A Period When the 'Ends Justified the Means'

Today is my birthday--March 21. I won't tell you how old I am other than to say that I was in college when JFK got shot. I lived through that horrific event and the murders of Robert Kennedy (RFK). Martin Luther King, and Malcom X. 

The 60s were a brutal period in American history. It ushered in a period when the values Americans stood for were tested. It was also an era where the right to vote was solidified in the U.S. Constitution. The Twenty-fourth Amendment (ratified in 1964) partly addressed the injustice of denying the right to vote for minorities. It did so by prohibiting the use of poll taxes in federal elections. In addition to these constitutional amendments, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 secured voting rights for adult citizens of all races and genders in the form of federal laws that enforced the amendments. 

The 60s also raised the red flag by questioning what the U.S. was doing fighting in a war some 8,000 miles (13,000 kilometers) from its shores. On March 8, 1965, 3,500 U.S. Marines came ashore at Da Nang as the first wave of U.S. combat troops into South Vietnam, adding to the 25,000 U.S. military advisers already in place. The US Government deployment of ground forces to Da Nang had not been consulted with the South Vietnamese government.

I believe that fighting in the Vietnam War was an example of applying the ethical principle: "The Ends Justify the Means." The end goal was to stop the spread of Communism. How were we to get to that goal? Well, it was to fight an endless war and one where thousands. even millions, of people were killed. The war exacted an enormous human cost: estimates of Vietnamese soldiers and civilians killed range from 970,000 to 3 million. Some 275,000–310,000 Cambodians, 20,000–62,000 Laotians, and 58,220 US service members died.

The 60s was a time of my coming of age. I became sensitized to discrimination in society, including mistreatment of African Americans and other minority groups. I frequently sparred with others over the mistreatment of these groups. I became involved in protesting the Vietnam War. After all, I was of age to be drafted into the Army. I agonized what to do. I didn't want to fight in a War that I didn't believe in. The choices we faced were to be drafted into the Army and go with the program, go to Canada to avoid the draft, register as a conscious objector, and even get married, have a child, and seek a deferment. Yes, that was a reason to be exempt, although it didn't always work, neither did staying in college.

I decided to join the Army Reserves. I went through two months of hellish physical and emotional distress. You see, in the Army they need to break you down to the lowest level and then build you back up the way they want. My physical training was at Fort Bragg in North Carolina. I had never been in the southern part of the U.S., so I was taken aback by the airline stewardess. [This was before stewardess's became known as flight attendants.] She said: "Welcome, y'all, to North Carolina."  I didn't know that this was the way southerners referred to two or more people.

After completing basic training, I was sent to Fort Lee in Virginia to cook school. I always found it bizarre that people like myself, (I was a CPA) who were college educated, were trained to become cooks while those with limited education might have been trained in administration/finance.

In the 60s, the Beatles spoke out in song against the Vietnam War. "Give Peace a Chance" is an anti-war song written by John Lennon. Released as a single in July 1969 it was the first solo single issued by Lennon, released while he was still a member of the Beatles, and became an anthem of the American anti-war movement during the 1970s. It peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 2 on the British singles chart.

Well, enough about the 60s. Suffice it to say that I made it through unscathed. Before I leave, let me add that once I returned home, I resumed my career as a CPA. An unusual event, to say the least, occurred on March 17, 1970,when postal workers in New York began a strike over low pay that was aggravated by a federal worker six month pay raise delay ordered by President Richard Nixon to control inflation. My unit was activated to sort the mail. Yes, you heard it right.  Moreover, because the Army had to officially activate us to engage in the task, each of us had our six year commitment to serve in the reserves reduced by one year. Serendipity!

Look for my next blog that will cover the 70s. Let me whet your appetite. The impeachment process against President Richard Nixon began on October 30, 1973. On the verge of being impeached, Nixon resigned the presidency on August 9, 1974, becoming the only U.S. president to do so. In all, 48 people were found guilty of Watergate-related crimes, but Nixon was pardoned by his vice president and successor Gerald Ford on September 8.

Posted by Steven Mintz, aka Ethics Sage, on March 21, 2025. You can sign up for his newsletter and learn more about his activities at: https://www.stevenmintzethics.com/.