It Ain’t About The War
August 26th, 2005 by GoldFalcon
For those that are new to the blog, I used to vote Democrat nearly fifteen years ago. I also lived a lifestyle that wasn’t exactly conservative. I had many friends whose parents came from the hippie drug counter-culture of the sixties. I knew these parents intimately, and getting to know them so well is now something I count as invaluable.
In particular I knew many parents in the late 80’s and early 90’s who liked to smoke dope and drop acid with their kids’ circle of friends. This was certainly a very progressive attitude (especially in Southeast Missouri) and appreciated by all of us addicts. I knew that if I hadn’t eaten in a few days or showered in a week there were still a few houses that I could hit and pick up a beer or two, toke a joint, and maybe score a slice of pizza on a Friday afternoon where my –shall we say– aromatic extravagance would be overlooked.
I remember one conversation vividly, because I remember my own restlessness.
You see, I knew innately (as do most teenagers) that I was utterly useless. As a student of history I craved to be thrust into a period of time where my meaningless existence could mean something.
One afternoon I wound up at a favorite flop house. The daughter was a good friend and the mother was a social worker ex-hippy. We dropped a few hits of acid, tossed on a vintage copy of The Beatles’ “White Album” on white vinyl [*ed: what kind of idiot plays that album?] and proceeded to talk about life. I was toking a joint, watching the wallpaper pattern inch its way around the door frame, and trying to talk to this ex-hippy about the Vietnam War.
A little about me. I am a history junkie. I watched the PBS series “Vietnam: The 10,000 Day War” when I was nine. I used to live to watch the Dick Cavett show “Remember When” on HBO. I have always been fascinated by history.
So I am talking to her about this milestone in ‘65, and that momentous battle in ‘68, and probing on the effect of the Tet Offensive, asking about being in college during My Lai, draining her for knowledge. And I said “You know, I would have loved to have lived back then when I could have done something (*now in my head, I actually meant fighting in the war*) that meant something, and she says:
“Yeah, it was a special time, but it wasn’t as much about the war as it was about the people and the places. Doing what I did gave my life meaning. It was nice to be able to fight against something.”
And it hit me like a slap in the face. It didn’t matter to her. The war had never mattered to her. It was just a way to get meaning from her own life. I also understood it completely right then. I wanted my life to matter and was looking for it, so I looked on the 60’s with a nostalgia that I couldn’t remember; in the 60’s her life had mattered so she looked on it with nostalgia that she couldn’t forget.
Today’s crops of protesters are the same. They are the druggies and the former hippies who are looking to add meaning to their lives. The only time they ever felt they “did” something was 40 years ago when a lot of things happened that they don’t remember but they are sure that they made a difference. Either that or they are the young of today who have no prospects and no drive who see their lives going nowhere and so they want to “do something” that matters. Instead of going and joining up, they decide to do what their philosophical forefathers did and protest. Not because they know what is going on, not because they understand the war, but because it will “mean something”.
Luckily shortly after that conversation in 1993 I decided that how I was going to make a difference was to join the Army.
I have never regretted it.
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Very interesting insight. Also very well written.
You know I never thought of it that way. Back in the mid-80’s a roomie of mine had a bunch of hippie type leftist friends who had been protesting every week at a local company (it was a mil contractor). I was working 2 jobs and going to school. But one of the jobs was a cocktail waitress where I wore (ahem - slinky, tight outfit and foot killing shoes) anti-feminist clothing and tried to look sexy (good for tips - ha), anyway, these people all looked down on me as a pathetic capitalist and sell out. Sell out to what I wasn’t ever sure. But they were the biggest bunch of derelict and depraved group of people I think I will ever have known. btw - they smelled and the women didn’t shave, they swapped partners or cheated on each other all the time. I never could understand what the heck they were doing but then I really didn’t give a shit either. To me they were all just LOSERS. From you I see it all along was really ‘all about them’ and continues to be. I’m sure many of these morons are the same anti-war losers as 20 years ago.
*thumps head with hand*
Now I get it! Fantastic realization… thanks for your service.
Excellent Piece
Wow. I really don’t understand the left. I have spent my life in service to others (or have made the attempt). I just read an excellent piece by The Gold Falcon in his Jump Blog that made me understand them a bit better. Check it out!
Thanks for sharing - I think I finally get it! This has been an impenetrable puzzle, and no one of the other view has ever been able to aid me in understanding their reasoning. (Many have tried, and wouldn’t it be great to be so certain of everything as they are?) But it really all comes down to the “All about me” concept. When I use it, I am joiking. But some must really mean it, more than they even know or say.
Anyway, thanks!
And more important, thank you for your service - in the military and as a blogger!
In any of the sciences, what you’ve provided is known as ‘anecdotal information.’
It’s a story, your story, and is no doubt a valid reflection of your experiences with some particular people at some particular time.
But you’ve made a huge leap in making some sweeping generalizations based solely on a narrow and selective reading of your own specific experience.
Sorry, but that’s flat wrong. It’s no different from someone claiming that “all people who are (African-American, Hispanic, White, Asian, whatever) are (no good, real good, lazy, hard-working, whatever)” simply because of some narrow experiences at some particular time with some particular African-American, Hispanic, White, Asian, whatever.
You get the picture.
I’ve started poking around Milblogs to get some perspective from folks who are in the middle of what’s going on. I hope that this particular post turns out to be the exception, and not the rule.
Thanks, RubDMC
I use the anecdote because it is conducive to the format (short, written communication), but you err in assuming that I base my conclusion on that single anecdote. My conclusion is based on over a decade of observing the same pattern of behavior and hearing the same general sentiments from hundreds of liberals. I simply included the first and most formative to illustrate the point.
You get the picture.
Why is it that Liberals hate sweeping generalization even when it’s true? I’ll give some examples:
“Asian, European and African Muslims tend toward radicalism when compared with their North American counterparts. This radicalism often expresses itself as terrorism.”
“Black hip-hop culture is hopelessly self-destructive and skewed. The culture thrives on crime and violence and death in a way that is completely foreign to the white entertainment industry.”
“Liberal activists are often just as concerned with their search for personal meaning and fullfillment as they are with the cause of the day. In interviews and discussion one often hears the sentiment that ” fullfills them/inspires them/is their reason for being/”. Contrast that with conservatives who generally list the merits of their cause as opposed to how it relates to them.”
I’ve had a few liberals post here. Some were well informed, polite, and intelligent. Unlike your post, they were the exception. Yours is more the rule.
Hey Gold Falcon, I left the following response to RubDMC on my website as well (as he felt the need to post his response to me). I stand by what I said… good post.
Hey Rub,
Thank you for coming over and looking down your nose at us poor rubes. Despite being military types, we understand what a generalization is… we are the targets of them all the time. I notice that you didn’t say that GF’s experience wasn’t real, just that it didn’t apply to everyone. Duh. I find it laughable that someone from Kos can come over and start with the “holier-than-thou” attitude regarding generalizations. I could make revealing these oversights on Kos a full-time job.
You are clearly more interested in being “right” than actually gaining some perspectives from the folks who make it happen. To actually gain meaningful perspective, one must ask questions. For example, instead of trying to prove your intelligence, you could have chosen to ask questions that reveal to you WHY military folks feel a certain way. Instead of expressing disappointment, you could have actually elevated the discussion by explaining why your personal experiences are different. Instead of making me think, you have only reinforced by preconceptions.
Thanks,
The Fastest Squirrel
I enjoyed your post immensely.
When I got to the part about
“The only time they ever felt they “did” something was 40 years ago when a lot of things happened that they don’t remember but they are sure that they made a difference.”
I thought you might enjoy this little thing I put up about destroying the youthful illusions of old anti-war protesters with a dose of reality. and NO WAY will you be able to figure out what’s its about without reading it.
But I think you will like it.
http://www.angelfire.com/ky/kentuckydan/CommitteesofCorrespondence/index.blog?entry_id=1084786
links@vp-shops.com
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