AND NOW THE FUMES OF JOHNSON'S PROPAGANDA
In face of the universal anger and bitter protest that swept the world when it was learned that the U.S. was using noxious gases in South Vietnam in addition to napalm and white phosphorus, the Johnson administration winced a little. But its reaction offered not the slightest hope that the monster in the White House intended to back down at all in his “escalation” of the conflict.
Secretary of State Dean Rusk made an unusual personal appearance at a news briefing March 24 to arrogantly tell the world that the administration he represents will continue to use gas.
~Q—
He tried to soften this announcement by saying that noxious gases will be wused ! ‘only in riot control or Situations analogous to riot control." He added, "There has been no pdlicy decision to engage in gas warfare in Vietnam."
How much trust can be placed in Rusk's word that Johnson has not really decided-.to engage in gas warfare? Not much. This can be judged from the revelation on how Rusk came to give this answer, It was not the result of an honest consideration of the repercussions of the preliminary employment of gas in South Vietnam but the outcome of something quite different.
Thus David Wise of the New’ York Herald Tribune's Washington Bureau revealed March 28 that the Washington policy makers were caught by surprise by the world-wide reaction to the U.S. use of. gas. As he put it, "the men in high office cannot anticipate every: thing. From time to time something goes wrong.
What went "wrong," however, in their opinion was not the use of gas but the failure to have prepared for a "potential propaganda black eye for the United States around the world." As they saw it, the "enemy" had scored a propaganda triumph that must be met on. the same level -- by counter propaganda.
For unexpected situations like this, the planners of U.S. imperialist strategy have prepared a whole series of advance combinations and permutations of poses to be assumed in public by top officials in Washington. As Wise explains it, in this instance, the answers kept on file for emergency use "basically broke down > into five. These were the following:
"] +--+ Silence, say nothing.
"2 -- Deny everything.
"3 -- Admit the use of nonlethal gas in Vietnam, term it a low-level decision, a mistake, and order that use of the gas stop immediately.
"4 -- Admit the use of gas, defend it as a decision made with full presidential knowledge, and announce that use of the gas will continue when necessary.
"5 -- Admit the use of gas, defend it as humane, disavow presidential responsibility and indicate that the gas will be used in the future when necessary."
According to Wise, "The Johnson administration chose the last option, as the best way, in its judgment, to salvage something out of a bad situation."
Out of the five possibilities, which were probably the end
results of variants put into electronic computers, the Dr. Strangeloves who are advising Johnson chose the one which they thought would prove least damaging. The alternative of stating the truth is, of course, excluded from "psychological warfare."
Thus, unfortunately from the White House point of view, the administration “could scarcely have said nothing, or denied all, because an Associated Press photographer had seen gas canisters and the story would have been difficult to suppress."
An outright lie, the happiest course for the imperialist propagandists, being excluded, these representatives of the "free world" then considered alternative No. 3. The administration couldn't use that because it "would have amounted to an admission that it had goofed, and that the president didn't know what was going on," It is, of course, not good publicity to reveal that the president of the United States is a mental as well as moral cretin.
To have used No. 4 would have “involved presidential prestige in the use of nauseating gas, an unpleasant option."
Thus by process of elimination of what they thought would be the most damaging propaganda, the White House advisers came to the "option" which they considered the least damaging. Hence the propaganda actually issued bythe State Department. and by Johnson himself. They reluctantly admitted using gas in South Vietnam, but claimed that really it wasn't so poisonous after all. In addition, it was not the sort of thing that usually comes to Johnson's personal attention, although of course he was not unaware of it. And while "no new directives" have been issued by Johnson about using it, still it will be used in the future "when needed."
Thus, after being given an object lesson in how the Pentagon is using the Vietnamese as guinea pigs in testing out all kinds of novel new. technological weapons invented and stockpiled in preparation for World War III, international public opinion was given an additional object lesson in the kind of propaganda to be expected as Johnson escalates the world closer to a nuclear catastrophe.
Only. the spokesmen and apologists of the Wilson government came close to matching their Américan cousins in defending and cover=ing up the Pentagon's use of gas. These experts in the application of the human tongue in services best appreciated by figures like Johnson and Wilson aver that it is-much kinder to use gas than to sear the. Vietnamese with napalm or white phosphorous or to blast them with bombs or to cut them up with machine-gun fire.
A columnist in the liberal Observer [March 28] dubbed the actual use of the gas as. "slightly comical." The whole furor, in his opinion, could be put down as a “toxic but non-lethal. cloud" of alarm due to mere "bungles™ and "ill-chosen" words.
4a
"HYGIENIC, PASTEURIZED GASES. .. "
The reaction of the French political satirists to Washington's use of noxious gases in Vietnam, offers a good indication of how bourgeois public opinion in Europe took the official admission. As can be seen from the examples below, the Johnson administration did not score any spectacular applause in these circles of its allies.
ee Ow
ray a cay
Under the title, "For a Laugh,” André Frossard wrote in Le Figaro [March 24]:
'tafter the napalm, gas. But the gases used by the American army in Vietnam are, naturally, hygienic, pasteurized gases, like ether and laughing gas, since it is characteristic of military men to laugh,
“These gases, which are sprayed like an insecticide, have the double virtue of knocking out the enemy and of restoring good humor to the American command.
"As a high functionary of the United States embassy put it to Max Clos, Figaro's Saigon correspondent: ‘We have shown that we are strong enough to do what we want to without having to take international opinion into account.!
; "It was hardly to be expected that this would be heard from an official missionary of Western democracy, but we must take into account the euphoria drifting from the villages and seeping into headquarters,
"Oh, it's wonderful to be sure of yourself! There's plenty of time to demonstrate, after trying out all the modern technological weapons, that there's no lack of psychology either."
rh
ate
iv
Le Canard Enchainé, the satirical Paris weekly, ran the following bit [March 24], entitled "Getting Gassier" toa gaze]:
"Yes sir, it's getting gassier all the time in Vietnam. The welcome mat of napalm bombs no longer being sufficient to rally the Vietnamese 'to the camp of freedom,' the Americans have decided to spray them with a little gas. Just a squirt of perfume no doubt.
"But the good anticolonialist souls in the United States can stay relaxed. On the word of the Pentagon -- the 'Goldfinger't Pentagon =- it's only for purely humanitarian aims that the U.S. is resorting to such methods.
"Just to make the Vietcong cry. .. In the’ long run to make them laugh, Nice work!
"Continuation of the escalation is not being halted. Tomorrow -we will learn perhaps that the Americans are sending. explosive pencils to the Vietnamese villages.
"As part of the struggle against illiteracy.
"Real Puritans!"
[in that last sentence, the French word is "puritain," which, of course, is easily distinguished from the other French word "putain,” meaning "whore." Nevertheless, many readers of Le Canard Enechainé will smile wryly at the close similarity of the final wisecrack to a common vulgar French phrase. ] .
a
st
Pp
te On
*
Robert Escarpit, Le Monde's. satirist, wrote the following [March 25] under the title "Nausea":
"Of course there's gas and gas. What the Americans are using in Vietnam is not mustard or phosgene. Our benevolent civilization has humanized even this once dreaded weapon.-
"The American vomiting and hallucinating. gases put the enemy out of combat without really hurting him at all.
"However, their effectiveness can be questioned. Hallucina~ tions are not incompatible with fighting; quite the contrary. If you want to really imbue the soldiers with the Grand Illusion, it's well to let them see the moon look like green cheese,
"As for vomiting, do you really believe a gas is necessary to make one's gorge rise and give birth to the fierce anger of bloody liberation struggles?"
SMM
7] ri
The shortest comment, yet as apt as any in voicing the nausea felt by the whole world, was the following headline which Le Canard Enohain? printed on two. placards, one for each of its famous ducks to display at the very top of the front page:
"These gases in Vietnam. ...... .- +. make one vomit!"