Students were asked to use their readings and field studies to express their thoughts on Robert Dalton's description of the South and southern delta:

"In the South, we can see the effect of contact with the West upon the Vietnamese culture…the Southerner has always moved South to avoid the controls of Confucianism, communism, and socialism. However, to assume they have embraced Capitalism, (as we know it) is a mistake…"

Common themes emerged from the passages, but so did revealing differences of opinion. In particular, first-year biochemistry major Anoma Nellore was acutely aware of the living legacies of the American war in Vietnam. She sensed a subliminal motive for embracing capitalism in Vietnam--a desire to heal old wounds--which affected how capitalism was practiced in the southern economy:

Economically speaking, the Vietnamese nurse no grudge against the Americans and are willing to do business with America once more. This economic acceptance of America is an expedient measure, designed to lift the Vietnamese economy out of the doldrums. Culturally speaking, the Vietnamese, as Lady Borton describes, embrace Americans and give them the gracious courtesy and respect that they would give to any other honored guest.

Perhaps this lack of malice toward the American people is due to Ho Chi Minh's speeches, which cast American citizens as victims of the American government. Nevertheless, the hospitality and absence of rancor on the part of the Vietnamese for Americans tells of a forgiving, peaceful culture that is wise enough to refrain from nursing grudges. It is this aspect of Vietnamese culture that Americans ought to adopt and emulate.

Third-year biology and history major Elizabeth Borja believes capitalism's difference is its lack of dominance in Vietnam compared to America, where market forces dominate culture and politics as well as the economy:

Fusion is one of the key words I would use to describe the South. The city of Saigon is a fusion between the West and Vietnam, between capitalism and communism--a fusion that is illustrated in its dual names, Saigon and Ho Chi Minh City. Walking through the modern city, I could see this fusion: street vendors and stores selling Western items or tourist trinkets mixed with women in traditional clothing carrying heavy baskets on their heads. On the river, I could see large tankers and huge fishing boats mingling with the tiny one-man sampans. Secular buildings are next to religious buildings--Chinese pagodas are near Catholic cathedrals and Buddhist temples. The circle near the Rex Hotel could be New York or DC--but with motorbikes instead of automobiles.

Elizabeth describes the current semi-capitalist system under doi moi, the economic reform policy enacted by the socialist government in 1986. She explains the difference between the American system and "equitization," the socialist compromise where the workers--represented by the state--theoretically have a hand in running their own company:

The Communism of Vietnam, many of our guests noted, is quite different from that of other Communist countries, such as the former Soviet Union and Cuba. This difference is positive and shows that while the policy of doi moi may have capitalist tendencies, as Dalton suggested, the South has not fully accepted capitalism. Under capitalism, the businesses would be owned 100% by private investors. Under equitization, the government still owns a portion of the business, regardless of how much a single person wants to buy of the business. This is the communist way and it seems to be accepted. veryok

But Elizabeth, like many of us, sensed the two-way street that exists in Vietnamese socialism, where the state will uphold workers' rights in the face of capitalist "exploitation," but the workers are expected to uphold socialist doctrine in the face of Western criticism. Viewing this mutual understanding through American eyes, the students, especially Elizabeth, sensed a heavy burden on Vietnamese citizens:

The Communist government, though not the monolithic horror that Americans imagined during the war, has a long arm. Though there did not appear to be very strict limits on where we could go, there seemed to be limits on what people wanted to say to us, as noted by Henry Kamm. At the foreign ministry, the presenters were very happy to talk about the economic situation in Vietnam but avoided political topics. Several people in our group noted that the students at the Lotus English School avoided those topics as well--Anoma's speaking partner pretended not to understand the word "communism."

Dr. Xuan, the revolutionary agriculture professor who spoke with us when we visited Can Tho University, is an exception to the rule that the Southerners do no speak about politics. He is proud of the Communist lawmaking system, in which there is very little lobbying and muddying of the issues, a source of pride for the foreign ministry as well. He has had no qualms about speaking out against the government in the past and he seems to be satisfied with the Communism of Vietnam. He is even skeptical of the new prosperity that Vietnam hopes to find with its 1995 induction into ASEAN, because capitalism is still a relatively new concept in Vietnam and doi moi is designed to limit capitalism's influence on rural and domestic commerce. Instead, Xuan is hopeful for political and agricultural reforms, led by Communism, in rural areas, an idea shared by the foreign ministry. This belief in the flexibility of communism outweighs the gains promised by a totally capitalist system, in the minds of these Southerners to whom we spoke.