In our senior year, we had to document our preferences of which MOS (Military Occupation Specialty) we preferred. I put Military Intelligence at the top of my list. If at all possible, I wanted to avoid the combat arms like infantry, armor and artillery. I had no desire to dodge bullets if that could be avoided. Despite the military's penchant for making the most illogical assignments, luck was with me. They had a need for translators in Europe because of the cold war, the epicenter of which was in Berlin, Germany. My knowledge of history and politics complemented my fluency in German and Russian. I was assigned to a base in Germany to spend my two years translating Russian documents and intercepted messages trying to analyze the intentions of the Russians in Eastern Europe. I had a top-secret security clearance that gave me access to material that would astound and dismay the average citizen. Although I got excellent ratings on my proficiency reports, I had no intention of staying in the army even one day past my two-year obligation. I had seen first hand how our military and foreign policies had betrayed the ideals of our nation's founders. While I was waiting for my discharge to complete, the CIA tried hard to recruit me. However, I had no more interest in working for them than I did to remain in the military.