I had the pleasure of meeting him in 1969. My College was on the Hudson River so we were part of the Clearwater project. He was doing a sort of benefit and thank you concert. My school also reached out to returning Veterans. There were quite a few, and also the ROTC students(I got Gov't money and figured the thing would be over by time I got out). He was a gentle man, very soft spoken. You could tell that in his mind he could not fathom killing and maiming other people when the reason for doing so was unclear. He said WWII was different than Vietnam, and that evil should be fought vigorously. He spoke to the Veterans and explained that they were not "baby killers", they were people who when called went to serve, which was the duty of every American. They were at the same time victims of their leaders who appealed to this sense of duty for less than pure reasons. He also said, protesters like himself were fulfilling the other duty that Americans have which is to speak up against the Government when it is wrong. Many of the Veterans had been in combat and spoke about what they had done and what they had witnessed, some cried. He comforted them. He had a honest and gentle spirit. Those words of his helped me though the dark times a couple of years later. 39 years later we are right back n the same spot.
It was back in nineteen forty-two,
I was a member of a good platoon.
We were on maneuvers in-a Loozianna,
One night by the light of the moon.
The captain told us to ford a river,
That's how it all begun.
We were -- knee deep in the Big Muddy,
But the big fool said to push on.
The Sergeant said, "Sir, are you sure,
This is the best way back to the base?"
"Sergeant, go on! I forded this river
'Bout a mile above this place.
It'll be a little soggy but just keep slogging.
We'll soon be on dry ground."
We were -- waist deep in the Big Muddy
And the big fool said to push on.
The Sergeant said, "Sir, with all this equipment
No man will be able to swim."
"Sergeant, don't be a Nervous Nellie,"
The Captain said to him.
"All we need is a little determination;
Men, follow me, I'll lead on."
We were -- neck deep in the Big Muddy
And the big fool said to push on.
All at once, the moon clouded over,
We heard a gurgling cry.
A few seconds later, the captain's helmet
Was all that floated by.
The Sergeant said, "Turn around men!
I'm in charge from now on."
And we just made it out of the Big Muddy
With the captain dead and gone.
We stripped and dived and found his body
Stuck in the old quicksand.
I guess he didn't know that the water was deeper
Than the place he'd once before been.
Another stream had joined the Big Muddy
'Bout a half mile from where we'd gone.
We were lucky to escape from the Big Muddy
When the big fool said to push on.
Well, I'm not going to point any moral;
I'll leave that for yourself
Maybe you're still walking, you're still talking
You'd like to keep your health.
But every time I read the papers
That old feeling comes on;
We're -- waist deep in the Big Muddy
And the big fool says to push on.
Waist deep in the Big Muddy
And the big fool says to push on.
Waist deep in the Big Muddy
And the big fool says to push on.
Waist deep! Neck deep! Soon even a
Tall man'll be over his head, we're
Waist deep in the Big Muddy!
And the big fool says to push on!
Words and music by Pete Seeger (1967
