I hung this poster on my wall at Fort Benning. Our leadership went through our rooms regularly. I was 19 years old. I knew they would see it. My First Sergeant was inspecting rooms one morning. Everything was good. The floor free of dirt, boots polished, bathroom shiny. He stopped as he was leaving. “What’s this Herring?” “First Sergeant?” “This poster?” He looked at me through drained green eyes. “Yes First Sergeant,” I swallowed. “Should we trust our government?” “You swore to trust the government,” he said, “you are the government.” “I swore to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States,” I said. “I swore no oath to a government.” He shook his head and walked out. Later, my platoon sergeant told me to take the poster down. And I did.