Table of contents for July 2013 in Reader's Digest

With the family gathered for my birthday dinner, at the end of summer 1989, I made my big announcement: I’d gotten a job offer! It had been four months since, as my father liked to say, “the University of Michigan had the good taste to grant my daughter a degree.” I’d been papering every publication in Greater Cleveland with résumés by day and reviewing concerts for $25 a pop for the local entertainment tabloid by night. (A fee that barely covered the gas to get to Blossom.) I counted among my blessings two things: First, that I’d graduated debt-free, thanks to my parents’ generous decision to invest an inheritance for this purpose. Second, that we all liked each other well enough that moving back into their home was far from…

CELEBRITY NUT JOBS To some, a peanut is a tasty treat that might get lodged in their throats. To Ohio artist Steve Casino, it’s a tiny canvas for big stars. A stodgy man walks into a bar and sits down. “Want a drink?” asks the bartender. “Tried liquor once, didn’t like it,” says the man. “Care for a pretzel?” “Tried a pretzel once, didn’t like it.” “Wanna watch the baseball game?” “Tried watching baseball once. Didn’t like it. Don’t mind me; I’m just waiting for my son.” “Let me guess,” says the bartender, “your only child?” Submitted by Adam Joshua Smargon, Newark, Delaware PHEW! Just got a bill in the mail that said: Final Notice. So that’s a relief. Comedian Joe DeVito Inside a supermarket, a woman spots a grandfather…

Cutting-edge experts say the “calories in, calories out” philosophy is oversimplified and inadequate. Quality of calories determines the quantity your body burns or stores, says Robert Lustig, MD, author of the recently published book Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Foods, Obesity, and Disease. He shares these fascinating examples of how calorie quality affects your weight and health: 1 FIBER Fiber delays the absorption of calories. For example, when you eat a 160-calorie portion of almonds, you absorb only 130 because some calories are delivered to your intestine, where your gut bacteria burn them for their own energy source. 2 PROTEIN You use twice as much energy to metabolize protein as carbohydrate—due to the thermic effect of food. Protein also reduces hunger hormones more than carbs do. 3…

Warm Water Soothes Burns Best Got a little too close to your grill? Swiss researchers compared recovery in rats whose burns had been treated with gauze soaked in either warm water (98.6 degrees F., or body temperature) or cool water (62 degrees F.). Days later, rodents treated with warm water had less tissue damage. Human testing is still needed, but researchers recommend running a burn under cold water for about a minute to quench the heat, and then switching to warm water to increase blood flow and promote healing. Source: Reto Wettstein, MD, Department of Plastic, Reconstructive, Aesthetic and Hand Surgery, University Hospital Basel, Switzerland The Lifesaving Supplement Your Skin Loves Research has shown fish oil pills can have beneficial effects on skin elasticity, but a new study shows the…

From Budget Travel How do I know what I can afford to spend? The old rule of thumb says your annual vacation should cost about a week’s salary, but the price depends on your fixed expenses (housing, transportation, etc.) and lifestyle choices. The most common budgeting mistake is underestimating expenses. As you research a trip’s cost, remember to include not just airfare and hotels but also meals, cabs, souvenirs, tips, and a cushion for those great—or awful—OMG moments. Financial expert Grant Cardone suggests setting aside an extra 25 percent. Decide when you want to go, and set up a savings schedule. If you are a retiree on a fixed income, pencil in special vacations on a calendar as part of a long-term plan that flags the years in which you’ll…

Trifle tip: Swap half the blueberries with strawberries for a red, white, and blue July Fourth treat. Star Bursts Star Bursts BY CRISTINA SUAREZ KRUMSICK From No Bake Makery Serves 8 or more 2 cups Greek yogurt 3 tbs. fresh lemon juice ½ cup fresh orange juice 15 ice-pop sticks, cut in half 30 Starburst candies PUT yogurt, lemon juice, and orange juice in bowl. Stir with rubber spatula until evenly blended. Spoon mixture into ice cube trays, filling each slot about three quarters. Tap tray on hard surface to even out mixture. Insert blunt end of each ice-pop stick into a Starburst; place one in each ice cube slot. Tap tray against hard surface again to even out. Freeze for 4 hours or until solid. Carefully flex tray to…

FROM THE New York Times The baby was first named Ace, for the train station where Danny, left, found him. Twelve years ago, Danny called me from a dark, damp subway station, frantic. “I found a baby!” he shouted. “Get down here, and flag down a police car or something.” By nature, Danny is a remarkably calm person, so when I felt his heart pounding through the phone line, I ran. When I got to the subway station, Danny was holding a light-brownskinned baby, about a day old. The baby had been wrapped in an oversize black sweatshirt and left on the ground in a corner behind the turnstiles. In the following weeks, after family court had taken custody of the baby, Danny told the story over and over again,…

It was the policy of our call center to use a customer’s name five times, no matter how brief the call. Here was a fellow employee’s attempt at doing just that: Customer: Do you provide such-and-such service? Employee: Can I get your name? Customer: Sure, it’s John. Employee: John. John, John, John, John, no, we don’t. Thanks for calling. From corporateoppression.com Take My Amex, Please! Four things employees tried to expense last year: • Trip for a Job Interview: An employee wanted his bosses to foot the bill for his attempt to seek new bosses. • Baby Giraffe: This was the entertainment for an office party. • Laser Tattoo Removal: Someone in IT decided that scars looked better than his awkward tats. • Pink Flamingo Lawn Ornaments: Just what every…

FROM THE BOOK When I Fell from the Sky Juliane Koepcke grew up in Lima, Peru, before moving, at 14, to the Peruvian rain forest, where her parents, Maria and Hans-Wilhelm Koepcke, established the Panguana Ecological Research Station. After two years of accompanying them on research trips into the jungle, Juliane returned to Lima to complete high school. On December 24, 1971, Juliane, 17, and her mother boarded a flight in Lima bound for Pucallpa, the city with an airport closest to Panguana, to visit her father for Christmas. In her own words: MY DAYS IN LIMA are wonderful. Despite my jungle experience, I am a schoolgirl. I spend my vacations in Panguana and my school days with classmates in Lima. My mother prefers to fly to Pucallpa earlier, but…

THEORY: Gluten issues are caused by C-sections! ABOUT ONE IN THREE babies in the United States today is delivered by cesarean section, a 53 percent increase from 1996, according to the CDC. “A baby born vaginally gets exposed to a ton of bacteria while traveling through the birth canal compared with a C-section baby who lands in a surgeon’s sterile gloves,” explains Christine Johnson, PhD, MPH, senior staff epidemiologist at the Henry Ford Health System in Detroit. “But we now think this early bacterial exposure is crucial to immune system development.” One German study of almost 2,000 children found that those delivered by C-section were about 80 percent more likely to develop celiac disease, a digestive disorder triggered by eating foods with gluten, a protein in wheat, rye, and barley.…

We launched our Reader’s Digest Best of America Photo Contest in March, inviting you to send an image that conveyed what you love about our country. Out of hundreds of submissions, each accompanied by a short caption, these three stood out. 1st Prize PURE POETRY “Most people know about the Great Lakes and the mountain ranges flanking both sides of the country, but few may realize that there’s a rain forest in Washington! I captured this magical, sun-kissed scene while walking on the state’s Olympic Peninsula.” Andra Van Kempen, St. Cloud, Minnesota 2nd Prize PINK PARADE “What’s more American than a county fair? This one in Alameda County, California, has yummy food, games, and—of course—pig races. People walk up to the fence and just smile. It’s hard not to!” Missy…

From my mother … Do choose your battles. Don’t force your spouse to take part in the activities that you enjoy. Sometimes you can go it alone! From my sisters … Do cut out words like should or ought, as in “You should be a better listener.” That’s parental, not relational. Instead, simply ask for what you need. Don’t have a script for a happy marriage in your head—and don’t expect your spouse to magically follow it. From my best friend … Do recognize what your spouse brings to the relationship rather than focusing on what you wish he or she brought. Rejoice in the ways you and your spouse fit together; try to work around the ways you don’t. Don’t compare your relationship with others. From pop culture ……

Four of us were playing a board game with cards that asked various questions, and players were to choose which one of them each question most applied to. One card asked, “Who looks like a celebrity?” Everyone pointed at me and said, “Melissa.” Surprised, and, I admit, very flattered, I eagerly asked, “Which celebrity do I look like?” They replied: “John Lennon.” Melissa Taylor, Holland, Michigan Overheard on an airplane, a mother to her disgruntled teen: “Well, honey, maybe you can talk to the airline, and they’ll upgrade you to a better family.” Bob Gilbert, Raleigh, North Carolina Camp What-the-Heck Restless? Here are actual summer camps for adults: • Crossword Puzzle Camp (Crossword University Cruise): Go from doing puzzles on your couch to doing puzzles on their couch. • Gladiator…

Read, Learn, Share I digested, discussed, and laughed about this issue and enjoyed it more than any other in my years of reading this magazine. I sent links to my daughter and granddaughter, my stepdaughter and stepgrandson, and so many friends! RD and I occasionally disagree, but so what? I like reading the other side too. Isn’t that the whole point? Karen Matthews, Fairbanks, Alaska A Forgotten Connection My wife, Carole, and I were taken aback when we saw Darrell Pyle’s name in “POW Poet.” Captain Pyle, as mentioned, was in the cell next to John Borling in the Hanoi Hilton. Carole had worn Captain Pyle’s POW bracelet (and still has it) from the time it was first made available until the day he came home in February 1973. What…

We love when you work up a sweat. You think we’re drawn by the aroma of your “sweet blood,” but it’s really the carbon dioxide you exhale that makes us beeline toward you. The harder you breathe, the more CO2 you emit, so you’re especially attractive after a jog. Love beer? So do some of us. It’s crazy, but we can tell when you’ve been drinking because your skin chemistry changes, and it lures us in. Pregnant? Yum. If you’re a woman who’s expecting, you emit more carbon dioxide and your abdomen has a higher temperature than when you’re not pregnant, drawing some of us right to you. Sorry, baby. Hate getting bitten up? Blame the ladies. We don’t like to admit this, but male mosquitoes do not eat human…

The almost 50 million Americans who have hearing loss may struggle with a surprising side effect: less-satisfying relationships, says Katherine Bouton in her book Shouting Won’t Help: Why I—and 50 Million Other Americans—Can’t Hear You. But Bouton, whose left ear went dead when she was 30 and who started losing hearing in the other by age 50, says things became easier once she acknowledged hearing loss and taught friends and family how to help. Here, her tips for talking to someone with hearing loss: DON’T: Shout Speak in a normal voice, and articulate as clearly as possible; yelling doesn’t help a person with hearing loss hear you any better. The exception: If your voice is particularly quiet, you should speak louder. DON’T: Lean in to the ear Almost all people…

Nearly 500,000 spectators gather in downtown St. Louis on July 4th. Fair Saint Louis ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI If you’re looking for “America’s biggest birthday party,” then this is the place to be. The festivities start with the Freedom Four Miler run and culminate with a concert and a magnificent fireworks show over the Mississippi River. “A special only-in-St. Louis treat: The reflection of the fireworks can be seen on the city’s iconic Gateway Arch during the show,” says Yahoo Travel. Kaboom Town! ADDISON, TEXAS They say everything is bigger in Texas—and that includes this celebration on July 3. “About half a million people from the region spill into this community of 13,000 to experience the musically choreographed display, which follows an air show,” says AOL Travel. Small-town perk: The spectacle…

From the Huffington Post Among my most memorable vacation moments with my kids was the phone call I made from a peak in the Teton Range one summer. The boys were seven and ten, and they had not taken to the majestic scenery with quite the enthusiasm I’d hoped. I believe the word bored was uttered once or twice, and someone actually whined, “Are we there yet?” I had a flashback to my own childhood—the Alps, not the Teton, but the same lack of appreciation from the backseat. “Can you at least grunt your appreciation so I’ll know you’re still there?” my father asked. My siblings and I did so, all the way up a mountain and back down. Which is how I came to call my dad from a…

1 “Organic” doesn’t mean superfood. The health benefits aren’t proven (studies conflict). While organics do cut your level of pesticide exposure by one third, they can still be contaminated by synthetic agricultural chemicals in the soil or during warehousing. 2 Don’t picture happy animals roaming on idyllic farms just because it’s organic meat. The USDA requires that, “organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals … given no antibiotics or growth hormones.” But this could just mean the animals ate organic corn instead of conventional corn. Organic meat is probably worth the expense to reduce your exposure to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. 3 “Organic” doesn’t mean 100 percent organic. Unless the label says 100 percent organic, any item needs only 95 percent of its ingredients to be organic to earn…

Steve Jobs In 1991, the FBI conducted a background check of Jobs as he was being considered for an appointment on the President’s Export Council for international trade by George H. W. Bush. According to the file, “several individuals question Jobs’s honesty, stating that [he] will twist the truth and distort reality in order to achieve his goals.” The report included an admission from the Apple CEO, who died in 2011, that he had experimented with LSD as a teen; he called his use “a positive, life-changing experience.” Helen Keller Keller, the first deaf and blind person to receive a bachelor’s degree, attracted FBI attention for most of the early 20th century. As a socialist, an outspoken critic of President Woodrow Wilson, a birth control supporter, and a founding member…

Hear, Here! Words that sound alike are called homophones, and some—like oral (of speech) and aural (of hearing)—are trickier to differentiate than others. Take this ear-bending quiz, and then check your answers on the next page. 1. gambol (’gam-buhl) v.—A: frolic. B: take a risk. C: walk with a limp. 2. humerus (’hyoomer-us) n.—A: arm bone. B: comic. C: rich garden soil. 3. discrete (dis-’kreet) adj.—A: prudent. B: circular. C: separate. 4. carrel (’kayh-rel) n.— A: study alcove. B: Yuletide song. C: cattle pen. 5. appellation (ah-pel-’lay-shun) n.—A: mountain chain. B: name or title. C: sincere entreaty. 6. pore (’pohr) v.— A: read attentively. B: open slowly. C: rain down in buckets. 7. dissent (dih-’sent) n.—A: downward slope. B: cancellation. C: difference of opinion. 8. straiten (’strayt-in) v.—A: tidy up.…

GOOD IDEA … To the cheers of bird lovers everywhere, conservationists reintroduced white-tailed sea eagles to East Scotland, where they haven’t lived for 200 years. As a safeguard for the raptors, they were placed on the protected-species list. TOO BAD IT DIDN’T WORK! These protected birds now have free rein to attack livestock and civilians alike—an activity they seem very much to enjoy and, apparently, are quite good at. Source: telegraph.co.uk GOOD IDEA … When Lorean Simmons locked herself out of her Pittsburgh home, she sought help from the authorities. TOO BAD IT DIDN’T WORK! First, she set her house on fire. Then she called 911, expecting the fire department to put out the fire and unlock her door. As planned, the fire department responded, but so did the police,…

As she starts her new life as an independent adult, 21-year-old Elizabeth Kurtz can lay claim to a $455-a-month one-bedroom apartment in Montgomery, Alabama; a mismatched menagerie of hand-me-down furniture, including a folding “coffee table” exactly big and round enough to hold a single pizza; $30,000 in college-loan debt; a used car with 62,000-plus miles on it; an old-school flip phone that her smartphone-owning friends make fun of; a netbook computer so little it doesn’t have a CD drive; and a salary so small—$12,000 ayear—that she gets food stamps to supplement her paycheck and to keep her from having to ask her financially stressed parents for money. A table for her clock would be nice, but Elizabeth Kurtz does just fine without one. “I don’t have any dreams of a…

The Man in the Cab FROM New York Newsday For 28 years, three months, and 12 days, I drove a New York City taxi. Now, if you were to ask me what I had for breakfast yesterday, I probably couldn’t tell you. But the memory of one fare is so vivid, I’ll remember it all my days in this world. It was a sunny Monday morning in the spring of 1966. I was cruising down York Avenue looking for a customer, but with the beautiful weather, it was kind of slow. I had stopped at a light just opposite New York Hospital when I spied a well-dressed man dashing down the hospital steps. He was hailing me. Just then, the light turned green, the driver behind me honked impatiently, and…

RECENT BITS FROM RD.COM *Learn something new every day! Get the full stories at rd.com/dailydigest. 1 EAT THIS; LIVE LONGER? A large study of 2,692 U.S. adults found that those eating a lot of omega-3s added two years to their lives. Try walnuts, flaxseeds, salmon, and spinach for a boost. 2 “I’M NOT DEAD, TWITTER!” When the hashtag #nowthatchersdead trended after the former U.K. prime minister Margaret Thatcher died, many misread it as “now that Cher’s dead.” Whoops! See who else made the celeb-death rumor mill. Most popular on Twitter 3 A SMILE’S WORTH A British study found that one smile can boost your mood as much as 2,000 bars of chocolate. Which do you think your dentist would recommend? 4 NEAT SUMMER SONG TRIVIA The classic tune “Under the…

In pursuit of your passions, always be young. In your relationships with others, always be a grown-up. Tom Brokaw I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list. Susan Sontag Insight comes, more often than not, from looking at what’s been on the table all along. David McCullough You only have to do a very few things right in your life, so long as you don’t do too many things wrong. Warren Buffett I want to live my life, not record it. Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis If you’re willing to fail interestingly, you tend to succeed interestingly. Edward Albee, playwright I do not think we have a “right” to happiness. If happiness happens, say thanks. Marlene Dietrich Chevy Chase as Clark Griswold, National Lampoon’s Vacation…

A Team of Soldiers Saves Lives At 2:45 p.m. on Monday, April 15, Army Sgt. Bernard Madore, 1st Lt. Steve Fiola, Staff Sgt. Mark Welch, and 12 other soldiers from the Massachusetts National Guard gathered near a medical tent to watch runners finish the race. A few hours earlier, they had completed Tough Ruck 2013, tackling the 26.2-mile marathon course dressed in combat uniforms and carrying 40-pound military backpacks filled with water, food, and other essentials, to honor comrades killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. When the bombs exploded, the men ran toward the site of the first blast. “A switch turns on [inside your head], and you just go,” said Fiola. They pulled back a chain-link fence to allow doctors and nurses access to the bloody scene and helped remove…

Think using a hands-free phone behind the wheel is safer? Sorry to burst your babble bubble. Canadian researchers tested participants’ driving abilities on a special MRI machine tricked out with a steering wheel and brake and accelerator pedal. They learned that when a person is involved in a conversation conducted on a hands-free phone, blood flow decreases to the area of the brain controlling vision. This may explain why multitasking compromises a driver’s safety. The researchers suspect that any attention-stealing task, including listening to the GPS or radio, would have a similar effect.…

1 Your nose is suddenly a leaky faucet Exercise, especially in cold, dry air, can trigger a runny, congested nose, a condition known as exercise-induced rhinitis. “Increased nasal breathing during exercise dries out the nose’s mucous membranes, which makes the nose secrete more mucus to protect the nasal airway,” says William Silvers, MD, of Allergy Asthma Colorado in Englewood. WHAT TO TRY: If your nose is really interfering with your workout, ask your doctor to prescribe a nasal spray, and use it at least 30 minutes before you exercise. Pack plenty of tissues in your pockets. 2 You feel like someone is stabbing a knife into your ribs Experts don’t know exactly what causes those sharp, fleeting pains called side stitches, but many believe they’re due to diaphragm spasms triggered…

From Mental Floss Americans spend about $600 million on fireworks for the Fourth. Who knew that each firework had a name? I’ve been calling them, “The Ones That Do That Shooty Thing,” or “The Ones That Kind of Sparkle Out.” Not so technical. Here’s a mini-lesson that will make you sound like a connoisseur. WILLOW I love this one! It’s a lot like the Peony (right) and its variations, but it produces trails of silver or gold stars that leave a weeping willow-ish outline. PEONY This “spherical break of colored stars” is apparently the most common, so your chances of spotting it in the skies are pretty good. PALM When this one bursts, it looks like a palm tree (go figure). Some even have a thick tail that resembles a…

THRILLER Joyland by Stephen King (Hard Case Crime, $12.95) The legendary author is at it again! Meet Devin Jones, a college student who takes a job as a carny at a North Carolina amusement park. It’s not all fun and games, however, when a murder changes Jones’s life forever. NOVEL The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani (Riverhead, $27.95) In this debut novel, Thea Atwell is just 15 when she’s sent to an equestrienne boarding school for debutantes. She struggles with her new life and the secrets from home that she’s carried with her. WAR The Yellow Birds by Kevin Powers (Back Bay, $14.99) “The war tried to kill us in the spring,” reads the first line of Powers’s compelling story of two young American soldiers fighting for…

Foods that Heal: • Legumes, dark-green leafy vegetables, and peas Have dull nails? A folate deficiency might be to blame. As you age, your body doesn’t absorb this essential B vitamin as well. Try folate-rich stars like lentils, beans, and spinach. • Flaxseed If your nails are brittle or flaking, include more essential fatty acids in your diet to help keep your nail beds moisturized. Add two tablespoons of flaxseed oil or ground flaxseed to your cereal or smoothies. • Fish (especially salmon and mackerel), lean meat, and poultry To make keratin—a tough protein that’s a major component in hard, strong nails—the body needs high-quality protein like cornish hens, pork loin, and lower-sodium deli-sliced roast turkey. Shoot for about six ounces a day to prevent weak nails. WANT MORE? Our…

FROM Mental Floss “Your Lusts for the Future” When President Carter traveled to Poland in 1977, the State Department hired an interpreter who did not have a lot of professional experience. Through the interpreter, Carter said things like “when I abandoned the United States” (for “when I left the United States”) and “your lusts for the future” (for “your desires for the future”)—mistakes that the media in both countries very much enjoyed. “We Will Bury You” During the Cold War, Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev gave a speech in which he uttered a phrase that was interpreted from Russian as “We will bury you.” The statement escalated the tension between the United States and the Soviet Union. However, the translation was a bit too literal. The more accurate sense of the…

1 Our Olympians stay in school. Gold-medal swimmer Missy Franklin, 17, turned down millions of dollars in endorsements to finish her senior year and swim for Regis Jesuit High School in Aurora, Colorado. Our town names can get pretty silly. Why (Arizona); Hygiene (Colorado); Embarrass (Minnesota); Peculiar (Missouri) … need we go on? 3 The “Silicon Prairie” is booming. So much for Silicon Valley. These days, the Corn Belt is cultivating the Internet: Google Fiber has put down roots in Kansas City, and hot start-ups including RareWire, Social Money, and Goodsmiths have sprouted up in Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri. 4 Our kids’ll do anything for a dog. The Cordell sisters outsmarted their parents by crowd-sourcing their puppy. Mom and Dad promised daughters Cadence, 12, and Emerson, 9, that if they…

FROM THE Oslo Freedom Forum I’m from Saudi Arabia. I want to tell you about two separate chapters of my life. Chapter one is the story of my generation; it begins the year I was born, 1979. On November 20 of that year, there was a siege of Mecca, the holiest city in the world for Muslims. It was seized by Juhayman al-Otaybi, a militant Islamist, and some 400 of his men. The occupation lasted for two weeks. Saudi authorities had to use force—heavily armed force—to eject the occupiers and end the violation. They beheaded Juhayman and his men publicly. Nevertheless, the authorities became very anxious. They feared another uprising. Saudi Arabia was newly formed and rapidly changing and had been adopting a new civil way of life. For rebel…

1 Where Am I? Here’s a map of the USA with some original city names. Can you figure out their present-day monikers? 2 The Bill of Oops! Oh, no! Jimmy Madison has dropped the Bill of Rights, and it’s scattered all over the floor. Help him put the first ten amendments back in their correct order before Tommy Jefferson adds a few more! A. Protects the right to a fair trial B. Prohibits cruel and unusual punishment C. Protects freedom of expression D. Protects rights not enumerated in the Constitution E. Prohibits the quartering of troops during peacetime F. Protects the right to due process of the law G. Protects the right to trial by jury in civil cases H. Protects the right to bear arms I. Protects states’ rights…

Dinnertime Disrespect Lately, my adult sister has been loudly smacking her lips as she eats and slurping everything she drinks. She doesn’t even use her napkin. It’s very obnoxious, and my family and I have been telling her politely to please cut it out. She says we’re rude and continues; I’m at my wit’s end. Is there any hope? Pining for Peace Dear Peace, Sounds like there’s some sort of power play going on here. If you’ve asked her to stop and she continues to eat like a toothless troll, pick up your plates and go elsewhere. Tell her you’ll rejoin her when she learns some table manners, and make it her responsibility to change her ways. Going the Distance I met an intelligent, attractive woman through an online dating…

A general walked into an elevator on base that was occupied by a specialist. “What are you doing to prepare for your deployment to Afghanistan, Specialist?” he asked. Flustered, the specialist simply shrugged. This didn’t sit well with the general. He went to the officer in charge and demanded to know why his soldiers seemed unprepared. The officer assembled his staff in an attempt to figure out the problem, and soon we all received this memo: “As of today, specialists are no longer allowed to take the elevator.” Lt. Galen P. Mahon, Martinez, Georgia At a performance of the Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon, my eyes were drawn to the T-shirt worn by a Marine spouse. It read: Don’t let your rank interfere with my authority. Kelly Heffern, Riverside, California…