PART II: POLITICS
AT BAY
Chapter 1: Welcome to Reality
I called the FBI in April of 2005 seeking their help, and I would
realize they cannot enforce justice on Homeland Security agents. It was created
under the Bush administration from a reorganization meant to combat local
terrorist threats. The sheer size of the organization is mind boggling. It is
organized crime that is tax payer funded, they do not believe in justice, and their
jobs are more of a game to them that largely revolves around hurting people versus
helping them.
At the end of this book, you will know everything I want you
to know about Homeland Security and many things they do not want you to know. Six
months prior to calling the FBI, I ran for State Assembly in 2004, a state
“House of Representative” seat. I clearly had no idea what I was getting into,
and an overwhelming experience with the Department of Justice (DOJ) never
crossed my mind. There were some key life changing events that lead to this
decision.
On June 2nd of 2003, my partner and I celebrated
5 years together with an outdoor, Vermont civil union half way up a mountain. After
our ceremony, which only my folks attended, we climbed the tallest mountain in Vermont including a fire tower on top of the mountain. I remember the wind blowing so fast
that I was afraid to stand up. To see NY, VT, NH, and glorious Canada in one climb was amazing…especially on that day. It was not just a commitment
ceremony or legal contract. In hindsight, with segregation aside, the feeling
we had at the mountain top symbolized our defeat of adversity and inequality.
Our honeymoon was a California trip, and that was the first
time I had seen the Pacific Ocean. Not surprisingly, it looked just like the Atlantic. But to me, at that time, it was as if I saw a whole new world. Our stay could
be summarized as a visit to another planet that offered nothing but love and
the pursuit of happiness…minus a fag hating church with their pastor that we
encountered at the Fisherman’s Warf trolley. I was quick to point out his
obesity as one of the seven deadly sins. It was a short exchange that ended
with him taking a ball cap hat off bow for his picture to be taken by me, and
then we walked away. San Francisco was very temperate until you crossed the
bay, and Alcatraz was a history lesson that would truly make Guantanamo Bay detainees envy the right to a trial.
On our leave from a short stay in San Francisco, we went on a
primitive camping trip in Yosemite National Park via a hike in from Stanislaus National Forest. We did not even follow a trail after about a mile. It was a rarely
used path marked by stacks of rocks that led us to the basin of Frog Creek on Lake Eleanor. We spent four mindless days there that I will never forget. The
trout were spawning at the time, and I even got a picture on the way there from
our American Airline commercial jet of Lake Eleanor and Frog Creek. It was
that perfect. A bit warm in the summer, but at a 4,000 to 5,000 foot elevation
in central California in June, it was very beautiful. The winter snow melt and
spring rains were coming down the mountains, and Frog Creek would be more
accurately described as waterfall rapids.
Shortly after our civil union, Republicans introduced a
state legislative ban on gay marriage. It was a “top down” Republican measure
that was strictly a vote getting measure, yet it later turned out voters to the
extent of constitutional amendment measures across the country, state by state.
The people who pretended to be preaching the Bible had a goldmine hate target
on all gays, and despite previous estimates of hate crimes being up 30% against
the GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender) community, the corrupt DOJ
later fudged the numbers to deceive people of the result of the GOP’s political
tactics. All facts be told, the religious and gay communities were used and
abused for partisan gain.
My partner and I, together 10 years on January 26th,
2008, were not political until September 11, 2001. America had to be political
after that, and I think that was where the PNAC (Project for a New American
Century) made their biggest mistake. Why they made their strategy and plans
public is beyond me. CNN became my best friend, and I certainly got up to
speed on the issues. Our country had become objectified by evil, greed,
corruption, hate, fear, and the lack of justice.
In late 2001, I was waiting out a non-compete for a small
time entrepreneurial recruiting company based on the Magnificent Mile downtown Chicago. I had managed to entrench myself into the enterprise software industry, and then
9/11 happened. Beyond rocking the economy as a whole, my recruiting market
vanished. I taught high school as a salaried teacher in 2002 into 2003, and
during this time I chose to change my career path to web and print design. In
February of 2004, I incorporated in my home state with an entrepreneurial
dream. However, plans changed in June of that year.
My partner and I heard of DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) legislation
in our legislature in 2003. The Governor vetoed it, but it stated that
marriage would only be between a man and a woman. We were very upset about the
legislation and decided to go on a “lobby day.” There was a special interest
group seeking equality for the GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgendered)
community. Our State Assembly Representative finally agreed to meet with us.
I had no reply until I CC’d news agencies in an email I sent to her. She
backtracked and stated that she would meet with anyone but the KKK. What an
odd comment.
Our state capitol is 1.5 hours to 2 hours away depending on
the route. In my hand, when my partner and I met with our Assembly
Representative, was an 8x10 photo of us holding our civil union certificate
from Vermont. I left the photo with her, and in our meeting, I asked her if
she would support civil unions for gay couples. She stated that there was a
church in the district that needed retribution for a pastor that had molested
kids in the congregation, so she could not support civil unions. I was in
shock at her response as the two issues are completely irrelevant. In
addition, why would she want the gay community to pay for someone else’s crimes?
Those attending the “lobby day” included a gay partnered man
who later moved out of district, a lesbian who lived in my village whom was a
hairdresser and no longer a resident, and a “bisexual” woman who later went on
a Village President literature drop in April of 2005. The interesting thing was
that at least two of the folks attending our “lobby day” event with us were
Homeland Security, and one of them was the bisexual woman who helped deliver
literature for our Village President.
Our Democratic State Senator was gracious enough to leave
the legislative floor to meet with our lobby group. Bob explained that things were
not the way things use to be, and the Governor was going to veto the bill. I
told him that unless someone steps up to the plate and tries to make a
difference, nothing will ever change. With a stern stare, we understood each
other, and that was the beginning of our friendship. Bob and I shook hands, and
he knew that I did not buy into his token speech. Although he was eloquent,
accurate, and direct, something had to be done.
We took three trips to our state capitol, and our first trip
was as lobbyists. After two protests and a year had passed, I found out my
Assembly Representative was running without opposition for State Assembly in
2004. At this point, we were facing a constitutional amendment in our state. I
felt like the end of the world was a reality. It was like death on steroids. I
called our State Senator and asked who was running against the incumbent. He
said that there were three people thinking about it, and I later found out all
three had previously run for the same State Assembly seat.
I told my State Senator that if he could not find anyone to
run for office, then I would run against the Republican incumbent. That is
just what happened. I ran for office. It ended up changing my life for the
worse. I got caught up in the most viscous political battle in America amidst the most corrupt federal administration and DOJ in U.S. history. In my short term
perspective, and potentially long term perspective, everyone won but me.
Hopefully this book will change the culture of the DOJ. I
guess actions recommended to the DNC, the ACLU, and Democracy for America were not
enough to teach Homeland Security to obey the law and make things “right,” so I
wrote this book to expose their methods and seek retribution through their
demise if they would not settle. People should view them how they deserve to
be viewed; an absolute disgrace to democracy, humanity, and justice.
