Day 3

 

Our oldest son is engaged to a Chinese national who has been working in the Bay Area for several years and we heartily approved. Only child of an artist and she grew up in a large city west of Shanghai.  Her family has also approved and is trying to teach him basic Mandarin. Our son and his prospective father-in-law both like to drink into the wee hours even if they can’t understand each other. With Covid the wedding there has been put off indefinitely. When discussing our travel plans in China after the wedding, the fiancé told us her family has a vacation home on Hainan Island and we would be invited to stay there. Which immediately gave me the willies.  My son never commented on my story from years ago if he even read it. His lady never asked me about my Navy adventures. I doubt she is a Chinese intel agent as she does graphics for video games. But if we get there I will be sure to keep my lip zipped about a confrontation near there 50 years ago so I won’t get fed to the sea snakes.

WELCOME TO THE PARTY PAL!

“GENERAL QUARTERS. GENERAL QUARTERS. ALL HANDS MAN YOUR BATTLE STATIONS.  CONDITION ZEBRA WILL BE SET IN FIVE MINUTES.”

Followed by an extremely irritating klaxon-type alarm.

Phillips rolled over and the clock said 6:10 a.m. Sh*t. What is this?

“THIS IS NO DRILL.”

What the hell? Are the Japanese bombing Pearl Harbor again? Just as Phillips sat up in his rack he got a whiff of LT Stinky slamming the door in a hurry to his station in the Engine Room hole.  Time to get cracking. As there appeared to be some urgency, Phillips skipped putting on his socks and hustled to his assigned General Quarters space, his office. The ship’s lawyer was supposed to work on shuffling paper in an emergency. As Yates and Clinton were assigned other, more important duties, Phillips sat alone at his desk and wondered what the threat could be. Oh yeah, the bad guys have airplanes.  And PT boats too. The latter is supposedly what got this war started although Phillips had his doubts.

He was working a construction job the summer before college when the Tonkin Gulf “incident” occurred in August of 1964. Good old LBJ thought a few bombs thrown the North Viet’s way would send them a message. All it got was a young Navy aviator, Alvarez his name was, in an NVA prison. The older guys Phillips carried pipe with that summer were immediately suspicious.  Most had been grunts in the Army and were not looking for a repeat performance. But they loved ribbing Phillips about his possibly now shortened life span.

“Boy, you look like prime meat. Bet you could really hump some ground with a rifle. Ol’ LBJ is going to gin up something good for yo skinny ass.”

Stuff like that. By the end of the summer, Phillips was convinced he would not be safe from whatever foreign adventure the political dumb asses in Washington cooked up until LTJG Alvarez was safely home. But as of September 1972, he was still locked up.

The ventilation fans were turned off. Condition Zebra, locking all the metal hatches and doorways to contain any possible bomb damage, was announced as set. It was going to get very warm in the Legal Office. The ship could not risk smoke being sucked into other spaces.

Then the Captain announced the good news:

“This is the Captain speaking.  We have had a little unexpected skirmish and things are still getting sorted out. Here is what happened. About 20 minutes ago two fighters from VF-118 covering the ships in our group got buzzed by a couple of MIG 19s. When the MIGS did not turn away and the lead VF-118 pilot believed they were a threat to the fleet our guys engaged them and made short work of the MIGs. From the fighters’ cameras analyzed after landing it appears the MIGs may have been Chinese transiting to the Chinese airbase on Hainan island. Up to now, all the MIGs we have seen have been North Vietnamese. Our recon aircraft reports a lot of activity at the Chinese airbase.  We are now steaming south to get further distance from Hainan and all fighters from our ship and the Midway are in the air and screening the fleet.”

“Frankly, we don’t know what will happen next but we need to be prepared for anything.  None of the Chinese planes have taken off yet so it may be just a drill for them.  We are watching that base like a hawk. No sign of activity by the NVA or in south China. We will stay at General Quarters for a couple of hours until we have enough distance from the Hainan base.  But we have to go back North tomorrow for more missions. So it could get tense.  I will give you updates when I have more information. That is all.”

Great. Fighting the NVA to a virtual standstill wasn’t enough. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army is now invited to the party. Phillips now thought his 8,000-mile detour to get near California chicks was not such a great idea. He should have asked for a desk job at JAG Headquarters in Washington shuffling claims paperwork or writing briefs. The guys he knew there said there was so much snatch in D.C., mostly government secretaries, that even lawyers could get laid. Too late now.

Two hours later the temperature in Phillips’ office approached 90 degrees. He wondered how the old Navy did it before air conditioning. He was able to puzzle over the sailor debtor problem. With the office’s meager federal law library he was able to find some obscure consumer notice statutes that might have been violated in the usurious engagement ring agreements his poor knucklehead sailors signed.  Now he had to figure out how to leverage this into some face-saving 25 cents on the dollar settlement. Maybe some of the Subic lawyers were admitted in California and would have some ideas. Then came a new announcement:

“This is the Captain speaking. It looks like we are in no immediate danger.  No Chinese jets have lifted off from the Hainan base. We will secure from General Quarters in about 5 minutes. In a way, this was a blessing in disguise. As much as all of you needed a stand-down day, this was the fastest we have secured to Condition Zebra in any of our drills. So you are getting better at it which may come in handy sooner or later. Enjoy the rest of the day. That is all.”

A relieved Phillips was heading back to his rack to make up for his interrupted slumber when another 1MC announcement:

“Will the Legal Officer report to the Captain’s sea cabin immediately.”

What is this? A ship-wide announcement that the Captain wants his advice?  Phillips didn’t know whether to be proud or fearful. What could he add to the Captain’s concerns about a furious dog fight the good guys won?

The Captain’s Marine orderly immediately opened the door for the Legal Officer. The CO was looking over reconnaissance photos of the Chinese airbase.

“Glad you got here so quick, John Law. Quite a furball this morning. I think this is something requiring a JAG investigation, do you agree?”

Phillips hesitated.

“Frankly, sir, I am not sure. The Navy JAG Manual requires investigations of shipboard casualties and accidents of a significant nature. But I have never seen it applied to combat issues. I will have to research it.”

“All right then. Get to it and let me know immediately if one is required. This is obviously much more a political hot potato than a legal one but if one is required I want it to be your highest priority.  The pilots are now on their way to Saigon. The Navy command and General Abrams are in a bit of a tizzy over this and the White House is asking questions nonstop.  Maybe the President got some chits with his egg foo yung when he was in Peking a few months ago that he can cash in now.  I guess we will find out soon enough. I have enough to handle getting ready for tomorrow’s mission. And Hainan island will only be about 60 miles off our starboard side if we launch aircraft heading north in the morning.  So I hope this gets resolved soon.”

The Captain turned back to the photos so Phillips assumed he was dismissed.  He bleated a half-assed “Aye, aye sir” and went back to his office. He was never going to get any beauty sleep. Of that, he was convinced.

Why in the hell would lawyers be charged with investigating a combat incident? All he knew of air combat were Red Baron stories, Bridges at Toko-Ri stuff.  But there it was in the JAG Manual; all incidents that could lead to major ship operations and/or engagements have to be analyzed and a report written by some JAG lawyer.  Maybe the Navy just wanted the facts sifted.  It’s what lawyers had to do for three tedious years.  But how could he figure out whether US Navy fighters were justified in smoking some unlucky Commie fighter jocks? Phillips was really going to need some help with this.

A call to the Captain’s cabin led to another quick audience with the CO.  The Captain was conversing with a couple of Commanders, probably the ship’s Operations Head and the Air Boss, when Phillips was led into the tiny space.  Then the Commanders exited.

“Captain, your instinct was right. A JAG investigation is required.  I have never done one before and just finished signing off on the two LT Hansen handed over. I assume I start with the photos.”

“That’s right. Report to the Intelligence Officer, LCDR Benson. He will lead you through the sequence of events and the photos of the debris left when the two Chinese fighters went into the drink. He also has the audiotape of the pilots’ conversations and the film from the gun cameras. It will be like watching a movie. I don’t know when CDR Smythe, he is the XO of 118 and the RIO in one of the fighters, and the other three will be back from Saigon but I want you to interview them immediately upon their return. I don’t care how late it is.  Oh, and you will need to review the standard Rules of Engagement. The ship’s secretary has a copy. Grab one. You need anything or have any trouble call me immediately. Understood?”

“Aye, sir.”

Jesus, this guy did not waste time. Or words. Phillips guessed barking orders came naturally to him at this stage in his career.

LCDR Benson was another aviator who had been sent to the very competitive Navy Intelligence School to learn all the military spy tricks of the trade.  He greeted the Legal Officer cautiously.

“Captain Turner said you would be coming down. I have the material to go over with you but have to ask you a question first.  Are you cleared for Top Secret material?”

Phillips gave the Intelligence Officer a blank look.

“I have no idea. Can’t remember seeing any traffic above Confidential classification when I did my night watches at the Naval District.  Since my work involved mostly representing junior enlisted, I did not have access to much secret stuff.”

“OK. I can give you a spot waiver given the time issues here and the fact you have to do the JAG Investigation. But I will need you to fill out some paperwork to get a permanent Top Secret clearance. LT Hansen had one. And you have to keep all the photos and other material here.”

Then Benson launched into his spiel.

“The engagement occurred at about 5:58 a.m. from the time monitor on the planes’ gun cameras. It happened here about 30 miles northwest of the ship and about 60 miles from Hainan. As you may know from the Rules of Engagement, anything within 50 miles of the island is a no-fly zone for us and it’s considered Chinese air space.  The two F-4s were nowhere near the line. What is odd is that Chinese fighters, who routinely transit from a PLA base in South China here, always take the farthest eastern route away from our carrier formations and land on Hainan heading to the west. To my knowledge, we have never had a close call brushing up against Chinese MIGs before.  Both sides have tended to stay as far away from each other as possible.”

“Not this morning. For some reason these MIGs looped to the west and while on an apparent flight path to Hainan got within our comfort zone; roughly a 50-mile arc around the northernmost of our fleet, the screening destroyers.  Both Linfield 102 and 104, that’s the call signs for the two VF-118 aircraft, sent warning calls for the planes to divert to a more northern track.  They did not respond. One scenario that the fighters always plan for is a North Viet Namese attack on the fleet pretending to be Chinese fighters heading for Hainan. So our guys were trained to pounce on anything that moved too close to the fleet.”

“Had the two bogeys changed track and heading north to loop around the island there would have been no problem. But they turned toward the fleet.  That set off the attack alarms in the fighters.  They immediately made a bee-line for the two planes and the destroyers below were alerted.  I will play the audiotape for you. While we can guess at the identity of the voices, we will need to get verification on who said what. I assume you will interview the pilots and can do that. As you will hear, one of the pilots says clearly ‘They are firing on us.’  That triggered the automatic response of our guys firing their Sidewinder missiles.  Four were fired and three hit and destroyed the two MIGs.  They went into the Gulf about here, only a couple of miles apart.”

“Here are the photos of the debris. These markings here on the tail are definitely Chinese. This is not a Chinese aircraft given to the NVA that it reconfigured. Why in the hell the Chinese made a feint at the fleet is the $64 question. I am the Intelligence officer and see all the traffic on Chinese military movements. Nothing we have seen indicates any hostile intent by Chinese forces against the U.S.  It may be these were inexperienced pilots that had not made the transit before and panicked when our guys challenged them. Big mistake. Any questions so far?”

Phillips felt overwhelmed by Benson’s data dump. How could he just get a drink of water from this fire hose?

“Commander, you have given me plenty of information to absorb. Let me start at the beginning. Can I get a map with positions of the four aircraft noted from the time of first sighting before the dog fight? With a line drawn showing the no-fly area near Hainan. Then I would like to listen to the audiotape. When I am done with that we can go over the photos and the video.”

“OK. Wilson, get a map for the Lieutenant, and let’s start plotting the positions.”

A first-class radioman jumped to attention.

“Aye, sir.”

The exercise was starting out like his ROTC navigation classes. He was getting his bearings on a small part of the sea; here is the Tonkin Gulf.  Only instead of ships going 25-30 nautical miles an hour these frigging jets were flying at 300 knots.  Could close in no time. The enlisted man then noted with red dots the initial position of the “bogeys” when spotted by the ship’s fighters.  Then a dotted line plot to where they fatefully turned right instead of left. And the blue dots were the good guys. Pencil marks showed the various ships’ locations.

“Not sure this is exact, sir. But a pretty good approximation.”

“Thanks; now can I listen to the tape?”

“Sure, you can sit at my desk. Might help to use these earphones to screen out the background clattering.”  The office’s teletype machines were making something of a racket.

The tape was only about two minutes long. He replayed it twice as the voices were not as distinct as he hoped.  First, just desultory and intermittent chatter. Then a higher-pitched voice:

“Two bogeys. 10 o’clock low.  Heading 145. Bout 20 miles.”

“Keep your eyes peeled.”

“They are turning in. I say again, turning in.”

“THEY ARE FIRING AT US. FIRING AT US.”

“GUNS UP. ALL PICKLES ARE HOT.”

‘MISSILE ONE AWAY. MISSILES TWO AND THREE AWAY.”

“MISSILE ONE AWAY.”

“BOGEY ONE IS DOWN. OTHER TURNING AWAY.”

“BOGEY TWO IS DOWN.’

“Air Boss. This is Linfield 102. We have a situation here.”

End of tape. That sure happened in a hurry.  Phillips was curious what the gun cameras showed.  Real herkie jerky. Not surprising given the twisting and turning the pilots were taught when engaged with enemy aircraft. Missiles were just streaks of light but the exploding MIGs made quite a sight. Poor guys learned too late not to screw with carrier fleet air cover. Phillips wondered if the bosses in Peking or Hainan were mulling that lesson over.

The Intelligence Officer then went through several photos of the wreckage taken by the recon aircraft shortly after the air battle. Some big piece of a MIG, one whole tail section with markings that Benson assured him was Chinese. He didn’t see any bodies floating on the water. Maybe the sea snakes got them.

Phillips thanked Benson and left to study the written Rules of Engagement and prepare his list of questions for the aviators when they returned from their grilling in Saigon. Then he had to meet with the XO to peruse the bad guy list.

“Sir, WO Bell and I met again after I reviewed the service records of the fifty or so guys with repeat masts that you wanted eyeballed as potential troublemakers. I was not able to get two records of squadron personnel with repeat masts since the Air Wing office says only you can get access to those. Not sure these two guys are hard-core badasses but if you give them the sign I can at least check them out.   I am not sure if there are any Marines you want to think about. I understand Captain Carlotti does his own Article 15s for his troops so I have not seen any records of Marines with spotty backgrounds.”

“Don’t worry about the Marines. I talk to Captain Carlotti almost every day and we discuss his less than top-notch Marines.  And he has very few. None of which I think will be a problem for the ship. Let me call the Air Wing office now to get you permission to see the air dale records.”

XO makes a brief call to the Commander of the Air Group’s office.

“That’s done. You get any resistance from the aviators over access to anything see me immediately. I understand why they like to keep their independence in all things bureaucratic but I don’t have much patience for it now. They are part of the ship and subject to the CO’s rules even though they pretend otherwise. So what do we have?”

“Ten guys who could be real trouble. The aggressive, brawling types who drink too much and don’t think too much of sailors of a different color.  Four blacks and six whites.  The others are borderline screwups but many of them are close to their release date so they will probably scrape by until the end of the cruise.  But these guys, and here is the list, are well nigh worthless sailors and get in trouble in almost every port call.”

“I recognize these guys. Particularly Evans. One of the black hotheads.  His Chief Petty Officer, who is also black, got every animated at his last Captain’s mast and told the Captain he was a good for nothing who hated whites and could never make it in the Navy. I think the CO took this as a personal challenge and tried to get the kid’s attention. Put him in the Jet Engine shop to give him a shot at learning some real skills. Evans was surprised and the Chief was livid. Said he was wasting a slot that more deserving sailors, white or black, should have a shot at and the Captain would regret it. He was almost insubordinate to the CO. But I thought Evans was OK since then.”

“No other masts but written up for some backtalk to the Division Officer who counseled him about it.  But I heard he is really stirring up trouble with the new black sailors coming aboard. Trying to enforce some type of segregated bunks where the black kids have to get a rack near the other blacks in the berthing space.  Always insisting the black sailors do the dap, that fist bumping handshake.  And he is very vocal about how racist the Filipinos are in the Jungle. I think we need to keep an eye on this guy.”

“I agree. I will take this list and have a chat with the Division Officers and Chief Jackson. You work with the Shore Patrol and the Philippine police to see if any of them act up at the next port call. And then we meet again to see if any trouble is brewing.”

“Aye, sir.”

Phillips then dived into working on the MIG shoot-down investigation. While Yates hunted and pecked his way to make a transcript from the F-4s audiotape, Phillips worked up his list of questions for the two pilots and their Radar Intercept Officers while poring over the written Rules of Engagement for aerial combat in or near Chinese occupied territory.  After a quick sandwich from the grill near the Flight Deck, he was ready for the interviews at about the time LT Trumbull announced the four were returning to the ship from Saigon.

Phillips wanted to interview Commander Smythe, the XO of the squadron, first. He was the most senior and experienced aviator. Not trained as a pilot but an RIO with hundreds of missions under his belt. The RIOs did all the radar work and readied the weapons for firing.

Phillips hustled up to CDR Smythe’s stateroom after confirming the landing and giving him enough time for a meal. After a polite knock, the door opened and Phillips was staring at a very haggard, short, and mean-looking Commander.

“Who the f*ck are you?”

“Uh, I am LT Phillips, LT Hansen’s replacement as the ship’s JAG officer. I have to do a JAG investigation about the air battle this morning and need to interview you.”

“JAG Investigation? Are you serious? I have just had my ass reamed non-stop in Saigon by a boatload of Captains, a few Admirals, and even a damn Air Force General.  I have risked my ass in this man’s Navy for 15 years and almost got shot down twice. And they can squash me like a damn bug. I have no time for this crap. See me in the morning, Counselor.”

SLAM.  Well, that was definitive enough for Phillips. Guess the Squadron XO would be the last one interviewed. He went back to his office to go over the list of the other three to try to get some interviews done before the morning.

One of the pilots was an Air Force captain. What the hell was he doing on a carrier? The others were an LT and LTJG so they shouldn’t be too disrespectful.  Then the phone in the office rang.

“John Law, this is the Captain. Did you interview CDR Smythe?”

“No, sir. He acted like he was a little put out and said he would talk to me in the morning.”

“Oh he did, did he? Do you want to interview him first?”

“Yes, sir. That is my preference. He is the most experienced and his recollection might carry the most weight in preparing findings. But I can probably get to the same place by talking to other pilots first.”

“You stay there and don’t interview anyone else. CDR Smythe will be there momentarily.”

Five minutes had not passed when a sheepish looking Commander entered Phillips’ office. Phillips thought working for the CO would have its advantages.

“Sorry I chewed on your ass, Lieutenant. It’s been a long day. I thought I was doing my job to keep bogeys away from the fleet and find out I might have stepped in some political crap. What do you need to know?”

Phillips got the Commander to verify the identity of the voices on the tape. It was CAPT Kerr, the Air Force pilot, who saw one MIG firing on them. He had over 300 missions so was likely credible. Smythe was working the plane’s radar and did not see the firing. Then everyone went into combat mode and it was over in less than a minute.  The Squadron XO confirmed the planes’ position from the ship’s radar and Phillips quickly typed out a rough statement for the Commander to review overnight and confirm or correct in the morning.

The three other aviators’ interviews went smoothly. Word had been passed from the Captain through the Commander of the Air Group to the Squadron Commanders to cooperate with the lawyer and get the investigation done pronto. The Air Force Captain was adamant that Bogey One was firing its 20 mm cannons at them.

“I have 325 missions. This is my second tour although first on a carrier. I have been in four separate dog fights and now have two MIG scalps. I know what enemy cannon fire looks like. These guys just panicked when they saw us closing. So we smoked them. End of story.”

This guy reeked of cockiness. Must be an Air Force Academy graduate. Phillips assumed those guys got an extra helping of piss and vinegar. And he was junior enough not to give a damn about any threat to his career.  He could get a job with the airlines making three times what the military paid him. That sounded definitive enough for Phillips. After Yates and Clinton helped with typing up the statements the lawyer took another hour drafting a rough report with findings and conclusions and called the Captain to advise of the progress.

“Good job John Law. You have done enough for tonight. Give me the final tomorrow so I can sign off and give to the Admiral. We go back to war in the morning. Will be calling for General Quarters at 0530 about half an hour before we launch.”

“Yes, sir.”

It was after midnight. 18 hours on a reduced work day. Phillips was now looking forward to Subic as much as the horny sailors.

 

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  1. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Some long days there…

    • #1
  2. Jim McConnell Member
    Jim McConnell
    @JimMcConnell

    Always interesting stories of a life that most of us know nothing about. Thanks!

    • #2
  3. navyjag Coolidge
    navyjag
    @navyjag

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Some long days there…

    More to come. Many more.

    • #3
  4. navyjag Coolidge
    navyjag
    @navyjag

    And Mark and Max are  helping me. 

    • #4
  5. Nohaaj Coolidge
    Nohaaj
    @Nohaaj

    Question:  Were there no sensors on those jets back in the day that would have recorded incoming fire or enemy target lock?  

    • #5
  6. navyjag Coolidge
    navyjag
    @navyjag

    Nohaaj (View Comment):

    Question: Were there no sensors on those jets back in the day that would have recorded incoming fire or enemy target lock?

    This was close to end for the F-4 fighters so I don’t believe so. Max would know. 

    • #6
  7. Skyler Coolidge
    Skyler
    @Skyler

    We had a Chinese national working as an employee of our regular contractor that programmed the PLC’s for our factory installations when I was at Dell.  He was a very nice, friendly man and I talked with him often.  I can’t recall his name, it started with a C, Calvin?  Yeah, I think it was Calvin.  It was an English name, of course, I learned when we installed a factory in China (I did not go) that they all took on English names when dealing with us. 

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married.  “Really?  Congrats,” I told him.   Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.  

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American.  I know the owner and all the people working there.  What’s going on?  I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.  

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    • #7
  8. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Skyler (View Comment):

    We had a Chinese national working as an employee of our regular contractor that programmed the PLC’s for our factory installations when I was at Dell. He was a very nice, friendly man and I talked with him often. I can’t recall his name, it started with a C, Calvin? Yeah, I think it was Calvin. It was an English name, of course, I learned when we installed a factory in China (I did not go) that they all took on English names when dealing with us.

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married. “Really? Congrats,” I told him. Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American. I know the owner and all the people working there. What’s going on? I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    Maybe including Mrs Mitch McConnell?

    • #8
  9. Skyler Coolidge
    Skyler
    @Skyler

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Skyler (View Comment):

    We had a Chinese national working as an employee of our regular contractor that programmed the PLC’s for our factory installations when I was at Dell. He was a very nice, friendly man and I talked with him often. I can’t recall his name, it started with a C, Calvin? Yeah, I think it was Calvin. It was an English name, of course, I learned when we installed a factory in China (I did not go) that they all took on English names when dealing with us.

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married. “Really? Congrats,” I told him. Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American. I know the owner and all the people working there. What’s going on? I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    Maybe including Mrs Mitch McConnell?

    She was born in Taiwan, which despite what the commies say, is not part of the People’s Republic of China.

    • #9
  10. Headedwest Coolidge
    Headedwest
    @Headedwest

    Skyler (View Comment):

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married. “Really? Congrats,” I told him. Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American. I know the owner and all the people working there. What’s going on? I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    It should be the default assumption. Even if they don’t want to be a spy, threats can be (and are) made against their family members in China if they won’t cooperate.

    • #10
  11. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Skyler (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Skyler (View Comment):

    We had a Chinese national working as an employee of our regular contractor that programmed the PLC’s for our factory installations when I was at Dell. He was a very nice, friendly man and I talked with him often. I can’t recall his name, it started with a C, Calvin? Yeah, I think it was Calvin. It was an English name, of course, I learned when we installed a factory in China (I did not go) that they all took on English names when dealing with us.

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married. “Really? Congrats,” I told him. Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American. I know the owner and all the people working there. What’s going on? I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    Maybe including Mrs Mitch McConnell?

    She was born in Taiwan, which despite what the commies say, is not part of the People’s Republic of China.

    But her parents were, and we know how that works from “The Americans,” right?  :-)

    And what HW said.

    • #11
  12. Skyler Coolidge
    Skyler
    @Skyler

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Skyler (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Skyler (View Comment):

    We had a Chinese national working as an employee of our regular contractor that programmed the PLC’s for our factory installations when I was at Dell. He was a very nice, friendly man and I talked with him often. I can’t recall his name, it started with a C, Calvin? Yeah, I think it was Calvin. It was an English name, of course, I learned when we installed a factory in China (I did not go) that they all took on English names when dealing with us.

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married. “Really? Congrats,” I told him. Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American. I know the owner and all the people working there. What’s going on? I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    Maybe including Mrs Mitch McConnell?

    She was born in Taiwan, which despite what the commies say, is not part of the People’s Republic of China.

    But her parents were, and we know how that works from “The Americans,” right? :-)

    And what HW said.

    Not sure who HW is.  I don’t know Mitch McConnell’s wife and I’m willing to consider that I am wrong.

    • #12
  13. kedavis Coolidge
    kedavis
    @kedavis

    Skyler (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Skyler (View Comment):

    kedavis (View Comment):

    Skyler (View Comment):

    We had a Chinese national working as an employee of our regular contractor that programmed the PLC’s for our factory installations when I was at Dell. He was a very nice, friendly man and I talked with him often. I can’t recall his name, it started with a C, Calvin? Yeah, I think it was Calvin. It was an English name, of course, I learned when we installed a factory in China (I did not go) that they all took on English names when dealing with us.

    Anyway, I had assumed that he came to the US to get away from China but one day he told me that he was going back to China to get married. “Really? Congrats,” I told him. Then he explained that he was doing such a good job here in the US that the Chinese government found him a wife and is allowing him to marry her.

    Now wait just a gol darn second here. The company he worked for was American. I know the owner and all the people working there. What’s going on? I never thought it appropriate to query him further, but ever since, I have made the assumption that any Chinese national in our country is at least a part time spy.

    I hope this is not true of your son’s fiancee, but I wouldn’t bet on it not being the case.

    Maybe including Mrs Mitch McConnell?

    She was born in Taiwan, which despite what the commies say, is not part of the People’s Republic of China.

    But her parents were, and we know how that works from “The Americans,” right? :-)

    And what HW said.

    Not sure who HW is. I don’t know Mitch McConnell’s wife and I’m willing to consider that I am wrong.

    Headedwest.

    • #13
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