[Fred Wheeler] - Another Collusion Between Deep State and Fake Media

*a guest piece by Mr. Fred Wheeler of Patriots' Table 

Oh no,

The MSM says the Pentagon "refused" Trump's request for troops to protect our southern border.Using American troops for this duty is not unprecedented. Presidents Taft, Eisenhower, both Bushes -- even Obama have done the same. President Wilson not only sent troops to the border. He had American troops chase Pancho Villa through Mexico for months.

Military Times

After my stint at the Officer Basic Course at Fort Sill, I was stationed with Division Artillery of the Second Armored Division  at Fort Hood, Texas. Upon my arrival in January, 1969 I learned my unit had just returned from Chicago where they had served during the riots. We were assigned an area of the country called our "Garden Plot" for which we trained many hours.

Of course, the nation went a little crazy during the sixties. American troops were used to preserve domestic tranquility often. There is no higher use for our troops than to protect our borders from foreign invaders. 

If there are any deep staters at the Pentagon who think this is a poor use for our troops, they need to be rooted out. Otherwise, this is just another false story by the fake media.

Fred Wheeler 

Pentagon rejected request for troops it viewed as emergency law enforcement at border

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COVERING THE GLORIOUS GEORGIA PIEDMONT

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[tpc] - A write-up from Fred Wheeler in re the Newton Co. GOP & the upcoming delegate cycle

The Chronicles
31 January '16

Special to the Chronicles

A Write-up from Fred Wheeler of the Patriot's Table political group 

*ed. note: I've known Mr. Fred for over 15 years now and have been fighting the good fight with him on the political front for the last four years. We were the original anti-estab forces in Newton back in the 2012 POTUS delegate precinct reset and have been members of a mutual admiration society ever since. Mr. Fred has been doing organized politics since the 60's and knows more about Real Politik in one finger than most folks know in their entire body. The Chronicles are proud to have gotten his specific, express permission to run this piece, and we hope to have more of his stuff down the road. As always, we appreciate your reading us. 'Til next time. Thx & Bye! 

**************************

Hi,

   From time to time this election season we have heard various people warn against a "brokered" convention. This fear mostly has been voiced by Trump supporters, but hardly anybody wants to see the party plutocrats thwart the people's choice for president.

   Next month on Saturday (2/20) you will have a chance to ensure that -at least in Newton County--the people's choice will prevail. On that date the Georgia GOP will begin a state-wide series of caucuses and conventions to elect 76 total delegates and a like number of alternates to attend the national convention in Cleveland

   Georgia apportions its delegates thusly: three per congressional district (42) with the balance (34) being elected at the state convention. In order for a candidate to win all three of the congressional district's delegates he must win at least a majority (50+%) of that district's popular vote. If he wins only by a plurality the votes are proportioned in a manner that would make your eyes glaze over.

   But, the delegates which the candidate wins are supposed to support that candidate for at least two ballots. Candidly, if there is a brokered convention it won't come on the first two ballots--it will be the result of a deadlocked convention after ten or twenty ballots. So, it is incumbent upon the candidate's supporters not only to vote for him at the polls but to find loyal delegates who will continue to support him till the cows come home.

   This is where you come in. At the precinct mass meetings next month delegates will be selected to the county convention in March. At the county convention delegates will be selected to the Fourth and Tenth Congressional district conventions and to the state convention. It's at these district conventions that the three-per district will be selected.

   So, the first step is to attend the precinct caucus and elect like-minded folks to be delegates to the subsequent county convention. Now, Newton's situation is unique in the state because we have an intra-party civil war that has gone on for about five years.

   In essence, a small group of elites have held on to power by a series of "illegal" rule changes and a pattern of arbitrarily kicking people out of the party. In the process they have shrunk the party to the point of irrelevance. The party has not helped to select candidates, has not taken any issue positions, or helped nominees campaign in the general election. In the meantime, the chairman appointed himself to every board in sight including the election and library boards.

   Some while ago the chairman resigned because he got caught doing something he should not have done. His replacement resigned recently and the remnants  of the executive committee elected an interim chairman. Now, the small group who refuses to give up power has declared a "king's X do-over". Well, it's too late. The new executive committee under the interim chairman has begun performing the duties of the party.

  So, if you want to attend a precinct caucus on Saturday, February 20, you will have two choices. You can attend the mass meeting at 10:00AM (registration begins at 9:00AM) at 7188 Turner Lake Circle with the rest of us. Or, you can try to figure out among the half-dozen places the other crowd has picked out where your precinct is supposed to meet at 6:00PM.

   You see, the elites don't really want you to show up. They and their cohorts at the state level want to name their own to be delegates. If the voice of the people is thwarted, so be it.

[Fred Wheeler] - Remembering Kristallnacht

* the following is a piece by guest contributor, Fred Wheeler of Patriots' Table 

Hi,

Yesterday, at the Lunch Bunch meeting the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht came up. This was a pogrom against the German Jews, their synagogues and businesses  carried out primarily by the SA (Brownshirts) of the Nazis in November, 1938.

We need to inform ourselves about the Brownshirts (as distinguished from the SS ) because we have their equivalent here, today, in America. Antifa, who, ironically claim they are ant-fascist believe in the same things and engage in the same activities as Hitler's Brownshirts. The recent mob that intimidated Tucker Carlson's family is just one example. While they are nothing but street thugs this branch of Antifa is led by a professor from John Jay University.

They are cheered on by the likes of Maxine Waters. Presently using the tactics of intimidation (refusing service to someone wearing a MAGA hat, crowding around and yelling at people trying to eat dinner, picketing with bullhorns at their homes, publishing the home phone numbers so people can make threatening calls, etc.). It won't take long before these actions will escalate. There are cities, primarily on the west coast, where the violent acts of Antifa are not only tolerated -- they are encouraged, by the police standing down and the refusal of authorities to charge these people with a crime.

Fred

80 Years Ago The Nazis Unleashed Their Brutal Campaign Against Jews. Today The World Mourns The Violence Of That Night

80 Years Ago The Nazis Unleashed Their Brutal Campaign Against Jews. Today ... 'Not doing anything about it, ultimately, means joining in'

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| Covington, GA | Newton Co. |

A Piece by Guest Columnist Fred Wheeler - Thoughts on the Iowa Disaster & the Coming Showdown Between Conservatism & Socialism

You may have tried to follow the story about the caucuses in Iowa. I say "tried" because along with all the other problems, apparently, the state Democratic Party and the DNC are only allowing news of the final count to trickle out. Some thoughts emerge from this mess:

(1) The same people who want to run our health system and Venezuelaize our economy (Bernie now says he wants national rent control) can't even count 165,000 votes. I'm old enough to remember wage and price controls of the seventies. It took two decades for our society to recover from that adventure with fascism.

(2) I don't know how much the campaign involving the caucuses adds to the Iowa economy, but the good citizens of Iowa probably can thank the Democratic Party for losing it. Look for some candidates in the future to just skip Iowa.

(3) Closely connected to number (2) is maybe finally we can rid ourselves of ethanol. The only reason we still have the requirement is because of the politicians' pandering to the special interests in Iowa.

(4) The Democratic Party elites stole the nomination from Bernie in 2016. They are afraid of him again. Before they used "super delegates" to give the nomination to Hillary. Now, it looks like they are just going to hide the vote. (By the way, Bernie has never had a job. He's always worked for the government. How did he become a millionaire?)

(5) Apparently, the high-tech company that designed the system to report and count the votes was made up of Hillary supporters who now are affiliated with Biden. They were paid something like $67,000 for this failed system. They could have completed the job with a pencil, telephone and a two-dollar calculator from Walmart.

(6) I don't know who these guys are, but surely no one will hire them as political consultants again. Look for them to be on CNN or MSNBC as political commentators.

(7) By the time the final results are in, the country will be engaged with the primary in New Hampshire and the Iowa caucuses will be in the dustbin of history.

(8) This election will be a showdown between conservatism and socialism -- even more than 1972. This time the nominee will be a REAL socialist. Bernie spent his honeymoon in the USSR. He has spent the last fifty years praising Cuba and backed the communists in Nicaragua. If the country is so stupid it wants that, then so be it. Tocqueville said we get the government we deserve. While we are on the subject, the Democrats made absolute asses of themselves at the State of the Union last night. Won't even applaud for low unemployment for minorities, the survival of a premature baby or the awarding of a scholarship for a little fourth-grade black girl. How petty. But, they were all elected by somebody.

- Fred Wheeler 

[TPC] - Guest Post by Fred Wheeler Concerning the Newton Co. Forensic Audit

The Piedmont Chronicles   

~ est. 2010 ~

[State of GA]
[Newton Co.]

Another $100,000+ of County Taxpayer Money Wasted 
A guest post by Fred Wheeler

Oh no,

   I just reviewed the forensic audit report concerning the extreme mismanagement and wasteful spending our county government has perpetrated against us over the last decade. The audit team spent over 1000 hours at somewhere between $75 and $340 per hour carrying it out. It is very well done. But, of course, we know nothing will come of it. So, we have wasted our money having someone certify and quantify what we suspected already.

   The audit primarily deals with the self-dealing of J.C. Henderson and the scam that Tommy Craig carried out over the last twenty years concerning Bear Creek. Of course, neither could have been successful without the collusion or malfeasance of our elected officials. I've been to enough BOC meetings to have heard numerous citizens plead with the members to stop the insanity. But, they turned a deaf ear to reason.

   J.C. runs the fourth district like a ward healer. The audit documents repeated instances of self dealing between him, his church, the Nelson Heights Community Center, and the county. Unfortunately, because of demographics, J.C. has a lifetime appointment to the commission. Apparently, his self-dealings have cost the taxpayers over $40,000.

   This pales in significance compared to what Tommy Craig has hauled off. Professionals carry E&O insurance (the "O" stands for omissions). The auditor documented over twenty occasions when Craig made "false and misleading statements between 2008 and 2015" to the BOC concerning the Bear Creek permitting process. Many of these involved omissions of facts that he knew and should have conveyed the board.

   Craig operated as both county attorney (who should have represented the interests of his client, Newton County) and as water consultant (a contractor with a definite axe to grind). There was obviously a conflict of interest. As a result of his regular contact with the Corps of Engineers, EPA, and other agencies, he was well aware "years in advance" that the Bear Creek Project would not be approved. The EPA, for instance, advised him that the Reservoir Plan was fundamentally flawed and inadequate back in 2008.

   He continually "provided flawed, incomplete, or inadequate information to government regulators" about population estimates and water use. This is the same problem we confronted when the people had to fight against the imposition of the 2050 Plan. It's difficult to put a price tag on how much Bear Creek has cost us. If you add in the opportunity costs of lost tax revenues from the property it could approach $60 million dollars.

   Things like this are very discouraging. I, for one have resolved to vote against every incumbent and tax measure until the BOC cleans this mess up and puts the county on an even keel. By the way, the same geniuses who went to asleep at the switch on these matters will soon propose to "sell" our water and sewer system to the W&S Authority. Wait till J.C. gets his hands on that honey pot of money.

[Fred Wheeler] - The Bailout Daisy Chain

What's goin' on?

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We're all supposed to be self-quarantining. This, of course has caused some problems within certain sectors such as the cruise business and the airline industry. Marriott has announced the laying off of thousands of employees. The immediate reaction is we have to do something.

In the meantime Amazon is hiring over 100,000 new employees and the grocery stores are having to put on more staff. Somewhere there is a paper company putting on an additional shift to manufacture toilet paper. The distilleries are losing business from bars but they are making hand sanitizers.

People with "Sociology of Linguistics" degrees (for which they owe $150,000 in student loans) who are waiting tables in New York will be thrown out of work while the pork processors are asking the Homeland Security Department to allow them to bring in another 100,000 foreign workers.

Boeing, who borrowed money over the last decade to buy $100 billion of its own stock, is threatening bankruptcy while it pays its CEO $23 million. Delta Airlines pays its CEO $15 million. But, they need a bailout, too.

The bailout line gets longer: casinos in Las Vegas, ski resorts in Vail, Airbnb, Madison Square Garden. The NBA will lose $500 million. The NFL (meanwhile Tampa Bay will pay Tom Brady $30 million).

The colleges have gone to on-line courses. Do they still need to spend $millions on their Diversity Departments?

The real question is do we have enough money to bailout everybody?

- Fred Wheeler 

[Fred Wheeler] - The World on the Other Side

So much for globalization.

If we survive the eschatological angst over the Wuhan Virus there will be life on the other side of this. The question is: what will it look like?

First, it's not like we weren't warned. The 1953 movie, "War of the Worlds"  based on the novel by H.G. Wells from 1887 pointed to the peril. In the movie aliens from space invade our planet and, because of their superior technology, overwhelm all the armies of the world. On the very eve of final destruction, all of the aliens mysteriously die, succumbing to the plain ole pathogens  in the Earth's atmosphere for which they have no immunity. 

The more technologically advanced we are, the more complex our society is and the more interdependent our economic systems are, the more vulnerable we are to the sudden introduction of a new variety of germ.

This thing probably will end sooner than we think. But, in the meantime there will be dislocation. It's going to be rough. Some folks will lose their jobs. But, MMM, GE and Honeywell will be hiring because they will be manufacturing protective masks and ventilators. Home Depot in Covington is hiring. I bought two shirts on line the other day.

We are discovering that, yes, nations need borders. Converting your economy into a service economy and out-sourcing your manufacturing--especially to a country that has an unfriendly authoritarian government is not a good idea. There are certain things such as steel, strategic materials and now we're discovering, medicine, which should not be processed in foreign countries.

If you are an individual company, perhaps you should re-examine your  supply chain. Yes, China has cheap labor, but dealing with them is  equivalent to riding a tiger.

What will life be like post Wuhan? Pantries will be fuller. Students and schools will move toward on-line courses. More box stores will close and more on-line business will be done. There will be more working at home. By applying tariffs we will be doing more manufacturing domestically. Individual companies will alter their supply chains. Restaurants will be more likely to have take-out windows. Home delivery of food and groceries will become more popular. We'll go to fewer movies and watch more television. Perhaps families will grow closer together. People will play more golf.

- Fred Wheeler 

[Fred Wheeler] - First They Came After...

Oh no,

This is the beginning of the famous quote of Martin Moeller describing the process of the capitulation of German society to the Nazies.

It's here. folks. The governor of Virginia proposes infanticide. A Virginia legislator proposes that the state national guard confiscate all the weapons in private hands in the state. The Democrats are impeaching President Trump because we deplorables had the audacity  to elect him. The FBI interferes in a presidential election.

Do you know who Bruce Ohr is and that he still is employed by the FBI? Do you know what FISA stands for? Do you know what judges sit on the FISA court?

Neither do I. We live in a country run by the Deep State. More proof of this is that half of the top ten counties in the country that have the highest per capita income are suburbs of Washington D.C.

I don't like Senator Ben Sasse because he hardly misses a chance to criticize President Trump, but he has stumbled on the truth.

Take time to watch this video and it will scare you.

We have a problem. It can only be curtailed by repeal of the Patriot Act. The FISA courts need to be abolished. Anybody who thinks they can exist and not be abused by law enforcement agencies is kidding himself.

- Fred Wheeler 

[Fred Wheeler] - Close Enough for Government Work

The first time I heard it was 51 years ago at Ft.Hood, Texas.. Lt. Vaught of B Battery was laying the battery of six 155mm howitzers. He closed up the aiming circle and with some satisfaction said, "That's close enough for government work." I suppose the people who put the models together predicting anywhere from 2 million to 150,000 American deaths from the Wuhan Virus and the people who pay them $millions of dollars for this must think that's close enough. There's a palm reader near Conyers on I-20 who probably could be more precise and she only charges 10 bucks.

The Media gleefully announced Friday that the Virus, at 1,904 per day, is now the leading cause of daily American deaths. They better enjoy it while they can because this phenomenon won't last long. Heart attacks kill 1,774 per day and cancer deaths are 1,641. The CDC is predicting that now the grand total for the Virus is projected to be 61,000. That's far short of the annual totals of 647,457 for heart attacks and 599,108 for cancer. The regular flu total is 55,672.

Some claim that the official tally is under counting the true mortality figures; others counter that they are overstating the numbers. I have a solution. It's somewhat imprecise, but we've already determined that of all the adjectives associated with the Virus (terrible, vicious, tragic, pandemic, apocalyptic) precise is not one of them.

It's reported that people who die at home are not being counted--only those who succumb in the hospital. We also hear that people who are dying in nursing homes and hospitals with underlying conditions are summarily added to the Virus total. They  are reported to get paid more for that--even more if the patient has been on a respirator.

We know that approximately 2,500,000 Americans die each year (this does not include those killed in abortion clinics). As we've said, 647,457 from heart attacks, 599,108 from cancer, 169,936 from accidents, 146,383 from stroke, 55,672 from the flu, 47,173 from suicide, all the way to 800 from getting tangled up in their bed sheets. If you divide 2.5 million by 365 days you get 6,849 per day.

So, excluding the Wuhan Virus, we should expect 6,849 people to die of something daily anyway. Even though we don't know exactly what the causes are, we do have a pretty good idea of the total number of deaths. People are not disposing of the bodies without the authorities knowledge. If all of a sudden we start seeing a diminution in the numbers of deaths attributed to heart attack, cancer, stroke, etc., we probably can assume that these causes are being under counted in favor of the Virus. We are dealing with large numbers, so if the numbers are significant, it will be obvious. We can adjust the figures and subtract from the total and that would approximate the true Virus total.

Likewise,if people actually are dying of the Virus, but their deaths are being chalked up to heart attack, cancer, stroke, bed sheets, etc. we can tell because their daily totals will exceed the 1,774, 1,641, etc. We can adjust them, subtract from the total and add to the figures for the Virus. This won't be exact, but it probably will be just as close as these "adjusted" models. And, a ten year old with a calculator can come up with the figures instead of an expensive logarithm on a university computer. It'll be close enough for government work.

- Fred Wheeler 

[Fred Wheeler] - Who's Leading and What Is His Strategy?

Oh no,

With so many of our cities under siege by the mob; regular people caught between the orders of the government to stay in place, practice social distancing while wearing masks; and literal fear of venturing into the wrong section of town while the enraged nihilists tear down our monuments and destroy our businesses,  there seems to be virtually no one willing to stand on the ramparts and yell, "Stop!".

We look around for leaders who will take the risk to step up to the plate and defend what we have left of Western Civilization. Of course, we understand almost all of our institutions: MSM, universities and public education, the judiciary, the internet, large corporations , Democratic Party,  etc. are firmly in the hands of the left. But, surely, there's someone in politics or the Church who would have courage enough to step forward and take on the mantle of leadership for the rest of us. It would be risky--but, rewarding.

The Republican Party is the logical source of the heroic force necessary to put an end to this madness. One wonders if they are following a deliberate policy similar to the strategy of Quintus Fabius Maximus against Hannibal during the Second Punic War. Are they appearing to retreat while letting the MLB mob and their allies destroy and demand more until finally enough of the regular people turn against them that they are marginalized?

Or, is it the rope-a dope strategy of Muhammad Ali of allowing the opponent to pound away until they simply are exhausted? The mob is running out of Confederate monuments. Now, they are taking down Teddy Roosevelt statues and demanding that Yale change its name. Will they have enough energy to change the name of New York, Cleveland and St. Louis? They might run out of marches and petitions.

I fear that what we are seeing on the part of Republicans is no strategy at all. Do you remember Cpl Upham from "Saving Private Ryan"? Cpl Upham is supposed to be carrying some ammo to resupply a couple of soldiers manning a machine gun. One of them is killed by enemy fire. The other succumbs to a German bayonet after a desperate hand-to-hand scuffle as Upham helplessly looks on frozen by fear. He simply watches as his friend is killed. As the German leaves he casts a disgusted glance of contempt at the feckless Upham. He's so impotent and terrified the German doesn't consider him worth dealing with.

Unfortunately, the Republican Party has too many Cpl. Uphams. They can't be bothered defending the American way of life: limited government, individual rights and responsibilities, free enterprise, the rule of law, a Judeo-Christian foundation to our law. They are too busy reading the polls, cowering in their offices, refusing to accept Trump's appointments and passing laws to protect the big corporations who control social media.

- Fred Wheeler 

[Fred Wheeler] - Political Correctness Run Amok

Oh no,

Have we reached the limit? Well, not quite.

First, let me say, my middle name is Grady. My father's first name was Grady. There are a lot of things and people in the south named Grady.

Why? Because Henry Grady is revered as the champion of The New South. He helped to cure the wounds of the Civil War and the bitterness of Reconstruction. He came to be respected in both the south and north as a champion of reconciliation and rebuilding--which helped all people, black and white.

Grady was a teenager by the end of the Civil War. His father was killed at Petersburg. He made a name for himself in journalism by his coverage of the Charleston earthquake. He later became the editor of The Atlanta Constitution. But, the students at UGA want his name removed from the journalism school. The BLM crowd wants his statue removed from Five Points. I suppose the AJC will want the name of Grady Hospital and Grady High School to be changed. How about Grady County?

When will this insanity end? History is history. As Oliver Cromwell told the artist painting his portrait, we need to see it, warts and all. The insanity won't end until enough people stand up and say, "Enough is enough!"

I would have more respect for the BLM crowd and their useful idiots in the Media if they applied their disdain to Planned Parenthood. Of the million abortions performed every year, one-third are of black babies. The founder of Planned Parenthood, Margaret Sanger, was a white supremacist who believed in eugenics. 

But, we already know that only some black lives matter.

- Fred Wheeler

[Fred Wheeler] - A Nightmare Scenario

Oh no,

Over the last several years we have heard bandied about references to the 25th Amendment. I believe it will play an important part in American history, but not as you would expect.

President Trump is in an impossible position. No matter how the Wuhan epidemic plays out he will be blamed for all of the deaths. But, he also will be blamed for the economic depression that the shutdown will cause.

By November, the Democrats and Media will have a large portion of voters believing that Trump was late recognizing the virus for the true risk that it was; he was incompetent in reacting to it; and his overaction of closing down the economy caused all the financial dislocation to so many individual Americans. Additionally, the governors of several Rust Belt states, e.g. Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, using the virus as an excuse,  will allow mail-in ballots. This will allow widespread fraud like vote harvesting. Thus, the Democratic ticket will win in these tossup states giving the Democrats victory. They will also carry the House and the Senate.

Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, will have chosen carefully  between the following for his vice presidential nominee: Elizabeth Warren, Gretchen Whitmer, Amy Klobuchar and Stacey Abrams. It matters little because they all are leftist radicals, but he chooses Abrams because she will help bring back blacks to the Democratic plantation. Trump has been successful in attracting some black support and the Democrats can't allow their dependence on identity politics be undermined.

So, Joe Biden becomes president with Democratic majorities in both houses. By now, Pelosi has retired and Adam Schiff is Speaker of the House. By inauguration time it is quite obvious that Biden is senile. He finds it hard to read a teleprompter and he does not hold press conferences. His press secretary, Jim Acosta, handles all briefings and communications. It's an open secret that a small group of advisors made up of Acosta, Rham Emmanuel, John Kerry and John Brennan actually make policy for the government.

Finally, Biden's inability to carry out his duties is so obvious that Vice President Abrams convenes the cabinet and invokes the 25th Amendment. She becomes president. She selects Bernie Sanders to be vice president.

Even with both houses under Democratic control Biden and Abrams find it difficult to push through their agenda of open borders, amnesty for illegal aliens, removal of voter ID laws, single payer medical care, elements of the green new deal and higher taxes. They are able to appoint two justices to the Supreme Court (Eric Holder and Lori Lightfoot) and scores of liberal judges to the federal bench.

In the off-year elections of 2022 the Republicans win a 50-seat majority in the House and  make the Senate 55-45 in their favor. The next two years are pretty much a stalemate. Of course, the big winner is the deep state. But, in 2024 the Republicans sweep the presidency and both houses. They spend the next four years undoing all the damage inflicted on the country by the radical agenda of the Democrats.

- Fred Wheeler 

[Fred Wheeler] - Let's Not Make a Habit of This

Hi,

Americans generally believe our governmental system embraces certain characteristics such as individual liberty, freedom of speech and association, the rule of law, a market economy, etc. However, during times of stress (usually at times of war) our government has strayed from these customs. Thankfully these departures have been few and, for the most part, not habitual.

When the ink on the U.S. Constitution was hardly dry, Congress, fearing an impending war with France, passed the Alien and Sedition Act which forbade criticism of the government. Among others, a congressman was found guilty and was forced to run for re-election from a prison cell.

Prior to the Civil War Lincoln had the members of the Maryland legislature arrested and jailed to prevent them from voting to secede. During the war he suspended Habeas corpus and closed down over 300 newspapers.

Following our entrance into  World War 1, Congress passed the Espionage Act under which over 2,000 people were imprisoned. One of these was a candidate for president, Eugene Debs. This law (amended) is still on the books.

During War War II Roosevelt interred over 120,000 Japanese- Americans in concentration camps. One of the worst parts of this action was that before the people were herded into the camps they were given just 48 hours to dispose of their homes and businesses. It obviously was a buyers' market.

Less than two months after 9/11 Congress passed the Patriot Act. We still are finding out what mischief the NSA and FBI can commit  under it.

Now, we are under the arbitrary provisions of Shelter in Place. It depends on what state you live in, but people are being arrested for walking their dog, going to church, playing pitch with their daughters. In Michigan you can go to the store, but you can't buy paint, plants or seeds.

Once this is over we will have an opportunity to look back and reassess what should have been done and, most importantly, what should not have been done. Perhaps we won't be so quick to suspend so many of our cherished core values next time.

- Fred Wheeler

Past Piedmont Chronicles: [Fred Wheeler] - What Are the Hot Dogs & Fireworks All About?

 

[Fred Wheeler] - What Are the Hot Dogs & Fireworks All About?

   
 The Fourth of July is a big holiday.  There will be 160 million people cooking out; we will consume more than 155 million hot dogs.   More than $650 million will be spent on personal fire works with another $318 million spent on professional shows.
   So, what are we celebrating on the Fourth of July?  You’ve probably seen the videos of people unable to answer that question.  An acceptable answer would be, “It’s our nation’s birthday” or “It’s Independence Day.”
   How did our Independence Day come about?  Given the conflicting backgrounds, ideologies, and aspirations of the people inhabiting the Thirteen Colonies of America in contrast to those of the Mother Country, there was destined to be an irrepressible conflict between the two in the latter half of the eighteenth century.
   Since the founding of Jamestown in 1607, the colonists had gotten used to a system of self-government.  Great Britain had followed the companion policies of the establishment of representative institutions in the colonies and benign neglect.  After 1680, the elected assemblies won the right to initiate all legislation that governed the colonies.  They controlled the purse strings, including determining the pay for judges and government office holders.
   Britain embraced an economic system called mercantilism (sort of a mixture of fascism and crony capitalism of today).  It had long been accepted that they had the right to impose restrictions on trade and manufacturing.  But, the revenue from the tariffs hardly covered the costs of administrating them; and most of them were pretty much dead letters because of pervasive smuggling.
   It generally was accepted, even by the British, that Parliament could not tax the colonists for revenue.
   The irony is that the precipitating event which brought about the separation of the American colonies from Great Britain was the culmination of their partnership in an enterprise that seemed to be a huge benefit to both: their shared victory in the French and Indian War (1754-63).
   Among other things, as a result of their victory, Britain was given Canada and the area between the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
   The downside was that Britain had run up a tremendous debt fighting the war (it was called the Seven Years’ War in Europe) and they needed to station 10,000 troops in garrisons in their newly won territory to guard against a French or Spanish invasion and depredations by Indians against the settlers. Because the colonies would benefit from these actions, Britain did not think it unreasonable for the Americans to absorb some of the costs involved.

Join or Die

   However, the idea of a standing army was anathema to Americans; and they only were willing to pay taxes that their own elected representatives had passed. 
   The vast majority of political thinkers among the colonists embraced the philosophy of John Locke (1632-1704).  They believed that governments derive their power from the consent of the governed; and that men naturally possess certain rights, the chief among them being life, liberty, and property. 
   As for the attitude toward Britain, the colonists generally fell into three categories.  There were those who supported the British Government in all they did (the Tories); those who wanted reconciliation with Britain (the conservatives); and those who wanted the rights of Englishmen (the radicals).  Subsequent events gradually would cause most of the members of the latter two groups to realize that reconciliation was impossible and that rebellion was unavoidable.    
   Desperate for money to defray its debt, in 1765, Parliament passed the Stamp Act.  A tax was imposed on every piece of printed paper the colonists used: documents, licenses, newspapers – even playing cards.  The tax impacted most severely the lawyers and merchants, until now the most reliable supporters of the British Government.
   The widespread reaction was the beginning of the revolutionary movement in the American colonies.  In May 1765, the Virginia House of Burgesses passed five resolutions made by Patrick Henry that declared that America possessed all the rights of Englishmen; that the principle of no taxation without representation was an essential part of the British Constitution; and that Virginia alone enjoyed the right to tax Virginians.
   Riots occurred in August. Tax collectors were run out of their homes and had to seek refuge in military garrisons. Clubs of patriots, calling themselves “Sons of Liberty”, organized across the colonies.  A Stamp Act Congress was convened in New York in October 1765.  If the Stamp Act had not been repealed, a revolution would have started a decade before it did.
   Things settled down for a while until Parliament passed the Townshend duties in 1767, putting duties on tea, colors, glass, and paper that should be used “for defraying the charge of administration of justice, and the support of civil government” in the colonies.
   By the time the duties were supposed to go into effect, the colonies had organized a boycott of British products.  The boycott failed, but Parliament repealed all the duties except that on tea.  In response, the colonists switched to coffee or drank smuggled Dutch tea.
   There was another lull for a couple of years, then Parliament passed the Tea Act of 1773. Its purpose was to bail out the East India Company which was on the brink of bankruptcy.  It kept the three pence tax on imported tea.  But, because it allowed tea to by-pass the British middlemen, it actually was cheaper than smuggled tea.
   Parliament misjudged the Americans.  Their assumption was that the Americans would disregard the tax and welcome the cheap tea, but, they stuck by the principle of “no taxation without representation” and agreed to boycott the cheap—but, taxed tea.  In the port cities, the tax resisters desired to keep the tea from being disembarked so the duties would not be collected.
   The Boston Tea Party was held on December 16, 1773.  A group of patriots dressed as Indians went aboard the ship, “Dartmouth”, and dumped all the tea overboard.  Actually, there were other tea parties, for example, in Charleston and Yorktown. In Annapolis, the brig, “Peggy Stewart” was burned, destroying over a ton of tea.
   In London, the British Government was incensed.  In retribution, Parliament passed the Port Act which closed the port of Boston until the East India Company was compensated for its lost tea. The day the Port Act became effective, July 1, 1774, there were riots throughout the colonies.  At the urging of supporters in New York, a Continental Congress was convened. The tipping point had been reached.
   On both sides of the Atlantic things escalated. Parliament passed a series of “Coercive Acts” (Americans called them the “Intolerable Acts”). Parliament unilaterally changed the charter of Massachusetts. The Quartering Act required the citizens of Boston to open their homes to British soldiers. Most galling to the colonists was The Quebec Act which annexed the area between the Ohio and   Mississippi Rivers, later known as the Northwest Territory, to the Province of Quebec.
   In October 1774, Congress passed the Nonimportation Agreement providing that Americans boycott all British products.  British troops moved into Boston. Units of Minutemen were formed; military stores accumulated; committees of observation appointed to monitor the British troops in Boston.
   At the Second Virginia Convention, meeting at St. John’s Church in Richmond, Patrick Henry, who had earlier been elected a delegate to the Second Continental Congress, on March 23, 1775, declared:
                   “…The question before the house is one of awful moment to this country.
                   For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom
                   or slavery… Gentlemen may cry, peace, peace—but there is no peace.  The
                   war is actually begun.  The next gale that sweeps from the North will bring
                   to our ears the clash of resounding arms!  Our brethren are already in the
                   field!  Why stand we here idle?  What is it that gentlemen wish?  What would
                   they have?  Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price
                   of chains and slavery?  Forbid it, Almighty God!  I know not what course others
                   may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”
  

 Less than a month later, on April 19, 1775, the “shot heard round the world” was fired at Lexington followed by more fighting at Concord. For those who still wanted reconciliation or peace, events were spinning out of control. Opinions changed over-night.  Militias assembled in Boston to lay siege to the British hold up there.  Militia troops under Ethan Allen captured Fort Ticonderoga on May 10.
   In Philadelphia, on June 14, Congress created the American army. The next day, they unanimously elected George Washington to be its Commander-in-Chief. On June 17, the British moved against the  New England troops who had occupied Breed’s Hill and Bunker Hill. They won the battle but paid a terrible price and were still under siege in Boston.
   On October 26, 1775, King George lll addressed the opening of Parliament by declaring that America was in rebellion. Lord Dunmore, the king’s governor of Virginia, who had evacuated Williamsburg, had naval forces destroy Norfolk on January 1, 1776. Thomas Paine published “Common Sense” in January calling for a declaration of independence.
   The hiring of foreign mercenaries by Britain was the last straw for many Americans.  In April 1776, American ports were declared open to the ships of all nations except Britain.  On May 10, 1776 Congress advised the colonies to establish governments whose authority was derived from the people rather than the king.
   On May 15, the Virginia Convention unanimously instructed its delegates to Congress to vote for independence.  Thus, Richard Henry Lee introduced a resolution in Philadelphia, to the effect that the “united Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free, and independent States”, and that foreign alliances and a plan of confederation ought to be established.

Moultrie Flag

   A vote was postponed until July 1 so some delegates could consult with their states on how to vote.  An overwhelming majority of delegates voted for independence on July 2.  A committee led by Thomas Jefferson was appointed to compose it and on July 4 the Declaration was approved.
                         “When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one
                           people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them
                           with another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the
                           separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and of nature’s
                           God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires
                           that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
                            We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal;
                           that they are endowed, by their Creator, with certain unalienable rights;
                           that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  That to
                           secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving
                           their just powers from the consent of the governed….”
   But, that was not the end of the matter. As its title implies, it was a declaration, not a statement of fact.  The armies and militias of the colonies would have to fight another five years before they won their independence, and wait another two years for the Treaty of Paris of 1783 to fix the terms of separation between the new nation and the Mother Country.

Gadsen Flag

   Less than three months after the declaration of independence, Washington was driven out of New York and across New Jersey. Christmas, 1776 was a low ebb for the American troops. With one week to go before the enlistments of most of his troops, Washington crossed the Delaware River and routed the Hessian troops at Trenton.
   The winter quarters at Valley Forge and Morristown, New Jersey were terrible. A major turning point in the war was the surrender of British General Burgoyne and his force of 5,000 to General Horatio Gates on October 17, 1777.  It was not only a great strategic gain for the Americans because it kept the British from splitting the colonies, but it convinced France to enter the war on the side of the Americans.
   Washington bided his time in White Plains, New York, waiting for an opening to mass his forces with those of the French. His opportunity came in the fall of 1781. After a campaign from South Carolina through North Carolina, General Cornwallis limped into Yorktown. Washington rushed south with a force of 8,000 men, half of whom were French regulars.  The French fleet arrived at the end of August and landed another 3,000 troops.
   There was no remedy from the sea for Cornwallis because the French fleet controlled the bay.  On October 19, 1781 Cornwallis surrendered his entire force of 6,000 to Washington. At the time of the surrender, the American forces surrounding Cornwallis numbered 16,000. Of these, 7,000 were French, 5,500 were Continental Army, and 3,500 were Virginia Militia.
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- Fred Wheeler