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).
Soldiers who were found in possession
of drugs had to face severe
punishments.
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).
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/>.