Homeland Security

by William L Casselman

  “They had me rattled there for a moment…I was thinking seriously about making my play to escape, fight my way out, and make it to the post, but then everything changed. The Colonel started making sense in his sort of way I mean. I’m saying that with all the causes out there; lawful and unlawful, the Colonel, as a spokesman, has a way of making everything sound reasonable and plausible. I must admit, he had me agreeing with him on those last two points he finally got around to. If the statehood committee did conduct the election that way, it was conducted illegally and no bones about it. If the military got behind it, the whole thing stinks. Then we have this whole 90/10 thing, but I can still see that as a civil matter against the feds and one that can hopefully be settled in court… even though it might take another twenty years and a federal court may be biased.”

  “Tell me what you feel, Clay… as an Alaska Native?” Doc had the end of the pen between his teeth, his left leg crossed over the top of his right leg and his left toe-tapping away to some beat in his mind.

  “I’m angry, Doc,” Clay said, and he stood up suddenly and walked about the room, which didn’t allow for much strutting one’s anger off. They also had the exam table to deal with, so Clay gave up, tossed his hands up in frustration, and slumped back into his seat. “The whole thing just pisses me off. What the government did to my people, the Aleuts, and the Eskimos. They imprisoned the Aleuts in World War II, and they exploded a nuclear bomb underneath the land of the Eskimos. They also put nuclear isotopes inside the Eskimo women without their knowledge to see what would happen to them… can you imagine how a white woman or her husband would feel to find that out? They’d be blowing something up, but not the Eskimo people. This is our government! The United States of America and the politicians use us as test tube experiments, and yes, I am really angry, and I found myself walking right into the Colonel’s charm… except, I was able to remember who I was, why I was there, and who I owed my allegiance to. I’m an Alaskan, but I am an American first and above all, a Christian. I’ve bled for my country, fought for my country and watched my buddies die for this country. So, if this is what you’re wondering, Doc. I know where I’m at and where I need to be, but I’m still angry about how my beautiful Alaska was mistreated by people in power. But, Doc, I’m a history nut, and I know it’s just not minorities who’ve been hurt, oppressed and killed. I’ve read how white men and women were enslaved, shipped over to the colonies from England and France to be slaves, and many of them died in chains. So seldom do our schools teach on this. It is not a question of race, creed, or ethnic background. It comes down to greed and simple evil in mankind to control the fate of others. To enslave or kill those who do not agree with them and I am afraid the Colonel may be marching down a path he has no idea of the price he will have to pay or the cost those who serve him will have to give up. But yes, Doc, I am angry.”

  Doc Adams needed to get Clay calmed down before his operative lost it, knowing this would be listened to many times back in DC. “Talk to me about this FFAM.”

  “As I said earlier, it is called the Freedom for Alaska Militia, or FFAM and simply pronounced as “Fam” among those involved. This is a secret part of the Alaska Defense Force, also known as the ADF and it is led by Colonel Wickersham. The other members of the ADF, including the Commanding Officer of the entire Militia, based in Anchorage, do not know of its existence. Colonel Wickersham has approximately one hundred and fifteen personnel, which includes a Major Allen Peterson as his Executive Officer and Major Norm Johnson, his Operations Officer. I’ve recently been accepted into the inner core as we hoped and have continued on in my job as Training Officer and Assistant Operation Officer. They’ve told me they are still short of personnel for their one hundred and twenty-member goal and their target date is sometime in July. They trust me to some degree, but I haven’t been given the target yet or actual date, but I do know the FFAM has six personnel with Explosive Ordinance Disposal training from the military. Nearly all of the FFAM are the best the ADF has to offer and come with some very fine US Army, Marine and Air Force Training behind them. We have many combat veterans, some from as far back as Viet Nam and I can tell you they are loyal enough to follow the Colonel into the fiery pits of Hell.”

  “You mentioned earlier about the FFAM having an array of military equipment, let’s go over that again please.”

  Clay nodded his head, took in a deep breath and then continued with his briefing, “We have a well-armed fighting force of nearly 115-men and women, with armored personnel carriers, adequate military training, and personal drive to carry out some form of domestic terrorism. They have six fully operational armored personnel carriers; two APC-113 on dual tracks, four APC- 706 wheeled ‘rubber ducky” vehicles; all 6 from Viet Nam era and each one set up with mounts for automatic weapons. I have also heard they have another rubber ducky being worked on to be ready for use by summer. As you are already aware, they have several Class Three dealers, who possess automatic weapons; M-4s, M-16s, M-60’s, World War II-era .30 and .50 caliber machine guns. Some foreign machine guns from Japan, Germany, England, and France. I know of no grenades, LAWS, or AT4’s. I have heard nothing of Semtex, C-4 or Claymore mines. But with one hundred and fifteen-troops, this makes for a sizeable armed force.”

  “Let’s now got to the points that struck a nerve with you, what the Colonel is most likely using to recruit his personnel,” Doc Adams said.

  “Statehood vote,” Clay immediately replied. “Colonel wants the United Nations to use its authority to ensure a lawful election. He desires it under UN guidelines and Alaska residency laws, the same way Joe Vogler wanted; a true vote for statehood by legal Alaskan residents. One vote in which the US Government will honor and ensure all Alaska communities will receive ballots and interpreters to be provided for those Alaska Native elders who still fail to understand English. I know of several elders who still don’t speak a word of English, trying to hold on to their dying language. I’m not sure they’ve ever learned to read it.”

  Clay looked over at the recorder and added, “DC is going to flip with they read this report, but I need to add a warning here, Doc.”

  “A warning?”

  “Recently, the feds and Alaska State Troopers arrested and brought to court several militia members on weapon charges. They were originally charge was Conspiracy to Commit Murder of some judges and state troopers, but some of the charges were dropped because the District Attorney botched the case. Though these people were not part of the ADF, they’ve gotten a lot of Alaskans riled up and on their side to some degree. While a good share of the state think these guys are some idiotic clowns and they were found guilty, some Alaskans feel the federal government got scared and stepped in too fast and too hard. I’m not sure how much traveling you’ve done around the US, Doc, but Alaskans are the most hard-headed and stubborn people you’ll ever come across… we have to be to handle this country and its wildness. We’re isolated, the weather and land is unforgiving, but we have a lot of pride, and we love our freedom above all else. Too much government is going the wrong way. If the Feds and the state come in here and arrest the FFAM right now, you’re looking at a lot of trouble. Not only that, Doc, but a lot of people are going to be killed. Give me some time, this S-Day as the Colonel calls it isn’t supposed to happen until summer. I have all winter. Have the bosses in DC give me the time to work this case. If they come in now…too many innocent people are going to die, the bosses will be tied up in dozens of sessions before Congress, and the President will have to be thinking about a new job. You’ll have Ruby Ridge and Waco times 10 before it was over.”

  “Besides keeping you on the case, what would you recommend at this point, Clay?”

  “Increase the manpower of the FBI office in Anchorage, but only add a couple more agents to the Fairbanks office. If the FFAM gets wind of something, they’ll go underground and possibly hit somewhere else at a later date. Maybe divide into smaller teams and hit all the military installations at once or the federal bu
ildings. Simply a platoon of FFAM could secure the Federal Court House in Anchorage and hold the judges hostage, or blow the place apart with what’s in the building. Cleaning fluids… a good EOD man can make a bomb out of just about anything found in a building cleaning or utility storeroom.

  “Washington needs to move slow, they’ve been embarrassed enough over Ruby and Waco. Let me find out more, especially if the FFAM finds out you’re on to them and does go underground. I want to learn where the illegal automatic weapons are hidden and who is the money man supporting the Colonel. There’s too much money involved in this operation, and I know the Colonel couldn’t be carrying it on his own. I’m curious to see if another country is behind this, like Russia or China. I know China played this game in Africa and South America too.”

  “I’ll add in my two cents, Clay. I think you’re right. We now know we have an extremely dangerous situation here involving a large armed force, possibly in possession of explosives if you’re right about the EOD people and those automatic weapons you spoke of. The threat situation is high. But and this is a big but, we do not know the target or when this event is to occur, except sometime in the summer. You are in a perfect place to learn these things. I also know about the current legal matter involving those militia members and the general atmosphere favoring them, mostly because of Alaskan’s desire for freedom and less government interference. Also, it should be noted, the personnel involved in this domestic terrorism do not possess nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons of mass destruction. So, in wrapping this week’s session up, I’d recommend we leave Operative Jefferson in place and continue on with this operation. If and when we learn of the target and the date, we can then reassess the situation and look at our options.” Doc Adams turned off the recorder but kept his notebook on his knee. “Now, tell me about your love life.”

  “You go right for the throat, Doc.”

  “Recorder is off, this is just you and I talking…Think about me as your big brother and you’re asking for advice.”

  “Doc, I hate to break it to you, but you’re old enough to be my Dad, and I’m giving you a few years there on the good side.”

  “Cold, down and dirty, Clay and here I’m working for you so you can stay around here and enjoy Emy’s companionship and you go and slam me. I’m hurt, young man.”

  “Doc, you’re like a rattler…a nice rattler, but I doubt you can be hurt and I think you probably got one heck of a bite if you need to strike.”

  “Wrong there, my boy. I can be hurt, and I’ve been hurt, but yes, I’ve got a real cold side like the snake you mentioned, and that’s to protect me from being hurt again. It’s too easy to get involved with my operatives. I’ve tried to quit this business before and even fled to Europe under another name. But I knew too much about the right people, so it was either a bullet behind the ear in London, a hit and run accident on some back street in Paris or come back to DC and play nice. I even have a contract and signed in blood that says I can’t write a book about my life until five-years after I retire. By then they expect me to be dead of old age, one of my old patients had found me and didn’t want his story told, and I disappeared or got disgusted with the whole mess and simply tossed my computer files in the river and walked away.”

  “Just who have you worked with, Doc?”

  “Remember that old saying, ‘if I told you I’d have to kill you,’ well it’s true. Wouldn’t be me, I’m too passive, but someone would. Poison in your toothpaste, sniper from some car…you know the game. So skip it, Clay. But I will tell you, you’re my last operative. I’ll do some government PTSD cases, drunks, and other addictions, but no more operatives. I can’t handle the excitement…or the worry.”

  “Thanks, Doc…I know you meant that for me,” Clay said and he patted Doc on the knee. “Well, as to Emy, we’re moving along. We’re all looking forward to Christmas. I’ve been invited over for both Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. I’m still looking for her Christmas gift, which is driving me batty. I’m trying to talk her into attending Christmas Eve services at my old church, but all I’ve gotten was a ‘maybe.’ Now every time we walk by a jewelry store, she wants to stop and look at engagement and wedding rings. No hint here, she drags me over and points at the ones she likes. Girl has expensive tastes.”

  “Wish I could meet her. From what you tell me about her, I like her. Somehow, just speaking off the collar here, I hope we can find a way to get her out of this. The whole family is easily looking at twenty-years for conspiracy and worse if they carry out the act.”

  “I’ll drag her kicking and screaming away from whatever it is before I let her do anything that stupid. I might be angry at the government, I might be an Indian, but domestic terrorism is still terrorism, and it’s not the way to go.”

  “Glad to hear you say that, Clay.” Doc Adam uncrossed his knee and stood up to stretch. He then walked over to pick up his boots and brought them back over to the chair to put them on. Once they were on, he wiped his forehead and face with the damp handkerchief. He knew now to ensure there was a box of Kleenex in this room whenever they met.

  BACK AT THE DEALERSHIP

  When Clay got back to the dealership, he found Silas in the shop area, talking to a few mechanics. After Clay changed back into his filthy coveralls; one set was good for only two days if he stayed busy, he came out and saw that Silas was still there and wandered over to the group.

  “You people are sure you want your Christmas party here instead of somewhere else this year?” Silas asked the men and women around him, which had grown in number since Clay had first come in. “Colonel,” a tall mechanic with a greasy blue baseball cap was speaking and waving his hands about, “…no sense on the extra cost of renting someplace, not when we have the whole showroom floor and shop area to move about in.” A female mechanic then added, “You’ll have the place all prettied up for the holidays, and all we need to do is bring in the food.”

  “Sure, Colonel,” a militia sergeant and parts man said in a raised voice. “…this way you can spend more money on beer and our Christmas bonuses get fatter.”

  Silas shook his head, “Joey, the only thing getting fatter around here is that tire around your tummy.” Silas then spotted Clay and waved him over and pointed at Joey, “Captain, this NCO is not how I imagined my noncommissioned officers to look. Do you think you could run twenty-pounds off him by summer?”

  With a raised eyebrow Clay’s glare shot in Joey’s direction, who was now trying to back away from the crowd and avoid the attention, when Clay replied, “Consider it accomplished, Colonel, I’ll be putting a few of our personnel on a new exercise routine of which I will be joining with them three times a week at the Fairbanks Athletic Club down the road. I’ve arranged with the club for veterans who are serving with the ADF on a regular basis to attend special three-days a week lunch hour work-outs on free passes for the purpose of getting in shape. On Wednesday, this will involve swimming, so if you need a pair of swim trunks-get them. I will be posting a list of those personnel who will attend this activity on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, or be considered AWOL. This will begin the first week in January, so for you married people, please notify your wives and or husbands of this activity. If I need to call them to verify this, I am willing to do so. We certainly do not want your spouses to suspect you're sneaking away to meet some sweet thing for a one-hour getaway at the hotel down the street.”

  “Thank you, Captain,” Silas said. He then bid his farewell to the troops and began making his way to his office, but grabbed Clay by the elbow along the way and stopped by his outer office door for a quiet conversation. “That was a good idea about the gym work-outs. If those men need an extra hour, I’ll keep them on the clock. But, Clay, I want them in shape by the end of May.”

  “Actually, Colonel, I went to the club to check out their prices for my own needs.” Clay patted his stomach. “I’ve put on twelve-pounds since coming home from overseas and need to start jogging again. The club has an indoor track
, and I really love to swim. While I was there, I got talking with the guy behind the desk, and he ended up being a Desert Storm vet and now a member of the Alaska Air National Guard. I told him about the ADF and how I was the new training officer and my concern for the shape of some of my troops. Before long we’d worked this whole thing out for these free passes. He’s hoping it may lead to some extra memberships once the troops begin their programs. I signed Emy and me up for a one-year full package, mostly out of a way of saying thanks to him. But I need the workouts. I love weightlifting, and they have one of the finest gyms in Alaska.”

  Silas grinned, thought about something for a moment and then said, “I’ll give you a little perk… you lose twenty pounds by first of June, and I’ll reimburse you for your membership fee.”

  “For both of us, Colonel?” Clay asked with a sly smile on his face.

  “Only as a wedding gift, Captain,” Silas replied. He had the last smile at Clay’s expense. He walked on by and went into the outer office, but then remembered something and turned around to catch Clay before he walked off. “Clay, have that list of names to Sally as soon as you can. I want her to make a copy to be put in their personnel files. If they lose the weight, I’ll figure out some kind of special reward for their efforts.”

  “Yes, Sir… but, Colonel, what will the sales staff say about having the party here instead of a nice restaurant?”

  “Like the man said a moment ago, we have the room, we’ll have the decorations up and you know those greedy dealers will be expecting fatter bonuses for the money I’ll be saving. But the joke will be on them. This has been a tough year, and they’ll be lucky they receive any bonus besides a frozen turkey, a cheap Christmas stocking filled with candy canes and a couple Walmart gift certificates.”