Bad Decisions Make Good Stories: Subic Bay, RP

So like the title says, "Bad Decisions" make good stories. I think that must be because we learn the most when we get it wrong.

The way it felt back then was like I was "King Of The World", I was a 17 year old seaman apprentice on a old DDG that was commissioned in 1961. We hadn't seen land since Hawaii and we stepped onto foreign land.

They made an announcement that we were advised not to go to Subic City....I just followed the sea of white uniforms heading to Subic City....Whatever you wanted and more for pennies on the dollar. A red light district that caught me in it's lights. For $50.00 American dollars I had full run of a house with a beautiful companion for 5 days. I did, and changed houses every 5 days or so. Back then I thought there couldn't be a better place. Today I understand that I was helping fuel the engine of the sex industry in the Philippines, which at that time was forcing women into prostitution, many times by their own families and a child sex trade was and as far as I know still is active.

One night as I staggered from one bikini club to another, I looked down an alley, there stood a shipmate, sexually assaulting a girl that couldn't have been more than 8 or 9. I went down and had a firm discussion with him as the girl ran back to her pimp. By the time the shore patrol found him he apparently had to be taken to the base hospital, apparently he was mugged. He was shipped back to the states for medical treatment, never saw him again. That is why it was a bad decision to fuel that engine, there were no limits for these people, they were that desperate, and enough of us were beyond the pale that the need created the supply.

I am all for legalized adult prostitution anywhere the community allows it, give some of the power back to the states. But leave the kids alone.

This is just one story. It may have been a rare event. 99.9% of the men I served with may have been out of control, but they knew where the lines were.

I also know at that time many of the girls were brought in from the country, promised legitimate jobs, then forced into prostitution and dancing in the clubs.

Now 26 years later, I see my general behavior as being normal for the conditions, but a bad decision in the long run. As a survivor of childhood abuse I have always been a bit promiscuous, but that experience followed me into and through my first marriage. She finally cheated on me just to get me to move out. It worked. My drinking also became an obvious problem overseas and remained so for much of my life.

Now I understand the rants my mother would go on when she was drunk about women's rights, and equal pay for equal work. This was the early to mid 70's. Woman are more than sex. They are complicated, intelligent, capable human beings. I knew more about N.O.W. by age 5 than most men know in their 50's. Using other's merely for what they can offer sexually is a bad idea for me. We all deserve better.

But of course sex is great & as long as you are honest about what you are doing with your partner if you have one, then fly baby fly.

Just My Opinion & Experience,

Maddad