Gateway Pundit was telling me about a conversation he had at the Democracy & Security International Conference in Prague a while back. He met a woman from Azerbaijan, a small country in the Russian orbit that hosts what we would call a soft dictatorship.
When you speak out against the regime in Azerbaijan, they don't come to your house in the middle of the night and "disappear" you. Instead, they go to your place of employment and lean on the owner to fire you. Then they go to where your brother works, and they get him fired. And his wife. And your cousin.
The message is clear - you can speak your mind, but we will ruin you and put you out on the street.
Now, I'm no Pollyanna. That's the way things have worked for most of mankind's history, and even in the US, this kind of treatment has been the norm in corrupt locales throughout our history. What makes this country different is we hear a story about a government official using his or her power to ruin a family, and we know it's wrong. And we expect someone to do something about it. That is one of the strengths of this country. We expect a sense of fair play.
And that's why the Keith Gladney firing is a shot across the bow to all of us. I've been warned over and over that daring to write this blog will make me a target. I've laughed it away - what are they going to do to me? But I'm aware that not everyone is in this position. I warned the Gladney's that putting your neck out is dangerous, but I honestly didn't believe a St Louis County government official could be as stupid as to actually act on the nastiest of impulses - to fire a man two days before Christmas for the crime of being the brother of a beating victim.
St Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley may or may not be involved, but he is responsible. It is his department of health that is waging war on the Gladneys, and it is his political appointee that pulled the slow-down on the assault charges. If the St Louis County Council is so corrupt that they allow retaliation against the family of beating victims, then every elected official in that government and every press organ that covers for them must be made to pay the price.
I'm no high priced political hack. I can't send press releases to local news and newspapers and expect results like those generated by Bob Sweeney. But I am a St Louis County resident and an American citizen. The country I live in will not allow corrupt politicians to destroy a family because they happened to stand between SEIU and their goal of healthcare.
I've looked into the details. I've given my word to those who have run with the story that there is definitely something there. Right now I'm working to help Keith and Kenneth get employed, because their family needs our help, but don't think this story is going away.
In the last year, this blog has been a refuge for those stories not told by the local press. We've got several more stories of local and state corruption in the queue, and when all is said and done, we are going to do what we do best.
Defend the weak and innocent. Destroy evil in all of its monstrous forms. Crush the monsters that steal our land and rob our people.
We are Freedom's Voice. 2010 is upon us. Join the ranks of freedom loving people around the world and remind them that here, in this land, freedom is worth fighting for.
DUDE!...Brilliant Post and the video with the Nirvana tune....Awesomeness.
I'm Inspired.
Posted by: Sharp Elbows | 01/01/2010 at 02:15 AM
Very well said... Whenever I told people I moved up here from Mississippi, I always got told, that I should be glad I'm getting away from the political corruption/persuasion of the South.
What I've seen here from the political hacks and media-enablers would put those politicians to shame in terms of dirty tricks.
Posted by: DaSaintFan | 01/01/2010 at 09:06 AM