Why has World War 2 been called the good war?

Answer 1

Probably because there were clearly identifiable enemies (Hitler, Mussolini and Hirohito) and the Allied countries could feel very virtuous about making whatever sacrifices were necessary to defeat them. Personally I think the term "good war" is contradictory and naively stupid. Do you mean "The Great War"? It was the largest conflict the world had experienced up to that time and of course it wasn't called the First World War because no one knew there would be a second until 20 years later.

Answer 2

WWII was considered a "good war" because the Allied Powers were fighting against people perceived as "evil." Hitler is the prime example here. Also, as the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and brought America into the war, many Americans felt that they had to enlist and fight for their country. However, with Vietnam the US was not directly attacked. The Vietnam War was a result of a foreign policy of containment. What the US was trying to do was contain and prevent the spread of communism throughout the world. The differences between the US and the Viet Cong were mainly political in nature, as opposed to the perceived moral and ethical differences between the Allied Powers and Hitler in WWII. There was also the serious problems brought about by the religious differemces in the South. US politics was biased in favor of the Catholic minority which held the majority of the land, much of it owned by the church itself. This element alone was a major cause of the Civil War. Agrarian reform was essential, and much of the former colonial plantations were restricted to farming only by Catholics.