War has ravaged our planet for centuries and some nations
are currently at war and experiencing the harsh realities of it. Unfortunately,
when a war is over the suffering and destruction left in its wake lasts much
longer. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War and
even though the war ended long ago its effects still linger. The US and Vietnam
have had a strained relationship after the war and most of this is directly
related to Agent Orange, which was used heavily by the US during the war. The
use of Agent Orange is believed to be the cause of many illnesses in millions
of Vietnamese people, such as birth defects and cancer. Many of the soldiers
who fought in the war are convinced that they were poisoned by the use of Agent
Orange as well. For many years the US has been tight lipped about the subject because
they claim there is insufficient scientific evidence to prove that Agent Orange
is to blame. However, the US has recently joined forces with Vietnam in a $43
million project to clean up some of the aftermath of Agent Orange. The US has
not changed their position on the issue. Help has been provided to people with
disabilities in Vietnam by the US Embassy over the years and Congress has given
around $63 million in an effort to help with the cleanup of Agent Orange. It
seems sort of odd that the US is willing to contribute so much considering that
they have taken no responsibility in the issue. If the US believes that Agent
Orange is not the cause, why wouldn’t they try to investigate further and actually
prove that they are not at fault?
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2012/11/07/agent-orange/1660871/
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