Born in 1974: The Nixon-Ford year

With the war in Iraq, the uncertainty of Social Security, the demise of the pension plan, a record number of Americans living without health insurance, violence in public schools ... ( I guess I can stop the rant here you get the picture)I understand new parents' concerns about the future of their children. I'm sure you've heard at least one person say they wouldn't want to bring a child into this crazy time. I've heard several.

But let's look back to when I was born. January of 1974.

The Vietnam War was still going on. It didn't end till nearly a year and a half later, April of 1975 with the fall of the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon to North Vietnamese forces.

The president in January of 1974 was Richard Nixon, most remembered for scandalous Watergate, not so much ending the draft or actual ending of American fighting in Viet Nam. History recalls that era as another uncertain time. And even former President Gerald Ford who replaced Nixon when he stepped down from office in August of '74, described the time as a country in turmoil, facing riots along with a serious distrust of the White House.  In 1995 when an 8th grader asked the 38th President what he thought his most important accomplishment was, Ford said "healing America." Read the transcript of Mr. Ford's answer from Scholastic.

Of course the death of Gerald Ford is the prompt for these thoughts. Everything is internalized. One of the Presidents who was in office the year I was born died this past Tuesday. Being seven-months-old when he took office, no, I don't remember seeing much of him.

But look at what a great time we live in here in 2006 (nearly 07). If you have RealPlayer you can watch Mr. Ford's swearing in from 1974 via CSPAN. I am now listening to him speak while I write this.  He speaks of non-partisanship and not having campaigned for the job. " I am indebted to no man. And only to one woman, my dear wife. "

Having just endured the 2006 elections consumed with negative attack ads, check out a Ford 1976 campaign ad. He narrowly lost to Jimmy Carter. But despite the feel-good platform he was riding on, his presidency dealt with inflation, talk of a depressed economy, issues of energy shortages and world peace. Hmmmm...

I'm glad I was born in 1974. While we may face similar or even worse challenges than we did 33 years ago, look at the privileges and technology we have to enjoy and advance today.