1968 to 2024
America is unsettled. Three things are happening: 1) a war in Ukraine, that only the politicians care about 2) a war in the Middle East, that everyone is on edge about, and 3) a bloodless war at home over the future of our country.
The last time we were this unsettled was 56 years ago. 1968.(I’m not overlooking 9/11, but this is about America’s inner turmoil, not an attack by outsiders.)
What happened in 1968? It was an election year, with a war in Vietnam and rioting on the streets of America.
What is happening in 2024? It is an election year, with a war in Gaza, a war in Ukraine, and rioting on the streets of America. Well, not so much on public streets; it’s happening more on the streets of our college campuses—mostly the elite versions.
Is there a difference from then to now? Yes, a huge one. 58,000 Americans died in Vietnam. To date, we haven’t committed one U.S. soldier to Ukraine or Gaza.
The 2024 riots are focused on the Palestinians in Gaza, but this opportunistic rioting goes back to 1968. It’s also very much about skin color. Relax, I am only pointing out the obvious. A racial undercurrent fuels the riots.
Consider: The Ferguson Riots were about the death of Michael Brown, a black man. The Baltimore protests were about the death of Freddie Gray, a black man. And the burning of Minneapolis was about the death of George Floyd, a black man. Go way back and we have Rodney King, another black man, and the LA riots. It seems we live in a racial powder keg just waiting for the fuse to be lit.
I am a senior citizen, and I remember 1968, the Vietnam War, the campus unrest, the four Kent State college students killed by skittish National Guard troops, the riots at the Democrat Party convention in Chicago, and the bombings by elite college professors and students.
It was an unsettled period leading up to that year, and it drove a sitting President from office. (LBJ declined to run for re-election in 1968.)
Are there similarities in 2024? Maybe. Like LBJ, Joe Biden was driven from office, but not because of his performance, checkered as it was. In his only debate with Donald Trump, Biden revealed his diminished mental state on national TV, and the Democrat Party pulled him out of the race.
But the Dems did not sideline Joe Biden, the President. They sidelined only Joe Biden the candidate for President. And Vice-President Kamala Harris was inserted to replace Biden as the Democrat’s candidate for President. Got it?
The absurdity of replacing a man deemed incapable of running for re-election, but leaving him in office to be the President, was ignored by the Democrat Party and the media. The lesson? Politics trumps governing. And reporting.
Question: Who has the nuclear codes? The President? Or the candidate for President? Does China know? Does Russia know? Does Biden know?
Meanwhile, there is a war in Ukraine, and U.S. politicians love to run over there to be photographed with Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy. It’s politically safe to do that, because, so far, we are contributing only money and arms to that contest, not American blood.
However, Ukraine recently pushed the battleground beyond Ukraine’s border into Russian territory, a situation not permitted by Ukraine’s agreement with NATO. Does Biden know this? Does Kamala know this?
Another war is going on in the same time zone. The battlefield includes the entirety of Gaza, a tiny sliver of land sandwiched between Israel and the Mediterranean Sea. For reference, Gaza is about the size of Little Rock AR, with a population of 200,000 people. Gaza is home to 2.1 million. 10X as many people in the same space. I can understand why they might be on edge.
Gaza, the current homeland of the Palestinians, is ruled by the terrorist organization, Hamas. The war with Israel started when Hamas attacked a music concert in Israel, killing 1,200+ innocent people, and taking 251 hostages. To date, 141 hostages have been released or rescued. Others died in captivity, and still others—dead or alive—remain locked up and hidden, presumably in Gaza’s tunnels or the homes of willing and unwilling Palestinian residents.
Israel’s current war with Hamas has been going on for almost a year, and the Muslim world is ganging up on Israel. So is the rest of the world. Note for you scorekeepers: In this war, Jews are considered white; Persians and Arabs are considered to be of color. This may be a subconscious thing, but it is not a small thing. My point? If Palestinians were pale-faced, elite college kids would be in class.
Israel is caught up in the early stages of another war with Hezbollah, the Iran-funded terrorist organization operating out of Lebanon, Israel’s neighbor to the north.
Hezbollah is lobbing artillery shells and rockets into Israel, and Israel is responding with similar firepower. But the Hezbollah rockets are driving Israelis from their homes, and residents are moving southward away from the war zone. Entire villages are vacant. The same thing is happening in Southern Lebanon where residents are moving north. Innocent people on both sides suffer the consequences.
On April 13, 2024, Iran launched an airborne attack on Israel. It included 170 drones, 30+ cruise missiles, and 120 ballistic missiles, but Israel and its allies intercepted 99% of them. Later, Israel killed two Hamas and Hezbollah terrorist leaders located in Lebanon and Iran. The stakes were raised.
Iran and Hezbollah are threatening to escalate, while Joe Biden (or somebody) attempts to salvage a face-saving truce before the President exits center stage on January 20, 2025.
Is there anything to be learned from this?
About 1968: If the riots were staged to stop the fighting in Viet Nam, they failed, because the war went on for another 7 years.
The Vietnam War was touched by Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, and Nixon; all intelligent men, but they were played by “the Generals”. That should give any President pause when listening to the military’s war plans
It started when Eisenhower sent observers over there, whatever an observer was. And it continued as JFK sent more observers. Later, the observer nomenclature was erased and they called them what they were…soldiers.
At one point there were 500,000 U.S. soldiers stationed in Southeast Asia.
58,000 Americans came home in body bags.
The Vietnam Memorial is the most personal war memorial in all of Washington DC. I’ve viewed it several times, never with a dry eye. The names of the people who died in that war are etched on the wall, and invariably, on any day of the year, in any and every kind of weather, the wall is populated with family, friends, and combat buddies leaving flowers, and posting notes and other memorabilia. The experience sticks with you.
About 2024: Thanks to the overwhelming police force gathered for the event, the Democrat Convention ended without major disruptions. That’s remarkable considering it was held in Chicago, where a couple of dozen people are shot dead every weekend.
So, the 2024 combatants are selected. On one side we have Donald Trump, a man running for the office he once held.
On the other side, we have Kamala Harris, the current Vice President. Note: President Biden stepped aside after a debate with Mr. Trump revealed his “sell-by date” had passed.
Democrat Party bigwigs and deep-pocketed campaign funders forced Biden out and replaced him with the current Vice-President, a woman still waiting to receive her first vote in a primary or general election.
I don’t think we’ve ever had a contest like this; a former President, nominated by his party via the primary system, and confirmed by the Republican Convention, running against a hand-picked opponent—no voting required. Or should I say, no voting allowed?
If it’s not a slam-dunk win for one or the other, we might still be recounting the 2024 votes in 2028.