The Foreign Service Journal, June 2015

10 JUNE 2015 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL Chi Minh Trail, which moved tanks and troops south, ended near Tay Ninh. When on one occasion I showed videotapes of the Paris Peace Accords in 1973, the Cao Dai politely saw through it as an empty exercise. One provincial leader in central Viet- namhad a remarkable gift of clairvoyance. In late September 1974, he warned that I was exposing my family to grave danger. He seemed to know that my wife and two young children were in Saigon withme. He said that an order was being pre- pared for my new assignment, and a mes- sage would arrive in two weeks. I asked him if the assignment was in the United States or another country. He replied that I was going to a cold country, not the United States. Indeed, an official telegram from USIA Washington came in early October offering me direct transfer to Embassy Santiago. This backstory on seers has a denoue- ment. On April 30, 1975, on local radio, the Voice of America relay reported that President Duong Van Minh, aka General “Big” Minh, had surrendered to the North Vietnamese Army at Saigon’s Indepen- dence Palace. The news came to me while the cold autumn wind was blowing in southern Chile, just as the provincial seer had predicted. Jose Armilla FSO, retired Vienna, Virginia Still Much to Learn My compliments to Editor Shawn Dorman, the Foreign Service Journal staff and the contributors (most of whom I know) to the FSJ issue on Vietnam. Each article was uniquely informative and well written. I served in Vietnam from 1964 to 1968, both in Central Vietnam and Sai- gon. I have visited Vietnam several times since then and have followed closely how the country has moved along after a period of uncertainty. There is still much to be learned from the American experience in Vietnam and how it applies to the issues of our day. Gilbert H. Sheinbaum FSO, retired Vienna, Virginia Connecting With AFSA I read with great admiration retired Ambassador Robert M. Beecroft’s and AFSA President Robert J. Silverman’s let- ters in the April 2015 Journal concerning inclusion of both diversity and objectivity in selecting recipients of AFSA awards. As a regular reader of the Journal since retiring in 2009, I have observed lit- tle diversity and objectivity in the award nominations or selections. Specialists and other minorities (yes, I choose this term even though it seems outdated and overused) do not seem to be included at the same rate as others. Like many retirees, I regularly attend the State Department get-togethers— for specialists and officers—in my hometown. Some of us have gone on to establish new careers and some have continued to participate in State activities and even continue working, specialists and generalists alike. But there seems to be little or no interest in AFSA and what it does or would like to accomplish in regard to retirees. There seems to be a huge disconnect between these retirees and AFSA. The recent AFSA survey, also in the April FSJ , indicated that members have a number of concerns. On retirement issues, exactly a quarter of those sur- veyed felt that more needed to be done. Another concern was this: “AFSA seems to be more interested in generalists’ issues rather than specialist.” AFSA needs to take action on these matters. If AFSA is serious about supporting diversity and inclusion, it must make radical changes to its method of doing business and providing services. A few years ago I was interested in volunteer- ing for a committee but was told by AFSA that if I didn’t live in the Washington, D.C., area it would be on me to make sure that I got to the meetings. Earlier, I wrote an email to AFSA requesting that the organization be more responsive to those who don’t always think and live inside the Beltway. I was told that it would take time tomake any changes. I am sure changes can be made if AFSA wants to make them. Members should not be limited to what commit- tees or meetings they can participate in just because of their location. Cost is minimal, if any, as there are several ways to videoconference (e.g., Skype). Members, retired and active-duty, need to become more involved in how our union is communicating and doing its job, even if we are not in the Washing- ton, D.C., area. I am still sincerely dedicated to the principles of the Department of State. I recently signed on to the AFSA Commu- nity and have volunteered to monitor a retiree While Actually Employed group. I am aware that the community itself is new, and I look forward to being one of the monitors on this particular group. Juan Becerra IMO, retired Rio Rancho, New Mexico Remembering Charles William Thomas Philip Shenon begins his recent book, A Cruel and Shocking Act: The Secret His- tory of the Kennedy Assassination , with a focus on the 1965 reporting fromMexico City by FSO Charles WilliamThomas, whose all-too-short career in the Foreign