--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A CIA report completed in 1968 found…" description: "\"“A CIA report completed in 1968 found similarly: “The war and the bombing have eroded the North Vietnamese economy, making the country increasingly dep..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/mark-bowden-7188_foreign-aid_a-cia-report-completed-in-1968-found-sim_1677948.jpg" --- # A CIA report completed in 1968 found similarly: “The war… ![“A CIA report completed in 1968 found similarly: “The war and the bombing have eroded the North Vietnamese economy, making the country increasingly dependent on foreign aid. However, because the country is at a comparatively primitive stage of development and because the bombing has been carried…” quote by Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/mark-bowden-7188_foreign-aid_a-cia-report-completed-in-1968-found-sim_1677948.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/mark-bowden-7188_foreign-aid_a-cia-report-completed-in-1968-found-sim_1677948.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/mark-bowden-7188_foreign-aid_a-cia-report-completed-in-1968-found-sim_1677948.jpg) > ““A CIA report completed in 1968 found similarly: “The war and the bombing have eroded the North Vietnamese economy, making the country increasingly dependent on foreign aid. However, because the country is at a comparatively primitive stage of development and because the bombing has been carried out under important restrictions, damage to the economy has been small.”” [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The bombing weakened Vietnam’s economy but limited damage due to its underdevelopment and bombing restrictions. **In simple terms:** Bombing hurt Vietnam’s economy, but not dramatically. Key Takeaway Recognize that limited damage can still have strategic impact. Themes war economics development military strategy Mood analytical critical Type historical strategic When to use this quote - policy analysis - historical research - military planning - humanitarian aid Key Concepts Dependency foreign aid primitive development restricted bombing Questions to Reflect On - How do development levels affect war outcomes? - What role does foreign aid play in conflict resilience? A Different Perspective Economic impact may be overstated without considering development level. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Foreign aid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/foreign-aid/) [Vietnam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vietnam/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [The TPP will be good for the American economy, the Vietnamese economy, and the labor and environmental standards that make life better for our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-rhodes/the-tpp-will-be-good-for-the-american-economy-the-vietnamese-economy/) [Ben Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-rhodes/) > [The crimes committed by the North Vietnamese regime against the Vietnamese people were minor compared to the crimes committed by the Khmer Rouge against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-donald/the-crimes-committed-by-the-north-vietnamese-regime-against-the/) James Donald > [The National Liberation Front was not...a viable, autonomous organization with a life of its own; it was a facade, a "front," by means of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-allen/the-national-liberation-front-was-not-a-viable-autonomous/) [George Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-allen/) > [“Few people knew the shadowy history of the Special Operations Group that had operated out of Laos, but the numbers said it all: For…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-johnson/few-people-knew-the-shadowy-history-of-the-special-operations-group/) [Craig Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-johnson/) > [My principal battle with the North Vietnamese was a moral one, and prayer was my prime source of strength.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremiah-denton/my-principal-battle-with-the-north-vietnamese-was-a-moral-one-and/) [Jeremiah Denton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremiah-denton/) > [ My solution to the problem would be to tell \[the North Vietnamese Communists\] frankly that they've got to draw in their horns and stop… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/my-solution-to-the-problem-would-be-to-tell-the-north-vietnamese-2/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [You can bring your enemies to their knees with the possible exception of the North Vietnamese.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-taylor/you-can-bring-your-enemies-to-their-knees-with-the-possible-exception/) [James Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-taylor/) > [My solution to the problem would be to tell the North Vietnamese Communists frankly that they've got to drawn in their horns and stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curtis-lemay/my-solution-to-the-problem-would-be-to-tell-the-north-vietnamese/) [Curtis LeMay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curtis-lemay/) > [I spent several years in a North Vietnamese prison camp, in the dark, fed with scraps. 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The summer soldier and sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/thomas-paine-s-the-crisis-these-are-the-times-that-try-men-s-souls/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“Steele gave the unapologetic impression that he could break you with his bare hands if it weren’t for his strict devotion to Jesus and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/steele-gave-the-unapologetic-impression-that-he-could-break-you-with/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“In April 1967, Johnson had dispatched General Creighton Abrams to Vietnam as Westy’s deputy. Abrams, a famous tank commander in World War II, had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/in-april-1967-johnson-had-dispatched-general-creighton-abrams-to/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“Westin celebrated the New Year by shooting off some hand flares. 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They were too tired to concentrate, and poker was serious business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/there-were-none-of-the-card-games-marines-usually-played-in-downtimes/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“Opposition to the war was becoming fashionable. Popular figures—intellectuals, athletes, musicians—stepped up to announce their opposition”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/opposition-to-the-war-was-becoming-fashionable-popular-figures/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“To me the way they were used, particularly the way their idealism and loyalty were exploited by leaders who themselves had lost faith in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/to-me-the-way-they-were-used-particularly-the-way-their-idealism-and/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“the domestic enemy’s inner sanctum, the National Press Club.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/the-domestic-enemy-s-inner-sanctum-the-national-press-club/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“Nearly everyone had a father or uncles who had fought in World War II or Korea, or both, and many had grandfathers who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-bowden/nearly-everyone-had-a-father-or-uncles-who-had-fought-in-world-war-ii/) [Mark Bowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-bowden/) > [“Beware of men with theories that explain everything. 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Ubiquitous connectivity in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ory-okolloh/technology-is-the-perfect-refuge-for-african-capability-stifled/) [Ory Okolloh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ory-okolloh/) > [“...this money goes to a war machine, a war machine that attacks its own citizens and those of other countries to force them into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-allen/this-money-goes-to-a-war-machine-a-war-machine-that-attacks-its-own/) J.C. Allen > [Foreign aid must be viewed as an investment, not an expense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-granger/foreign-aid-must-be-viewed-as-an-investment-not-an-expense/) [Kay Granger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-granger/) > [Government-to-government foreign aid promotes statism, centralized planning, socialism, dependence, pauperization, inefficiency, and waste. It prolongs the poverty it is designed to cure. 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Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-gates/) > [It is even possible that desirable redistribution is more likely to occur through climate change policy than otherwise, or to be accomplished more effectively…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cass-sunstein/it-is-even-possible-that-desirable-redistribution-is-more-likely-to/) [Cass Sunstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cass-sunstein/) > [ None of what we \[as country\] have done is credited. None of the good works. Our foreign affairs budget, foreign aid budget, none of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/none-of-what-we-as-country-have-done-is-credited-none-of-the-good/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Health care's a great example. 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