Red State, Meet Police State

[kaygore]

Boise Weekly:

A federal employee gets hassled by Homeland Security for antiwar stickers on his car. Is it a mistake, a new rule, or the part of a trend of the First Amendment being bullied out of existence? Read the transcript, read the rules and decide for yourself

BY NICHOLAS COLLIAS

Dwight Scarbrough's idea of political dissent is one that rubs some
people the wrong way. He likes to blame his compulsion for peaceful
troublemaking on his birthday: October 2, the same as Ghandi.
However, a few of Scarbrough's techniques are all his own--especially
when it comes to his truck.

For instance, when the Iraq War was looking imminent, not long after
September 11, Dwight attached a garbage bag to the back of his truck
bed. He splattered the bag and the truck with ketchup and added a
sign reading, "This veteran knows that our children are worth more
than a $6.95 body bag." When he drove down the freeway, the bag would
inflate and appear occupied.

"That one was a little in-your-face and on-the-edge," Scarbrough
recalls. "It got a lot of response."

Scarbrough wasn't always so anti-military. During the waning years of
the Cold War, he even served five years on a nuclear submarine for
the U.S. Navy. But now, instead of trying to stop the spread of "red"
states like China and the USSR, Dwight lives in a red state--Idaho.
He's the founder and head of Boise's local branch of Veterans for
Peace, he leads seminars exposing military recruitment practices in
schools, and he--and his truck--are fixtures at nearly every
Democratic, antiwar or pro-peace event in town.

While no longer smeared with ketchup, his ride is still hard to
ignore. On the back, he tapes weekly updates of the number of U.S.
soldiers killed and wounded in Iraq. Beneath that, on a large, white
(and also taped-on) placard: "Support our returning troops and their
families when they need help: Give them this number: GI RIGHTS
HOTLINE: [phone]." On both doors, in bold capital letters:
"DEATH IN IRAQ IS NOT A CAREER OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUNG AMERICANS."
Taking up nearly half of the back window: "Veterans for Peace Chapter
117, Idaho." On the driver's side wheel well, also in all caps:
"PERHAPS GOD BLESSES EVERY NATION, NOT JUST THE USA." And
interspersed between them all, he places a variety of purchased
bumper stickers and magnetic ribbons reading, among other sentiments,
"Support our Troops: Bring them Home Now," "Support Diversity" and
"Honor Vets, Wage Peace."

Scarbrough gets his share of negative attention--including plenty of
people "flying the bald eagle," as he likes to call it--but he savors
such attention. He likes to call his truck a "sociological experiment
on wheels," and whether you like the message of that experiment or
not, it's hard to avoid the conclusion that Scarbrough is the type of
extreme voice that the First Amendment--that one about free speech--
is intended to protect.

Or at least it seemed that way until last Tuesday.

On February 7, Scarbrough went to his job like any other day. He is a
scientist with a federal agency in Boise--one that is part of the
executive branch, ironically--and he parked in his usual spot, just
outside of the federal Natural Resource Center on Vinnell Way in
Boise, kitty corner to a Wal-Mart, a Lowe's Home Improvement Center
and a 21-screen Edwards cineplex. Made up of two large, square brick
buildings, the complex houses a variety of federal offices
including the Social Security Administration, the Bureau of Land
Management, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Immigration
and Naturalization Service, among others. But despite the fact that
most of the employees in the complex can, at least officially,
consider George W. Bush their boss, Scarbrough has taken remarkably
little grief for his strident anti-Bush views and props. Even those
who don't agree with his message usually tolerate it.

<snip>

But on this day, apparently it was still too much.

Around 2:15 p.m., Scarbrough says, he answered his office phone and
found himself talking to a man who identified himself as Officer R.
of the Department of Homeland Security. (I'm withholding the
officer's name; you know, what with Plamegate and all.) Scarbrough
was told that he was in violation of the Code of Federal Regulations,
the set of rules that govern all executive departments and agencies,
and that he was in danger of being cited unless he came out to the
parking lot or let the officer come up to his office. ...

<snip>

http://www.boiseweekly.com/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A158729

[SteppingRazor]

1. Interesting that the writer refers to him as "anti-military"...

I don't know how you get that he's against the military -- against this war, maybe. But against the military? Hmmm..

[rodeodance]

2. it will take a few affluent high up people to mistakenly get on some list

and all holy hell will break lose--if they find out that is.

[sarcasmo]

3. It's already to late, IMHO. The new Amerika is under control by a

Dictator. Executive powers have been granted beyond any past Presidents wildest dreams. Their is no balance of power from either the House or the Senate. I fear this Regime is turning this country into a one party system with no checks and balances.

[acmejack]

4. I agree, Robert's NSA sell out today sealed the deal.

We're screwed, folks.