THE MY LAI MASSACRE AND ITS COVER-UP: BEYOND THE REACH OF LAW

by Joseph; Burke Marshall & Jack Schwartz--Eds. Goldstein ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 23, 1976

The body of the book is the first volume of four compiled by General Peers' Commission a year and a half after the My Lai killings in Vietnam. The reports on the actual incidents are extremely detailed but often vague as to the source of the description. However, the military jargon and code numbers are comprehensible and an impression arises of honest, traditional concern for justice, militarily conceived--although the editors protest the use of euphemisms like ""incident"" for massacre. They also deplore the concluding recommendation that the Army follow rules better as a tunnel-vision approach to the nature of the Vietnam War where, as Lieutenant Calley said, every Vietnamese was the enemy. Instead they propose that federal courts take jurisdiction in any such future cases. The book certainly provides backup for those who believe that Calley was a low-level scapegoat for higher-ups, but at the same time it arouses no expectations that further volumes will resolve the question. A necessary if frustrating source and an obligatory document.

Pub Date: April 23, 1976

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Free Press/Macmillan

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1976

Categories: NONFICTION