time what became known as the domino theory. In response to a question about Indochina he answered: “You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly. So you could have the beginning of a disintegration that would have the most profound consequences.” The loss of Dien Bien Phu, he said, would have dire consequences for Australia, New Zealand, and even Japan.
