Feeling Really Old
“The last time this happened, I wasn’t even born. It was Lyndon Johnson in 1968.” That was a frequent comment by political experts after Joe Biden’s shocking departure from the 2024 presidential race.
Thanks for making me feel really old.
I remember LBJ’s speech on that February evening in 1968 very well. The Tet Offensive occurred a few weeks earlier. The sight of Viet Cong troops rampaging through the US Embassy in Saigon caused me to doubt LBJ’s reassurance that “Victory is just around the corner.” Nearly every week, my mother would mail me an obituary clipped from the Scranton Times, “Did you know this kid killed in Vietnam, Skip?” Of course, I signed an ironclad ROTC contract the year before. For the princely sum of $25 per month, I was in the Army as an officer if I graduated or as an enlisted man if I didn’t. If I skipped out to Canada or Sweden, I was a criminal. If only I had debilitating heel spurs.
When Lyndon announced that he was out of the race, the Theta Chi fraternity house erupted in cheers. “The war will be over before we graduate! So what if it’s a weeknight and we have classes tomorrow. The beer taps are open! Play Country Joe and the Fish “I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ To Die” full blast!
And it’s 1, 2, 3, what’re we fighting for?
don’t ask me, I don’t give a damn
next stop is Vietnam
And it’s 5, 6, 7, open up the pearly gates
well there ain’t no time to wonder why
whoopee! we’re all gonna die
well c’mon mothers throughout this land
pack your boys off to Vietnam
c’mon pops, don’t hesitate
send ’em off before it’s too late
be the first one on your block to have your boy come home in a box
That was as good a party as you can get on a weeknight at an all-male school.
But, of course, the war didn’t end. Nixon claimed he had “a secret plan” to end the Vietnam War with honor. He never revealed that “secret plan” before the election much like Donnie has yet to reveal his “secret plan” to resolve the Ukraine and Gaza wars. Let’s hope 2024 ends up better than 1968 did.
By Ed Dufton
