VLVL 4: War, politics and love

[Terrance]

> snarf wrote:
> 
> I have found pretty interesting the suggestion that RC may be a
> Vietnam Veteran. I am from South America and the spanish translation
> of "bush vet" is "veterano de la jungla" (jungle veteran).

The confusion we have here, because we shorten the words "Veteran" and
"Veterinarian" as "Vet" is not present in Spanish or Portuguese because
in those languages  "Vet" is not in use. 

Actually, we use the abbreviation Vet. and the informal vet in American
English. 

Moreover, in English (at least in the United States) we use the phrase
"Bush Vet" to describe BOTH a person who is a Veteran now living on the
fringes of society or in the Bush or remote country  and a person who is
a veterinarian who works in the Bush, country, remote areas. 

A Veterinarian "Bush Vet"  is not an uncommon phrase in Northern
California. It is used there to describe both veterinarians and
veterans. 


RC may be both. But we know one thing for sure, the text tells us that
he is a Bush Vet. 
Zoyd goes to his farm. 

The look RC  gives Zoyd in the flash back bar scene doesn't tell me that
he's been in Vietnam, but to prison.  I think the bathroom humor there,
"in the Can"  is a typical Pynchon pun. There is an on going, gotta
shit, bathroom, can, prison, joke that follows Zoyd about. In any event,
I don't think RC and Moonpie are in a long hair bar because they have
switched sides and RC is ashamed of having been a Vietnam soldier. This
explanation doesn't make sense to me because Vietnam Vets returning from
Vietnam simply didn't need to hide there having been soldiers to join
the anti-war people. In fact, Vets against the war was one of the most
powerful anti-war groups. While I agree with Robert's reading of RC, I
disagree on the details. RC did something. What? We don't know. But he
changed his name and erased his past. I think he's an opportunist like
all the other characters in this book. RC and Moonpie is a business
name. I agree that they name their kids with those stupid hippie names
because they are opportunists and their potential clients and customers
are Vineland people who name their kids Prairie and I-24.