Sunday, October 20, 2024

Sunday's video: No lights in Cuba with Mailyn Salabarria

Go blue, go broke

Go blue, go broke: I'm not sure if I'm the author of…..
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I’m not sure if I’m the author of “go blue, go broke” but it fits the situation in Los Angeles.   

What a mess in what used to be a great city.  Let’s take a look at this editorial from The LA Times:

L.A. is broke. Mayor Karen Bass and the City Council have to get serious about developing a plan to stabilize the city’s finances this year and for the future.

It won’t be an easy task. In just the first three months of the fiscal year that started July 1, the city is on the hook for $258 million in liability costs. The largest category of payouts — 40% — is related to police department negligence or use of force. About a third of the payouts involve personal injury cases from dangerous conditions, such as broken sidewalks and streetlights. Some 15% are employment cases involving harassment and other workplace conditions.

While the liability expenses are the immediate cause of the dire financial picture, the budget adopted by Bass and the council was already overstretched in large part because of expensive raises for police officers and civilian employees approved in the last fiscal year.

Go blue, go broke.  

Once upon a time, L.A. was a vibrant beautiful city that attracted people to its surroundings.  It was not perfect, nothing is, but it worked.  The traffic was a mess but at least people got home safely.   

How do you fix this mess?  Don’t expect the state to help you because they are not doing much better.  Washington D.C. is no better option because there aren’t 60 votes in the U.S. Senate to bail out a sanctuary city.

No easy solutions, I agree.  Maybe the citizens can start by saying “you’re fired” and vote for some people with common sense rather than politicians obsessed with reparations and hating Trump.

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Happy # 55 Juan Gonzalez

We say happy birthday to Juan Gonzalez who was born on this day in Puerto Rico in 1969.

He played with the Rangers from 1991 to 1999.  Juan was an amazing hitter and a key component of the Rangers' divisional titles in '96, '98 and '99 plus winning the AL MVP in 1996 & 1998.  Gonzalez' power 
totals in Texas were amazing:   296 HR & 1059 RBI from 1991 to 1999.    In other words, Juan was one of the best run producers of the 1990's. 

Gonzalez was traded to Detroit after the '99 season.  He was never the same player due to injuries and other issues.   
Where is Juan now?  He has declined invitations to Rangers' events and kept a low profile.

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We remember Mickey Mantle (1931-1995)






We remember Mickey Mantle who was born in Oklahoma on this day in 1931.  His Hall of Fame page tells the story.

Mickey Mantle's funeral took place in Dallas, Texas back in August 1995.    It reminded me of those days when we all loved Mick and his baseball exploits.

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We remember Tom Petty (1950-2017)


We remember Tom Petty who was born in Florida on this day in 1950.   He passed away in 2017 or a couple of days before he turned 67. 

Petty's guitar was the common denominator in all of his songs. 
And you can still hear his music all over the radio.

It's hard to pick a favorite but "The waiting" from 1981 is great.

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Happy # 87 Juan Marichal


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We say happy birthday to Juan Marichal, one of the greatest pitchers in major league history.   

Marichal broke with the Giants in 1960 pitching a shutout against the Phillies.   He went on to pitch 14 seasons with San Francisco:  238 wins, 2.84 ERA and 244 complete games.    

Overall, he won 243 games after finishing with Boston in 1974 and LA in 1975.

In 1963, Marichal and Warren Spahn of the Braves locked into one of the greatest pitching duels in major league.    I wrote about it here:  The day Marichal and Spahn took work ethic to a higher level.

I finally had a chance to see Marichal when he played for Boston in 1974.  He was an old veteran but still had that magical leg kick.   it was a real treat to say that I saw him pitch even at the end of his marvelous career.

Marichal was selected to The Hall of Fame in 1983.

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1803: US Senate ratified The Louisiana Purchase

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On this day in 1803, the US Senate ratified The Louisiana Purchase.   

It confirmed President Jefferson's decision.  There were many concerns back then about the constitutionality of the purchase.  

Nevertheless, it doubled the size of the country and gave the US control of the Mississippi River.
 
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1973: What they called "The Saturday night massacre"

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Back in October 1973, the A's and Mets were playing a very good World Series.  

By evening, it was all about the Nixon White House.   As I recall, the 3 networks went on "alert" to report on the firings at The White House.    

It started when President Nixon told Attorney General Richardson to fire Watergate prosecutor Archibald Fox. AG Richardson resigned in protest.   Deputy Attorney General Ruckelshaus resigned too.   

So President Nixon went down the chain of command and Solicitor General Robert Bork fired Mr. Cox.    (We would hear Bork's name again in 1987 when he was nominated by President Reagan to The Supreme Court.  We now use the word "Borking" when an opponent is attacked in every possible way)

It became "The Saturday Night Massacre".   However, no one got killed and President Nixon had the authority to fire the Watergate prosecutor.   

Archibald Cox was eventually replaced by Leon Jaworski.  He resumed the investigation and Nixon resigned the presidency on August 8, 1974.

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