Chapter 2

The last week of July 1980 was when I formally began my time in The Program. It wasn't the normal one week and picked at random—at the Corporal John Freeman Mackie Military School for Boys, all cadets volunteer for the Optional Volunteer Participant Plan. It is a requirement for attendance at Mackie—all boys must complete a month fully naked all 24 hours every day of the month of August.

I had been nude for more than six weeks already. I had another advantage: amnesia. I didn't know that nudity was shameful. A third advantage was that I had no body hair. One of the first things done after taking my clothes and giving me a proper bath was to crop my hair close to the scalp. Other boys had to submit to body shaving.

"Body hair is not hygienic," Nurse Yardley told us. "Besides, you are all still boys. Shaving your bodies will keep you all equal. None of you can brag about how much more manly you are."

I didn't think of that.

Each squad of eight cadets was assigned to one room. Cadet Corporal Hernandez was actually in his third year at Mackie. The rest of us were new.

Cadet Corporal Hernandez had cousins in Cuba. His father had fled Cuba with Batista.

I was badly injured and lost most of my memories. No, I don't remember being injured. I didn't even know that my middle name was Land until Mr. Ray, the commandant's secretary, informed me of that fact. My full name is Scott Land Thistle. Here at Mackie I'm simply Cadet Thistle.

Cadet Jefferson is a black from New York City. He complained loudly about having to be naked, about having his body shaved, about 'faggots' playing with his 'junk.'

Cadet Chan's family is from the Philippines. He didn't need his body shaved—but he blushed most of the final week of July.

Cadet Stewart was a redhead with freckles. He was from Missouri and brags that his family was nudist. Cadet Stewart is perhaps more comfortable in just his skin than Cadet Corporal Hernandez.

Cadet Nichols is from Oregon. He is just scared. Cadet Nichols doesn't say much.

Cadet Foxly kept demanding to go home. He was from Chicago and claims connections with the Mafia.

Cadet Davis was from California. He said that he was caught messing around with his girlfriend and his parents sent him to Mackie as punishment.

"They caught me naked in the pool with Ginny and now I have to stay naked in school!" Cadet Davis complained. "Life sucks!"

Actually we were not exactly completely naked. Temporary tattoos proclaiming us to be Program participants were applied to our right chest above the nipple and to our right hip above the butt cheek. On the left side we had our names in temporary tattoo, too. Cadet Corporal Hernandez also wore corporal stripes temporary tattoos on his arms. I did mention that we had buzz-cut hair styles and that our body hair was shaved.

"Open your Program guides," Corporal Hernandez was conducting a class for his squad. "The subject is Reasonable Requests. How many of you have been in a Program school before?"

Cadet Stewart raised his hand.

"How was a Reasonable Request handled in your school?"

"I was a Lifestyle Nudist in school," Cadet Stewart said. "I am here because I didn't want to comply with a Reasonable Request. I got expelled for a Program violation even though as a Lifestyle Nudist I was not required to. I was given a choice between enrolling in a military school or going to Juvenile Hall as a Program Offender."

"What did you refuse to do?" Cadet Corporal Hernandez asked.

"I refused to eat the dean's pussy," Cadet Stewart replied. "I'm not into that. Besides, she was old and fat and hairy and smelled bad."

"Got to Chapter 7 Page 3," the cadet corporal instructed. "Here at Mackie there are five color codes to guide you in making a Reasonable Request and compliance with same. What is 'reasonable' and what isn't? In the real army there are military regulations for everything. The Commandant doesn't expect teenagers to have the knowledge, experience, social skills and maturity to determine what is and isn't reasonable. If we had that, there'd be no reason for The Program."

The five colors were white, green, yellow, orange and red. Each color was a level of 'reasonable.' Our squad leader told us that the standard was the 'reasonable man, ' the same standard used in court rooms for criminal trials. What would the reasonable man do?

"Cadet Thistle, who is a 'reasonable man' here in this room?" Cadet Corporal Hernandez asked.

"Nobody, sir!" I replied. "The 'Reasonable Man' doesn't exist. Sir, even if you make me do push-ups, Commandant Mackie isn't a 'Reasonable Man.' That is a legal fiction to measure real people's actions. Commandant Mackie may make good decisions, but he isn't the 'Reasonable Man.' So how many pushups will I need to do, Cadet Corporal?"

"You paid attention to Mrs. Giovanni," Hernandez remarked. "Cadet Thistle is correct."

"Like 'What would Jesus do?'—right?" Cadet Chan asked.

"You spoke out of turn, but you are correct," Hernandez said. "Give me ten."

Cadet Chan assumed the position and pumped out ten push-ups. He was flakey at the end, arching and bowing his back, but he did it.

The lesson continued with requests coded 'white.' These were default things that we had to do as a Program Participant without being asked—remain naked, never hiding or covering any part of the body with hands, arms, books, book bags or other devices. We were required to remain in public areas of the school—and were permitted only three bathroom breaks free of Reasonable Requests.

"We don't have facilities for the opposite sex students," Hernandez said. "However, the norm is that we have open-plan latrines and shower rooms. You will perform all bodily functions in full view of everyone. You will sleep without blankets or other coverings until further notice. When you have successfully completed your Optional Volunteer Participant Plan, you will sleep naked for the first year in your squad bay. The white-coded 'Reasonable Requests' are things that you are supposed to do without being asked. When a fellow cadet reminds you to perform white-coded requests, do it! If a drill instructor or teacher has to remind you, it will mean demerits for you and for your squad."

That's another feature of military lifestyles—collective punishments for the unit.

The green-coded Reasonable Requests included posing and anything not requiring physical contact with another person. Excluded was 'penetration by a foreign object.'

"You are not required to stick your finger up your ass," Cadet Corporal Hernandez explained. "You are not required to eat anything, to stick anything in your mouth. However, you can be asked to jack off for an audience. More about that later."