General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRhiannon12866
(203,036 posts)Certainly brings back memories, though I was younger at the time. What a terrible tragedy, deserves to always be remembered...
doc03
(35,148 posts)the whole thing was planned by Nixon and Gov. Rhoades.
Skittles
(152,967 posts)and did not recognize my homeland
Rhiannon12866
(203,036 posts)Boarding school, actually, without a lot of access to the news media. But we certainly heard about it, remember having some kind of campus meeting that I attended. I was on crutches at the time, had broken my foot, and there's a pic of me on crutches wearing a black arm band. Think we started wearing those when Nixon invaded Cambodia. It was a very emotional and scary time, remember the student strikes, knew older kids who were in college at the time.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)After being shot in Vietnam and being Medevac'd back from the war I watched in horror and disbelief that students were being gunned down by National Guard troops on an American college campus.
Rhiannon12866
(203,036 posts)Being away from most media, unlike today, most of what I heard was word of mouth, but those were scary times. I had a radio, though, and remember hearing about Nixon escalating the war which made no sense to me, especially since the American people wanted it to end. What happened at Kent State is no less horrifying today, especially since we still don't know exactly what happened. I'm just glad to see you and other Vietnam vets here on this board with us today.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)But college students in the U.S. being killed and wounded by the Army National Guard? That was pretty hard to wrap my head around, on top of a host of other psychological war effects that I didn't have a clue about at the time and wouldn't even begin to understand for many years.
I couldn't understand why the Guardsmen even had live ammo in those circumstances.
Rhiannon12866
(203,036 posts)I can't imagine the reason people didn't cry for a real explanation. It had a profound effect on students everywhere, remember thinking that this could happen anywhere and it was frightening. I knew kids in college and this fired up campuses everywhere, including at the small liberal college I eventually attended.
As for the war, they say that this was the first war to be televised, but there was so much we didn't know and still don't know now. My cousin, who went to West Point, career Army and had his Dad in Vietnam, told me when Bush* invaded Iraq that we hadn't learned the lessons of Vietnam.
I'm hope you're doing well today. I worked with a really nice guy who was still experiencing both physical and psychological effects of his Vietnam service and he hadn't been wounded.
pinboy3niner
(53,339 posts)It never goes away, but it can be managed. Old issues pop up again and need to be re-processed and having a good support system is crucial. I'm more concerned about the men and women returning from war now and meeting their needs.
We learned the lessons of Vietnam briefly--but they didn't stick. It was only because of Vietnam that the warmongers couldn't succeed in having U.S. troops sent to fight wars in Central America in the mid-'80s. (And I started a Vietnam Veterans of America local chapter project tutoring war refugee kids from Nicaragua and El Salvador in those days.)
I hope we'll eventually get more answers about Kent State. The victims and their families deserve that, and so does our country.
Boomerproud
(7,889 posts)I couldn't watch. I lived on the campus in the summer of 1976 and passed the spot every day going to work.
doc03
(35,148 posts)they deserved it and Nixon was a hero for stopping the protests. I would bet 9 out ten or more of Republicans still believe that today.
Amurika love it r leave it.
malaise
(267,825 posts)All illusions were shattered
brooklynite
(93,873 posts)Would there be a better crowd at 3 in the afternoon?
doc03
(35,148 posts)it again so I can see it all.