Anyone remember Kent State 40 years ago today?

[cbelt3]

I won't get into a long scholarly study of the incident... But here in NE Ohio the anniversary is a big deal every year. You can go to Kent right now and take a guided tour of the grounds. While I was only in middle school when it happened, I've met people who were there at the time and talked to them.

The Kent State tragedy was a classic case of a college town student riot gone very wrong. There were demonstrations against the war. People walked out of classes. A few hooligans started a bit of a riot, some shops were looted and the abandonedROTC building on campus (that was about to be torn down !) was burned down.

And the Governor of Ohio , James Rhodes, was informed that there were 'foreign communist agitators' making things happen and that 'more attacks were planned'. So he believed what he was told, over-reacted and called out the National Guard instead of the State Police.

In the 1970's, soldiers (with the exception of MP units) were trained to kill people and break things. That's all they knew. That's all their officers knew. The crowd advanced, the soldiers responded with their trained reflexes, and people died.

Who was to blame ? Ultimately, the Governor of Ohio, who sent the wrong people to 'keep the peace'.

[Spock]

Let's not forget the killings at Jackson State.

[Acer]

As a sign of the times, my cousin was in the National Guard in the early 70s in Ohio. He was deployed to guard highway overpasses during a teamsters strike.

Another example of how easily we can become our own enemies.

[The UnDoug]

The only reason I'm even aware of it, frankly, is because it happened on the day I was born (May 4th, 1970), so I always think of it in relation to my birthday.

But it's not something that I have any recollection of being discussed in the news/popular culture as I was growing up.

[cbelt3]

Spock- thanks for the link. I was unaware of that incident. Following the chain produces this gem from the Scranton Commission

"Even if the guardsmen faced danger, it was not a danger that called for lethal force. The 61 shots by 28 guardsmen certainly cannot be justified. Apparently, no order to fire was given, and there was inadequate fire control discipline on Blanket Hill. The Kent State tragedy must mark the last time that, as a matter of course, loaded rifles are issued to guardsmen confronting student demonstrators."


To the value of the commemoration, I will simply say:

Those who fail to study history are doomed to repeat it.

To the point, please recall the Boston Massacre from your Revolutionary War history. Citizens protesting government policies, soldiers were sent to keep order, and citizens ended up being gunned down. Obviously Jim Rhodes did not remember his Revolutionary War history.

[lafinfil]

Dennis S wrote:
I heard someone on the radio today who said it wasn't important enough to be in the history books. I disagree.

I'm wondering if Dennis heard the same snippet that I heard during an NPR piece. To put it in context,
the comment came from a young (22-23ish ?) student at Kent State who was questioning whether it is necessary
to commemorate the anniversary every single year instead of on major ones - 40 years, 50 years, etc... and I think
that the student was referring to the yearly on campus commemoration.

It's the same for many anniversaries - look at D-Day, December 7th/Pearl Harbor and other major war events.
Many of those have faded to major anniversary observances with local exceptions.

Kent State was a major turning point of public opinion of the war. largely because it happened on a relatively
conservative college campus and not a more liberal one like Madison, or Berkley. The protest was unexpected
and the authorities over reacted - simple and sad.

The American Public Media program called "The Story" had a very good conversation with professor Jerry Lewis
who was at ground zero during the shootings. He still teaches at Kent State and provides a fascinating first person history.

http://thestory.org/archive/the_story_10...1.mp3/view

[Honky Tonk Angel]

There's somethin' happenin' here.....
What it is, ain't exactly clear....
Well, it has just become a little more clear. And gee, what a surprise too.

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010...-killings/

I despised hippies when they were in the streets. I loathe them even more now.
Wm. Ayers and his lovely Bernadine should be in jail, in leg irons, in SuperMax isolation.
The long haired hippy misfit losers from the sixties are now running the media. Yes, but
these Children of the Sixties are in their sixties themselves now. It's a far cry from "Never
trust anyone over thirty"; they're way past that age. Most of the agitators in the colleges
in Ohio were outsiders. Don't forget the gal on the famous Time Magazine cover was a
runaway. Lock them in a basement, and throw them some doobies and a guitar. Oh, yeah,
and use Mace very Liberally.

[$tevie]

Spock wrote:
Let's not forget the killings at Jackson State.

Jeez, I had forgotten about that. What an emotionally jarring time that was.

[mick e]

You are REALLY a moron, Shakeman.

[cbelt3]

Bollocks, Shakey. The NIXON Administration ran a commission that researched the incidents rather well. And assuredly viewed the 'secret FBI files'. And their conclusions are noted in a posting above. Quite simply, sending the Guard was a dumb move. Of source, so was whacking Dan Rather upside the haid at the '68 Democratic convention in Chicago.

And puhleeze... many of us were 'dam hippies' in the 60's and 70's. Heckfire, I was an environmental activist, collecting signatures on petitions and marching in rallies. And even developing top secret teenaged plans to blow up a construction site (which never amounted to anything, since the dam wasn't built and I didn't have access to TNT. I was only 12 at the time.

People change as they mature. I did. How 'bout you ?