Frustrations of a super-power
Sir: Eisenhower is substantially misquoted by your correspondent E. F. G. Haig (Letters, 16 February). He did not write that in the view of his advisers 'possibly 80 per cent of the population would have voted for Ho Chi Minh,' but that they would 'have voted for 'Ho Chi Minh as their leader rather than Chief of State Bao Dar (the absentee playboy emperor). It is as if one quoted a remark that `Mr Jeremy Thorpe would win an election hands down against Mr Gollan,' omitting the last three words. This falsification has been nailed lime and again (for example, by Kingsley Amis in the New Statesman last year). Can it not now be dropped? Or at least a few dots be inserted after 'Minh' to show that an omission is
taking place? • Of course, it would in any case be ridiculous to maintain that the popularity of a totalitarian leader at a time previous to the population learn- ing what his rule is like—that is. a vote on his promises rather than his performance—has any bearing on the situation half a generation later. Indeed, similar, or greater, popularity was hypo- thesised of Dr Nkrumah and Dr Sukarno Wore their subjects found them out.
Your other correspondents confine themselves to unsupported general imputations about American error, failure and malice. It's certainly safer that way.
Robert Conquest 4 York Mansions, Prince of Wales Drive, London SWI I
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