"I guess you will leave here and try to help us," Xiong told his visitor. "But if you can't, don't be sad."

Here is a story from Noah about the Hmong warriors of Laos.If you remember the goofy movie Air American with Mel Gibson, it showed how the CIA was running a mountain war with the help of the Hmong tribe, fighting against the communists, esp the Ho Chi Minh trail. This trail was not really a trail but different routes through the mountains from North Vietnam to South Vietnam. Starting in the north, a Viet Cong would carry an artillery shell and walk with others on a human convoy, crossing into Laos and ending up somewhere in the South, delivering the shell, and then walking back to the North. The Hmong would attack the Viet Cong - the Hmong knew the mountains better than anyone. Anyway, the Hmong are wanted by the Laotian government for their "war crimes" and the Hmong must live on the run for the last 35 years. Amazing story. thanks noah.