Impact of the Vietnam War on Young Americans in 1968

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The chapter explores the experiences of individuals like Chuck Hegel and Thomas Vallely who volunteered for the military during the Vietnam War, reflecting on their initial beliefs in the war's cause and subsequent disillusionment due to the brutality depicted on colored televisions. It delves into President Johnson's challenges with public spending, civil rights, inflation, and the war, highlighting the generational divide and activism of young Americans during this turbulent period.

Why are two old, unpopular men the main candidates for the world’s most demanding job? It’s the question John Prideaux, The Economist’s US editor, gets asked the most. And the answer lies in the peculiar politics of the baby boomers.

The generation born in the 1940s grew up in a land of endless growth and possibility, ruled by a confident, moderate elite. But just as they were embarking on adult life, all that started to come apart. The economy faltered, and the post-war consensus came under pressure from two sides: from the radical right, who hated government moves on civil rights – and from the ‘New Left’, as boomers rebelled against their parents' generation and its war in Vietnam.

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