is the fact that a "change of mind" is not necessarily out of convenience but sometimes because facts and reality present themselves to a young and naive mind. After 3 or 4 years in the military, I had completely different views of our country's politics than when I entered. I joined the Navy to see the world (that was one of the recruiting slogans back then) and yet it was that exposure that soured me on our miserable foreign policy.

It's real easy as a fully developed adult to remember just how far off the mark our minds were just out of high school. Now I feel I was rather ahead of my peers in regards to the big picture and yet there was so still so much to learn. My imagination and schooling could never have prepared me for the culture shock an Olongapo, Phillipines could bring with scores of teenage prostitutes walking the streets throwing themselves at the drunken, obnoxious, and very eager American servicemen willing to risk disease for their moments of pleasure. I had never before seen a young kid shot on the street for pickpocketing or young kids swimming in sewage infested rivers.

Everywhere we went where there was an American base, there was this sleazy culture that grew up around it buoyed by the cash and lust our servicemen were willing to part with. Even our own cities that were "lucky" enough to have their own Navy base grew to resent the sailors that came through the gate and treated their towns like house guests from hell.

I grew up with this notion of honor in our fighting men and women and by the time I left, I had seen very little of it. And, of course, all of my exposure was during peace time when the stress of warfare wasn't there to create even worse conditions than I experienced.

Yes, I thought I knew what I was getting into when I signed up but I really had no clue. Just as people are indoctrinated by societal pressure to embrace something as absurd as religion, so are young men pushed into thinking a military career is a good and honorable pursuit. I bought into that concept hook, line, and sinker.

We need to give young men a bit of a break and allow for mulligans when it comes to major life choices. High school and a suburban lifestyle simply doesn't prepare one for life-altering choices like the military can bring. The easy answer of course is to make a profound change in human thinking that warriors should be primarily our youth. Perhaps it's time for the people that make war to take up more of a share its execution. I think we'd see far less of it.

I still have yet to fully tell my story of my time in the Navy but suffice it to say that it didn't end pretty despite some extraordinary early years. Every time I try to write the story, it ends up way too long because to explain the evolution of thought over almost 6 years is a daunting task. It's a story that brings me both shame and pride and has caused profound effects on my life.

I salute the choices you made. It sounds as if you were one of that small percent of people I encountered in the military that I would've considered the "good guys". I wonder where your mind would've been after 4 or 5 years of the experience as I had by the time I'd had enough.

Art