Take an extreme Park Avenue, modernistic and plush, bordering an extreme Harlem, a devastated ultra-pocket of poverty, and that was how the American Quarter struck me in contrast to the rest of Saigon. Neon sparkled everywhere and black market lushness filled the stalls of Tu Do Street. Glass and steel architecture by Buck Rogers26 stretched to the sky and the night hummed with the buzz of air conditioners. Still defined by Washington as a “hardship post,” the streets smelled of gasoline from Caddys and Mercedes and Rolls and Lincolns. The aroma was mixed with the headiness of prime booze coming from the many night clubs catering to American personnel. Back in my own time it had been said that Saigon was “the only city in the world where acute alcoholism passes for social drinking” and from what I could see it was true.
Beyond the Quarter were bomb craters and shell holes and the debris of war. But on the American side of Tu Do Street were elaborate apartment hotels and the festive atmosphere of a U.S. resort city. I wondered at the discrepancy. “How come this part of the city never catches it?” I asked Denise.
“There are no military targets here. The Viet Cong used to raid just to damage morale, but they don’t any more. The area is heavily defended and Cong casualties in such raids were high. More important, the Cong is convinced that the Americans here will destroy themselves through their own dissipations. By leaving it alone, the Cong has a powerful propaganda tool. The way the Americans behave here is worth three divisions to the North Vietnamese in convincing the countryside of the rightness of the Cong cause.”
“Hold it a minute.” I had noticed a brightly lit store selling TV sets. One of them was turned on in the window and a news broadcast was in progress.
“President Hawkbird announced today that while no immediate increase in the draft is anticipated, one million more troops must be sent to Vietnam by September in order to counter recent troop infiltrations into South Vietnam via the demilitarized zone,” the news commentator said.
“The announcement drew an immediate reaction from Congress,” the commentator continued. “Louisiana Senator Strom Borgia proposed the immediate nuclear bombing of Paris and Rome on the grounds that the President of France and the Pope were giving aid and comfort to the enemy by following the Commie-neutralist cease-fire line in their speeches. As might have been expected, Senator Fullbile, head of the Armed Services Committee, took issue with both Senator Borgia and the President, insisting as he has throughout his tenure that the traditional Tonkin Gulf Resolution does not give the President authority for either action. Senator Fullbile was backed up by the junior Senator from New York who commented that while the war must certainly be fought and Communism contained in Southeast Asia, nevertheless it must be remembered that Congress had not declared war and technically the nation is at peace despite the Tonkin Gulf Resolution. The junior Senator added that regardless of family tradition he had no personal ambitions to become President and would of course support President Hawkbird in his bid for reelection even though he and the President have minor disagreements over a war currently costing the nation fifty billion dollars and one hundred thousand lives per month. When the junior Senator from New York added that this money might perhaps better be spent on urban renewal, the chair reminded him that since the destruction of America’s cities urban renewal is no longer a matter of concern. The junior Senator apologized and withdrew his remarks. Here in Washington it was the general opinion that Senators opposing the war are putting their political careers in jeopardy because the labor unions have persuaded their members to support the war as the only way of maintaining the current level of employment and wages. Practically, the continuance of the war is necessary to the economy of the nation.
“Not directly related to this,” the commentator eased into another topic, “but relevant, is the most recent statement released by the leaders of the Black Power Movement. This long awaited statement defines Black Power vis-a-vis Vietnam. Claiming to be neither hawks nor doves, the Black Power leaders deplore the numbers of blacks on the firing line in Vietnam and at the same time raise the question of why so few blacks are participating in the economic benefits derived from the war effort here at home. A pointed demand was added to the effect that the heavyweight title be restored to draft evader Cassius Aly and there was an implication of more riots if this demand was ignored. This was met by accusations of treason from a coalition of Southern Senators formed to act as a watchdog committee over the Black Power Movement. Privately, Black Power leaders confessed that if the title was returned to Aly, his position might prove untenable since he is far past the age where he would be able to defend it. A dissenting statement to the Black Power attitude was issued by the Organization of Non-Violent Negroes against the War in Vietnam.
“Meanwhile, in Vietnam itself, American observers issued a statement to the effect that they detected no irregularities in the recent elections. Noting that because of the nature of the country elections there could not of course be compared to the American democratic process, the team of observers went on to say that despite the ruling out of any but military pro-war candidates, the legislative body elected was doubtless representative of the Vietnamese people. Only eleven percent of these people were eligible to vote in the election since the remainder of the population is disenfranchised by confessed neutralist, or pro-Cong sentiments. It should be remembered, however, that these voters are truly dedicated to the democratic principle and the fight against Communism.”
History may not necessarily repeat itself, I reflected as Denise and I walked away from the storefront TV. It may only stand still.
“Hello, Denise.” A middle-aged couple, a man and a woman, stopped alongside of us and greeeted my companion.
“Oh, hello. Steve Victor meet Luh Lin,” she introduced the woman. “And this is her husband, Wah Lees. Long time no see.” Denise turned back to the couple. “What have you two been doing with yourselves?”
“We’ve both become volunteer slaves,” Wah Lees replied proudly.
“What’s a ‘volunteer slave’?” I wondered aloud.
“Self-imposed servitude,” Wah Lees explained, explaining nothing. “It’s wonderful.”
“Wonderful.” Luh Lin backed him up.
Noting that I still looked puzzled, Wah Lees continued. “For a long time my family was made up of masters,” he told me. “Do you know what being a master means? Responsibility!”
“Responsibility, that’s what!” Luh Lin nodded.
“When you own something, you have to take care of it, make sure it’s in working order,” Wah Lees pointed out. “If your property is another human being, you’re obligated to see to its health, morals and welfare. Also, if the property is human, you have to recognize its instinct to rebel against its master and this recognition invariably creates a great anxiety complex in the master. Between the anxiety and the responsibility, the weight of neurosis has made many a master crack.”
“Masters can’t take it,” Luh Lin interjected.
“There’s a constant pressure to convince yourself that you’re worthy to be a master. There’s always the nagging suspicion that the slave may have more manhood, or womanhood, or just plain human worth than you do. Also, the master is constantly being put on by the slave. He can never be sure that the s1ave’s obedience is sincere. He’s always afraid that the slave sees through him.”
“Masters are transparent,” Luh Lin agreed.
“One day we realized that it was the slaves who had all the best of it,” Wah Lees said. “They were superior just because they never had to worry about being superior. They were immune to responsibility because it was out of their hands. They didn’t have to prove their worth, and so they were free from anxiety. When we saw that, we came to recognize a great truth. Slavery is mental health!”