--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese…" description: "\"We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese from Ho Chi Minh, even if we have to kill them and demolish their country to do it…I do not intend to remain si..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png" --- # We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese from Ho Chi Minh… ![“We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese from Ho Chi Minh, even if we have to kill them and demolish their country to do it…I do not intend to remain silent in the face of what I regard as a policy of madness which, sooner or later, will envelop my son and American youth by the millions for years…” quote by George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png) > “We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese from Ho Chi Minh, even if we have to kill them and demolish their country to do it…I do not intend to remain silent in the face of what I regard as a policy of madness which, sooner or later, will envelop my son and American youth by the millions for years to come.” [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker condemns interventionist policies that cause massive civilian harm, warning they will ultimately affect future generations of Americans. **In simple terms:** Intervention harms civilians and will later hurt Americans. Key Takeaway Question policies that cause civilian suffering. Themes war intervention humanitarian politics Mood angry urgent determined Type political activist When to use this quote - voting decisions - public protests - policy debates - humanitarian aid - education campaigns Key Concepts military ethics foreign policy generational impact Questions to Reflect On - What alternatives exist to achieve security without civilian casualties? - How can citizens hold leaders accountable for foreign policy? A Different Perspective Critics argue that some interventions are necessary for security or to prevent worse outcomes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-youth/) [Country](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/country/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [Madness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/madness/) [Saving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saving/) [Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son/) [Sooner or later](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sooner-or-later/) [Vietnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vietnam/) [Vietnam war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vietnam-war/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [Go back home where you came from. This country is mine, and I intend to stay here and to raise this country full of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sitting-bull/go-back-home-where-you-came-from-this-country-is-mine-and-i-intend-to/) [Sitting Bull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sitting-bull/) > [“blunt conclusion was that “Christianity has an image problem” among American youth.48 Similarly,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-p-jones/blunt-conclusion-was-that-christianity-has-an-image-problem-among/) Robert P. Jones > [It is an object of vast magnitude that systems of education should be adopted and pursued which may not only diffuse a knowledge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-webster/it-is-an-object-of-vast-magnitude-that-systems-of-education-should-be/) [Noah Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-webster/) > [...the need for a garden of rare palms and vines and ornamental trees and shrubs which would be near enough to a growing city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fairchild/the-need-for-a-garden-of-rare-palms-and-vines-and-ornamental-trees/) [David Fairchild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fairchild/) > [American youth attributes much more importance to arriving at driver's license age than at voting age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/american-youth-attributes-much-more-importance-to-arriving-at-driver/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [It's my job to spread deviance to the American youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-mcgowan/it-s-my-job-to-spread-deviance-to-the-american-youth/) [Rose McGowan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-mcgowan/) > [“Over the past decade, American youth are spending much more time watching TV, listening to music, using a computer and playing video games --…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman-michael-mandelbaum/over-the-past-decade-american-youth-are-spending-much-more-time/) Thomas Friedman Michael Mandelbaum > [Let the American youth never forget, that they possess a noble inheritance, bought by the toils, and sufferings, and blood of their ancestors; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-story/let-the-american-youth-never-forget-that-they-possess-a-noble/) [Joseph Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-story/) > [American youth tend to have tattoos now. The demographic is changing. If a kid is in good shape and passes all the tests, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/american-youth-tend-to-have-tattoos-now-the-demographic-is-changing/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [Actually, until a few years ago, my English was very poor. I wasn't thinking of my American roots at all, until I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergino-dest/actually-until-a-few-years-ago-my-english-was-very-poor-i-wasn-t/) [Sergino Dest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergino-dest/) > [Major League Baseball is a national institution and we take our responsibilities seriously when it comes to how the game affects the lives of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bud-selig/major-league-baseball-is-a-national-institution-and-we-take-our/) [Bud Selig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bud-selig/) > [“...the multitudinous substitutes for indigenous culture cannot grow. Having no roots, they can only age and decay. Studious, sincere youth retires, defeated. American youth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lloyd-wright/the-multitudinous-substitutes-for-indigenous-culture-cannot-grow/) [Frank Lloyd Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lloyd-wright/) > [Fifty-eight percent of African- American youth don't have jobs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/fifty-eight-percent-of-african-american-youth-don-t-have-jobs/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The 1970s, the decade of my teenage years, was a transitional period in American youth culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-allin-cornell/the-1970s-the-decade-of-my-teenage-years-was-a-transitional-period-in/) [Eric Allin Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-allin-cornell/) > [The message for the American youth is that this is a great country and we need to make sure that we pass on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-west/the-message-for-the-american-youth-is-that-this-is-a-great-country/) [Allen West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-west/) ## More by George McGovern > [Every Senator in this Chamber is partly responsible for sending 50,000 young Americans to an early grave. This Chamber reeks of blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/every-senator-in-this-chamber-is-partly-responsible-for-sending-50/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I always thought of myself as a moderate liberal, a fighter for peace and justice. I never thought of myself as being all that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-always-thought-of-myself-as-a-moderate-liberal-a-fighter-for-peace/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I was tired. I hadn't slept eight hours in two, three years. I lived on four, five hours of sleep. You can do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-was-tired-i-hadn-t-slept-eight-hours-in-two-three-years-i-lived-on/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I did frequently refer to my war record in World War II, but not in any flamboyant way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-did-frequently-refer-to-my-war-record-in-world-war-ii-but-not-in/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [It's a tough thing, to know what to do about a war that deep in your gut you feel is wrong and yet watch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/it-s-a-tough-thing-to-know-what-to-do-about-a-war-that-deep-in-your/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I'm what a normal, healthy, ideal American should be like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-m-what-a-normal-healthy-ideal-american-should-be-like/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I'm fed up to the ears with old men dreaming up wars for young men to die in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-m-fed-up-to-the-ears-with-old-men-dreaming-up-wars-for-young-men-to/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I always thought of myself as a good old South Dakota boy who grew up here on the prairie,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-always-thought-of-myself-as-a-good-old-south-dakota-boy-who-grew-up/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I always thought of myself as a good old South Dakota boy who grew up here on the prairie. My dad was a Methodist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-always-thought-of-myself-as-a-good-old-south-dakota-boy-who-grew-up-2/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [Above all, being a Democrat means having compassion for others. ... It means standing up for people who have been kept down ...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/above-all-being-a-democrat-means-having-compassion-for-others-it/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [I am fed up with a system which busts the pot smoker and lets the big dope racketeer go free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-am-fed-up-with-a-system-which-busts-the-pot-smoker-and-lets-the-big/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [To those who charge that liberalism has been tried and found wanting, I answer that the failure is not in the idea, but in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/to-those-who-charge-that-liberalism-has-been-tried-and-found-wanting/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [When I was a youngster growing up in South Dakota, we never referred to the national debt, it was always referred to as the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/when-i-was-a-youngster-growing-up-in-south-dakota-we-never-referred/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [ I still love to go back to Mitchell \[his home town\] and wander up and down those streets. It just kind of reassures me… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/i-still-love-to-go-back-to-mitchell-his-home-town-and-wander-up-and/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) > [Truth is a habit of integrity, not a strategy of politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/truth-is-a-habit-of-integrity-not-a-strategy-of-politics/) [George McGovern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) [Explore all 118 George McGovern quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/) ## More American youth quotes > [“blunt conclusion was that “Christianity has an image problem” among American youth.48 Similarly,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-p-jones/blunt-conclusion-was-that-christianity-has-an-image-problem-among/) Robert P. Jones > [The 1970s, the decade of my teenage years, was a transitional period in American youth culture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-allin-cornell/the-1970s-the-decade-of-my-teenage-years-was-a-transitional-period-in/) [Eric Allin Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-allin-cornell/) > [Fifty-eight percent of African- American youth don't have jobs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/fifty-eight-percent-of-african-american-youth-don-t-have-jobs/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“...the multitudinous substitutes for indigenous culture cannot grow. Having no roots, they can only age and decay. Studious, sincere youth retires, defeated. American youth,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-lloyd-wright/the-multitudinous-substitutes-for-indigenous-culture-cannot-grow/) [Frank Lloyd Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-lloyd-wright/) > [Major League Baseball is a national institution and we take our responsibilities seriously when it comes to how the game affects the lives of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bud-selig/major-league-baseball-is-a-national-institution-and-we-take-our/) [Bud Selig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bud-selig/) > [Actually, until a few years ago, my English was very poor. I wasn't thinking of my American roots at all, until I went to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergino-dest/actually-until-a-few-years-ago-my-english-was-very-poor-i-wasn-t/) [Sergino Dest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergino-dest/) > [American youth tend to have tattoos now. The demographic is changing. If a kid is in good shape and passes all the tests, do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-hilferty/american-youth-tend-to-have-tattoos-now-the-demographic-is-changing/) [Bryan Hilferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-hilferty/) > [Let the American youth never forget, that they possess a noble inheritance, bought by the toils, and sufferings, and blood of their ancestors; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-story/let-the-american-youth-never-forget-that-they-possess-a-noble/) [Joseph Story](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-story/) > [“Over the past decade, American youth are spending much more time watching TV, listening to music, using a computer and playing video games --…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman-michael-mandelbaum/over-the-past-decade-american-youth-are-spending-much-more-time/) Thomas Friedman Michael Mandelbaum > [It's my job to spread deviance to the American youth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-mcgowan/it-s-my-job-to-spread-deviance-to-the-american-youth/) [Rose McGowan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-mcgowan/) > [American youth attributes much more importance to arriving at driver's license age than at voting age.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-mcluhan/american-youth-attributes-much-more-importance-to-arriving-at-driver/) [Marshall McLuhan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-mcluhan/) > [...the need for a garden of rare palms and vines and ornamental trees and shrubs which would be near enough to a growing city…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fairchild/the-need-for-a-garden-of-rare-palms-and-vines-and-ornamental-trees/) [David Fairchild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fairchild/) > [It is an object of vast magnitude that systems of education should be adopted and pursued which may not only diffuse a knowledge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-webster/it-is-an-object-of-vast-magnitude-that-systems-of-education-should-be/) [Noah Webster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-webster/) > [The message for the American youth is that this is a great country and we need to make sure that we pass on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-west/the-message-for-the-american-youth-is-that-this-is-a-great-country/) [Allen West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-west/) > [The longer I live, the more I have come to value the gift of eloquence. Every American youth, if he desires for any purpose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-frisbie-hoar/the-longer-i-live-the-more-i-have-come-to-value-the-gift-of-eloquence/) George Frisbie Hoar [Browse all 21 American youth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-youth/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese from Ho Chi Minh, even if we have to kill them and demolish their country to do it…I do not intend to remain silent in the face of what I regard as a policy of madness which, sooner or later, will envelop my son and American youth by the millions for years to come.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "George McGovern" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese-from-ho-chi-minh-even-if-we/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "American youth" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese-from-ho-chi-minh-even-if-we/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f09/george-mcgovern-3955_american-youth_we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese_1742944.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We seem bent upon saving the Vietnamese from Ho Chi Minh, even if we have to kill them and demolish their…” — George McGovern", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "George McGovern", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mcgovern/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We seem bent upon saving the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese-from-ho-chi-minh-even-if-we/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mcgovern/we-seem-bent-upon-saving-the-vietnamese-from-ho-chi-minh-even-if-we/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```