Tag: Renee Nicole Good

When will enough be enough?

I write this on Sunday afternoon during an ice storm. The worst of the storm is predicting over the next hours, but I will try to get this blog post written and posted before the power goes off. The events of this weekend in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and my government’s official response to it/explanation of it compel me to speak out.

Photo of the cover of the book, We Will Not Be Silent
We Will Not Be Silent, by Russell Freedman

The fact that we have a United States President that is hellbent on destroying the very foundations of our democracy is not bad enough. We have American citizens who are not only applauding the wrecking ball he has taken to the people of Minnesota; they are justifying what he is doing.

I am appalled at the number of Americans who are saying that Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good “got what they deserved.”

I am appalled at the number of Americans who can watch the same videos I’m seeing of Saturday morning’s murder in Minneapolis and not see what I see.

The video shows that the gun Mr. Pretti was legally carrying had been removed from him by a federal agent. Then four or five federal agents were all over him while he was held on the ground. Then, more than 10 shots were fired at him, and Mr. Pretti lay there dead. It appears that one of the federal agents fired five shots at Mr. Pretti, who was already lying motionless on the ground. Then, all the federal officers scattered.

The U.S. Government says Mr. Pretti was holding a gun when he approached to try to rescue a woman who had been shoved backwards to the ground by a federal agent, but what he held was a cell phone. They sprayed him with pepper spray or some other chemical because he was trying to shield the woman. He was trying to film the incident with his cell phone. He was not reaching for his gun.

He had a permit to carry a firearm. That is a right that Republicans hold as the most sacred right an American can have. They value it above our right to vote, above our right to worship, and above our right to assemble.

These are the same people who called 17-year-old high school drop-out Kyle Rittenhouse a hero for openly carrying a high-powered rifled down the street in Kenosha, Wisconsin in August 2020 during civil unrest. Rittenhouse fatally shot three people. Trump invited Rittenhouse to the White House so he could honor him as an American hero. A real patriot, according to Trump and his ilk. Rittenhouse was acquitted, claiming “self-defense.” He is now a darling of the Trump regime.

However, these same people are saying that Alex Pretti deserved to be shot to death because he was legally carrying a firearm – a firearm that was not in his hand. It was in a holster.

The “weapon” in his hand was a cell phone, but the federal agents did not want their actions recorded. They had to do something.

The U.S. Government says the federal agents were being threatened.

A federal agent should never feel threatened by a cell phone, unless that agent is doing something illegal or immoral.

Mr. Pretti was a 37-year-old ICU nurse at a Veterans Administration hospital. He had apparently gone into the street with his cell phone to observe and record the protest.

The U.S. Government immediately accused Mr. Pretti of being a domestic terrorist. That’s also what they immediately called Renee Nicole Good after they shot her in the face as she drove away from the ICE agents.

This is now a U.S. Government that does not want us to believe our own eyes. This is now a U.S. Government that does not want us to believe our own ears. This is a U.S. Government that wants us to forget every word of the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution.

But the thing that frightens me more than my government is my fellow American citizens who think this situation is just fine. They are the citizens who say, “Trump is just going after the worst of the worst. He is just going after the murderers and rapists. He is just going after the people who are here illegally.”

The people who say those things are the people who scare me. Those are the people who would say that Anne Frank got what she deserved. They are the ones who would have defended Hitler’s thugs and “brown shirts” in Germany in the 1930s and 1940s. They are the ones who would have said the Jews “got what they deserved.”

They are the ones who today are saying, Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti “got what they deserved.”

They are the ones who today are saying, “If you just do whatever an officer tells you to do, they won’t kill you.”

They are the ones who say, “The Holocaust never happened.”

They are the ones who will say, “Nothing happened in Minneapolis on January 24, 2025.”

Never in my first 72 years of life would I have thought this would be the state of things in the United States of America in 2026, but here we are. We have a segment of the population who truly believe, “If you just do whatever an officer tells you to do, they won’t kill you.”

My questions for them are as follows:

If an officer tells you to wear a yellow star on your clothing, would you willingly do that?

If an officer tells you to climb into a train boxcar, would you do that?

If an officer tells you to watch them abuse and arrest a peaceful protester and never say a word about it, would you stand idly by and never say a word?

If an officer uses your five-year-old child as bait to try to bring you out of your home so they can haul you and the child away to a detention center more than 1,000 miles away, would you be okay with that?

If an officer uses your neighbor’s five-year-old child as bait to try to bring your neighbor out of his or her home so they can haul them away to a detention center more than 1,000 miles away because they committed a misdemeanor, would you be okay with that?

Are you aware that it is a misdemeanor to be in the United States illegally?

Are you aware that being shot to death is not a legitimate “punishment” for committing a misdemeanor?

Are you aware that being shot to death is not a legitimate “punishment” for filming a peaceful protest?

Are you aware that being shot to death is not a legitimate “punishment” for coming to the rescue of a fellow citizen who has been shoved to the ground by a federal officer?

And yet, we have a convicted felon “serving” as President of the United States.

We live in a country today that honors felons and murders American citizens for coming to the aid of another citizen being physically abused.

The U.S. Government says that Alex Pretti interfered with a federal operation.

It appears to me in the video that Alex Pretti saw an unarmed woman being pushed backwards to the concrete sidewalk in Minneapolis. Mr. Pretti tried to record the incident with one hand while trying to protect the woman with his body and his free hand.

If the federal agents were properly trained instead of being given $50,000 signing bonuses, they would not have murdered Alex Pretti.

Mr. Pretti, being a trained nurse and an American citizen, saw an abuse of power and tried to do what any law-abiding citizen should do.

God, help us.

Janet

The government should be afraid of its citizens, not the other way around.

“A Letter from Sharpsburg” – historical fiction

As I write this on the night of January 20, 2026, Trump is on his way to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. (In fact, news came in as I wrote this that Air Force One had been turned around due to an electrical problem. Trump will be moved to a back-up plane.)

This gathering includes many NATO countries – the very NATO countries he threatened with tariffs this week. He will, no doubt, attempt to dazzle them with his perception of the current economy of the United States. Those of us who live here, know better. The picture he painted today in his news conference was far-removed from reality. He will embarrass us in Davos. He would embarrass himself, but that is not possible.

The next couple of days will not go well. Trump never comes across as Presidential here at home or on the world stage. Will he further insult our allies at this forum? Probably. That’s all he knows to do. At the very least, he will probably make fun of French President Emmanuel Macron’s eye condition. Trump has a record of belittling people with medical problems.

In today’s news conference, he finally feigned regret that an ICE agent shot and killed Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. Did you hear why he pretended regret today? Because someone told him that Ms. Good’s father was a Trump supporter.

I cannot remain silent as I see my government attack the least of these among us. As a Christian, it is my responsibility to speak up for the people who have no voice or whose voices are being ignored. As the President claims ICE agents are only going after “the worst of the worst,” my eyes and ears know better.

American citizens are being accosted and detained. One has already been killed on a street in Minneapolis. My government has not come after me yet, but if I wait until it does, there will be no one left to speak up for me.

Without further adieu, here is my planned blog post for today

Today’s post is about the eighth story in my short story book. “A Letter from Sharpsburg,” is a fictitious letter from an imaginary Confederate soldier who had fought in the Battle of Sharpsburg in Maryland during the American Civil War.

Photo by John Kostyk on Unsplash

As I explain in the book, it was general practice for the Union to name battles in the Civil War for a nearby physical feature, such as a creek. It was the practice of the Confederacy to name battles for the nearest town. This has led to confusion for more than 160 years.

This battle took place along Antietam Creek, near the town of Sharpsburg. Therefore, the Union called it the Battle of Antietam and the South called it the Battle of Sharpsburg.

Another example is the First and Second Battles of Bull Run (Union name) being called the First and Second Battles of Manasses in the South. It seems to me that we studied the Civil War almost every year in elementary school, but I don’t recall ever being told how or why the North and the South had different names for the same battles. Knowing the reason behind this practice would have been helpful.

I patterned this fictitious letter after letters one of my great-grandfathers wrote to his parents and sister during the Civil War. It was common in that day for a soldier to begin a letter with the words, “I seat myself and take pen in hand to write you a few lines.”

I chose this battle because more Americans were killed on the battlefield that day than on any other day in American military history. It is said that 2,100 Union soldiers and 1,550 Confederate soldiers lost their lives on September 17, 1862 near Sharpsburg, Maryland. Nearly 10,000 Union soldiers were wounded and more than 7,700 Confederate soldiers were wounded there that day.

In my book, I included author’s notes, questions for consideration, and a bibliography of the sources I used in writing “A Letter from Sharpsburg.”

In case you missed them here are the links to my blog posts about the first five stories in my book: “The Tailor’s Shears” – Historical Short Story; “You Couldn’t Help But Like Bob” — historical short story; “To Run or Not to Run” – historical short story‘ “Making the Best of a Tragedy” – historical short story; “From Scotland to America” – historical short story; “Whom Can We Trust?” – historical short story; and “Go fight, Johnny!” – historical short story.

Where to purchase Traveling Through History: A Collection of Historical Short Stories

You can find my new short story collection on Amazon in e-book (https://www.amazon.com/Traveling-Through-History-Collection-Historical-ebook/dp/B0FZQBMC2Q/)  and paperback (https://www.amazon.com/Traveling-Through-History-Collection-Historical/dp/B0FZSR6FPX/.)

You can find the paperback at Second Look Books in Harrisburg, NC, or ask for it at your local independent bookstore. Bookstores can order it from IngramSpark. It is supposed to be available at Barnes & Noble, but I’ve been told it is not necessarily in stock in the brick-and-mortar stores.

If you purchase my book and enjoy it, please give it a rating on Amazon and write a brief review of it for that site or Goodreads.com. Also, recommend it to your friends!

Word of mouth publicity is the best! Thank you!

Keeping me honest

My readers continue to try to keep me honest, which is my goal as a writer of historical fiction. Facts matter to me. Facts form the basis for my writing.

I mentioned in an earlier blog post that it had been brought to my attention that I have the wrong date in my book for the Battle of Kings Mountain. Yesterday, a friend clued me in that in “Ghost of the Battle of Guilford Courthouse: An American Revolutionary War Ghost Story,” I have someone calling 911 to report an incident to the police in 1963.

Unfortunately, 911 emergency service did not come into being until 1968. In my flimsy defense, I will point out that I originally had the story set in 1973. When I changed it to 1963, I failed to catch my 911 error.

I appreciate my historical errors being brought to my attention. This will help keep me on my toes as I write my novel. If you find another historical error in my book, please let me know.

Janet

The government should be afraid of its citizens, not the other way around.

Standard Operating Procedure

I was tempted to blog about this yesterday, but I thought it best not to have a knee jerk reaction. I thought I should wait twenty-four hours after the shooting in Minneapolis before I put my thoughts in writing.

I hoped someone in the Trump Administration would step forth and speak with restraint and a modicum of wisdom. I did not expect it, so I was not surprised when Wednesday’s lies, accusations, and name calling continued for a second day.

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem showed up dressed appropriately yesterday for a news conference about the killing of a 37-year-old American citizen by an ICE Agent. That was refreshing after we had to see her in a cowgirl outfit – perhaps her Halloween costume – when she spoke from Brownsville, Texas, about the incident a couple of hours after it occurred on Wednesday.

Yesterday, Noem said the shooting of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday was “standard operating procedure.” She once again labeled Ms. Good “a domestic terrorist.”

Shooting the driver of a moving vehicle does not seem to me to ever be a wise choice, but I am not a trained law enforcement officer. Perhaps Ms. Good felt her life was threatened by the masked officer who approached her car using profanity, tried to open her car door, and then stuck his arm through the opened car window. We will never know what was in her mind, since she was shot in the face and killed.

A nearby physician requested access to Ms. Good as she bled out in her car, but he was denied the fulfilling of his obligation as a medical doctor by the ICE agents. It has been reported that she did not receive medical attention for more than ten minutes.

Secretary Noem said the officer who shot Ms. Good was following his training.

All this is being said by the Trump Administration before the incident is investigated. In fact, Noem said the officer was within his rights, was following his training, and the woman who was shot was the instigator. In other words, she got what she deserved.

Yesterday, Vice President J.D. Vance blamed the “left wing lunatic fringe” for the shooting of Renee Good. He said, “It was a tragedy of her own making.” He said the ICE agent was “just doing his job.” He hinted that Democrats are funding the peaceful protests. He verbally attacked journalists for falling for the lies of the “lunatic fringe” on the left.

It sounds like the Trump Administration sits as law enforcement, prosecutor, witness, judge, and jury in this case. This is unconstitutional.

When a law enforcement officer in the United States is involved in a shooting, it is standard operating procedure for that officer to be removed from on-the-street duties until a full investigation can be conducted by a separate law enforcement organization.

It has been my experience that even local law enforcement officials know that. It is very telling that the top level of law enforcement in the United States is thumbing its nose at that commonly accepted – and commonly expected – practice. What federal officials should be saying is, “We cannot comment on the details of the incident because it is under investigation.”

However, what Secretary Noem has said is that the dead victim is going to be investigated. Apparently, her ICE agent will not be investigated.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz said that the Trump Administration has denied the State of Minnesota the right to investigate the incident.

I believe the Trump Administration and, by association and blind allegiance, the Republican Party, have lost sight of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Americans have a constitutional right to peacefully protest. No one pays us to voice our opinions!

The First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America

No one pays me to write my blog posts. I have a constitutional right to write my blog and express my opinions. It is beyond tragic that the Trump Administration and the Republican Party, which remains in lock-step with Trump, have completely lost sight of the First Amendment. They are obsessed with the Second Amendment, and they want us to forget the rest of them – especially the First one.

We will not be silenced. And we are not being paid to voice our opinions.

New Assistant U.S. Attorney General position

Yesterday, Vice President J.D. Vance announced we will have a new U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Fraud. This person has been guaranteed confirmation by the U.S. Senate by Senate Majority Leader John Thune.

Perhaps the most frightening thing about this announcement was that this person will work in the White House and answer to the President and the Vice President.

That, my fellow citizens, is a dangerous precedent-setting action to blatantly announce that the U.S. Department of Justice is now officially a political arm of the U.S. President. It should send a chill down the spine of every American.

We have known since January 20, 2025, that Trump considers the U.S. Justice Department “his” Justice Department and U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to be his personal attorney. But what Vice President Vance did yesterday was announce to all the world that what they have in practice demonstrated for a year is exactly what they believe and they believe they have the right to control and dictate the actions of the U.S. Department of Justice.

If the U.S. Congress does not stop them, the U.S. Constitution be damned.

In conclusion

I am writing this blog post mid-afternoon on Thursday, January 8 to be posted on the morning of January 9.

I hope there will be a fair and honest investigation to the shooting in Minneapolis, but I do not expect one as long as Trump is President.

It bears repeating: We will not be silenced. And we are not being paid to voice our opinions.

Janet

P.S. I thank Pat, one of my blog readers for bring it to my attention that I gave the wrong date in my blog post yesterday (“Go fight, Johnny!” – historical short story) for the Battle of Kings Mountain. I stated that the battle occurred on October 17, 1780, but it actually took place on October 7, 1780. Much to my embarrassment, I then realized that I picked up the wrong date in my blog post because I have the incorrect date in Traveling Through History: A Collection of Historical Short Stories. My apologies to my readers, and my thanks to Pat for having a sharp eye and for bringing this error to my attention. It just goes to show that even if you proofread a book’s manuscript eight times, you will still not catch all your errors.

J