The US didn't go into Vietnam full force until Johnson and Nixon in the mid to late 60s. Up until then, it was just military advisers and money/equipment. Hell, Kennedy had a very celar time table set up well before his assassination. All because we wouldn't let that guy Ho Chi Minh into the talks after WWI. Silly President Wilson, you were so inclusive but still a racist.Frission said:Truman supported France true. I'm not saying France's colonial attitude was justified either. It was repugnant. France was a former colonial power trying to keep it's territories.Sean951 said:/snip
Truman did provide assistance. When things escalated, however and France pulled out, the U.S stayed in because they feared that Vietnam would turn Communist and join the Chinese. Afterwards, however came Eisenhower, Kennedy, Lyndon and Nixon. Five presidents in total. So don't spin it as the U.S being completely blameless. The U.S fought an imperialists war. That was what was outrageous for a supposedly democratic country.
Like many events in the Cold War, America intervened in a proxy war.
I think you lost the point on torture. France used it during the Algerian War too. There's however a reason it's called "La guerre sans nom", the war without a name. It destroyed any credibility in France, and is still a taboo subject up to date. Torture destroys any amount of moral fiber you have. It's a crime against humanity and I'm surprised those responsible for the Torture weren't prosecuted for breaking the Geneva Convention. It doesn't matter if it was "new" or "innovative" torture. The fact that it happened is despicable. It also happened Abu Ghraib as well.
The U.S isn't explicitly evil,in fact it's one of the nicer countries. It has done some nasty things however. I'm guessing that if it had continued under leadership like Bushe's, it would have certainly become an "evil empire". So, in intent for a game, a future where the U.S has turned twisted is possible.
Abu Ghraib had some terrible abuse, but it wasn't torture to gain information. At least that isn't what I have heard, though I was still pretty young when that scandal hit. I won't deny that the US tortured under Bush, but they kept it almost exclusively to water boarding and sleep deprivation. The US isn't exactly in favor of physical torture, and even within the interrogators, a fair few hated the torture because they knew it gave them less than traditional methods. If we wanted someone really tortured, we gave them to Egypt or some other 3rd party to keep our metaphorical hands "clean."