[riverdawg]

""...Vietnam was a huge war of economic attrition in the 70 Years War against the Soviets, one they couldn't afford."

I believe the Soviet's invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, along with Reagan's defense build-up in the 1980's, were the proximate causes of the Soviet Union's collapse. In the run-up to that invasion, Z. Brzezinski, Carter's national security advisor, wrote to Carter that "We now have the opportunity of giving to the USSR its Vietnam war ..." by providing aid to the mujahadeen. This assistance was one of the few correct things that Carter did on the foreign-policy front.

[FreedomPoster]

I don't think Carter had much to do with it, re: Afghanistan. And Reagan much less than I once thought.

I highly recommend Charlie Wilson's War, on the subject.