User:TallDavid/sandbox
G. Michael Fjetland | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 18, 1949 Iowa |
| Residence | Houston, Texas (1976-present) |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
G. Michael Fjetland (born December 18, 1949) is a serial congressional candidate from the state of Texas, an international lawyer, terrorism analyst and entrepreneur.
Political Career
[edit]Fjetland ran against Congressman Tom DeLay in the GOP primary for the U.S. House of Representatives in Texas's 22nd congressional district in 2000[1], 2002[2] & 2006[3]. In 2004, Fjetland ran for the same seat as an Independent.[4] In all cases Fjetland was unsuccessful in defeating DeLay. On April 4, 2006, DeLay withdrew his candidacy for the upcoming November midterm elections in the face of questions about his ethics;[5]. Once DeLay was indicted and resigned his congressional seat, Fjetland stopped running for the U.S. House of Representatives.
In 2014, Fjetland filed in the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate seat occupied by John Cornyn. He received 4.78% of the vote in that primary.[6]
Early life and education (1949-1975)
[edit]Fjetland was born December 18, 1949 in Iowa and was raised on a farm until moving to Texas in 1965. Until the age of 15, Michael grew up on farms in Iowa where he milked cows and performed field work to help the family. [7]
While still in Iowa, Michael’s father began to sell vacuum cleaners to supplement the family income, later the sales extended to fire alarm systems which led to the family move to Lubbock Texas. Some years later Michael's father, Darold Fjetland, was transferred to Plainview, Texas where Michael became interested in aviation and was able to begin pilot training at a small airport near their home. [citation needed]
Michael finished high school at Tascosa High in Amarillo and then worked part time while attending Amarillo college until he earned an Associate degree in 1970. [8]
Michael married Connie Lakner in 1969 in Muleshoe, Texas. After graduating from Amarillo college, he and his wife moved to Austin so he could complete a BBA in Accounting. Afterwards he moved back to Lubbock to go to law school at Texas Tech University where received a Juris Doctor with honors . [9]
Legal career(1975-1990)
[edit]Michael began his legal career as a briefing attorney for the 3rd Court of Appeals in Austin Texas. In 1976 Fjetland was hired by Brown & Root in Houston, Texas. Shortly after beginning work at Brown & Root, the company was indicted for price fixing and president Foster Parker, committed suicide. [10] During his tenure at Brown & Root, Fjetland represented the company in Nicaragua.
Michael was recruited by another Texas company, Dresser Industries, in 1978. During five years at Dresser Industries, Michael acted as lead negotiator in over thirty (30) countries including Egypt, Brazil, China, India, Japan and numerous more. In 1983 the Great Texas Oil Bust hit. The price of oil dropped to $10 a barrel and Michael was laid off along with thousands of other oil industry personnel. [11]
At that point he became an entrepreneur, determined to use his international legal skills to help small and medium size American companies export their products overseas. In 1984 Michael went back to China as an entrepreneur and spent six weeks traveling the country with an oil expert talking to Chinese officials – who wanted everything but had no money at that time. China was just awakening to the west.
Eventually Fjetland built a legal practice specializing in international law. He spent time in China exploring trade opportunities, represented clients who had relatives killed on oil rigs in Africa, handled cases for workers in Algeria, where terrorists where trying to kill foreign workers.[12] Fjetland also traveled to Syria with a Texas mother to negotiate the release of her 12 year old daughter who had been taken out of the country by her ex-husband without the mother's prior knowledge or consent.[13]
Terrorism Analyst
[edit]Shortly after the Invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Michael was called into the Houston, Texas Fox affiliate for the first time to be their expert on the middle east.[14] On September 11, 2001, Fox 26 TV (Houston) asked Michael to return as a terrorism analyst, where he made numerous appearances up to the invasion of Iraq, and from time to time after that.[15] [Video]
In the 1990’s Fjetland produced a TV series on Houston municipal television called “International Issues.” One of the most significant episodes was entitled “Nuclear terrorism: Could It Happen Here?” with guest Dr. Ron L. Hatchett, a Reagan era weapons expert. The conclusion was “yes, it (terrorism) could happen here.”[16]
- Fox 26 Houston TV appearance, September 2013. "What's Next for Syria?":
- On Houston News 24 (no longer on the air), December 2003, re: Capture of Saddam Hussein.
Pilot
[edit]At the age of 17, Fjetland receive a private pilot’s license after working at a Hale County Airport in exchange for flying time. In 1968 he obtained a commercial pilot’s license at the age of 18.
After the September 11 attacks, Fjetland volunteered as a pilot and became a Captain in the Civil Air Patrol [17] based at West Houston Airport, where he flew search and rescue missions and became their Public Affairs officer.[18][19]
Business
[edit]Armor Glass International Inc.
[edit]In 2007, Fjetland formed Armor Glass International Inc.[20] The company installs security film that “armors glass” to protect homes & buildings from breach by humans and wind-borne debris during hurricanes, tornadoes, explosions, etc. It is also considered to be a carbon-negative "green technology" that blocks UV radiation and saves energy.
KHOU News report on how the Armor Glass technology protected buildings during Hurricane Ike, October 2008.
Author
[edit]Books
[edit]Michael started writing a fiction book “Fire Over Arabia” in 1990.[21] Based on the live of an international attorney, the plot revolved around a flash war in the Middle East and a terrorist attack on the United States. While still writing the book, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and the book was never published.[22]
Better Times Ahead April Fool
[edit]Fjetland, Michael. "Better Times Ahead April Fool", Michael Fjetland, Copyright 2012, ISBN 0989296334, 9780989296335 http://www.amazon.com/Michael-Fjetland/e/B007OV69E4 Describes how quickly countries like China and India have become emerging superpowers and what Americans must do to remain competitive. The final chapter of "Better Times Ahead April Fool" entitled “Agenda for American Greatness” is updated periodically at: www.BetterTimesAheadAprilFool.com
Houses of Straw Houses of Wood
[edit]A free eBook which explains the Armor Glass technology and how it can be used to protect houses & buildings from burglar break-ins and in severe storms, hurricanes and tornadoes. eBook: http://armor-glass.com/files/ebook/HousesOfStrawHousesOfWood.epub
Scholarly Publications
[edit]- Fjetland, Michael. "The Fifth Amendment Privilege Against Self-Incrimination in Tax Investigations." Texas Tech Law Review (1975?)
http://repository.law.ttu.edu/bitstream/handle/10601/1697/FifthInvest-Fjetland.pdf?sequence=1
- Fjetland, Michael. "Licensing Technology in India." Int'l Bus. Law. 11 (1983): 33.
- Fjetland, Michael. "Strategic Mistakes in International Transactions." Journal of International Marketing (1996): 75-86. http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/25048647?sid=21106202975193&uid=2&uid=2129&uid=4&uid=70
- Fjetland, Michael. 2002. Global commerce and the privacy clash. Information Management Journal 36(1):54–57.
Online Publications
[edit]- Newsletter – Global American: https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/GlobalAmerican/info
- Global American values blog: "What Americans can do to win the global economic race? http://globalamericanvalues.blogspot.com/
- Global American Radio: http://www.globalamerican.org/
Personal life
[edit]Michael married Connie Lakner in 1969 in Muleshoe, Texas. They had no children and divorced in 1977. In 1978 he married Carol Melcher of Houston, TX. They had no children and divorced in 1981. In 1994 he married Laura Masquelette. They had no children. They divorced in 2007.
References
[edit]- ^ The Texas Tribune, "Michael Fjet Fjetland", http://www.texastribune.org/directory/michael-fjet-fjetland/
- ^ The Austin Chronicle, November 22, 2013, "Statewide Candidate Filings Trickle In", http://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2013-11-22/statewide-candidate-filings-trickle-in/
- ^ The New York Times, March 6, 2006, "Primary for DeLay's Seat Is Shaping Up as Referendum on the Incumbent", http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/06/politics/06delay.html
- ^ The Austin Chronicle, October 29, 2004, "Congress: The Texas Five, Plus One", http://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2004-10-29/235136/
- ^ NBC News, 2013, "DeLay won't seek re-election", http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12141276/
- ^ Our Campaigns, August 1, 2014, "TX US Senate - D Primary", http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=732358
- ^ BallotPedia, "Michael Fjetland", 2015.
- ^ Star-Telegram, "2014 voters guide: U.S. Senate primaries", February 18, 2014, http://www.star-telegram.com/news/politics-government/article3846446.html
- ^ BallotPedia, "Michael Fjetland", 2015.
- ^ Salon, "The United States of Texas", June 24, 2004, http://www.salon.com/2004/06/24/halliburton_7/
- ^ The Businessmakers, December 24, 2011, "Michael Fjetland - Armor Glass", Comcast Business, p. 2
- ^ "Better Times Ahead April Fool", Michael Fjetland, Copyright 2012, ISBN 0989296334, 9780989296335
- ^ "Mom seeks safety in Lebanon to visit child". lubbockonline.com. Retrieved 2015-05-18.
- ^ "MoveOn's 50 Ways to Love Your Country", MoveOn.org, p. 86, https://books.google.com/books?id=l_ahF0jOxkgC&pg=PR11&lpg=PR11&dq=michael+fjetland&source=bl&ots=w-sZ4ugXKV&sig=A-tWiIewtJgqHep_KZ_ABO2-bx8&hl=en&sa=X&ei=-Q4PVYarKY_igwTlr4SQCQ&ved=0CEkQ6AEwCDhQ#v=onepage&q=michael%20fjetland&f=false
- ^ https://youtube.com/devicesupport, 2015-04-17, retrieved 2015-05-18
{{citation}}: External link in|title= - ^ “Nuclear terrorism: Could It Happen Here?”, HTV, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfRE-JkUSRg
- ^ "Better Times Ahead April Fool", Michael Fjetland, Copyright 2012, ISBN 0989296334, 9780989296335
- ^ Information Warfare Site, "US Civil Air Patrol Conducts Extensive Exercise", April 24, 2004, http://www.iwar.org.uk/news-archive/2004/04-24.htm
- ^ Voice of America, "US Civil Air Patrol Conducts Extensive Exercise", April 24, 2004, http://www.voanews.com/content/a-13-a-2004-04-24-4-1-67345797/272699.html
- ^ The Businessmakers, December 24, 2011, "Michael Fjetland - Armor Glass", Comcast Business, p. 1
- ^ The Businessmakers, December 24, 2011, "Michael Fjetland - Armor Glass", Comcast Business, p. 1
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jr_SXX2qp-M
External links
[edit]- BallotPedia: http://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Fjetland
- Armor Glass International, inc.
- The Businessmakers interview with Michael Fjetland of Armor Glass[1]: http://www.thebusinessmakers.com/episodes/shows/2011/december-2011/episode-342/michael-fjetland.html
- Houston Municipal Television, “Nuclear terrorism: Could It Happen Here?”, HTV, Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfRE-JkUSRg / Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEi9WAPLojI / Part 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d13tvZjNKQo
- Profile of Michael Fjetland on ZoomInfo: http://www.zoominfo.com/p/Michael-Fjetland/8823255
DEFAULTSORT:Fjetland, Michael
Category:1949 births
Category:Living people
Category:Amarillo College alumni
Category:University of Texas alumni
Category:Texas Tech University alumni
Category:American people of Norwegian descent
Category:Texas Democrats
- ^ The Businessmakers, December 24, 2011, "Michael Fjetland - Armor Glass", Comcast Business