Following the “You Lie” outburst of Republican Representative Joe Wilson during President Obama’s 2009 State of the Union address, fellow lawmakers wanted to know what happened to civility in their hallowed halls. the eruption of “You lie” was not exactly the equivalent of hollering “fire” in a crowded theater. But thanks to 24-hour cable news is Wilson, got more attention than he deserved on networks desperate to fill time with something other than substance.

Since there are no competent investigative reporters on television following my departure from CNN (like Joe Wilson, I couldn’t control the urge to say that), we don’t know if his flare-up was pre-meditated, pre-medicated, or simply caused by a lack of impulse control. There have been a lot of impulsive actions by politicians recently—mainly from the waist down. I don’t know what caused Wilson’s breach of etiquette. Maybe he suffers from Torrettes Syndrome. Regardless, it’s no big deal.

For all the folks wringing their hands over the loss of civility country, we’ve been there, done this before and the Republic survived. As a radio newsman in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1968 (yep, 41 years ago), I covered the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. “Covered” is a generous word. Although I had credentials, my coverage of the convention was confined to sitting in the bar of what was then the Pick Congress Hotel, and watching the proceedings on TV while waiting for Louisiana’s delegation to return. I would do a few delegate interviews about what had taken place, then return to my room, order double shots delivered before writing scripts, recording narration and feeding the reports to the station for morning drive time newscasts. I thought I sounded great. Given my condition, though, listeners may have suspected they accidentally tuned to a religious broadcast. I was speaking in unknown tongues.

            I offer the brief recitation of my adventures with the caveat that my recollections are hazy due to the ingestion of barley based beverages. When not patronizing the booze dispensary, I do recall regularly strolling (or staggering depending on the time of day) one block to Grant Park where thousands of protesters were encamped and “protected” by the National Guard—in reality protected from Chicago police who busted heads during a Sunday march down Michigan Avenue to protest of the Vietnam War and other perceived shortcomings of the nation. Crowd estimates ranged from 10,000 to 100,000. I didn’t count. But between blinks caused by the lingering effects of tear gas, I noted that most were under the age of thirty.

            Viewed in retrospect, the Chicago debacle was a possible training ground for a few loud-mouthed characters screaming about health care reform at “Tea Party” rallies. Sure, the Grant Park tilted to the left. But after slogging through the mud at Woodstock a year later, most of the idealistic Chicago protestors returned home or to college and began a journey to middle class and/or affluence. As the years passed, a sizeable segment of the crowd lost many of the ideals of youth. Some drifted far to the right.

Grant Park veterans are getting up in years, but those attend involved in tea party demonstrations still know how to shout.  So let them have their fun. It’s good material for Comedy Central’s Daily Report.