University of Virginia Library

The Moratorium

What happened yesterday across the
country was unprecedented in the history of
the nation. It was so immense a demonstration
of the country's attitude toward the war
in Vietnam that, it really doesn't matter if the
President hears it or not. What we saw was
something that happens to each generation as
it matures, but which generally occurs over
such an extended period of time that it is
unnoticeable. It was the first manifestation of
the Vietnam generation.

Every generation, it seems, has its values
shaped by some sort of event that occurs as it
matures. For the parents of today's students,
the event was the Depression. Its effects
shaped their whole outlook on life, gave them
the craving for economic security that has
shaped today's society. For an intervening
generation, it was the early stages of the Cold
War and the McCarthy era. (Joseph McCarthy,
that is.) But for the generation maturing
today, it is the war. Yesterday this group, the
Vietnam generation, stood up and flexed its
muscles.

Yesterday this generation, and its sympathizers
of all ages, went out and demonstrated
exactly how the war has shaped its values, and
consequently, how it will shape the nation in
future years. And that, more than the
immediate prospects for peace, is what is
interesting to contemplate in the aftermath of
Moratorium Day.

Clearly, this generation, and not merely its
radical fringe, is not going to stand still and
allow the forces that currently run the
country to do so for too much longer. Karl
Hess observed that the predominant theme of
the moratorium might well be "power to the
people," and that is where the people are
going to demand that the power be vested in
the future. Any political structure that fails to
accomplish this is going to be swept aside.

Others say that it will be anarchical. This
may well be true. The war has taught them
that many, if not all, societal structures are
established by the dominant class to perpetuate
itself. If those structures fail to change,
as the electoral structure failed last year, there
may well be anarchy before long.

But that is all in the future. The point now
is the Moratorium, which for all its initial
success has still not ended the war and has
consequently got a long way to go. Next
month, there will be two Moratorium Days,
on November 13 and 14, plus a mass march
on Washington scheduled by another group
for November 15. Beyond that the plans are
not final. It is important to remember,
however, that the effort must continue. It
must continue until the war is over and all of
the American troops have been recalled.

We think, as well, that the days of the
military domination of United States foreign
policy are numbered. This summer's fight on
the ABM demonstrated the turn in sentiment,
but the sentiment runs deeper than just
opposition to another weapons system. People
are simply no longer going to accept the word
of the government at face value. Six years of
lies about the war have taught them better
than that. Some of the basic postulates of
American governmental action are going to be
challenged as well, because people no longer
believe that the Americans are the fighters on
God's side any more than the Russians are.

Some say that the Vietnam generation will
lead the nation back to isolationism. We
disagree. It will certainly see the folly in
attempting to keep the peace by exporting
arms to corrupt regimes; it will certainly see
that the United States has to change its
posture in much of the world and find some
way to get behind, rather than in the way of,
the efforts of captive peoples to free
themselves. But it will not be isolationist.