General Vo Nguyen Giap of North Viet Nam

He was the greatest military figure of the Twentieth Century. In turn, he defeated the Armed Forces of France at Dien Bien Phu in 1953, and of the United States in 1975. Oh, and along the way, he defeated the Chinese Red Army in 1979, when they decided to invade Viet Nam in response to the latter’s occupation of Cambodia in 1978. And he cheated death for 102 years, dying today in Hanoi.

France, the United States, and China—in succession!

I could only wish the United States had produced a military leader as accomplished as Giap; but whenever they tried to, they ran into the hide-bound Pentagon and Washington bureaucracy. People like Billy Mitchell, George S. Patton, and Douglas MacArthur had the potential; but they did not have the political backup.

So, General Giap, I toast you as an honorable enemy!