Tour of Duty '06
Yesterday, 38 years after the fact, George W Bush finally arrived in Vietnam. I can only imagine that his first thoughts as his feet touched the tarmac were, "Better watch out for Charlie in the trees, they're wily devils, heh heh heh." Yes it's an interesting turn of events that has brought this former Texas Air National Guardsman cum draft dodger to the place he spent a lot of time and effort avoiding.
Of course, this is a long way from the Vietnam he was avoiding. The country's economic rise in the recent past his mirrors the early stages of the economic miracles in it's near neighbors. Just last week, Intel Corporation committed to invest $1 billion in the country to build a new facility (and of course get a private army, bribe a bunch of officials, and all the other stuff that multinationals do), which is quite a step forward for the country.
One can only imagine what the thoughts of the Vietnamese leadership were when they saw him. I mean there can't be that much mutual respect, which sets up the most delicate of diplomatic pas de deux.