Anti-Protest Music and Sentiment toward Military Personnel

Here is an essay that my hubby put together for his History II class. I thought it was kind of neat and thought I would share it here. I also helped him do the research.

Anti-Protest Music and Sentiment toward Military Personnel

 

                As I said before, I am not originally from the United States. My home country of Mexico was not involved in the Vietnam War. In order to accurately write this paper I went to my father-in-law who is a Vietnam Veteran. According to Gunny Sergeant Marine Corp, (personal communication December 11, 2014) He was stationed at Marble Mountain Air Facility from December 1969 to December 1970.  Marble Mountain was an air facility used primarily by the Marine Corp in Vietnam. It was a helicopter facility. He states that his time there was more often than not just a normal day. They lived in hutches that didn’t have heat or air conditioning. He said that most of his time there it was the rainy season and they had to keep fresh sandbags around the buildings. He said that the things that stuck out the most for him was the Kent State Shooting in Ohio, several popular protest songs, but especially “Give Peace a Chance” by John Lennon. He also noticed that there was a lot of racism in the ranks. I am going to briefly mention each of the incidents or songs and related material here. Gunny Sergeant Smithson was in Vietnam as the conflict was drawing down.

                Gunny Sergeant  also stated that many people were not nice to Military personnel if they were spotted in their uniforms. He remembers an incident in West Virginia when he was visiting his family. One of his cousins wanted him to wear his uniform to the local fair. He said that he was heckled out of there by people calling him a baby killer and many other not so nice names. (Personal account December 11, 2014) Many Veterans remember when they returned from Vietnam and how they changed out of their uniforms in order to avoid the negative response the uniform brought. They didn’t have parades and warm homecomings and many even stated that once out of the military they tried to hide the fact they were Veterans.

                Due to the draft and the high number of military members being killed every day in Vietnam and the expansion of the war into Cambodia, student protests had begun popping up on university campuses all around the country. For the most part many of them were peaceful protest. On Monday May 4, 1970 that all changed. After a weekend of student protest on the Kent State Campus in Ohio, the Mayor of Kent met with the National Guard to seek assistance with the overflow of protestors. Many business had received threats. The protestors were throwing beer bottles at police cars and damaging local business. By Monday the National Guard was on Campus. They were armed with fixed bayonets and live rounds of ammunition. After throwing tear gas into the crowd and having them thrown back at them, after several attempts to get the crowd to disperse, and being pelted with rocks by protestors, shots rang out. The National Guardsmen dropped to one knee and fired. Out of 77 Guardsmen, 29 claimed to have fired and a total of 67 rounds of ammunition were fired. All of this happened at 12:24p.m., and was over in 13 seconds, leaving four students dead and nine wounded. Two of the dead were not protestors. According to Gunny Sergeant  when word reach Vietnam of the shooting the majority of corpsmen were on the fence as who to truly blame. They felt like the media was falsely portraying the protestors as well dressed individuals who were just on their way to class. They also felt like the majority of the people enlisted in the National Guard, had enlisted with them in order to avoid being sent to Vietnam. (Personal Communication, December 11, 2014) Very few National Guard Units were sent to Vietnam.

                In 1969 John Lee Hooker recorded a song tilted “I don’t want to go to Vietnam” One of the lines from the song states “We’ve got so much trouble at home we don’t need to go to Vietnam”. Between 1968 and 1969 the rise of the Black Power began. In the beginning of the Vietnam War many more African American soldiers were losing their lives than White Soldiers. This was eventually evened out. This was also the first war where the soldiers were integrated and not segregated by race. Many felt that the draft was a form of genocide by the American Government toward African Americans. Others saw the money being put into the Vietnam Conflict as money that could be spent on poorer black neighborhoods in the U.S. African Americans were just as vocal about their dislike for the war as White Americans. They even burned their draft cards in protest. One of the more popular anti-war groups was the Black Panthers.

                Gunny Sergeant  stated that one of his more favorite protest songs was “Give Peace a Chance” By John Lennon. He said that many of his fellow corpsmen listened to the popular music of day and a lot of that music happened to be protest music. (Personal communication, December 11, 2014).  The popular chorus is as follows: “All we are saying is give peace a chance” This was often chanted at anti-war protests. The song was released in 1969.

                Another song that I came across was by Country Joe McDonald and it is called “The Fish Cheer/I Feel like I’m fixing to Die Rag”. It became popular in 1969 when he sang it unexpectedly at Woodstock. The song was well known, but never a hit. It is a sarcastic song urging young and able men to join in the Vietnam War. It also urges parents to send their children to war as soon as possible so as to have the first one return in a box. Here is the chorus:

And it's one, two, three, what are we fighting for? Don't ask me I don't give a damn Next stop is Vietnam. And it's five, six, seven, open up the pearly gates, Well there ain't no time to wonder why, Whoopie! We're all gonna die!

                The Vietnam War era was a time of change in the Nation. The culture, music, and racial issues were all shifting and moving into the modern era.  Gunny Sergeant  stated that he wasn’t angry at the protestors, that more often than not he could see where they were coming from and why they were protesting. He also stated that the reason he joined the Marine Corp is because he had received a summons from the United States Army, but didn’t want to go to Vietnam in the Army because he wanted it to be his choice to serve and to pick the military branch he would serve in. (personal communication, December 11, 2014)                           

 

 

REFERENCES:

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marble_Mountain_Air_Facility

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kent<http://sunpatriot.com/2012/11/07/attitudes-towards-veterans-have-changed-for-the-better/_State_shootings>

 

Proverbs 6: 22) When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakes, it shall talk with thee. 23) For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light, and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:

 

5 Days Before Christmas Vacation

For the most part today was an easy day. A good friend who is about to move across the country from me came over to use my stove. She has already packed just about everything in her house. So here she came to bake 48 pumpkin muffins. It was good to have the conversation, to watch our kiddos play.

Hubby's day off had turned into a half a day at work. Thinking that we were still doing lunch, I got all gussied up and looking pretty. Lunch date never happened.

 Here I am with awesome updo and make up. We still managed to have a quiet day at the house with him working on his work stuff and me mopping and doing some spot cleaning. We made a small supper, he gave the kids a bath and I ran to the store for milk. That was it, not much for an exciting day.

 

 

 

 

Luke 8:15) But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. 

And There were Tacos

 

 

 

We had pork loins in the fridge, it was a Saturday. Hubby was in the mood to cook and this is what he came up with. Much to my surprise, it was very yummy. It is a true blessing to be married to someone who not only loves to cook, but puts so much heart into it.

 

 

 

This is how it all began. Just a little olive oil, some mushrooms and thinly sliced pork loins.

 

 

He pulled the mushrooms out once they were done and then just cooked the meat, then added them to the meat

 

He did this until they were a light golden brown and then warmed up some corn tortillas. You can use flour if you prefer them.

 

 

Once the tortillas are warmed up he placed them into the skillet and added the meat and mushrooms and then lightly fried them on each side, and then they were done. A simple meal for a lazy Saturday.

 

Luke 1:41) And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost:42) And she spake out with a loud voice, and said, Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

 

 

 



 

 





Six Days Before Vacation

Today is Sunday. Around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday we will roll out. Vacation will begin. Now let me explain the back story to this. Exactly two weeks ago we were not going anywhere. Hubby was not taking any leave. Then it all changed, he came home on lunch and announced that we would be going home for Christmas. I was over joyed but at that exact moment I was already overwhelmed due to other things happening at that moment.

Within a matter of days it had gone from a simple going home to celebrate Christmas to a complicated quest. The In-Laws were added and as if that were not possibly enough, the Father-In-Law decided that this would be the perfect time to lay new floors in our house that we own in TN.

It was now my responsibility to inform my border-line hoarder father who is staying in the house that we would be coming, and not only would we be coming, but we would be laying floors. Needless to say the very next morning at 7a.m. my time, my father is calling me and for 15 minutes outlining all the many reasons this would be a bad idea. As if I hadn't already gone through this very same list.

The idea of just brining his parents was enough to make me cringe. Now I get along with them very well, I enjoy their company, but I am not sure I can travel with them. For one my FIL loves that sappy love/lost love Mexican Music. I can barely handle said music in English, when it is played on the radio I begin to loose the ability to breathe. It cannot be tuned out, even if you try to sleep in a car. Believe me I have tried this tactic when hubby and I were newly married. We had to find the middle ground and it did not include said music. This is a 26 hour trip, can you imagine hearing this music the entire way?

The floors, sigh and adventure all unto itself. So hubby was thinking that we could just go to Lowes and get the stuff we need and be on our merry little way. Nope this did not happen, it did not play out that way at all. We found the laminate flooring we like, nope none of the stores keep much of it in stock. Yep you have to order it and it takes two weeks to come in. But we found a tiny loop hole and maybe just maybe this will carry us through.

Your prayers are much appreciated, and I will keep you updated.


Luke 1: 27) To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 28) And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou art highly favored, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.

The Creations are Endless

One day not to long ago the hubby decided that he wanted to make Pollo Loco. I was thinking in my mind that there is no way he could pull it off.....but he did

 

 

The only down side was not having the yummy cheese sauce that it is normally covered in when you order it at a restaurant. I have found a recipe for some, so next time

 

It was pretty easy to make. He took two chicken breast and cut them into thin slices.

 

 



Then he used seasoning salt.

 We actually use this for a lot of different recipes.

 

 



You fry the chicken until it is a light golden brown.

 

Now for these yummy looking veggies:



 

These are really quite simple: just heat up some oil, we used olive oil, in a pan drop in the veggies and fry them to desired consistency.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

Luke 3:29) Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: 30) For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, 31) Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people;

Christmas Craft for 2014

 

 One day as I was scrolling through my FB news feed I came across a tutorial on how to make this fireplace. I fell in love with it and printed the picture out. I mentioned to my husband that I would love to make it. Of course he didn't take me seriously....until my son saw the picture that is. So for about a month our son asked everyday for about a month when we would be making the fireplace. Finally hubby came home with the boxes and a plan was formed.

The only supplies we purchased were two rolls of red wrapping paper, one roll of white wrapping paper, and two bottles of glue. We purchased all of this at the Dollar Tree. The boxes hubby got from his work. This was time consuming, but very inexpensive.

STEP 1:  Assemble your boxes, this can take some time if they are all different sizes. The hubby tapped them together with packing tape.

 

STEP 2: We used the flap from one of the smaller boxes to cut out squares that later became bricks. This is where the two rolls of red wrapping paper came into play.

 

 

 

STEP 3: Cover the boxes with your white wrapping paper. We were actually short a wee bit and ended up using the back of the red wrapping paper to finish covering the boxes. We bought the small rolls of wrapping paper, so if you buy larger rolls you may only need one.

 

 

STEP 4: Begin gluing your red squares to the white paper.

 

 

THE FINISHED PRODUCT:

 

 

 

This was our families first ever craft together. The kids do crafts at friends houses or at school, but we don't normally do crafts at home. I highly recommend this project if you have the space and the time. It brought us all together. Our five-year old son helped cut the squares out. Both kids helped put glue onto the back of the squares and the hubby and I glued them on. It was a lot of fun, and a nice accent to our Christmas Tree.

THREFORE THE LORD HIMSELF WILL GIVE YOU A SIGN: THE VIRGIN WILL BE WITH CHILD AND WILL GIVE BIRTH TO A SON, AND WILL CALL HIM IMMANUEL.
Isaiah 7:14

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Riding the Emotional Rollar Coaster

This week has been a hell of a ride. You name it, it has probably happened. I have felt so emotional all week. Ready to cry one minute and raging the next minute. I swear if someone were to offer me a cigarette I would take it. I would deeply inhale each and every breath. The problem with that, I don't smoke, haven't in six years. The same with alcohol. All week long as I drive the kids to their appointments I have envisioned what I want to drink and to what point. It's been a rough one for sure. I will not give in though. I won't drink just so that I can get through or I can forget.

One morning after the hubby has already woken up our daughter and it still isn't quite 6a.m., hubby goes out to start the car and it is dead. Has plenty of power, it just won't start. So I have to get in and try to steer the nearly impossible to steer car as he pushes it out of the drive way so that he can get the van out of the garage. It is cold, it is dark, and he has a big day ahead of him. One that he was already nervous about. So we get him off to work and it is just the kids and I.

I have a semi cranky toddler and an overly hyper little boy. I am counting down the minutes until his bus comes to whisk him off to school. For around fifteen minutes he is running all through the house being loud and generally annoying me. I am not a coffee drinker, but by this time, I was ready for a black cup of day old coffee. So just as the bus pulls up my son tells me that his hearing aide won't work. I begin to pull out the tiny little tools to see if it is clogged, but I can't get it to work. I send him out the door with just one on.

My daughter has two appointments next on the agenda. Lucky for us they are in our home. They go without a hitch but getting her take a nap afterwards was no easy task. Finally she is napping and I am working on a project for the hubby, one I promised would be done and the it isn't happening. The telephone people show up to install a land line. Oh and they need to install a new internet router for whatever technical reason, I was only half listening because I couldn't hear past he blood boiling in my ears.

They get this done, get the network re-named and now I have a wireless printer that will not connect to the network. The blood is past boiling by this point. I call the company and ask them what can possible be done to fix the huge inconvenience to my day. They can do nothing. I call the printer support line and I have a field day with them, but we get it fixed.

By the end of that day I did have a working printer, the hubby did have the requested land line, I did not get the breads that I wanted to bake done. I made a passable supper I took a shower and I read my book until sleep came.

The next day was somewhat better, somewhat in that hubby has offered to drive us all the way to TN so that I can see my older son. I was flying high on this until he decided that when we go home we should pull up the carpet in our house and lay laminate floors, but hey we can do this right?

And then today I over shot our account when I went to the grocery store to buy a few things. My daughter was cranky and I am still trying to fight her to take a nap, but right when I thought I would make progress the maintenance guy shows up and he is not the least bit quiet. So the one day that I actually would love to take a nap, I see this as not becoming a reality.

But in all things give thanks to the Lord, so despite the fact that I want to eat everything in site and I want to play the angriest music I can find, I am thankful that all of that is a viable option.

Matthew 24:42 Watch therefore; for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come

Thanksgiving Day Yummys

Today was Thanksgiving and the hubby and I decided to step outside of the normal holiday tradition box and open a new tradition box. I woke up early with the kids and made a big breakfast. Breakfast was sausage and eggs, bacon, pancakes, and hash browns.

While the hubby was sleeping I boiled 4 chicken breast with a small piece of celery, small slices of onion, and two garlic cloves. Once they were done, which was about 45 minutes, I broke them into smaller pieces and put them in the Ninja bullet to shred them. I also boiled the tomatillos. I also soaked the corn husks in a sink of water for about 30 minutes.

 

 

After breakfast I put 1/2 stick of lard and 1 tablespoon of baking powder into the masa preparado. (This is the tamale mix already mixed for the most part) Then my son and I smooshed and churned and mooshed. Our hands were a sticky mess. You must stir the tamale mix for 30 minutes by hand. You can tell by the consistency change when it is ready. Once it is ready you are good to go.

 
Once the tomatillos are boiled you place them into the blender, we also added a small piece of jalapeno pepper and a clove of garlic. Once mixed to salsa consistency you put on the stove to boil. Add a little oil to the skillet before adding the salsa.

 Mix the chicken into the salsa and once cooled you can begin making your tamales. First put the tamale mix, then the salsa mix, and we added Mexican crumble cheese. These are properly called Verde tamales, or green.

 

 

We also made sweet tamales, better know as Dulce. You use part of the tamale mix and add 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract,and 1/2 tablespoon of ground cinnamon. I mixed, then added 2 cups of sugar and some raisons mixed and then placed onto the corn husk.

 

 

Once they are all wrapped and ready to go they go into the giant roaster pictured at the top. You fill the bottom under the tray with water, add some corn husk over the tray and cook on medium for about an hour.

 

Be Blessed in all that you do.

 

Micah 6:8) He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

 

 

It's all about Giving Thanks

Today is Thanksgiving. No big turkey day plans here. We are a dual cultural family, which sometimes makes the traditional American holidays a little different. The hubby isn't particularly fond of turkey, as it wasn't a food he grew up with. Because we don't normally have mashed potatoes and other traditional sides on a regular basis, the kids are not particularly fond of them. On a normal day we will eat a meal that falls somewhere between American, Italian, and Mexican, and most often are Mexican meals. Refried beans and rice have become a staple to our diet. Trying to adhere to a healthier diet, most of our meals are chicken or fish based. It may sound like we don't eat very well, but we do. Creativity is a huge part of meal preparation at our house. Hubby will watch a cooking show on TV and create a dish that is very similar but usually with a twist. When I make a new recipe I usually tweak it according to my family's taste. This usually means adding veggies to whatever it is. We like to add onions to most everything, along with garlic powder or fresh garlic, green peppers when we can, and tomatoes if it is feasible. This is how we get the kiddos to eat veggies. Keeping to this we decided to merge two holiday traditions from two cultures onto Thanksgiving Day.

Our main course will be Tamales. We are making Rojo (red), Verde (green), and Dulce (sweet). The drink of choice will be Atole, which is very similar to hot chocolate. There will also be a creamy corn served.  I will be making a pumpkin bread. Our big plans are to sit and relax together as a family. We aren't big football fans either, so we will probably just watch movies all day and play with the kiddos.

On this day I am extremely thankful that we are together as a family. I am thankful that the hubby is here and able to celebrate with us. One year ago we were readjusting to life together after a long deployment. My Mother-In-Law and Father-In-Law were here visiting from Mexico. It was the first time hubby had seen his mom in a year and the first time he had seen his dad in three years. Our daughter had recently turned one, so we had her birthday party during this time.

We did make a traditional Thanksgiving Day meal last year, because his parents wanted to celebrate the holiday. They loved it. We made the turkey, some creamy corn, green beans, and dinner rolls. It was so yummy and so much fun. It was probably only my second time to ever cook a successful turkey.

On this day in 2014, I am thankful that my family is alive and well. That the husband and I are at our 5 1/2 year mark of marriage. That we have a house, two cars, a fridge full of food, and clothes. We don't have all that we may want, but we have exactly what we need. The most important thing that we have is God in our lives and each other. Each day I pray that God will guide us as to how to pay our blessings forward.

I am thankful for being able to live on a military installation, to have this full-on military life experience. Up until just a few months ago we had never lived on post. We lived in an apartment, or in our house in our home state. Here we have a house where our kids can have their own room. The closets are big. I am often humbled when I step into the master closet because I think of how many families in America and around the world would relish having that much space to call a home. My daily goal is to thank God for this blessing. Even I know that not everyone has this opportunity. The home we own is a comfortable three bedroom, but it doesn't have near the space this house has.

It is important for each of us to be thankful for the good and bad in our lives, to ask God to show us how best to pay it forward. It is important for each of us to remain humble to not brag. The temptation is there when you buy a new car, or a house, or even clothes or shoes. But in reality we should not bring attention to these things so as not to appear to be bragging. That is one of the qualities that I love the most about my husband. He has actually been the one to teach me how to be much more humble. God gives and God takes away. We pass things along for others to use, we try to help those in need whenever they pass our way. Again, this is something that the hubby excels at. I often struggle with why I need to help someone asking for help around town, but hubby has a way of knowing who is legit.

 I remember one time when we were struggling early in our marriage. Our son had been born early with a lot of medical issues and we were drowning in medical bills. On top of that we were going through the legal process of getting hubby's expired visa issue corrected. Money was tight. We were coming back from Memphis, from a failed immigration meeting, we knew we were going to need to hire a lawyer again. We didn't even know at that point if hubby would be granted a Green Card even after hiring the lawyer again. We stop for gas at this little gas station that was right off I-40. We fed our son, we walked around the little grassy area trying to unwind from that very stressful meeting. We were trying to focus on the now. A man came up to us and said that he had run out of gas and did we have a few dollars. My internal reaction was "Um no, we barely have gas money for us, and we have two kids to feed and do you know what is going on in our lives?" But hubby just reached into his pocket and handed him two dollars without hesitation and no questions asked. I was floored and immediately humbled. So needless to say I pray daily that God will work on me with being selfish and helping me to be more giving.

I am thankful for so many things in my life. Even though it is hard for me to know my son is miles and miles away celebrating this holiday with his Dad, and that I won't see him, and will only talk to him on the phone, I am thankful. Thankful that he has a home and food and family that love him. I miss my parents, my sister, my nieces, I know hubby misses all of his family. But we are both thankful that their needs are met. That they are not lacking of any of the basic needs. God is great and his love abounds. It can be found all around us. Embrace your family today, you don't know when the last time to hug them, or eat a meal with them, or talk to them on the phone will be.

Our riches cannot be defined by the material things people will be fighting over later today in the stores, but rather in each other. I am rich because I have three beautiful children, a charming husband, and both of my parents are still alive. I know it was just leaving my son behind, but I can tell you that it was one of the hardest days in my life. It took months to walk completely out of that darkness and into the light. I had promised him for so long that we were a team, but I didn't have the upper hand, and God had a plan. One that we don't know just yet, but we know will be revealed to us. I could not imagine actually losing my child, because just that pain brought me to my knees. Hug your children be nice to your spouse and above all else give thanks and glory to God.

Isaiah 2:17) And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low; and the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day. 18) And the idols he shall utterly abolish. 19) And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth. 20) In that day a man shall cast his idols they made each one for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats; 21) To go into the clefts of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth.

A Sweet with a Kick







 

In my quest to try new things, I recently came across a recipe for Mexican Brownies. Once again located on the ever famous Pinterest site. It is from the afamilyfeast.com link. The Prep time is 10 minutes, cook time is 30 minutes, and it makes about 24 servings.

Ingredients:
4 ounces of Bakers' brand unsweetened chocolate
3/4 cup of butter
2 cups of sugar
3 eggs, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/4 ground cayenne pepper (used 1/8 tsp this time and it was just a hint of the cayenne)
1 cup all purpose flour

Instructions:
1.) preheat oven to 350 degrees
2.) Line a 13x9 inch baking pan with foil, making sure that the piece of foil is large enough to allow the ends of the foil to extend up and over the sides of the pan. (I use Reynolds baking tin foil so that my baked foods do not stick to the foil)
3.) In a large microwave safe bowl add the chocolate and the butter and microwave on high for 2 minutes. I melted them on the stove top and stirred until both were completely melted.
4.) Stir in the sugar
5.) Blend in the eggs and vanilla stirring to combine as much as possible
6.) Add the cinnamon, cayenne, and flour and mix thoroughly
7.) Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with fudgy crumbs
8.) Let cool completely. When cool use the foil to remove the brownies from the pan and onto a cutting board. Cut before serving.

Melting the chocolate and the butter

 

 

Melted Butter and Chocolate
 
 
Adding the Sugar

 

Blend in the eggs and vanilla

Add the cinnamon, cayenne

and flour and mix thoroughly

Ready for the oven

I Sincerely hope that if you try this recipe that you will enjoy it. They are very sweet, and my kids did like them, but they didn't eat as many as I did, that goes for the hubby also.

Proverbs 3: 5) Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6) In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.