ROTC

I was a high school senior the day the mail arrived with the Lehigh University freshman student registration form. One option was the Air Force ROTC. What did I know? Nam was raging and avoiding the draft seemed like a good idea. Hiding in the Air Force ROTC seemed more preferable to the draft or Army ROTC. Student deferments were under attack. ROTC was optional but avoiding the draft was uppermost in my mind.

Freshman student orientation included a big meeting in Grace Hall of the entire freshman class.

“Turn to your left”, a speaker said. “Now turn to your right." One of those guys is going to flunk out", said the speaker. It was an inauspicious start.

The next speaker was the Air Force ROTC Colonel. "One way or the other", he said, "we are going to get you". “It could be the draft, you could volunteer, or you could be in ROTC, but you owe us time and we're going to get it".

I did not like being threatened. This freshman orientation was all about threats. Flunking out was tomorrow's problem. Air Force ROTC was something I could do something about now. Next day I dropped ROTC and stopped by the Air Force ROTC office.

"I'm quitting", I told them.

"But it hasn't even started yet" the sergeant told me.

"It started yesterday", I replied.