Even McNamara now says he was probably wrong during Viet Nam. Very few of the "Greatest Generation" feel that way. Even The Almanac Singers understood it was necessary to change their minds and join in the efforts that had to be undertaken-even if they were doing so reluctantly. Yes, it was the worst of times --- and Bogart and Ilsa weren't in Casa Blanca as it turned out.

DEAR MR. PRESIDENT
(from Pete and the Almanac Singers--1942)

Dear Mr. President I set me down
To bring you greetings from my home town,
And send you best wishes from friends I know
In Texas, West Virginia and Ohi-o,
And unaffiliated.

I'm an ordinary guy worked most of my life,
I settled down with my kids and wife,
I like to see a movie or to take a little drink,
And I like being free to say what I think,
It sort of runs in the family.
My grandpa crossed the ocean for the same reasons.

I hate Hitler and I'll tell you why,
He caused lots of folks to suffer and die,
He's got a way of shovin' folks around,
I figure it's about time we slapped him down,
Give him a dose of his own medicine.
Lead poison!

Now Mr. President it's this I know,
We haven't always agreed in the past I know,
But that's not what is important now,
What is important is what we've got to do,
Is to lick Mr. Hitler and until we do
Ther things can wait,
In other words first we've got a skunk to skin.

War means overtime and higher prices,
But we're all willing to make sacrifices,
Hell, I'd even stop fightin' with my mother-in-law
'Cause we need her too to win the war.
The old battle axe.

Now as I travel around this good land,
With it's cities and towns and farming land,
I know it ain't perfect but it will be some day
Just give us a little time

This is the reason that I want to fight,
Not because everything's perfect or everything's right,
Yes, siree, I'm fightin' because
I want a better America and better laws,
Better homes and jobs and schools
No more Jim Crow and no more rules
Like you can't ride on this train 'cause you're a Negro
You can't live here 'cause you're a Jew or an Arab,
You can't work here 'cause you're a union man.

There's a line that keeps running through my head,
Something that Joe Louis once said,
He said, "There's lots of things wrong but Hitler won't help 'em."

Now, Mr. President, you're the commander and chief of our armed forces,
The ships and the planes and the tanks and the horses,
I hope you know best where I can fight,
All I want to be is situated right,
To do the most damage.

I never was one to try and shirk,
And let the other fellow do all of the work,
Bu if the time comes I'll be on hand
To make good use of these two hands,
Quit playin' this banjo around with the boys
And exchange it for something that makes more noise.

And so Mr. President, We've got this one big job to do
That's lick Mr. Hitler and when we're through
Let no one else take his place
To trample down the human race
But what I want if for you to give me a gun,
So we can hurry up and get the job done.

(This might just be another point of view. We do have a son---and I am left conflicted as hell by what went down on September 11, 2001. No easy answers. Just remember the war in the Falkland Islands and what gender person perpetrated those events. Joan of Arc had no testosterone that we know of running through her veins but she did what she did --- and all with visions of religious fervor dancing in her head.

Art Thieme