On Friday Mar 30 I'm heading to the border...

OVER 3,500 CITIZENS TO PARTICIPATE IN BORDER MONITORING ACTIVITIES

MINUTEMEN ANNOUNCE OPERATION “STAND YOUR GROUND” AT PRESS CONFERENCE27 March 2007
PHOENIX,AZ—This afternoon, Chris Simcox, founder and President of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps (MCDC), along with MCDC Phoenix Area Director Don Goldwater held a press conference in Wesley Bowling Park to announce the MCDC bi-annual thirty day border watch operation, as a message to the nation entitled “Stand Your Ground.” The border operations are scheduled for the entire month of April and over 3,500 Minutemen volunteers from around the country will participate in the border muster organized throughout the states of California, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Washington, New York and New Hampshire.
“Unfortunately, our nation’s border remains under siege by drug cartels, human smugglers, violent criminals and arms dealers,” stated Chris Simcox, Minuteman Civil Defense Corps President. “Field agents and supervisors of the United States Border Patrol, as well as ordinary fellow citizens, continue to praise the work of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and have encouraged us to continue our operations in order to shed light on the situation that President Bush and the Congress refuse to recognize.”
Currently, the Minuteman message of “border security first” has provided growing impetus for the creation of 78 chapters organized nationally at the state and local levels. MCDC border monitoring activities have led to the apprehension of over 13, 466 illegal entrants since October 2002, and have provided life-saving aid to over 286 illegal entrants. History has shown that April and October are the busiest times of the year for both illegal crossings and drug trafficking, which the Minuteman observe and report to U.S. Border Patrol agents along the frontier.
Minutemen volunteers will monitor over 800 miles of our nation’s border during the bi-annual, thirty day national muster that is designed to reduce the illegal crossings and drug trafficking that have also surged with the recent talk of political “amnesty” for illegal entrants. Reduced crossings will save lives, and reduce Americans’ tax dollars from being exploited by illegal aliens who seek use of our nation’s social services.
In addition to border monitoring efforts, the Minutemen continue to volunteer their time, energy and personal funds in order to build highly effective demonstration security fencing on private ranch land, expensed through private donations obtained from thousands of citizens nationally. Minuteman volunteers have taken steps to build fence along the border utilizing the fiber optic mesh produced by FOMGuard, USA, also currently in use on U.S. military installations, the DMZ in Korea and the West Bank in Israel.
Simcox continued, “It remains the duty of the citizens of the United States to remain vigilant and voice concern about our unsecured borders. The first step in reforming our broken border security and immigration system is to demand our frontiers be secured, and the laws of this nation strictly enforced.”
The Minuteman Civil Defense Corps (MCDC) is a peaceful, law-abiding and citizen-led initiative organized to stand watch at our borders and in our neighborhoods, report illegal activities to the proper authorities, and build border fencing on private lands using private donations. Additionally, MCDC seeks to urge local and federal officials to enforce our immigration laws in order to keep our families and country safe. MCDC conducts border watch operations that assist the activities of the U.S. Border Patrol, reports employers of illegal aliens, and advocates to keeps tax dollars from being used for illegal alien benefits.
2007-03-28 10:02:04

ARIZONA MCDC 43 FOR 54 DURING THREE DAY BORDER WATCH OPERATION

ARIZONA MCDC 43 FOR 54 DURING THREE DAY BORDER WATCH OPERATION

Last week, at the end of his 5-day tour of Latin America President Bush visited Mexico to meet President Felipe Calderón where he continued to espouse his policy of accommodation that is blatant appeasement, vowing his continued commitment to so-called “comprehensive immigration reform.” "Mr. President [Calderón], my pledge to you and your government -- but, more importantly, the people of Mexico -- is I will work as hard as I possibly can to pass comprehensive immigration reform." While the President was pledging to assist the criminal invasion of the United States, volunteers of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps were pledging their active support to the American people and the U.S. Border Patrol.
In Arizona’s Altar Valley, 43 MCDC volunteers spent three days doing what the President of the United States refuses to do -- defending our national security and providing resources and assistance to the mission of the United States Border Patrol. MCDC volunteers observed 54 individuals suspected of being in the United States illegally -- 43 of the 54 were summarily apprehended by Border Patrol -- 11 of them escaped into the night. The responsibility for the potential of those 11 who escaped to commit further crimes, perhaps of violence, on the American people will lie with President Bush and the members of Congress who “pledge” commitment to comprehensive immigration reform, rather than pledging to secure our borders. During preparations in setting up the headquarters camp for the weekend muster, MCDC volunteers provided water, food and called Border Patrol after six individuals who had entered the country illegally walked right into the MCDC camp and asked for our help. Border Patrol responded quickly to apprehend and repatriate the six individuals back to Mexico. Friday’s 16- hour operation yielded the apprehension, by U.S. Border Patrol agents, of 25 suspected illegal aliens including one from Guatemala and one from El Salvador, the remaining individuals being from Mexico. The group of suspected illegal aliens was forced to wait on the ground for over an hour while a Border Patrol supervisor could reach the scene to “interview” the group to ascertain whether they had been “illegally detained, harassed or abused” by volunteers of the MCDC. The group lauded the kindness of the MCDC volunteers during the “interview” -- as they happily drank water and feasted on a large pizza provided by the MCDC shift supervisor. The pizza was intended for the volunteers, but was shared with the illegal aliens after they told volunteers they had not eaten in two days. Saturday night’s operation turned out to be a different story. Border Patrol dispatches heard over the scanner revealed an all-out assault on the border in the Altar Valley. National Guard observers were reporting numerous large groups comprised of up to 50 illegal aliens crossing along the 30-mile sector. No air support was available and Border Patrol agents were stretched to the max as they responded to numerous calls for help. Vanloads full of illegals were stopped on surrounding roads in the Green Valley and Three-points areas. At least two major drug busts were heard on the scanner. MCDC volunteers working two separate areas sat with 17 illegal aliens who walked into our posts and “gave up.” They were given water, food and blankets and had to be awakened by U.S. Border Patrol agents as they slept, after having waited over 4 hours for agents to arrive to apprehend them. Volunteers on the “Bravo” line even gave two men from Chiapas chairs to sit on because the insects and rattlesnakes were crawling everywhere. “This should never be happening -- we could close this border with more manpower. The Governor (Napolitano) and the President are the cause of this. Crossings are unbelievable right now. I’ve never seen so many people, they’re running everywhere. I’m so mad I could quit. You guys (MCDC) are our heroes -- you’re the only ones actually doing anything to help us,” stated one annoyed Border Patrol agent who arrived to apprehend a group of 7 illegals, among whom were two young teen females, traveling with adult males who were not family members. MCDC volunteers traveled from Iowa, Nebraska and as far away as Florida on this muster, to do the job the President refuses to permit to be done by our federal authorities. Many thanks to just a few of the new border volunteers I had the pleasure of meeting - Bick and Cindy Bicknell from Wickenburg, Az. , Dave Bertrand who came all the way from Holladay, Tennessee. I had the pleasure to work with Dave on my Saturday night team on the Bravo line. And Leon Lingren who with 2 other patriots traveled from Omaha, Nebraska. Beginning Saturday March 31, over 3,500 volunteers are expected to attend the MCDC “Stand Your Ground” continuous 30-day border operation in Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, California, Washington State, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York. Mexico’s President Calderón, a vocal proponent of the invasion of the United States who argues that the only way to stem illegal immigration and ensure regional security is to raise the standard of living in Mexico now has the opportunity to provide jobs for 44 more of his citizens who this weekend were apprehended and repatriated by U.S. Border Patrol -- with the assistance of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps volunteers. President Bush, a liberal when it comes to border security should heed the warning of President Ronald Reagan. “The specter our well-meaning liberal friends refuse to face is that their policy of accommodation is appeasement, and appeasement does not give you a choice between peace and war, only between fight or surrender. We are told that the problem is too complex for a simple answer. They are wrong. There is no easy answer, but there is a simple answer. We must have the courage to do what we know is morally right, and this policy of accommodation asks us to accept the greatest possible immorality.” —Ronald Reagan

Thanks to everyone who ran comms, admin and made this one of the most successful weekend operations we have ever conducted in Arizona.

Chris Simcox
President Minuteman Civil Defense Corps

A few more home improvement projects

New patio roof being installed


















New Arizona Aluma-Lattice
patio roof












Patio set gets a face lift



































New 5' wide motorcycle gate

Wild Hogs, the movie

March 2nd was opening day for Wild Hogs, the movie. I joined hundreds of other "Wild Hogs" on opening night to watch the movie. It didn't get great reviews but I laughed my head off during the whole movie as did everyone else in the huge theatre. Maybe you had to show up on two wheels wearing leather chaps and jacket to really appreciate the movie. Most large cities across the country had a special opening night for riders. We had special motorcycle parking at the Westgate City Center theatre complex in Glendale, AZ.

The following is from cyclerides.com web site.

For the last couple of weeks I have mentioned the movie Wild Hogs and have included the hilarious trailer in the newsletter. One of my biggest concerns of seeing a movie with such a good trailer is wondering if we have seen all of the good parts wrapped up in a 2 minute clip. Last night, I had the chance to see a sneak preview of the movie and my fears were put to rest. While a lot of the good parts were in the trailer, there were a lot more funny parts to the movie and it is well worth seeing. Thanks to Arrowhead HD and Chester's HD for the offer of tickets. Wild Hogs is really the first mainstream motorcycle theme movie that we have had since the debut of Easy Rider back in 1969. Yep, for all of you that saw the opening night of Easy Rider, that was 38 years ago. My how time flies. Those almost 4 decades flew right by didn't they? As you know by now, Wild Hogs stars John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy as four middle aged men who decide they need to take a 2000 mile road trip for a break from their predictable lives. The first part of the movie sets up each character's current situation before they all meet on the road, throw away their cell phones and head for the West coast. (Take note of the interesting helmet wearing debate that the writer throws in at this point between John Travolta and Martin Lawrence.) At this point the storyline moves to the road where you will see a lot of good New Mexico riding scenery and watch the characters experience the perils of riding that we all have gone through at some point in our riding careers. There are several very funny moments in this segment that we can all relate to. This fun road trip changes as the boys happen on to a bar owned by the Del Fuegos motorcycle gang, that are less than amused by these yuppies from the big city. This is the point when the fun ride to the coast turns out to be a trip they will never forget, but for a different reason. I will admit to acting closer to a 10 year old than a 50 year old when it comes to anticipation. A lot of times when you get so hyped up on something, be it a road trip to a famous landmark, a concert or a movie, reality will not always live up to your expectations. So with the funny trailer and the last couple of months of anticipation, I had completely set myself up for disappointment. But, I am happy to report, that this is one time that the product was in line with the expectations. If you are looking for a movie like Easy Rider, this is not the one for you. With a cast like John Travolta, Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence and William H. Macy, this can only be a lighthearted sometimes slapstick comedy that pokes fun at motorcycle riding , yuppies, gangs and life in general. So if you are looking for anything more than an hour and 40 minutes of being entertained and seeing some good riding scenery, then you won't want to go to this movie. But if this is what you like, you will be entertained. Everyone that I talked to on the way out of the theater liked the movie. My only criticism would be that near the end they carried a few of the silly scenes a little longer than was necessary, but other than that, I thought how they wrapped it all up at the end was very good. Stay tuned for 2 surprising cameos in the beginning and one big one at the end. The scene as the credits are rolling is great, make sure you don't leave too soon. Using the Cyclerides.com scoring system, I give this movie 4 spokes out of 5 just for the sheer entertainment value and riding scenery. I am looking forward to seeing it again. If you would like to see the movie on opening night, March 2nd, I am putting together a ride night to the movie at the AMC 20 at Westgate City Center next to the Cardinals Stadium located on the SE corner of the Loop 101 and Glendale Ave. in Glendale. There will be motorcycle only parking on the street in front of the theater as well as a big area of motorcycle only in the main parking lot. I have also invited the local news stations to cover this event. It would be great to have a few hundred motorcycles lining the streets while riders watch the movie together in the 468 seat auditorium with stadium seating and a 4 story screen at AMC Westgate 20. I will also have several posters to give away that evening. Get your riding groups and pals together and let's have some fun at the movies on Friday, March 2nd. You will need to buy your tickets online to be guaranteed a seat that night, or go to the box office earlier in the week to purchase. Here are the particulars.
Cyclerides.com Movie Ride Night
What: Cyclerides.com Movie Ride Night, Premier of "Wild Hogs"When: Friday, March 2ndWhere: AMC Westgate 20, SE corner of the Loop 101 and Glendale Ave. in Glendale.Time: There will be several showings throughout the day, but the big theater will be showing the movie between 7:00 and 7:30pm. Exact times are not out yet and will be listed on the web site next week.Tickets: Tickets should be on sale by Tuesday, February 27th. Buy online to guarantee a seat that night at Movietickets.com, http://www.movietickets.com/house_list.asp?ShowDate=0&SearchZip=85305. You will then see a list of theaters in that area. The first one should be the AMC Westgate 20. Click on that and follow the procedure to buy the Wild Hogs tickets at the time that you want to go. You can also go to the box office the week of. You can call to see if tickets are available before you go. AMC Westgate phone number is: 623-772-1758.Why: An opportunity to see a funny entertaining motorcycle themed movie with a bunch of other riders who will get the jokes just like you. The more the merrier. Tell all of your riding buddies. Let's make it a big showing.Restaurants: There are a few places to eat in the Westgate area that are now open including Gordon Biersch, The Yardhouse, Moe's Southwestern Grill and Johnny Rockets. There is also a Coffee Plantation, Coldstone Creamery and a couple of other places. Click Here for the short clip of John Travolta on the David Letterman Show.