Excerpts from Letters to Mom in italics.
15 May 1966
A lot has been happening lately. Only a few weeks ago, the Linkou Air Station, where I am assigned, restricted everybody to base. The cause was a "Wee Dee 'epidemic.'" It seems a hell of a lot of the troops came down with the clap, and there are some new and tough strains around here. Some of these bugs go straight for the prostate. I heard one 19-year old kid had to have his removed.
Nobody can tell these kids to use a rubber! You can lead a horse [stud?] to water, but you can't make it wear a rubber - or something like that! That week of restriction passed and the authorities put about a twelve square block area off-limits. They refer to it as "Turkeyville" or "back the alley."
21 June 1966
The, excuse me, pisser is, my [surreptitious] apartment lies in this off limits area by about 50 feet. So another friend and our girls moved into an approved area. Much of Taipei is out-of-bounds because the people live so badly and the R.O.C. [Republic of China] presumably tries to hide the situation.
We are going to share a second floor apartment (first floor is prone to typhoon flooding) for $25 apiece a month not including utilities. There is a living room, two bedrooms, kitchen, bathroom, house girl room and balcony. CiCi hired a cleaning woman to come in afternoons six days a week for 250 dollars - Chinese. That's about $6.25 per month! Labor is cheap wouldn't you say?
Jerry [not Chandler - but a CT friend], my "housemate" [and his shy girlfriend] moves in tomorrow. We don't have a refrigerator. They are hard to get here (cost about $500 - US) unless you have a PX card (I do) AND are married and accompanied (I ain't).
I signed the papers to be property of Uncle Sam till '67, and ain't nothing can change it. I sometimes regret volunteering for Vietnam, not because I don't want to go - I am looking forward to it. I'm having a constant debate with myself about marrying CiCi. If I do, besides causing mountains of difficulties for another year, it would make my chances for a college degree slimmer.
Without a degree, a chance for a good job and income are [sic] slight. Unfortunately, unlike my father, I am good for nothing. For practical purposes I'm an idiot - a mechanical moron. So without a degree & key to a "good for nothing type" profession, I'll be "adrift with the tide." Or up shit's creek without a paddle! [Prophetic, pathetic, but the kid knew what he was talking about.]
Anyway, if I get married, it's because I want to live with the girl forever, not to stay out of a combat zone.
21 June 1966
As much as I like to get letters, I sure hate to write 'em, even to you who likes to get 'em worse'n I hate to write 'em.
I just read an interesting article on our Vietnam Policy. It seemed to be an objective view placing the Vietnam War in context with the rest of the world and its place in history. It's not quite the article that would be applauded if I tacked it on the bulletin board at work. It was an editorial by Emmett John Hughes in Newsweek a week or so ago - the one with college girls on front. You might read it if the magazine is handy and mention to Uncle Shun. I enjoyed it but am not convinced yet that Hughes is correct. Perhaps, he'll have some words on the subject to discuss with me plus, of course, Taiwan. I'll be looking forward to talking with him as well as you about my view and impressions of this corner of the world.
If it will make you feel better, I'll demote you to the "lower-middle class." I meant to say a few words (pages) about that again. But I better not get started. Just remind me about the topic when I get home and you'll hear so much you'll wish I were soon gone. I suppose one shouldn't criticize God, but if I were so All-Powerful, etc, I couldn't have created a more unfair life or world than exists on this planet. And I, speaking in terms of the world as a US citizen, enjoy a high standard of living and shouldn't complain.
I'm not really complaining (for me), but trying to say I recognize the privilege of my birth. I wish the "standard of existence," my term for standard of living in much of the world, could be raised to a certain level where all people could enjoy adequate housing, food, health and a chance to better themselves. That's the problem of the coming generation or two. Roads, sewers, plumbing, food - things like these count. An enduring tyranny is difficult to begin and damn near impossible to sustain on a prosperous economy.
Taiwan, so I hear, enjoys the highest standard of living in the Far East next to Japan. My impression of Taiwan's "lower- middle class:" One to two families share a two room shack (bicycle shed) - no plumbing - have enough rice but little protein and variety of diet - children receive 6 years elementary education - no one ever been to a dentist or doctor - male slaves 7 days a week for as many hours as he can for bare subsistence, etc. I could go on but it's grim & depresses me. In the light of the whole world - your (my) lower-middle class status would jump to "middle-high class" status - doctor bills are a status symbol of the fortunate. [AG2 Fehr's Chinese barber at the Linkuo Club, after he knew Steve, once confided barely suppressing tears, that he and his family lived in the equivalent of what Americans would call a chicken coop.]
By the way, do you know how I take a bath here? Well, we rich people fill the bathtub with warm water, pour several pans full on ourselves and soap down. Then we rinse off (outside the tub all the while, of course) careful not to splash any dirty, soapy water in the clean tub and finally lay down in the warm to hot tub to relax. [Note: Chinese bathrooms were constructed with drains in the floor.] I do this unless I am in a hurry, and then I shower. The fact that CiCi can get in the clean tub with me since both our bodies are clean has nothing to do with it. That's about it!