Drug use among soldiers in Vietnam had a negative effect on

the war effort and society

By

Lydia Klimek

“Narcotics addiction is a problem which afflicts both the body and the

soul of America” (Nixon)

•By 1970 Heroin and other opiates was one of the commonly used drugs in Vietnam, and easily accessible. (“Vietnam: Drug Use”)

•These drugs are depressants, Cause clouded mental function due to the drugs effects on the central nervous system, and also causes slowing of the heart (Ferreiro)

•Drug use impaired a soldier's combat readiness, surviving depended on their being clear-headed (Peter Brush)

Soldiers who used drugs had more disciplinary problems, on average,

than those who abstained (“Vietnam: Drug Use”).

Drug related arrests reached up to a hundreds a week, leaving the military with insufficient number of troops ("Vietnam: Drug Use).

The usual punishment for convicted offenders was the maximum sentence: up to ten years confinement, dishonorable discharge from the military, and forfeiture of all pay and allowances (Peter Brush).

Soldiers who were found in possession of drugs had to face severe

punishments.

An estimated 50% of troops used illicit drugs ("Vietnam: Drug Use”)

Such a wide use of drugs caused a much bigger impact

To fight the growing drug problem time and resources were put into drug education lectures, and marijuana searches, instead of the war effort (Peter Brush)

Veterans returning home had easier access to drugs in Vietnam, Many returning soldiers had to either find ways to get drugs in America, or endure the effects of withdraw (Nixon)

This resulted in a rise of drug trafficking in America

“a habit which costs $5 a day to maintain in Vietnam can cost $100 a day to maintain in the United States, and those who continue to use heroin slip into the twilight world of crime, bad drugs, and all too often a premature death.” (Nixon)

President Nixon asked that The Department of Defense and the Veterans Administration provides rehabilitation to any servicemen who returned to the US with an addiction problem. He asked for a 14 million dollar budget increase to offer help to veteran addicts.

It was federally funded, but the economy was bad for most of Nixon’s administration. Government was spending money it didn’t have.

In 1970 an Air Force major was apprehended at Tan Son Nhut air base near Saigon with $8 million dollars worth of heroin in his aircraft. (Peter Brush)

Not only did the Military have to worry about fighting the Vietcong, but also criminal activity from their own soldiers.

Bibliography

Ferreiro, Carmen. "heroin." Health Reference Center. Facts On File, Inc. Web. 9 June 2012.

<http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE48&SID=5&iPin=HERON0001&SingleRecord=True>.

Brush, Peter. "Higher and Higher: American Drug Use In Vietnam ." Vietnam magazine Dec. 2002: n. pag. www.library.vanderbilt.edu. Web. 10 June 2012. <http://www.library.vanderbilt.edu/central/Brush/ American-drug-use-vietnam.htm>.

Nixon, Richard. Message to Congress. Congress. 17 June 1971. www.presidency.ucsb.edu. Web. 10 June 2012. <http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=3048#axzz1xK7uvynx>.

"Vietnam: Drug Use." Encyclopedia of Drugs, Alcohol & Addictive Behavior. www.bookrags.com. Web. 10 June 2012. <http://www.bookrags.com/ research/vietnam-drug-use-in-edaa-03/>.