"Draft Dodger Rag" by Phil Ochs: Anatomy of a Song Quiz

Answer: He attended a military prep school for several years.

Phil Ochs was born in 1940. His father suffered from bipolar disease, which Phil apparently inherited. After a long bout with depression, Ochs took his own life in 1976. As a teen-ager, Ochs attended the Stauton Military Academy in Virginia from 1956-58. This was his only personal experience with the military.

Answer: "I've got a ruptured spleen"

"Draft dodging", a slang term for manipulation of legal deferments to military conscription, reached an all-time high during the Vietnam War era. Universities, churches and other organization offered advice to young men of military age about how to avoid the draft. One of the most common methods was to obtain a "medical deferment". Of course, a ruptured spleen is a life-threatening medical emergency, which at that time, would have been treated by surgery. Removal of the spleen usually results in reduced red blood cell production and increased chances of infection.

Answer: "a purse"

The military in the United States has historically demonstrated intolerance towards homosexuals, beginning with Lieutenant Golthold Frederick Enslin who was drummed out of the army after having been charged with sodomy. In 1943, homosexuals were banned from serving in any branch of the US military.

While declaring himself as a "purse-carrying gay" would have earned an exemption for our young draftee during the sixties, this was a rather unlikely scenario. The prevailing attitude towards homosexuals during the fifties and sixties in the United States was extremely unwelcoming and any other reason for avoiding the draft would have been preferable.

Answer: "Work in a defense plant"

One of the largest demonstrations ever held in the United States was on November 15, 196, and was known as the "November Moratorium". Rallies were held in cities throughout the United States, with the largest taking place on the Mall in Washington, D.C. Over half a million people attended that demonstration, which was largely peaceful. I know - I was there.

Answer: Castro

Fidel Castro, president of Cuba, came to power after a revolution that extended between 1956 to 1959. He was able to overthrow the government of Batista, due in part to support from South American revolution Che Guevara and the KGB. As a Soviet satellite, Cuba was an anathema to the United States during the Cold War.
Senator Thomas Dodd of Connecticut served in both the House of Representative and the Senate. Prior to being elected to Congress, he spent fifteen months as a prosecutor during the Nuremberg trials.

I'm sure the Almighty needs no introduction.

Answer: "Better dead than red"

"Better dead than red" was a slogan used in the United States during the Cold War. The "Cold War" describes the period of tension and hostility between the Soviet Bloc countries and the West, primarily the United States, between the end of the Second World War until the Soviet Union fell, in 1991. Several military conflicts were part of the Cold War, primarily the Korean War and the Vietnam War, although the United States and the Soviet Union never fought each other directly. One of the uglier parts of the legacy of the Cold War, at least from the American side, was the witch hunts conducted by Senator Joseph McCarthy. One of the few positive outcomes of the Cold War was the marvelous spy novels of John Le Carre.

Answer: "I get epileptic fits"

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder characterized by seizures. There are several types of epilepsy, the best-known being "grand mal", in which the seizure includes loss of consciousness, convulsions involving the limbs, and loss of bladder control. According the Epilepsy.com, one percent of the world's population suffers from epilepsy.

Some famous people who had epilepsy include Napoleon Bonaparte, Lenin, Gustave Flaubert and Alfred Nobel.

Answer: Chou En Lai

Chou En Lai was born in 1898 in China. In 1949, shortly after the Chinese Revolution, he became the first Premier of the People's Republic of China, a post which he held until shortly before his death in 1976.

(Information from Wikipedia)

Answer: "Without blood or gore"

The Vietnam War exacted a high human price. Between one to two million Vietnamese citizens lost their lives during the conflict. Approximately 58,000 American servicemen were killed in action, and 350,000 were injured.

Answer: 1973

Richard Nixon made a promise to end the draft as part of his election campaign for the 1968 presidency. He thought that by ending the draft and creating an all-volunteer military, he could put an end to the anti-war protests of middle-class young men who were concerned about being drafted.

The last soldiers to be drafted by the Selective Service were in December 1972, and the draft formally ended in 1973. However, in 1980, Congress passed legislation requiring young men to register for the military in the event that the United States was faced with an emergency.