Page 141 - Stand Down Vietnam

to apply it to ourselves.
That’s what I did. I admit things got more confusing.

I did have friends that would say you have to listen to
this song or that song. I recall the song San
Francisco by Scott McKenzie was popular. It seemed
everyone was trying to figure out his or her opinion.

It wasn't until I was a senior in high school that I
started to realize something was drastically wrong in
that place called Vietnam. I knew I was probably
destined to serve, so I’d better be thinking about that
very seriously.

A lot of us were just not too sure; we’d listen to the
songs and try to decipher what the singers were talking
about. More than likely we got it wrong. In the end,
as documents have been declassified; hey, those little
hippies might not have been so stupid after all.

The Army offered me all the basics:

• Money
• Food
• Clothing

• Shelter
• Education

My service began in August 1967; the Vietnam War was in
full swing. Basic training was at Fort Lewis,
Washington. The flight there was the first time I’d
been on an airplane. Basic lasted about nine weeks.

Music made an impression during Basic Training. For
example, The Letter by the Box Tops was playing on the
radio in the mess hall, and Ode to Billy Jo by Bobbie
Gentry followed.