Forums

Sadly, when the Pope starts criticising Trump's policies, it won't last. His first words included the phrase "Evil shall not prevail."

You can state it. But then you have to expand that statement and explain why you omit to mention the reason for their being established in the first place. Had the USA not created two separate countries and then, as it so often did, backed the one which was most insecure, the most rotten and the most corrupt, destablized it by assassinating its Prime Minister, then invaded much of the country and over years bombed the hell out of it with napalm and murdered around 3 million citizens mostly from the North, all before quickly evacuating all its forces when it lost, Vietnam might have been unified much more peacefully without the need for all that carnage, death and destruction. And without the need for the vast majority of the re-education camps.  The fact is that both Roosevelt and Truman had failed to agree to Ho Chi Minh's written overtures to keep the French out of Vietnam and to permit a new Vietnam born of nationalism - not colonialism - to develop. Ho was no saint and after the strongly anti-colonial USA had actually given in to General De Gaulle's demands by allowing the French to return, some of the excesses of his regime in the north were certainy brutal. But he was forging a nation when fighting a guerrilla war against French invaders and colonists and then a separate country backed by the United States.  Amd when you talk about political prisoners, you also omit to mention that the two countries with the most political prisoners in 2025 are Saudi Arabia and the United States! Vietnam does not even feature in the first 21 countries! What provide absolutely no sources for your comments? https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/political-prisoners-by-country If you think the idea of re-education was born in Vietnam, you are sadly mistaken. And before you expect Vietnam, after all the  many years of death and destruction rained down in it by a major world power, to condemn or apologise for anything, you must first have the aggressor and invader - the United States - pay reparations both to the country and the families of the 3 million it murdered. The USA caused the war. Not the North Vietnamese. Has the USA paid reparations? Not one cent, as per this clip dated Aprl 29 2025 - Nor will the world forget that after signing a peace treaty that promised reparations for the irreparable lingering harm caused by the U.S. government and its military, the U.S. reneged. Not only does the U.S. continue to deny billions of dollars in reparations, but it had the unmitigated gall to demand that Vietnam pay the U.S. $140 million in war debts borrowed by the puppet regime of South Vietnam in exchange for normalizing trade relations. https://iacenter.org/2025/05/04/u-s-still-owes-vietnam-reparations/

Can't help thinking about Stephen Sondheim's wonderful lyrics in "Sweeney Todd" when Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett are deciding what should go into her pies - lines like MS. LOVETT: What Mr. Todd, what Mr. Todd What is that sound? TODD: Those crunching noises pervading the air! MS. LOVETT: Yes, Mr. Todd, Yes Mr. Todd Yes all around TODD: It’s man devouring man, my dear! BOTH: Then who are we to deny it in here? TODD (spoken): These are desperate times, Ms. Lovett And desperate measures are called for MS. LOVETT: Here we are. Hot out of the oven  TODD: What is that? MS. LOVETT: Its priest Have a little priest TODD: Is it really good? MS. LOVETT: Sir, it’s too good, at least Then again they don’t commit sins of the flesh So it’s pretty fresh TODD: Awful lot of fat MS. LOVETT: Only where it sat TODD: Haven’t you got poet or something like that? MS. LOVETT: No you see the trouble with poet Is how do you know it’s deceased? Try the priest! Lawyer’s rather nice TODD: If it’s for a price MS. LOVETT: Order something else, though, to follow Since no one should swallow it twice TODD: Anything that’s lean? MS. LOVETT: Well then if you’re British and loyal You might enjoy Royal Marine Anyway it’s clean Though of course it tastes of wherever it’s been! etc. etc. copyright: Stephen Sondheim Estate Being gay and as one who had visited London many, many times, Sondheim would have been perfectly aware of the gay reference to Royal Marines!

Last year when I was visiting Da Nang, a local Vietnam guy told me that his entire family was put on a "black list" because his father had worked for the USA, when they were running military operations here in Da Nang. Consequently, none of them are allowed to have any government jobs.

You should know my shopping list by now 🤷‍♂️