Dean Rusk served as Secretary of State for eight controversial years, from 1961 through 1969, when public discomfort over his…
The Strange Case of Ngo Dinh Can
It sounds like a scene out of a movie: a corrupt dictator attempts to flee the country with the help…
The Fall of Dien Bien Phu and the Rise of U.S. Involvement in Vietnam
Dien Bien Phu was a major battle of the first Indochina war in which the French fought against the Viet…
April Fool’s Day in the Foreign Service
The State Department is not exactly known for its jocularity but once in a while, it can have its fair…
Guns and Ganja: Marijuana Usage in the Foreign Service
Like many countries, the U.S. has recently grappled with the issue of how to deal with marijuana usage: Should it…
My Lai — Atrocity and Cover-up in the Midst of Vietnam
On March 16, 1968, in what was one of the most shocking incidents of the Vietnam War and in the…
Laos 1973 – No Coup for You!
While the eyes of America were on Vietnam, another war was being fought next door in Laos. Involvement of the…
“Viet Cong Invade American Embassy” — The 1968 Tet Offensive
On Jan. 30, 1968, Vietnamese communists attacked the American embassy in Saigon. For several hours they held the embassy grounds,…
Apocalypse Not, Part II
On April 29, 1975, Francis Terry McNamara, then Consul General, finally received orders to evacuate the Consulate General in Can…
Apocalypse Not – The Evacuation from Can Tho, Vietnam — April 1975
The shaky peace that had held in Vietnam since the signing of the Paris Peace Accords in 1973 began to…