Reflections of a Pragmatic Economist: My Intellectual Journey

3. AT LOOSE ENDS (1946–1954)

42 3 AT LOOSE ENDS (1946–1954) FROM AIRMAN TO CIVILIAN On May 8, 1945, the enemy in Europe surrendered unconditionally. Much has been written about how rapidly the United States Armed Forces had been organized, equipped, trained, and deployed into combat . Yet the rapidity with which redeployment occurred after V-E Day and V-J Day was equally, if not more, impressive. The processes that affected me were occurring simultaneously with others in all branches of the armed services. Approximately three weeks after V-E Day, my crew was assigned to ferry a B-17 back to the United States. Our route was almost the same that we had taken in the opposite direction in 1944. One difference was that we landed in Iceland for a few hours of sleep on the return trip. I was assigned to a troop train in New England that returned me to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. I was then given a 30-day furlough before being sent to the West Coast. My military occupational specialty, aircraft radio operator, was in short supply. I was told I was ticketed to go to the Pacific Theater, where I would be trained for flying on aircraft used there, probably B-29s. And then V-J Day, August 15, 1945! My assignment was changed, and I was sent to an air base near Liberal, Kansas, where I received my honorable discharge November 2, 1945. In less AT LOOSE ENDS (1946–1954) 43 than six months, I had helped ferry a B-17 across the North Atlantic, taken a 30-day furlough, gone to the West Coast where I expected to be sent to the Pacific, but then my world changed and I was discharged! Within the three months that followed, I would be married and make an occupational decision that affected my intellectual journey for the remainder of my life. During World War II, my parents had used their modest lifetime savings to purchase a farm in Montgomery County, Kansas, which became my new home. This was a small, diversified farm where they lived until my father’s death about five years later. They did not have adequate capital to make it a highly profitable operation, but for the first time in their farming experience, they were owners and did not have to satisfy a landlord. At that time, my younger brother, Don, was a senior in the Independence, Kansas, public high school. He was a good student and, after graduation, attended Kansas State, where he obtained a degree in chemical engineering. While I was flying combat missions, I had written to my former high-school teacher, Merab Weber, to ask if she would correspond with me. Merab left teaching during World War II for employment at Boeing Aircraft in Wichita, Kansas. She agreed to correspond, but after I was discharged, I went to see her. We became attracted to one another and were married January 20, 1946. As I was trying to decide how I was going to make a living as a civilian, Merab had no apparent reservations about casting her lot with a confused, insecure guy. She never complained about living in small, poorly heated or ventilated places as I was acquiring an education. And, throughout our marriage, she made all the necessary adjustments to benefit me professionally. When we went to Manhattan, Kansas, to live after our wedding, we found housing to be limited because of the many returning servicemen who were seeking an education. We were able to obtain a two-room upstairs apartment that was miserably hot during Kansas summers. Our kitchen consisted of a sink and cook-stove crammed into a bedroom closet. As soon as Merab and I decided to be married, I faced the same problem as many other discharged servicemen across the country: How was I going to support myself and my wife? I explored employment possibilities, but advancement opportunities appeared limited or the 44 CHAPTER 3 work seemed uninteresting. I then became aware of the GI Bill, which provided subsidized education for veterans. I investigated attending the University of Kansas (KU) and Kansas State (K State). I intended to study business and law if I attended KU. I went there to explore possibilities and received the impression that administrators at KU were not excited about accommodating one more returning GI. Administrators at K State had my records and encouraged me to return there. I was...