the situation at the time in vietnam was very much different than the situation in iraq now. for example up until 1964, there were no air attacks. this
chart illustrates how the troop strength of this period of the war differed from later periods. the attacks and engagements at that point were almost entirely small scale. if you compare the number of troops to the number of
casualties, you'll see a direct correlation. there was also a very significant difference in enemy troop strength.
i've not been able to find anything that corroborates the level of "soldiers" you claim. i've found "mainly advisors". link please?
while iraq is certainly a blunder of significant proportions, i don't think a comparison between the two wars is very accurate. although it does look like "terrorism" is the new "communism".