I watched television again last night

Preamble:

In order to tell my story, for you or anyone to better understand me as I am now, I need to tell my past and to share the events that have shaped my life.
I think with us all, an event as it occurs may have little direct impact – life goes on as it always has, but that event will leave a seed that can grow or subtly influence our thoughts and actions. We are shaped by many things both great and small, but the smaller things may shape us the most.
I would like to share something with you that has had a great influence on my life. But first a little background.
A few weeks ago my oldest son found some things of mine that had been long forgotten. Among them were some poems I written around the time I was at school and first at university (the early 70’s).
A line from one of these poems had been echoing around in my mind for some time, and Sam’s finding it brought it to my attention again. Yesterday I heard “Facebook” had banned an image that was the seed to my poem some 34 years ago. What follows is the poem as I first wrote it mid 1972 immediately after the event occurred, that triggered it. In the poem I refer to another event that had occurred two years before but is strongly linked in my mind.

I watched television again last night
Only for something to do.
“They missed again with their bombing”
The man said.
“Nothing serious”
And a girl ran naked
Screaming from the Napalm.
The reader droned on.
One hundred or more people
Died that night, fighting for the dim
And lofty beliefs of others,
And the price of eggs rose by one cent.
I turned it off when I head
That four people were shot
Because they believed in peace
And wore no shoes

The event that help formed this poem was a news item from the Vietnam war. It was broadcast in June 1972. It was an event that helped mobilise the movement for Peace. It was an catalyst. It crystalized my intention to become a “conscientious objector” if my time came. Fortunately it was time and shortly after that Gough Whitlam was elected Prime Minister and as one of his first acts withdrew our forces from Vietnam.
Here is the image – (Click to view the original News Broadcast)

Kim Phuc fleeing a napalm attack on her village

The other event linked in my mind at the time and still now almost 50 years later was “The Kent State Massacre” in Ohio – May 4th, 1970 12:24 pm (UTC-5). (Click on the image for original footage)

Mary Ann Vecchio – 1970
Kent State University Massacre

Recently I uncovered a set of 80 column IBM punched cards (from 1973) that I typed this poem on. In my mind at the time, using this “state of the art” media reflected the impersonal nature of all state based conflict. Below is a more current rendition of that original media.