Ho had the gut to stand for what he believed.

Hi there,

I think Clarence Land was correct. If election had been held, Ho would have won. The reason for this: Vietnamese people at that time were tired of the wars that torn their country, and most of them distrusted foreigners. If you look at how Vietnam fought against Chinese and French influences, you will see what I mean. Ho was a good choice at that time because he had the gut to fight foreign invaders. Moreover, his propaganda machine was effective in mobolizing common folks around him.

But I don't think Ho's legacy is still loved and repected among the current Vietnamese generations. Vietnam went into poverty and bankcrupcy after 1975. I had lived through the famines, especially in 1979-1980 period. I lived on the farm with my family, and we ate whatever we found: frogs, crickets, grasshoppers, snakes, and what not. Those who were in power at that time lived in abundance without working: they taxed the poor folks like my family. No wonder now Vietnamese youth are eager to welcome foreign factories and currencies in Vietnam: they are learning how to think for themselves, which is good.

I hope Vietnam and her people will learn and work harder and smarter so that their chilren and grandchildren will have better futures while not getting too much into ideology differences, which only leads to war.