“Perception is reality” is a truism in most areas of human experience, but perhaps more so in politics than any other realm. Zealots on all sides know that if they can create an enduring, indelible image -- whether positive or negative -- in the minds of the populace, that perception will supersede any inconvenient facts that are more reflective of the actual situation. Here are just a few wide-ranging examples from the past half-century: Perception: The Tet Offensive was a major defeat for the U.S. in Vietnam The Vietnam War was a conflict born of Cold War sensibilities and doctrines holding that the spread of communism anywhere in the world was an existential threat to the national security interests of the United States and therefore that threat should be stopped. Very generally speaking, that was the impetus for our taking the lead role in supporting South Vietnam resisting the aggression of Russia-backed North Vietnam. U.S. involvement started in the...(Read Full Article)