Scheduling often varies around the U.S., but on many PBS stations in the EDT zones, Ken Burns Vietnam War Documentary will premier tonight (Sept. 17, 2017) at 8 p.m., the first two hours of ten, i think it is. Check your own listings to be sure, if you are interested. Nothing on the Vietnam War will be universally or even generally acclaimed, because of the divisive nature of the war, not only in the U.S. but in both North and South Vietnam, as it turns out. One feature to recommend this series is that the film makers avoided the usual leadership figures and protest figures justifying their own behavior, and went instead to people who actually did the fighting on both sides, who had never been interviewed before, to try to stay with the factual events rather than the purported policy. Even if you agree with little or none of it, you will likely learn some new things and experience some surprises. One of the promotions for the series featured a tape of LBJ, before the major build-up, telling a senior advisor, who could hardly get a word in, that Vietnam looked like a military engagement without any benefit to the U.S. LBJ was stubborn and adamant on the subject. Self-contradictory.
