European politics is a stew of hot mess. Archduke Ferdinand got assassinated, and now the entire Europe is at war. I campaigned and campaigned, trying to make sure the United States does not get entangled in the Great War, and yet here I am, drafted, on a boat to Europe, and sitting next to another waste bin of biohazard. It seems like Germany is so despicable that the whole government ignored the pleas of its people and even Washington’s farewell address to get involved in the war.
It is always the Germans. I knew it was them from the beginning. My German-American workers laze around and ingest alcohol all day. My boss was upset at my inability to get those workers to work and transferred me to a smaller branch, where I was not part of the force producing war material, so I got drafted. Those Germans even tried to get Mexico to attack the United States for our rightful lands, a serendipity that we intercepted the Zimmermann Telegram. Worse, the Germans even used their underwater boats to attack American civilian ships, including Lusitania! (I hope the ship I am on does not sink). It is not surprising that no one likes the Germans back at home.
I still cannot accept I got drafted. The age of people who are supposed to be drafted is between twenty-one and thirty-one. I am forty-two years old, for God's sake, and my birthday is literally seventeen days later. Do they not check my draft registry and my legal birth year? They approached me and said, “You look young enough; go serve the country.” The draft officer even refused to check my legal birth date when I advised him to. He said I looked like I was at a stretch at twenty-eight years old, and what is on my OFFICIAL RECORD is probably FORGERY!
I was trained for 6 months in a boot camp. I have a decent idea of why it is called a boot camp because the food tastes like it had been stomped by boots. We were taught drills, strict orders, and teamwork. Once you get how it works, it is easy, as well as handling weapons. Immigrants were taught English, and I would sometimes help as well. Because of my excelling performance (though they consistently claimed that my age being of forty-two years was a lie worthy of demerits and they only drafted men between 21 and 31 years of age), I was assigned as a corporal in charge of 7 privates in a squad.
More so than the industrial workers I managed, I am in charge of seven men: Raphael, Raghnall, Dave, Marcus, Reklaw, Carl, and Matthew.
First is Raphael from Wisconsin, a struggling yeoman son. Underneath his reserved face, he holds onto resentment but is also very loyal to America. He is about 5’5” with short black hair and a well-defined nose and cheeks; his constitution is well, and he has high stamina (not as high as mine). If a German soldier kills one American, he will pay the debt back tenfold. Despite how impolite he may seem, he is highly competent and will always do his part. He is quiet most of the time and only cracks a smile due to Marcus’s jokes.
Second, is Raghnall, an Irish immigrant who came to the United States as a young child and worked in a factory all his life. He is filled with freckled rough skin, wild brown hairs, and an untrimmed beard. From one look, you can tell that he had been working all his life like he never rests. He is remorselessly honest and has vulgar manners, but he always keeps what is best for everyone in his mind. He often challenges the status quo (and by extension, my orders) and deals with only facts. A troublesome feller, but once you convince him to do something (or when he convinces himself), he will do it. He told me that if he had a choice, he would continue to serve the United States military after the war.
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Third is Dave from New Jersey, a hooligan, former gang member, and capable dock worker. With spiral gang-like tattoos on his back and his shoulders, he appeared tall, wide, and imposing. There is an obvious scar on his face and a less obvious one on his arm. He is highly emotional, not in the sense that he cries easily, but in the sense that he is really protective and gets angry whenever someone threatens to harm his family. He is a married man with a daughter. He gets sensitive when we ask for details regarding his family. Unlike the two men before, his speech is polite (and somewhat menacing), contrary to his past behavior. He will give it all up for his family, and he will protect his family “from those Germans who insulted the safety of America.”
Fourth is Marcus from California, a somewhat-skinny young man and the vitality of our squad. During my time as a white-collar manager, I learned that keeping workers in high morale is crucial for efficiency. Marcus gives all of my squad morale with his risible nature, and even his most inappropriate joke sparks the loudest laughter (we all got fifty push-ups because of how loud we were laughing one time). He also conveys his criticism in his jokes and is quite imaginative.
Fifth is Reklaw, who refused to disclose his background. (We sometimes doubt whether his name is actually "Reklaw" or "Walker", since Reklaw is just Walker spelled backward, and Walker is a more common name.) He is pale white, with no remarkable features besides a mysterious air around him. He is a sensitive person in all ways related to himself, and he gets defensive when being charged with the most infinitesimal thing. He talks cynically and is suspicious of all strangers (he always advises us to watch out for German spies). Toward familiar people and allies, he is rather a selfless guy. Also, he loves cleanliness, and if there is a mess, he will clean it regardless of who made the mess and how messy it is.
Sixth is Carl from Kentucky, who acts like a classic honorable knight. He harbors honor above all and believes in chivalry. He has a tall but average build, a small burn mark on his cheek, and a rather stylistic mustache. An idealistic feller - he thinks that if everyone holds honor in their heart, then no devious act nor impure thoughts will surface ever again. He is a very black-and-white person, either something is right or something is wrong. He adjusted to the army lifestyle in an instant and stuck to a strict routine. If he was not a private, but a corporal instead, then he is likely to be the strictest of them all.
Lastly, there is Matthew from Massachusetts, possibly one of the kindest people in the army. He is a short, young twenty-one year old man with angular hair. He dislikes unnecessary conflicts. He is agreeable, sociable, and polite. He is somewhat timid, and I had to help him extra so that he could handle a weapon properly. He is optimistic and cheerful, though I am unsure how long he can remain this way. The battlefield is not for the soft, after all.
The boat ride is awful, but we will serve our country. I was selected, so I will show the United States my most satisfactory work. No matter how against this war I am, I will serve the United States and defend her against all German foes. FOR GOD AND GLORY! My team and I had paid respect when we sailed away from the sight of the Statue of Liberty, and we shall bring home the taste of victory!