Consequence by Eric Fair Page B

taller and older of the two, guarded the Navy’s supply of nuclear weapons. Henson, whose goatee matches Kutcher’s, is in his midtwenties, barely older than Blee. He served as a helicopter mechanic. Helicopters have sensitive equipment. Mechanics are issued security clearances. Both men have long hair. They are adorned with tattoos. They wear hats with iron crosses. Blee says, “How in the hell did these guys get security clearances?”
    Later we learn that most of the hiring managers at CACI are Marines. Marines view themselves as a cut above all other military branches. They take care of each other. The Marine hiring manager was tasked with finding individuals with security clearances to work as intelligence analysts in Iraq. Like all hiring managers working for recruiters, he struggled to locate qualified candidates. Like some hiring managers, he got creative. He recruited other Marines with lower-level security clearances, like Kutcher and Henson. Then he convinced the government that these lower-level security clearances would allow contractors to complete basic tasks until a higher-level clearance could be obtained. He also got creative with job descriptions. Kutcher and Henson were not intelligence analysts, but the recruiter molded their experience to make it sound as if they were.
    After the meeting with Michelle Fields, the five of us return to the barracks. Blee’s suitcase and duffel bag have been thrown out into the stairwell. Bagdasarov and I find our belongings scattered in the hallway, as well. A group of young men from a company called Blackwater has commandeered the wing where we were staying and moved out everyone else’s personal belongings. Blee says something to one of the Blackwater employees. The Blackwater employee tells Blee to go fuck himself. Kutcher and Henson happen to be close by. They stand alongside Blee. They dare the Blackwater employee to say something else to Blee. He doesn’t. Eventually, we gather our gear and look for new bunks. Kutcher and Henson are there to help us. We find a group of bunks in a secluded corner of the barracks. Then all five of us clear out the belongings of other civilians and leave them in the hallway. When these employees confront us, Kutcher and Henson are there to tell them to go fuck themselves.
    The second day at Fort Bliss, Michelle Fields is nowhere to be found. She doesn’t answer her phone and she doesn’t respond to emails. Without the help of anyone from CACI, the five of us manage to navigate the initial stages of the deployment process over the next few days. The Army assigns us an in-processing number that allows us to schedule appointments with a variety of administrative offices on Fort Bliss. We find that we are required to have dental X-rays, medical paperwork, powers of attorney, and immunization records. None of us have this information. The soldiers in charge of processing wave us through and tell us to get these things once we’re in Iraq. Bagdasarov asks the soldier how we’re supposed to get these things in Iraq. The soldier says, “Iraq has dentists and lawyers.”
    The Army requires all civilian contractors to get the smallpox vaccine. The disclaimer for the vaccine is full of dire warnings about preexisting medical conditions. There is a special section warning patients with cardiomyopathies to avoid the vaccine. I tell the doctor administering the shots that I have a cardiomyopathy. He asks questions about my condition. I give honest answers. He says I shouldn’t be deploying to Iraq. I tell him my doctor has given me full clearance. He asks for proof. I don’t have it. He says, “Do you want to go to Iraq or not?” After that, I get in line with Blee for anthrax.
    On our third day at Fort Bliss, I stand in a line to meet with an Army lawyer who will help to prepare my last will and testament. There is a group of employees from KBR, one of the largest contracting companies