As a resort area, the island of St. Kitts saw a lot of vacationers, especially during the fall and winter seasons. But islanders had never seen the kind of influx that now beseiged the tiny nation. O.U.T.R.A.G.E. planes were flying in and out of St. Kitts twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week as the U.S. election drew nearer. On Sunday, November 2, 2008, the activity at the airport overwhelmed personnel, and practically caused a breakdown in airport operations. In the United States, political parties and their candidates deluged the country with "whistle stop" tours in the largest metropolitan areas and the smallest of small rural communities. If a candidate didn't have a lime-green O.U.T.R.A.G.E. bus, (s)he was traveling on a lime-green O.U.T.R.A.G.E. train. Political campaigning had returned to its roots of personal contact with "the people" instead of staged rallies filled with only those who supported Republicans or Democrats. There was impromptu debates, at many stops, between candidates - or often between the a candidate and "the people". It was - by far - the most interactive pre-election activity seen in decades of American politics, which had become the domain of the Republican and Democratic monopolies. Now the people had real choices - not just a choice between "the lesser of two evils", but real choices between candidates, all of whom had made a pledge of poverty and servitude. Every candidate knew that if (s)he was elected, and showed even the slightest appearance of impropriety toward that oath, (s)he would be immediately removed from office and punished to the full extent of the law.
For early November, most of the country was enjoying almost balmy weather. The sun was shining down on the nation, almost as if it were God's countenance that this massive new political upheaval took place. America had become a corrupt, evil, war-mongering, money-mad, manipulative nation. Not only had the "Republicrats" browbeat most of the U.S. population into submission, to a point where most Americans honestly believed there were only two legal and official political parties.
The O.U.T.R.A.G.E. television programs were airing 24/7, as candidates were given equal time to express their views and introduce their platforms. O.U.T.R.A.G.E. volunteers were busy setting up polling places all over America. New lime-green computers had been installed to accept and record votes. Each voter would be given a printed receipt, which could be taken to an employer and exchanged for a day's regular pay. The computers were designed by different companies so that there was no possibility of any machines being 'rigged' (as had happened in recent elections when computer voting machines were built and installed by Bush administration-favored corporations such as Deibold). Some new parties had held versions of a political convention, sending delegates and establishing platforms. It had been an exasperating summer. Autumn had been a whirlwind of activity. Everything was set to go.
On Tuesday, November 4, 2008, an unprecedented large turn-out of voters was expected.
In addition to numerous new candidates on the ballot, a plethora of referendums were also being introduced to the voters. "We the People..." would decide on a vast majority of important issues based on the public interest. Numbskull politicians would no longer control the law-making process for their own interests in a "let's make a deal" milieu. The people would vote...the people would make the decisions....the elected officials would then be charged with following the wishes of the people.
Underwritten by O.U.T.R.A.G.E., the AROB Group (Adams, Ryan, Oetting, and Baker) and the Patrick-Patrick Group (Lynn Patrick and Patrick Hamilton) had traversed the country, racking up more than a million miles on their respective lime-green O.U.T.R.A.G.E. motor homes. Ron "Doc" Doctor had, in a much shorter period of time, driven almost 100,000 miles in his quest to legalize gambling machines and smoking. Smaller groups had covered the countryside, promoting their own agendas and gathering support for fresh, new laws that would enhance the American culture and civilize the society. O.U.T.R.A.G.E. television programming and publishing ventures focused on the important issues of the country...there was never ever "news" about some nut-cake celebrity shaving her head or some wacko basketball player assaulting a 13-year-old girl in his hotel room. That kind of sensationalism, which had been pretty much routine fodder for the American media, was no longer of any significance.
No longer did Fox "News" or CNN Headline "News" repeat the same half-dozen stories over and over again and call it "fair and balanced" reporting. Those media empires and the moguls who controlled them had been eliminated. Local radio and TV stations were focusing on significant news in their respective communities. Giant media conglomerates were no longer in control of what was being broadcast, or what served as "news". In less than one year, America's media magistrates who thought they knew what was "best" for Americans, were not just crippled; they were all but annihilated.
Jil hosted a "Freedom Day" pre-election extravaganza at each one of her many Midwestern bars and taverns. Live bands were booked for a 24-hour celebration that would feature patriotic themes as patrons were invited to "light up" their favorite cigarette brand, "get high on life" with their illicit drug of preference, and "gamble to their hearts' content". It was almost a replication of the infamous Woodstock celebration that had taken place in upstate New York about 40 years earlier, sans all the nudity. This was November, after all...no one wanted to see goosebumps on exposed, pallid flesh.