« EopletmergingHgainstborrupttstablisliments VOL. 1 NO. 8 AFR 35-15 Sez: Thii is your legal property and cannot be taken from you, March 1971 A PAPEK BY AND FOR GI'S PUBLISHED UNDERGROUND FOR R.A.F. Alconbury Bentwaters Chicksands As you may have already noted, there is a distinct change in this issue of the paper. It was felt by many people that since the Air Force is only a micro­ cosm of the real world. We all must realize the daily problems we incur in the Air Force are the same problems which will plague our life when we get out. We all must be kidding our­ selves if we think that by promoting a more humane We will from now on address ourselves to the serious pol­ military, naturally civilian life will be better. We all itical, social and economic problems of our time. have seen time and time again the military put down and kill P.E.A.C.E. has in the past, acted as an outlet for gre- students and old people for voicing opinions which they vances—it's now time to channel this feeling of unrest justly should voice. In other words our society is sick, and alienation into constructive forms such as political and we have to change it by the means which we hace at the education, open discussion of the real issues, and fi­ time. As Eldridge Cleaver has said, "If you're not part of nally at arriving at conclusions and solutions which the solution you're part of the problem." actually deal with the problems. With all the shit coming out of the White House at this time We. feej. that the troubles of dur times are political, such as Nixon slowing done the war by invading Laos and Cam­ caused by a system gone wild, which is now out of con­ bodia, and Nixons dog Ky saying that an invasion of the trol. We are a part of a machine which has no heart or North is in the forseeable future, with Black Panthers and soul, a machine which has plundered the people of the for that fact Black people in general being killed in cold world of their humanity. We of P.E.A.C.E. have seen blood, priests and nuns being charged with absurd crimes, the face of the monster and feel that, if more people we can no longer afford to sit on our asses and wait for see what we have, the beast's days will be numbered. someone else to begin, the time is right now. We all must pull together to bring it to it's knees. 2 Beauty and the Beast is soaked from the rain. There is a wild throng as everyone crowds the bus; mixed with the usual shoving and pushing as Dick rolled over and shut off his clock radio. He shakes a fantastic number of people get. on. The smell of oily fati­ the girl sleeping next to him and says softly, "I've got to gues and bodies is almost overwhelming. go to work". She mumbles a reply while he gets up. He goes Dick remembers that it's pay day, goes to his mail box into his bathroom for a quick shower and shave.TT)ick Decent" and removes an envelope. He smuggly ponders the thougnt that he says half aloud, "you're all right." He dresses, picks up he hasn't cashed his last check yet. From the envelope he p- his briefcase and is out ofvthe door. Outside he runs into ulls out a generous 3 digit check. From here he crosses the the maid. "Just clean the bathroom today." says Dick as he street to his office. walks towards the Officer's Club. Bob climbs off the bus at the orderly room. "Sure am glad Bob climbs down from the top bunk of a triple bunk bed, it's pay day, I've been broke for a week." Bob says to hims­ being careful not to step on either of his two room mates.On elf as his spirits rise a little. Inside the orderly room, the floor he picks his way to the table lamp being quiet as directly in the path to Bob's mail box stands First Sergeant possible because his room mates both work different shifts. Carl Crewcut. '"Bottomofthebarrel" he snarls,"you had better He gathers up his shaving gear and walks down the cold hall get a haircut, this time you are getting two weeks detail, way to the latrine. In the latrine Bob is greeted with cont­ next time it will be a stripe. Also I inspected your room emptuous stares from Tsgt Arnold Redneck. As usual it is cr­ the other day and you better get those posters down and lea­ owded and there would be no hot water for a shower. He grabs rn to make a better bed". When Crewcut is through with him the sink next to Arnold and does his best to clean out the Bob goes to his box and looks in. Nothing, not a damn thing, hair and tooth paste that was left from the previous pig. he has to look twice. "Christ what in the hell am I going to "Bob Bottomofthebarrel", he says to himself,"you poor scn-of do now?" mumbles Bob. He leaves the orderly room and mopes -a-bitch'. Bob returns to his room, puts on his fatigues and across the street to his shop. heads for the chow hall. Dick sits at his desk staring at his name placard."1st Lt Dick picks out a quiet table in the plush dining room and Richard Decent, Supply Officer USAF". Not a bad job for a g- casually thumbs through the morning paper as he waits for uy who's only 23 Dick reflects to himself. He reads over a his breakfast. Soon a waitress brings him two eggs, bacon, couple of papers on his desk and presses the intercom on his and everything else essential to a good breakfast. After he desk. "Hey order 3,000 shoe laces and 2 parkas. Oh yeah you eats Dick lounges over another cup of coffee before getting better clean up out there because Col Chickenshit says that in his new car and going to werk. He then drives off thinki­ Gen Wastemoreland is around and the. Col is afraid that he m- ng to himself, "Sure wish I had a garage". ight drop in." "Yes Sir." The reply comes. "Well that's ano­ "What'll it be there shit head?" barks the cook. Bob com­ ther easy morning." Dick tells himself half aloud. Then he es back to reality, he has been standing in line so long th­ opens his briefcase and pulls out a paper back. at he has almost gone to sleep. "Two sliders and bacon". Bob walks to his bench. He knows this is going to be tou­ (Sliders being the name given to the greasy eggs.) "Bacon?" gh. They want him to turn aut 5 sets before lunch. Bob turns returns the cook, "Christ you must be kidding me". Bob relu­ on the oscilliscope, spectrum analizer and digital voltmeter ctantly takes his plate and looks for a seat. There are only While they are warming up he makes countless connections as three seats left so Bob picks one furthest from the clipper, he prepares to align a 100,000 dollar system. Before his mi­ because of the smell. The noise in there is deafening. It is nd is drowned in more complex thought Bob knows that life j- the usual garbage, stale milk and greasy coffee. "God damn ust isn't cool being a 23 year old Al/C in the USAF. greasy coffee", Bob mumbles, "I bet if I stayed here long e- Fernanda Waltmiller nough I would be greasy toe." Noticing that it's 7:20 Bob brings his *".ray to the clipper and hurries outside to wait The story is true; the names have been changed to protect for the 7:30 bus. When the bus finally shows up at 7:55 Bob the guilty. A Mode1 of Oppression « In many ways the military community is a model of the So even it officers were eliminated from the military, or capitalist society that it serves. In it the officers, part­ even if thewhole military system were eliminated, the root icularly the higher ranking officers play the role of the cause of the oppression - the capitalist system of producti­ capitalists. They have all the benefits of a ruling class; on, would still exist. There are capitalist countries where more money, better housing, more privileges and higher stat­ the military is almost non-existent, Japan for example,where us within that society. the oppression and exploitation are just as severe as in the The officers oppress the airmen in that they are the ones United States. who initiate all the fuss about hair cuts, inspections, mil­ The capitalist system depends on profit. Profit is anoth­ itary dress etc. They may not be the ones who actually hara­ er word for exploitation. In a capitalist society the worke­ ss, those are their lackeys the senior NCOs, but there is no rs get back only a small proportion of what they produce. In doubt that the harassment begins with them. They oppress in America the average rate of exploitation is about 5 to 1. So a more meaningful way in that they press for ever more and if a worker adds $25 of value to his product in an hour, he better performance from the airiren.