After America: Rebuilding

By Larry Porter

The United States of America has collapsed and the continent is breaking into individual sovereignties based on geography, culture, political persuasion, and economics. The story is told through the eyes of Sam Buckwalter, one of the founders of Appalachian America, a new nation forming in the true Appalachian Mountains of the continent.
He visits many of the other new nations to learn what they did and how they were created. Then he helps Appalachian America through a Constitutional Convention where they write a constitution for their new nation based on the original U. S. Constitution.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Larry Porter
• Release date: Mar 17, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301960606

Larry Porter

Larry Porter has been writing since 1976, when he had his second project, a children’s play, Treehouse, produced in Atlanta, Ga. He has written fourteen full-length plays. Another, The Gospel According to Jesus, was produced in Asheville, NC. He has written numerous short stories, eight novels including Chance Mountain, Ivan the Backward Man, True Globalization, The Carousel, The Blue Barrel, The Visitor, and After America: Rebuilding. He has a memoir, Self-Storage Business and a collection of short stories titled Heaven? dealing with the afterlife. He has written four screenplays. His latest project is writing history in verse. A compilation of four epic poems titled History in Verse includes The Experiment, a history of the US, The Reconstruction of a Nation, a history of the Civil War, The Quest for the West, a history of the settling of the US west, and The Sixties, a history of the decade of the 1960s in the US. Look for a new series of totalitarians of the twentieth century coning soon. He lives in the North Carolina Mountains where he continues to write.

Book preview

Josh was relentless. He had the energy of a lightening bolt and in anyone’s presence, glowed liked one in a night sky. Everyone knew Josh Walker was going to be the first president of Appalachian America. He had the exuberance and intelligence of George Washington and would fit the bill of exactly who we needed. It was as if we were destined to begin the experiment anew. Only this time, hopefully, we could correct the mistakes that were made by the first Founding Fathers that they had anticipated but didn’t make amends for in the original document.

We were enjoying dinner at Bogart’s, an upscale, rustic eatery in Waynesville. I always enjoy the restaurant for it’s interior of post and beam, rough hewn logs, trees, really, giving one the feel of a hunting lodge with the stuffed heads hanging on the walls.

I always choose the loft overlooking the main floor because to get there, one must climb pine-slab steps, worn by years of hungry diners’ feet, rushing to fill their growling stomachs. It gives one the sense of years of stability, something that has been here forever. We went to Bogart’s to discuss his trip to Dalton, Georgia.

I have to tell you Sam, that bunch makes some pretty good arguments.

And?

We’ve all discussed this until it got so stale people nearly killed each other when the subject was brought up.

I don’t recall anyone specifically talking about Dalton.

No, that’s not what I meant. No one, to my knowledge, ever brought up Dalton. What I was referring to was the fact we pretty much all concluded the lines were drawn.

Then why did you bother going down there?

I don’t want to leave one topic uncovered. Sam, do you know how important this whole thing is? Josh nearly came out of his seat across the table from me. He looked so sternly at me, I must have looked frightened to him. I wasn’t. I just knew how passionate Josh was about the situation. Of course you do! The point is…

I know what the point is, Josh. And you are absolutely right. I just don’t see how you can stay so thinly spread. Next month the committee is going to put you up as President.

Stop that nonsense.

It’s true, man!

I’ll refuse. There are so many better-qualified people. Look at Dan. And how about that guy from West Virginia, what’s his name? Don’t forget Sharon, either.

Josh, you are the man everyone wants. And no you won’t turn it down. You will do anything to make sure this country makes it. And that, my friend, means you will be its first President. The George Washington of Appalachian America. Josh blushed and buried himself in his dinner. The one thing he hated was anyone talking about him or his accomplishments.

Josh’s phone rang. Hello. Hey, hi Sue. Sure, sure. Okay, when? He motioned for me to give him a pen as he tried to write on a pad he’d pulled from his shirt pocket and discovered his was out of ink. I handed him a pen and he recorded what his caller was telling him. Got it. Yeah. I’ll get up there first thing Thursday. What’s that? Of course. I’ll see you there. Bye.

I looked quizzically at him. He answered my stare. Sue Rettick. I shrugged my shoulders. You know, heads up that group in Morgantown. They pretty much control West Virginia.

Oh yeah, I remember her. A looker, long, blond hair, a body…

Yes, Sam, she’s a looker. God! She’s too young for you.

Hey man, I am a young sixty.

Yeah? What would Annie say?

She would say, ‘Sammy, you have a good time. I’ll wait for you up here, but meantime, you enjoy yourself, my dear’. We both laughed.

Josh said, God bless Annie. She was one of a kind.

Yes she was, Josh. I‘m not ashamed to say I teared up a bit.

Anyway, she’s getting a lot of steam from a Pittsburgh group. They want in.

Jesus Christ, Josh. Everybody wants in now that they see how far along and well organized we are. That group in Richmond makes a good argument. And how about the folks in Louisville?

I know. Anyway, I promised I’d go up and at least talk with them. Hey, Pittsburgh is one hell of a manufacturing center. At least it used to be.

Well I can tell you, as a former citizen of that esteemed city, it AIN’T IN APPALACHIA! Everyone looked our way when I got louder than I should. With that I caught the waitress and ordered more wine. Josh waited until she left since we didn’t like to be overheard by anyone as we talked politics.

Josh continued when she left, That’s not what Lyndon Baines Johnson declared. We both laughed at that. Anywho, what will it hurt to talk with them?

Because my soon-to-die-from-an-overtaxed-heart friend, you don’t have time.

Sam, you don’t know if and when we may need these people who will border our country.

See.

See what?

You are already displaying presidential timber. Thinking like a diplomat and statesmen. Josh rolled his eyes but knew that Sam was right. So what’s your conclusion on Dalton? Your phone rudely interrupted our conversation.

I’m leaning toward rejection. Look, carpet capital of the world. That would be a great addition, but we have to stay with drawn lines unless something drastic happens.

I agree. And I can tell you, the committee will go along with whatever you decide.

Josh sighed. Those Dalton folks are a great bunch of guys and would be a real plus. I did invite them to the convention to make their case directly to the delegates. I’m not about to dismiss anyone on my own. And besides, they are scared to death of being thrown into that Atlanta mess.

What do you mean?

Oh, I forgot. I hadn’t talked with you for what, three weeks?

About that. Why, what’s the Atlanta mess?

Word is that Atlanta may force Georgia and possibly North Florida out of the Southern Alliance.

No shit! I was astounded to hear this.

That’s right. You know how those people and Birmingham have been at each other’s throats since the sixties. And the fact Texas money found its way to Atlanta instead of Birmingham made Atlanta the capital of the South over Birmingham.

Yeah, so? Just as he was about to explain, the waitress brought our wine so he stopped and waited for her to leave.

Well, Birmingham Fathers have not forgotten that. They are not giving an inch to Atlanta in constructing their country. They figure this will be their chance to make up the imbalance that has existed for fifty some years. They are insisting they become the capitol of New South.

Yeah, I can see how that would piss off Atlanta’s high and mighty. Whooee, I can see the screams coming out of Buckhead as we speak. What’s your take on it? Do you think they’ll split?

The guys in Dalton seem to think so.

Do they see a shooting war? Anything like that mess going on with Michigan and the Wisconsin bunch?

They aren’t sure. But they know they’ll be left swinging in the wind no matter what the outcome. Man, this place is great. I can’t remember a better steak. Why haven’t you brought me here before?

I looked around. Yeah, it is. They know their T-Bones and Filets, that’s for sure. There are so many good eating joints in the area, and you aren’t here that often, I guess I just hadn’t thought of it before. Sorry.

We finished our meal and our conversation and left. Josh decided not to spend the night since he hadn’t been home for a week and hadn’t taken his wife on this trip, which was unusual, so wanted to drive on back to Roanoke.

As we went toward our cars, I said, Are you sure I can’t talk you into staying? It’s a six-hour drive, man. I hate for you to do that after driving four from Dalton.

Yes, I am sure. I’ll be okay. I rested over a great dinner, had good conversation with my best friend and am ready to see my lovely bride. It’ll be okay, Sam. With that, he left and I headed for my house.

I hated going back to an empty house. It’d been three years since Annie died and I never had gotten used to her not sitting in front of the TV when I opened the door. I guessed that was the reason I got so involved with the formation of this new country. I hadn’t been one to get much involved in politics. In fact, I hated the thought. But after the fall and the way things were developing all over the United States, I decided…well, I suppose Josh really decided…that I had to have input into what we would end up living with. I didn’t want to continue the travesty they called government for the past decade. And the way some of the new sovereigns were going, it could actually become worse than what we had just endured. Since I had plenty of money banked in the form of gold and since I was occupied with any business endeavors, I could hardly refuse my best friend. Tomorrow, I would head for Knoxville to meet with a group of delegates representing Eastern Tennessee.

Chapter 2

I was up at six the next morning and headed for Knoxville via Hot Springs, North Carolina and Newport Tennessee. I needed to make contact with a couple operatives in each town. I didn’t need to get to Knoxville until 1 PM so I had plenty of time to leisurely drive through country I loved. I waited until after eight to call Josh. I wanted to make sure he got home alright. Even at that, I woke his wife, Lynn. She told me he hadn’t gotten in until after 2 A.M. so I didn’t ask her to wake him. He was going to do a turnaround that day and head to Pittsburgh so he needed to sleep as long as his body would allow, which with Josh wasn’t usually very long.

Anytime I got to Hot Springs, I insisted on using a hot tub full of their therapeutic minerals. So I met my contacts there and we shared a tub while we talked. I left there and headed for sin city, Newport. It used to have a reputation as a place people went to enjoy the seedier side of life. It was even rumored a person could get a contract on someone’s life for fifty bucks. I never tested that rumor so I don’t know if it was true. But it sure made for some interesting conversations whenever the subject came up of someone truly disliked by the party talking. But I can honestly say everyone I ever met in Newport was honorable and trustworthy. And I must say, they were some of the most prepared folks I’d ever encountered when the fall came.

When I got to Newport, I discovered my contacts had already headed for Knoxville. I was going to speak there to the group who had put together the plan for the future state of Tennessee, or whatever they were going to call it. I could get together with them before the main meeting.

The movers and shakers in Knoxville were some of my favorite people. The grassroots movement, taking the general name of the Tea Party, but including Nine-Twelvers, Freedom Works people, Sons of Liberty, etc. was made up mostly of senior citizens or people who at least qualified for AARP. Not that they belonged after they discovered that organization had become a shill for the progressive movement. But there weren’t many younger folks involved at the beginning. The Knoxville bunch, however, included Derrick Lowe, thirty-five. I always applauded his efforts and encouraged him to bring other young people to the movement. The other reason I liked these guys was the leader, Derrick’s father. His name was Samuel too. He preferred Samuel but just to bug him, I called him Sammy. He was a good egg about it and we got along fabulously.

The third man in this triumvirate was a woman. Sharon Sutters, fifty-seven, devoted wife and mother of three grown children, worked tirelessly from the very beginning of the movement. She formed the Liberty Advantage group and built it to over two thousand people before the fall. What really helped was the fact they stretched from the Tri-cities area, Johnson City, Bristol, Kingsport, all the way to Chattanooga. I’ve always credited her with laying that groundwork.

We were getting close to holding our Convention to form the new government and I was going there to discuss with the Tennessee group what their plans were for it. In fact, talk was we might make Knoxville the capitol of the new country. Folks in Charleston, West Virginia and Roanoke, Virginia were jockeying for position and Lexington, Kentucky had expressed an interest. So I needed to discuss with the Knoxville group what their thoughts were on the choices. I guess what I really wanted was their pitch for why it should be them. Josh was pretty firm on making Roanoke the capitol, since it was his hometown. But it could become a great bargaining chip in my quest to push him for the presidency. Yes, politics had to come into play. How does one avoid them?

I called Sharon after I left Newport. Sharon, hey. Yes I am. Say, can we have some lunch together. Sure. Okay. The Newport contingent already headed for the… Oh, okay. Good. Do you think they could join us? Well, they may have wanted to talk with me privately. Okay, then, whatever you say. You know them better than I do. But if you don’t mind, I’d like to check with them away from you, just to make sure. I hope it doesn’t insult you. We’re in some uncharted waters here. Okey dokey. Will Sammy and Derrick be able to join us? Great. I’ll see you there then. Bye, bye.

I met everyone at the Golden Corral off Asheville Highway. I got the Newport guys aside and asked, I want to make sure what you wanted to talk about doesn’t need to be private. Does it?

They assured me it didn’t. One told me they had come across a beautiful plan for selecting congressmen, something called GOOOH. They wanted to make sure the top people knew about it. I told them that, yes, I not only knew about it but I’d met the designer of the program and I was going to discuss it with everyone I met as I went across the country. I also assured them that Josh knew about it. They were excited as we went to get our plates full of good food.

We all got fed up and headed, by caravan, to the Admiral Hotel in downtown Knoxville. The event was scheduled for the Nuclear Room, which was capable of holding one thousand bodies. When we got there, thirty minutes before the start, the room was almost three quarters full.

I think you’re going to have an overflow, I said to Sharon.

We’ve planned for it. We reserved a second room, the Oak Ridge, which will simulcast the main roo on big screen TV. I should have known you planned ahead. Always remembering everything.

Derrick was walking into the room with us while Sammy scooted ahead to coordinate logistics. You’re right, Mister Buckwalter, she always has everything laid out to perfection. I smiled at him. By the way, I am really looking forward to your speech today, sir.

I’m not so sure I’d call it as speech as an open forum. I’d rather hear what your people have to say than listen to myself blabber on.

Sharon looked directly into my eyes as she grabbed my upper arm and said, Darling, I’ve never heard you blabber on about anything. Like that investment company used to say, ‘When so and so talks, everyone listens.

Are you trying to win my favor, I remarked back, in a joking manner.

Of course.

She had flirted with me ever since Annie died. She was a sweet, intelligent lady who was easy on the eyes. If I had any interest in a relationship, she would probably be first on my list. But, although it had been three years, I couldn’t move on from Annie yet.

Sharon and Derrick excused themselves to help with setup and several people recognized me. They would come up to introduce themselves. A couple even asked for autographs, which I turned down. I was definitely not enjoying the celebrity spotlight. Sammy saw my predicament and came to the rescue.

Give the man a break, folks. We need him. He laughed it off as he hustled me behind the stage area.

Thank you. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy meeting these people, but…

I understand. I also know it’s nice to relax before you have to address a crowd.

Indeed, I said. I was grateful for his insight.

The hour approached as the room filled to overflowing and people were directed to the other room. I was told it was getting close to capacity as well. It held another five hundred. Finally the clock struck one and we were on our way. There were five chairs set up on the stage with a podium in front for speakers to address the crowd. Sammy spoke first, welcomed everyone, gave a few words of wisdom, and before introducing Sharon, shouted, To Appalachian America. The audience went nuts. Then, It is with great honor and admiration I introduce to you, the esteemed leader and untiring founder of the Tennessee Founders Organization, Ms. Sharon Sutters. To that the audience gave a standing ovation that lasted five minutes. They loved her here.

Finally, she got them settled down and seated. My fellow TFOs. Let me first say we will soon all be citizens of Appalachian America. To that, another standing ovation. I could see it was going to be a long day. She talked about their beginning and how they fought the good fight after the fall. She praised them many times for their hard work and drive and perseverance. I knew this was what made her great. She always heaped praise on those around her, using the old Regan standby, Don’t be afraid of who gets the credit as long as the job gets done. You will be justly rewarded. Or something to that affect. After she brought everyone up to date she looked back at me and smiled with a coquettish wink.

And now ladies and gentlemen, I want to turn the program over to the reason you’ve all come today. We first met nearly ten years ago was it, Sam? She turned to me and I nodded. I went down to visit Haywood County, North Carolina to see what they were doing about organizing a grassroots movement after Obama was elected. The word was that they were way ahead of most folks in the country. I found out they were. So I asked Sam if he’d come up here and show us how to begin. Typical of this guy, she pointed her thumb over her shoulder at me, he said we were doing just fine. I think at that time we had about fifty or so people coming to our meetings. Samuel, Derrick and I were worried we weren’t doing enough. If you remember those days, everyone was scared to death of what was coming. Sam assuaged our fears, gave us a few suggestions on what we might do to improve the meetings and build our rolls, and he was gone. But he never really left us. We’ve been in constant touch ever since. And with his undying assistance…never once did he ever refuse a request, even when his dear wife, Annie, was so sick.

The mention of Annie coming from another woman always put a lump in my throat.

She continued, Ladies and gentlemen, without this man, there would be no Appalachian America. The audience went wild. I’d like to think it was again the mention of the new country and not my stupid name. She finally got them quieted down.

Ladies and gentlemen, without belaboring this any longer, may I present our distinguished guest and colleague, Mr. Sam Buckwalter. The crowd applauded loud and long as I approached the podium. Sharon gave me a longer than cursory hug and went back to her chair.

Thank you, thank you. After they quieted down, and it was not, by the way, as long as the ruckus when the name of the country was mentioned, I started. Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, leaders, I turned around to the panel behind me, it is a great honor to come to you. And my hat is off to these folks behind me. Just look across the room. And there’s another, which I understand has almost this many watching us on live TV. This is truly amazing you need to be proud of yourselves. They started to applaud themselves.

I remember well those awful days after Barrack Obama was elected to lead the greatest nation ever conceived on this earth. Everyone lived in fear as we watched the whole thing unravel before our eyes. But as I tell every person who will listen, he was only the final blow in a long history of citizens not looking after their business of protecting their liberty and freedoms. Applause. The demise didn’t happen with one person or one bad congress. Most of you people in these rooms know your history now, thank goodness. We WILL NOT make the same mistake with our new country. Applause. We are being given that rare second chance. Let’s not screw it up, people! They stood and applauded for another five minutes. I didn’t interrupt enthusiasm, figuring they needed to cheer at this moment.

After they settled down and got seated, I continued. Folks, I am not here today to lecture you or to teach you. We’ve had enough of that. In fact, I am not even going to give you a speech. What I’ve already said is enough. Today I want to exchange ideas. Just as Sharon mentioned, we started by exchanging ideas. I can remember going across Appalachia, meeting with two, three, four people at a time, helping them organize groups to build for a future I knew was coming. Let me tell you, it is here. They started whooping and stomping their feet as the began chanting A P P A L A C H I A over and over. I shouted back in continuation, Today. Now. Not tomorrow but today. As they settled down again, I continued. In one month, on the eighteenth, in Roanoke, Virginia, we will have a Constitutional Convention. God that sounds good, huh. Applause. We will be forming a brand new country, folks. Are you ready? Appalachian America, here we come."

I went on to explain what to expect and how this group would have to select their delegates to represent them at the Convention. I opened the floor to questions. Boy did I get them. For the next three hours, I got any and every question I could have ever imagined. This group was pumped. But more importantly, they were well informed. Sharon, Sammy and Derrick were real leaders. I didn’t know every group’s leaders as well as these folks but my assessment was , they had to be part of administering the new country’s formation.

After the meeting, I was on another planet. I hadn’t felt this good for a long, long time. I got up with the Newport group before I headed back home. I told them, with Sharon present, that they had to learn the GOOOH method. I explained to Sharon that GOOOH was Get Out Of Our House, a plan devised by Tim Cox, a true patriot in those trying days of uncertainty. It was an ingenious way of choosing congressional house members from the bottom up. Of course the U.S. political machine was too corrupt by then for it ever to catch on but I intended to introduce it at the Convention to be placed in our new Constitution, it was that good. I told them how to contact Tim and that he would be happy to come to meet with them. I explained that this was the way they needed to elect their delegates. And I told them to spread the word to anyone they knew in Appalachia so come Convention time, we’d all be ready.

The others left as Sharon invited me to have dinner at her house but I reluctantly turned her down. I would have enjoyed that but I knew she would put a move on me and I didn’t want to hurt her with refusals. I begged off, telling her I was headed for Lexington to do it all over again.

Hey, you know your welcome to sleep at my place. I rolled my eyes. No, it doesn’t mean that. Just to save a motel room, you know. She laughed quietly.

Thanks, kid. I really do appreciate it. But I want to get some miles under me. I’m supposed to meet a couple guys up there for breakfast. I lied. She saw through me and poked a finger in my chest but said nothing. She was too much a lady to scold me. She knew why I was refusing her advances. I left her with a peck on the cheek and a hug. I had to admit her perfume smelled enchanting. I headed for my car. I shouted over my shoulder, I’ll call you on my way back. I need to talk before the Convention, huh? She nodded yes.

Chapter 3

I drove to Corbin, a town about sixty miles from Lexington. I had fond memories of Corbin. I used to recruit truck driving school students there for a school in Asheville. And I loved the industrial feel of the town. It is the confluence of the Kentucky coal industry. I would guess that every chunk of coal coming out of the Kentucky ground passes through Corbin. It has one of the largest rail yards I’ve ever seen and it seems always to be covered with coal cars, loaded and ready to provide heat and cooling to millions of homes and businesses. It’s also the home of Colonel Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken fame. He built his restaurant in Corbin and developed his famous recipe into a giant before selling to a couple folks who turned it into an international icon.

I pulled into the Welcome Inn, the old motel I used to stay in. It was still standing but looking at the exterior told me it wouldn’t be a Holiday Inn anytime soon. In its day, it was a nice enough place for a poor admissions rep to do interviews. That is to say, it never was posh but it was clean and serviceable. But looking at it now, it seemed the economy had not only caught up with it, but went screaming past. Oh, what the heck. If there weren’t bugs in the room, just for old time’s sake, I’d hold up here for the night.

I examined the room and decided it would do as a place to lay my head down for the night. I went to the Cracker Barrel for dinner and while I waited for my meal, I called Jimbo. Jimbo Owens and his wife, Mary, were instrumental in putting together the Patriots of Kentucky. He was state director of the Patriot Network, an Internet blog, until they kicked him out for being too conservative. This was a sign of the times. As the movement grew, it moved toward the center, with many leaders becoming typical power grabbers. The sad part of what happened was that those leaders never recognized their own shortcomings. They continued to bash Rinos for doing exactly what they were doing.

Jimbo. Hey, how goes it? Yes. And how’s your lovely wife? Give her a hug for me…no, wait, I’ll do that myself tomorrow. I laughed and he made a snide remark. How about having breakfast tomorrow morning? Yeah, I’ll find it. Okay. I’ll see you about nine. No, I’m in Corbin. It’s what, an hour? I know, I know. I wanted a little quiet time after the Tennessee rally. I’ll tell you about it in the morning. See you at the Waffle House at nine. Bye. Now what I told Sharon wouldn’t be a lie. I would be having breakfast with Jimbo.

Jimbo was a huge man, six-six and at least three hundred pounds. He had a great sense of humor. When I got to the Waffle House I saw him and Mary sitting at a booth already. He didn’t tell me she was coming but I was glad she did. She was such a joy to be around. She also matched him, nearly pound for pound, but only rising to about five feet six. I worried about her health as she toted around so much.

When I came up to the booth, Mary stood. I grabbed her and hugged tight. How are you, sweetheart? Are you still hanging out with this reprobate?

What can I do, love. I moved twice without givin’ him a forwarding address. But, she sighed, he found me both times. I laughed and reached over to shake Jimbo’s hand. He didn’t have much hair to begin with so he shaved the rest down to the wood. Old man, I saw more hair on the cake of soap at the motel last night.

Yeah, that was probably mine. I been stayin’ in strange motels while I chased down this here woman. Come on, sit down, young man, and join us for some great eggs and bacon. You know they include a waffle with that.

This is one of your favorites, isn’t it? I asked.

Best grease this side of Louisville, he answered. Mary just rolled her eyes.

We ordered and when the waitress went to place the order, he started in a low tone. Sam, we got trouble.

How so? I asked. Just then the waitress came back with our coffee and juice. Maybe we better wait until later, huh?

I think you’re right, my friend. Let’s eat and go somewhere that is more private. I really need to talk to you.

Mary chimed in. I’m really glad you came up early, Sam. We got some real problems.

I screwed my face up and changed the subject so as to keep prying ears from hearing anything of importance. "So