Happy #60 “Blame it on the bossa nova"

Another one of those "time flies" posts:  Let's remember "Blame it on the bossa nova" by Eydie Gorme.  

Frankly, I don't remember this song but it was an entertaining and still gets a lot of airplay many years later.  It is a great dancing song!  I would file this one under "novelty pop songs"!

Eydie Gorme enjoyed a great career.  She recorded many songs with her husband Steve Lawrence.

Click here for the song.

"I was at a dance When he caught my eye
Standing all alone Lookin' sad and shy
We began to dance Swaying to and fro
And soon I knew I'd never let him go
Blame it on the bossa nova With it's magic spell
Blame it on the bossa nova That he did so well
Oh it all began with just one little dance
But soon it ended up a big romance
Blame it on the bossa nova The dance of love
Now was it the moon No no the bossa nova
Or the stars above No no the bossa nova
Now was it the tune Yea yea the bossa nova
The dance of love
Now I'm glad to say I'm his bride to be
And we're gonna raise a family
And when our kids ask How it came about
I gonna say to them with out a doubt....

Thursday's podcast: Our chat with George Rodriguez about affirmative action & Texas issues

Thursday's podcast:   

Our chat with George Rodriguez about affirmative action & Texas issues

......click to listen:

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Thursday's video: Our chat with George Rodriguez about affirmative action & Texas issues

Thursday's video: 

Our chat with George Rodriguez about affirmative action & Texas issues

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

 

The moderate and his admiral

 (My new American Thinker post)

During the campaign, we were reminded often that former VP Biden was the moderate in the party roster.  He wasn't Bernie the socialist who went to the USSR for his honeymoon. Or Beto with the RFK look who wants to take your AR-15 away.  For sure, not Elizabeth with the Native American past. He was Joe from Scranton, Joey as his father used to call him.

Well, that was then or before he added the admiral to his staff.  Let's meet Admiral Rachel Levine:

Admiral Rachel Levine, the Assistant Secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), has declared, as Pride month is coming to an end, that it should be a “Summer of Pride.”

“Happy Pride! Happy Pride Month, and actually -- let’s declare it a summer of Pride. Happy Summer of Pride.”

Let me remind you that Rachel is actually a man, and not really an admiral.  Who cares about gender and title anyway?  Who cares what Americans think about all this?  

According to Rasmussen Reports, most Americans are not ready for Rachel's Summer of Pride: "71% of American Adults agree with the statement that “there are two genders, male and female,” including 57% who Strongly Agree."

It does not sound like the Moderate and his Admiral are promoting a very moderate position.  What these numbers are telling me is that Americans are tolerant of sexual orientation as long as you stay away from our school-age children or push it in our face every time we turn on the TV.

We were misled about all the moderate stuff. I guess nobody in the media was serious about asking him about it when he was hiding in the basement.

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

Thursday's podcast: Leaks and the Trump case, Biden and the transgender agenda & Happy # 20 Babalu

Leaks and the Trump case.......Biden and the transgender agenda.....Happy # 20 Babalu Blog...and other stories....click to listen:

Wednesday's video: Leaks and the Trump case, Biden and the transgender agenda & Happy # 20 to Babalu Blog

Wednesday's video: 

 Leaks and the Trump case, Biden and the transgender agenda & Happy # 20 to Babalu Blog

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81% of Mexico is a lot of territory

 (My new American Thinker post)

How much of Mexico is under the control of criminal elements?  I guess that it depends who is answering the question.  To my knowledge, President Andres Lopez-Obrador has not acknowledged that any part of Mexico is run by cartels.  He plays games with crime statistics and blames everyone but his administration for the breakdown in law and order.  

So who is telling the truth?  Well, this is a report from Pulse News Mexico:

A study released this week by the political analysis firm AC Consultores showed that organized crime groups in Mexico are now exerting their influence over at least 1.59 million square kilometers of national territory, representing 81 percent of the country, leaving 108 million Mexicans at risk of violence.

The AC Consultores study was based on six months of meticulous review of official government data and documents hacked from Mexico’s Defense Secretariat by the Guacamaya group, which last September released a collection of over 4 million confidential government documents that were obtained by international hackers. The criminal organizations with the greatest presence in Mexico are the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel, the study said.

Mexican criminal groups, the study said, exert their influence and terrorize citizens through executions, massacres, drug banners, extortion, kidnappings, threatening videos and even the murders of police officers, politicians and officials.

Over the last four years, such events have been reported in 1,488 of Mexico’s 2,471 municipalities.  According to the study, the bloody Jalisco New Generation Cartel has the greatest presence in Mexico, operating across 28 out of the country’s 32 states. The Sinaloa Cartel comes in second place with operations in 24 states.

The presence of the Gulf Cartel has been detected in 10 states, the Northeast Cartel in eight states, the Familia Michoacana in seven and Los Zetas in six.

Additionally, the Templars have operation in five states and Los Chapitos in four.

Small criminal organizations such as the Beltrán Leyva, the Caborca Cartel, Los Talibanes, Los Rojos, Los Salazar and Los Viagras each operate in three states.

How accurate is this report?  I think that it's pretty true as anyone paying attention can tell.  For example, I heard on the radio yesterday that auto thefts in Texas are up.  Why?  Apparently, cartel "representatives" come into Texas and look for cars, especially vans.  They love those.  It must be the air-conditioning unit.  They steal them and cross the border.

Then you have the violence in Mexico.  Lots of it!  Just ask anyone who lives down there.  I heard from a lady that travelling at night on Mexican roads is just an invitation to get your car stolen.  Another man told me a few years ago that he'll never take his truck to Mexico anymore.  Who are these people?  They are Mexicans living here who are afraid to visit their country by car.  They take the bus instead.

How much of Mexico is under criminal control?  No one knows for sure because these elements usually don't register their address with the local post office.  

What can the U.S. government do?  A lot more than we are doing.  Also, I hope that some Mexican candidate for president in 2024 has the courage to point out that Mexican sovereignty is at risk if bad guys with high-powered weapons are running the highways.

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

A word about June 28

On this day in 1914, Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria and his wife Sophie were shot to death by a Bosnian Serb nationalist during an official visit to the Bosnian capital of Sarajevo.

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Tuesday's podcast: DeSantis and crime in Mexico......Mayor Adams and migrants.....& more

 

DeSantis and crime in Mexico......Mayor Adams and migrants.....Intelligence failures on January 6..Happy # 80 Rico Petrocelli.....and other stories.......

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Tuesday's video: DeSantis and crime in Mexico......Mayor Adams and migrants.....& more

DeSantis and crime in Mexico......Mayor Adams and migrants.....Intelligence failures on January 6..Happy # 80 Rico Petrocelli........and other stories...

 

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Don’t listen to the teachers union if you care about your kids

 

(My new American Thinker post)

Back in the thick of the pandemic, I remember watching a TV report about two mothers who lived on the same street in Chicago.  Mom A sent her kids to the Catholic school.  Mom B was dealing with school closures. Mom A was happy and Mom B was not.

Moving forward, Mom A and Mom B are probably reacting differently to the state of their kids' scores.  This is the story: 

Eight percent. That’s the absurdly tiny fraction of America’s public-school teacher workforce aged 60-or-older who faced non-trivial mortality risk from COVID-19 before vaccines were available. 

Eight percent also happens to be the share of Black 13-year-olds who -- according to recently released federal data -- performed at the top level in mathematics on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). And while traditional public schools have failed to deliver for disadvantaged students of color for far too long, these alarming numbers represent a significant drop in their performance since before the pandemic. Is it any surprise? Politicians in America’s bluest urban communities -- where most disadvantaged students live -- closed their schools for a full academic year to "protect" fewer than 1 in 10 of their employees, usually at the behest of powerful union leaders.       

According to the latest NAEP data, current learning losses continue to extend far and wide. On average, public-school students lost historic ground in math (10 points) and reading (6 points) since before the pandemic. Research just published in one of nation’s oldest and most-respected economics journals echo the take home here: the more time students spent outside the classroom, the less they learned.

Yes, a national nightmare as someone said.  Bad news for these students and their parents.

So what happened to those kids who kept going to school, such as the ones in Catholic schools?  Here is that part of the story:   

America’s Catholic schools defied these sobering trends. Students attending parochial schools experienced no meaningful decline in either subject on the latest NAEP. 

Although over twice as many private school educators (17%) were in the COVID-vulnerable 60-or-older category, Catholic schools stayed open for their students. 

Let me get to the point. I'm not trying to get you to send your kids to a Catholic school.  That's your decision as a parent.  It's clear that those schools that listened to the teachers' unions had horrible results.  On the other hand, the private and religious schools that stayed open do not have those test scores.

Of course, the collapse of public education goes beyond COVID.  The problems are a lack of discipline, too many kids entitled with "rights," and administrators invested in "woke" rather than basic stuff, like reading, writing; and math.

Unfortunately, too many of these parents live in areas where school choice is not option.  Their kids are stuck in these schools and the country suffers when kids can't read or write at a certain level. 

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

A word about June 27

We remember June 27

Happy # 78 to Rico Petrocelli, one of the most popular players to wear the Red Sox uniform.   Americo Peter Petrocelli was born in Brooklyn on this day in 1943.  He broke with Boston in 1963.  He quickly became a regular and played in the 1967 & 1975 World Series.    Petrocelli was a big bat in the Boston lineup:  210 HR & 773 RBI over 13 years.

1973:  David Clyde made his pitching debut with the Texas Rangers.  He was 18, two weeks out of high school and never materialized as a major league pitcher.  He was probably rushed to the majors.

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Friday's podcast: Mayor Adams and migrants.....Catholic schools and test scores....and more

Mayor Adams and migrants.....Catholic schools and test scores....The Hunter Biden scandal......Happy # 49 Derek Jeter...........

and other stories....click to listen:

Monday's video: Mayor Adams and migrants.....Catholic schools and test scores....and more

Mayor Adams and migrants.....Catholic schools and test scores....The Hunter Biden scandal......Happy # 49 Derek Jeter...........and other stories....

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

 

Mayor Adams: I've got my Magic Bus

 (My new American Thinker post)

Yes, that sound you hear is Mayor Eric Adams singing his version of "Magic Bus."  You know that song by the Who that goes like this:  "Every day I get in the queue (Too much, Magic Bus) To get on the bus that takes me to you (Too much, Magic Bus)"

Well, it turns out that Governor Greg Abbott's critic has been doing a little "transporting of migrants" himself.  This is the story:    

New York City Mayor Eric Adams used taxpayer funds to send migrants to red states including Texas and Florida with some even being sent as far as South America and China despite trashing Republican governors for sending them to the Big Apple.

Adams, a Democrat, spent about $50,000 of the city's money to send 114 migrant households elsewhere in the world as the city is overrun with asylum seekers in the tens of thousands. 

A total of 28 families were sent to Florida with 14 being sent to Texas, a few were sent to Colombia and one family to China. The migrants were allowed to choose where they were sent, reports Politico. 

The Adams bus has a route to Colombia and China? Why not?  Mayor Adams is a generous man when he is spending someone else's money.  He will tell the driver to take you wherever you want to go.

According to the story, New York City reports that 78,700 migrants have arrived and 48,700 are still under the city's support system. Why are they still under your support system?  Have you offered them work?  Or an opportunity to pay back the city's taxpayers?

The mayor has criticized everybody but Biden and his open border policy.  He is calling for Congress to carry out immigration reform but that's a lot of wishful thinking. The mayor needs to be more honest and address the actual problem.

So that bus that you see somewhere around the country is the mayor sending migrants to other places.  He wants them out of New York but keeps boasting about the sanctuary city that he runs.

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

A word about June 26

We remember June 26:   

Happy # 48: Derek Jeter:   He retired with 3,465 hits, a .311 lifetime average and .321 in 38 World Series games.

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China in Cuba and other stories with Pedro Luis Boitel

 

Guest:  Pedro Luis Boitel, author and political blogger......and other stories....

....click to listen:

Sunday's video: China in Cuba and other stories with Pedro Luis Boitel

Sunday's video: 

China in Cuba and other stories with Pedro Luis Boitel......

                                

A word about June 25

We remember June 25:

"Bad day for General Custer":    On this day in 1876, a major battle took place near southern Montana’s Little Bighorn River. We remember the battle as General Custer’s "Last Stand".

"We love Ike":    On this day in 1942, General Dwight D. Eisenhower became commander of all U.S. troops in the European theater of World War II.

"Beatles go global 1967":    Two weeks after “Sergeant Pepper’s” release, The Beatles went global and presented “All you need is love” to the world.  

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Mr. Secretary, what are you telling Cuba?

 (My new American Thinker post)

Our Secretary of State just got back from China and said this:   

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday that the United States would have deep concerns about Chinese military activities in Cuba, after the Wall Street Journal reported that Beijing was planning a new training facility there.

Speaking at a press conference in London after wrapping up a trip this week to Beijing, Blinken said he made clear to his Chinese counterparts "that we would have deep concerns about PRC intelligence or military activities in Cuba".    

Blinken added: "This is something we're going to be monitoring very, very closely and we've been very clear about that. And we will protect our homeland, we will protect our interests."  

The Wall Street Journal, citing current and former U.S. officials, reported on Tuesday that China and Cuba are negotiating to establish a joint military training facility on the island that could lead to the stationing of Chinese troops just 100 miles off Florida's coast.

Well, I'm sure that the Chinese are really concerned, too. Don't expect that ship from China to turn around anytime soon, unless we are prepared to go to "blockade" mode and shut down the island.  

The Chinese are just taking advantage of our weakness.  The key player is Cuba, and that's where the behind the scenes talk need to be directed.

You can start by shutting down remittances.  At the moment, the sum is critical for Cuba. Let's see the numbers:  

Remittances constitute a substantial part of Cuba’s gross national income. Cuba does not publish figures on remittances and is not a member of international financial institutions such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and Inter-American Development Bank, which provide credible statistics. There are estimates produced by research groups, but these vary significantly. For example, Manuel Orozco of the Inter-American Dialogue reported $1.53 billion in remittances in 2019, while the Havana Consulting Group reported $3.72 billion.

Despite these disparities, remittances constitute Cuba’s third-largest source of dollar reserves after the service and tourism industries. To put it in perspective, Cuba’s GDP was $103 billion in 2019, with net official development assistance inflow of $499 million and remittances of $2–‍$3 billion annually.

No remittances would hit Cuba very hard.

You can close the U.S. Embassy.  After all, didn't President Obama open the Embassy in 2015 to help Cuba change? Having Chinese troops in the island is enough proof that Cuba did not change.  

We can start with those two steps and let's see where we go next.

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

A word about June 24

We remember June 24:

"Presidential leadership":    On this day in 1948, President Truman confronted a serious communist challenge in Berlin: The Berlin Blockade.

Happy # 75 to Mick Fleetwood who was born in London on this day in 1947. We remember Mick as the founder and drummer of Fleetwood Mac.

P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Friday's podcast: China and Cuba. Impeach or not impeach? and more stories

China and Cuba.  Impeach or not impeach?  What's going on with Hunter Biden?   The Paxton trial and the jury........and other stories....

click to listen:

Friday's video: China and Cuba. Impeach or not impeach? and more stories

Friday's video:

China and Cuba. Impeach or not impeach? What's going on with Hunter Biden? The Paxton trial and the jury....Happy # 83 Justice Clarence Thomas......and other stories....

 

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

That's the way that the law 'go'!

 (My new American Thinker post)

After game 6 of the 2011 World Series, former Rangers' manager Ron Washington tried to put a happy face on blowing a lead in the 9th, the 10th, and the game itself in the 11th.  He repeated that line about the strange things that happen on the field: “That's the way baseball go.”  Yes, some things are hard to explain.

At times like these, I check with Professor Jonathan Turley.  He always gives it to us straight.  This is what the professor said of the arrangement with Hunter Biden:   

There is reason to be suspicious. First, no one can explain why it took five years for the investigation of two minor tax counts and a gun allegation that could have been confirmed in a month.

Indeed, an IRS whistleblower alleged that Hunter was given preferential treatment and that the whistleblower’s team was removed from further work on the case by the Justice Department.  

Hunter also never faced any charges after videotaping himself engaged in interstate violations involving a host of prostitutes and drugs. That is now simply   material for his scrapbook.   There is a glaring omission of any charge under the Foreign Agents Registration Act despite the Justice Department using this charge freely against associates of former President Donald Trump like Paul Manafort.  However, again, it would not take five years to establish this crime (which was done in little time with Manafort). Hunter seems to have been simply given a pass on what was likely the greatest concern for the White House.   The most notable omission is the failure of any apparent investigation into the expanding scandal surrounding the influence-peddling operation of the Biden family.

Yes, that's the way that the law "go."

The problem here is twofold. First, too many feel that some go to jail while others get probation.  Fair or unfair, that's how people feel. I guess that watching former Secretary Clinton get away with a lot will make even the most idealistic of us a bit cynical. Second, the media has lost credibility and their coverage of the disgusting Russia-Trump episode has people turning off the TV sets or cancelling their subscriptions.

There is a great cartoon going around where a defense lawyer tells the judge that his client will plead guilty if he can change his name to Biden. It's very funny but it bothers me because that's not supposed to happen in the U.S.

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

Hello summer and one of the best summer songs ever!

Hello everyone and welcome to summer!

What's the best way to say hello to summer?

I think that it's The Beach Boys. This is "Do it again", one of their many songs about summer:

A word about June 23

We remember June 23:

"Queen of country":    "We remember June Carter Cash, who was born on this day in 1929".

"Justice Thomas":    "We remember Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas who was born on this day in Georgia in 1940."

"Hall of Famer":    Carl Hubbell was born in Carthage, Missouri on this day in 1903.   He turned into one of the game's greatest pitchers: 253-164, 2.98 ERA & 260 complete games.

"The early Beatles":   "Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe was born in Edinburgh, Scotland on this day in 1940. He died in 1962 when the group was in Germany.   We remember him as one of the early Beatles."

"World War II series":    "Germany invades the USSR....with Barry Jacobsen".....click to listen.

P.S.  You can listen to my show.  If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Thursday's podcast: The Pope and the Cuban delegation....A word about Hunter Biden....and more

The Pope and the Cuban delegation....A word about Hunter Biden....Equity agenda hits the wall.....DiMaggio # 35....and other stories..

Click to listen:

Thursday's video: The Pope and the Cuban delegation....A word about Hunter Biden....and more

The Pope and the Cuban delegation....A word about Hunter Biden....Equity agenda hits the wall.....DiMaggio # 35....and other stories....

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

 

Dr. King still right about race and character

 (My new American Thinker post)

As you may remember, Dr. Martin Luther King said this in the summer of 1963:    

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. I have a dream today.

As a side note, I was in Cuba when he gave that speech so did not hear it until we came to the U.S. in the fall of 1964.  The words made a lot of sense to me as I saw the civil rights movement develop from the 1960s to the 1970s.

A judge in Texas dealt a serious blow to the Biden administration by confirming that we don't do racial preferences for preferred races in the U.S.  We judge people by character, not skin color.

This is the story:    

The Biden administration’s so-called "equity agenda" suffered a major defeat in federal court recently. In a lawsuit challenging the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) -- a new federal agency dedicated to helping only certain preferred racial groups -- a federal judge ruled that the Biden administration cannot discriminate based on race. 

Judge Mark Pittman, a Trump-appointee based in Fort Worth, Texas, delivered a remedial lesson in civics to the administration: "The Constitution demands equal treatment under law."     While such a statement should be obvious to any American, this was quite a painful blow to the administration. On his first day in office, President Biden declared a "whole of government" approach to racial equity, requiring all his agencies to "affirmatively advance[e] equity." In practice, the equity agenda resulted in a bevy of programs open to some races, but not others. Farmers, restaurant owners, homeowners, small business owners and federal contractors all got billions in federal tax dollars, so long as they belonged to certain racial groups. 

In other words, you cannot discriminate based on race.  Once upon a time, that was a generally accepted principle in the U.S.  However, that was before, when we believed what Dr. King said.

Why did the Biden administration even push this agenda anyway?  My guess is that it was all political.  They allowed a federal agency to push something not approved by Congress knowing that a judge will eventually strike it down.  Then they can blame the judge and systemic racism.

We have reason to be happy today: You can't discriminate based on race!

P.S.  Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

A word about June 22

We remember June 22:

World War II # 4:    "Hitler's Blitzrieg, Denmark, Norway & the fall of France"...click to listen......

"Mrs. Lindbergh":     Anne Morrow Lindbergh was born on this day in 1906. She was a wife, mother, author and pilot.

"1941 and the streak":    "Joe DiMaggio went 2-for-5 and took the streak to 35 games"..... 

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WORLD WAR I, part 4, WITH BARRY JACOBSEN, military historian

THURSDAY: WORLD WAR I, part 4, WITH BARRY JACOBSEN, military historian....Listen in now at http://t.co/siIUDLTn6m. #BlogTalkRadio
— Silvio Canto, Jr. (@SCantojr) August 29, 2014

P.S.  You can listen to my show (Canto Talk).  

Wednesday's podcast: The political story in Texas with George Rodriguez



Guest: George Rodriguez, South Texas conservative....Durham before Congress....Texas legislature session.....Wife on the Paxton jury?....and other stories.....

click to listen:

Wednesday's video: The political story in Texas with George Rodriguez

Wednesday's video: 

The political story in Texas with George Rodriguez......