So… the weather was exemplary yesterday, and I managed to get in yet another Happy Hour before winter closes in. And in so doing I cranked up my very expensive radio, aka my computational device, and tuned Pandora to the Rolling Stones station for the Happy Hour soundtrack. And was rewarded by this “blast from the past”… Ten Years After… playin’ and singin’ “I’d Love to Change the World,” circa 1971:
The lyrics got me to thinking (parenthetical aside: How is it that the brain can recall EVERY single word in the lyrics to a song that’s over 35 years old? And one you haven’t heard in at LEAST three years, perhaps more?). Things are kinda bad here in 2008, but things were arguably JUST as bad in 1971, if not worse. For those of you who weren’t around in 1971, here’s some stuff that happened that year:
February 8 - A new stock market index called the Nasdaq debuts.
March 1 - A bomb explodes in the men's room at the U.S. Capitol; the Weather Underground Organization claims responsibility
March 29 - U.S. Army Lieutenant William Calley is found guilty of 22 murders in the My Lai massacre and sentenced to life in prison (later pardoned).
April 9 - Charles Manson is sentenced to death; in 1972, the sentence for all California Death Row inmates is commuted to life imprisonment.
April 24 - Five hundred thousand people in Washington, DC and 125,000 in San Francisco march in protest against the Vietnam War.
May 3 - Anti-war militants attempt to disrupt government business in Washington, D.C.; police and military units arrest as many as 12,000, most of whom are later released.
June 27 - Concert promoter Bill Graham closes the legendary Fillmore East, which first opened on 2nd Avenue New York City March 8, 1968 .
July 5 - Right to vote: The 26th Amendment to the United States Constitution, formally certified by President Richard Nixon, lowers the voting age from 21 to 18.
August 15 - President Richard Nixon announces that the United States will no longer convert dollars to gold at a fixed value, effectively ending the Bretton Woods system. He also imposes a 90-day freeze on wages, prices and rents.
October 1 - Walt Disney World opens in Florida.
October 25 - The United Nations General Assembly admits the People's Republic of China and expels the Republic of China (or Taiwan
October 29 - Vietnam War: Vietnamization - The total number of American troops still in Vietnam drops to a record low of 196,700 (the lowest since January 1966).
November 3 - The UNIX Programmer's Manual is published.
December 18 - The U.S. dollar is devalued for the second time in history.
Yep… it’s that ol’ “Plus ça change” thingie. But 1971, like this year, wasn’t ALL bad… as you can plainly see. I mean… Hey! Disney World!
October 6, 1971 - Towanda gives birth to her second child...who somehow grew up to be a crazy woman with the screen name Liberal Texan...lordy what a year!
ReplyDeleteAiiieee! I can only IMAGINE the dinner table conversation when you two get together!
ReplyDeleteWe have tried -- tried -- to NEVER talk about politics because the battles we have can get very ugly very fast and it isn't worth it. But usually after about three days together a political "discussion" breaks out. She is currently hard at work in Texas trying to get Barry Hussein Obama to carry the state of Texas and get all those electoral votes. LOL
ReplyDeleteAm I correct in remembering that in 71' the Buck and Stack show arrived in Turkey?
ReplyDelete1971 was the year of my earliest memories, although I have no idea what time of year it was. Must've been early. My earliest comprehension of a written date that I remember, was seeing one of my Mom's Sears catalogs lying around with a date of April 1970, I think.
ReplyDeleteIt was in Tempe, AZ. My family lived there from '69 to '72.
I had no idea there was a 90-day freeze that year. Wow, to think we really did have a Directive 10-289. And from a Republican president, too.
1971?
ReplyDeleteCould tell some stories about that year....I may have to on the blog one of these days...suffice to say, 1971, last full year in the Air Force, and freezing my butt off in upstate New York.
1971 - oh, dear, but I do remember - it was a long time ago, and I admit I remember the music and the history far better than I do my life!
ReplyDeleteApril 22, 1971 - John Kerry testified in front of Congress... The great lies were spoken and Veteran's were belittled.
ReplyDeleteI was in the eighth grade in WF, TX. Life was very simple.
ReplyDelete1971 - I wasn't even a thought in my mom and dad's head yet. But it's nice to see what was happening at the time. I wouldn't know unless people made posts like this. Thanks, Buck!
ReplyDeleteStill a little angel in heaven here, too. LOL! Little did my parents know.
ReplyDeleteDisney World! Whoohoo!!! My grandparents lived in Melbourne at the time, and story goes they had an opportunity to get life passes for Disney after it opened. And they DIDN'T!!! Still, we tried to get over there every year. Always a fond memory going there.
< off topic >
ReplyDeleteLou, WF as in Wichita Falls, Texas??? I got married there in 1969 (hubby was stationed at Sheppard AFB). Was just back there a few weeks ago and we spent the night there. It's a nice town, friendly people. It's grown a lot since I was last there 39 years ago.
< /off topic> sorry for hijacking the comment thread, Buck...
I think you remember the lyrics because in 1971, you had more time for things like rock music. It wove itself into the warp of your life, and it's been there, latent these many years, but now there's less room in the weave to cram in new music that changes the texture. It's not a bad thing: it just is.
ReplyDeleteSharon sez: We have tried -- tried -- to NEVER talk about politics because the battles we have can get very ugly very fast and it isn't worth it.
ReplyDeleteAh... I hear THAT. My father and I were the same way, with the possible exception that neither of us tried very hard to avoid the subject of politics. You wouldn't have wanted to be around us when Watergate was at its peak. My father hung up on me when Nixon resigned and I called the Ol' Man to gloat. Those were probably the height of my moonbat days; fortunately the Ol' Man lived to see me come around...
Dan sez: Am I correct in remembering that in 71' the Buck and Stack show arrived in Turkey?
That you are! Further proof that 1971 was a GOOD year, in some circles.
As an aside... ya know, I can't remember one single political discussion from those days, but I'm certain we had 'em. Wait! I can remember ONE late-night, raki-fueled discussion with a certain Turkish woman named Gülar that ended badly... for me. But let's not go THERE...
Morgan sez: Wow, to think we really did have a Directive 10-289. And from a Republican president, too.
Well, it wasn't THAT bad. But I get your drift, Morgan. Some people think '71 marks the beginning of the end of capitalism as we know it, though. Present company excepted, of course.
Pat sez: Could tell some stories about that year....I may have to on the blog one of these days...suffice to say, 1971, last full year in the Air Force, and freezing my butt off in upstate New York.
You should blog about those stories, Pat. I'm sure some weird shit happened on the flight line at Griffiss... ;-)
Cynthia sez: 1971 - oh, dear, but I do remember - it was a long time ago, and I admit I remember the music and the history far better than I do my life!
April 22, 1971 - John Kerry testified in front of Congress... The great lies were spoken and Veteran's were belittled.
I have a lil better recollection of that year than most others, Cynthia... because it was a rather extraordinary year for me, what with spending it on the Turkish Black Sea coast. Your second comment is EXACTLY why the Swift Boat Vets and vets of my generation, in general, were SO dead-set against John F'n Kerry. And the sunofabitch has NEVER apologized for the Winter Soldier travesty and likely never will. I wouldn't piss on him if he was on fire.
Lou sez: I was in the eighth grade in WF, TX. Life was very simple.
Life was pretty simple when I was in the eight grade, too! I think. ;-)
Michelle sez: 1971 - I wasn't even a thought in my mom and dad's head yet. But it's nice to see what was happening at the time. I wouldn't know unless people made posts like this. Thanks, Buck!
Why... you young pup, you! And it's my pleasure to entertain and illuminate, Michelle. Srsly.
Jenny sez: Disney World! Whoohoo!!! My grandparents lived in Melbourne at the time, and story goes they had an opportunity to get life passes for Disney after it opened. And they DIDN'T!!! Still, we tried to get over there every year. Always a fond memory going there.
Wow... that's pretty interesting about your grandparents, Jenny. I've never been to Disney World, believe it or don't. I came close when I was in Port Canaveral for the USS Mason's commissioning, but SN1 and I made a pact that our trip out to FLA would be Mouse-Free. That's too long a story to get into here, tho...
Phlegmmy sez: I think you remember the lyrics because in 1971, you had more time for things like rock music.
I think you're right. That's the way of the world, to quote Earth Wind and Fire...
1971 - I was 8 years old. I broke my wrist that year, chasing a boy. Yeah, I got started early. The boy - he abandoned me to my pain.
ReplyDeleteMy sister got married and I was her flower girl, complete with half cast on my wrist. She was most displeased but all went well.
We want to hear more about Gülar the Turkish woman!!!
ReplyDeleteKris sez: The boy - he abandoned me to my pain.
ReplyDeleteThere's a lesson in there, methinks. Said lesson cuts both ways, too. ;-)
Sharon sez: We want to hear more about Gülar the Turkish woman!!!
Well... she was blonde, bottle-blonde. Mid- to late-30s, IIRC. Kinda slender. And she loved JFK. And that's all you're gonna get, Sharon. From me, anyway, and I also think you won't get much more from Dan, either. We have a sort of pact in this space.
Any more than this and your illusions about my general worth as a human bean might could be... ummm... compromised. ;-)
LOL!! Okay...best to keep your secrets secret.
ReplyDeleteI wouldn't piss on him if he was on fire.
ReplyDeleteI would, but I'd aim around the burning bits.
Sharon: Thanks!
ReplyDeleteDave: Now that's a good idea!