Catch our shows from last week:
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.
Sunday, November 08, 2026
The Texas governor’s election is a little suspicious
I’m not one to go for election conspiracy theories, but still...
---------------------
As my friends know, I avoid election conspiracies, because it’s better to focus on winning the next one rather than make excuses the last one. I was there in 1976 when a bunch of us in college thought the GOP was dead after a “southern moderate” named Governor Carter beat President Ford. How are we ever coming back? we said.
Well, then a bunch of things happened, the GOP had a nice comeback in 1978, and Reagan won in 1980. Then there was election night 1992, when President Bush went down to our neighbor, Governor Clinton from Arkansas. Two years later, the GOP won the Congress. Or that election night in 2008, when I couldn’t sleep because a guy named Senator Obama had beaten Senator McCain. Get my drift? Things change, especially if you fight back rather than sit around crying.
Let’s come down to Texas. The biggest shock of 2026 is not “the curse of the midterms.” It happens. Just ask President Eisenhower in 1958 or President Reagan in 1986. My eyes could not believe that a totally, and I mean totally, unknown state representative named Gina Hinojosa was beating the mighty Governor Abbott: 53–46 percent.
The Democrats nominated Hinojosa because none of the others wanted to burn his future challenging Governor Abbott. Even national Democrats didn’t spend money here because no one thought she had a chance.
And she wins. Then we hear that all of these counties turned blue one election after they were totally red.
So what happened? Maybe Texas just fell in love with Gina like that song by Johnny Mathis. Remember the guy who saw Gina, and off he went? Love happens, you know: “I can’t believe that I’m such a lucky guy to have Gina, Gina all for my very own.”
Of course, there may be another explanation. I’m hearing a lot of other stories that this love affair with Gina was more like an arranged marriage than love at first sight. I don’t know, but someone smarter than me has to take a look at these numbers and see if they make any sense. I’m sorry, but I can’t believe that high gasoline prices and hatred of data centers had that many people fall in love with a woman who wants sanctuary cities and wants data centers to employ union labor.
Something doesn’t make sense. Maybe the electorate was really that angry, but maybe something creepy happened with all of those first-time voters who voted early. I’m open to hearing an explanation.
PS: Check out my blog for posts, podcasts, and videos.
We remember Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949)
We remember Margaret Mitchell who was born on this day in 1900. Her classic "Gone with the wind" was published in 1936.
Mitchell died in 1949.
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.
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.
November 1964 and "Leader of the pack" was # 1 on the radio
In late 1964, The Shangri-Las hit # 1 in the US charts with "The Leader of the Pack."
The girls were Mary Ann Ganser, Marge Ganser and Mary Weiss. They had a unique style of singing and speaking in their songs!
The girls were very young and had a few other hits but nothing came close to the success of "The Leader of the pack".
According to songfacts:
"This is a tale of young love, parental disapproval and death by motorbike."
It is one of my all time favorite "girl group" classics.
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.
November 1971: "Stairway to heaven" is a year older!
================================
Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to heaven" is another year older this month.
Led Zeppelin was one of the greatest British bands ever. They had a very unique sound and came along just as LP's were replacing 45's.
It is probably the most interesting song of the 1970's but it suffered from massive saturation on FM or "album rock" radio.
Yes, I got so tired of this song that I avoided it for years. I guess that's what happens when you play something so often that it makes you sick.
However, I like it again, specially when I'm working out and need an 8-minute song to help me pass the time.
Overall, it was a great song and a real rock classic, one of the best songs of the rock era. It came at # 31 in Rolling Stone's Top 500!
Last, but not least, I am still not sure what the lyrics mean! Perhaps I'll figure them out in the next 40 years!
Click here for the song below:
Led Zeppelin was one of the greatest British bands ever. They had a very unique sound and came along just as LP's were replacing 45's.
It is probably the most interesting song of the 1970's but it suffered from massive saturation on FM or "album rock" radio.
Yes, I got so tired of this song that I avoided it for years. I guess that's what happens when you play something so often that it makes you sick.
However, I like it again, specially when I'm working out and need an 8-minute song to help me pass the time.
Overall, it was a great song and a real rock classic, one of the best songs of the rock era. It came at # 31 in Rolling Stone's Top 500!
Last, but not least, I am still not sure what the lyrics mean! Perhaps I'll figure them out in the next 40 years!
Click here for the song below:
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.
"There's a lady who's sure All that glitters is gold
And shes buying a stairway to heaven.
When she gets there she knows
If the stores are all closed
With a word she can get what she came for.
Ooh, ooh, and shes buying a stairway to heaven.
There's a sign on the wall But she wants to be sure
cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.
In a tree by the brook Theres a songbird who sings,
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven.
Ooh, it makes me wonder, Ooh, it makes me wonder.
Theres a feeling I get When I look to the west,
And my spirit is crying for leaving.
In my thoughts I have seen
Rings of smoke through the trees,
And the voices of those who standing looking.
Ooh, it makes me wonder,
Ooh, it really makes me wonder.
And its whispered that soon If we all call the tune
Then the piper will lead us to reason.
And a new day will dawn
For those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter.
If there's a bustle in your hedgerow
Don't be alarmed now,
Its just a spring clean for the may queen.
Yes, there are two paths you can go by
But in the long run There's still time
to change the road you're on.
And it makes me wonder.
Your head is humming and it wont go
In case you don't know,
The pipers calling you to join him,
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow,
And did you know
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind.
And as we wind on down the road
Our shadows taller than our soul.
There walks a lady we all know
Who shines white light and wants to show
How everything still turns to gold.
And if you listen very hard
The tune will come to you at last.
When all are one and one is all
To be a rock and not to roll.
And shes buying a stairway to heaven...."
November 1971: Three Dog Night released “Old fashioned love song”
Three Dog Night had many hits, from "One" to "Joy to the world" to "Black and white".
My favorite was released in November 1971. "An old fashioned love song" was a Paul Williams' composition. It peaked at # 4 in the US and # 2 in Canada.
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.
Remembering the JFK-Nixon election of 1960
Years ago today, Senator John F. Kennedy defeated Vice President Richard Nixon to win the 1960 election. VP Nixon conceded the next day despite this election being very close.
Wonder how many people know how close that JFK-Nixon election was? The two men were separated by about 113,000 votes, or 49.72% to 49.55%!
The Kennedy “mystique” is such that many people assume that he was elected by a landslide. On the contrary, it was a very close election and one wonders what would have happened if Nixon had insisted on a recount.
In fact, I think that the nation owes VP Nixon thanks for not having thrown the country into a chaotic recount, much like what we saw in 2000 between Governor Bush and VP Gore. One big difference between Gore vs Bush and JFK vs Nixon is that 2000 was about Florida whereas 1960 would have involved several states, such as Illinois and Texas.
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.
November 1976: A song about a real Great Lakes tragedy!
"The Edmund Fitzgerald was lost with her entire crew of 29 men on Lake Superior November 10, 1975..." (GLSM)The tragedy shocked the nation. It also reminded us of the size of Lake Superior, one of the Great Lakes of North America.
A few days ago, there was a memorial to remember the crew.
Gordon Lightfoot wrote and recorded this great song a year later.
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 legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy.
With a load of iron ore - 26,000 tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early
The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go it was bigger than most
With a crew and the Captain well seasoned.
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
And later that night when the ships bell rang
Could it be the North Wind they'd been feeling.
The wind in the wires made a tattletale sound
And a wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the Captain did, too,
T'was the witch of November come stealing.
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashing
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane West Wind
When supper time came the old cook came on deck
Saying fellows it's too rough to feed ya
At 7PM a main hatchway caved in
He said fellas it's been good to know ya.
The Captain wired in he had water coming in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her.
They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters.
Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the ruins of her ice water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams,
The islands and bays are for sportsmen.
And farther below Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered.
In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they say, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early.
© 1976 Moose Music, Inc."
Saturday, November 07, 2026
Trump after the midterms plus a reaction to Texas
Trump after the midterms plus a reaction to Texas.....
Hasan Piker opens the liberal zoo
The Democrats’ foremost spokesman is turning the long knives on those he deems insufficiently radical.
--------------------------
Who knew that we’d be hearing a lot from Hasan Piker after the election? Well, he is back, and his new target is Governor Newsom of California. I guess that Hasan doesn’t think that Gavin is cool. Let’s check this out:
Anti-American leftist Hasan Piker, the Democrat Party’s favorite podcaster, is shutting the door on supporting California’s Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom and his potential run for president.
During his recent podcast appearance with rapper and activist Vic Mensa, Piker spoke about Newsom — who has been widely considered a possible Democrat candidate for 2028 — and said he just doesn’t like the slick Californian.
“He’s very unappealing to me, he’s terrible, but he’s terrible because of his policies,” Piker told Mensa.
Bad policies. Unappealing. Just another day at the liberal zoo. It reminds some of us of that book “The Bronx Zoo” or the story of the dysfunctional New York Yankees of the late 1970’s. To be fair, those Yankees won back-to-back championships. Wonder if the new Democrats will be that good?
Piker’s return is a shot across the bow that the podcaster will speak his mind. Piker probably doesn’t like Newsom because he can see the damage that “slick,” lousy governor is doing to the Democrat brand. Furthermore, Piker wants to see a more radical choice for president in 2028. He is tired of the establishment, too. He will probably be very loud if the newly elected Democrat majorities do not come through with their promises.
All in all, a pain in the you-know-what for the new Democrat majority. Piker will call them cowards if they don’t come through or try to work with the GOP.
Get ready because Hasan ain’t going away. He plans to hang around and remind everyone that you can be primaried too.
P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts, and videos.
Happy # 88 Jim Kaat
We say happy birthday to Jim Kaat born on this day in 1938. He was a great lefty who later became a wonderful baseball analyst.
Kaat broke with the Washington Senators in 1959 and became a starter in 1961 now that the team was in Minnesota.
"Kitty", as he was called, pitched 15 years with the Twins and won 190 games with a 3.34 ERA.
Kaat beat Sandy Koufax in game 2 of the 1965 World Series. In 1966, Kaat was named AL Sporting News Pitcher of the Year. Later, he started games in the 1969 & 1970 ALCS but the Twins were swept twice by the Orioles.
Surprisingly, the Twins traded him to the Chicago White Sox where he won 45 with a 3.10 ERA in 3 seasons. It was probably the best pitching period of his career.
Kaat hung around until 1983. He finished with 283 wins, a 3.45 ERA and completed 180 games.
After baseball, Jim Kaat moved to the radio/TV booth and became one of the best game analysts.
Kaat broke with the Washington Senators in 1959 and became a starter in 1961 now that the team was in Minnesota.
"Kitty", as he was called, pitched 15 years with the Twins and won 190 games with a 3.34 ERA.
Kaat beat Sandy Koufax in game 2 of the 1965 World Series. In 1966, Kaat was named AL Sporting News Pitcher of the Year. Later, he started games in the 1969 & 1970 ALCS but the Twins were swept twice by the Orioles.
Surprisingly, the Twins traded him to the Chicago White Sox where he won 45 with a 3.10 ERA in 3 seasons. It was probably the best pitching period of his career.
Kaat hung around until 1983. He finished with 283 wins, a 3.45 ERA and completed 180 games.
After baseball, Jim Kaat moved to the radio/TV booth and became one of the best game analysts.
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.
Happy # 84 Johnny Rivers
Rivers recorded a very popular live album with covers of "Memphis" (Chuck Berry), "Mountain of Love" & "The Seventh Son". It was great dancing music.
After that, he had a string of great songs like "Secret agent man", "Poor side of town" and "Summer rain".
In the 1970's he came back to the charts with "Rockin' Pneumonia and Boogie Woogie Flu".
His songs always bring a memory of this or that.
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.
1972: Nixon reelected in landslide!
The campaign was dominated by the war in Vietnam. However, President Nixon withdrew most of the troops and the war not the issue that the Democrats expected. Also, Senator McGovern was branded as a liberal and flopped in most of the country.
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.
1956: We can not forget what happened in Hungary many years ago
The Cold War is over. The USSR is the answer to a trivia question. We call them Russia now.
Nevertheless, an amazing thing happened in Hungary this week in 1956. It started with simple protests and then students, workers, and even some soldiers demanded more freedom.
The Soviet tanks eventually crushed the rebellion and the dream was not realized until 1989.
However, we can never forget what the brave citizens of Hungary did this week in 1956. They stood up to communism and we can not forget their bravery.
Nevertheless, an amazing thing happened in Hungary this week in 1956. It started with simple protests and then students, workers, and even some soldiers demanded more freedom.
The Soviet tanks eventually crushed the rebellion and the dream was not realized until 1989.
However, we can never forget what the brave citizens of Hungary did this week in 1956. They stood up to communism and we can not forget their bravery.
Friday, November 06, 2026
Are we ready for more ‘caravanistas’?
They’re heading to Texas, and Governor-elect Hinojosa insisted during Abbott’s tenure that they should be welcomed in.
----------------------------
The caravans are coming, or so we hear. Yes, the message south of the border is that Trump lost and the border openers won. In other words, will new Texas Governor Gina Hinojosa stop her predecessor’s excellent work on the border? We forget that Governor Abbott defended that border when President Biden was in office.
Governor-elect Hinojosa will soon face a big test on the border. We remember the lady who voted for sanctuary cities and called on Governor Abbott to stop local or state cooperation with ICE.
What happens when the next caravan shows up? It may be sooner than the Governor-elect would prefer. Here is a recent story from FOX News:
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a strong warning to a major migrant caravan that crossed into Mexico and was moving north with hopes of reaching the U.S.-Mexico border.
“USBP is closely engaged with its international partners to monitor their movement and any additional developments,” DHS told Fox News in a statement. “[United States Border Patrol] USBP reminds migrants that under the leadership of President Trump and Homeland Secretary Mullin, the border has remained closed and secured for the last 16 months.”
The caravan, numbering in the hundreds as of Monday, is predominantly made up of Hondurans, Guatemalans, Salvadorans, Ecuadoreans and Haitians.
Well, what do you say, Governor-elect? She avoided these issues during the campaign and concentrated on, you guess it, “affordability.” The campaign is over now and governing is here.
The good news is that the Trump administration will get involved very quickly and put federal troops on the border, if necessary. I assume that the Governor-elect knows that all those border towns are not looking forward to a rerun of those horrible days when the border was a disaster. We assume that, but the immigration activists now have a governor in Texas that they helped elect. All those immigration lawyers want work, and caravans can keep them busy.
Time will tell, but we remember “open borders,” Gina, and my best is that she will soon be ordering the National Guard.
P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts, and videos.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)