Vietnam June 1970: The War There were now over 475,000 USA personnel in South Vietnam supporting a massive war effort. The number had peaked at almost 550,000 in April of 1969. But then President Nixon had started a slow un-declared withdrawal. The public mood had turned sharply against the war. In spite this change in public sentiment towards the war, it had expanded and then expanded some more. But now a change was happening. Government debt and the political elite’s leadership spirits were both in a shambles. People were still talking about the My Lai massacre that had occurred in November of ’69. Unknown to Rob or Ronnie a man named Henry Kissinger had begun secret peace talks with North Vietnam in February of 1970. The secret meetings took place in Paris. Notwithstanding these meetings the war carried on and men kept dying. In late April of 1970 the war was expanded into Cambodia to clear out enemy “sanctuaries”. On the 4 th of May 1970, the anti-war anger in America had exploded when four young students were shot in cold blood on the campus of Kent State University. The Ohio campus and much of the country was still in blood-dripped shock at the death of young American protesters on their own soil at the hands of their own soldiers. By the middle of 1970 a steadily growing majority of Americans considered the US military involvement in Vietnam to be a huge mistake. This depth of this “mistake” would be laid bare decades later by the then head of American war planning, former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, when he tried to cleanse his soul in a self-critique. Gritty and heroic frontline war reporting by the media had played a big part in changing the public’s mood. Horrific images of the war had seared American eyeballs almost nightly. Never before had unvarnished images of such a brutal war been transmitted almost instantly to the people huddled in front of their home-fires like this. A young girl screaming and running while dripping in flaps of skin and Napalm was an image that would still resonate even decades later. This is also true of the up-close execution of an “alleged” spy with a pistol to his head and his brains spilling out the other side. These images played a huge role in altering America’s view of the war. NBC’s Frank McGee had made an open admission during the news broadcast in 1969 that “the war is all but lost”. Significantly Martin Luther King had come out against the war, as had many prominent leaders of the women’s movement. Counter-culture artists like Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and Joni Mitchell provided the music to cheer the protesters on. The most popular “anti-war” anthem is actually a song few people outside the generation and outside the anti-war movement will even remember decades down the road. This song “The Fish Cheer” by a band named “Country Joe and the Fish” was far too radical to get radio play on conventional radio or “Top 40” stations at the time. The “Fish” song was recorded in 1965 in Berkeley, California, at Arhoolie Records. It was sold at “teach-ins” for fifty-cents as a 7-inch EP. About 100 original copies were sold. If you “Google” the Top-40 songs of the era this song won’t come up. But for those who attended the rallies, who protested, who went to Woodstock, this is the iconic song of the period. It was “Country Joe and the Fish” who first introduced Americans to the “F. U. C. K.” cheer. This version first occurred at the Shaefer Summer Music Festival in 1968 in front of 10,000 fans. The “cheer” of “F-I-S-H” was altered to “F-U-C-K”. The Ed Sullivan Show immediately canceled the band’s scheduled appearance. The cheer would rouse the anti-war spirit of a generation. Country Joe made an unscheduled appearance at the Woodstock Music Festival. Anyone who watches the movie decades later can hear Joe imploring the huge audience as follows: “Listen people, I don’t know how you expect to ever stop the war if you can’t sing any better than that. There’s about 300,000 of you fuckers out there. I want you to start singing. Come on!” In June of 1970 on the CBS evening news the reports were coming in about the Battle of Kompong Speu and the Battle of Prey Veng. In coming decades would anyone other than devoted military historians even remember these battles? In total America would suffer 58,193 soldiers killed in the Vietnam War. It was a war the government was forced to call a “conflict” as their euphemism to avoid accountability. Of these casualties the greatest number—14,095—would be twenty years old when they died. Vietnam was also a very “white” and largely “Christian” war. Of all the American dead 50,120 were Caucasian. Only 269 of the dead were Jews as their protective mothers probably took dramatic steps to keep them in college, or suitably out of harm’s way. A mere 12 of the dead were Moslems and the bulk of the rest, over 7,000, were black. Eight of the dead were women. Interestingly and surprisingly California contributed more dead soldiers than any other state with 5,573 residents killed during the war. In 1970 the rate of killing was petering out with some 6,081 Americans killed in the conflict. By the time Rob lost his life in 1972 he would be counted among a very unlucky 641 Americans who lost their lives that year. This is the traumatic backdrop to our tale. For those who didn’t live through Erenköy escort bayan it, well, to comprehend the time will be difficult. In every conflict since America has refused to commit troops to any war that would result in “kill ratios” anything approaching what was suffered and endured during Vietnam. June 1970 American Pop Culture In the summer of 1970 bellbottoms and a wonderful invention called the “Mini Skirt” were all the rage. Things called the “cassette tape” and the “eight-track” were becoming popular and even appearing in cars. Who could know this was only the beginning of the end for LP’s. In November of ’69 rumours of Paul McCartney’s death swept the world and “Abbey Road” sold 2.5 million copies in four weeks. In 1968 Kodak had introduced the “Instamatic” camera. This would forever change the way people took pictures. Peter Max’s psychedelic posters and lava lamps are popping up in dark teenage bedrooms everywhere to go along with the new wave of music and drugs. In 1969 Jacqueline Kennedy remarries and changes her name. Bill Cosby apologizes for his crude comedy to the audience of the “Tonight Show”. Later in the year Harvard University will name him their “Man of the Year” showcasing the change in public tolerance and taste. Also in 1969 preachers and pastors across the nation are going apoplectic as Sears begins opening stores on Sunday. GASP!! Canadian singer Gordon Lightfoot is growing in popularity in the USA. Robert Reed now plays the lead character not only for “The Brady Bunch”, but also for a new show “Mannix”. The action show “Mission Impossible” is getting ever-higher TV ratings. It utilizes innovative technology to entertain in a way that many decades later shows like CSI will pick up on. For women Clairol has begun airing a commercial with the tagline “Does she or doesn’t she?” It’s a hair colouring product. The number one movie in 1969 is “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid”. The number one pop tune that year is “Suspicious Minds” by Elvis Presley. The politically “incorrect”, but very popular show, “The Smother’s Brothers” is in the news and secretly under siege by President Nixon’s attack-dogs. Later the actors will say over seventy per cent of their shows were censored. Yes in America—censored. By the end of 1969 the show was off the air. Gone. Poof. Edward Snowden was not even a twinkle in his parent’s eye when this happened. In 1969 Ralph Nader had published his book “Unsafe at Any Speed”. His book and his carefully researched approach to consumerism will forever change consumer activism. Mr Nader will save millions of lives by forcing the adoption of an innovation called the “seatbelt”. In July of ’69 125 million Americans and 700 million people worldwide watched captivated as Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin performed a moonwalk. This was the largest global TV audience ever. In August of ’69 Woodstock became a monster hit. This marked a new peak in the anti-war sentiment as support became widespread in the American public. The festival also cemented the new musical trends and increasing numbers of radio stations moved to rock, pop and “top 40” music playlists. In automobiles 1970 marked the peak of America’s lust for “muscle cars”. For this new macho status symbol of the nation’s unbridled industrial success the “image” was just as important as the performance. “Brand image” was becoming paramount as the Madison Avenue crowd took control. They had already proven even Americans would buy a Volkswagen Beetle if advertising could convince them to “Think Small”. As Detroit battled for the hearts and minds (and dollars) of the baby boomer generation, each brand did everything it could to set itself apart through marketing. Words like ‘Six Pack’, ‘Ram Air’ and ‘Cobra Jet’ all became part of the landscape. When 1970 came around, big scoops, hood tachometers, bright colors and stripe packages were a big part of the muscle car experience. It was just another example of the influence of the psychedelic pop culture of the time. The 1970 American muscle car was as fast and outrageous as it would ever get. Notable cars were the Camaro Z28, Challenger T/A, and the Boss 302 Mustang. Although the Pontiac Trans Am actually debuted in 1969, it was with the debut of the second generation F-body in 1970 where the car really started down the path to becoming the 1970s icon that it is – Shaker hood, screaming chicken and all. In April of 1970, on the cusp of Rob leaving to serve his country in Vietnam, the Beatles announced their breakup. In December of 1970 the movie “Love Story” would be released. The phrase—“Love means never having to say you’re sorry”—will become a part of the contemporary lexicon. Ronnie will watch the romantic movie that month with a girlfriend along with her very large pregnant stomach. The straying attractive wife would never tell young Rob about their child. The time wasn’t right. She didn’t think it would be fair considering everything he had to face in the dark jungles of Vietnam. And Carl still assumed it was his. Ronnie’s secret hope, of course, was that young Rob would return from Vietnam and take her back in his arms. That was her dream. June 1970 SoCal Suburbia America When we last left our two characters handsome eighteen-year old Rob had been lured into Escort içerenköy his sexy older neighbour’s bedroom. Ronnie’s ruse was asking the young man to “listen to Linda Ronstadt”. Men who struggle to come up with similar ploys need to grin in support of Ronnie’s ingenuity. Rob had never been in a room so pretty, or that smelled so nice. His heart was pounding as he looked around. His eyes always came back to settle quietly on beautiful Ronnie. She was so gorgeous. Was this a dream? Would he wake up and realize this was all a horny teenage dream? Veronica walked to the long teak chest and picked up the record jacket of “Silk Purse”. It was a cute album cover. Gorgeous Linda Ronstadt was sitting in a pigsty with a group of adorable white pigs. She held the black vinyl disc by its edges so as to not scratch it. Ronnie gently placed the record on the record player. Pressing the “play” button they both watched the record player arm slowly descend. As the needle touched the rotating black disc the first song “Lovesick Blues” began to play. Linda Ronstadt’s voice was so beautiful. “Here sit with me on the bed.” Ronnie motioned and patted the bed beside her softly. Her eyes were friendly and her smile inviting. Young Rob gulped a nervous gulp, his throat tightening. His sexy neighbour looked so beautiful, but the large bed she was sitting on made him extra nervous. The little tiny rose pattern seemed to swim before his eyes. Rob’s heart was pounding and his very uncooperative penis refused to deflate. The nervous boy tried to think of sheep, or how to spell “Mississippi”, but no matter what he tried his throbbing appendage still throbbed and swelled. The besotted young man moved towards the bed, his nerves growing worse with each step. Ronnie was in a place she’d never been before. She was nervous, but now she was ready. She had found the eye of the storm and she was calm. Actually Ronnie had been ready for a long time, but hadn’t realized it. Still Veronica minded her pace and did her best to not scare the poor boy away. Move too fast and even a deer in the headlights can bolt. For the young wife it was step by step. Light teasing touches, bashfully batted lashes, deep glances with her eyes, shifting her body slightly closer; a woman instinctively knows how to attract a man and send out the necessary signals. The genetic imprint is in her brain. The “I want to mate” behaviour is just there inside a woman. Slowly and surely the mood got lighter and lighter and Rob’s jumpy nerves calmed. The beer he had consumed also had an effect no doubt. Veronica took his hand and held it softly as she chatted. Soon Ronnie’s chatter and easy manner had the young man feeling relaxed and cheerful. You could not say he was entirely “carefree” since the cares still lurked, but he was distracted and beaming. Rob couldn’t help looking. Veronica’s pale blue eyes were so pretty. Her blonde hair and flip-curl were so pretty. Her skin was so perfect. Her lips were so pink. Her breasts were so….so…..close! She smelled so terribly good. Every aspect he chose to consider made him more buoyant and horny. Rob’s lusting eyes kept feasting on the buffet of Ronnie’s cornucopia of sexual attractions. At the same time his groin kept pulsing in surging waves of blood as his cock engorged and throbbed almost painfully. He squirmed trying to adjust the hard rod. The swelled snake trapped in his pants was uncomfortably pushing upwards attempting to be freed from his restrictive briefs. “Let me out to play.” It seemed to be saying. Five minutes or so had passed. Now the turntable was starting on the third song “Will You Love Me Tomorrow”. The Shirelles’s tune would become a big hit for Ronstadt this year. It would later be recorded again by Roberta Flack in 1972 and become a hit for her as well. Ronnie would play the Roberta Flack version after Rob had been killed to remind her self of this special evening they shared. “Oh Rob I love this song. Hold me. Let’s dance.” The uncertain eighteen-year old looked so nervous and embarrassed. He sheepishly cast his uncertain eyes downward and his cheeks flushed a brighter pink. He’d never really danced much. “Um huh Ronnie, I don’t really know how to dance.” The older sexy woman poked him playfully in the ribs. Ronnie grabbed Rob’s larger male hand pulling him up off the bed. The reluctant, but secretly eager young man, made his body a dead weight and half-resisted her playful tugging. Finally Rob stood up and reluctantly followed his sexy neighbour’s lead. He shuffled his feet and twisted his hands nervously. “C’mon it’s easy. Not real dancing. Just hold me and let me lead.” Veronica’s pale blue eyes were soft and tranquil. Her unruffled assurances steadied the man-boy. They were standing close to each other. The soft song was filling the room. Ronstadt’s high sweet voice and the steel string guitar chords melded nicely. Ronnie took the hesitant unsure boy in her arms. Rob felt a hushed, breathless, almost serene intimacy as she wrapped her arms around his torso. The flirtatious wife cuddled into her young neighbour’s broad chest. They started to sway and shuffle to Ronstadt’s tune. Oh god Rob felt so amazing. Ronnie made small cooing sounds to indicate, “I like this spot”. For Rob the feeling of Ronnie’s tiny body Tuzla escort snuggled tightly into his chest made him swoon. The aroused young man closed his eyes. His sexy neighbour’s floral perfume wafted back to his nose. Ronnie snuggled in even closer. The intimate contact with Rob’s body whet her appetite for more. Pressing her hips forward the older woman felt Rob’s big thick bulging erection press into her hips. She grinned. The horny look on Veronica’s face was unobserved by Rob since she was pressing her face into his strong chest. The still wavering but very stimulated young Rob started to pull away as the song’s sweetness ended. But the next song was “Nobody” and it was even slower. The desirable woman holding him wouldn’t let him leave. “This feels so nice Rob. Just hold me. Let’s dance some more.” Veronica murmured the soft words into his chest. She was feeling so safe being held by his strong arms. Involuntarily the besotted boy stroked her shining blonde hair without even being conscious he was doing it. Rob’s agitated brain had floated off into some kind of erotic dream-state. Thoughts of the draft, of Vietnam, of death, were far, far, away. Ronnie snuggled against Rob’s chest and squeezed tightly with her arms. The sexy wife pressed her more delicate female body into Rob’s harder and huskier male body. The young man’s strong muscular arms squeezed firmly around her; feeling Ronnie pull tightly against him he sighed softly. Oh god the boy from next door didn’t want this moment to ever end. Ronnie emitted a half-whimpered and almost felt a tear come as a kind of profound joy swelled in her heart. “How long? How long?” She murmured silently to her self. When it happened, or exactly how it happened, it is unlikely either one of them could have told you had you asked. The hugging, the shuffling together, the warmth of their bodies, the romantic music, the floral perfume, his broad chest, her wet pussy, and his throbbing cock: it all coalesced into a moment of perfection. One of those moments you dream about and then in a fleeting second they come and are gone. They remain for us only as memories. If Ronnie smelled Diorissimo thirty years later, the scent would trigger an image of this moment instantly. Ronnie opened her eyes a tiny crack and tilted her head up. Rob was a lot taller than her. The look in her eyes as she opened them more fully drew him in. It was a completely magical moment and yet real. His lips got drawn down towards the waiting pink perfection of her lips as if by a supernatural force. Ronnie clenched her eyes again tightly. She was waiting for the “perfect moment” to get even more “perfect”. In her mind Veronica was savouring this kiss before it even happened. Young Rob lowered his face as if he knew what he was doing. Of course he had no idea what he was doing. Yet he could not resist the pull of the moment. In Rob’s anxiety and eagerness to kiss his gorgeous sexy neighbour he moved his head a tiny fraction too fast. He was so afraid of the moment passing by without him that he rushed it. Men often make such romantic blunders. Ladies please forgive them. The young man pushed his mouth forward a tiny bit too keenly. Rob was frankly too awkward and nervous to approach a moment of “perfection” on his first try. With a startled instant of “oh my god what have I done?” Rob’s front teeth smashed into Ronnie’s soft plump bottom lip. She gave a tiny “yip” of startled surprise at the unexpected sharp contact. Ronnie pulled back opening her pale blue eyes widely in shock. She smiled and giggled softly. Luckily for both of them the more experienced woman remained completely composed. She hadn’t expected everything to go smoothly. He was a virgin after all. The mistake seemed to make her desire him even more. The moment was still not lost. Rob’s cheeks were flushed hot and red. But like a deer in the headlights he was struck dumb and remained standing in place, his feet as if cemented to the floor. “Not like that silly.” Veronica paused letting her soothing voice affect him. She batted her eyelashes with coy design. Unruffled she eased her quarry’s nerves while hoping Cupid’s aim would be true. Ronnie badly needed some love in her life. “More softly. With a woman you need to start out more tenderly.” She smiled seeing the man-boy’s tension ease. “Pay attention and be gentle.” Veronica lifted her slender hand toward his strong chiselled jaw. Gently she used a crooked finger to guide his lips slowly to hers. It was as if a moment was being captured in “slow-motion” for a movie close-up. The script at that point would read simply: “Older woman seduces younger man. LOVE scene. Camera—zoom in. Lips close-up.” Millimetre by millimetre the gap between their mouths closed until their soft lips touched. The first touch of their lips was electric for both of them. Ronnie exhaled and mewed in exultation. It was finally happening. Her life was changing. Skies festooned with vast explosions of tiny red hearts began to flicker in her brain like a visual July fourth fireworks display. The same show of lights was exploding in Rob’s overwrought sexually fevered mind. His own heart was pounding. Ronnie felt her woman’s body go weak from Rob’s lips. She swooned under the intensity of the almost virgin-like kiss. Rob’s hesitation and naiveté had made the sensation so intimate and special. To teach a young man to kiss was so delicious and remarkable. What woman would not treasure such a moment? Ronnie’s heart was racing. Her body wanted more, hungered for more. The learner’s-kiss was not nearly enough. One kiss carried on into a second more intense kiss.