Passing of the 60s

Guess I am getting old . . . this morning with hearing of the passing of George Carlin I have been waxing nostalgic with memories of my favorite and most influential decade, the 60s. Carlin represented a different kind of humor. Yes, Lenny Bruce was more outrageous and a pioneer, but he was not, in my opinion as downright funny as George. His comedy was satire of the human condition, while Lenny's was more angry.

It is not that I listened much lately to Carlin, but he was the voice of that time for me. We all, among my close friends, tried to imitate his humor and demeanor. He was a great commentator for that period. I am greatly saddened by his loss.

The 60s for me was first Junior and High School, then it was on to the Army. After that it was college and the Viet-Nam anti-war movement. During that time an important event for me personally occurred, the birth of my first daughter. There were good times of that era (maybe the best in my life) with my friends Ronnie (now deceased), Paul, Angie, and a few others. These days only one of those friends from that time remain, Paul, and I see him infrequently.

We lost our innocence then, both as a country and as individuals. The losses of the Kennedy brothers, Martin Luther King, Medgar Evers, and others contributed greatly to this time of change. Sadly, all the "peace and love" many of my generation preached about has turned to decades of gluttony and a "me" orientation. And, we are again involved in a war we should not be in, conducted by leaders who never had to serve in the military (non-war National Guard service does not count Mr. President). Again the lives of young people are being wasted on a "bogus" premise.

So, I say Good-Bye to that earlier time and to George Carlin! As Crosby, Stills and Nash said, "the past is just a good-bye."