tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2807403883562053852.post7792054242057827492..comments2024-03-27T08:40:31.785-06:00Comments on Clayton Cramer.: Brain Dump: Early 1960sClayton Cramerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03258083387204776812noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2807403883562053852.post-6624457121579044032017-11-25T17:19:57.066-07:002017-11-25T17:19:57.066-07:00Mauser: In the 1950s, when credit cards were quite...Mauser: In the 1950s, when credit cards were quite rare, a common method for small merchants to extend credit was to hold a personal check until such time as you had brought enough cash to pay off the check. Technically, this meant you had written an NSF check (because you knew there was not enough funds when you wrote it--worse than an accidental bounce). This was a felony in Washington State at the time. My parents were going through one of those bad times that used to be common around Seattle at the time, and a local grocer had graciously extended credit in this manner to my parents.<br /><br />The sheriff apparently wanted to prove how tough he was on crime and started enforcing the law, even where there was no fraudulent intent. Worse, my father played poker with the sheriff weekly. Guess who was winning and who was losing?<br /><br />Next, the bank suddenly and without warning closed my parents' checking account. (Banks had a bit more discretion in those days.) Worse, my father had gone to San Francisco to look for work within a day or two of the issuance of a warrant. FBI gets called. Part of why I am suspicious of unlimited governmental power.<br /><br />Repeated attempts through intermediaries to resolve this went nowhere. They wanted a felony conviction.<br /><br />How we was able to get work: Do you think DoD just ran a database query in 1960 for wanted fugitives? These days, his SSN would have flagged him within a few days of starting any job. Back then? He never registered to vote because that was an unneeded risk.Clayton Cramerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03258083387204776812noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2807403883562053852.post-37496965743426752582017-11-23T18:20:23.332-07:002017-11-23T18:20:23.332-07:00Why was the FBI after your father? (And if he was ...Why was the FBI after your father? (And if he was wanted, how did he get to work on Navy ships....)Mauserhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11732614352398473302noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2807403883562053852.post-55561475494132361132017-11-23T16:02:11.473-07:002017-11-23T16:02:11.473-07:00Wow, how fascinating!
You've definitely lived...Wow, how fascinating!<br /><br />You've definitely lived a more exciting life than I have, and I too live near Chula Vista- in Carlsbad, just up the coast. Your story reminds me that when I was little, my family & I lived in Woodland Hills, in The Valley (San Fernando Valley, that is.)<br /><br />We used to drive down to Vista, very close to where I live now, to see my grandmother. There wasn't any I-5 then, just the Coast Highway, and I always looked forward to going past Camp Pendelton because there was a good chance of seeing tanks or helicopters very close to the road. What a long trip it seemed back then!<br /><br />I do hope sometime you'll tell us why the FBI was so interested in your father!Eskymanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15947922645001422523noreply@blogger.com