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My college roommate’s high school boyfriend was killed in Vietnam. He had been in-country less than 1 month. We were all so shocked and horrified. A shy, quiet boy in our neighborhood also was killed around the same time. His mother never recovered from that trauma.
I had a friend in high school who was a great athlete and couldn’t wait to be a Marine. I saw him later at a get-together with a large bandage still across his chest. His hand was shaking so badly he couldn’t get a cigarette to his mouth (don’t judge). His best friend quietly sat next to him to help and steady his hand.
Almost everyone was negatively affected by that war in some way. I foolishly thought we’d never get into a mess like that again.
I graduated from high school in 1969, and we lived in Palo Alto across from Stanford University.
I was totallly against the Vietnam war and I was for the civil rights movement at the time, so I participated in some of the protests, and when the SDS had a huge protest at Stanford, even my dog got tear-gassed.
The “times were a changing…”
But then things started turning dark — the Black Panthers grew and turned violent and stupid, the drug scene got out of control, Jane Fonda did a truly vulgar, stupid, and harmful anti war stunt, and too many hippies and leftists started honoring Marxist dictators, communist leaders, and fascists like they were heroes, shouting “Death to America.” Like we are seeing happening today.
I think the next time someone tells you that the Boomers had life easy (jobs, education, housing, etc), it would be the time to tell that person that only the Boomers who lived had life easy. The ones who didn't come home from Vietnam would not agree that they had an easy life at all.
MountainRose reminded me of something and as long as y'all are here, I'll ask about it. I don't think I've ever forgiven Kissinger, Johnson, or Jane Fonda for what they did in regards to the Vietnam War. I've had people tell me it was a long time ago and it's time to forgive and forget, but it just leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, the same as Kent State and the 1968 Democratic Convention.
Am I the only one?
Has anyone mentioned civil rights yet, or Malcolm X? Did that affect anyone?
My college roommate’s high school boyfriend was killed in Vietnam. He had been in-country less than 1 month. We were all so shocked and horrified. A shy, quiet boy in our neighborhood also was killed around the same time. His mother never recovered from that trauma.
I had a friend in high school who was a great athlete and couldn’t wait to be a Marine. I saw him later at a get-together with a large bandage still across his chest. His hand was shaking so badly he couldn’t get a cigarette to his mouth (don’t judge). His best friend quietly sat next to him to help and steady his hand.
Almost everyone was negatively affected by that war in some way. I foolishly thought we’d never get into a mess like that again.
When I was home on leave prior to reporting to a new duty station, I went fishing at a favorite spot. I was the only one there until a guy my age came up and started fishing and we got to talking. He had just enlisted in the Marines (leaving the next week) and was all pumped up. He was hoping that the war in Vietnam would not be over with before he had a chance to get there for some fighting. Was baffled as to why I didn't feel the same way. I've often wondered if he got his wish.
In a book I read about the battle for Hue during the Tet Offensive, there were replacements fresh off the planes that were rushed in as reinforcements. One of them was a teenager from Nebraska I think, who was shot in the head on his first patrol. Killed and wasn't even in country for 24 hours.
I think the next time someone tells you that the Boomers had life easy (jobs, education, housing, etc), it would be the time to tell that person that only the Boomers who lived had life easy. The ones who didn't come home from Vietnam would not agree that they had an easy life at all.
MountainRose reminded me of something and as long as y'all are here, I'll ask about it. I don't think I've ever forgiven Kissinger, Johnson, or Jane Fonda for what they did in regards to the Vietnam War. I've had people tell me it was a long time ago and it's time to forgive and forget, but it just leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, the same as Kent State and the 1968 Democratic Convention.
Am I the only one?
Has anyone mentioned civil rights yet, or Malcolm X? Did that affect anyone?
We moved to Florida in 1958 from a small town near the Mohawk Valley area in Central New York. We did have one black family who lived in the area and one of their kids went to school with me. No one thought that it was any big deal; just another kid who happened to look different.
Then we moved to Florida and there it was black kids couldn't go to school or socialize with us white kids. Water fountains in the park were for whites; blacks had to eat in their own restaurants and had to sit in the balcony at the local movie theater. When I asked my parents why it was so different their only answer was "That's just is how it is here". Sure didn't seem right to me
I think the next time someone tells you that the Boomers had life easy (jobs, education, housing, etc), it would be the time to tell that person that only the Boomers who lived had life easy. The ones who didn't come home from Vietnam would not agree that they had an easy life at all.
MountainRose reminded me of something and as long as y'all are here, I'll ask about it. I don't think I've ever forgiven Kissinger, Johnson, or Jane Fonda for what they did in regards to the Vietnam War. I've had people tell me it was a long time ago and it's time to forgive and forget, but it just leaves a bitter taste in my mouth, the same as Kent State and the 1968 Democratic Convention.
Am I the only one?
Has anyone mentioned civil rights yet, or Malcolm X? Did that affect anyone?
No, you are not the only one. For every male who did not register for the draft, or fled to Canada, someone else was drafted in their place. I was discussing this with a coworker some years ago. My Sunday School classmates had become radical. One of them brought her boyfriend and proudly told us he had not registered with Selective Service. There was no way I wanted to be drafted, sent to Vietnam, put in a kill-or-be-killed situation, and shipped home in a body bag. But I signed up. After I commented that I should have turned him in, my coworker laughed and said "When you put it that way."
As far as civil rights, as a WASP living in White neighborhoods, it did not affect me much. But the political assassinations were appalling. One thing that did affect me. The older generations belonged to social clubs, including my grandfather, and my dad (for a short while; his career was more important). It said right in the rule book: No Blacks, No Jews, No Catholics. I could see that times were changing, and made the decision growing up that I would not join any organization that discriminated.
I'm sure you knew back then that you had nothing to worry about. The last men drafted was in December 1972 who were born in 1952 and earlier. You missed the draft by four years. I'm a year older than you. I had lottery number and draft card, but I knew there was no chance of being drafted. The last draftees were discharged in November 1974.
I definitely worried about it. I saw the Vietnam casualty boards on the news each night. I knew that changing church to one that was pacifist as I approached 18 was not going to fly with the Selective Service Board. In 1971, the Military Selective Service Act was amended to make registration compulsory. While the all volunteer armed forces was created 1/27/1973, the last draft lottery was held 3/12/1975 for males born in 1956. That's me. Although the registration requirement was terminated 3/29/1975, it was reimposed retroactively on 7/2/1980. As a result, only men born between 3/29/1957, and 12/31/1959, were completely exempt from Selective Service registration. I took my old draft card to work and lit it on fire with a Bunsen burner, as a quiet protest.
The big problem with the all-volunteer armed forces is that it is not a Constitutional Amendment, it was not passed by Congress with a 2/3 vote, it was not even passed by Congress and signed into law by the President. Even now, there are still Chicken Hawks who want to bring back the draft. Even worse, there are Chicken Hawks who want to impose mandatory National Service on young adults. Although at 68, I am not likely to be drafted, I am not a Chicken Hawk. I want to see a Constitutional Amendment that prohibits both Selective Service registration and the draft. A nation that cannot meet its military needs with volunteers is not a nation worth saving.
I think it's interesting that finding voices of people who remember the 1960s as *adults* is becoming increasingly hard. Seems like almost everyone in this thread who remembers the time remembers it from the perspective of a child or teenager. And the math checks out of course. If you were 20 in 1968, you're 75-76 now, if you were 20 in 1960, you're 83-84 now. If you were an established adult with children, well into their career, a house and a car and so forth in the mid 60s, you'd be at least into your 90s now.
I say that because it feels to me like most of the questions asked by OP would be more easily answered by someone who was in their 30s/40s at the time and thus actually could compare the 60s to previous decades rather than being a 'child of the 60s' who understandably could only get to learn about the world as it was unfolding in front of them then.
I definitely worried about it. I saw the Vietnam casualty boards on the news each night. I knew that changing church to one that was pacifist as I approached 18 was not going to fly with the Selective Service Board. In 1971, the Military Selective Service Act was amended to make registration compulsory. While the all volunteer armed forces was created 1/27/1973, the last draft lottery was held 3/12/1975 for males born in 1956. That's me. Although the registration requirement was terminated 3/29/1975, it was reimposed retroactively on 7/2/1980. As a result, only men born between 3/29/1957, and 12/31/1959, were completely exempt from Selective Service registration. I took my old draft card to work and lit it on fire with a Bunsen burner, as a quiet protest.
The big problem with the all-volunteer armed forces is that it is not a Constitutional Amendment, it was not passed by Congress with a 2/3 vote, it was not even passed by Congress and signed into law by the President. Even now, there are still Chicken Hawks who want to bring back the draft. Even worse, there are Chicken Hawks who want to impose mandatory National Service on young adults. Although at 68, I am not likely to be drafted, I am not a Chicken Hawk. I want to see a Constitutional Amendment that prohibits both Selective Service registration and the draft. A nation that cannot meet its military needs with volunteers is not a nation worth saving.
As I mentioned before, I'm a year older than you and had no concern about being drafted. I had followed the war starting in elementary school. I had an uncle who was eight years older and served in the Army in Vietnam. The war was winding down when I was in high school and I planned to go to college. I also had a draft lottery number. It was 212. I started college in the fall of 1973 and joined ROTC.
The chance that the draft will be brought back is extremely low. We do not need a large number of military the way we did during Vietnam and before. We used to have large numbers of military stationed in West Germany and South Korea. The numbers are greatly reduced. We do not have the facilities to train large numbers of draftees.
I have no problem with Selective Service Registration and see no need for an amendment that prohibits it or the draft. We never know what is going to happen in the future.
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