Corruption in wartime is a theme that runs through both “Red Flags” and “Play the Red Queen.” Juris saw it all around him in Viet Nam, most pointedly in the way aid intended for the indigenous Montagnards was siphoned off along the way. “The Viets really take the poor, exploited Montagnards for everything, not that they have it to be taken. All the carelessly strewn US aid that they should be getting manages to pass no further than the higher up Viets. Much graft. I remember reading ‘Ugly American’ and believing it to be true but a little condensed and overdramatized. It isn’t. If anything it’s understated. The jokers over here literally hold the power of life or death. I think any GI in the backwoods could do a more hair-raising job of writing the ‘Ugly American’ than the touring professionals. Graft, corruption, murder, and pestilence. Elections that elect no one, rice that goes nowhere—what’s the use? And all with the full knowledge of the U.S. authorities. I’m only glad I’ve got my GI greens and my little pistol to keep me warm. And, believe me, we don’t pack weapons because of the VC. That’s the least of our headaches.”