Now don't get me wrong, I do not hate the people of California although it may seem that way. I have many friends in California, from the northern areas to Los Angeles and San Diego, the coast to the valleys, hell; the favorite football team of my youth was the 1976 Oakland Raiders (replaced by the 1985 Chicago Bears, of course). So, you see, I do not hate the people of California. In fact, hate is a pretty harsh word, a word that should be reserved for members of al Qaida and their ilk. No, I do not hate the people of California. I detest, for the most part, their politicians though. I also detest those who choose to become activists who would undermine the government and impose their strange and pathetic views of the way things should be into my life on a daily basis.

One town that I would probably enjoy visiting but would never want to reside in would be Arcata, California. It is probably a quiet upstanding little town. In fact when I did my research on Arcata the main punch of its city webpage was the fact that there were several farmers markets open and operating. But the people who actually run Arcata are a bit remarkable. They have imposed a fine on any city supervisor or employee that cooperates with the federal government regarding the use and implementation of The Patriot Act. The Patriot Act was enacted after the tragedy of September 11th for the sole purpose of giving the law enforcement community the tools with which to catch those who would do us harm. Their reasoning is that some elements of the act are too intrusive into the lives of individuals.

It should be stated that The Patriot Act is a controversial piece of legislation that our lawmakers are continuing to debate and refine. It was an absolute necessity directly after September 11th and many of its provisions are required today so we can avoid reliving the horrors inflicted on us that fateful day by those who hate. As much as we do enjoy slamming the politicians in Washington DC we all stood to witness how they responded in that crisis. Quite honestly, after September 11th we all came together as Americans instead of Republicans, Democrats and Independents. Things got done efficiently, Congress acted swiftly and our president led us superbly. It was the way this country was supposed to be and for a while there we had pride in ourselves. It was refreshing. The Patriot Act will be addressed and it will be redefined. It will continue to give our law enforcement officials, the same ones who put their lives on the line and died on September 11th, the necessary tools to keep us safe.

Now I am sure that the City of Arcata is a well-equipped city complete with fire and police departments. Judging from the webpage they may even have an agriculture committee that makes sure the produce that comes from their farmer's markets is the best in their county. But I have to go out on a limb here and suggest that the federal government, as flawed as we may perceive it at times, has a more elaborate and intensive intelligence gathering system in place than they do. I am sure that if they took the time to contact their representatives in Washington and raise the question their representatives would be happy to explain this to the Arcata City Council, although seeing that Arcata is in California that logic could be called into question.

That being said the issue of not cooperating with the federal government in the War on Terror is not very patriotic. Frankly, that is a kin to what some foreign nations are doing to our federal government, countries that are feeling the heat because of it too. In a town where farmer's markets and American values are embraced it is quite the quandary to have such an obstructionist mentality holding political favor over the people of Arcata. In fact I wonder if there isn’t an amazing apathy with regard to voter turnout in Arcata. Maybe it doesn't have anything to do with the residents of Arcata. Perhaps it has everything to do with some loud-mouthed busy-bodies who feel a need to control everyone and everything because of several years of embarrassing bed-wetting incidents that occurred while their parents were too busy following the Grateful Dead around. Or not. One has to wonder.

As nice as the people of Arcata, California may be their elected officials need to realize that the troubles that face our country include their fair city as well. In the years prior to September 11th the people who flew those planes into our buildings killing thousands of us were living among us, peacefully, productively, as our neighbors, our friends and perhaps even those that sold us our produce. They were evil and bad people who played the game and killed our fathers, mothers, brothers and sisters. They gave no outward appearance of their sick and twisted intentions yet they delivered malevolence to our people the likes of which has never been seen before. We can never, ever forget this.

What Arcata is doing has nothing to do with civic virtue and that’s not who I want to buy my produce from!

Frank Salvato is a political media consultant and the managing editor for The New Media Journal.us. He is a contributing writer for The Washington Dispatch, GOPUSA, OpinionEditorials, Men’s News Daily, Canada Free Press & AmericanDaily. His pieces are regularly featured in Townhall.com. He has appeared as a guest on The O’Reilly Factor, The Kevin Matthews Radio Show (Chicago) and The Brad Messer Radio Show (San Antonio). His pieces have been recognized by the Japan Center for Conflict Prevention and are occasionally featured in The Washington Times and The London Morning Paper as well as other national and international publications.