O5H-20
Subtitle: the 96% true journal of a military spy
By: Rick A. Waters
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
Published: 2014
Place of publication: North Charleston, South Carolina
Language: eng
Number of pages: 269
ISBN-13: 9781502503275
Copyright date: 2014
Subjects: Morse code; Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Biography; Spies; United States. Army Security Agency; United States
Description: "From 1972 to 1974, Rick A. Waters served as a Morse intercept operator for the now defunct Army Security Agency. His task was deceptively simple: translate and transcribe encrypted enemy Morse code messages. Waters is one of the few to survive the training process&#x2014;his military operations specialty was known to have one of the highest washout rates in the army. Those who passed were considered gifted, but the achievement came at a high cost. 'Diddy boppers,' as the operators call themselves, work under great pressure and secrecy, forbidden to discuss their work. To blow off steam, Waters and his fellow soldiers turn to drugs, alcohol, and women&#x2014;coping strategies tacitly approved by the ASA. Some survive the strain. Some go mad. Waters's service in Vietnam and Germany soon take a terrible toll on his health. Unbeknownst to the diddy boppers, but an open secret in the higher echelons, high-speed code interception damages long-term memory, leaving nineteen-year-old Waters with a debilitating condition that will last his entire life." -- Amazon.com.