Re: The President of the United States
National Security Council
Attorney-General Office
House Un-American Activities Committee
Name: Jake Gregory Meyer
Nicknames / Aliases: N/A
Date of Birth: 07/02/1947
Birthplace: Franciscan Saint Francis Health - Beech Grove Campus, 1600 Albany Street, Beech Grove, Marion County, Indiana, United States of America
Father: Paul Baltasar Meyer
Mother: Lucy Adelia nee Brandhorst Meyer - Deceased
Siblings: Corbin Dalton Meyer, Elke Oceana Meyer, Heather Alicia Meyer, Cole Sawyer Meyer, Valerie Jenner Meyer, Clark Griswold Meyer, Harrison Tripp Meyer - Half-Brother, Beverly Livia Meyer - Half-Sister
Ethnicity: Caucasian. The subject is of German and Swiss-German descent. Possibly Danish as well due to his Paternal Grandmother's place of origin but it is unknown for certain.
Religious Affiliation: Christian, Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod
Parentage: The Meyer's lineal origin lay in Minden in the present-day province of North-Rhine Westphalia, West Germany with the family emigrating to America and settling in the State of Indiana around the late 1840s.
His Paternal Grandfather was the eldest of four brothers in a farming family and served as a United States Marine during the First World War and Nicaragua.
His Paternal Grandmother emigrated from Föhr, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany in 1914 and she reportedly had relatives still residing in Germany, including a brother who was in the Imperial German Army and another in the Imperial German Navy during World War One but it is unknown at this time if contact is extant and if any relatives are living.
His maternal grandparents are farmers in Tipton County, Indiana with his grandfather, Henry, also owning a gun shop and Mister Brandhorst holds a Type 01 Federal Firearms License as well as a Class 3 Special Occupation Tax, a Form 4 with the required tax stamp, and a Type 07 Federal Firearms License with a Class 2 Special Occupation Tax which all permits him to sell, transfer, or manufacture Title II weapons covered by the National Firearms Act of 1934.
His Stepgrandfather was career Regular Army, serving mostly with the 16th U.S. Infantry and for a time with the 9th Coast Artillery Regiment, Coast Artillery Corps at Fort Revere before being mandatorily retired from Fort Benjamin Harrison in 1924 as he was sixty, the mandatory age of retirement, and when his Maternal Grandmother married, she was thirty-six years his junior in 1921.
As a side note his Great-Grandfather Walter upon the outbreak of the Spanish-American War back in 1898 enlisted in the 27th Battery, Indiana Volunteer Artillery and landed on Puerto Rico before his unit was ordered to engage the Spaniards at Guayma yet as fate would have it the gunners received word to stand-down as the armistice was signed and therefore never fired a shot.
Current Place of Residence: Marine Barracks Brooklyn, Brooklyn Navy Yard - Brooklyn, New York City, New York
Current Occupation: United States Marine Corps, MOS 5811 Military Policeman, Rank of Private First Class
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 178 lbs
Secondary Languages: In addition to taking German in High School, The subject is fluent in a dialect of Low German, the Mindener Platt subdialect of Ostwestfälisch, and is knowledgeable of some Schleswigsch as well, the latter likely due to his paternal grandmother.
Vision Acuity: 20/10
Health Ailments: Cat Allergy, life-threatening severity of which may require emergency medical treatment. It is noted that during First Contact with Zorin Krasul as head of the diplomatic mission, Meyer did have a flare up but the allergen noted in his report that the Cathar dander was not life-threatening compared to native felines and that the reaction was as if it was hayfever, suggesting that interactions with Cathar fur would result in Allergic Rhinitis rather than Anaphylaxis but the exact reasons are unknown as of this time.
IQ according to the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: 135
Additional Notes: After investigating thoroughly, the background and character of the subject do not appear to be sympathetic to any foreign entity including but not limited to Communists as well as this reported Sith Empire and even the United Nations though as will be mentioned Meyer does hold opinions that could still call for being watched even if it is for reasons other than the purpose of this background investigation.
He had been commended by his commanders and his record has no demerits that would be described as critical of his credibility as an upstanding serviceman and citizen of the United States, including but not limited to being a Page at the Indiana State Senate during the Ninth Grade of High School.
Additionally, as aforementioned, his IQ Classification is clearly well above average and he was noted by teachers and faculty to be studious and precocious with a recommendation to skip grades in Elementary and was consistently in the top ten of his class, earning a GPA of 3.8 upon graduation from Franklin Central High School.
As a comparison, one of his step-cousins, Nicole, is noted to have an IQ of 146.
Although Meyer does not appear to pose any particular risks to National Security given his particular positions, the fact that he is involved with the John Birch Society does indicate that his beliefs are on the fringe and it is not difficult to speculate that he is on the far right of the political spectrum as noted by one of our top psychological analysts and he is currently a member of the John Birch Society as well as Americans for Constitutional Action and the American Conservative Union.
The subject and his father alike were ejected by the Liberty Lobby for being 'kike sympathizing nigger lovers'. In regards to their expulsion from the latter organization, it indicates that their beliefs are more aligned with curtailing the powers of the federal government in favor of strictly upholding the tenth amendment and rolling back New Deal initiatives than supporting the particular ideological agenda of Willis A. Carto.
While unconfirmed as of this time, it is suspected that he and his male relatives are members of the Minutemen established by Robert DePugh and as such, have accumulated and stockpiled weapons as part of a hypothetical counterrevolution in the event of a Communist takeover. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Division records do show that there are privately possessed machine guns and suppressors registered by immediate and extended family as required by the National Firearms Act of 1934 and there may be some World War Two vintage anti-tank rifles, mortars, and even a lone Forty Millimeter Bofors anti-aircraft gun among them, registration which may have been done with reluctance given their beliefs regarding Constitutional rights despite otherwise being law-abiding. Although members of the Minutemen have been arrested on Federal weapons charges, membership in an organization itself is not a crime though as decided by the 1886 decision Presser v. Illinois the Supreme Court of the United States held "Unless restrained by their own constitutions, state legislatures may enact statutes to control and regulate all organizations, drilling, and parading of military bodies and associations except those which are authorized by the militia laws of the United States" and presently as quoted under Article 12 of the Constitution of Indiana regarding the composition and classes of the militia:
"A militia shall be provided and shall consist of all persons
over the age of seventeen (17) years, except those persons who may be
exempted by the laws of the United States or of this state. The militia may be divided into active and inactive classes and consist of such military organizations as may be provided by law."
The aforementioned article which observes 10 U.S. Code § 246 as quoted:
(a)The militia of the United States consists of all able-bodied males at least 17 years of age and, except as provided in section 313 of title 32, under 45 years of age who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, citizens of the United States and of female citizens of the United States who are members of the National Guard.
(b)The classes of the militia are—
(1)the organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval Militia; and
(2)the unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia.
It is therefore interpreted reluctantly by the Office of Legal Counsel who consulted with us during this investigation with emphasis on reluctantly that under current law the Minutemen as founded by Mister DePugh could controversially be classified as part of the unorganized militia and unless otherwise in conflict with laws of the state in question or violating the National Firearms Act of 1934 by stockpiling unregistered arms that are covered by the National Firearms Act of 1934, no member of the organization who abides by the law could rightfully be prosecuted and they could only be indicted on laws already being enforced and upheld to constitutional scrutiny.
Moreover, it is noted that he is interested in firearms, subscribing to Shotgun News and surveillance has been conducted with him being seen engaging at firing ranges recreationally.
He has in his youth competed in events sanctioned by the Office of the Director of Civilian Marksmanship, first attending the National Matches at Camp Perry at the age of Ten with the Central Indiana Highpower Rifle Shooters according to National Board for the Promotion of Marksmanship Practice records housed at the Department of Defense, and became a Distinguished Marksman while serving as a United States Marine.
It is advised to keep watch even if Meyer was cleared as a result of this investigation, especially with the stint in the Studies and Observation Group during the War in Vietnam as well as his intelligence and beliefs in mind.
While contradictory given the reactionary ultraconservative politics, it is also recommended to halt any further inquiries regarding the circumstances of Lieutenant Cameron's posting at the Pentagon due to a lack of evidence that they were some Imperial espionage cell that infiltrated Earth for centuries as well as the fact that as far as we can conclude they pose no extraterrestrial threat and such fears were erroneous given the background and familial origin.
Paul Burgess Fay
United States Secretary of the Navy
J. Edgar Hoover
Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations
Frederick J. Harlfinger
Director of Naval Intelligence, U.S. Navy
John S. Canton
Director of Marine Corps Intelligence
William Ezra Jenner
Chairman of the United States Senate Subcommittee on Internal Security
Richard Osborne Ristine - 41st Lieutenant Governor of Indiana
Indiana Senate Chambers - Indiana General Assembly, Indiana Statehouse, 200 W. Washington Street, Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana, United States of America
Monday, October 16th, 1961 - 9:00 AM
"I'm sorry for interrupting as I know you're busy but there has to be some mistake, Mister Ristine."
The Lieutenant Governor glanced down and read, seeing that the High Schooler was assigned to him instead of his state senator as a page for a few days, clearly a clerical error.
"Look at the bright side, young man, while you may never have the opportunity to witness the angle where the Vice President presides over the Senate in Washington, this is the closest instance of it."
"Our Constitutional Republic at work." The boy smiled as if he was proud of the opportunity and cherished the spirit of American citizenship as well as the Federal System of Government.
Private First Class Jake Gregory Meyer - Fireteam Bravo, Third Squad, Second Platoon, Delta Company, Second Military Police Battalion, II Marine Expeditionary Force Command Element, II Marine Expeditionary Force, United States Marine Corps
House Un-American Activities Committee - House of Representatives Chambers, Capitol Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America, North America, Earth, Sol System, Milky Way Galaxy
07:31:15 ATC / Wednesday, July 31st, 1968 - 1:44 PM
"When were you born?"
Jake didn't miss a beat and immediately spoke into the microphone. "July 2nd, 1947."
"The Second of July? If so, Happy belated Birthday."
"Yes, sir, that is correct." Jake verified, overlooking the suspicion. "I was born inside the Hospital in Beech Grove two hours before the fireworks went off for the start of the Independence Day celebrations according to my father but it could be a joke."
"It is said here that you were involved in 4-H and participated in competitions sanctioned by the Director of Civilian Marksmanship, son?" Representative Richard Lowell Roudebush of Indiana noted with a tinge of sympathy in his voice, unlike his fellow Committee members. To Roudebush this was a waste of time and if this was not a closed but rather a televised hearing undoubtedly it could potentially have become a campaign issue in the Hoosier State during re-election yet while in reality, Richard should have recused himself given the nature after feeling that there could be a conflict of interest yet he was now a part of this inquiry. Come to think of it, he now recognized the Marine in question but couldn't exactly place when, where, or how, only that they met somehow and somewhere previously. "You first went to Camp Perry at the age of ten?"
"While I didn't win any of the competitions, I did legitimately earn my leg points and received the classification of Master by the National Rifle Association with a small-bore rifle, a .22 to clarify, when I was fourteen. I also competed in High Power - Across the Course and Long Range Service Rifle with initially a 1903 Springfield and then an M1 Garand as well as at one thousand yards with a Winchester Model 70 in .300 Holland & Holland Magnum - and I finally went Distinguished in '66 in the Marine Corps much to my surprise as I would've thought that my score wouldn't transfer as I was competing as a civilian. Still, it was challenging to manage time with life on the farm spring-to-winter and being the only child but I think I matured earlier than my peers as a result." The former competitive rifleman mostly at local and state events, thrice nationally in Port Clinton, Ohio then going distinguished in the Corps stated to the record. "Representative Ichord? Is it alright if I ask why you're asking questions regarding myself and my background? I thought this inquiry was about alien spies?"
Then it clicked for Roudebush, he recognized him while visiting Ralph Harvey's re-election campaign headquarters, the former incumbent was defeated during the Democratic Party's landslide victory in the 1958 Congressional elections and was ousted by Randall S. Harmon but Harmon became better known as 'Front Porch' Harmon as during his term in office, Harmon attracted controversy by putting his wife on the Congressional payroll and declaring his front porch a Congressional district office. Harmon also explored the possibility of running for President in 1960 but he refused to spend money on such a candidacy and never proceeded to run. Of course, the political backlash against Harmon marked the return of Harvey, and among the most vigorous get-out-the-vote volunteers on behalf of Ralph Harvey were the Meyer's of Acton and Roudebush now recognized that this Leatherneck was none other than their eldest son who had come along way from the boy handing out flyers. Roudebush was aware of the fact that aside from a near reapportionment at the federal-level following the Census report, Acton was almost redistricted to the seat presently held by him and in the proposed reorganization Roudebush would have no longer represented Indiana's 6th Congressional District which he still held but rather the 10th yet the State of Indiana gerrymandered in a manner in which Harvey and Rhoudebush were able to retain their separate seats at the electorate's discretion at the polls instead of duking it out in a primary with both of them seeking the nomination for an alternate 10th Congressional District.
"We are the ones asking the questions here." Representative Richard Howard Ichord, Junior of Missouri dismissed. "It is mentioned here in the investigation report compiled by the FBI that you are a registered, dues-paying member of the John Birch Society and were once affiliated with the Liberty Lobby. Is that correct, Private Meyer?"
"That's correct." Jake affirmed under oath even though the John Birch Society was controversial when to the contrary it should not be. "Dad and I left the Liberty Lobby upon discovering that it was just a front for Klansmen, something my father and I were initially oblivious to before learning of the full platform." The Hoosier recalled one time when fellow Birchites considered revoking his membership for being 'extreme' when in fact in one particular instance back in February 1961 he and his old men only jokingly suggested that they should all head to The Big Apple, infiltrate the premises, and lob teargas inside the United Nations General Assembly when Fidel Castro spoke as the Red was scheduled to speak but it turned out coincidentally on the very day that instead of Birchites filling the room with nontoxic yet unpleasant fumes a Cuban Exile decided to shoot a rocket from a Bazooka in what would unfortunately be a failed assassination attempt on Fidel. There was also the fact that he was irritated with Willis Allison Carto, to put it mildly, but the regrettable prior affiliation with Carto's group only due to being deceived aside, they did find some additional like-minded organizations eventually. "We also joined the American Conservative Union after bumping into your colleague Representative Donald Bruce downtown but we still unapologetically retain our membership with the JBS."
"And are you still a member of the American Conservative Union as well as the Americans for Constitutional Action?" John Milan Ashbrook of Ohio wondered.
"I can't advocate in uniform of course as that would violate the UCMJ - the Uniform Code of Military Justice - but I pay my dues and subscribe to the newsletters."
"Yet you still hold views that are best described as being Far-Right?" Representative William Munford Tuck of Virginia sneered. "There are notes here that also suggest involvement with the Minutemen, care to clarify, Bircher?"
"You don't like me because I hold views that cherish and maintain the values and heritage of this nation?" Jake wondered. "Or being of German descent? Do the surnames of Von Steuben, Siegel, Schurz, Custer, Pershing, Rickenbacker, Eisenhower, Nimitz, Spaatz, and Spruance ring a Liberty Bell? The most common ethnicity in this nation is German and in 1861 my two times Great-Grandfather listened to the call of this country and enlisted at the age of sixteen to fight to Preserve the Union. My paternal Grandmother was thirteen when she arrived in Philadelphia and the fisherman's daughter had to grow up fast because World War One prevented her from returning home to Schleswig-Holstein but despite the sentiment of 1917, she met my Grandfather and became an American in 1919."
"So is it habitual for your family to date foreign agents?" William pressed, seeing the new information as unwitting ammunition, and decided to drop the matter of Robert DePugh for the time being.
"My Grandmother was no spy for the Kaiser!" Jake snapped, not believing his ears yet if there was one weakness common among any human being it was disparaging family and it was a weakness that tested anyone's patience. "She lived here circumstantially due to poor timing after stepping off the S.S. Rhaetia on July 22nd, 1914 and to say that an eleven year old girl from a fishing village on an island in the North Sea coming here with fifteen cents in her pocket, and living with relatives in Philadelphia, working at a shirtwaist factory until fired for being a Kraut and in fear of getting lynched like Roger Prager in Illinois, having to pretend she was Danish in order to move around in a state where over seventy percent of the population could be described as being of at least partial German extraction themselves, being traced in instances to before America even became a country, you have some nerve!"
"You're out of line, Marine!"
"I'm an American and I came here on behalf of my country!" Jake continued, the nominally even-tempered man unswayed by the fact that he was out of order as it became personal. "To discuss the matter of espionage from extraterrestrials, not to have my loyalty as an American be questioned and I have to say that wanting the Constitution of the United States to be upheld word-for-word is not treason in the slightest! You have some nerve to enact legislation that contradicts, no, that thoroughly usurps the Constitution that explicitly limits governmental powers ever since Woodrow Wilson sat in the White House, since the movement to install Franklin Delano Roosevelt as dictator, and then you have the nerve, the gall to slander me as unAmerican!? Besides, I'm not a Communist and you're not Senator Joseph McCarthy nor from Wisconsin for that matter!"
"This is not the United States Senate but the House of Representatives! " Tuck retorted. "The House Un-American Activities Committee! Jenner recused himself because of Jenner's ties with your father and uncle and this is a closed hearing!"
"Are you deluding yourself!? You work for the American people who pay the taxes for your salary and vote for you, not the other way around!" The Strict Constructionist persisted, turning to Representative Ashbrook and Roudebush, the only two in the chamber who appeared to be the only ones besides the Chairman not disparaging him or accusing him outright of being some subversive acting against the United States from within.
"This is a disposition! A closed hearing!" The Virginian who served as a United States Marine himself during World War One reiterated. "You're also the property of the United States Government during your enlistment and you are this close to being held liable in contempt of Congress and sent to Leavenworth after court-martial!"
"Maybe according to political scientists my beliefs are ludicrously regarded as being 'Far-Right' but when was the last time authoritarians advocated for a smaller government to stay out of private affairs and keeping the Second Amendment of the Bill of Rights as a vanguard against tyranny!? That sounds counterintuitive!" Jake laughed at the ridiculousness of being equated to the brownshirts and blackshirts, even the silver shirts of William Dudley Pelley's, and to think it was sick irony that Pelley was interred in Noblesville, Indiana which was relatively close to Acton although it was across the northern border of Marion County, being the seat of Hamilton County while Acton, on the other hand, was in the southeastern corner of Marion County, officially Franklin Township yet whatever happened to the principles last upheld by Silent Cal, the last time America was truly America?
And it was even funnier when it was coming from someone who was a literal State's Rights Dixiecrat, someone who was supportive of Harry Flood Byrd, Senior and Byrd's political machine. It was also ironic how Meyer and Tuck both argue for smaller government albeit for different reasons, one who sincerely believes in the fundamental principles of the nation and did not think that the Federal Government should usurp the Tenth Amendment by creating additional agencies on a whim despite the fact it was not authorized to do so by the Constitution while the other exploits it for political purposes as well as keeping individuals with the wrong skin tone down.
And speaking of the Tenth Amendment, that was how the Federal Bureau of Investigations came to be, the agency was conceived by Charles Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon's Great Nephew no less, and to the Sixth Generation German-American France was still the Erbfeind including and especially the Bonaparte's.
"Yet you know, Representative Tuck, you lived during the time when Franklin Roosevelt could've become a literal dictator, and the only wisest course he ever did as President was to reject the opportunity but his corpse should be unburied and dragged here for Un-American Activit-!"
"Why you selfish little entitled brat! Listen you little right-wing nutcase, you weren't even in diapers when breadlines were commonplace and Herbert Hoover didn't give a rat as-"
"Ease off, Will!" Ashbrook intervened finally, having had enough of the proceedings against the individual before them. "You gotta remember that I share a similar sentiment and besides, aren't you supposed to be a Dixiecrat?"
"Perhaps I'm testing his loyalty, John." The Virginian grouched. "I'm leaving no stones unturned until we can verify with certainty that he is who he claims to be."
The sound of a gavel interrupted the exchange between the Virginian Dixiecrat who endorsed selective parts of the New Deal, the vocal Archconservative Republican from the Buckeye State, and the serviceman who was one among a vocal minority of Americans who desired to scrap the New Deal entirely and returning to the policies of Calvin Coolidge instead.
"You're all out of line!" The Chairman of HUAC, Representative Edwin Edward Willis of Louisiana, chastised the uncivil conduct. "This hearing is in recess until further notice!"
Senator Carl Thomas Curtis - [Republican -Nebraska]
Capitol Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America, North America, Earth, Sol System, Milky Way Galaxy
07:31:15 ATC / Wednesday, July 31st, 1968 - 1:44 PM
"I don't get it. Jake is a good kid yet he got bamboozled." Senator Capehart sighed, still denying the entire sham of a romantic engagement. "And to think his father and one of his uncles are fellow members of the Antelope Club."
Curtis nodded as Homer was a member of the Antelope Club, a social club based in Indianapolis and founded not only as a gathering place for due-paying members to take the annual hunting trips to Wyoming in the pursuit of Antilocapra americana but for wildlife conservation and promoting juvenile athletics as well. They even donated funds to the Indianapolis Zoo for the purchase of three antelope back in 1966 and needless to say being fellows of the same lodge was undeniably one clear-cut way to be on speaking terms with politicians.
"Tell me about it." The other Senator for the State of Indiana, William Ezra Jenner, grumbled. "That redhead deceived him and used the honeypot trap upon him." Bill did not disclose the fact that Jake's sister Valerie was arcanely his goddaughter despite being a Methodist and not a Lutheran, a fact that the public was unaware of and it was a private matter between the Jenner's and the Meyer's as well as God himself.
"How did you get to know him, Bill? He's nowhere near Bedford or even Marengo."
"You could say he's been a Republican since birth." Homer chuckled as he revealed the first meeting between the Meyer's and the two United States Senators to Carl. "While he wouldn't remember, Jake was only a year old and was with his parents at a campaign event back in 1948, when Bill was planning to run for Governor only to not be nominated."
"I thought you two despise each other?"
"We do." Jenner declared. "But meeting constituents and getting their support is part of the job description after all. I mean the Meyer's are strenuously active in the Franklin Township GOP Club, get out the vote and all that as they sincerely believe in the American way." The firebrand then recognized that his colleague from Minden, Nebraska was sounding softer than one expected, almost as if he was a doting grandfather. "Is it just me or have you gotten soft over the years?" Jenner inquired.
"I suppose I'm getting tired of hearing about subversives." Curtis shrugged despite being a staunch Anti-Communist. The country just went through a tumultuous time after all. That and the fact that he had been in office for quite some time by this point.
Private First Class Jake Gregory Meyer - MOS 5811 Military Policeman, Military Police Detachment, Marine Barracks Brooklyn, United States Marine Corps
House of Representatives Chambers - Capitol Building, Capitol Hill, Washington, District of Columbia, United States of America, North America, Earth, Sol System, Milky Way Galaxy
07:31:15 ATC / Wednesday, July 31st, 1968 - 2:24 PM
'I should've remained calm in there but no one deserves to go after my family, never mind Grandma.' Jake thought as he reflected on the argument with one of the committeemen of H.U.A.C. in particular, Representative Tuck. 'We're not Communists but Americans.'
He may be a German-American which was the most prevalent ethnic group in the United States of America with Irish a distant second but ultimately at the end of the day Meyer was in essence not hyphenated but rather straightforwardly a regular American and the Melting Pot meant that there were no Hyphenated American as cultural assimilation was preferred over multiculturalism, even so it did not make the nation being populated predominantly by those of German descent and ironically the Deutsch-Amerikaners during both World Wars were advocating for neutrality and isolationism, the Kaiser Wilhelm II was seen as just another European monarch flying in the face of American principles and the Austrian immigrant Hitler before the whole unraveling of what was repugnantly occurring behind the scenes was viewed as just some demagogue who was of no concern to the United States whereas Britain and Japan alike were both considered to be the more likely adversaries, the ones who were regarded as the greatest threat to American sovereignty.
Being at times associated with the Rape of Belgium and more outlandishly with the ideology of National Socialism was erroneous when many Americans like him had their German roots traced back to the 1880s at the latest but at least post-war the now annual Steuben Day Parade in New York City went unhindered and the condemnation for the Third Reich was for the most part laid upon the card-carrying members and founders, not the German people at the whole.
Still, it was aggravating whenever he was assailed with the irregular Teutophobia, especially to those who otherwise would be scoffing at some Irishman or Italian or Pole or Jew in addition to Squareheads.
"Long day?"
Jake glanced up and noticed the Second Lieutenant of the Women's Army Corps, United States Army attired in her dress blues that were almost black despite it and the full dress coat of the Marine Corps both being dyed in Midnight Blue but the Leatherneck was wearing the khaki blouse due to it being summer and not winter nor was he attending a formal evening event.
"They subpoenaed you too, Ash?" Jake asked, astonished as there was no reason she should be here unless it was something for the Pentagon or more likely given the current circumstances she was ordered to due to Congress.
"I was actually in the building with Westmoreland talking to Representative Rivers and members of the Armed Services Committee about a certain classified project that I can't say then I have to attend a function later and I saw you of all people here in the hall." The WAC revealed as she sat next to him on the bench. "You were in HUAC?"
"As hard as it is to believe, I was." Jake muttered. "I'm beginning to wonder if anyone other than Roudebush, Capehart, and Jenner cares about our country. I mean Jenner retired back in '58 due to believing Washington was a lost cause yet returned in '64 and decided to stick it out as long as possible."
"Politicians who are sincere men of the people are as rare as coffee drinkers in England and capitalists in the Soviet Union."
"Repealing the Constitution should be a capital offense." Jake grouched. "Where's the Army Chief of Staff anyways?"
"Okay, I might've fibbed slightly. It was mentioned that you were here and he sent me after I pulled out the documents."
"Sent you or ordered you to despite there being no need?"
"Both as he might've mistaken me for your stepmother." Ashley quipped.
"Funny." Jake scoffed.
"So are you free? I haven't eaten yet and I thought we could get some Chinese food."
"Don't know. I've been here for thirty minutes despite it being a fifteen-minute recess."
On cue, the door to the chambers opened.
"Recess is over." The aide announced before noticing who was sitting next to him. "You're kissing your cousins now?"
Although Jake and Ashley were not related by blood in the slightest and Ashley was his stepmother's niece, it was still abhorrent to them nonetheless.
"Oh come on! We're Hoosiers, not Arkansans, Alabamians, or South Carolinians!" Ash was repulsed by the insinuation and even belched despite being taught better in regards to social interactions but her usually even-tempered step-cousin was getting into the face of the man who just screamed as being an actual Ivy Leaguer with the superlative tailored suit and not the imitative vogue from the Sears, Roebuck, & Co. catalog.
"You care to repeat that?" He growled. "Right to my face, Harvard? My patience is not really the best currently and you're someone who gives off the impression of being from the Upper East Side dismissing me as some bum but I have time to hear you out."
"Ummm… It's Cornell actually and I'm from Sagaponack but... You appear to be a tight-knit family?"
"Well, in that case, I better not see your mug ever again you pretentious erroneously deducing incestuous relations East Coast apefucker that gives the entire state of New York a bad name as there's more to New York than The Big Apple alone and that's painful for me to say as a good friend of mine got his legs blown off in 'Nam by a mine is from Albany, your state capital." Jake snarled, trying real hard not to shove the conceited prick to the floor and he was quite tempted to imprint the marble tile with his smug face. "I might be from flyover country just outside Indianapolis and you think Chicago in the next state over is a poor substitute for New York City or Albany or Buffalo assuming you prefer the Metropolises due to being bored of the Hamptons or even Martha's Vineyard but mark my words, you Cornell frat boy, if after today I ever see you in my sights again, you're dead."
"You're crazy!"
"No, if anyone here is crazy, she's one of the zanies."
The aide nevertheless scurried off by walking briskly, not waiting to discover the Cameron's familial idiosyncrasies.
"I'll never understand why Indiana is one of those states associated with such repugnance." Ash grumbled. "It's not even located in the Deep South but the Midwest! The Old Northwest and Great Lakes Region! Squire Boone and Robert Hanna!"
'At least it wasn't about the 'Occupied Territory'.' Jake mentally grimaced as Ashley's greatest pet peeve was in regards to anyone who dared call Northern Ireland 'British soil' and Aunt Shannon - Ash's mother - was from the province but anyone who openly labeled the six counties as the possession of the monarch residing in Windsor was receiving the guaranteed ticket of witnessing an irksome ranting Banshee on the warpath, Irish short-temperament was one thing but in Ash's case her hairtrigger of a pet peeve was a completely different ballgame, he could visualize her being calm then suddenly snapping when her specific annoyance got mentioned.
"It's Ireland, Ireland! Not Northern but a slice of Ireland that should rightfully be reunited with the rest of the Emerald Isle!"
Resisting the urge to shudder at the terrifying image of her metamorphosing into some Dearg-Due or wailing ghost in overdramatic retaliation for someone committing the mere sin of naively calling the inhabitants of Northern Ireland 'English', Jake maintained his composure and mentioned why as a general rule the WASPs of the Northeast avoided Middle America like the plague. "To be fair our state is pretty much agriculture and hard industries, we're not exactly their choice of destination, just predominantly populated with blue-collar and white-collar people and folks like him want to subconsciously avoid areas deemed to be ordinary at all hazards."
"I would enjoy the look on Donna's face if she was here to witness what just transpired."
"Sam's cousin is just something else." Jake rolled his eyes at the mention of the ditsy WASP. "At least one advantage is the knowledge of narrowing down his residence and Cowardly Cornell that just ran off reminds me why we are ambivalent about the Rockefeller Republicans in Salem."
"Still, like I said, I would've enjoyed the look on her face if she was here to witness the confrontation just like how Nikki showed her your Mensa card." Ash snickered.
He blanched at the reminder of Nicole going into his wallet and showing it off to prove a point as he preferred not to disclose himself as being a bona fide member of MENSA and be erroneously considered a braggart when bragging about intellect was mostly reserved exclusively for the WASPs and it was a comical story about how it came to be.
Back in 1966, he was at a bar in Da Nang when one of the guys he barely knew as he was with another unit, Philips if he recalled his last name correctly as they weren't on a first-name basis, joked how they should take an IQ test and send the results to MENSA.
Within days eight Jarheads took the test and sent them to the address with Jake treating it as a joke and circling random answers yet weeks later, five of the Marines, contrary to expectations of the United States Army, gained official membership in the organization and it turned out his guesses were actually the correct answers and according to MENSA Jake's IQ was officially one hundred thirty-five just like what the school's psychologist noted.
"Yeah, I'm sure she'll be surprised again." He chuckled nervously.
"Thank you for standing up for me."
"No need Ash as no one gets away from messing with family no matter who they or their folks are."
I think most overlook or forget the fact that the United States of America has a federal system of government and as such, state (and local) governments, so henceforth the introductory scene for this chapter.
As a disclosure, I did take a similar program back when I was a Freshman / during Ninth Grade of High School to non-American readers, and no, I'm not from a wealthy family or connected or anything along those lines, it just was something as an ordinary American I decided to do not because of the extra credits but out of a sense of civic responsibility and while it wasn't for everyone's palate as it's being around politicians for a day, I applied and got accepted and I will leave it there as nothing of note transpired plus for the sake of privacy as well.
Quite the twist regarding MENSA, huh? Well, to be fair, the original purpose of the organization believe it or not as intended by the founders was to have MENSA be "an aristocracy of the intellect" and they were unhappy that the majority of members came from working or lower-class backgrounds and, well, it isn't totally infeasible. I mean who knows, your co-worker or neighbor or third cousin or someone close to you could very well be a member and you're unaware of it.
Besides it is believed that both Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein had an IQ score of 160 and neither one of the characters mentioned here (Jake and Nicole) are equal to their intellect, just that they're gifted especially Nicole in particular and there will of course be scenes that would make you wonder if being smart with familial eccentricities is a good mix (hint: Be forewarned).
Believe it or not, there actually was a Roosevelt Dictatorship Movement during the midst of the Great Depression and even Vox, if you believe they're a credible outlet, mentioned the historical proposal not to mention the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily Time News among others. There's plenty of information about the actual historical proposal to FDR available to see for yourself.
In addition, the Federal Bureau of Investigations was indeed founded by Napoleon's own Great Nephew Charles on the orders of then President Theodore Roosevelt and it is not some wild conspiracy theory but an established credible fact. Google it or better yet check out some books about the history of the FBI if you doubt the veracity of the information.
And the S.S. Rhaetia was an actual passenger-cargo ship built for the Hamburg-America Line in the early 1900s. The Rhaetia was scheduled to start sailing back to Hamburg, Germany from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 1st, 1914 but of course, with the outbreak of World War One, she was instead interned as authorized under international law for neutral nations, then seized in 1917 to be requisitioned as a troop transport and rechristened as the U.S.S. Black Arrow (ID-1534) by the United States Navy. After the Great War, the vessel was offered for sale by Uncle Sam but with no one interested eventually, she was sold for scrap instead of returning to sea.
Now before you start accusing me of being a racist, anti-freedom witch-hunter: After reading in-depth about the whole affair, it can be best summarized that McCarthy greatly exaggerated the extent of the infiltration and went overboard in his moment of fame, leading to his downfall, hence quote on quote 'McCarthyism'.
Again, I'm being completely apolitical here but it's pretty interesting to discover after digging for information about the whole circumstances behind the whole hunt for Communists within the government that had support from both political parties, and based on what I read, I decided to retcon the story from having McCarthy still dying of alcoholism as in actual history to having him be an unlikely hero as it kinda fitted in with the plot to be honest.
While it is a misconception that no Communists were found and he was a racist, does that mean that I agree with how he conducted himself?
No, I don't at all. But his actions were during the Second Red Scare (1947 - 1957) in the United States and the Anti-Communist pandamonium was mainstream in society so the atmosphere was brewing for something like it to occur and fate had it for Joe to take up the cause.
Again, to reiterate, I don't agree with how he handled it in actual history and he went overboard to put it lightly but it is confirmed in the declassified Venona papers that at least four of the names on McCarthy's infamous lists were agents of the Soviet Union.
FOUR! And they are: Lauchlin Currie, Harold Glasser, David Karr, and Mary Jane Keeney.
Four names out of ninety or two hundred or how many exact names in total he actually listed, it's hard to tell and Tailgunner certainly was one for exaggerations.
Unbeknownst to Senator McCarthy though, over next door in the House of Representatives, Democratic Representative Samuel Dickstein of New York and IRONICALLY the VERY politician who ESTABLISHED the House UnAmerican Activities Committee in the first place, was being paid by the NKVD (the Interwar and World War Two predecessor of the infamous KGB) for classified information!
I was shocked myself when first I read the revelation but the founder of the very committee wrongly associated with McCarthy was a Soviet agent.
Instead, McCarthy was a Senator and Tail Gunner (McCarthy's nickname) was the chairman of the Government Operations Committee and its Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations of the United States Senate.
It is not a conspiracy theory and you can fact check everything here yourself if you so choose but safe to say McCarthy was somewhat right, he just mishandled it.
In fact, we probably will never know the complete truth due to conflicting information over the years and the first-hand witnesses, as far as I'm aware of, are now long since deceased.
To reiterate and in short: It turns out that it's completely wrong to say one Joseph Raymond McCarthy didn't find any actual spies at all and therefore conducted a nonsensical, unnecessary, unlawful, unconstitutional, and immoral witch hunt that was more of a wild goose chase with everyone on his lists being totally innocent of the finger-pointing charges although indisputably McCarthy did decide to cause a political firestorm which in the end cost him.
And I don't think anyone will ever know what would've happened if McCarthy didn't go overeager on it for the sake of attention but I'm convinced that he should be vindicated and be labeled as a hero despite also being a bully.
Oh and by the way, in addition to Joseph McCarthy being a supporter of Civil Rights for minorities, the Kennedy family were great friends with Joseph McCarthy despite the different political party affiliations.
In fact, a certain Robert Francis Kennedy, brother of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, was an aide to Tail Gunner Joe before becoming a Senator himself.
Yes, none other than THE Kennedy's. The ones with a supposed family curse. It's on the historical record if you want to double check for yourselves and in fact here are two credible links in case you're interested about the specific circumstances:
www . smithsonianmag (type dot here) com (type slash here) history / how-robert-kennedy-transformed-from-conservative-into-liberal-champion-civil-rights - 180969242 /
mcadams . posc . mu . edu / progjfk2 . h t m
It's a shame everything is completely partisan nowadays.
Now moving on from McCarthyism and as an additional disclosure here I bet there will be at least one individual resident or native of the State of Massachusetts who will point out that the planned portrayals are bound to be stereotypical and I won't deny that it is but believe it or not I actually know good friends and their relatives who originated from Worcester, Massachusetts and no, they never had been lobstermen or WASPs or anything that would be stereotypical of the State of Massachusetts nor the region of New England in general with the exception of fondness for Dunkin' Donuts, which by the way is superior to Starbucks just saying.
But while I could have as an average family native to inland Massachusetts, the reason is to provide some additional comic relief and that is by emphasizing that stereotypes have no basis in reality as they're more often than not exaggerated.
Even so, despite it, I will of course have ordinary run-of-the-mill individuals delineated as well.
And while on the subject, as good news to New Yorkers and Illinoisans alike, expect Albany and Springfield respectively to be referenced more often than New York City and Chicago, especially in the future prequel centered around the alternate Vietnam War.
You see, I'm perfectly open and willing to do things differently compared with the norm as I'm not some Hollywood scriptwriter but someone who thought to explore beyond the usual portrayals and perfectly willing to be transparent as well :)