Selected Role Journal
Agent Orange: the Destruction of a Country
Agent Orange a defoliant sprayed in the jungles of Vietnam has caused many problems. The problems lasting through today, over twenty years since the spraying of Agent Orange, still cause families to distaste American soldiers that were there and America as a whole. Agent Orange contains the toxic compound dioxin, which is an herbicide that scientists say has no real effect on humans. The government however is compensating those who reportedly have been a victim of Agent Orange.
The American military sprayed Agent Orange over the jungles that stretch across Vietnam. They did this to wipe out the canopy so that the Vietcong could not hide from the American soldiers. America gained a bad reputation for this act. This was a cowardly act that caused many problems. The Americans were too afraid to lose and America was not going to be easily defeated, just because they didn’t know the terrain. America deserves the bad reputation because they killed off the jungles that affected the people physically, economically, and environmentally.
The environment was destroyed because of the Agent Orange spraying. There are no roots in the ground because they died when the jungles were sprayed. When it rains, the water washes all the dirt away and causes mudslides. This would cause villages to get flooded, too because there were no trees to absorb the water. With treating the land properly, the land starting growing this grass that causes trees to not grow. The Vietnamese people called this grass American grass, one because it would leave and the Americans made it happen and two that it was hard to control.
The economy suffered greatly, too. This was more because of the environment reactions to Agent Orange. The mudslides and flooding would cause the roads to be unable to cross. The people then lost their goods because they either perished or there was no way to get it to the market in time for market day. The people still lose money for that today.
The physical and mental effects are what are making the worst for the families that suffer from the spraying of the herbicide. There is a couple in Vietnam who has two children. One child is physically ill and the other is mentally ill. There is this one child that lies in a bed all day because she has been paralyzed since birth. The other suffers from mental problems and tries to pursue a career in music. At the citizen operated hospitals and treatment centers, things are just as bad. There is a girl that appears to be a monkey, because she was born with hair all over her body. Some of the children stay in the hospitals until they die from their illnesses. The Vietnamese government is now compensating the citizens for their problems, even though it was not their fault. America is still getting bad reputation for this.
I can however understand why America could do this. America could not stand to lose. Who would want to lose anyhow? America already had people who feared them because of the World Wars and they seemed to mean business wherever they went. America did not want to lose their reputation of winning and being on top. There could have been other ways to do it, but America is a fast country, they take quick action, they don’t like waiting.
America should not have done what they did. They deserve the fact that people looked and still look down on them for the horrendous events that still effect people today. America tries to play it off like they had to do it, that is was no choice, that the Vietnamese people were cheating since they knew the terrain.
Agent Orange a defoliant sprayed in the jungles of Vietnam has caused many problems. The problems lasting through today, over twenty years since the spraying of Agent Orange, still cause families to distaste American soldiers that were there and America as a whole. Agent Orange contains the toxic compound dioxin, which is an herbicide that scientists say has no real effect on humans. The government however is compensating those who reportedly have been a victim of Agent Orange.
The American military sprayed Agent Orange over the jungles that stretch across Vietnam. They did this to wipe out the canopy so that the Vietcong could not hide from the American soldiers. America gained a bad reputation for this act. This was a cowardly act that caused many problems. The Americans were too afraid to lose and America was not going to be easily defeated, just because they didn’t know the terrain. America deserves the bad reputation because they killed off the jungles that affected the people physically, economically, and environmentally.
The environment was destroyed because of the Agent Orange spraying. There are no roots in the ground because they died when the jungles were sprayed. When it rains, the water washes all the dirt away and causes mudslides. This would cause villages to get flooded, too because there were no trees to absorb the water. With treating the land properly, the land starting growing this grass that causes trees to not grow. The Vietnamese people called this grass American grass, one because it would leave and the Americans made it happen and two that it was hard to control.
The economy suffered greatly, too. This was more because of the environment reactions to Agent Orange. The mudslides and flooding would cause the roads to be unable to cross. The people then lost their goods because they either perished or there was no way to get it to the market in time for market day. The people still lose money for that today.
The physical and mental effects are what are making the worst for the families that suffer from the spraying of the herbicide. There is a couple in Vietnam who has two children. One child is physically ill and the other is mentally ill. There is this one child that lies in a bed all day because she has been paralyzed since birth. The other suffers from mental problems and tries to pursue a career in music. At the citizen operated hospitals and treatment centers, things are just as bad. There is a girl that appears to be a monkey, because she was born with hair all over her body. Some of the children stay in the hospitals until they die from their illnesses. The Vietnamese government is now compensating the citizens for their problems, even though it was not their fault. America is still getting bad reputation for this.
I can however understand why America could do this. America could not stand to lose. Who would want to lose anyhow? America already had people who feared them because of the World Wars and they seemed to mean business wherever they went. America did not want to lose their reputation of winning and being on top. There could have been other ways to do it, but America is a fast country, they take quick action, they don’t like waiting.
America should not have done what they did. They deserve the fact that people looked and still look down on them for the horrendous events that still effect people today. America tries to play it off like they had to do it, that is was no choice, that the Vietnamese people were cheating since they knew the terrain.