Transcript prepared by Fielding M. McGehee III. If you use this material, please credit The Jonestown Institute. Thank you.
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(Note: This tape was one of the 53 tapes initially withheld from public disclosure.)
Jones: —the hell they’re doing. [What] The fuck’s going on? (Pause) (Undertone) Goddamn my life. (Normal tone) Gardens, Jim Simpson.
Pause while mike moves
Simpson: Uh, we don’t have no problem, Dad, but uh, since (unintelligible phrase) within the last two weeks now, I’m going— got things going over that— in my green situation is going to be coming off where we— We’re— Starting tomorrow, I’m going to pick some greens, and from there on, about three times a week we’ll have them, and plus, maybe sometimes gonna be about four times a week where they’ll have ‘em.
Jones: (Murmurs) (Unintelligible word), that’s good.
Simpson: And I’m going to have them planted in rotation where if they’re going to come off— just as soon as one bunch go off, there’ll be another bunches coming on. And that’s the way it’s gonna be run.
Jones: I sure appreciate that, friend.
Simpson: It will be.
Jones: Those greens will take care of a lot of our mouth problems and boils and so forth. (Sighs) Very, very helpful. Use the Vitamin C, as I said, but use it sparingly. Uh, you know, use it where it’s necessary. I want the— I want the health, but it’s going to be difficult to restock things. Bananas. Danny [Moten].
(Pause while mike moves)
Danny: Uh, I too, uh, put in for a request for a change, Dad, but uh, uh, I uh, decided against it tonight.
Lee Ingram: (off mike) As of now or—
Jones: Well, really any difference when. It would be ridiculous. You are one of the more experienced in it. Why would you want to change for?
Danny: Well, I— I— (Pause) I had my uh, ups and downs in the uh, bananas, and the uh, uh, lot of it I deserved with the uh, criticism that I’ve been getting and uh, a— a lot that we did not deserve. I felt we did not deserve in the criticism we got as a— as a crew as a whole. I felt they had been working hard in some instances and in other instances, I— I know that we have been letting down quite a bit, and I have also. And uh— It seems to every— It seems that we have got a reputation, every time something’s read or somebody says something, that we’re the slowest in the bunch, and uh, every time we’re on the floor, it— it reflects, and it’s been that way ever since, and it’s— it’s been bothering me quite a bit that way, and I thought, well, if I can get out, it may pick up the crew someway. Ah, but—
Jones: (matter-of-factly) That’s bullshit, Danny. That’s bullshit, and you know that’s bullshit. (stumble over words) You really— What you should’ve said in so many words is, my image I thought was being affected, and so I want to quit. And that’d been one sentence, and that’d been it. Because you— in other words, your paranoia was too far at work— because you don’t have that image in the first place. But you— what you could have finished in one sentence: My image I— I think is being affected, so I want to quit.
Lee: (off mike) Is that right, Danny?
Danny: That’s true, Dad.
Jones: S’go. (stumbles over words) What’s the problem now?
Danny: Uh—
Jones: What’s the breakthroughs, or what’s the problems?
Danny: N— Everything seems be running uh, fairly well, we uh, removed another windrow and uh, uh, of banana trees, about a hundred and seventy-four trees uh, today, which is going to affect somewhat our production of bananas uh, intake. Uh, but we’re planting them as fast as we can, so when they come in, when they start to uh, yield bananas, we— we’re going to pick up quite a bit more, ‘cause they uh— the banana trees we removed have suckers as well, so it means double the production in trees as— as we plant. (Pause)
Jones: Thank you. (Pause) Thank you. Herbal gardens. (Pause) Shift. (Pause)
(Pause while mike moves)
Jones: Let’s go. Let’s go. Herbal gardens.
Shirley: Excuse me. Dad? Ah, we found something called godocola (phonetic), which is ah, the herb for— to preserve a long life. (Laughs) And uh—
Jones: Burn it.
Shirley: Yeah, right.
Crowd: Applause and scattered laughs.
Lee: (off mike) Can you just give your report quickly, and don’t go into (unintelligible word).
Jones: No, I’m just teasing. You know, we need it. We gotta stay alive. We owe that to the revolution. We owe that to the revolution. You found something for long life?
Shirley: And it’s also good for a lot of medical things. We’re working on it now.
Jones: Well, I’m glad about the other medical things, too.
Shirley: Yeah. Yeah.
Lee: (off mike) (unintelligible) —your brain.
Shirley: It— It’s a uh, blood purifier—
Jones: What’s it do?
Lee: (off mike) (unintelligible) —your brain.
Jones: Well, I can stand that.
Shirley: It’s a brain food, um, memory improvement—
Jones: Yeah, I need that.
Crowd stirs
Jones: So does— So do you. I don’t know that I need it—
Shirley: Yeah.
Jones: Look at this audience out there on the news.
Shirley: Yeah, really.
Crowd stirs
Jones: When you give it to them, Shirley, then, I want to know the night you give it, so there’ll be no excuses. Everybody’ll then remember everything.
Crowd stirs, applause
Shirley: (Laughs) Okay. What we’re trying to do— Yeah. What we’re trying to do now is transplant it and get it up into the herb garden. We were just given some more land by the analyst last night, and we’re gonna make it in larger amounts so that everyone will be able to have some.
Jones: Okay. Good.
Shirley: And um, we found some cactus this week on our land — thank you, Dad — we’re working on that for food, you know, it’s um, cooking it up.
Jones: Yeah.
Shirley: And um— Like I said, we had the um— we were given some more land and we’re going to work real hard on, on working on that.
Jones: That’s good. Thank you so much.
Shirley: Thank you.
Jones: Peanuts? What? Good.
Woman: I have a question. (Pause) Stephan [Jones], go ahead.
Stephan: (unintelligible)
Woman: Um— What’s the status of the research on kelp? It’s a very important source of iodine and good for uh, many, many things, and I know you were supposed to ask Davis [probably Soloman] what research he’s doing in town. And also, is Pauline Groot working with you, because she has an interest in the cultivation and the uh, harvesting of it. I just want to— We need it—
Jones: Can we just answer that quickly, and uh, get to Pauline, and there she is, uh— (mumbles)
Male: (off mike) (unintelligible) You’re wondering, is Pauline working, yes or no, right? Pauline working yes or no, right?
Crowd stirs
Unknown woman: Thank you.
Male: (off mike) She said yes.
Jones: She— Fine, yes, ah, please, yes, folks, I’m in misery. (Pause)
Male: (off mike) Only suggestion I have to the (unintelligible) committee, when they cook up their stuff, as they find, before you bring it to the office, that Dad have somebody else taste it first.
Another male: Well, shit, why don’t they taste it first?
Male: (off mike) Yeah, right.
Jones: Kelp. What about this kelp, she said? (Pause)
Male: (off mike) Yeah, okay.
Crowd stirs
Jones: Yeah, I don’t need to be experimenting, if you want to— (Pause) These days particular.
Woman: Taste— We taste it, Dad, before we send it—
Unknown male: Don’t be defensive. Come on.
Woman: Move on.
Several voices echo.
Jones: Kelp. Kelp kelp kelp kelp.
Shirley: Pauline has— has worked on the kelp uh, information before. Davis uh, found out that there was no kelp available in Georgetown, and he suggested that we go to Mon Repose (phonetic) to check on the kelp situation there.
Jones: Go to where?
Shirley: Mon Repose. (Pause) Is that outside of Georgetown? (Pause) Where is it? I don’t know anything more about it than that.
Several voices stir
Woman in crowd: Jan? Where? It’s on the east coast.
Jones: Kelp? (voice trails off)
Shirley: Seaweed. A seaweed, and it has a good source of iodine.
Jones: Well— well, why would you have to go to Georgetown? The whole fuckin’ ocean’s full of it.
Male: (Off mike) Davis goes back and forth (unintelligible)
Several voices stir. Slight feedback
Jones: There must be something wrong here. Please, radio, check this. Oh, you can reach down and get kelp anywhere. (Pause) (Whistles into mike) Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go. Thank you. What— what is it?
Man in crowd: I was going to say, Mon Repose is about an hour— about a 45-minute drive form Georgetown. So it’s— it’s nothing— (fades out)
Jones: Okay. Well, let’s get kelp. I don’t think you have to go that far to get kelp. Let’s go. Herbal gardens. Or— what is it? Chap— Jeffery, Comrade, go ahead.
Eartis Jeffery: Uh, Dad, since I started taking over yesterday fully for peanuts, we been doing good, so we weed it and— and (unintelligible word) peanuts now, so we doing fine for the last day and a half.
Jones: Uh, but you got peanut butter, you, uh, gave, that was good peanut butter, wherever it was made up from— that peanut butter.
Jeffery: Uh, J— Jack made that up—
Jones: Well, it’s good.
Jeffery: (unintelligible under interruption) —share a few peanuts from last time, but uh—
Jones: Let’s get that going, ‘cause that’s rich in protein, very good nutritious food.
Jeffery: Okay. Thank you, Dad.
Jones: Very, very good for the body.
Jeffery: Okay. Thank you.
Jones: Sirel. (Phonetic) Bricks and soap.
Man: All right, this is Sirel, all we’re doing is uh, maintenance, we got a little— little problem with some uh, (pause) I— I— although we think it’s fungus, I want— want to— and— but— and we been spraying for it, and uh, as far as the bricks, uh, we’ve got uh, I think it was, since out last report, we made uh, two hundred and one bricks, and we’re trying to get some more uh, help with that, and we’re uh, got all our construction materials now to finish off our, our uh, brick-building for this section, and we need— Now we’re ready to go to the soap um, and construct the uh, build— soap building, so that we can get that started. But we— so far we don’t have any materials for it now. (Pause) Uh, no wood, that is, uh, you know, we have to— have to go glean it out of our uh, ac— acquisitions system. (Pause)
Jones: What’s he saying?
Male: (Off mike) (unintelligible sentence about soap)
Jones: Well, can we get it? I— You know soap and bricks is one of the things that’s so essential.
Woman: We need a—
Male: (Off mike) (unintelligible sentence about materials)
Jones: Can he get the goddamn— please, let’s move the obstacles out of the way.
Male: (Off mike) He hasn’t, so when are you going to— You’re going to start on it tomorrow?
Man: When— So what— So what your question?
Another male: Are you going to start on it tomorrow? Or when are you going to start it?
Man: Yes, well, I been working on all of it all along.
Crowd stirs
Male: (Off mike) What’s next on the agenda? What’s next on the agenda?
Male: Um— The only problem that I have um— There’s two problems. One, the weather, which, you know, can’t help that. And then the other problem is, it seems like out in our fields, whenever we dump fertilizer or shell, they— the piles lay. And so as a result, they become uh, you know, an— an obstacle for the tractors and they’re harder to take care of. And besides that, um, it seems like the rain leeches them down quite a bit. So what I’d like— I’d like to make a suggestion before everybody that um, if we— to centralize the shell, and then, they only put on— off the trailer what they can use. You know, take it right off of the trailer and put it right on where they’re going to use it, and then the rest of it they take back and put in the central pile. Or we make um— take some poles and make like a central bin, and each filled, out of the way of all the tractors and, you know, store the fertilizer or the shell or whatever is there. ‘Cause I’ve got uh, one filled now that, there’s a big pile of shell out of the middle of it, and it’s got to be moved before the tractors go on it. So, you know, that’s— that’s actually my only problem right now.
(Tape edit)
Another voice: We’ll take care of it, (unintelligible name; "Natalie"?)
Male: Yeah, we can take care of that.
(Tape edit)
Male: The next item is natural insecticide.
Jones: Hold it, hold it, hold it, hold it, hold it. The— There was a question here, and someone mentioned back there to me, the question, what— what about— is it true that your bulldozer has been delayed? I want to clear this matter up, because public image of uh, uh, affecting your efficiency, and we need to be concerned about our efficiency image, that you are delayed in getting started. And then when your Dad does say (unintelligible word)— Now there’s one thing you kids— children, all of you, mine included. You must not rebel against your parents in a public arena. (Pause)
One voice: That’s true.
Jones: If they are in a leadership role. (Tape edit) You follow what I’m saying.
Crowd stirs
Jones: We must not do it. You got to do it privately. (Pause) Is it true that you argue with your dad for argument’s sake over everything?
Mike Touchette: Um— I’ve thought—
Jones: I— It was said to me last night— (stumbles over words)
Mike: Uh— I give him a hard time, yes.
Lee: Well, that’s arguing for argument’s sake, right?
Mike: Right.
(Pause)
Jones: (Drinks) Is it true that uh, that on one morning the bulldozer was one o’clock getting out in the— getting out, when we— you— you know the pattern of the rain, and why we— why was it if it was so?
Mike: (Stumbles over words) It’s tr— It’s true and I have no—
Jones: I know it was true, but I— Why was it?
Mike: I— I was just— There’s no excuse. I was— I was sleeping.
Jones: Well, what in the hell? You guys have arrangement for alternate duties. (Pause) This is dangerous, about going these long hours, then taking your s— your time. You— You miss— You miss the whole purpose of, of planning and construction. (Pause) You denied this stoutly before, you denied this. What the hell uh— Was Al— Wasn’t Al Simon supposed to cover so that the— that the bulldozer was never to be uh, inoperable, or inactive. (Pause) (tape edit) Now what time did you go to bed that would re— justify you be— uh, starting at midday at one o’clock.
Mike: I don’t— I— I finally got to bed that morning probably about 2:30 or three, and I didn’t go to sleep till probably around 5:30 or six. And there is— there’s not— Lee talked to me, I— I happen to hear what you said over the radio that day, and I was uh— Lee talked to me about it, and I told Lee un— under no circumstances would it happen again. And then I— I fin—
Jones: Fine. Well, I never heard any feedback on it. I never heard any feedback from you. Another thing you people need to do— (Pause) Uh, (unintelligible name; "Seth?"), by the way, you’re dropping stuff— ob— observers report— Secretaries. Those should be given directly to me in my hand (Pause) and told me what they are. Uh, I found these goddamn observers’ reports, the most tight in security, uh, where everybody could’ve seen them. I’m talking Tim [Borl] Jones, uh, uh, day, no, night. No, Tim Jones Night. Sat observer, particular observer report. That’s not work observers. That shit should never be laying around. I found it laying around on a desk. So you give it to me. I don’t know which secretary is responsible for that, but you— you give it to me.
Low male voice: (unintelligible phrase) —supposed to give them to Calvin [Douglas] to give them directly to you.
Jones: Well, Calvin didn’t— Uh, this one didn’t get do— given directly to me.
Low male voice: (Unintelligible)
Jones: ‘Cause I found it.
Low male: —They’re wrong.
Jones: Okay. Whichever one. Calvin and whichever. I don’t care. Whoever it is, they’re— they’re wrong. And I didn’t hear anything about this. Lee should’ve seen it. I l— learned of your humility. I heard nothing of it.
Mike: I— I take the responsibility, ‘cause I was planning to come up to you and tell you about it, but I— I just— I didn’t do it. It’s my fault. (unintelligible as microphone turns off and on) my place to come up and tell you, since it was— the accusation was again— you know, it was to me, and not, you know, to Lee. So it, you know—
Jones: Right. Right.
Lee: Well, since— Well, since I’m coordinator, I do coordinate the uh, Cats, I should’ve gone to you, because it was a public— It was— It was— It was put over the P.A. system, so I should’ve gone directly to you. So I was in error.
Jones: And they were— How did it get there at one o’clock? You shoulda been rising he— raising hair [hell] with him being there at one o’clock. (Unintelligible) a bulldozer inoperable. Did those in the farm analyst (unintelligible word) complain about it being inoperable, when we needed all the drive we could use, and had no other time, did you guys go to the coordinator to complain? (Pause) [Gene] Chaikin, did you go to anybody and complain of—
Low voice too soft.
Jones: What’s that?
Low voice too soft.
Chaikin: No, I didn’t go to the coordinator to complain, Dad. No, I did not. I did not.
Jones: Okay, now, which one of the farm analyst did it, because I— we brought it to my attention— it was brought to my attention as if it was your complaint? And that you give mouth to Charlie [Touchette] when he talked to you before about this kind of procedure in public. (Pause) Now somebody raised that complaint. I did not look for the bulldozer. I was too busy with radio strategy. So somebody raised that complaint. Is anybody in the whole damn secretarial staff know who it was? It was phoned in to me. But the coordinator ought to have known it. You ought to have known it, uh, if that’s your responsibility, Lee, you shoulda known that that thing was not moving at one o’clock.
Lee: Right, Dad (balance too soft)
Jones: Who raised the complaint? It was not you who raised the complaint, though, Lee. Somebody in that farm analyst raised the complaint.
Lee: I didn’t say it was one of the analyst that I heard—
Male: That’s what I— That’s what I heard you say, that (unintelligible word as mike clicks on) they said it on the radio. I mean, over the intercom.
Lee: It was you, Gene.
Jones: Huh?
Male: I heard it was you, too.
Jones: I think I did too. I think I— I think I did hear it was him. But he— he says, and I believe he’s saying the truth, but somebody nailed him as doing it.
Several overlapping voices
Male: He’s talkin’ about Saturday.
Jones: He said you told her. Said you told—
Carolyn Layton: You did tell me, right in that radio room porch, you said, that bulldozer has just now started up. It was one o’clock in the afternoon, and I’d like to know why it has been laying idle all morning.
Man: Yeah.
Another man: (unintelligible words), Gene?
Chaikin: I told— (Pause) I would’ve talked to you or somebody else about it, but I thought when you said raised the complaint, if I had written the note or something to Dad about it, which I did not do. And that’s what I thought you were talking about.
Jones: Well, now, sure, man. If you make a comment like that, I would weigh your judgment and ask why.
Chaikin: I uh, had remembered conversation with her. I had not remembered saying that to her, but uh, uh, I very well could have.
Jones: Is it true, Charlie, in your opinion, does he— uh, does he, uh, take disagreement with you and— uh, over non-essential matters, or is that just other people’s observation?
Charlie: Uh, no, that’s true. I don’t think Mike has changed a bit towards his— his attitudes towards me since— especially when we’re talking about what he’s doing with the Cat, his time at work, uh— Off work, he and I have a fairly good talking relationship, when we do talk, but we don’t talk often. Um— But I know I cannot approach Mike— I still can’t approach him, ‘cause I’ll get a bunch of crap from him. I’d also like to say, while I’m here, as I don’t think Gene was right in not approaching Mike. I don’t think he should’ve gone to Carolyn. When he saw the goddamn machine had set, he should’ve gone and found somebody to find out why it was sitting. (Pause) I’m going to take part of the blame for it, too, because I knew that it wasn’t right, that it was sitting there, and I (pause) uh, also saw— I also saw Al Simon over on the shake mill, and uh, I have enough knowledge to know that there’s a driver and there’s a bulldozer, and by God, they could be working regardless of where Mike was.
Unknown male: Yeah. Yeah.
Charlie: So I’m going to take part of the blame why the bulldozer didn’t run that day myself. It— it makes no difference whether I’m the coordinator of the machine or not, I know that there was— I knew that something was wrong, and I should’ve corrected it.
Jones: That’s true but they— Lee, you got to take in— you got to take initiative and not back off, uh, because uh, he would be this uh, coordinator’s son, which I don’t think you would be, or that he was white. I don’t think that would be— But— But why did you not notice it was one o’clock?
Lee: Um— I just had— I— I had not paid any attention to it—
Jones: Well, are— are you the coordinator of the son of a bitch?
Lee: Yes, I am, Dad.
Jones: He hadn’t taken any notice of it.
Lee: That’s— I’m— Earlier that— I had not that day, no. I had not.
Jones: Well, if you coordinator, you have to take it— you have to take notice of it every day. In spite of you— of the fact that you’re one of the few people who’ll stay in that damn radio room. Uh, I— it’s— it’s gotta be done. Or, you’re gonna have to have an uh, assistant, that uh— that’s delegated. ‘Cause it’s not Charlie’s channel of responsibility. In that instance, it was yours.
Lee: That’s true.
Jones: Although somebody has to take an overall perspective. Yes, yes yes.
Male: I have a question, Lee. How many hours did the bulldozers work today, and where did they work?
Lee: I did not see— All I know, they were working down in the rice field, I don’t know how many hours they worked.
Marceline: If you’re a coordinator, you ought to know that.
Jones: No.
Male: That’s— that’s my point. That’s my point. You ought to know that.
Lee: Right. You’re right.
Woman: You should check their schedules ahead of time. We’ve been trying to get them to schedule their work ahead of time. It’s starting to get sunstruck here, but not too much yet.
Man: They worked all— They worked all day today.
Woman: Good. Even though you were late.
Man: (Unintelligible word) They started the morning, it was about ten minutes to eight. About ten to eight, the motors were fired up. ‘Cause we marked it. We walked by there and we saw— We left here about 7:30, and we walked slowly up the road, and got down the road and went down there—
Jones: Shift—
Man: —we figured it was about ten to eight, when they started up the motors. There was no motor running till ten to eight. There was—
Jones: Ten till eight?
Woman whispers.
Jones: Those bulldozers are essential. Right now, you’re one of the most essential part, while we still got something dry. You better be making hay while the sun shines. (Pause) And you have to have the outline uh, and organized tightly, Lee. (Pause) But when a person is in their capacity at work, do not respond to them. Do not take the liberty to respond to them as relative. (Pause) You understand? Okay.
Stephan: Could I just— Could I just— I think it works both ways. I think Mike has changed a little bit. I don’t think that’s fair. I still thay— say Mike— and it’s— and he’s not—
Jones: Listen, you just disputed me.
Stephan: I didn’t dispute you.
Jones: Yes, you did.
Unintelligible male voice
Stephan: Shut up. Fuck you.
Jones: Don’t. Now don’t— You just disputed me. (Pause) You don’t think that’s fair. I just said what was the meaning of it. Now, you watch how you word things.
Stephan: What Charlie said— Charlie said that Mike hadn’t changed—
Jones: Well, well, then, you clarify what you’re saying, because I got to watch— I got people looking for anarchy in any quarter.
Stephan: Well, I wasn’t talking about you.
Jones: All right. All right. But don’t tell somebody to shut up. (Pause) Don’t tell me, shut up. (Pause) Have you (unintelligible word)?
Marceline: Why, that’s right. You shouldn’t tell any (unintelligible)
Jones: Gotta take the heat.
Marceline: They think they’re (unintelligible as mike moves), you should make it clear that you’re not disputing your— disputing Dad.
Jones: Not Dad. It isn’t Dad now.
Marceline: Well, Father, the leader. I know, but you (unintelligible under Jones) all of us, the reason I called you Dad.
Jones: The office.
Voice in crowd: The office.
Jones: And now, how do you react to that? So I can uh, know that one day I can lay down in peace. (Pause)
Stephan: I— I think that’s right, I— But—
Jones: Okay, now—
Stephan: All I was— I— All— I didn’t even feel that I was arguing with you.
Jones: Okay, now, that’s fine. You were wrong, you were wrong, you— you’re wrong, you’re wrong for saying shut up to this man over here, whoever it was, I don’t even know.
Stephan: I didn’t even know it was a man. All I heard was ‘Ha, ha, ha, ha.’
Jones: I don’t know who it was either. Doesn’t matter, does it? Does it matter whether it was a man or a woman?
Stephan: It sure doesn’t.
Jones: Okay.
Stephan: If it was a man, he woulda got it worse.
Woman: (low voice)
Jones: No, somebody said something over there.
Stephan: But I— I didn’t— I honestly thought (unintelligible under Jones)
Jones: But the point was, you were wrong to say shut up, right?
Stephan: Right. I was wrong.
Jones: Okay. (Pause) (Sighs)
Stephan: (voice too low)
Jones: No. No, don’t do that. (Pause) No, no, don’t do that.
Marceline: Well, you go ahead, and do what you were doing. (Pause)
Stephan: All I was saying is, is that I didn’t think it was fair what Charlie said, because, I feel that Mike has changed. But I still feel that Mike is not only contrary to Charlie, he’s contrary to all of us, and we try to, you know—
Another male: This is true.
Stephan: And he’s naturally contrary. We had a little talk about it today, about how contrary he is, you know. And I said it— that I thought I felt it was a good ingredient, but sometimes he overdid it. And uh, another thing, Charlie’ll come up to Mike, and before Mike’s even given a chance, he says, oh, Mike’s going to give me shit and— and like I heard, re— you said a remark to Michelle [Touchette] when you were— you were in the room the other day about, you know, you can’t get nothing through to him or anything, you know. And I— I don’t think— I don’t think you want to give him a chance. And I know it’s a conflict between you two. And I think it works both ways. I think it’s mostly Mike. I know Mike is contrary as hell, when it comes to get— trying to get him to do anything. And I don’t think I’m the only one that feels that way.
Jones: Well, you added a lot of wisdom. Let me tell you something. Let me tell you something. Uh, the other day, when I walked in your room, and Charlie and everybody was there, and he— he noticed it. Said, what’s the matter with you? You were hostile to me, because of something I mentioned, which you’ve got to get over paranoia. When I talk about guns— If I didn’t trust you with guns, you wouldn’t have no gun. Not a second. So I trust you with guns. But every time I make mention of guns, you guys give me static. It’s not only you. There’s a lot of folk here, give me static. Guns can be stolen just by— for animosity. Right?
Several voices assent, one starts to argue, unintelligible
Jones: And I will always talk about guns, but you— you were obviously hostile to me when I walked in—
Stephan: I wasn’t hostile to you. I swear, I wasn’t—
Jones: Well— Well, I— I’m sure Charlie must’ve noticed it, (stumbles over words), there was some reaction. Well fuck Charlie, or not fuck Charlie.
Stephan: No, I— I don’t feel I was—
Jones: You don’t fuck Charlie.
Stephan: —I was hostile, but I wasn’t hostile to you.
Jones: well, uh, nobody would’ve known it. I walked out, I said, I’ll leave you in peace. I’ll leave you in peace. I deci—
Stephan: Okay. I didn’t feel— Okay. I’m sorry I gave you that impression, you know, uh— Okay.
Jones: I understand your hostility, as a dad.
Stephan: I wasn’t— I was— I swear I wasn’t hostile.
Jones: But not in the office, I can’t have it.
Stephan: I was hostile at the fact that there’s security people running around here that could take the time and clean the fuckin’ weapons, and I get stuck with them, and then it’s always said to me, and I don’t want the goddamn things in my room.
Jones: Well, no, then, fine. The— The security people take care of cleaning the guns.
Stephan: And I don’t feel— And I honestly don’t feel— The reason I’ve taken it on— I don’t feel that it’ll be done properly. ‘Cause I’ve seen ‘em before.
Jones: What?
Stephan: And I— I— And I’m not do— I— I’m not— I can’t break—
(Jones and Mike talk over each other)
Jones: —straighten it out. Either you want the guns cleaned someplace else, or you— you don’t. You don’t think it’ll be done properly. What is it that they’re not doing properly?
Marceline: Why don’t you teach them how, then? (Pause)
Stephan: Half these guns— I’ve never used hunting weapons before. I’ve had to figure it out. And— and I don’t— I feel they could do the same thing.
Jones: That’s not what you— But you— you— you know they can’t figure that out. That’s ridiculous. You’ve already figured it out. So why don’t you teach them?
Stephan: Okay. Okay.
Jones: What you have learned, you should be able to teach, rather than have them go experimenting at the expense of maybe a weapon.
Marceline: If you know how to do it, (unintelligible balance of sentence about teaching)
Jones: What is it?
Marceline: I said, if he knows how to do it, he should teach them.
Stephan: But the way I feel— And it’s not— I’m not talking about the— the— the coordinators in charge of the security, because they have other things to— to dispense, you know, duties and stuff, but the people— (unintelligible under Jones interruption)
Jones: Who are you aiming it at? Who are you aiming it at?
Stephan: I don’t really— I don’t know who’s in charge exactly of the— what would be the cleaning of the weapons, but I don’t feel— they think that, you know, you can clean it, like you can take your car wash— car to the car wash every two weeks, but you gotta treat the— I— I feel you have to treat a gun like it’s, you know, a— it’s a— it’s a fragile toy.
Jones: All right, now, but that was— that was not necessary, that trip you took was unnecessary. That still had nothing to do with three guns laying on the shelf when I come in there. And the people have access to your room.
Stephan: All I’m saying—
Jones: I know there’s no bullet in it. I know they couldn’t fire it. But they got people— they got— the people here— there’s some hostile people that would take those guns, throw them in a shithole, so we couldn’t use them.
Crowd stirs in assent, light applause.
Stephan: That’s right.
Jones: You’re not— you’re not careless about laying weapons around that’ve got bullets. I’m not— I want to make that clear. But you— you— you know what they did with your basketball, you know how you had to dig the— uh, dig the basketball out of the shithole. (Pause) Did you not? I remember we had to dig your basketball out of a shithole. The one— We only had one.
Stephan: Yeah.
Jones: Plus you dug teeth out of the shithole, too, you are getting acquainted with shitholes, I must say.
Scattered laughs.
Jones: But there’re people here that will do that kind of stuff, just for the fun of it.
Stephan: Oh, I— I know that, and I— I— okay.
Jones: If you know it, then you won’t have the guns there anymore, will you?
Stephan: No, I certainly won’t. I certainly won’t. I don’t want ‘em there. I don’t want the guns there.
Jones: Now, that’s not the point.
Stephan: Okay, I won’t—
Jones: You’ll have them locked up in the con— in the convenience in which you’re making there.
Stephan: (Softly) I haven’t—
Jones: Right?
Stephan: Yeah.
Jones: Okay. ‘Cause if you can do the guns, then you should do them.
Stephan: But I don’t feel it’s fair. I work— I work (unintelligible under Jones) a workday, and then I have to clean the guns on top of it.
Jones: (short interruption unintelligible)
Stephan: I don’t feel it’s fair.
Jones: Well, then, you’ll have to teach somebody how to do it. (Pause) Isn’t that right?
Stephan: (Confrontational tone) Yeah.
Jones: So, who’s going— who’s going to be there to see, that can learn with him. Now you’re going to have to organize and structure that it’s done. (Pause)
Male in audience: (too soft)
Jones: Show Joe and who?
Man: (unintelligible name; sounds like "Johnny Carin")
Jones: You— You’ll show them.
Stephan: Umm-hmm.
Jones: To— Tomorrow, you guys get on it, huh?
Stephan: Yeah. (Pause)
Jones: Okay, let’s go on now.
Male: As far as that— As far as that goes, anything that— anything I can help him with, ‘cause uh, I’m just as at fault at re— you know, being neglectful with the guns over there. And I’ll help.
Jones: All right. All you living in there are. (Pause) Well, he’s the one that’s got ‘em, so I gotta go to the person that’s responsible. Sure, all of you are, in that house. You’d lock ‘em up. ‘Cause that’s— that’s Grand Central Station, what I can see of it.
Several voices: That’s right.
(Pause)
Jones: Okay, (stumbles over words) I’ve finished. I’ve said all I had to say.
Lee: He said— he said all he’s got to say to you. (too soft)
Male: I just— I’ve— I told Lee the other day when he come to me about this thing, about not starting up till one o’clock, I told him, that under no circumstances would there— would one of them be sitting idle. And it— As far as starting up at ten to eight or whatever— whatever they said time it was, is that it was uh— I don’t—
Jones: Shift, please.
Lee: (too soft) a little after seven—
Male: Yeah, I can’t understand about the time, because we left here real close to seven. I mean, that’s— from what I remember of it.
Jones: You disagree with the man’s statement that it was ten after eight.
Male: Yeah, because it was real close to seven. At least that’s what I thought when we left.
Voice in crowd too soft.
Man: ‘Cause I remem—
Voices in crowd about time, unintelligible.
Jones: Well, you better synchronize the time. I thought somebody was supposed to synchronize the time, and tell us from radio (unintelligible word), uh, that’s— that’s a joke. Uh, radio at night— At night, radio, we could do it. From radio at night, and somebody could be the time synchronizer. They could synchronize that clock in there eve— every night, radio. Will you do so?
Lee: Yes, Dad.
(Pause)
Charlie: I’m not going to take the— uh, apologize or take the heat off the bulldozer operators at all for the time today, but I know that we’ve got one hell of a problem in knowing what time to go to work here. We go by this clock on the wall, and that goddamn thing, we don’t know whether it’s uh, twenty minutes fast, twenty minutes slow, or what it is.
Jones: Well, then, who’s going to take the part of synchronizing the— the clock?
Marceline: (unintelligible opening) synchronize it to San Francisco—
Voices compete
Jones: Bea Orsot. That’s what I’m saying. They can— They can synchronize it. She— You just mark— mark off five hours. Mark off five hours from uh, San Francisco. We’re five hours ahead of San Francisco. Bea Orsot, then you’ll set— You’ll set that clock. Thank you. Then we’ll know the wall clock will be right every day. You have to set the son-of-a-bitch every day, ‘cause it— everything gains and loses. It’s outrageous. Most of the things— Most of the clocks around here have gained. That’s what I found. Mine gains twenty minutes a day. It’s maddening. I know the problem that you’re having with clocks. It is indeed maddening.
Male in crowd: Is it possible (unintelligible) two more clocks like that, but without the (unintelligible)?
Jones: Well, we didn’t even satisfy this one that has to wake up. Now, I’ve got a watch down there, the one left. Uh, do we— did we— we passed over somebody here, like fancy flight, that was irregular on my part to let it go, but I was in a stormy headache, and I since remembered, somebody asked for a clock, we said, well, we’ll get the clock later. Jonestown (unintelligible word). She can’t get no clock later. She didn’t (stumbles over words)— I never seen the sun tell time at night.
Voice in crowd: I have to have a clock, because everybody 30 minutes early this morning (balance unintelligible)
Crowd stirs
Jones: (Laughs) You woke up 30 minutes early. I bet they were upset. Well, will somebody run down to that house? There’s a clock— there’s a wristwatch. There’s a wristwatch on the shelf.
Voices
Jones: What— What do you mean, everybody needs a re— watch?
Man: I said, we don’t need a watch. People start saying they need watches—
Jones: No, no, please. No, please.
Woman: Somebody just um, just handed me this watch, so—
Jones: Well, that’s thoughtful. Will you come up and get this, sweet? Here’s a watch. That was my mistake. That’s what I want all of you to do, is look like— look at errors. Judgments. Not perfect. Just because you’re criticized, that doesn’t take away from your strength. My God, I thought Stephan done well. I— Six months ago, if I’da done that to him, there’d been a different— an entirely different reaction. Right? How are you feeling, lad?
Stephan: Not too good.
Crowd: (Laughs)
Jones: You shoulda said, I’m doing well, Father.
Stephan: I’m doing well, Father.
Jones: Communism is right, right?
Stephan: Communism is right.
Crowd: (Laughs)
Jones: He saw there was no other per— procedure to follow, was there? Hmm?
Stephan: Yeah.
Jones: I keep testing him, I keep testing him. Every— Everything is fine? Hmm? That’s cool. Keep it cool.
Charlie: I just— I’d just like to point out that what I noticed in this is that same rules apply for Stephan and Mother is what it’s applied for all of us in here. And I’d just like to thank you for your fairness and your love.
Scattered applause
Jones: Yep. Yep. Got to. Got to be. No matter how much guilt I may have about bringing a child in the world, I got to stand in this office fair. It’s toughie. ‘Cause some people don’t make it easy for you to be fair.
Murmurs.
Jones: Okay, now. Thank you, C.T. [Charlie Touchette]. I’m— I’m trying my best to be impartial. And I can live with a good conscience in that matter. I can live with a good conscience. Whether anybody else interprets it p— properly or not, I can live with a good conscience on that matter. What is it, you— Sister, now we are at the uh, uh, natural insecticides? What— Are you up for something?
Betty: Uh, Becky [likely either Rebecca Flowers or Rebecca Beikman] would uh, no— She would normally be reading about this, but she had a security shift, so she asked me to do it.
Jones: Uh, what I’m asking is, is there any major problem?
Voices
Jones: I know, I’m— I’m saying, but—
Voice in crowd too soft.
Jones: Is there any major problems in the thing?
Betty: No.
Jones: You’ve read it, have you, Betty?
Betty: Yeah, it’s just a report on um, some work she did.
Jones: Good. What are we going to do about these flies, and why in the hell are these flies taking us like they’re the plague? How many uh— How many have you flyswatted tonight?
Murmurs in crowd.
Jones: Okay. That’s why they’re taking us. Now, I want to see everybody with your flyswatter. And I’ll be asking— You see that I’m asked in each meeting. And the next time I ask, it’ll be a warning. And everybody’s name will be taken down. Just like anybody that’s late from now on— we need to be strict and put their name do— name down, no matter where and when and who is late. Same thing, going to start (unintelligible word) with flyswatter. You implement this, if you can. We’ll take a note, those who have flyswatters. Better thing to do, is count the ones that do. So everybody’ll have a warning, and two warnings, you’ll go on Learning Crew. That means we’ll have ninety percent of the people in Learning. (Pause) Better see the flyswatters. I’m not kidding you. What can be done about the flies? I thi— I still don’t think we know what we’re doing, with the—
Marceline: (unintelligible comment about garbage)
Jones: Yeah, there’s supposed to be. That’s a good point.
Voices
Man: Oh— Okay uh, I’ve co— I’ve co— I been— I’ve come across some pamphlets on some various uh, insecticides that are supposed to be specific for flies and mosquitoes and stuff like that. One of the big problems with flies is that they reproduce so fast, and they grow immune to the various uh, poisons we’ve been using. But uh, this is uh, (unintelligible chemical word) -based, and uh, I— as I understand it, this stuff does not uh— that— they— it’s been used for— for centuries in many ways, and insects don’t grow as immune as quickly to it as they do to the other stuff, so I’m going to try and get some.
Jones: Well, the Chinese eliminated flies. How in the hell they do it?
Voices
Jones: Just swattin’ ‘em. (Pause) I didn’t catch you— didn’t catch what you said.
Man: —don’t grow immune to (unintelligible)
Jones: (Laughs) Thank you, Je— Uh, that’s— that’s true. He said, they— they— they did it with a flyswatter, he’s saying. They don’t grow immune to being smashed. How many are going to get your flyswatter out tomorrow and carry it?
Voices
Jones: You see people (unintelligible word) around their neck. I see people, uh, (stumbles over words) Brother uh, [Claude] Goodspeed the other day, with his ye— red socks and his yellow fly— flyswatter. I thought it was really beautiful. Tripping down with his flyswatter. Now let’s carry our flyswatter and use ‘em. How many are going to do it now? (Pause) We’re going to penalize you if you don’t. While I was giving news tonight, I was swatting flies. And I— All day long, when I give the news, I’m swattin’ flies. I’m crazy about flies. I— And the little bastards germinate— By the way, what is it, uh, when, uh, I told uh, somebody when the one that was made, that one fly trap was fixed up by Joyce, it worked for me, and I— and that— that thing down there at the house, it ain’t worth shit. It ain’t worth shit. I’d like her to get together and compare with the other people [in] insecticides and see what the hell’s wrong with that— that— those— those fly traps are not working. Not— not— not around East, anyway.
Woman: Dad, um, I got a correspondence from Debby that uh— Debby Evans, that a man, Doctor Pierre Noel, is an authority on flies and mosquitoes in Guyana in Georgetown, and Don Fields last night, um, before the boat left yester— two— I guess two nights ago, uh, sent a letter to him, and maybe we can make radio con— uh, we can radio to Georgetown to contact him.
Jones: We can make a telephone contact, if that’s dead. Well, did they give us any idea when we’re going to have our telephone? Let’s ask them. Telecomm. We need a telephone. That would certainly— It’s outrageous. Tractors cost. Learn to make smoke signals, for Christ’s sakes, or something. (Unintelligible sentence) The radio people get that?
Woman’s voice: Yes.
Jones: Okay. I want to find out that, I want to get rid of these flies. This would be heaven, if it wasn’t for these fuckin’ flies.
Crowd murmurs agreement.
Jones: No complaint. I don’t give a damn if they’re all over me. Life, death. It doesn’t make any difference, what— I take it as it comes. But I’d like to see it, when we have all these ambassadors coming, I sure would like to have these flies down. I want— I’m going to be on your ass, if you don’t do it, ‘cause in a matter of days, they’re coming. The— The Russians show— The Soviets. You would never hear no American. American want to get to fly, they want to find out what time the reservation and how they’re going to be picked up. Russians say, well, why don’t we just ride on your boat? The Russian ambassador. That’s fun. That’d be fun. I— Boy, the Yankees sure would do something with that on their headlines. (Fake newscaster voice) Jones is bringing in the Russians down the river.
Laughter.
One voice: Night. Night.
Jones: At night, yeah. (Pause) (Normal tone) I think— Yeah, I think that’d be good. Smuggle Russians in. Give them something to talk about. I do hope we— I hope they make a news story of that. That beats healing. Beats the hell out of healing. Let’s slip the news to the capitalist press. (Laughs)
Laughter
Jones: That’d be— That— I’ll bet that’d be news headlines from London to you know where.
Voices too soft.
Jones: Unknown Soviet am— agents from their embassy. We’d force a relationship between the Soviet Union and USA. (Pause) I’ve got an idea there. I do have an idea there. I shall be our own network at night. How the Russians going to deny us, if they’re in our boat?
Laughter and applause.
Jones: Okay. Jackson, you be sure to be ready with pictures on that day. Not that they want to deny us, but I trust us, is who I trust. Fully. I trust me. Absolutely. Go ahead.
Man: I had some concern about uh, just exactly what is happening to the—
Jones: I’m quite serious about what I just said on the Russians by the way. On both ends. Taking picture. Umm-hmm. Umm-hmm.
Man: I had some concern about what is happening to the uh, the chemicals that we are putting into the uh, environment, um, and I won— I wonder if anything’s being done to monitor just exactly where they’re going. I raised this issue as a public uh, health issue with uh, Doctor [Larry] Schacht. For example, I heard that we’re— we’re spraying uh, compost pits. Now that— that to me is somewhat alarming, because what we’re doing is putting pesticides directly into the food chain, because the uh, compost is used to fertilize food, and they drive their— uh, derive their nutrients from it, and I— I don’t know, I don’t— I don’t really— I’m not confident— I don’t feel confident that we have a real handle on just exactly what we’re doing with this stuff, and I’d— I’d like to see some—
Jones: I— I— I agree, but I’m telling you, it’s going to take a long time for you to do physical damage to the body with— when this— when this ecosystem has never been bothered by these chemicals. I wouldn’t get these people unduly alarmed out there, that they’re going to die of something from chemicals, ‘cause it’ll take a (stretches word) long, long generation. I agree with you, you— you should talk to analyst, and perhaps it ought to be discussed there, to get them to be moderate, and to know what the hell they’re doing, but there’s no need for people to get alarmed that they’re going to— to get any kind of chemical reaction at this stage. I don’t think we’ve put that much in this soil. From what I’ve read. (Pause) Anybody can challenge that, on the farm analyst floor, if they want to. Now it’s on the floor, might as well deal with it, and I always believe in dealing with it— dealing with it honestly.
(Pause)
Agronomist: One thing that I think should be taken into consideration is that, all of these things break down. They all break down. You put— You talking about putting them in the soil, the soil is one of the greatest uh, (Pause) uh, laboratories on the planet for breaking down chemicals or anything else. Uh, and as far as it getting off into our food, you know— (Pause) uh—
Jones: It’s just a long cry, I would say, wouldn’t you, agronomist?
Agronomist: Yes, Dad.
Jones: They don’t think it’s a— I—
Agronomist: That’s why—
Jones: I don’t think it’s a— I think it’s one of these liberalish notions that they get overly excited about, particularly in the Third World sys— uh, system, where there’s been none of it used to speak of here.
Agronomist: Uh, we— In fact, we sprayed this— this— the very same plants with the same sprays that we’re spraying the compost pits with. Uh— We put it on the plants.
Jones: I say, I would rather that you sprayed them, than to see them before— fore you sprayed them, but there was nothing but sticks, instead of leafy vegetables. (Sighs) I would rather take a little insecticide with my leafy green vegetables, than to have no leafy green vegetables.
Crowd: Right.
Jones: I don’t know about the rest of you or not, but—
Scattered applause
Jones: Okay, what is it, what is it now?
Woman: Well, I’d like to bring to attention. Today we was out in the peanut field, and the cushion (phonetic) ants is just taking over the cassava and the peanuts. They’re just all over. (Pause)
Jones: Oh, shit. Why didn’t we hear that before?
Woman: Well, I brought it attention to uh, Joyce today, and she— uh, she told me she would bring it up in the meeting tonight, but she didn’t, so—
Jones: She didn’t.
Joyce: I bought— I brought it up to Becky, and Becky told me to write it up to her, so I wrote it up to her, and she’s going to go and take care of ‘em.
Jones: It better be taken care of, or— Is this— Who is it— Who— Who’s the one that was going to be brought up by— Is this— Is this the young woman? Huh?
Voice in crowd: Yes, Dad.
Jones: Your ass is grass, if you did what you’re accused of. (Pause) If you set in my security meeting, and you voice uh, the security— private security matters.
Girl in trouble: Yes, Dad, I did. That was very stupid of me.
Jones: Oh, it’s worse than stupid. ‘Cause I told you what— I told you better not be. (Pause) You asked him to do your questions.
Girl in trouble: No, Dad, um— I was— I asked him to see where— where he— what— what he thought, and I asked— I was asking— asking—
Jones: You asked him to do— He— He don’t know shit what’s going on, and you asked him to discuss what you would do in the case of my death?
Girl in trouble: Yes, Dad. Yes, Dad.
Crowd reacts
Jones: He don’t know shit. Now that’s a heavy thing to land on somebody. (Pause) Sounds like I’m getting ready to die. And some of you fuckers are counting on, don’t— uh, don’t count too heavy.
Crowd: Right.
Jones: Don’t— Don’t take any gambles on it.
Crowd: Applause
Jones: For your no— For your— For you that are getting over-anxious about me dying, uh, out of concern, and some out of anxiousness, hoping it’ll happen, I run a high blood pressure since I was um— 23. And I’ve doubled that since. And how can you stand 23 years of more of me. Some of you can’t stand it, but maybe have to do it. (Small laugh)
Crowd: Right. Scattered applause
Jones: Okay. (Pause) Anybody that feels in black America or Indian America’s going to feel some blood pressure. (Pause) And it used to be a hell of lot higher than that. Marceline can tell you when it was, one night when — how long was that? eleven years ago? — when they— when I went into shock? It was 266 over 160 or something like that.
Crowd: Sounds of amazement.
Jones: Mmm. I’m still here, honey.
Crowd: Right.
Jones: And my brain ain’t damaged. I got my eye on your ass.
Crowd: Right. Applause.
Jones: Go ahead. (Pause) Go ahead. But we want to be prepared for any eventuality. That was a hell of a thing you tell him. He don’t know the context. Anybody that’s in operation zero like I am, I want to make preparations. Some people take glory that the movement would die when they do. They don’t have no goddamn concern, except their ego. All I’m concerned about is Principle. I want this thing to continue. (Pause)
Girl in trouble: And Dad, last night, when um, Joyce was writing her paper, she had Anita there helping her, uh, telling her answers and discussing questions and stuff like that. Anita March.
Jones: Anita March?
Anita: No, Dad.
Jones: Son of a bitch.
Anita: She—
Jones: How many people did you drag ass into this thing, that’s supposed to be security?
Anita: Dad— Dad, it was— It was— I was asking her some questions about the news, ‘cause I had it all mixed up, and I was asking—
Jones: Okay, well, did you— The fact is, you did ask secur— You did breach my security and talk about important security, how we secure this place. (Pause) And you heard that that was absolutely— We said, it’s going to be trouble if it happens.
End of side one
Side two
Anita: —trying to get everybody else’s opinion, see what they were thinking.
Crowd derisive
Jones: So you don’t have a brain to think for yourself? You’re not sensitive to Dad dying? It’s your responsibility to be sensitive to Dad dying. He wasn’t called to take the post. You were. (Pause)
Marceline: (Unintelligible as mike moves) —I question your being on security. I question your being on security.
Jones: So do I. You got reason to. I’m—
Voice in crowd: You wanted everybody else’s opinion, you asked them yourself, not ask you to ask them.
Male: Well, I know— Well, as far as we’re concerned, I know (unintelligible name) thinks she’s not— She’s not—
Jones: Hmm?
Male: As far as we’re concerned, she’s off.
Jones: Well, switch him with Jerome [Anderson or Simon]. Switch her with Jerome. (Pause)
Voice compete.
Male: No. She came to Jerome. She came to Jerome.
Another male: No, (unintelligible phrase), Anita March wasn’t in it, she came to Anita March and was in the library Sunday—
Jones: He reported her, though.
Male: I didn’t know nothing about it. I ain’t know what was going on. I ain’t know what was— what it was about.
Jones: You reported her, Keith [Wright]?
Keith: I reported her, Dad.
Jones: Oh, that’s good.
Keith: I mean, I— I didn’t know—
Angry male: Come on, now. You’ve got two minds.
Keith: Oh.
Angry male: We’re going crazy, and get (unintelligible)
Keith: Okay, Dad, um, Jer— Um, like Joyce was asking the questions like, and um, she was finished asking the questions, like, um, and then Jerome, he would, you know, like, ask a— ask me a question you know, like, you— you know, like, she would ask me the question and then I would answer or something, and then Jerome would just get anybody asking me a question, you know, see what I would say, that’s how I— that’s how it went.
Voices too soft.
Jones: Say it. Say it.
Jimmie: All right. Uh, I was at— (stutters) I think the whole thing is, that, you trying to show something like, you’re— you’re involved in something, or you know something that somebody else didn’t know, you’re trying to show off to your, your fellow comrades, you’re trying l— uh, degrading, you know, I mean, this— this whole thing about it, I mean it seems like you— you’re better than somebody else. You know— you come off as somebody— You— You’re something special because you’re involved in, (stutters) security we have. (Pause) I’m talking about (Stutters) Joyce. You know what I’m talking about.
Young male: That’s true, Dad.
Young woman: That’s true, Dad.
Voice: You can speak up louder—
Jimmie: (Stutters) I’m Ji— I’m Jimmie, okay?
Young male: Jimmie.
Jones: Who’s going to take her place? You don’t breach security. We don’t breach it. Anybody else that’s a— got a report on anybody that told you any of the questions within my security meeting when I met with them several hours on whatever night it was, I don’t know, hell, one hell goes into another hell. Friday.
Young male: Dad, I don’t know— I don’t know nothing about the questions that you asked in security meeting, but I know today, when we was out on in a um— in the peanut field working, she kept on asking me all these kind of questions. I didn’t know nothing about it. She was asking me— asking me and Jerome and Keith all these questions, I knew— know nothing about it. She just kept on asking. Then she—
Jones: It’s outrageous. It’s outrageous.
Young male: She said I— I did not ask, I said, why are you asking us all these questions. She said, I’m just trying to get y’all opinions on— I didn’t— on y’all— on— get y’all opinions.
Male in crowd: How’s a 14-year-old child going to help you out?
Another male: She— She was asking us questions about the guns and—
Male: I told you (unintelligible) to talk about it.
Jones: She what— that?
Male: They found a paper. Uh— There was something she said that I just didn’t, you know—
Jones: Well, I want to—
Voices compete
Male: Uh, Dad, I— Dad, I’d just like to say, afore—
Voices compete
Jones: (Off mike, unintelligible) —boy, you better be uh— cause you— (unintelligible word) be trouble shit, man. (Pause) You talk about our weapons, it’s going to be trouble. (Pause) You told— You told that? You told that kind of a lie?
Voice in crowd: That’s a lie.
Boy: Yes, Dad.
Jones: You told a lie, that there’s no bullets in our guns.
Boy: Yes, Dad.
Angry voices
Jones: (Tight) Get out of my sight. There was no reason for that. You traitor. There was no reason for that. Now there’ll be— Now there is. There is now. (Pause) There’ll be bullets in them now. There wasn’t, but they would. Damn you. (Pause) That— What— What was your reason for doing that? I was trying to keep some humanity around here.
Voices
Jones: (Calls out) Aw, shut up. (Pause)
Voices
Jones: There’ll be— There’ll be bullets in them now. (Pause)
Marceline: You’re going to have to prove yourself—
Jones: Dumb ass bitch. (Pause)
Marceline: I’m going to say right now, I don’t trust you. I don’t trust you.
Jones: Don’t mess with her now, boy. That’s a order. No bullet— No— No gun issued without bullets. (Pause)
Voice in crowd: He can’t even (unintelligible word) (Pause)
Voices: That’s right.
Jones: (Angry) What’d you do wrong, you stupid-minded bitch?
Girl in trouble: Um, I went and told all the secur— I went and told all the (unintelligible word) in the security um—
Jones: Why did you do it?
Girl in trouble: (Near tears) Just stupid, Dad.
Jones: Oh, it’s more than stupid. (Pause) Go and tell people there’s no bullets in the gun. Now I require every goddamn gun I have issue— will be issued with bullets. ‘Cause there’ll be accidents. (Pause) You breached security. You breached it. She told the truth. But it won’t be tonight. (Pause)
Marceline: I wouldn’t trust you any farther than I could throw you right now.
Crowd reacts angrily.
Jones: How did she get on there? Who recommended her? Where’d she happen from? Where’d you fall from? Hell, why didn’t somebody tell me about this kind of crap?
Jimmie: Uh, the thing was, (stutters) she wanted, she wanted on the daytime rov— roving uh, she wanted on daytime roving security, all she was, was a— was a replacement for one hour, and— and I don’t know how she got on to be uh, replacement just for uh, Sunday. That’s all— That’s all she is.
Jones: Well, why did you guys let her in here? Now, don’t be defensive. I was just on to Stephan. Now what the fuck was she doing in there?
Male: She was a re— she was a replacement on Sat patrol, so then—
Jones: Repla— Replacement Sat patrol—
Male: She was a re— a relief for Calvin, so when— when they all left, and they took after the thing, I put her on the patrol during the daytime. I— I put her on, but—
Jones: You people don’t know her, though. You’re all error. You’re all in error. I have to take the uh, the guilt of this. You didn’t know this woman. (Pause) And if you did, damn uh— damn forbid, I can’t believe you’d let somebody on here like this. (Angry) I want to know, bitch, you better talk. I want to know why you told them there was no weapons on the— those crews. I want to know.
Girl in trouble: Dad, I don’t know. I was just stupid.
Jones: (Angry) You better know.
Annie McGowan: Shit, you better find out something (unintelligible word). You better find out. You better find out something.
Voices in crowd ask Annie McGowan to sit down.
Jones: I am not telling her to sit down. I am not telling her to sit down. They’re up— All those assigned are up. Now it’s to you to do something about it, security.
Woman nearby: Wait a minute.
Jones: You better test your goddamn security. Now, all those assigned to be, are up. Every blessed one of you better get off your ass, and you better do something about it. (Pause) It’s a goddamn shame. (Pause)
Male: Dad?
Jones: Hmm?
Voice swirl.
Jones: Sure, it’s by design. To make her ass look good and risk this whole movement. (Pause) (Angry and tight) You better get your mouth talking. Some of them slide under the table, slide under the table. Get to her.
Girl in trouble: Dad— Dad— Dad, it was very— very, it was— Da— Dad, it was very stupid of me to be talking and telling all this— telling um, of things on security, um—
Jones: You better talk up, you better talk up (unintelligible word) telling us—
Girl in trouble: It was (unintelligible word under Jones)— It was designed— It was for me to look good. And I wasn’t thinking about— thinking— I was thinking of my own selfish ass, trying to make my— get a image for myself, instead of thinking of the cause and what you gotta go through to protect us.
Jones: What is it?
Girl in trouble: I was thinking of my own selfish ass, trying to look good, and give myself a image—
Jones: Yeah, you— you were— you were thi— you were thinking of your own selfish ass— What you were doing was telling some traitor out there that he can run away from our guns. And you were bright enough to know that, you bitch.
Angry voices. Scattered applause.
Girl in trouble: That’s right, Dad. And I deserve—
Jones: Not now— Don’t run now. Don’t run now. They’ll all be equipped. (Pause)
Girl in trouble: Let— And Dad, I deserve everything I get up here.
Male: Dad, I was out there in the peanut field, and I’m on the uh, uh, Sat patrol, and if she didn’t— she could— she coulda asked me the questions, but she didn’t.
Male: Whoa, now whoa. (Unintelligible words) Whoa. (Pause)
Jones: Better get her. You better get her. You better get her, goddamn it.
Voices, hubbub
Jones: She— She was let through. She was let through. Sh— I let her through. That wasn’t security that let her through, I let her through. I maybe let somebody else through. ‘Cause you don’t respond to niceness. Gentleness, kindness, and love. It’ll be back, maybe, it’ll be back next week.
Voices
Jones: She wouldna got through there if I hadna les— let her get through.
Girl in trouble: That’s right, Dad.
Voice
Jones: You better get your ass talking.
Girl in trouble: Dad, um—
Jones: Where’s her relatives? Any relatives around here?
Voice in crowd: Right over here.
Jones: You got a good mom.
Voices, hubbub
Jones: (Laughs) This is security?
Voice in hubbub: Thanks, Dad.
Another voice: Come on, (unintelligible name).
(Tape edit)
Jones: —can talk. Tell us why you can talk— why you— you told that we had no arms, that you— and these two days, if it hadn’t been for the— for Keith coming forward, in these two goddamn days, somebody coulda left, because you told us— the measures of security, now forced me to have to put bullets in every gun. You talk, bitch.
Girl in trouble: Dad— Dad— Dad, it was just stupid of me. Um. I wasn’t thinking. Um.
Angry voices.
Girl in trouble: I’m not crying.
Angry voices, general hubbub
Girl in trouble: Dad— And Dad—
Jones: What— Yeah, Dad, go on, talk.
Girl in trouble: I wi—
Jones: Now, we made a big warning of this, folks. You don’t know how serious this was. We made a terribly strong warning about this.
(tape edit)
Angry voices
Girl in trouble: I wasn’t— I wasn’t— I wasn’t thinking of— of the things that you wo— you would have to go through if we was to put bullets in the guns, and— and— and the accidents that would probably come— occur, and how—
Jones: What’s this? I can’t hear what you’re saying.
Voice: Stop crying.
Voice: Stop crying and talk, woman, shit.
Voice: And hurry up.
Girl in trouble: I wasn’t a— I wasn’t aware of the— I wasn’t a— I wasn’t thinking of being enough aware, instead I opened my big mouth. I— I wasn’t aware to keep my big mouth shut enough to know if something hada— If you had (unintelligible phrase) the bullets, that somebody could— could’ve gotten hurt or anything. I wasn’t being concerned enough, um, to think that um, you would be the one to have to— to uh—
Jones: You’re repeating everything I said.
Voices
Jones: Yes, well, ans— answer what he said. What’d you say, Ronnie?
Ronnie: (unintelligible opening) talking about all this time in the meeting.
Jones: Shh.
Ronnie: Pouring his heart out.
(tape edit)
Jones: Pour my heart out so some foolish person could go out and talk like you. Make me have to put guns that can be— go off by accident.
Voice: That’s right.
Voice: CIA?
Jones: No, but she ought to. They ought to hire her. (Pause) How’d they— how’d you get that way, and you got a closed mouth, loyal mother?
Scattered voices, still angry
Girl in trouble: Um—
Jones: You better get nervous. You better get nervous, ‘cause we warned you what would happen if this took place. We made it very, very severe.
Voices
Girl in trouble: Um—
Jones: Yeah, guys say, what, if you gave information away that easy, what would you do if there was a price?
Girl in trouble: That’s true—
Voices
Geneva Beal: What in the devil in hell that you doing out there running your goddamn mouth? (Stumbles over words) What were you— What— What was you talking about, who you done told anything? (Pause) You better talk.
Jones: She— she—
Geneva: Who have you told anything?
Jones: She told it to everybody.
Young woman: I told it to everybody.
Jones: Everybody, Geneva. Everybody. I had a little humanity and sensitivity, and didn’t want guns all loaded—
Geneva: (unintelligible) —goddamn the bidness, you know damn well you didn’t have no bidness out there talking, or I whup your ass myself.
Anger and laughter
Jones: (Laughs)
Sounds of slapping. Hubbub
Jones: Now, you better— Okay.
Voices: That’s it. Let her go.
Older woman: Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Wait— No, wait a minute.
Jones: Don’t look at her funny. Don’t you look at her funny. Don’t you dare look at her funny, I’ll let her loose again. She made it in there on her own, this time. I’ll let her— I’ll let her loose again.
Geneva: It wasn’t none of your damn business about no guns or nothing else.
Jones: It was— The problem was, it was hers. She was trusted to be loyal. (Pause) And these two—
Geneva: What do— What is you going to say? You better talk—
Jones: And in these two days, somebody could run over the hill and caused trouble for the whole movement.
Geneva: Was you talking on them— one of them intercoms where the folks can hear you out in the bush somewhere?
Male: She was always telling to hear her, Mom.
Jones: I’m making it damn clear now, that you will— you don’t move without these guns.
Hubbub
Male: What do you got to say? You just gonna quit having—
Geneva: Do you want to know what was in anybody else’s mind, what in the hell was in your mind?
Jones: (Laughs)
Hubbub
Woman: Please take your glasses off.
Jones: Get in there, Mary. Hold in there. That’s it. Get in there.
Woman: Take her glasses off.
Jones: (Laughs)
Hubbub
Jones: You better put some of these ladies on security. (Laughs) Mary got ‘em a hell of a time up here. Hold in there, boys. Black and white together, you’re having a little trouble. (Laughs) They’re turning blue. They— He’s— We ha— We lost one white one, but we got one black and one blue.
Geneva: What goes on up here when somebody act like that, and then you had to go run your old stupid-ass mouth.
Hubbub and laughter
Jones: (Laughs)
Hubbub, cheers, sounds of scuffling for several moments
Jones: Hold it. Hold it. Security needs some assistance, I think.
Male voice: Come on, security. Security! React, security.
Jones: (Laughs) Where is the patient?
Hubbub
Jones: Find the patient.
Several voices: She’s right here.
Jones: (Laughs) That’s pretty good. That’s pretty good. You protect it very well, there.
Voice: Let’s make her (unintelligible word; "black"?). Come on, security, I know you better than this, now.
Jones: (Tight) You deserve whatever you’re getting, sister. You deserve it all.
Hubbub, sound of scuffles
Jones: (Laughs) S— Come on, security, get a hold of it now, get a hold of it.
Voices cry out about fighting back, then tell people to back up
Jones: The only thing is— The only thing is, security, a c— A shout won’t be able to do it. If you were faced with a real mob, a shout won’t be able to do it. (Pause) You gotta do it with your— with your arms, hands.
Hubbub, sound of scuffles
Male: No, don’t even argue with him, don’t even argue with him, don’t even argue with him, don’t even argue with him, don’t even argue with him.
Jones: (Unintelligible as laughs) —having trouble with sister, 75 years of age. You got three of you. (Laughs) Hold in— Hold in there, son. (Laughs)
Hubbub, sound of scuffles
Jones: (Laughs) Give five security and two seniors a good hand. (Laughs)
Applause
Jones: That’s the best goddamn fight I ever saw, put up by a seventy-some year-old. (Pause) Okay now, we’ll— we relax and go back to your station.
Hubbub
Jones: What is the congregation of the elect socialist group here to protect this sovereign territory— What do we suggest we do to this woman?
Voice: Whup her ass.
Calls from crowd, unintelligible. Hubbub.
Jones: You have a big mouth, and other— other reports of your complaining and talking ‘bout— talking ‘bout people. Talking about anything else in the toilet. (Pause) I don’t know how you ever got past— wh— Everybody should come on the security by s— recommendations. Now everybody’ll sit down. All security can back off and sit down.
Crowd stirs.
Jones: I can’t see. Can’t see.
Male: He said, take a seat.
Jones: (Unintelligible word) —over there, Jim. (Pause) What do you suggest be done with you, sister? (Pause) Betrayer of the people? That coulda taken the lives of every child in this house?
Girl in trouble: I think I should have to work for at least three days and three nights without stopping. Um— And then—
Crowd reacts
Jones: Huh, I would think so.
Jimmie: Da— Dad— Dad uh— Dad, I would just like to say, you know like, I— I’d just like to say, you see, it’s par— it’s partly my fault for, you know, just— just putting her on in, plus not checking her out, and stuff like this, so I— (stutters) It’s also partly my fault, I— I didn’t check out or did— did nothing like that. I thought she would— I thought she would— would have been, you know, a good—
Jones: We all to take— accept collective responsibility that, here’s a woman who— We ought to do an investigation on, everyone talk to their friends, to find out what in the hell type of person they are. We’re going to have to be much tighter. We’ve learned a lesson from this. This is outrageous.
Male: I heard something—
Jones: Go ahead.
Male: I heard something that uh, Jerome was asking the same questions, and I’d like to know something about that.
Jones: Well, that’s too bad. That’s sad news.
Jerome: All right. Why I— I asked Keith that, ‘cause she was in the fields, um, she told us that it’s supposed to be— (unintelligible word) first it started this Sunday, and see, she said uh, it’s just something that she was just supposed to be asking people. That’s what— That’s what— what Keith was talking about. I didn’t even know what it was about. I didn’t, unless she— she mentioned it. Then she mentioned about guns and stuff, I didn’t know what she was— what it was about.
Jones: Generally, for the (unintelligible word) collective, he has done a very good job of getting information, and should be uh, treated with a certain air of respect for the sense of organization. (Pause) I’ve not known him here to (unintelligible word) or not to report the information. And we’ve got to be all information-gatherers and reporters, if we want to safeguard this house.
Crowd: Right.
Woman: Dad, to me, it seemed like she was taking the whole thing as like a whole big joke, you know, like— because um, she was— when she was sitting at the table, doing her report and stuff, she was sitting there at the table with Bonnie [Simon], and she was asking me news articles and stuff. And then when she— when we finished with the news articles, she said, why don’t you help me write it over? Why don’t you write the paper over for me, and you can see what’s written on the paper, and I said, that’s all right, you do it yourself.
Jones: Okay. Okay, that— that’s not the serious part. What possible reason did she have for talking about our guns not having bullets in them? (Pause) (Flares) That wasn’t in the test. That wasn’t asked to be written about. (Pause)
Young man: Dad, I think the reason why she as— why she—
Voices of dissent in crowd.
Jones: (tight) Goddamn her, she better get her mouth open.
Girl in trouble: Dad, the reason why I said it was because— okay, wo— I was asking the questions today, and Karen Carr came back with a question, like um, what if somebody on security turned traitorous, like then, and I tried to make it look good as though we’d know— you know, even if they did, wouldn’t nothing happen to you.
Voices of derision.
Woman voice: That— That—
Jones: (Incredulous) Oh, nothing would— You— Boy. Nothing would happen to you, if you turned bad.
Girl in trouble: No— No, Dad, that— I— She said—
Scattered voices in crowd
Girl in trouble: No—
Jones: So— Someone in security turned traitor, she said, nothing would happen to you.
Girl in trouble: No, to— She said, what if somebody on security turned? She was asking me questions back in return. She said, what if somebody on security turned traitorous with a gun and— and tried to kill Dad or something to that effect, and I said, you know, trying to look good, I said, well, um, um, he wouldn’t get hurt, because they ain’t no bullets in the gun, like that.
Jones: (Dismissive noise)
Woman in crowd: You asked the question about security shooting Dad?
Karen: Dad— Dad, this is what happened. This is what happened. When we were down there, she started talking about— I didn’t— I had just came down there, ‘cause I didn’t know—
Tim: Quit lying.
Jones: Tim—
Karen: I had just came down there—
Jones: (unintelligible phrase) after a while.
Tim: Hmm?
Jones: Keep your eyes on ‘em.
Scattered voices.
Jones: Hold in there, sweet. Hold in there.
Scattered voices.
Jones: (Laughs)
Scattered voices.
Karen: Dad—
Jones: (Laughs)
Karen: Dad—
Jones: (Laughs) Remember, Tim. She’s the one that feeds you. (Laughs)
Scarttered voices.
Karen: Dad— Dad— Dad, this is what— Dad, this is what happened.
Jones: (Laughs)
Hubbub
Karen: Dad, this is what happened. When I had first came— I had first came down to the field, and the—
Jones: (Laughs) Ah, the kids are getting under there.
Karen: I had first came down to the field, and the first thing she asked me was—
Crowd laughter and hubbub
Jones: (Laughs) I tell you, we got some seniors. I’m— I’m interested in this, ‘cause I— they’ll fight. They’ll fight.
Hubbub. Laughter
Jones: (Laughs) (unintelligible name) got bit. (Laughs)
Hubbub. Laughter. Some voices angry.
Karen: Dad, this is what happened. When I had first came down to the field—
Jones: All right now, hold it. I— I— I see our seniors are tough. That’s what I want to see. I hope some us— others of you are that tough. They’ve roll, they’ve fe— half fell, they’ve been picked up, my God Almighty, took six to take one of ‘em out.
Karen: Dad— Dad, this is what happened. When I first came— When I first came down to the field—
Jones: Why’d you ask her about the security, though? (Stumbles over words) That’s a legitimate question. I think it’s a legitimate question. But she— But you— To look good, so you answered it.
Karen: She told—
Girl in trouble: Dad— Dad, it was all my—
Karen: She told— She told us to ask her any questions. She did, so I just asked her anything was on my mind—
Jones: She told you to ask her any question.
Karen: She—
Woman: Why— why— why would the fact that you want to know if the security shoot Dad, woulda happened to him. Why would you?
Karen: I didn’t ask that question.
Woman: What— That’s the question that we got on now. That’s the question we got on the floor now.
Jones: I think it’s a legitimate question around here.
Another woman: Sister wanted to act like she knew it all (unintelligible)
Man: We got one looking like a traitor.
Woman: That’s right.
Man: Why the hell wouldn’t she ask it? It’s my mistake.
Hubbub. More conversation.
Jones: What’s that?
Woman: You wanted— You were ready to talk. Talk, talk. (Unintelligible)
Karen: I understand— She— She told us— She just said, any que— She just s— She was talking about— And then she said— I said, why are you asking all these questions, I said, why doesn’t somebody ask you some? She said, Ask me, ‘cause I already know of some like that, so I just asked her. And then— So I just asked her, and then she—
Woman: What’d you ask her?
Karen: I said— I said, well— I— (Pause)
Woman: What did you ask her?
Karen: I said, what if— I said, what if secu— I— I even forgot what I said, ‘cause— I said—
Sounds of incredulity
Woman: Oh, you ain’t forgot shit. You gotta tell ‘em what you said. Speak up.
Hubbub
Man: It was a good question.
Jones: Yes, it has been a— People— People have representative security, we’re going to have to all— You don’t have to ask questions of who’s in security. You don’t have to know. Somebody sa— The internal security. Some you can’t. You can’t know the (pause) more secret me— elements of the uh, Committee of the Defense of Revolution. You can’t know all those people, but you certainly have reason to— If you got reason, you see these people bearing guns and bows, you got a reason to bring up points. And if somebody brought up points, this wouldn’t have happened. (Pause) Okay— Okay, back off now. (Pause) Now, I’m surprised you say you only should get three days and three nights. You— You invited the questions. You invited the questions, huh?
Girl in trouble: Yes, Dad.
Jones: Ask you any question.
Older woman: What made you think you know so much?
Jones: Ah— Our mistake. Our collective mistake. I’ll take my guilt for this.
Older woman: How come you— What made you think you know so much, you know all the answers, you got all the answers, you got so many damn answers, you better start talking.
Girl in trouble: Um— (Pause) Um, I was just trying to look good. It’s no— no excuse, I mean, to have such a big mouth, and being at the— at— at the expense of um, of—
Voices interrupt.
Girl in trouble: There’s no excuse for me, um, being such a big mouth, trying to show off like I knew so fucking much. Um. (Unintelligible under Jones)
Jones: Well, I hope it’s a lesson to everybody, ‘cause I don’t like to see this violence, but I hope it’s a le— les— lesson. It was ver— very kind, and as so— someone said, I poured out my heart in there. Very deep. And then you go and expose it to everybody. That’s strategy. (Pause) And how did you know you were right?
Older woman: (unintelligible opening) —been in a meeting, and then you went out and talked? (Pause) Is that what happened?
Jones: She was. She was. She was. But to be— To make you all rest carefully, for the two nights, I reversed it, and we had bullets in the guns. ‘Cause I thought it was a mistake.
Scattered: That’s right.
Jones: So (Pause) don’t be (unintelligible word) nervous. You were not— You were not in any uh, threat, because I thought it was a mistake that we discussed it publicly. (Pause) Take your seat amongst those who learned better than you.
Girl in trouble: Thank you, Dad. (Pause)
Jones: Okay, let’s go. (Pause) Okay, let’s go. (Pause) Come on, security, get down. Get down, security. (Pause) Sit down. (Pause) I’m (unintelligible word)— Who’s replacing her? Who’s replacing her?
Man: For what? Her job? (unintelligible)
Scattered voices
Jones: (Laughs)
Man: Oh, man.
Hubbub. Laughter.
Jones: (Laughs) Sit down. (Pause) Okay, sit down. Everybody sit down. (Pause)
Hubbub.
Male: Uh— Da— Da— Dad, instead of deciding us— In— Instead of deciding this thing by myself, can I get with uh—
Jones: Shift.
Male: Can I get with uh, Johnny— Johnny and them, Jimmie, decide on the po— person to put in her place?
Jones: Yes, indeed. Then make a pass over me. Final passage. Thank you.
Conversation off mike, too soft.
Jones: What? (Pause) (Laughs) Rose looks like a reptile, ready to strike. (Laughs) (Pause)
Woman: Joyce got a warning, too, I—
Jones: Joyce got a warning? Well, yes, she did. Joyce got a warning. (Pause) Reporting late for work. Umm-hmm. (Pause) (Reading) Warnings also, Charles Marshall— (Pause) There are a lot of internal struggles in the herbal committee. Earnestine March has been very argumentative. She chastised Shirlee Fields in front of the students. She later talked to the students in the bush about the situation. That shit won’t be. We won’t allow that. That’s warning. Never criticize management in front of others. You do it privately. Those who manage for the representatives of the people, you can say anything to me. Privately. But you will not do it in front of pi— public. (Angry) I mean, I’m making a point, goddamn it, and it better be heard. (Pause) (Calmer) It was not appropriate. Shirlee Fields was in charge. Now, that better be straightened up. (Reading) Keith Baisy and Traci Stone have been referred to Learning Crew by the elementary junior high school teachers’ meeting, for physical violence. Okay. Join it. Laura Johnston still works slow and talks too much. (Disappointed) Aw, come on, Laura.
Voices murmur.
Jones: Ah, damn it. Who (unintelligible word) (Pause) Rory Borg— Borgeman— Bargeman told the supervisors he’s not going to do his best, because he didn’t get a job change. Oh, now. Now, now, now, now, now, now, now. We’re going to defy the authority. You’re not going to do your best, huh? Mmm. Betcha I’ve moved your little ass in here.
Voice: Who do you want to change, Dad?
Rory: No, I didn’t. (Pause) I di—
Jones: Who are the witnesses against him?
Rory: Dad, I didn’t say that.
Man: Who said he said it?
Jones: That kinda shit is no good. (Pause) That kinda shit is no good. This is dan— This is— This is radical shit. This is radical shit, what he did here. This is the kinda shit that can destroy an organization. He not going to do his best— He not going to do his work, because— (Pause) You’re open season, too. (Pause)
Scattered voices.
Rory: I didn’t say that, Dad.
Jones: Where is the supervisor?
Woman: Here she is.
Supervisor: Here I am. Okay. Today, we was on break—
Jones: Did he say it?
Supervisor: Yeah, he said it.
Jones: (Unintelligible sentence) How many say he said it? (Pause) Okay, you, you— Okay, he said it. He said it. Now he’s a liar to the office on top of it. (Pause) (Angry) Get him.
Hubbub.
One voice: Oh, man.
Jones: Now take him out of it.
Hubbub.
Jones: (Tight) Don’t lie to this office any more. We’re tired of putting up with this shit. (Pause) Don’t lie to this office any more. You hear me? Get your ass over there and set down, and see how well you work. Goddamn people don’t appreciate goodness. (Pause) Set your ass down. (Pause) With lie on top of it. ‘S all right. That— That’s up— That’s your— your risk. You’re open season till you get on that secu— on— on that Learning, then they can’t touch you.
Man: Don’t say you didn’t say anything (unintelligible)
Jones: He better not— You— Did you— Yeah, answer the question.
Voice unintelligible
Jones: Did you say it?
Rory: Dad—
Woman: Did you say it?
Man: Yes or no. Yes or no.
Rory: Yes, Dad, I said it.
Man: What did you say, exactly?
Rory: My— my exact words is, I didn’t appreciate the uh, supervisor saying I work good in the meeting, and when I get on the floor, they say I don’t work good.
Jones: Now, that’s not all you said. And they all heard it. I saw black and white people putting up their hands together. They heard you say, that you weren’t going to work your best. Did you say it?
Rory: (Pause) Dad, I swear that—
Man in crowd: (Unintelligible)
Rory: That’s what I said.
Jones: All these people lying on you. Is that what you’re saying? Told his seper— supervisor, he not going to do his job— your best, because you didn’t get a job change. What?
Supervisor: Okay. Today we was on break, and Roy said he had been here for nine months, and he had been in the field for nine months, and he say he didn’t want nobody to praise him, he didn’t want me to praise him or nothing—
Jones: Shh.
Supervisor: —he said he didn’t want no praises from nobody, from me or Jen, and then he said, uh, that he had been in the field for nine months, he said he wasn’t going to do his best. No, he would just stay in the field. And that’s what he said.
Jones: How many heard him say that?
Supervisor: We was all on break and we— Everybody heard him say it. (Unintelligible under Jones)
Jones: All these hands. Most of them black. Are you still going to insist you didn’t say it?
Rory: I said it, Dad. I said it, Dad, and I—
Man in crowd: —lying to the office.
Jones: (Unintelligible) What.
Rory: I said it, Dad, and I’m sorry for lying to the office.
People call out questions about why he lied.
Jones: Your mother asked you a good question. What’d you lie? And take up the goddamn trouble, all this late— the— the late hours of the night. Don’t give a shit, do you, if you lose your leader.
Rory: Yes I do, Dad, but—
Crowd voices too soft.
DeeDee Macon: Why’d you lie? (Pause)
Rory: I was—
DeeDee Macon: Speak up—
Rory: (Unintelligible, may be being struck)
Jones: Enough. Enough, enough. Enough.
DeeDee Macon: Dammit.
Jones: Enough.
Voice: Let go of him. Let go of him.
Another voice: Let go of him, DeeDee.
DeeDee Macon: Well, answer me.
Woman: Let go, Deedee.
Rory: I’m thinking uh—
Competing voices
DeeDee Macon: I’m over here. Can’t you answer me?
Male: Speak up.
Rory: I was thinking— Lee and I was—
Jones: All you people—
Angry voice: —goddammit, it’s just a fucking mouth.
Jones: What’s the matter?
Angry voice: Some little asshole here fussing back and forth. You just shut your mouth.
Several voices.
Angry voice: Shut up, goddammit.
Jones: Throw him on the Learning.
Male: You better salute, you little shit.
(Pause)
Jones: Anybody getting up here at this hour? After all that was explained tonight, and the blood pressure’s still there, it hasn’t gone anyplace.
Male: Smile—
Male: Why’d you lie?
Rory: I was thinking that if I lied still, that Deedee and uh— and Diane and (unintelligible under voices)
Jones: Get away from there, Stephan, there’s too much hostility for you to deal with. I’m just— (unintelligible) you working there, and you gotta blow like a goddamn bulldozer. (Pause) Don’t get close to it.
Rory: I deserve it, Dad.
Jones: Oh, you deserved it. I ain’t questioning that. I’m not questioning that, but I don’t— I don’t want to take chances. He could— he could fix you. (Unintelligible word) I imagine you’d feel somewhat the same, if there was a risk that your— no matter how— what hostility he may feel, it’s a natural ingredient to life for a child to have to battle with their parent all the time, and the parent be a leader, uh, uh, a uh, leader also, which makes it double problems. (Pause) In the future, that’s what medical person, you shouldna been waiting this long to tell us he has a pin in his hip. You shoulda men— You shoulda done— You shoulda got your ass up off the floor, Joyce Parks, you shoulda been telling us before that.
Rory: That’s okay. I wa—
Jones: This is a little late to tell us, don’t you think? (Pause)You were out? Okay. Well, where in the hell— Didn’t anybody else in the damn house know this?
Woman: I knew— I knew he had a pin in his hip.
Jones: Hu— Huh?
Woman: Yes, Dad, I knew he had.
Jones: He can be dealt with otherwise. We’re not trying to torture. We’re trying to get people to— to behave. He’s all right. He not got any problem here.
Rory: I worked just like the rest of them, even though it— it don’t make me nu—
Jones: What?
Rory: I work just like everybody else do, the pin don’t make no—
Quiet voice.
Jones: One does feel guilty, yes, all the time, but that’s good. (Pause) It’ll be always (unintelligible word)— Invariably when we se— make a impulsive move, I’ve always found myself, when I made one, it uh, it’ll be in the wrong place. (Short laugh) It’s been my luck always, Stephan, so join the crowd. Stephan said he felt guilty. But you still had no reason to hold us up at this hour, my son. (Pause) And your leader is— Your— Your— I— These meetings are hell on me. And if that’s hell on you, if I go before I’m supposed to. Sit down. Recall, to keep that in mind, medical people, though, to get these reports up. They shouldn’t be the requirement of the mother. The mother shouldn’t have had to say it. The medical department shoulda known. Because she can’t get up there and be defensive for him. She did a good job. (Pause) The medical department shoulda jumped up there quick.
Male: Can we hear something from the medical department?
Jones: (Screams) Yes. Goddamn it. Yes, goddamn it.
Scattered voices.
Jones: (Calmer) Goddamn it to hell. Stand there like logs on a bum— bump on a fucking log. (Pause) How’s the hip? Look at him. (Pause)
Male: Why are you doing that, Laura? Why the fuck are you so fucking (unintelligible under Jones)
Jones: Yeah, why (unintelligible) in our— our face again?
Man: Everybody else sit your asses down, so we can move out. Sit down.
Another male: Do you want to get zapped? Someone ought to nail her ass.
Jones: Yeah, that’s true. That’s true. I’m a son-of-a-bitch, it’s true.
Man: Are you working slow?
Laura: I— I thought I was— I thought I’d picked up— I swear, I thought I’d picked up, and I had not been talking.
Hubbub. Questions about who reported something.
Jones: Did you ask for— Did he ask for— to change, because he had pain in the hip?
Man in crowd: No, when he came to committee, there was nothing about no medical.
Man: He was just fine, (unintelligible), to be fair.
Man: There was nothing I—
Jones: The medical could check— could check his ass out. I’da heard about it from Schacht, I think, if there’d been any grave situation, any noticeable change in his hip.
Schacht: I didn’t know about this— I just heard that he had a problem today, but I didn’t under— understand it, I didn’t know what his problem was, but we—
Voice in crowd: That was not the basis of the job change—
Jones: That wa— There wasn’t any word mentioned about that.
Man: Wasn’t even mentioned. We didn’t— we had no prior knowledge—
Joyce: No— That— My point was, when I came back in here with Earl, I (unintelligible)
Jones: Well, from where I— I don’t give a goddammit, where is it— that nobody else in the house— one person in the medical department know this shit, and not everybody. You should alert everybody. You should all care about everybody like they were your own children. (Pause)
Schacht: That’s right. You’re right, Dad. That’s absolutely right.
Man: One person who don’t even have a child, says that’s right. (Unintelligible sentence)
Woman in crowd: Do I say something, (Unintelligible phrase) Jay warned you to open your goddamn mouth.
Joyce: I was— I didn’t know that they didn’t know, Dad. I mean, everybody in San Francisco worked with me. I— I—
Jones: Well, I— I— How do you know they don’t know. You ought to know they don’t know. You ought to assume that right away, they wouldn’t know nor remember. You gotta constantly educate.
Joyce: I’m sorry. It— It was my fault.
Jones: All emergency cases, where’s there any danger of injury, they should be told, ‘cause people don’t give a shit.
Joyce: I— I agree. And that’s my fault.
Voices too soft
Jones: Well, we’re all going to have to know one another. They’re all our children. In spite on the hell we may thump on each other, we’re gonna fight for each other.
Scattered: Right.
One voice: Thank you, Dad.
Scattered applause
Jones: Peace. (Pause) You can’t be predictable. One thing I can’t be is predictable. I don’t dare. Mercy’s just been run over hog wild. Woman tells our security, everything else. So I can’t be predictable. I’m merciful, I’m gentle by nature, but I can’t be predictable. And I won’t be. So don’t count on it.
Marceline: Could I— Could I say that I think it’s fairly important that if we have people here with medical problems, that this job committee should know about, that the medical team should get that information to the job committee.
Jones: (Sighs) They gotta get it to them now. Absolutely now. Have an emergency meeting about that tomorrow, and let us know of any defects or problems that could be aggravated by anything else. Just like Mary Tschetter. I saw her fight with two men. Uh, it’s a big, big job, because she has joint problems. And you men have to know that. You gotta know these sen— these seniors who are doing this thing and these middle-aged ladies who are doing this— this remarkable fighting, they— they’ve got— you’ve got to know this— All security got to know every medical problem they have when you grab them. (Pause) And how you defend with them. (Pause) Now, Laura, will you tell— Who— Where is the complainant against this woman?
Woman: I am, Dad. Today, uh, in all the time we was in the bush, we was working with three different crews, and Laura, she’s still trying to supervise, you know, and she— like I be telling her one thing to do, she would jump in and start talking, and today, we was covering the peanuts, and I doubled back on her two or three times. Danny was out there, he can tell you the same thing, and I kept telling her—
Jones: Is it true? Is it true? (Pause) And I found him to testify wrongly. Now, what do you have to say, sister? I always testify, and I find certain people who tell the truth pretty accurately, and this sister’s new to me, so I’ll test it. What do you got to say now?
Laura: I was mistaken. I must not have been working as fast. I’m sure her report is accurate.
Man: Still supervising—
Laura: Um—
End of tape
Tape originally posted September 2003