Where I Was 40 Years Ago (a radio story)

[Sid Schweiger]

>>Would someone care to explain what people mean by "innocent" and "the world changed", etc.<<

1) Many of us were children or teens at the time, and children and teens simply don't think in those terms...at least, not back then.  We had not gone through the upheavels on the 1960's and beyond: the subsequent assassinations of RFK and MLK, the anti-war protests, Watergate, Iran-Contra, terrorism, 9/11, etc.  The world was a much more innocent place.  We knew who our enemies were, as well as our friends.  Children didn't have to grow up so quickly.

2) JFK was young and energetic (at least in public...we now know that he had serious problems with chronic pain), and to have such a vigorous young man cut down like he was, shattered many illusions we had about America and the Presidency...for example, the principle (now firmly entrenched, thanks to that day in Dallas) that an American President cannot ride down the main streets of an American city without being the target of gunfire.  No American President since Kennedy has attempted to do so, and even if one wanted to, the Secret Service would veto it immediately.  You may be used to not seeing that, because that's all you've known, but we saw that all the time before 11/22.

No, you're not a callous bastard...but since you didn't live in those years, I wouldn't expect you to fully understand what a different place the world was back then...just as your children will find it difficult to understand the era of your youth too.



Sid Schweiger
MIS Manager, Entercom Boston LLC
WAAF - WEEI - WQSX - WRKO - WVEI
Phone: 617-779-5369
Fax: 617-779-5379
E-Mail: sid@wrko.com