> > A US Navy cruiser anchored in Mississippi for a week's shore leave.
> >
> > The first evening, the ship's Captain received the following note from
> > the wife
> > of a very wealthy and influential plantation owner:
> >
> > "Dear Captain, Thursday will be my daughter Melinda's Debutante Ball.
> > I would
> > like you to send four well-mannered, handsome, unmarried officers in
> > their
> > formal dress uniforms to attend the dance." "They should arrive
> > promptly at
> > 8:00 PM prepared for an evening of polite Southern conversation. They
> > should be excellent dancers, as they will be the escorts of lovely
> > refined
> > young ladies. One last hint: "No Jews please."
> >
> > Sending a written message by his own yeoman, the captain replied:
> > "Madam,
> > thank you for your invitation. In order to present the widest possible
> > knowledge base for polite conversation, I am sending four of my best
> > and
> > most prized officers."
> >
> > "One is a lieutenant commander, and a graduate of Annapolis with an
> > additional
> > Master's degree from MIT in fluid technologies and ship design."
> >
> > "The second is a Lieutenant, one of our helicopter pilots, and a
> > graduate of Northwestern University in Chicago ,
> > with a BS in Aeronautical Engineering. His Masters Degree and PhD. In
> > Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering are from Texas Tech University
> > and
> > he is also an astronaut candidate."
> >
> > "The third officer is also a lieutenant, with degrees in both computer
> > systems
> > and information technology from SMU and he is awaiting
> > notification on his Doctoral Dissertation from Cal Tech."
> >
> > "Finally, the fourth officer, also a lieutenant commander, is our
> > ship's doctor,
> > with an undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and his
> > medical
> > degree is from the University of North Carolina. We are very proud of
> > him,
> > as he is also a senior fellow in Trauma Surgery at Bethesda."
> >
> > Upon receiving this letter, Melinda's mother was quite excited and
> > looked forward
> > to Thursday with pleasure. Her daughter would be escorted by four
> > handsome
> > naval officers without peer (and the other women in her social circle
> > would
> > be insanely jealous).
> >
> > At precisely 8:00 PM on Thursday, Melinda's mother heard a polite rap
> > at the
> > door which she opened to find, in full dress uniform, four very
> > handsome,
> > smiling Black officers. Her mouth fell open, but pulling herself
> > together,
> > she stammered, "There must be some mistake."
> >
> > "No, Madam," said the first officer. "Captain Goldberg never makes
> > mistakes."
> >
> > The first evening, the ship's Captain received the following note from
> > the wife
> > of a very wealthy and influential plantation owner:
> >
> > "Dear Captain, Thursday will be my daughter Melinda's Debutante Ball.
> > I would
> > like you to send four well-mannered, handsome, unmarried officers in
> > their
> > formal dress uniforms to attend the dance." "They should arrive
> > promptly at
> > 8:00 PM prepared for an evening of polite Southern conversation. They
> > should be excellent dancers, as they will be the escorts of lovely
> > refined
> > young ladies. One last hint: "No Jews please."
> >
> > Sending a written message by his own yeoman, the captain replied:
> > "Madam,
> > thank you for your invitation. In order to present the widest possible
> > knowledge base for polite conversation, I am sending four of my best
> > and
> > most prized officers."
> >
> > "One is a lieutenant commander, and a graduate of Annapolis with an
> > additional
> > Master's degree from MIT in fluid technologies and ship design."
> >
> > "The second is a Lieutenant, one of our helicopter pilots, and a
> > graduate of Northwestern University in Chicago ,
> > with a BS in Aeronautical Engineering. His Masters Degree and PhD. In
> > Aeronautical and Mechanical Engineering are from Texas Tech University
> > and
> > he is also an astronaut candidate."
> >
> > "The third officer is also a lieutenant, with degrees in both computer
> > systems
> > and information technology from SMU and he is awaiting
> > notification on his Doctoral Dissertation from Cal Tech."
> >
> > "Finally, the fourth officer, also a lieutenant commander, is our
> > ship's doctor,
> > with an undergraduate degree from the University of Georgia and his
> > medical
> > degree is from the University of North Carolina. We are very proud of
> > him,
> > as he is also a senior fellow in Trauma Surgery at Bethesda."
> >
> > Upon receiving this letter, Melinda's mother was quite excited and
> > looked forward
> > to Thursday with pleasure. Her daughter would be escorted by four
> > handsome
> > naval officers without peer (and the other women in her social circle
> > would
> > be insanely jealous).
> >
> > At precisely 8:00 PM on Thursday, Melinda's mother heard a polite rap
> > at the
> > door which she opened to find, in full dress uniform, four very
> > handsome,
> > smiling Black officers. Her mouth fell open, but pulling herself
> > together,
> > she stammered, "There must be some mistake."
> >
> > "No, Madam," said the first officer. "Captain Goldberg never makes
> > mistakes."
