Friday Anti-War Song

Well, if this works, it’ll make Fridays much more interesting. I’ve [finally] figured out how to post videos from YouTube, and – with any luck -I’ll be able to post some kind of video after the lyrics.

I’ll still be posting the lyrics though, since YouTube gives you only a taste of the song.

A friend reminded me of this song, which came out in 1985. We were juniors in high school then, and this video gave sudden weight and reality to what little I knew about my uncle’s service in the US Navy.

19
– Paul Hardcastle

In 1965 Vietnam seemed like just another foreign war,
but it wasn’t.
It was different in many ways, as so were those that did the fighting.
In World War II the average age of the combat soldier was 26…
In Vietnam he was 19.
In inininininin Vietnam he was 19.

(TV announcer’s voice)
The shooting and fighting of the past two weeks continued today
25 miles west of Saigon

(Vet’s Voice)
I really wasn’t sure what was going on

Nininini Nineteen, 19, Ni-nineteen
19,19,19,19,19

In Vietnam the combat soldier typically served a twelve month tour of duty
but was exposed to hostile fire almost everyday

Ninininininininininin 19 nininininninin 19
Hundreds of thousands of men who saw heavy combat in Vietnam were arrested since discharge
Their arrest rate is almost twice that of non-veterans of the same age.
There are no accurate figures of how many of these men have been incarcerated.
But, a Veterans Administration study concludes
that the greater a Vets exposure to combat could
more likely affect his chances of being arrested or convicted.

This is one legacy of the Vietnam War

(Singing Girls)
All those who remember the war
They won’t forget what they’ve seen..
Destruction of men in their prime
whose average was 19
Dedededededede-Destruction
Dedededededede-Destruction
War, War
Dededede-Destruction, wa-wa-War, wa-War, War
Dedededededede-Destruction
War, War

After World War II the Men came home together on troop ships,
but the Vietnam Vet often arrived home within 48 hours of jungle combat
Perhaps the most dramatic difference between World War II and VietNam was coming home…
none of them received a hero’s welcome

None of them received a heroes welcome, none of them, none of them
Nenene Nenene None of them, none of them, none of them
None of them received a hero’s welcome
None of them received a hero’s welcome

According to a Veteran’s Administration study
Half of the Vietnam combat veterans suffered from what Psychiatrists call Post-Traumatic-Stress-Disorder
Many vets complain of alienation, rage, or guilt
Some succumb to suicidal thoughts
Eight to Ten years after coming home
almost eight-hundred-thousand men are still fighting the VietNam War

(Singing Girls)
Dedededededede-Destruction
Nininininininininin Nineteen, 19, Ni-nineteen 19 19,19,19,19
Nininininininininin Nineteen, 19, Ni-nineteen 19 19,19,19,19

(Soldiers Voice)
When we came back it was different..

Everybody wants to know “How’d it happened to those guys over there
There’s gotta be something wrong somewhere

We did what we had to do
There’s gotta be something wrong somewhere
People wanted us to be ashamed of what it made us
Dad had no idea what he went to fight and he is now
All we want to do is come home
All we want to do is come home
What did we do it for?
All we want to do is come home

Was it worth it?

*

As you watch the video, think about this: Considering the effects of a single 12-month tour and near-daily exposure to hostile fire on many Vietnam veterans, what are/will be the long-term effects of serving multiple tours with near-daily exposure to hostile fire on the young men and women currently serving in Iraq?

 

 

Update: Yes!!! It works!! **doing the Snoopy dance**