A Tale of Three Wars

By Edward B. Atkeson
Foreword by Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkoph, (USA Ret)

At long last a book about the ground war in Vietnam that deals with the realities, not the popular fairy tales of that war. Fairy tales are never true and inform only children; myths put forth influential perspectives whether they are true or not. There is a superabundance of the former, little of the later, and almost no reality in print. General Atkeson helps to fill the void.

Of course this action piece is full of suspense and intrigue. But for the military professional, the talented amateur, and the concerned observer there is more-much more. The reader is invited to view the war through the eyes of three officers from three armies: U.S., ARVN, and VC, and through the prism of three different political cultures: democratic, authoritarian, and despotic. In the context of this war, at this level, at this time, and at this place; the differences are not as great as one would expect or even hope.

All of the three principals are driven by their principles on constant bearings and with ever-decreasing range. Their antagonists are equal and opposite. The self-serving careerist American, the corrupt South Vietnamese, and the doctrinaire VC political officer are uncomfortably contrasted with a resulting lesson for all to contemplate and enjoy.

The tale skillfully employs double agents, elite units, failed tactics, and short whiffs of cordite to focus attention on what Clausewitz and others call "the fog of war." Most of the rest of us call it "SNAFUed." This is no epic tale. It is a chilling, sharp and yet microscopic examination of an important segment of the Vietnam War. It answers none of the cosmic questions, but real inquiry into the larger questions is difficult if not impossible without first standing in this rice paddy.