Cultural English 230 - Woodstock; Walter Reed Army Medical Center; Q&A

Complete Transcript

You’re listening to ESL Podcast’s English Café number 230.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast’s English Café number 230. My name is Dr. Jeff McQuillan, I’m your host, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.

This episode, we’re going to talk about a famous popular cultural event of the 1960s called Woodstock. We’re also going to talk about a well-known hospital in the United States, the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where U.S. soldiers and veterans get medical care. And, as always, we’ll answer a few of your questions. Let’s get started.

This Café begins with a discussion of Woodstock (Woodstock – one word). Woodstock was a music festival (a music concert) that was technically known as the Woodstock Music and Art Fair. When we say “technically known,” we mean actually, in reality. This music festival was actually three days long, so there were three days of concerts. The event was billed as “three days of peace and music, man.” No, just “three days of peace and music,” I added the “man”! That was a common 60s and 70s expression of the hippies, about whom we’ll talk more in minute. I said the event was “billed as,” the phrase “to be billed as (something)” means to be advertised as something. A conference might be billed as the most important event of the year. When I say Woodstock was billed as “three days of peace and music,” I mean that that phrase was used on the advertisement – on the posters to try to get people to come to this event – this festival.

Woodstock, the event, was held near the town of Woodstock, New York. New York, remember, is the name of a city; it is also the name of a state where New York City is located. New York City is in the southeastern corner of the state. The state itself is located in the eastern part of the United States. Woodstock is about 100 miles north of New York City, that’s about 160 kilometers. The festival was “held on” (it took place on) August 15th, 16th, and 17th in 1969. Woodstock had a large cultural influence on American pop culture, a very large impact. Many people consider Woodstock to have been one of the most important events in modern popular music. Rolling Stone magazine, a music magazine, included Woodstock in its list of “50 Moments that Changed the History of Rock and Roll.” Of course, rock and roll is only about 60-65 years old, so how many things could there be, really?

About half a million people went to Woodstock, making it much more popular than the organizers originally anticipated, meaning what they originally thought; they didn’t think so many people would come. When the organizers paid to use the land, they promised there would be no more than 50,000 people. However, they were wrong since close to half a million people, or 500,000 people, were there. Although the original plan was to sell tickets, but because there were so many people, they made it basically a free concert since it was impossible to build a fence to prevent people from coming into this area, to prevent what we would call the “concert-goers,” people who were going to the music concert (the music performances).

Because of the large number people who came to Woodstock there were large traffic jams on the roads near the festival. A “traffic jam” (jam) is when there are too many cars on the road and they stop moving very fast, they move very slowly. Because the organizers had not prepared for that many people, there wasn’t enough food, there wasn’t enough medicine, and most importantly, there weren’t enough toilets for the people who came to Woodstock. In addition, it was a very rainy weekend, so many of the concert-goers were left out in bad weather but nowhere to go. There was obviously not enough room at hotels and so forth.

Photographs of the event show thousands of hippies covered in mud. A “hippy” (hippy) is, in this case, a type of person who believed that war and fighting were bad. Usually hippies wore long hair, often unusual, colorful clothing, and many took drugs or drank a great deal. The hippy movement of the late 1960s is something that you probably are aware of, there’s been many movies related to it. In fact, just watch any movie in the late 1960s and early 70s, you’ll probably see, somewhere, a reference to hippies. Nowadays, the word is probably used almost as an insult to refer to someone who perhaps dresses like a hippy, or has political views that were similar to the liberal views of the hippies. You can still see hippies, even some of those who were hippies back in the 1960s, in places like Venice Beach here in California, or up in San Francisco. The hippies wore clothing, I said before, that was different. One of the things they started was wearing bell-bottoms. “Bell-bottoms” are pants that are very big around the ankles, at the bottom; they’re so big they look like little bells. They wore brightly colored clothing with lots of flowers. Photographs from Woodstock show thousands of hippies covered in mud. “Mud” is what happens when you mix rain with dirt.

Surprisingly, the event remained mostly peaceful. Under those conditions, it could have turned out very differently, it could have been a disaster, but in general the concert-goers enjoyed their time there, listening to the music and spending time with other young people. There were 32 music performances on an outdoor stage, meaning they were outside, not in a building. They included several famous musicians and musical groups, including Creedence Clearwater Revival, Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez, Santana, The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Who, and, perhaps most famously of all, Jimi Hendrix.

Although the concert-goers enjoyed their time, the local residents, the people who lived there, did not. They didn’t like having so many people there, and so after the festival they voted for laws that would prevent any future kind of Woodstock. That’s part of the reason why Woodstock did not become an “annual,” or every year, festival.

However, since the 1969 Woodstock there have been two other Woodstock festivals. Woodstock ‘94 was held in 1994 to “commemorate,” or remember and celebrate the 25th anniversary of the original festival. Woodstock 1999 was held, or took place, on the 30th anniversary. However, these festivals were not attended by as many people as the original Woodstock, there were far fewer people there. Even though there were fewer people, there were actually more problems with violence in those later festivals. The peace and friendship of the original festival was certainly not there for the later ones.

If you want to learn more about the original Woodstock festival, which, as I say, is considered an important popular cultural event, at least in the music world, you might want to see a 1970 “documentary,” a movie sort of like an educational movie that gives you detailed information, called Woodstock. The film is really about the hippies and their beliefs as much as it is about the festival itself. The documentary won an Academy Award, and it’s a good way to learn about how young Americans dressed, thought, and behaved in the late 1960s.

I don’t know, myself, anyone who went to Woodstock. I was only six years old, so I was a little young still. I guess I could have gone, but my parents probably would not have wanted me to. Besides, I really don’t like big crowds, I don’t like being in the mud, and I don’t like being somewhere where there are no bathrooms or toilets!

Now let’s talk about an entirely different topic: the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. This medical center, or hospital, is often in the national news because it is what is called the flagship medical center for the U.S. Army. A “flagship” (one word) is usually the most important thing in a particular organization or company. For example, the University of Minnesota, where I went, has three locations – three campuses. But the flagship campus – the main campus – is the Twin Cities Campus in Minneapolis and St. Paul. So, when we say that the Walter Reed Army Medical Center is the flagship medical center, we mean it’s the most important, largest one for the U.S. Army. It’s located in Washington, D.C., our nation’s capital. It serves about 150,000 active soldiers, veterans, and other staff members in the U.S. Army. “Veterans” are people who served and fought or worked in the army. My father was a veteran of World War II; he fought in World War II for the Americans, of course. The president, the vice-president, all of the senators and representatives of the U.S. Congress can also receive, and do often receive, medical care at Walter Reed. So when the president is ill, or has to go to the hospital, they will typically send him to Walter Reed. It’s also more secure (safer) for him that way.

The Medical Center was named after an army doctor named – are you ready? – Walter Reed, that’s right. In the year 1900, he was put in charge of, or was responsible for, studying diseases that were killing so many soldiers, including a disease called “Yellow Fever.” Because of his research, doctors discovered how Yellow Fever was “transmitted,” how it went from one person to another. It was considered a very important discovery in medical research.

Originally, Walter Reed was pretty small; it had only 80 beds for patients, but it has grown a great deal since then. It now has more than 5,000 rooms for patients (for those who are ill). It provides many different types of medical care, especially for “soldiers,” people who have been fighting in a war, who are wounded. “Wounded” (wounded) means injured, someone who was hurt in a battle. A “battle” is when you are fighting someone else in a war; it’s part of a war, if you will.

Walter Reed provides surgery and medical treatments for U.S. soldiers, but it also provides a lot of help in rehabilitation. “Rehabilitation services” are services that are designed to help people recover from their injuries over a long period of time. For example, if a soldier has lost his or her legs in a battle, they might need rehabilitation services for many months or years to learn how to walk, if they can, with artificial legs, “artificial” being man-made, or made by humans, not the real legs.

Walter Reed also provides mental health services, helping soldiers and veterans who have mental problems, problems with the way their mind is working. Serving overseas – serving in places where there is violence and war can be very “traumatic,” that is, it can create a lot of emotional and mental health problems for individuals. Even if they are not physically injured – physically hurt, they may have these additional mental and emotional problems. Mental health services try to help soldiers learn to deal with their trauma, meaning learning to handle it, so they can lead normal lives again with their families when they return to the United States and are no longer in the army.

In 2007, a newspaper, the main newspaper of the capital Washington called the Washington Post, ran, or published, a series of articles about neglect at Walter Reed. “Neglect” (neglect) is a failure to take care of someone or something. For example, parents who neglect their children might not feed or clean them properly. We hope that never happens, but unhappily it does. The Washington Post reported that patients (sick people) at Walter Reed were being neglected, that the building itself was being neglected and starting to fall apart – starting to have serious problems. Many people who were responsible for the Walter Reed Army Medical Center lost their jobs as a result of an investigation, and the United States is still working on fixing the problems at Walter Reed Medical Center. In the meantime, many U.S. soldiers and veterans continue to receive medical treatment there. As I mentioned earlier, the President of the United States himself goes to Walter Reed Army Medical Center when he needs to. Usually the president goes at least once every year for a checkup. A “checkup” is when the doctor does some tests, make sure that there is nothing wrong with you.

Now let’s answer some of your questions.

Our first question comes from Isabel (Isabel); I believe she’s in Spain. Isabel wants to know the difference the phrases “a lot” and “a load of.”

Well, both of these can mean a large amount of something: “Harold brought a lot of friends with him to the party.” Or, “You need to drink a lot of water if you are thirsty, especially in the summertime.” “A lot” or “a lot of” means a large amount, or a large number.

“A load” (load) can also mean a large amount: “I picked up a load of trash in the street,” a lot of it. “Load” can also mean something that is very difficult, what we would call a “burden” (burden). Something that requires you do a lot of work would be, or could be a burden.

“A load of” is of little more conversational and informal if we are using it to mean a large amount of something. You could say, “There’s a load of people at the park today,” but that would not be as common as “There are a lot of people at the park today.”

“A load,” specifically, can also refer to a large number or amount of something that you have to physically carry. If you have a bunch of books – a lot of books that you need to move from one room to another, you would pick up a load of books and move them to the other room. “Load” is, in this sense, not informal. We also use “load” for things that are being delivered, especially by a truck: “The truck delivered several loads of food to the grocery store.”

So, both “a load of” and “a lot of” can mean a large amount; to mean a large amount “a lot of” is more common. “A load of” is more informal, or it can be used for a heavy burden, a difficult burden, or, simply, a large delivery.

Ali (Ali) in Iran wants to know the difference between the words “indicate” and “signify.”

“Indicate” means to point out or show something, to demonstrate: “This report indicates the sad state of our economy,” the bad economy that we have. It indicates it – it shows it. “Indicate” can also mean that you want to say something to express your opinion: “The queen indicated that she agreed with the plan.” She gave her opinion, she demonstrated – she showed her opinion, if you will.

“Signify” usually means “means”; that is, it means to mean something, to use it in order to define the other thing. A closely related use would be to be a sign of something: “My father’s smile signifies that he’s happy.” It’s a sign of his happiness. You could also say it “indicates” his happiness, but here “signify” seems to fit a little better because it really is a sign of something.

“Indicate” and “signify” can often be used interchangeably, meaning one for the other to mean the same thing. “Indicate” is probably more common, especially if a person is pointing out something very specifically: “These tests indicate a need for surgery.” Both “indicate” and “signify” are somewhat formal words. You’ll hear them in conversation as well, although someone may in conversation use a slightly more informal expression such as “shows.” “These tests show a need for surgery.” It would mean the same thing.

Finally, Darmen (Darmen) in Kazakhstan – I think this may be our first question from Kazakhstan! Darmen wants to know the difference between “Hispanic” (Hispanic) and “Spanish.” I’m going to add a third term here: “Latino.” These words are often found in the news, and are used especially in large cities where there are large Hispanic or Latino populations. Let’s start with “Hispanic.”

“Hispanic” usually refers to an ethnic group, who were either born in countries where they speak Spanish (the language), or who have parents or other relatives who were born in those countries and moved to the United States. Again, I’m using these words as they’re used in modern American English. “Carlos is considered Hispanic because he was born in Mexico City.” So, anyone born in South America, Central America, Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico could be called Hispanic.

You might also hear the word “Latino” (Latino) that also refers to that same group of people. Latino is the preferred, or more popular term in California, in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and other cities. “Hispanic” is heard more often on the East Coast and in the central part of the United States. Both of them, again, refer to the same group of people.

Now “Spanish,” I mentioned, was a language; it’s language that at least some, or many Latino or Hispanics speak. I should say that not all Latinos in the United States speak Spanish; their parents or their grandparents may have spoken Spanish. In American English, however, “Hispanic” or “Latino” normally do not refer to people from Spain. The people who live, or who are from Spain (the country of Spain, in Europe) are called “Spanish.” They could also be called “Spaniards,” if you’re referring to a specific person: “Emiliano is a Spaniard.” “Lorreto is Spanish,” she’s from the country of Spain. We don’t normally use “Latino” or “Hispanic” to refer to those who are from the country of Spain. It’s kind of funny since originally, of course, that’s where most of the people who are Hispanic or Latino came from many years ago. Or at least that’s why they speak Spanish, because the Spanish came to Latin America. But, as I say, we don’t use “Hispanic” or “Latino” to refer to them. “Spanish” can be a language or “Spanish” can be a description – an adjective to describe someone from the country of Spain.

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thank you for listening. Come back and listen to us next time, won’t you, on the English Café.

Glossary

to be billed as – to be advertised as; to be listed in a program as

* Our school’s holiday concert is being billed as great entertainment for the whole family.

concert-goer – a person who attends a concert; a person who attends a musical performance

* Concert-goers were so excited to see their favorite singer that they began arriving three hours before the event.

hippy – a type of person who believes that war and fighting is bad, has long hair, wears unusual clothes, and takes drugs

* My mother is afraid that when I go to college, I’ll move in with hippies and forget about my studies.

mud – wet earth; wet dirt

* After it rained, the children played in the mud and got very dirty.

bell-bottoms – pants that are very big around the ankles, looking like bells; pants that fit close to the skin, but that are very wide at the bottom

* Do you think it would look strange to wear tennis shoes with bell-bottoms?

documentary – an educational movie that has a lot of detailed information about a particular subject

* We watched a great documentary about space exploration over the past 50 years.

flagship – the most important thing that a company or business has; the best or most important thing owned or produced by a company or organization

* Some of our smaller stores may close this year, but we will never close our flagship store.

veteran – a person who served in a war; a person who fought or worked in a war

* My teacher invited two veterans of the Korean War to talk to our class about life as soldiers.

wounded – injured; hurt, especially in a battle or war

* The plane transported the wounded men and women to army hospitals.

in battle – while fighting; during a battle or war

* She received a medal for showing exceptional bravery in battle.

rehabilitation – services and activities designed to help people recover from their injuries slowly over a long period of time

* After the surgery, Amil spent three months in rehabilitation so he could walk again.

neglect – a failure to take care of someone or something; not taking care of a person, place, or thing when one should

* No one has lived in that house for a year and the plants have all died because of neglect.

a lot – a large amount; much; many

* Will it take a lot of time to drive across town in traffic?

a load – a large amount; a large delivery; a heavy burden

* We wash at least three loads of laundry every week for our family of four.

to indicate – to point out or show; to say something to express an intent or opinion

* Please indicate whether you want to buy insurance for your rental car by checking this box.

to signify – to mean; to be a sign of; to represent

* The money we are committing to this project signifies our belief in and support of this project.

Hispanic – belonging to ethnic groups made up of people who were either born in countries where people speak Spanish and/or whose parents or other relatives were born in those countries, which usually include those from South America, Central America, Mexico, Cuba, and Puerto Rico

* Many Mexican Americans refer to themselves as Hispanic or Latino.

Spanish – the language spoken by many countries in South America, Central American; Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Spain; relating to the country of Spain

* If you like rice and seafood, I recommend trying a Spanish dish called paella.

What Insiders Know

The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk

There have been many great war “novels” (fiction books) in American history, “dealing with” (concerning) every war that Americans have fought in since the earliest days of this country. Perhaps the two wars that have “generated” (resulted in) the most interest from writers were World War I and World War II.

Among these novels is The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk. The Caine Mutiny was published in 1951 and tells the story of the men aboard one World War II ship, a “minesweeper,” which is a warship whose job it is to locate and to destroy bombs in the ocean. The novel received the 1951 Pulitzer Prize, the most “prestigious” (respected) “literary” (book; writing) prize in the United States. It also spent a total of 47 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list, which is a list of the most-sold books in the country.

The Caine Mutiny tells the story of the effects of a new captain, Captain Queeg, on the “crew” (staff; workers) on this warship called the “USS Caine.” On the surface, Captain Queeg appears to know his job, but very quickly, he begins to make “questionable” (doubtful in terms of wisdom or quality) decisions that “puzzle” (confuse) the crew members. As the captain continues to make strange decisions, the crew becomes more and more uncomfortable, and eventually begins to lose respect for the captain.

A few of the crew members even begin to question the “sanity” (ability to behave normally and logically) of the captain and two of the men begin to consider “mutiny,” which is when soldiers go against or don’t do what is asked of them by their captain. The decision whether to “openly” (publicly) criticize and “accuse” (say that someone has committed a crime) the captain is a difficult one, and one that is “central to” (the most important part of) the film. Today, The Caine Mutiny is considered an American classic.