Analysis: Vietnam and Afghanistan — America's 2 longest wars, with very different lasting impacts
WASHINGTON — When a comparison was made between the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan a year ago and a similar debacle in Vietnam 46 years earlier, President Joe Biden and his administration recoiled.
The Afghan capital, Kabul, would not become another Saigon, Biden assured the American people. There would be no dramatic helicopter rescues from rooftops nor would the U.S. walk away and allow the Afghan government to collapse as the South Vietnamese regime did so quickly.
But latter-day versions of both did unfold in a matter of days as the United States withdrew from Afghanistan, ending its 20-year military and political involvement.
Vietnam and Afghanistan were America's two longest wars. Yet despite a number of similarities, including mistakes made and disastrous denouements that spelled defeat for the U.S., each conflict had entirely different impacts on U.S. society, culture and politics.
The two wars started differently and for very different reasons. And they were fought differently — in different technological eras and, in particular, with very different armies.
More than a generation ago, the specter of Vietnam seemed to seep into numerous corners of U.S. daily life. It spawned a widespread, history-altering protest movement that in turn triggered a cascade of political shifts. It even left an indelible mark on film,
