The Vietnam War generation grew up to be 'THE ESTABLISHMENT'

[sheshe2]

The ESTABLISHMENT Generation that is today villified as old & in the way, were the generation of 18 yr olds that were given little choice in fighting a jungle war so few were prepared for.
They were Drafted.

This came on the heels of a generation of young men & women who also knew war & did more than beat each other up on social media for the fact of war.
They defeated Hitler's Nazi spread.

The fact of war has always been a threat for every generation & some were never given the option of fighting it directly, or from a computer screen in front of their TV.

THE ESTABLISHMENT Generation today so mocked & degraded by the young voters today, were also 18 when War was all around them.

A reminder of history is in order
---------

VIETNAM
The dates used by the Associated Press for official U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War are August 1964 (the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution) to January 1973 (the Paris Peace Accords), although U.S. military activities and intervention in Vietnam spanned from 1955 to 1975.

The role of the United States in the Vietnam War began after World War II and escalated into full commitment during the Vietnam War from 1955 to 1973. The U.S. involvement in South Vietnam stemmed from 20 long years of political and economic action.

Since there was no declaration of the war, exact dates are sketchy. However, it is now widely accepted that the Vietnam War started on November 1, 1955 and lasted until April 30, 1975, which is roughly 20 years, or 19 years, 180 days to be precise.

Maybe this will garner some respect from those who screech ESTABLISHMENT who were given little choice in being sent to a jungle war.

www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-timeline

"Vietnam War Timeline"
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Some education is in order.
From Vietnam as 18 yr olds, to the Middle East as they grew to middle age, This dreadful 'ESTABLISHMENT' generation has known war their entire lives.

[lpbk2713]

1. Thank you.

...

[still_one]

2. That, and for some, anyone who doesn't support their candidate, which seems to focus on a particular

subset

[calguy]

3. Don't forget that today's "ESTABLISHMENT" also....

Ended the draft and lowered the voting age to 18.
I served in the military during that time but was not allowed to vote until after I was discharged.

[Sparkly]

4. Thank you.

I still wonder how the "squares" took over in the 1980s, and never let go. That's what I think of as "Establishment!!"

I grew up during the Vietnam war and thought war was just a fact of life. Babysitters and older sister losing friends and boyfriends to the war would happen to me, I thought. The nightly news would continue to be a count of deaths and destruction of villages. I remember my father being upset to see the student protests, culminating with the Kent State massacre, of course.

Our generation's parents were drafted into WWII. It was the last thing my Dad wanted to do, but there was a sense of duty drilled into everyone -- even through my childhood, that sense was inculcated.

I've heard, "If I HAVE to do anything, then I'm not really FREE!" and all the "Retire the Boomers -- we need fresh faces and new ideas!" and of course, "That person (applied to various people) is an Old Neo-liberal Establishment something something something..."

SOMEday, we might get past ageism, as well as sexism.

[brer cat]

5. K&R

[retread]

6. In the presidential election of 1972 Nixon got 52 percent of under 30 voters and

48 percent of the 18 to 24 year old voters. In spite of the Viet Nam war and the draft, 18 to 24 year olds had the lowest turnout of all age groups.

We were already well on our way to becoming "The Establishment".

[ananda]

7. Oddly enough, I was more establishment back then.

I've become more and more liberal over the years
mainly because of knowing good people who could
educate me on political and historical realities, and
the true nature of war which turned me into a pacifist
as well.