VFW: Woodstock Wasn't the Only Thing Happening 40 Years Ago

NewsBusters ^ | August 12, 2009 | Colleen Raezler

[Stoat]

VFW: Woodstock Wasn't the Only Thing Happening 40 Years Ago

By Colleen Raezler (Bio | Archive)
August 12, 2009 - 13:47 ET

 

 

While some in the media have been dusting off their love beads, bell-bottoms and broomstick skirts in an effort to wax nostalgic about Woodstock, the VFW has reminded its members that the world did not stop for those four days in August 1969.

In fact, for 109 American soldiers, the world ended that weekend.

VFW Magazine honored those soldiers in the August 2009 cover story, "While Woodstock Rocked, GIs Died."

Much has been made over the "half a million strong" that flocked to a dairy farm in rural New York to celebrate music and peace. Richard K. Kolb instead compared the coverage Newsweek and Time gave to the festival while shortchanging American efforts in Vietnam.

 

"Newsweek described them as ‘a youthful, long-haired army, almost as large as the U.S. force in Vietnam," wrote Kolb. Time claimed Woodstock "may well rank as one of the significant political and sociological events of the age." The same article referred to the Vietnam as the "meaningless war in the jungles of Southeast Asia" and cited sociologist Amitai Etzoni, who stated that "the young need opportunities for authentic service."

As for those that gave the ultimate sacrifice in the name of "authentic service" Kolb reported, "The casualties they sustained over those four days were genuine, yet none of the elite media outlets were praising their selflessness.

But unlike Woodstock's audience, labeled by Newsweek as "the nation's affluent white young," Kolb wrote that the soldiers killed that weekend "mirrored the population of the time."

Kolb offered statistics to prove his case:

A full 92 percent were white (seven of whom had Spanish surnames) and 8 percent black. Some 67 percent were Protestants; 28 percent Catholic. A disproportionate number - more than one-third - hailed from the South. More than two-thirds were single; nearly one-third married. Not surprisingly, the vast majority (91 percent) were under the age of 30, with 78 percent between the ages of 18 and 22.

 

Kolb also poignantly noted, "Of the four days, Aug. 18 - the last day of "peace and love" in the Catskills when the 50,000 diehards departed after the final act - was the worst for the men in Vietnam. Thirty-five of them died on that one miserable day."

Thirty-five died. Hundreds more were wounded. On August 9, 2009, The Washington Post ran a story about a man who figured prominently if briefly in the legend of Woodstock. As Post staff writer Neely Tucker described it:

It was like the second day of the festival and Rodgers, 6-foot-5 and about 120 pounds, all of 19 years old, staggered out of the Port-O-San portable toilet, marijuana pipe in hand, and wow, there were guys with cameras, making what became the iconic film "Woodstock." Rodgers's blue shirt was open, he was unwashed and unkempt, his brown hair was an unruly wad on top of his head, and he was about 17 tokes over the line.

 

"Want some? Want some?" he says to the filming crew, offering hits. He's got this goofy grin. He says "Far out!" and "Out of sight!" For lo these many years, the lovable pothead scene has been a fan favorite.

 

Tucker's article caught up with Rodgers, forty years on, using nearly 1,500 words to sketch the unremarkable life of an unreconstructed hippie. It is perhaps too much to ask that the Post spill even a fraction of that ink to chronicle the life of one of the hundreds of Americans who were wounded that weekend on the other side of the world. It doesn't fit the self-congratulatory nostalgia.

The sacrifice and service that ultimately changed and, in the case of 109, ended the lives of many young Americans is not the defining notion of that summer weekend in 1969. They are overshadowed by the 500,000 people that crowded onto a farm for three days of self indulgence and ... entertainment.

—Colleen Raezler is a research assistant at the Culture and Media Institute
 

[Stoat]

Please also see this related Free Republic thread from July 30, 2009:

While Woodstock Rocked, GIs Died

[GreyFriar]

Thanks for the post.

[a fool in paradise]

FORTY YEARS ago this OCTOBER the Weather Underground was formed (so much for the myth that they were a 1960s radical organization, the bulk of their terrorist activies were firmly rooted in the 1970s, although they were caught robbing a bank in the 1980s).

[Springman]

IIRC, McPain once said, he wasn’t at Woodstock.

“He was tied up at the time.”

Sure there were others “Tied Up” at the time.

[AnnGora]

Will someone please explain to me the significance of a crowd of dirty, smelly, hairy maggot-infested hippies rolling around in the mud, smoking dope and listening to a bunch of music by many long forgotten bands? Ok, some of the music was good, but it now belongs in the vintage pile along with Al Jolson and Ishkibble. Why is this so culturally important? (BTW, I would much rather listen to Jolie than Jimi.)

[Stoat]

Thanks for the post.

You're quite welcome :-)

It's heartbreaking that articles like this even 'need' to be written, but sadly they do.

At least we now have the internet which allows us to bring the truth to a wider audience, albeit forty years late.

Thank you and all Veterans for serving our country  :-)

[Natural Law]

Woodstock might have had better music, but we had a much better fireworks show!

[ml/nj]

It was also Travers Weekend.

ML/NJ

[Stoat]

FORTY YEARS ago this OCTOBER the Weather Underground was formed

Undoubtedly we will soon be subjected to articles written by coffeeshop Marxists, waxing wistfully about the 'good ideas' and 'universal truths' that were 'unfortunately misdirected' by this group of psychotic thugs.

I expect a lavishly-funded speaking tour from Bill Ayers and Co. telling us about how we are all simply too unintelligent to understand what they were trying to do and how they really were a positive role model for all.

Blech!

[SgtSki]

Duster fire at sundown no doubt.

[Stoat]

IIRC, McPain once said, he wasn’t at Woodstock.

“He was tied up at the time.”

Sure there were others “Tied Up” at the time.

Great quote :-)

So sad that so many didn't make it back home.

Although I have profound disagreements with a great many of Senator McCain's political views, actions and statements, I will always regard his military service and the horrors that he underwent with the highest honor and respect.

IIRC, McPain once said, he wasn’t at Woodstock.

“He was tied up at the time.”

Sure there were others “Tied Up” at the time.

Great quote :-)

[Springman]

Stoat, you said it better than I ever could have.

Thank You.

[Stoat]

Will someone please explain to me the significance of a crowd of dirty, smelly, hairy maggot-infested hippies rolling around in the mud, smoking dope and listening to a bunch of music by many long forgotten bands?

Why is this so culturally important?

By deluding themselves into thinking that Woodstock and the hippies were 'important', it helps the Left to live with the fact that their efforts prolonged the Vietnam war and caused the additional, needless deaths of untold thousands of brave soldiers.

[duckman]

“Will someone please explain to me the significance of a crowd of dirty, smelly, hairy maggot-infested hippies rolling around in the mud, smoking dope and listening to a bunch of music by many long forgotten bands?”

Good question for Hillary. Didn’t she get ‘allocate’ money for some museum to honor the event?

[STONEWALLS]

.....I was in the Army at Ft.Gordon...when we got off duty some of us went to the club to get a beer...Woodstock was on the evening news on the TV over the bar...we didn’t think much of it...it was more a minor curiosity than the so called “event of our generation”...what made Woodstock into what we know as Woodstock was the movie and album.

[LetMarch]

Thanks; we needed the reminder.
It would be good to know the Bio’s on those that “Rocked while our GI’s died” I’m sure that, like the ones I have known, have died horrific deaths deaths (or have had horrific lives)

[JSDude1]

I love this song. It just seemed appropriate:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LH4-tOqLH94

[Jacquerie]

I will always regard his military service and the horrors that he underwent with the highest honor and respect.

Same here. During the presidential campaign I couldn't believe the venom at this forum directed at his service. Way too many people cannot separate his service from his politics.

[Little Bill]

I got out of the Army in November of ‘68, I would have loved to have gone, “Sex, Drugs and Rock and Roll. I was never into the drugs part but the other two were an attraction.

[BluesDuke]

Woodstock Wasn't the Only Thing Happening 40 Years Ago

There was that thriller of a National League East race that ended with a) the Chicago Cubs (carrying three future Hall of Famers: Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Ferguson Jenkins) burned out of the race by a heavy-and-ham-handed manager; and, b) the ultimate winner going 1) 24-8 from 1 September until the end of the regular season; 2) on to sweep the Atlanta Braves (which included two future Hall of Famers, Hank Aaron and Phil Niekro) in the National League Championship Series; and, 3) following a Game One loss, sweep the mighty Baltimore Orioles (who, on paper, anyway, should have demolished them in a blink, and with three future Hall of Famers in tow: Brooks and Frank Robinson, Jim Palmer . . .)

Perhaps you've heard of them. (They had two future Hall of Famers aboard, by the way: Tom Seaver and Nolan Ryan, though nobody at the time was predicting the Hall of Fame for the Express-in-waiting . . . )

Oh, every now and then I do a little miracle just to keep My hand in. My last miracle was the 1969 Mets.---George Burns as God, Oh, God!