<p>In a series of talks at the Vietnamese Ministry of the Interior in the summer of 2000, the author asked a number of middle and higher ranking political cadres about the current situation in Vietnam, the country's prospects for the future, and the state of political discourse in light of Vietnam's transition toward an open society. <p>Still caught up in a world of terms past and concepts forgotten, these cadres nonetheless argue that neither the Party's performance legitimacy nor the widening of political discourse inside the country will have a decisive impact on Vietnam or its populace but that organic develop-ment and social stability remain prime issues in light of the country's attempt to catch up with a world it had been isolated from over decades.