LAST TIME THEY TRIED TO KILL THE PRESIDENT

This year we have seen Latino anger over American immigration policies erupt into street demonstrations that shocked many U.S. citizens. Illegal immigrants brazenly waved foreign flags and flew the flag of the United States upside down and beneath the foreign flag. Citizens who have held counter demonstrations such as the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR) and local Minuteman organizations have been met with violent resistance on occasion. The reaction of Americans is surprising, as Latino violence against Americans is not a new phenomena. There have been several incidents of Latin Americans living in this country turning to violence and taking up arms in reaction to U.S. policy. The following is but one of them.

In 1898 America went to war with Spain, ostensibly over the sinking of the Battleship Maine in Havana Harbor, but in reality it was to crush the Spaniards brutal attempts to quell the rebellion of its Cuban colony. It would be ignominious to try to pass that off as the only reason America went to war. There were certainly economic aspirations. Spain as a world power was in its last death throes, but America was a world power on the rise, riding the tide of the industrial revolution. Senator John M. Thurston of Nebraska declared "War with Spain would increase the business and earnings of every American railroad, it would increase the output of every American factory, it would stimulate every branch of industry and domestic commerce."

Victory came quick with a stunning defeat of the Spanish Navy. America graciously granted Cuba its independence, but in our own self-interest we held onto the the island of Puerto Rico. It was seen as a gateway to the eastern approaches of what would soon be the crowning achievement of American ingenuity, the Panama Canal, and the U.S. Navy wanted to guard it tenaciously.

To placate the Puerto Rican people the U.S. Congress granted them full American Citizenship in 1917, erasing a border with a people with whom we really did not share a cultural background. After several decades over one-fourth of all Puerto Ricans were residing on the mainland. One of these transplanted Puerto Ricans was the illegitimate son of a wealthy trader for who an American official had arranged a scholarship in 1912.

Pedro Albizu Campos was a brilliant young man by any cultures standards. He attended Harvard and received a law degree from the same. Most people would assume that one so lucky as Pedro would come to love his adopted country which offered him so much opportunity. But as often happens, that was not to be. Campos became resentful. He became homesick. He also became our enemy.

Campos finally left America and returned home, where the charismatic young man began to speak out for Puerto Rican independence. He quickly rose through the ranks and became leader of the Nationalist Party. To his followers, he became known as "El Maestro", and when his bid to win election failed, "El Maestro" took the route so familiar to Latin American leaders, armed rebellion. When over a dozen of his commrades were killed in 1937, Campos was sentenced to 10 years in the Atlanta federal prison.

When Campos was released from prison, he returned to Puerto Rico and quickly went back to his old ways. Following another Latin American tradition, he planned a coup. It was to take place on Nov. 4, 1950. Just so the world would take notice of this small island nations struggle, the assasination of President Harry S. Truman was to take place the next day. Word got out early though, and their dastardly deeds came to light. A premature and bloody assault by the militants bogged down outside the Governor's Mansion, and loyal police officers surrounded "El Maestro" at his San Juan headquarters. Word got back to the "Nuyorican" sympathizers in Manhattan, which set off a deadly sequence of events in Washington, D.C.

Back in the U.S., especially in New York, Puerto Rican Nationalists were quite upset about the predicament that "El Maestro" was in, and they were going to do something about it.

The date is November 1, 1950 and the weather is unseasonably warm in Washington, D.C. At 2:20 P.M. President Truman is taking a nap in a second floor bedroom of Blair House, a guesthouse on the White House complex, as his regular quarters are being re-modeled. At this time two men in suits arrive at the scene with murderous intent. One, Griselio Torresola, is armed with a German Luger. His shorter accomplice, Oscar Collazo, carries a Walther P38, the type of handgun made famous by James Bond.

This operation was supposed to take place on Nov. 5, but events in Puerto Rico have moved the assassination attempt up. Torresola and Collazo are Nationalist operatives who have been in the U.S. for some time and have extensive firearms training. Perhaps events happening as they did may have thrown their plan off just ever so slightly. After arriving at Blair House the two quickly separate. Collazo goes to the steps of Blair House where he comes up behind Police Officer Donald Birdzell. He draws his P38 and attempts to fire. The gun jams. Collazo pounds it with his fist and as Officer Birdzell turns around he is shot through the right knee at close range. Secret Service Agent Floyd Boring and Police Officer Joe Davidson hear the shot and can see what's happening, but they are separated from Birdzell by a wrought iron fence. They both pull their weapons and take aim at the intruder. Agent Boring is one of the Secret Service's best shots and had recently qualified with an almost perfect score. Luckily for Collazo the hail of bullets ricochet off the iron fence. Birdzell has now gotten up on his wounded leg and starts firing at Collazo himself. Agent Boring takes dead aim at Collazo's head and squeezes off an almost perfect shot. The round pierces Collazo's hat but instead of punching through his skull, it tears a flesh wound through his scalp. Officer Davidson squeezes off a round that pierces the right side of Collazo's back and exits his chest, lodging in his right arm. Collazo's gun is empty, and he sits down on the steps of Blair House to reload.

By now his comrade, Torresola, joins the fray. He comes upon a small guardhouse where Police Officer Leslie Coffelt sits. Coffelt sees Torresola and goes for his gun but it's too late, the assassin pumps four shots from his Luger, three of which hit Coffelt in the torso. Torresola rushes towards his prime objective, Blair House and the President. He is blocked by Police Officer Joe Downs, but like Coffelt he can't get to his gun in time. Torresola hits him in the hip, then two more shots rip into his chest and neck. Downs is out of the fight and Torresola keeps moving. He now runs into Birdzell, the first officer shot in the leg by Collazo. Torresola raises his gun and fires, hitting Birdzell in his other leg, felling him to the ground and taking him out of the action. As Birdzell lay unconscious on the pavement Torresola moves in to finish him off, but he is out of ammo. He reloads and continues on towards Blair House.

Oscar Collazo has also reloaded, but his wounds get the best of him and he falls unconscious to the ground. He is now out of the fight, but Torresola moves forward. He gets to within 30 feet of President Truman. Truman is now awake, startled by the gunfire. He comes to the bedroom window and looks down. He sees Torresola, which means Torresola can see him. It should be an easy shot, but he won't get to take it. Leslie Coffelt, who had been shot three times and is dying, takes aim. He drills a shot straight through Torresola's head, killing him. Coffelt draws a few last breaths and dies himself. The entire battle lasted less then a minute and about 30 shots have been fired.

This was not an isolated incident. In 1954 four Puerto Rican Nationalists attacked the U.S. House of Representatives, wounding five lawmakers. During the 70's the FALN (Armed Forces of National Liberation) committed over 100 bombings. One in New York in 1974 killed four people.

All this violence from an island of only 4 million people who were granted U.S. citizenship. Imagine what will happen if we grant citizenship to 20 million people and they don't get what they want.

James J. Calautti

HOW SECURE ARE WE?

Are we safe? That question is very relative and depends on many factors. Recently the FBI uncovered a plot that involved explosives, martyrdom and suicide bombers wishing to strike a blow at America's economic heart; Wall Street. The suspects felt that bombing the PATH Tunnels under the Hudson River would flood downtown Manhattan.

Since 9/11 Americans have been focused on security like never before. However, what is really being done? The terrorists on 9/11 targeted office workers, and office buildings can be very inviting targets. The attitude at office buildings has changed dramatically. Even before 9/11 the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center woke many people up to our vulnerabilities, and the bombing of the Federal building in Oklahoma City more than drove the point home. Today, getting into an office building can be tougher than boarding an airplane.
For now let us focus on The Gateway Center, an office complex in the downtown area of Newark It is New Jersey's largest city. The complex is connected physically to Newark Penn Station, a transportation hub of major importance to the area. This complex is representative of many of today's office complexes, there are office spaces, but they are mixed with stores in a mall like setting and there are pedestrian walkways and mass transit connections, much like the World Trade Center was. While primarily police of both New Jersey Transit and the Port Authority patrols the rail and bus station, the complex itself has its own security. Gateway Security hired by Prudential provides this service. Some of the personnel are unarmed security people, but off duty police officers are also hired and they are armed. They also bring years of experience to the job. According to unnamed sources, extensive background checks are done on all potential security employees. To actually enter office space within the complex, all workers must possess a company I.D. card and scan it before entering a turnstile. Visitors must be cleared by an actual employee of a tenant of the building, who then must personally come and sign the visitor in and escort the visitor to his or her specific destination. The visitor's baggage is screened via X-ray, and the person must walk through a detection device similar to those at most courthouses. If they set off an alarm, a "wand check" is done, ensuring no weapons are brought in. Truck deliveries must be cleared at a checkpoint and verified by the tenant. Trucks are inspected inside and out and a mirror is used to search the undercarriage of the vehicle. Physical barriers are also in place that would discourage the parking of a vehicle outside the buildings at sensitive areas. It appears that security at this complex has been greatly enhanced.

Apart from feeling safe at work, there is the matter of getting to work. Many of us have seen the footage coming out of Israel and now Europe of buses and trains being mangled by suicide bombers. The once tranquil ride to work on the bus or train can be a stressful experience. Two of the major agencies involved in this business have been quite forthcoming in providing information on upgrades that have been made to keep us all a bit safer on that ride.

Dan Stessel, a Public Affairs Officer and security expert at New Jersey Transit was very willing to talk about the upgrades made since 9/11. In addition to hiring more officers and tripling K-9 units, Mr. Stessel stressed "the entire mission of our force has changed. Whereas before we were concerned with asset protection, we are now focused on anti-terrorism and commuter safety". Mr. Stessel explained that security is now "layered", relying on police, technology, employees and the commuters themselves. Their budget has gone from 13 million dollars to 30 million dollars per year and federal grants have been received to enhance technological advancements. Mr. Stessel stressed, "not only do our police officers receive security training, but that it extends to all our employees". Some of the grant money for technological advances have been used to install surveillance cameras on train platforms, but when pressed on whether the buses might present a weak link and easy target for terrorists, Mr. Stessel stated that "our buses are routinely patrolled by undercover and uniformed officers, our drivers are trained to spot suspicious activity and a customer based alert system has been attempted to be implemented, whereby commuters can work together with our employees and we have also initiated a toll free number for people to call to report any activity that may seem out of the ordinary".

Tony Ciavolella of Port Authority's PATH system said "2.3 billion dollars have been spent system wide since 9/11". He also stated "over 300 new officers have been added to our police force, and they all receive specialized training in anti-terrorism and commuter safety". Mr. Ciavolella also pointed out "the K-9 unit has been increased as have patrols on the PATH system". PATH stations are also monitored by closed circuit television, and all have phones that allow commuters to call PATH employees on duty.

The Department of Homeland Security is also testing new explosive detection technology at PATH's Exchange Place terminal. The program will screen commuters without each person having to pass through a detection device. If successful, the system could be installed system wide. The Port Authority's PATH transit service carries over 67 million people per year. That's 215,000 passengers each weekday. Seventy percent of all rail passengers entering Manhattan during rush hour from New Jersey are PATH passengers. Over 1,000 trains per day travel PATH's 43.1 miles of track.

It appears the agencies entrusted with our safety take their jobs very seriously, but how do the people think they are doing their jobs. To get a feel for that we need to talk to the men and women who commute on a daily basis. Ms. Claudia McPherson of Belleville who travels to Manhattan by New Jersey Transit bus every workday said "while I know improvements have been made, I just don't see it, and it makes me a little wary". Juan Munoz, of Kearny, rides New Jersey Transit regularly and said, "I feel that they do as good a job as is possible under the circumstances".

The agencies entrusted with our safety certainly take their task seriously, and are implementing changes and spending the money to make us as safe as they can, but the public does not seem to see this, and therefore are not comforted by these changes. To answer the question of are we safe, it seems impossible to ever be 100 percent secure against a determined foe willing to die to achieve his objective. However, there are many people hard at work behind the scenes attempting to make that objective much harder to achieve.

By James J. Calautti

THE OTHER GENERAL KEARNY

Almost everyone who lives in Kearny has heard of our town's namesake, General Phillip Kearny, the "One Arm Devil" of Civil War fame who died in action at the Battle of Chantilly. But Phillip Kearny was just one of many distinguished members of a family of Irish immigrants known in the old country as "O'Kearny". This is the story of the other General Kearny.

Steven Watts Kearny was born in Newark, New Jersey on August 30, 1794. Kearny attended public schools and spent two years at Columbia College before leaving to join the Army when hostilities broke out with England in the War of 1812. During this war Lieutenant Kearny was wounded, captured and briefly imprisoned, and was promoted to captain due to his bravery. After the war Kearny remained in the Army where he lived an exceedingly adventurous life.

After the war Kearny was sent to the Western Frontier where he engaged in many expeditions, especially exploring the Yellowstone River. He studied the geography of the area, learned the true course of rivers and updated the maps of that period. He was well liked by the Indian tribes he encountered and sat at many council meetings with them. While a fine soldier, Kearny learned early the importance of diplomacy, tact and the art of communication.

While stationed in Missouri, Kearny was often invited to St. Louis as a frequent guest of General William Clark, of Lewis and Clark Fame. It was here that he met his future wife, Mary Radford, the stepdaughter of Clark. They were married in 1830 and had 11 children.

Sent to Fort Leavenworth, Kearny undertook a new field of endeavor, organizing a regiment of dragoons, which are like a cavalry unit. Today, Kearny is looked upon as "The Father of the U.S. Cavalry".

When the Mexican War broke out, Kearny was appointed commander of the Army of the West by President Polk and led an expedition to occupy New Mexico and California. He quickly took control of New Mexico without any bloodshed in August 1846 and was named military governor headquartered in Santa Fe. After about a month in Santa Fe, Kearny set out with a small band of 300 soldiers to California. Faulty intelligence in the form of a dispatch delivered by horseback informed the expedition that California had been secured. Two hundred men returned to Santa Fe and Kearny pressed on with only 100 troops. The small band of men suffered heavy casualties, especially at the battle of San Pascual. The soldiers were able to link up with naval forces from San Diego under the command of Commodore Robert Stockton. After the joint forces fought several skirmishes near Los Angeles in January 1847, the Mexican forces had surrendered. A controversy then arose as to who would be the military governor of California. The post eventually was granted to Kearny. From California, he was sent to Mexico where he briefly served as governor of Vera Cruz and Mexico City. While there, he contracted a tropical disease and upon his return to St. Louis he died on Oct. 31, 1848. General Kearny built more frontier posts then any other man of his time, led some of the longest marches in American military history, and brought order to a vast frontier that spread a growing nation from ocean to ocean, straddling an entire continent.

The Kearny name is now the place name of several locations in the United States, some honoring Phil Kearny and others honoring his uncle Steven. Some use the misspelling of "Kearney", which can be traced to a clerical error in 1849 at the Postal Service while Fort Kearney, Nebraska was still active.

James J. Calautti