Monday, October 14, 2024
Those terrible Spaniards and their conquests
Those terrible Spaniards and their conquests - American Thinker https://t.co/EeZ6A7Gmzj
— Silvio Canto. Jr. (@silvio_canto) October 14, 2024Down in Mexico, the new "Presidenta," as she likes to be called, is off to a confusing start, as a friend told me this weekend. The country is dealing with a massive crime wave including a mayor being decapitated. Yes, I mean that his head was cut off. The poor man had been on the job for five days. There is a new man on the job.
So what is the new "presidenta" focused on these days? Well, "la presidenta" is continuing her predecessor's fight with Spain over an apology for crimes committed centuries ago. Let's check this from our friend Allan Wall:
In 2020, then-President AMLO changed the name of the celebration in Mexico to Día de la Nación Pluricultural, Day of the Multicultural Nation.On October 12th, 2024, on her Twitter X account, President Claudia Sheinbaum posted this (my translation throughout): “The 12th of October is neither the Día de la Raza nor the Día de la Hispanidad. Christopher Columbus discovered America for the Europeans, but in our continent (Western Hemisphere) and particularly in what we now call Mexico, there were already great civilizations and cultures of which we females feel proud and we males feel proud [it’s awkward in Spanish too]. The arrival of the Spaniards more than five centuries ago represented subjection and even elimination of the original peoples. To offer apologies for the crimes committed is not shameful, on the contrary, it makes peoples greater and brings them nearer.”
Well, no one denies that mistakes were made in the colonization of Mexico. Colonizing usually doesn't happen after a referendum or plebiscite. It's usually done by force and it's not pretty. Yes, the Spanish were often brutal, but that's history, ugly and uglier. At the same, it’s not as if Moctezuma’s police read your Miranda rights or his opposition had their own newspapers.
Of course, what does what happened 400 years ago have to with today? A lot, according to "la presidenta" who can't resist showing her devotion to the former president on a daily basis.
So the murders are tearing up Mexican society. Small-town politicians are learning the hard way that criminal elements will decapitate you if you refuse to play. Nevertheless, "la presidenta" is on a mission to get Spain to apologize for what those terrible conquistadores did years ago.
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Good news: Hello Columbus Day
Happy days are here again. It's another Columbus Day and an opportunity to remember everything that sailed with him.
In 2017, President Trump signed a proclamation for Columbus and it did not blame Christopher for a darn thing. Let’s see the text:
Five hundred and twenty-five years ago, Christopher Columbus completed an ambitious and daring voyage across the Atlantic Ocean to the Americas. The voyage was a remarkable and then-unparalleled feat that helped launch the age of exploration and discovery. The permanent arrival of Europeans to the Americas was a transformative event that undeniably and fundamentally changed the course of human history and set the stage for the development of our great Nation. Therefore, on Columbus Day, we honor the skilled navigator and man of faith, whose courageous feat brought together continents and has inspired countless others to pursue their dreams and convictions -- even in the face of extreme doubt and tremendous adversity.
More than five centuries after his initial voyage, we remember the “Admiral of the Ocean Sea” for building the critical first link in the strong and enduring bond between the United States and Europe. While Isabella I and Ferdinand II of Spain sponsored his historic voyage, Columbus was a native of the City of Genoa, in present day Italy, and represents the rich history of important Italian American contributions to our great Nation. There can be no doubt that American culture, business, and civic life would all be much less vibrant in the absence of the Italian American community. We also take this opportunity to reaffirm our close ties to Columbus’s country of birth, Italy. Italy is a strong ally and a valued partner in promoting peace and promoting prosperity around the world.
In commemoration of Christopher Columbus’s historic voyage, the Congress, by joint resolution of April 30, 1934, and modified in 1968 (36 U.S.C. 107), as amended, has requested the President proclaim the second Monday of October of each year as “Columbus Day.”
NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 9, 2017, as Columbus Day. I call upon the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate ceremonies and activities. I also direct that the flag of the United States be displayed on all public buildings on the appointed day in honor of our diverse history and all who have contributed to shaping this Nation.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this sixth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand seventeen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-second.
Glad to see it. I’m sure that President Trump was called a racist or this or that. However, his point is correct.
The Europeans brought a lot to the New World, such as the rule of law and eventually the Bill of Rights that allows uninformed people to protest Columbus’ monuments.
Blaming Columbus for every native woman raped or village destroyed misrepresents what actually happened after he landed here. After all, most of today's Columbus critics would not last a second under Moctezuma, Geronimo, or the others. The "indigenous people" crowd has created this romantic view of what was here before Columbus.
As for me, I’m delighted that I was born in a New World discovered by Columbus. In the meantime, the attacks continue.
Happy # 77 Justin Hayward (The Moody Blues)
October 14, 1962: Day 1 of The Cuban Missile Crisis
Second, it was the beginning of the end for Chairman Khrushchev. He was gone by the fall of 1964. The Soviets invested heavily in their military afterwards. They understood that they were inferior to the US in October 1962.
Third, and sad for Cubans, it guaranteed Castro’s survival and the establishment of a Soviet satellite. The Soviet Union subsidized Cuba until it collapsed in 1992.
My family was down in the island and my parents recall a very stressful period.
Happy # 78 Al Oliver
We say happy birthday to Al Oliver who was born in Ohio on this day in 1946.
Oliver broke in with the Pirates in 1968. He spent the next few years as one of the best hitters in the NL: .296 in 10 years with Pittsburgh.
In 1977, he went to Texas (.319 in 4 seasons) and later to Montreal, where he won an NL batting title in 1982: .331 average, 22 HR, 109 RBI and 204 hits.
Overall, a rather productive career: .303, 1,328 RBI & 2,743 hits.
1973 World Series: Willie Mays' last major league hit
Willie Mays was traded to the Mets in 1972 to sell a few more seats at Shea Stadium. In fact, I recall going to a Mets game in July '72 and watching Mays for the first time in my life. The crowd went crazy when Mays came up to bat.
In 1973, the Mets won the NL East and shocked the world by beating the Reds in the NLCS.
The Mets eventually lost to the A's in the World Series. However, Willie Mays got his last hit in game 2 of the Series.
He played in two others: 1954 with the New York Giants and in 1962 with the San Francisco Giants. He made that famous catch in 1954 against Cleveland.
We remember President Eisenhower (1890-1969)
Eisenhower turned out to be one of the most consequential men of the 20th century. First, he led the Allied Forces in World War II. Second, he was elected the 34th President of the US, 1953-61.
Ike remains one of the most popular presidents ever.
October 14, 1965: The day that Sandy Koufax broke my heart
They had four Cuban players: 2-time batting champ Tony Oliva, the eventual 1965 AL MVP Zoilo Versalles, a veteran but still reliable pitcher Camilo Pascual and outfielder Hilario Valdespino.
They also had Harmon Killebrew, Bob Allison, Jim Kaat and 20-game winner Jim Grant. It was a great team!
We ran home from school to watch the game but Koufax beat the Twins, 2-0. He was brilliant.
I learned that day that baseball is the ultimate heart-breaker.