by Ira Tabankin
“Go to hell! We can go anywhere; we’re the people you work for.”
“OK, if that’s the way you want it, here’s your final warning. STAY OFF OF THE BASE. DEADLY FORCE WILL BE USED.”
“Fuck you!”
“Have it your way. Sergeant, you have permission to open fire if these people break through the fence line, you have permission to turn the electricity on.”
“Sir, I understand, we are weapons free if these people break through, we have permission to make the fence live.”
With that, the Sergeant picks up his radio handset saying, “turn the juice on, give them a two minute warning siren.”
A siren sounds which drowns out anyone trying to speak, it’s heard across the base; red strobe lights on top of the fence poles flash. A loudspeaker repeats, “Warning this fence will be electrified in two minutes. Warning do not touch the fence. Touching the fence will result in your potential death. Do not touch the fence.”
The protesters trying to break into the base, laughed, thinking the lights and siren were all effects for the press. The ones trying to cut the fence soon got the ‘shock’ of their lives; eight are holding the fence or metal tools when the energy flowed through the fence, all suffer third-degree burns; three suffer heart attacks and die. People touching those touching the fence when the electricity is turned on also get shocked. Electricity flows through those touching the fence into any who are touching them.
The screams from those in contact with the fence cut through the protesters and the media.
The protesters are shocked by the screaming and smell of burning flesh. As they recover, they pick up rocks and water bottles throwing them at the troops on the other side of the fence. The troops are pelted with eggs and tomatoes. The troops are ordered to back up from the fence, hopefully taking them out of range of the protesters.
Military troops going about their business off of their bases are soon pelted with rocks and eggs, they are cursed at and called baby killers. Their vehicles are stopped and pounded on. The protesters try to rock the vehicles; they try to turn them over with the people in them. One sergeant pulled his side arm; he fired three rounds into the sky, the shock of the gun firing drove the protesters away from his pickup. The military guards think the firing is coming their way. They charge their weapons and point them at those on the other side of the fence. It finally dawns on the protesters they went too far. They realize this is different from the history books that talked about how the peaceful protesters got the government to withdraw from Vietnam ending the war. These soldiers have spent time in Iraq and Afghanistan; they don’t trust protesters, they’ve been hurt by peaceful looking civilians who used IEDs against the American troops. If ordered to, these troops will fire on the protesters.
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“Mr. President, Doctor Rayson, the one who took Steve to the hospital, is on line 1, he would like to speak with you.”
“Doctor Rayson, how’s Steve? I’m planning on visiting him in twenty minutes.”
“Mr. President, we have the results from his blood work, sir, it was poison, someone placed it in the coffee. The poison caused him to have a massive heart attack. Whoever did it was most likely trying to get to you. Sir, I’ve alerted the Director of the Secret Service.”
Before they continue the discussion, the doors to the Oval Office open, four heavily armed agents enter the office, their leader looks at the President, “Sorry for the interruption, sir, we got a call from Doctor Rayson…”
“Yes I know, I have him holding on the phone, do the four of you plan to remain in my office all of he time?’
“Sir, two of us, will, at least one will be in the Situation Room and one in the waiting room on either side of the Oval Office. We’re also having all of your food and refreshments tested before you touch them, from now on, only an agent from my crew will be bringing you anything. You’ll know my team from the different label pins they’re wearing. Please tell me if you recognize the difference?”
“Yes, your background color is red not gold.”
“Mr. President, excellent, thank you. We’ll try to stay out of your way. Our only mission is to protect you.”
“Agent Jonson, how did someone get poison into my coffee without the service catching them?”
“Mr. President, I honestly don’t know, we’re tearing apart everything. I have four people reviewing every security tape. Sir, we’ll find them. I promise you, we’ll get to the bottom of who was behind the attempt on your life.”
“Thank you.”
“We have a major uphill fight on our hands. We’re not starting on our 20 yard line; we’re not even in the same stadium as Reid, we’re starting our defense in another universe. We’re going to need all of Rash’s help to turn the lights on in the world’s heads. Mr. President understand that the world has already judged you guilty, when the trial begins you can expect attempts on your life. We’re sure President Reid is going to try to distract you with all sorts of inconvenient events so you can’t focus on the trial.”
President Brownstone looks at Rash, “Do they know about the coffee?”
“No sir, they haven’t been engaged yet, so that information is restricted.”
“Paul, David, an attempt on my life took place yesterday. My coffee was poisoned.”
Both lawyers look into their coffee cups, placing them back on the table, pushing them away from in front of them. Everyone in the room laughs, Rash says, “It’s OK; we have everything tested now, I assure you, watch.” Rash swallows a cup of coffee, “It’s safe.”
David smiles saying, “Rash that’s a very good thing. If the coffee wasn’t any good we’d have to turn you down, for the next few weeks, we and our team will be living on coffee, we hope you stock a lot of it.”
All enjoy a laugh, Ted responds, “If we run low, I assure you, we’ll send someone out for it.”
Paul looks into the President’s eyes, “Mr. President, you have a military background, consider that we’re planning D-Day and have only two weeks to write and execute the invasion plans. The Hague is different from US courts. Our case is going to be tried in the world media who have already decided your the worst thing next to Pontius Pilate, in fact, to many; you’re worse than Pilate. Presidents Reid and Puten have already convinced the world you have blood on your hands. We expect Presidents Reid and Puten to be pouring gasoline on the roaring fire of world opinion. We’d suggest you don’t travel for a while, plus we’re going to need access to you and your records and your memory 24/7. We’re going to be working around the clock. Our goal is not to prove you’re innocent.”
Ted, says, “Huh, then what are you doing here? Did you come for a free breakfast?”
“Mr. Vice President, please allow us to continue. Our goal is much more than proving the President is innocent, we also have to prove Presidents Reid and Puten are GUILTY. If you’re innocent, we have to prove guilt somewhere else or we’ll be accused of using legal tricks to get you off. In that case, the hate against you and us will increase. Attacks against America will increase. So you see, we have double the workload. And not much time in order to put a case together.”
“Paul, we understand your goals, you’re correct, I like your plan. What do you need from us?”
“Everything you have on the death of President Obsma and the blackout in New York City.”
“Paul, some of the information is classified as secret, disclosing it will inform Presidents Reid and Puten how we collect information.”
“Mr. President, after Snowden, does anyone really believe we don’t collect everything on everyone? I don’t think anyone doesn’t already know we can and do listen and read everything anyone says or writes. We think the rules on releasing secret material are going to have to be modified if you want us to present a case that the common person will be able to understand.”
“Agreed, I’ll arrange to have everything we have sent to the Situation Room. How much staff will you be needing? How much space should we set asid
e for you?”
“Here’s a list of the people we would like on our team, we’ve included their full names, addresses, and social security numbers to help the secret service quickly run checks on them. We would appreciate it if you can get our people screened ASAP.”
Ted takes the list from Paul; he hands it to the senior Secret Service Agent, “Please run this list as quickly as possible. They’re going to need access passes for the house too.”
“Yes sir, we’ll get right on it.”
Paul sips his coffee, “Mr. President, will the AG be a supporter or barricade?”
“Paul, I understand your concerns given the last administration’s Justice Department, it’s a good question. I can assure you the AG and the entire Justice Department will either support your efforts or they’ll be gone. If ANYONE blocks you, slows you down, or tries to derail you, tell us, we’ll make sure the road is clear. I personally will make sure you get what you need.”
“Thank you.”
“Do you have any other questions we can help you get started with?”
“Just two, one, where’s the restroom and two, where’s the Situation Room?”
After laughing, President Brownstone says, “Agent Jonson will assist you with these requests. Paul, I live here, anything you need, at any time, call the number on this card.”
President Brownstone and his advisors leave the Blue Room, Randy says, “I think we got the right team, I know many of the people on their team. My only concern is the PR campaign which Reid has a massive head start on. Rash, we’re going to need you to pull a huge rabbit out of your hat this time.”
“Randy, I’m on it, I have a meeting later this afternoon with Glenn, Sean, and Mark. I’ve also invited a number of trusted bloggers to dinner.”
Ted laughs so hard he trips in the hallway, “Rash, I thought trusted and blogger was an oxymoron. Something along the lines of never saying, trust them, in the same sentence.”
“Ted, we’re going to need all of the help we can get, late this evening I’m meeting with a representative of Anonymous,”
President Brownstone replies, “That should be an interesting meeting. The meetings I’ve had with them were all very interesting. Rash, watch every word you say, these people write computer code in their sleep. They read nuances into everything. Speak plainly and get to the point. They don’t take to fools or having their time wasted.”
“You’re the one who got them to agree to help us. I don’t even want to guess what you had to do to accomplish that.”
“I promised them we would never censor or tax the internet. I promised them I’d stop the NSA spying on them.”
“Wow, you really did pull out the big guns.”
“We all have to do what we have to do. After we catch up on our urgent matters, say in an hour, I’d like a briefing on what’s going on at our various military bases. I’m sure you’ve seen the reports about the fighting. I saw a report that said we electrocuted some protesters who were trying to break into one of our bases, is this true? I just know this one is going to turn very messy. Rash, ask NBX for a copy of the uncensored, unedited tape. I think there’s more on that tape than they showed on the news this morning.”
“Yes sir.”
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“Ambassador Rakenvich, thank you for joining us here in Moscow. We hope we didn’t inconvenience you too much by our request that you return from New York City today.”
“Mr. President, Mr. Director, it’s my pleasure, how may I be of service?”
“Ambassador, we want you to address the United Nations, we want you to make a case for them to embargo the United States. The United States, through the murder of President Obsma, is a war criminal nation. All trade with America should be blocked. We want the United Nations to establish a naval blockade of the American ports.”
“Mr. President, I’m sure you know that a naval blockade is an act of war. I don’t see the United Nations, for all of their bluff and hard language, wanting to risk a third world war with the Americans.”
“Ambassador, the Rodina will support their efforts; we’ll ‘loan’ the United Nations some of our naval warships. We’ll also be able to loan them the navies of France and Germany to offset their risk. They should be able to use some of their small nation’s navies plus the Europeans to block the American’s major ports.”
”President Puten, I know the Americans very well. I’ve lived in Washington and New York City for a combined twenty years, sir, they will not sit still for a naval blockade.”
“Excellent, we don’t expect them to. We want them to attack the United Nations’ ships. We want them to sink the ships and kill their crews. This will reinforce to the world America is a country of war mongers. A country who can’t be trusted to own weapons of mass destruction. The world is going to have to come together to disarm America. Pictures of the sinking ships and dead sailors will help push world opinion against America more so than it is now.”
“I get it, when that happens; Mother Russia will be happy to assist in the disarming, thus ensuring only we have WMDs; hence, we’ll rule the world.”
President Puten turns to face the Director of the FSB, “See Director; I told you he would understand.”
“Ambassador, do you think the plan will work?”
“Yes I do, once the United Nations announces a naval blockade, the American people will demand President Brownstone break the blockade that will mean a declaration of war against the all of the members of the United Nations. The American economy depends too heavily on open transit of the seas. A naval war will increase their cost for everything they import. A naval war will increase the costs of everything for the world. I assume Mother Russia will only loan the United Nations our older and out of date ships, not our newest. These will most likely be the first ones the Americans attack, becoming the sacrificial lambs to rally the world to our cause.”
“Excellent, we’re in agreement. When can you make a presentation to the Security Council?”
“Mr. President, Mr. Director, I’ll need a few days to ensure we have enough votes before I make an official proposal. I assume the budget to acquire the needed votes will be available?”
“Whatever you think will be necessary will be made available to you.”
“If possible, new American dollars are best.”
“We’ll prepare it so you will be able to have it carried back with you labeled as a diplomatic package so it’s untouched when you return to New York City.”
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Ron’s cell phone rings, “Hello, this is Ron.” Looking at the caller ID, He says, “Kathy are you OK, is Brad OK, what’s wrong?”
“Ron, I’m a block from the Loudoun County High School, you need to get some people over here right away. There’s a big fight among groups of kids. Some wearing American flag T-shirts got jumped by a large number of others in the ball field to the east of the school’s parking lot. Do you know it?”
“Yes, I know the location, how many?”
“In the time we’ve been talking over 100 have joined in, RON! BANG, that’s a gun shot!”
“Kathy, I’m on it, I’ll call you back. Get away from there right now.”
Picking up his police radio handset, “This is one Adam one, all units, all units, 10-240 at field east of Loudoun High School, respond code 0, repeat all units respond code 0.” Ron flips the switch that turns on his emergency lights and siren; he spins the car around heading to the High School. Ron arrives at the field within six minutes; three additional cars are a block away, the scene in front of him looks like a bad movie set. Hundreds of young men and women are fighting each other, some are using baseball bats; some have metal poles, some heavy metal chains, along with a small number of handguns. There are already more than ten bodies lying in the field; blood is everywhere. He grabs his shotgun as he leaves his car. He fires a round into the air to get everyone’s attention. Four people turn towards the sound of the gunfire; they return fire towards Ron and the arriving police
cars. Ron fires at the shooters, taking two down. Other youths on both sides of the fighting start running towards Ron. Both sides have a common enemy who’s interfering in their fight. The second officer to arrive fires tears gas into the approaching crowd. It takes four tear gas rounds before the crowd starts to break up; most can’t breathe, all have tears pouring own their faces. Some wrap cloths around their faces to block the gas. Ron yells at the newly arriving officers, “Call in for medical assistance, we have many down, also tell the Fire Department to come, maybe high pressure water will cool these people down.”
The first two ambulances arrive within four minutes, the longest four minutes of Ron’s life. Bullets are striking his and the other officer's cars; additional people are joining the battle. While the gunfight is taking place, 25 adults have recently joined the melee. Someone throws Molotov cocktails at Ron’s car forcing him to take cover behind a different vehicle. The EMS on scene officer yells to Ron, “We can’t go in there until things settle down a little, can you do anything to open a hole for my people to attend to the wounded?”
“Not yet, however, I hear the Fire Department on the way, they should be able to cool the mob down.”
“Time isn’t on our side, if we’re going to save some of them, we need to get them help ASAP.”
“I know, however, until the Fire Department arrives the only way I can break the fight up is to shoot more of them. Not something I want to do.”
“Ron, here’s the Fire Department.”
Shots ring out from the ongoing fighting targeted at the Fire Department trucks. Ron yells, “Return fire, we need the Fire Department trucks to spray them down, call in and ask for reinforcements from local towns.”
BANG BANG BANG
Ron looks up to see the windshield of the car he and Officer Gray are hiding behind break apart. The officers say, “That was a rifle, semi auto.”
“Yea, the crowd just keeps expanding, it’s getting more and more dangerous.”
