For a small amount of perspective during these crazy times, imagine you were an American born in 1900. When you are 14, World War I starts, and ends on your 18th birthday with 22 million people killed. Later in the year, a Spanish Flu epidemic hits the planet and runs until you are 20. Fifty million people die from it in those two years. Yes, 50 million.
When you're 29, the Great Depression begins. Unemployment hits 25%, global GDP drops 27%. That runs until you are 33. The country nearly collapses along with the world economy. When you turn 39, World War II starts. You aren’t even over the hill yet.
When you're 41, the United States is fully pulled into WWII. Between your 39th and 45th birthday, 75 million people perish in the war and the Holocaust kills six million. At 52, the Korean War starts and five million perish.
At 64 the Vietnam War begins, and it doesn’t end for many years. Four million people die in that conflict. Approaching your 62nd birthday you have the Cuban Missile Crisis, a tipping point in the Cold War. Life on our planet, as we know it, could well have ended. Great leaders prevented that from happening.
As you turn 75, the Vietnam War finally ends. Think of everyone on the planet born in 1900. How do you survive all of that? A kid in 1985 didn’t think their 85 year old grandparent understood how hard school was. Yet those grandparents (and now great grandparents) survived through everything listed above.
Perspective is an amazing art. Let’s try and keep things in perspective. Let’s be smart, help each other out, and we will get through all of this. In the history of the world, there has never been a storm that lasted. This too, shall pass.
Thanks Bob
'Nam had been going on from 1/1/45 when Uncle Ho declared his intent to take over Indo-China by first ousting the French (technically, he started at the Versailles conference by wanting the Allies to give him Indo-China). Vietnamization and the gradual pullout of American troops began in '69 and ended in '73.
ReplyDeleteThe war "ended" with a massive panzer blitz by North Vietnam (equipment provided by the Russians) which was applauded by smiling Democrats all over Capitol Hill.
PS They don't mention the 53 million killed by Stalin, the 6 million murdered in the course of the Vietnam War and its aftermath, or the 67 million murdered by Mao.
edutcher, the world does get complicated at times.
DeleteAnd some other shit will take its place
ReplyDeleteAnon, well hell, that's shit's job.
Delete"Life on our planet, as we know it, could well have ended. Great leaders prevented that from happening."
ReplyDeleteAnd a not-so-great nobody, Stanislav Petrov, who prevented nuclear oblivion in 1983. Everyone owes their lives to him.
Zombiedawg, I'd never even heard of that before. I had to google him.
DeleteThat photo, incidentally, is from the Russian famine, 1921...
ReplyDeleteZombiedawg, OK.
DeleteThat is about ten years before the Russians began the program to systematically starve certain regions (Urkraine). Untold millions died.
DeleteThe 20th Century was a rough one. Complain as we will, so far the 21st doesn't compare - knock on wood.
ReplyDeleteJoseph, ok, I'm knocking on my right temple.
DeleteI've mentally run through this list every time a young person says that it is a horrible time to have children. The only good time to have kids in America in the last 125 years was created by Ronald Reagan collapsing the Soviet Union. Every other time there was a really good reason not to have them.
ReplyDeleteAnon, I think I did just fine.
DeleteHolocaust killed 11 million, not just 6 million…If you believe the history books
ReplyDeleteAnon, and here I thought I stole this from a good place.
DeleteWhen you trace back first soldier's sent to Viet Nam by Eisenhower were to be advisors. Kennedy then up the number of "advisors" and Johnson and we know the rest.
ReplyDeleteAnon, I have Johnson to thank for my trip.
DeleteWe have LBJ to thank for a great deal of our misery. Hope he and his ilk enjoy their warm retirement.
DeleteAnon, He was a piece of work.
DeleteMy folks went from farming with horses and traveling on horse drawn vehicles, to watching moon landings on the television.
ReplyDeleteAnon, Same here.
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