Vietnam
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“Even in France we don’t have so many examples of the beautiful wrought-iron railings and staircases that you see here,” said French Consul General Emmanuel Ly-Batallan. ~ Zanna K. McKay
Vietnam (Vietnamese: Việt Nam), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV; Vietnamese: Cộng hòa xã hội chủ nghĩa Việt Nam) is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. With an estimated 90.5 million inhabitants as of 2014, it is the world's 13th-most-populous country, and the eighth-most-populous Asian country. The name Vietnam translates as "Southern Viet" (synonymous with the much older term Nam Viet); it was first officially adopted in 1802 by Emperor Gia Long, and was adopted again in 1945 with the founding of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam under Ho Chi Minh. The country is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea to the east. Its capital city has been Hanoi since the reunification of North and South Vietnam in 1976, following the conclusion of the Vietnam War.
A – B – C – D – E – F – G – H – I – J – K – L – M – N – O – P – Q – R – S – T – U – V – W – X – Y – Z – See also
Quotes[edit]
C[edit]
- Vietnam is strong eternal.
- Van Cao, "March to the Front" (1944)
- Original Vietnamese: Nuoc non Vietnam ta vung ben.
- Strap on my arm; the streets is feeling like Vietnam.
- Lavell W. Crump, "Bloody War" (2005), Certified.
D[edit]
- Kiss me goodbye and write me while I'm gone. Goodbye my sweetheart, hello Vietnam.
- Dave Dudley, as quoted in "Hello Vietnam" (1965), by Tom T. Hall, United Kingdom: Decca Records.
G[edit]
- In August 1945, the capitulation of the Japanese forces before the Soviet Army and the Allied forces, put an end to the world war. The defeat of the German and Nippon fascists was the beginning of a great weakening of the capitalist system. After the great victory of the Soviet Union, many people's democracies saw the light of day. The socialist system was no longer confined within the frontiers of a single country. A new historic era was beginning in the world. In view of these changes, in Viet Nam, the Indo-chinese Communist Party and the Viet Minh called the whole Vietnamese nation to general insurrection. Everywhere, the people rose in a body. Demonstrations and displays of force followed each other uninterruptedly. In August, the Revolution broke out, neutralising the bewildered Nippon troops, overthrowing the pro-Japanese feudal authorities, and installing people's power in Hanoi and throughout the country, in the towns as well as in the countryside, in Bac Bo as well as in Nam Bo. In Hanoi, the capital, in September 2nd, the provisional gouvernment was formed around President Ho Chi Minh; it presented itself to the nation, proclaimed the independence of Viet Nam, and called on the nation to unite, to hold itself in readiness to defend the country and to oppose all attempts at imperialist aggression. The Democratic Republic of Viet Nam was born, the first people's democracy in South-east Asia. But the imperialists intended to nip the republican regime in the bud and once again transform Viet Nam into a colony. Three weeks had hardly gone by when, on September 23rd, 1945, the French Expeditionary Corps opened fire in Saigon. The whole was to be carried on for nine years at the cost of unprecedented heroism and amidst unimaginable difficulties, to end by the shining victory of our people and the crushing defeat of the aggressive imperialists at Dien Bien Phu. ... Never before had there been so many foreign troops on the soil of Viet Nam. But never before either, had the Vietnamese people been so determined to rise up in combat to defend their country.
J[edit]
- Our history this year we see in Vietnam. Men there are dying; men named Fernandez and Zajac and Zelinko and Mariano and McCormick. Neither the enemy who killed them nor the people whose independence they have fought to save ever asked them where they or their parents came from. They were all Americans. It was for free men and for America that they gave their all, they gave their lives and selves. By eliminating that same question as a test for immigration the Congress proves ourselves worthy of those men and worthy of our own traditions as a nation
- Lyndon Johnson, Remarks at the Signing of the Immigration Bill (3 October 1965).
- The people of Vietnam, north and south, seek the same things. The shared needs of man, the needs for food and shelter and education, the chance to build and work and till the soil, free from the arbitrary horrors of battle, the desire to walk in the dignity of those who master their own destiny. For many painful years, in war and revolution and infrequent peace, they have struggled to fulfill those needs. It is a crime against mankind that so much courage, and so much will, and so many dreams, must be flung on the fires of war and death... How many men who listen to me tonight have served their nation in other wars? How very many are not here to listen? The war in Vietnam is not like these other wars. Yet, finally, war is always the same. It is young men dying in the fullness of their promise. It is trying to kill a man that you do not even know well enough to hate. Therefore, to know war is to know that there is still madness in this world.
- Lyndon Johnson, State of the Union Address (12 January 1966).
- Last year the nature of the war in Vietnam changed again. Swiftly increasing numbers of armed men from the North crossed the borders to join forces that were already in the South. Attack and terror increased, spurred and encouraged by the belief that the United States lacked the will to continue and that their victory was near. Despite our desire to limit conflict, it was necessary to act: to hold back the mounting aggression, to give courage to the people of the South, and to make our firmness clear to the North. Thus. we began limited air action against military targets in North Vietnam. We increased our fighting force to its present strength tonight of 190,000 men. These moves have not ended the aggression but they have prevented its success. The aims of the enemy have been put out of reach by the skill and the bravery of Americans and their allies—and by the enduring courage of the South Vietnamese who, I can tell you, have lost eight men last year for every one of ours. The enemy is no longer close to victory. Time is no longer on his side. There is no cause to doubt the American commitment. Our decision to stand firm has been matched by our desire for peace.
- Lyndon Johnson, State of the Union Address (12 January 1966).
- I drop bombs like I was in Vietnam.
- Rufus Johnson, "Under the Influence" (2000), The Marshall Mathers LP.
L[edit]
- Vietnam of course attacked Cambodia.
M[edit]
- Vietnam’s century-old French villas and colonial-era government buildings are a draw for the 8 million tourists who visit the country every year.
“Even in France we don’t have so many examples of the beautiful wrought-iron railings and staircases that you see here,” said French Consul General Emmanuel Ly-Batallan.
Heavy roofs are designed to withstand typhoons and large windows placed strategically to catch the breeze. The consulate, now dwarfed by a skyscraper under construction, is considered one of the best-preserved examples of the architecture of Cochinchina, the French name for southern Vietnam.- Zanna K. McKay, “Vietnam's architectural gems are disappearing”, (March 4, 2017).
N[edit]
- We lost, everyday, Vietnamese life, in fighting the communists... American democracy, maybe, cannot work in a country like mine, you know, in South Vietnam.
- Nguyen Khanh, as quoted in "Interview with Nguyen Khanh" (29 April 1981), WGBH Media Library & Archives.
- I remember that day clearly when I left Saigon. I left my country in honor that day... China presents Vietnam with a very big problem. China is taking over Vietnam, from Cholon, where there are rich Chinese, to Haiphong. They are everywhere now with their product. My wife is from the North, people there resent China more than the South feared the Viet Cong. The Chinese are invaders — like any other foreigners — to fight. We must stop the Chinese. You know the dikes built on the Red River? If they break, what happens? A flood!
- Nguyen Khanh, as quoted in "A Bag of Earth, A Promise To Keep" (28 April 2005), by Mike Nally, Viet Weekly.
- If they want to assassinate me, it's easy. After that, just blame it on the Việt Cộng or a coup d'etat plot.
- Văn Thiệu Nguyễn, as quoted in "Tổng thống Sài Gòn cũ Nguyễn Văn Thiệu và con đường chiến bại (kỳ III)", by Phong Hoàn Công, Báo Công An Nhân Dân.
- Original Vietnamese quote: Nếu họ muốn ám sát tôi thì cũng dễ thôi. Rồi sau đó cứ việc đổ cho Việt Cộng hoặc là do âm mưu đảo chính.
- They have back-stabbed us.
- Văn Thiệu Nguyễn, as quoted in Việt Nam. Cuộc chiến 10.000 ngày. Tập 8 - Hòa bình.
- Original Vietnamese quote: Họ đã đâm sau lưng chúng tôi.
- No event in American history is more misunderstood than the Vietnam War. It was misreported then, and it is misremembered now. Rarely have so many people been so wrong about so much. Never have the consequences of their misunderstanding been so tragic.
- Richard Nixon, as quoted in No More Vietnams (1987).
O[edit]
- I also come here with a deep respect for Vietnam's ancient heritage. For millennia, farmers have tended these lands, a history revealed in the Đông Sơn drums. At this bend in the river, Hanoi has endured for more than a thousand years. The world came to treasure Vietnamese silks and paintings, and a great Temple of Literature stands as a testament to your pursuit of knowledge. And yet, over the centuries, your fate was too often dictated by others. Your beloved land was not always your own. But like bamboo, the unbroken spirit of the Vietnamese people was captured by Lý Thường Kiệt: "The Southern emperor rules the Southern land. Our destiny is writ in Heaven's Book."
- Barack Obama, Remarks in Hanoi, Vietnam; 24 May 2016
P[edit]
- We the People remain resolute in our hearts and minds. Courageously we will fight such that everywhere, the Glory of the Vietnamese forever resounds!
- Lưu Hữu Phước, "Thanh niên hành khúc"
- Original Vietnamese: Người Công Dân luôn vững bền tâm trí. Hùng tráng quyết chiến đấu làm cho khắp nơi. Vang tiếng người nước Nam cho đến muôn đời!
- Bones have broken, and blood has fallen, the hatred is rising high. Our country has been separated for so long. Here, the sacred Mekong, here, glorious Truong Son Mountains are urging us to advance to kill the enemy. Shoulder to shoulder, under a common flag. Arise!
- Lưu Hữu Phước, "Liberate the South" (July 1969)
- I used to see Vietnam as a war rather than a country.
- John Pilger, as quoted in Do you remember Vietnam? (1978).
S[edit]
- Whatever you think... America wasn't stealing from the Vietnamese.
T[edit]
- This is the largest anti-Chinese demonstration I have ever seen in Hanoi. Our patience has limits. We are here to express the will of the Vietnamese people to defend our territory at all costs. We are ready to die to protect our nation.
- A war veteran named Dang Quang Thang told the AFP news agency, "Vietnam protestors attack China over sea disuptes", May 11, 2014.
- All independent religions are banned [in Vietnam]. Only economically speaking we are better [since the collapse of South Vietnam in 1975]. But politically speaking nothing changes.
- Thích Quảng Độ. . (2007-12-20). In My View: Vietnam's Buddhist Monk Thich Quang Do
Z[edit]
- [T]he Vietnamese government does not mess around. Vietnam is not a democracy. It benefits (suffers?) from extensive monitoring of civilians, but unlike the Singaporean techno-state, Vietnam’s system is more akin to an authoritarian neighborhood watch. This system of internal monitoring literally lets state agents go door-to-door demanding answers to invasive questions.
- Peter Zeihan, "The State of the Pandemic: East Asia" (18 June 2020), Zeihan on Geopolitics
See also[edit]
- American exceptionalism
- Crimes against humanity
- War crimes
- War is a Racket, by Smedley Butler (U.S.M.C.)
External links[edit]
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