Draft of Some Prospects and Problems in Vietnam, November 6, 1967

This document is a draft made by Ellsberg, outlining his reasons for going to Vietnam in 1965. A Cold Warrior, he went into Vietnam with optimism and an expectation of learning how the United States could win the war, but he left two years later certain the war could not and would not be won. I think this document is interesting as a retrospective piece: Ellsberg looking back on his own motivations and reflecting on his attitudes two years prior. The various edits, cross outs, and scribbled notes in the margins reveal his ever-developing train of thought.

Will Le