I was 20 in 1968 and had one more year of nursing school.  It was a small residential school and I lived on the third floor of the dormitory.  Nursing was a pretty intense experience for a 20 year-old; at that time most of us had little experience with the world -- I had been brought up in a very conservative home, and my job had always been to just be what my parents expected me to be -- obedient, quiet, and not in any way demanding.  The only "political" discussion I can recall was my father saying that Simon and Garfunkel were anti-government.  OK, it really wasn't a discussion because, well, there pretty much weren't discussions in my house..

I saw body parts I'd never imagined before; I saw old people dying of diseases I hadn't previously heard of, and children who had painful illnesses; and we had to soak it all in with no preparation -- and we had to clean everything up without ever using gloves!  Almost nothing was disposable, so keeping my last meal down as I cleaned up bedpans and more was a daily challenge.  There was so much to cope with on a daily basis that I believe I shut off everything else.  I wasn't pro-War; I wasn't anti-War.  I was just a very young woman facing more serious reality than I knew was out there.

I bring this up because I think it is the reason I was so clueless about what was going on in the world and my country during that time.  I do remember that when MLK was assassinated I walked into the 3rd floor lounge room where there was a TV.  It was on and the news anchor was talking about it.  The young black man who was the maintenance man was standing there, leaning on his broom, and crying.  The image is easy to evoke even after all this time.  Kent State made an impression on all of us (people who were in school).

As mentioned in the TPM post, the war was in everyone's living rooms every night.  It was personal.  Everyone knew someone who went; many people knew someone who died, and most people knew the stories about those who got deferments, or who claimed to be gay to get out of going to war.

In my case, in 1968 my former high school boyfriend was a helicopter pilot (previously a door-gunner), and he would always include a little bit of Vietnam dirt in each letter.  (I still have some of that dirt).  Whe we broke up I dated a marine, just back from a brutal tour.   2 high school friends died (probably others that I lost track of as well).  I was either in denial, or consciously remained oddly unconnected to all of it.  

I do remember (vaguely) the convention, but I wasn't a Democrat at the time, and I just thought of it as bad behavior and dismissed all of it.  I voted for Nixon because my parents did.  I guess I am almost glad that he got elected because I watched every single minute of the Watergate Trial (I was working nights at the time.) And only then did I begin to wake up.   Fast forward to August 1974.  I was in the Kennedy Center on the night of the 4th, watching the Bolshoi Ballet.  During a set change, the performance was stopped, a huge movie screen was lowered and, to everyone's surprise, we all saw Nixon's resignation in real time.  

The Cold War was still on, and my thoughts centered around what a good example this was for the Russians who were there watching too.  Michael Baryshnikov defected later that year to Canada.

 Differences between now and 1968 are the Internet, the entire social media, and the loss of cultural standards among the majority of people to be polite.  Anyone can post insulting posts that are easy and inflammatory, as well as anonymous.  Everything has the potential to "go viral" and thereby become a "meme."  

In 1968, if our government did something good, such as make health insurance affordable, or end a war, people would be grateful rather than suspicious and resentful about it.  And I think it may be true that those who would wish to take those good things away would lose their power.

Oh you can lecture Mike M.

I see 1968 clear as rime on a tree in January.

I kept thinking that:

The end is nigh.

No it wasn't

Tens of millions of young folks were eligable for the draft.

Involuntary servitude as it were.

Gene would save us all after RFK was shot and killed.

Hubert, who was my hero, was led on by my enemy Mayor Dayly.

ha

It was the last week of December of 51 and I was walking across the bitterly cold parade ground at Ft. Dix with X. Smart , well educated, burly , profane , sure of himself -apparently. A leader. Usually exasperated with George in the bunk above his . Their last set- to resulted in X pinning down George who said " I've got you

X , I've got your knee trapped in my groin"  and X groaning  and releasing him with the  heartfelt plaint "Fucking George L...."

His  bunk was 4 down from mine and I'd just finished reading his copy of  "The God that failed": RHS Crossman's compilation of the accounts by various intellectuals -Richard Wright, Andre Gide, Silone ,etc.- of why they left the party

."Why aren't you going to OCS (officer candidate school) " I asked him . I was. 

"I don't know how I'll handle combat" he said . "And if I can't  I don't want to put anyone else at risk" .

Fast forward 20 years. Returning to live in New York I was amused to read that X was the head

of "Wall Street for McGovern".

Some time later I had lunch at his bank. The very junior associate ,as we walked along  the balcony over the trading  floor, pointed down and , in awe, said and that's Mr.X.  "I know" I unwisely replied which resulted in being  dragged down to meet him. HIs desk was on a podium of a long room with  about 50 traders . Every few  minutes one or another of them would stand up and make a signal asking X's approval for a transaction and he'd make some sort of sign in return , leaning back in a swivel chair, feet on desk.

We went down.  He was bearded, the partition  next to him decorated with doves and other peace symbols.

"Hi X " I said. "The last time  we talked you said you didn't know how you would handle combat". I'd heard that my basic company had arrived in Korea exactly at the time of the last major Chinese advance. "What happened ?"

He gave me a searching look ,said " Oh yes" , then "The second time I had to take my company commander back to the chaplain I stopped worrying about myself".

Time passed and X became head of his bank.

I think of him when I read that our economic malaise could be cured by breaking up the banks. And that  it was shameful that Hillary actually addressed  Goldman Sachs . Shocking ! AOBTW  why hasn't someone reported what she said? Could it be  because "there's no 'there' there" ?