandr Shelepin visited Hanoi. No United States bombs fell on North Vietnam while Mr. Shelepin was there.
“The Pentagon’s announcement yesterday carried the implication that Washington was still hoping Mr. Kosygin would play a helpful role in arranging an eventual peace settlement.”…
Page 1: “Justices Reject Draft Test Case”…”The Supreme Court refused to review the first test case challenging the constitutionality of the 1965 law that forbids the burning of draft cards…the ruling removes any doubt that persons burning their draft cards can be legally punished…”... Page 1: “Democrats Weigh ’68 Rights Pledge”… “A move is developing among some Democratic national committeemen to close the doors of the 1968 convention to any delegation from the Deep South that does not have Negro members and does not promise to uphold Federal civil rights laws.”… Page 1: “Scarcity of Recruits Worrying the Police”…”The manpower pool from which the city’s police recruits are drawn is shrinking so fast that police officials say the departments future effectiveness is jeopardized. ‘We used to get 20,000 men taking a single exam for the department,’ a police recruiter said yesterday. ‘Now we’re lucky if we get 4,000. It’s getting harder and harder to come up with 1,000 new men a year.'”… Page 2: “Johnson Greets Selassie On Visit”... “Emperor Haile Sellasie of Ethiopia was welcomed to the White House today by President Johnson, who told the African monarch he believes men are closer than ever to achieving better, more peaceful world.”…The Emperor (5’2” tall/age 74) had his moment in history in 1936 when he spoke at the “League of Nations” and told all of the failure of collective security when Ethiopia was invaded by Mussolini and the Italians and he was driven from his country. He warned the world of things to come…
14 FEBRUARY 1967… The President’s Daily Brief … CIA (TS sanitized)…SOVIET UNION: Ambassador Thompson, now back in Moscow after a month, has cabled his first impressions of the changes that have taken place in the past four years: (1) The leadership in the Kremlin really does operate collectively, though Brezhnev is clearly number one man. One observer told the ambassador that in Khrushchev’s day it was necessary only to convince one man in order to carry out a given proposal. Now all members of the politburo must be convinced, since almost any one of them can block it, (2) The collective makes for indecision and the lack of bold initiative, (3) The direction and management of the economy have improved and the leaders have reason to be proud of their businesslike approach, (4) The people are living better now, but conditions have improved slowly… COMMUNIST CHINA: Signs continue to mount that the cultural revolution is at least temporarily being channeled toward a more moderate course. It is too early to speak with confidence, but for the first time in months there is a smell of compromise in the wind. It could mean that the relatively moderate Chou En-lai is now speaking with a more authoritative voice.
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER…EXTRAORDINARY HEROISM… LIEUTENANT COLONEL WILLIAM EARL COOPER, UNITED STATES AIR FORCE… the… AIR FORCE CROSS…
“The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the AIR FORCE CROSS to LIEUTENANT COLONEL (then Major) WILLIAM EARL COOPER, United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an opposing armed force as Pilot of an F-105 airplane and Commander of the 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron, Korat Royal Thai Air Base, Thailand, SEVENTH Air Force, in action on 24 April 1966. On that date, Lieutenant Colonel COOPER was the commander of a composite strike force of thirteen F-105 strike aircraft and 20 support aircraft whose mission was to destroy a vitally important target in North Vietnam. With full knowledge of the vast defense network aligned against them, Colonel COOPER briefed the strike force to keep him in sight during the flight but to remain at a lower altitude. He alone took the risk of entering the effective missile envelope to assure target acquisition. Although encountering several severe thunderstorms, he displayed superb navigation and airmanship in bringing the strike force precisely over the pre-planned check point and setting the force directly on line to the target. approximately 30 miles from the target, the countryside erupted with the heaviest anti-aircraft artillery barrage ever encountered by an attacking United States Force. Colonel COOPER instructed his pilots to take necessary evasive action while he remained on course to insure accurate navigation through the clouds which were obstructing the mission route. To further complicate the situation, he was advised by radio contact that a hostile missile launch was imminent. Again disregarding his own safety, Colonel COOPER pressed the attack with the strike force following below the clouds for visual target sighting. At the critical point, Colonel COOPER’s aircraft received a direct hit from the hostile fire. The extraordinary heroism and exceptional airmanship displayed by Colonel COOPER are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service, and reflect the highest credit upon himself and the United States Air Force.”
14 FEBRUARY 1967…Operation Rolling Thunder...New York Times…Page 4: “Bombing Details Sketchy”... “Details of air raids carried out by American planes in North Vietnam today breaking a 5 and 1/2 day pause in the bombing remained sketchy in Saigon tonight… The exact number of missions flown was not known, but weather over the North was generally poor and it was believed that pilots were limited to about 40 multi-plane missions. Bad weather made bomb damage assessment impossible… Air Force rescue teams plucked the pilot (CDR CH Jarvis up by HU-16) and copilot of a Navy RA-5c (LT JG P.M ARTLIP by a Navy SAR helicopter) out of the South China Sea Sunday after the reconnaissance aircraft crashed…This loss raised total aircraft lost in operation over North Vietnam to 473…North Vietnam reported to the International Control Commission that U.S. planes bombed and strafed populated areas when it resumed the air war.”…
“Vietnam: Air Losses” (Hobson): There was one fixed wing aircraft lost in Southeast Asia on 14 February 1967…
(1) LT ROBERT CLARENCE MARVIN was flying an A-1H of the VA-115 “Arabs” embarked in USS Hancock on a RESCAP mission. While en route back to the carrier after completing the mission he lost oil pressure to his engine which subsequently failed. In the process of dealing with the emergency his wingman lost sight of him and he was never seen again. It was assumed that he ditched but an extended search in the area 25 miles east of Cap Mu Ron found nothing. LT MARVIN was Killed in Action on his 111th combat mission. Lost at sea…forever…but remembered with admiration and respect today, on the 50th anniversary of his death in the service of our country.
RIPPLE SALVO… #346… THE DISSENTING VOICES began to grow in number and intensity after the SUNFLOWER drill, now you see it (peace talks???), and now you don’t. Among the most articulate and persuasive dissenters, Doves, was Senator J. William Fulbright, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee… In February 1967 he held a week of hearings and the witnesses were equally learned and outspoken critics of the United States Vietnam policies. Humble Host will give voice to three of those witnesses this week, but first–here is where Senator Fulbright positioned himself for the duration of the ten year war… This is the introduction to a speech the Senator gave in 1966 and turned into a book. Title: “The Arrogance of Power”..I quote…
“The attitude above all others which I feel is no longer valid is the arrogance of power, the tendency of great nations to equate power with virtue and major responsibilities with a universal mission. The dilemmas involved are preeminently American dilemmas, not because America has weaknesses that others do not have but because America is powerful as no nation has ever been before and the discrepancy between its power and the power of others appears to be increasing…
“We are now engaged in a war to ‘defend freedom’ in South Vietnam. Unlike the Republic of Korea, South Vietnam has an army which is without notable success and a weak dictatorial government which does not command the loyalty of the South Vietnamese people. The official war aims of the United States Government, as I understand them, are to defeat what is regarded as North Vietnam aggression., to demonstrate the futility of what the communists call ‘wars off national liberation,’ and to create conditions under which the South Vietnamese people will be able freely to determine their own future. I have not the slightest doubt of the sincerity of the President and the Vice President and the Secretaries of State and Defense in propounding these aims. What I do doubt and doubt very much is the ability of the United States to achieve these aims by the means being used. I do not question the power of our weapons and the efficiency of our logistics: I cannot say these things delight me as they seem to delight some of our officials, but they are certainly impressive. What I do question is the ability of the United States, or France or any other Western nation, to go into a small, alien, underdeveloped Asian nation and create stability where there is chaos, the will to fight where there is defeatism, democracy where there is no tradition of it and honest government where corruption is almost a way of life. Our handicap is well expressed in the pungent Chinese proverb: ‘In shallow waters dragons become the sport of shrimps.’…” end of quote… I most strongly recommend the remaining two short pages be read at;
http://coursesa.matrix.msu.edu/~hst306/documents/fulbright.html
The Senator expanded these thoughts in a 1967 piece titled: “The Price of Empire,” and would hold the high ground among the ever-increasing numbers of critics of our war in Vietnam. There is another good reason to read Fulbright–what he said in 1966-1967 was applicable in 2002 at the beginning of our misadventure in Afghanistan and may very well be applicable to the actions now being considered by our new President. History is the teacher. Of course, if you skip history class there isn’t much learning going on.
Concurrent with Senator Fulbright’s big moments on the Washington and national stage of dissent was the brilliant move by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to combine his Civil Rights movement with the Vietnam War protest movement. The combining of forces to influence government policy was initiated with a King speech on 25 February 1967 (“I oppose the war in Vietnam because I love America.”), that Humble Host contends, changed forever the destiny of our country. In the ensuing months Dr. King would perfect his February speech into his famous “A Time to Break Silence.” (“We cannot remain silent as our nation engages in one of history’s most cruel and senseless wars.”) An interesting 2008 review of the speech — a speech for the ages, including 2017-18 — by Antiwar.com is at…
http://www.antiwar.com/orig/bromwich.php?article=12844
CAG’s Quotes for 14 February: Pericles: “Freedom is the sure possession of those alone who have the courage to defend it.”… and… “But the bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding go out to meet it.”…
Lest we forget… Bear
