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Telltale Hearts: The Origins and Impact of the Vietnam Anti-War Movement

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Garfinkle debunks one of the great myths of the Vietnam era, that the antiwar movement in any way hastened the end of our involvement there. As the author notes, much of the reason for the almost universal acceptance of this view is because we are so used to hearing it, and because on a certain level we want to believe that outraged Americans can and did change the course of history. Garfinkle points to a number of Harris and Gallup polls from the 1960s which clearly demonstrate that if there was anything more hated than the war itself, it was the antiwar movement. He also details how this rage on the part of the "silent majority" put Richard Nixon into office, which gave America four more years of war and another 25,000 dead American soldiers. A wonderful book, rich with detail and original insight.