[lit-ideas] Re: The Reds and the Blues, a Friday Short Story
- From: "Veronica Caley" <molleo1@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 11 Jan 2008 21:54:40 -0500
The Reds and the Blues, a Friday Short StoryHi Jane,
I won't be going to Waterman because I am working the election. Very regretful
about this as the speaker is a great opera singer. Ronnie
----- Original Message -----
From: Lawrence Helm
To: Lit-Ideas
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2008 8:15 PM
Subject: [lit-ideas] The Reds and the Blues, a Friday Short Story
This is a short story not unrelated to recent postings. I tried to post this
as an attachment but then recalled there is a problem with doing that. It
isn't very long.
Lawrence Helm
San Jacinto
The Reds and the Blues
"Any word yet, Colonel?"
"No, Major. They are apparently done for the night."
"And are we done? This will give them a significant port on the West Coast,
you know."
"Yes, of course, Major, but we always knew we couldn't hold the whole West
Coast. There are too many pockets of Reds. Orange County for example was a
hot bed of California Reds, and Riverside and San Bernardino even more so.
Also, there are a lot of Reds up north, Northern California you know."
"But up North they are staying away from the coast."
"Nothing we need up there any way. We still have the whole L.A. Harbor - the
whole L.A. Basin as a matter of fact. That's the main thing. Maybe they can
hold San Diego and maybe they can't. In the meantime I don't think the capture
of Dana Point or Oceanside much of a coup for them. They aren't deep water
ports."
"But San Diego is."
"Yes, San Diego is. There's no denying that. The Red force was able to come
across from Phoenix and through El Centro before we realized it. General
Stevens should have seen that one coming, but he was too busy up North. He was
fighting the Battle of Fresno at the same time the Reds were taking San Diego."
"Doesn't seem like a good trade to me, Fresno for San Diego."
"No, nor to me, but the Reds were building up to something at Fresno, and the
leadership at San Francisco and Sacramento were panicking. Politics trumps
military wisdom once again. The Reds at Fresno held out a lot longer than
anyone expected."
"So what do we do now, consider San Diego lost for good?"
"For now. What are they going to do? I just saw the figures on nuclear
subs. They have just as many as we do. That surprised me. I wasn't so
surprised about the hard sites, they are out in the middle of nowhere - Red
country, but I'm surprised they got all those subs."
"Really? It doesn't surprise me. I thought the bulk of the military would
go Red."
"We didn't."
"Even so . . ."
"The modern military is better educated. It needs to be to operate all the
high-tech gadgets we have nowadays. The smarter you get the further you move
to the Left. Everyone knows that."
"And yet half the subs went to the Reds?"
"Yeah. I haven't figured that one out."
"You don't think they'll use their nukes do you?"
"Can't tell for sure what those nut-cases will do, but I doubt it. Everyone
has family all over the place, even Reds. I doubt they'll be willing to wipe
out all their relatives just to get us."
"And that means, I suppose, that we aren't going to bomb any of the Red
States."
"Are you kidding? Yeah, we've got the industrial coasts and Chicago and most
of the really big cities, but they've got the farm land. We've got to get all
our food shipped in from Argentina and Brazil until this is over. But once it
is, we'll need our bread basket back."
"Assuming we win."
"Yeah. That's a big assumption. They've got as much of the Air Force as we
do as well."
"Really?"
"That's the way it breaks down. We've got more of the manufacturing
capability but they've got plenty. They have everything they need."
"So we're pretty much evenly divided?"
"Not exactly. The Marines and Army were mainly located in Red States or
areas and while huge numbers have come over to us, the basic units are still
intact - reduced in number but intact. They're still very much operational."
"Too bad, but we did all right in Fresno."
"Yeah, we've done okay elsewhere as well - as long as we don't stray too far
from our cities we're okay. Electronic walls are going up in every one of them
- not that the Reds have tried to bomb any of them yet."
"I heard that electronic wall technology was ineffective."
"Not really. Yeah, it still doesn't work against ballistic missiles, but
anything using electronic guidance can be turned aside - maybe even sent right
back where it came from."
"But they've got ballistic missiles, long ranged shells, that sort of thing -
don't they?"
"Yeah, sure, but we don't know what they're planning yet. If they move tanks
too close to one of our cities, we can knock them out, but they seem content to
leave our cities alone - at least for now."
"Trying to starve us out, maybe?"
"Well, that won't work - we can ship all the food we need in from South
America."
----------
"Tenn shun!"
"At ease men," the lieutenant said. "I guess you all want to know what's
going on. A lot of you have family and friends in Blue cities, I know. All I
can tell you is that we do not intend to bomb any of them. If they send out
troops or planes against us, then that's a different matter. We won't stand
for that. We will make them sorry they did - hurt them a little or a lot
depending upon how we wake up in the morning . . . do I hear an Ooh Rah?"
"Ooh Rah!"
"Okay, we did well here at Oceanside and San Diego as you know. We now have
a major deep water port on the West Coast. We've got some carriers and subs.
I don't know how many or how our navy compares to the Blues, but maybe we can
hold our own out there. In fact I know damned well we can win. Do I hear an
Ooh Rah?"
"Ooh Rah!"
"Any questions? . . . yes, Sergeant."
"So if we aren't attacking them and they aren't attacking us. What's going
to happen?"
"This all happened so quickly I'm not sure anyone knows, but I have heard we
are sending some emissaries to Blue Cities - like San Francisco and New York
with a plan."
"What kind of plan?"
"Don't know the details, but I heard the India/Pakistan split of 1947
mentioned."
"What's that, sir," a young PFC asked?
"When Britain pulled out of India, the Hindus and Muslims decided they wanted
their own countries; so the Hindus kept the center which became India and the
Muslims took the outlying areas which became Pakistan and Bangladesh."
"Do you think we might do something like that?"
"We've got some people that want it."
"Didn't we fight the Civil War to prevent that," a Corporal who looked old
enough to have a higher rank asked?
"Yes, Corporal, we did, but I don't think anyone feels strongly about that
sort of thing any longer. Think more along the lines of a couple with
irreconcilable differences going into divorce court."
"How would it be split up," the Corporal asked?
"I've no idea, but some of our people have apparently thought that through
and made that part of their proposal. The Blues might have to give up some
cities, and we Reds might have to let go of some farm land, but I don't know
any details."
"Think the Blues will go for it?"
"I have no idea, but if it's that or more war, I'll bet they'll think it
over. If each time they take a Fresno, we take a San Diego, that could be real
depressing for them."
---------------
"You hear what the Reds proposed?"
"Yeah. Kind of makes you sick don't it? State's rights with a vengeance."
"Think our people will go for it?"
"They may not have a choice. You hear what's happening in Iran and Pakistan?"
"No."
"They are both declaring the U.S. an unstable country and developing nukes
full bore - in case we do a Doctor Strangelove."
"That's ridiculous."
"Yeah, but it works for them."
"Think splitting into two nations will make them feel better."
"I doubt it. They're on a military roll and will probably just keep on
rolling. Our best hope is for the Red and Blues to come to some sort of
agreement right away and deal with those guys."
"Or we could just let the Blues deal with them, since they are the most
belligerent."
"And then live with whatever they decide?"
"Good point."
"Think we can work with them enough to reach a joint foreign policy on Iran
and Pakistan?"
"I doubt it."
"Yeah, me too. But someone better do something. I hear several nations in
Europe are voting themselves humongous military budgets."
"Germany?"
"You bet. We're heading back to the bad old days quick march."
"Who would side with us besides Britain and Canada?"
"You'd think all of Europe would, but it's too soon to tell. Poland has
already declared for the Reds - several other former Eastern European countries
as well. And then Iraq and Afghanistan - good luck with them. Who knows who
else?"
-----------------
"Yes, Private?"
"Sir, our Platoon ran across a group of Marines from the Blues - twenty-three
of them. They claim they want to join our side, but Corporal Sanchez thinks
they might be spies or agents provoc, provaca . . . something like that."
"Why does he think that?"
"Sir, I don't know, sir."
"Neither to I, and I don't have time to mess with this. Go back and
interrogate them and then get your Sergeant to assign them to Platoons with
holes."
"Sir, yes sir."
As the PFC kept standing there, the lieutenant asked, "anything else?"
"What do you want me to ask them, sir?"
"Whether they're likely to be loyal to our side. . . you do know what our
side believes don't you?"
"No sir."
"Come on Private. Use your head. Who did you vote for in the last election?"
"Sir, I didn't vote, sir."
"Why not?"
"Sir, I didn't' know who to vote for and my Sergeant wouldn't tell me; so I
didn't vote."
"You do know who you're are fighting for, though, don't you?"
"Sir, yes sir!"
"Who are you fighting for, Private?"
"Sir, my country and the United States Marine Corps, sir!"
The lieutenant sighed. "Oh hell, that's probably good enough. Go find out
if they are as loyal as you are and if they are, get your Sergeant to find them
platoons."
"Sir, yes sir!"
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