Obama lifts arms ban in his first visit to Vietnam

[ttthailand]

Being a Vietnam era vet and having been offended by a local tour company speaking out about how terrible America was and still is. I was offended but just kept it to myself.

For me, I think we should let them sink in their own blood. Let them fight the Chinese and become what they are destined to .... We have other places to build bases... Screw them !!!

I visited Hanoi when American tourists were more rare. I definitely got special attention from tour operators but considering the history I felt it was understandable. The main question I got was, why don't we see many Americans? (Duh!) It takes time.

as a Vietnam era vet I wanted to see the new Vietnam. I visited Vietnam two years ago and spent two weeks traveling from South to north. My last stop was Hanoi. A friend and I went on a tour of the city and the guide went out of his way to say how terrible America was and that we were not welcome in his country. There were 10 foreigners in the group and I am sure he was brain washed by his government. I have zero time for him or Vietnam. Let them figure out their own problems and I will watch while the Chinese invade .... Karma !

[Jingthing]

That's a shame. Maybe after the Obama visit the government will adjust the brainwashing of their tour guides.

[tonbridgebrit]

"U.S. lawmakers and activists had urged the president to press the communist leadership for greater freedoms before granting it. Vietnam holds about 100 political prisoners and there have been more detentions this year."



I do have a smirk on my face when reading the above quote from the OP.

I think we should get real. There is a place called Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is NOT a democracy. They're suspected of doing a load of human rights abuse. There's little freedom in Saudi Arabia. And Washington sells loads of weapons to Saudi Arabia !


And now we have little Vietnam. Why make a big deal about Vietnam not being a democracy ? Okay, so it's a communist non-elected government. And they have a load of political prisoners. Why raise the issue with Vietnam, but sell a stack of military hardware to Saudi Arabia ?



Why not just ban all arms exports to countries that are not a democracy ? Why not just ban all arms exports to countries that carry out human rights abuse ?

Or, just say that Washington is willing to sell arms to whatever countries, as long as those weapons don't end up being used against America ?

[tonbridgebrit]

"Vietnam has not bought anything" - what do you expect if the supplies come from a country which killed millions of their people? I - for one - never saw a Vietnamese threat at an American border. The Yankees were never supposed to be in Indochina. Officially fighting communism it might be noteworthy that the biggest creditor to the US is ...... the Peoples Republic of China; to the best of my limited knowledge a communist country.

​Obama runs around like a headless chicken and attending lame duck summits in the departure lounge of power. How godforsaken arrogant to "remove" the sanctions and embargoes; it takes Asian wisdom and skills not to spit and vomit. But 43 years ago the Vietnamese proved their superiority in character, Le Tuc Pho refused the Peace Nobel Prize 1973 while Kissinger, never accused of genocide nor faced the bench - accepted it.

We've learnt absolutely nothing; tell the Amis to go home and get their house in order; Asia, Europe and Africa can sort out their own way without what today is still called "imperialists" by certain Indochinese governments. And this, to make it crystal clear, refers to the official USA seated in Washington DC and not to the countless American friends of mine who are likewise sick and tired of their country's leadership.

Anybody who actually knows anything about the situation understand that Vietnam considers its #1 current threat to be China. As you clearly don't know, after the Vietnam war, China and Vietnam battled each other. China now pretty much claims the south china sea to be it's lake and maintains it has sovereignty over islands that Vietnam claims for its own. Even if it wanted to, The USA can't twist Vietnam's arm into doing business with us and purchasing arms from us. This is something Vietnam clearly wants.

It would help if you actually would understand what I wrote. Reading alone is not sufficient.

I worked in Hanoi from 1978 - 1980 and happened to be around during the conflict you mentioned in February 1979. Luckily the US had lost the war by then already so Kissinger could brabble about Sino-Viet issues but nobody listened anymore. Today the US is still licking its wounds over the 58'000 service people they lost in Vietnam (by the way, 58'000 too many - as far as I am concerned) but nobody speaks about those millions of Indochinese, the systematic destruction of Cambodia or the 2 million tons of bombs the US dropped over Laos alone.

The US exists for 240 years of which it was and is war mongering for 224 years with countries NOT bordering the US.

The US boycotted the Olympic Games in Moscow 1980 was because the Soviets had occupied Afghanistan. Well, guess who went into Afghanistan a generation later?

Schwartzkopf already warned against taking out Hussein and Gaddafi - well it created a vacuum with a deadly domino effect in the Middle East and Northern Africa; the result will be a third world war.

Well; apart from cheaper oil the official US can also continue to sell weapons to countries behaving like kindergarteners.

What would Washington say if nuclear-free Canada would file a petition with the UN to demilitarise nuclear arsenal from the US? Washington would go apeshit!

So my point was, is and always will be that the US might be better advised to look after its own country and people.

One in seven Americans lives of food stamps, has - by far - the highest percentage of people in jails and needs to tax its citizens anywhere on the planet. Education is related to financial means, people die because of unaffordable medical care and while they choose the Miss USA among 50 candidates their system provides for the choice of precisely two once it concerns their head of state - there is lots of room for domestic improvement; don't you think so?

Let Indochina sort out the Spratly-island subject; the US is clearly not wanted. You saw what happened at the REAL 9/11 (Chile 1973); once those Washington-cronies are out affairs usually normalise over a generation or so - the latest example being Burma/Myanmar, Vietnam or Cuba. The Chinese will be put into the place it belongs - but this is up to Asia and certainly not the US or Europe.

Maybe you understand my point now; then only we could even agree to disagree

+1

How on earth can anybody disagree with the above post ??

And this is from somebody who has actually been there.

[lifeincnx]

Obami...had to do some'um...dem dare Chinese and Russians were making too much money from de Vietnamese...time to stop dat!

Your family must be down right proud of you being selected as valedictorian for your sixth grade graduation from Lester Maddox elementary school.

Edited May 27, 2016 by lifeincnx

[Berkshire]

Obami...had to do some'um...dem dare Chinese and Russians were making too much money from de Vietnamese...time to stop dat!

What sort of speech pattern are you mocking there? Surely not Obama's.

I am attempting to reach the general unemployed uneducated unconcerned population...

Read: Trump supporters.