Post by Floyd Looney on Jul 30, 2011 14:35:21 GMT -5
I had come across the desert in the ragged old jeep to avoid the border crossings and the armed border guards called Recompensia. This banana republic actually robbed you blind as a condition of leaving.
Well, the people I was meeting were abandoning their house and belongings. Isn't that robbery enough? Of course not there were tons of abandoned homes sitting idle after their copper and anything else of slight value is taken by the local looters.
It's the big looters, the politicians, who had destroyed this once lush paradise. Corruption, high taxes, regulation and Marxism destroys everything it comes in contact with. The politicians blamed the "rich", "big business", "exploiters" and then "hoarders" for their collapsing economy.
Who was left to blame? Capitalists? Refuseniks?, political opposition parties? Christians? Gringo's?
I still didn't understand why the Gundersons hadn't left before. How could they have missed the signs? It's been heading this way for decades. Some people are too hopeful for their own good.
Finally I was in the right area and my half-blacked out headlights illuminated the small copse of trees and bushes that were our designated pick-up spot. Sure enough little Lucy Gunderson, cluthing her teddy bear, was the first one I spotted.
I jumped out of the jeep. "Time to move. We have to get over the border before daybreak"
Mr. and Mrs. Gunderson came out from behind the bushes but they had someone else with them. A young hispanic male who looked unsure.
"Who is this? I thought we agreed no extra passengers?" I demanded
"This is Julio, he has no parents. He's was working for us for a while before we had to close the shop and then we kept him around the house doing chores. He's a hard worker, we can't leave him in this place!" Mr. Gunderson told me "He isn't like them"
"We don't have time for this. If he can fit in the jeep, then fine. Whatever. Let's get out of here" I said and began helping Lucy and Julio and Mr. Gunderson into the back while Mrs. Gunderson and her bad hip seatbelted herself into the passenger seat.
"If everything goes well, you will be out of this nightmare in two hours. You'll be free again" I explained "Until you guys get back on your feet you can stay at my ranch in Texas or with others, it's your choice of course"
I gunned the engine and moved the bunch of us as fast I could for the border. Most of the border checkpoints were along the roads and highways, they usually didn't patrol the rest in the dark.
Before we got across the line, though, there were headlights behind us. We were being chased. Mrs. Gunderson was praying, Lucy was crying. Mr. Gunderson and Julio had looks of grim determination on their faces. Me, I just made a mad dash for freedom.
There weren't any gunshots. The truck behind us had stopped and soon I figured out why. We had done it. I found the nearest road and then highway. I glanced back in the distance as the sun peeked over the horizon.
I could see a sign in the distance, near the armed border post. It said:
Welcome to California. Paradise.
Well, the people I was meeting were abandoning their house and belongings. Isn't that robbery enough? Of course not there were tons of abandoned homes sitting idle after their copper and anything else of slight value is taken by the local looters.
It's the big looters, the politicians, who had destroyed this once lush paradise. Corruption, high taxes, regulation and Marxism destroys everything it comes in contact with. The politicians blamed the "rich", "big business", "exploiters" and then "hoarders" for their collapsing economy.
Who was left to blame? Capitalists? Refuseniks?, political opposition parties? Christians? Gringo's?
I still didn't understand why the Gundersons hadn't left before. How could they have missed the signs? It's been heading this way for decades. Some people are too hopeful for their own good.
Finally I was in the right area and my half-blacked out headlights illuminated the small copse of trees and bushes that were our designated pick-up spot. Sure enough little Lucy Gunderson, cluthing her teddy bear, was the first one I spotted.
I jumped out of the jeep. "Time to move. We have to get over the border before daybreak"
Mr. and Mrs. Gunderson came out from behind the bushes but they had someone else with them. A young hispanic male who looked unsure.
"Who is this? I thought we agreed no extra passengers?" I demanded
"This is Julio, he has no parents. He's was working for us for a while before we had to close the shop and then we kept him around the house doing chores. He's a hard worker, we can't leave him in this place!" Mr. Gunderson told me "He isn't like them"
"We don't have time for this. If he can fit in the jeep, then fine. Whatever. Let's get out of here" I said and began helping Lucy and Julio and Mr. Gunderson into the back while Mrs. Gunderson and her bad hip seatbelted herself into the passenger seat.
"If everything goes well, you will be out of this nightmare in two hours. You'll be free again" I explained "Until you guys get back on your feet you can stay at my ranch in Texas or with others, it's your choice of course"
I gunned the engine and moved the bunch of us as fast I could for the border. Most of the border checkpoints were along the roads and highways, they usually didn't patrol the rest in the dark.
Before we got across the line, though, there were headlights behind us. We were being chased. Mrs. Gunderson was praying, Lucy was crying. Mr. Gunderson and Julio had looks of grim determination on their faces. Me, I just made a mad dash for freedom.
There weren't any gunshots. The truck behind us had stopped and soon I figured out why. We had done it. I found the nearest road and then highway. I glanced back in the distance as the sun peeked over the horizon.
I could see a sign in the distance, near the armed border post. It said:
Welcome to California. Paradise.
