Best analysis of the day

“…There is no longer any plausible scenario by which Willard Romney, the Piltdown Man of American politics, will not be the Republican nominee for president of the United States. Which means, among other things, we have nearly a flat year of Willard’s defending his lucrative career as a vulture capitalist and looter of old people’s pensions on the ground that he is a classic American up-from-the-bootstraps success story, and that he is only in this to make sure that other children like him have the opportunity to be born into wealth and make themselves wealthier. The way he’s going — and his staggering recitation of tinpot Reaganite banality after his win here was only the most recent indication of where he’s headed — by the middle of, oh, April, we are going to hear about how Willard was raised a poor black child.”

Charles P. Pierce – Esquire

Nothing good gets away

“In Novemeber of 1958, John Steinbeck — the renowned author of, most notably, The Grapes of Wrath, East of Eden, and Of Mice and Men — received a letter from his eldest son, Thom, who was attending boarding school. In it, the teenager spoke of Susan, a young girl with whom he believed he had fallen in love.

“Steinbeck replied the same day. His beautiful letter of advice can be enjoyed below.”

Letters of Note

01/10

Today is the birthday

… of Willie McCovey. “Stretch,” the baseball hall-of-famer, is 74.

Although Willie McCovey played hurt throughout much of his 22-year career, the Giants first baseman used a sweeping swing to belt 521 homers and collect more than 2,200 hits. He led the National League in homers three times and in RBIs twice, also pacing the circuit in slugging percentage for three consecutive years (1968-70). McCovey earned National League MVP honors in 1969, 10 years after earning the National League Rookie of the Year Award in 1959.

… of Scott McKenzie. So “if you’re going to San Francisco” wish Scott a happy 73rd birthday.

… of William Sanderson. The character actor (E.B. Farnum in “Deadwood,” Larry on “Newhart,” Lippy in “Lonesome Dove”) is 68.

… of Rod Stewart. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is 67.

Rod Stewart can be regarded as the rock generation’s heir to Sam Cooke. Like Cooke, Stewart delivers both romantic ballads and uptempo material with conviction and panache, and he sings in a warm, soulful rasp. A singer’s singer, Stewart seemed made to inhabit the spotlight.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

… of George Foreman. The boxing hall-of-famer and cook is 63. Foreman has five daughters and five sons and has named all of the sons George — George Jr., George III, George IV, George V, and George VI.

… of Patricia Mae Andrzejewski. Pat Benatar is 59. She won four consecutive Grammy awards in the 1980s for “Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female.”

… of Shawn Colvin. The singer is 56.

Shawn Colvin is one of the bright spots of the so-called “new folk movement” that began in the late ’80s. And though she grew out of the somewhat limited “woman with a guitar” school, she has managed to keep the form fresh with a diverse approach, avoiding the clichéd sentiments and all-too-often formulaic arrangements that have plagued the genre. In less than a decade of recording, Colvin has emerged as a songcraftsman with plenty of pop smarts, which has earned her a broad and loyal following.

All Music Guide

Jim Croce was born on this date in 1943. Croce released just 11 singles, but “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” and “Time in a Bottle” made it to number one, the first in July 1973, the second posthumously after Croce died in a plane crash at age 30 in September of that year.

In the music industry, arguably the worst tragedy that can befall an artist is to die in their prime, when he or she is just beginning to break through to the mainstream and reach people on a national level. One such artist was Jim Croce, a songwriter with a knack for both upbeat, catchy singles and empathetic, melancholy ballads. Though Croce only recorded a few studio albums before an untimely plane crash, he continues to be remembered posthumously. Croce appealed to fans as a common man, and it was not a gimmick — he was a father and husband who went through a series of blue-collar jobs. And whether he used dry wit, gentle emotions, or sorrow, Croce sang with a rare form of honesty and power. Few artists have ever been able to pull off such down-to-earth storytelling as convincingly as he was.

All Music Guide

Linda Susan Boreman was born 63 years ago today; she died in 2002 from injuries sustained in a traffic accident. Her stage name was Linda Lovelace. The 1972 film Deep Throat, starring Lovelace, was one of the first pornographic films to have a plot, certain acts, decent production values and mainstream success. It was arguably the first porn film to become part of pop culture. Lovelace/Boreman at first celebrated the film and her fame but later became anti-porn and claimed she had been exploited and abused.

Had he not smoked, the historian and author Stephen Ambrose might have been 76 today; he died in 2002.

A pre-med student, he was annoyed when his state university requirements compelled him to take an American history class the second semester of his sophomore year. It was called, “Representative Americans,” and was based on biographies of individuals throughout the country’s history; the first class focused on George Washington. The professor said that the students would be completing their own biography of an unknown Wisconsinite, which they would have to use primary research from the state historical society to write. The result, the professor promised, would add to the sum of the world’s knowledge.

“And that just hit me like a sledgehammer,” Ambrose later said. “It had never before occurred to me that I could add to the sum of the world’s knowledge.” He changed his major to history, and at the end of the term wrote a 10-page biography of a Civil War-era one-term Wisconsin Congressman named Charles Billinghurst. Ambrose marveled that he was now the world’s leading expert on Charles Billinghurst. “Now what I soon learned was, the reason for that was that nobody else cared about Charles A. Billinghurst,” Ambrose laughed. But his next epiphany was what transformed him from a historian to a world-class storyteller: “But I can make ’em care if I tell the story right.”

He became the biographer of Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon, he wrote a best-selling book about the Lewis & Clark expedition titled Undaunted Courage (1996), and wrote multiple books on WWII, like Citizen Soldiers (1997) and Band of Brothers (1992).

The Writer’s Almanac with Garrison Keillor

I had lunch with Ambrose and his wife thirty or so years ago when he was working on the Nixon book.

Roy Edward Disney was born on January 10th in 1930; he died in 2009. His father was Roy Oliver Disney and his uncle was Walter Elias Disney. Roy E. was the last member of the family to be involved in the management of the company.

Max Patkin was born on this date in 1920; he died in 1999. Patkin, the Clown Prince of Baseball, played before crowds at ballparks big and small for more than 50 years. He played himself in Bull Durham.

Ray Bolger was born on January 10, 1904. He’s best known, of course, as Hunk in The Wizard of Oz.

Dumas Malone was born in Coldwater, Michigan, on this date in 1892. Professor Malone, who died in 1986, was a historian, biographer and editor. His foremost work, the six volume Jefferson and His Time, is the most authoritative biography of the William and Mary alumnus who became author of the Declaration of Independence, third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia. The last volume, Sage of Monticello was completed when Malone was 89 years-old. Dumas Malone was presented the Medal of Freedom by President Reagan in 1983.

“Pa” Charles Ingalls was born on this date in 1836. Daughter Mary was born on this date in 1865.

The Republicans’ Lost Privacy

“[I]n the debate Saturday night, Romney went beyond mere opposition to Roe. He said he thought Griswold v. Connecticut, the 1965 case that first made explicit the right to privacy, was also wrong. ‘I don’t believe they decided that correctly,’ Romney said.”

From a report on the Republicans and privacy by Jeffrey Toobin.

Griswold was the case that prevents states from prohibiting the sale of birth control products. It is more fundamental than Roe v. Wade.

January 9th

Richard Nixon was born 99 years ago today.

It is also the birthday

… of Judith Krantz, 84. She published her first novel at age 50.

… of Bart Starr. The hall-of-fame quarterback is 78.

… of Dick Enberg. The sportscaster is 77 (oh, my!).

… of Joan Báez. The singer is 71. Her parents were born in Mexico and Scotland. Joan was born on Staten Island, New York.

… of Jimmy Page. The Led Zeppelin rocker is 68.

Combining the visceral power and intensity of hard rock with the finesse and delicacy of British folk music, Led Zeppelin redefined rock in the Seventies and for all time. They were as influential in that decade as the Beatles were in the prior one. Their impact extends to classic and alternative rockers alike. Then and now, Led Zeppelin looms larger than life on the rock landscape as a band for the ages with an almost mystical power to evoke primal passions. The combination of Jimmy Page’s powerful, layered guitar work, Robert Plant’s keening, upper-timbre vocals, John Paul Jones’ melodic bass playing and keyboard work, and John Bonham’s thunderous drumming made for a band whose alchemy proved enchanting and irresistible. “The motto of the group is definitely, ‘Ever onward,’” Page said in 1977, perfectly summing up Led Zeppelin’s forward-thinking philosophy.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

… of Brenda Gayle Webb. Loretta Lynn’s little sister Crystal Gayle is 61.

… of J.K. Simmons. He’s 57. He’s seen on The Closer and Law & Order as Dr. Skoda, and was terrific, I thought, as Juno’s dad. He’s very good in a small role in Up in the Air, too.

… of New York Times Pulitizer Prize winning book critic Michiko Kakutani. She is 57 today.

… of Muggsy Bogues, shortest player ever in the NBA at 5-foot, three. Bogues is 47 today.

… of Dave Matthews. He’s 45.

… of Chad Ochocinco. He’s Tres-Quatro.

… of Sergio Garcia, 32.

Gilligan (and Maynard Krebs) was born on this date in 1935. That’s Bob Denver, who died in 2005.

Lee Van Cleef, the Bad in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, was born on January 9, 1925. He died in 1989 (but the Good and the Ugly are still alive).

iTunes was announced 11 years ago today; the iPhone five years ago today.

Muir Woods National Monument (California)

… was proclaimed such by President Theodore Roosevelt 104 years ago today.

On January 9, 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt signed legislation establishing Muir Woods National Monument. William and Elizabeth Kent had donated the woods to save the trees, and asked that it be named after John Muir. Upon learning of its dedication, Mr. Muir declared, “This is the best tree-lovers monument that could possibly be found in all the forests of the world.”

Muir Woods National Monument was established to protect an old-growth coast redwood forest from destruction. The park’s award-winning trails are recognized for their accessibility, providing visitors with an easy walk on paved trails or boardwalks through the Woods. Other trails to the ridge tops offer a more strenuous experience for avid hikers. In the light gaps beneath the redwood trees are red alders, California big leaf maples, tanoaks, and Douglas fir. The forest floor is covered in redwood sorrel, ferns, fungi, duff and debris. Several bridges cross Redwood Creek which flows through the park year-round. Wildlife residents include the endangered coho salmon fingerlings, Pacific wren, woodpeckers, owls, deer, chipmunks, skunks, river otters and squirrels to name a few.

Source: Muir Woods National Monument

NewMexiKen photos, April 2005.

Wind Cave National Park (South Dakota)

… was established 109 years ago today. It is the 7th oldest national park.

One of the world’s longest and most complex caves and 28,295 acres of mixed-grass prairie, ponderosa pine forest, and associated wildlife are the main features of the park. The cave is well known for its outstanding display of boxwork, an unusual cave formation composed of thin calcite fins resembling honeycombs. The park’s mixed-grass prairie is one of the few remaining and is home to native wildlife such as bison, elk, pronghorn, mule deer, coyotes, and prairie dogs.

American Indian stories dating back centuries speak of a “hole that breathes cool air” in the Black Hills. Cowboys came across a breathing hole in 1881 and the exploration of Wind Cave began. In 1903 Wind Cave became the first cave anywhere in the world to be designated a national park. Cave explorers are still finding new rooms and passages in Wind Cave, the fifth longest cave in the world.

Source: Wind Cave National Park

All This Talk About Tebow

After all he has always been a winner. Two-time BCS national champion. Two-time first team All American. Heisman Trophy winner. Two-time Maxwell Award winner.

But there is this, via Wikipedia citing several sources:

“In the 2009 BCS Championship Game, he wore John 3:16 on his eye black and the verse became the highest-ranked Google search term over the next 24 hours, generating over 90 million searches.”

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

Yesterday Tim Tebow threw for 316 yards, 31.6 yards per completion.

Take Denver and the 13½ against the Pats.

http://youtu.be/WeVh0XnCwM8

Richard Nixon

… was born in Yorba Linda, California, on January 9th 99 years ago today (1913).

I was contacted by the staff working with Richard Nixon on his memoirs, RN, many years ago. I was asked to see if I could determine — from among the Nixon papers in my custody — the time of day he was born. As I remember it, my research was inconclusive. Someone else’s must have been helpful. The memoirs begin:

I was born in a house my father built. My birth on the night of January 9, 1913, coincided with a record-breaking cold snap in our town of Yorba Linda, California.

If not for this research request, for other efforts I later received an autographed copy of the memoirs inscribed to me: “To Ken, With appreciation for his service to the nation.” I’ve always cherished that inscription.

Nixon, by the way, did not use his middle name or initial. Though you always see him referred to as Richard M. Nixon, he himself signed as Richard Nixon and he titled his memoir RN.

Best redux post of the day

Andrew Tobias gave us all a little perspective when he posted this six years ago:

I am listening to [the book] 1776 on my Nano, and it’s 2 degrees Fahrenheit (in Boston, in 1776) and people are dragging 120 tons of can[n]ons from Ft. Ticonderoga 300 miles to General George Washington in Dorchester, and the suffering of the troops — civilians like you and me, who’ve left their families to fight the British — is astounding. Sentries are literally freezing to death. And all I can think about is how upset we get if we’re assigned a middle seat.

If we can’t get a holiday for Elvis Presley and Soupy Sales, what kind of country is this?

Jesse Garon and Elvis Aron Presley were born in a house without electricity or plumbing in East Tupelo, Mississippi, on this date in 1935. Jesse, the older twin, was stillborn. The parents were Vernon Elvis Presley and Gladys Smith Presley.

Elvis Presley is the undisputed King of Rock and Roll. He rose from humble circumstances to launch the rock and roll revolution with his commanding voice and charismatic stage presence. In the words of the historical marker that stands outside the house where he was born: “Presley’s career as a singer and entertainer redefined popular music.”

Presley was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, on January 8, 1935, and grew up surrounded by gospel music of the Pentecostal church. In 1948 the family moved to Memphis, where he was exposed to blues and jazz on Beale Street. After graduating from high school in 1953, an 18-year-old Presley visited the Memphis Recording Service – also the home of Sun Records – to record his voice. Owner/producer Sam Phillips was struck by the plaintive emotion in Presley’s vocals and subsequently teamed him with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black. In July 1954 the trio worked up “That’s All Right” and “Blue Moon of Kentucky” – blues and country songs, respectively – in a crackling, uptempo style that stands as the blueprint for rock and roll.

After five groundbreaking singles, Presley’s contract was sold to RCA Records and his career quickly took off. …

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Presley died in 1977, age 42.

Milton Supman was born in Franklinton, North Carolina, on this date in 1926. On TV he became the comedian Soupy Sales, beginning in Detroit on WXYZ-TV in 1953 with Lunch with Soupy Sales. The show was mostly just silliness with puppets White Fang and Black Tooth, Pookie and, of course, Willie the Worm. Supman, or Sales, also hosted an 11PM show in the 1950s, Soups On — the show always featured a musician, often a jazz musician. Coleman Hawkins, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, Charlie Parker, and Stan Getz appeared on the show. In 1959 Soupy’s daytime show went on ABC; in the mid-1960s it was syndicated nationwide from New York.

On January 1, 1965, miffed at having to work on the holiday, Sales ended his live broadcast by encouraging his young viewers to tiptoe into their still-sleeping parents’ bedrooms and remove those “funny green pieces of paper with pictures of U.S. Presidents” from their pants and pocketbooks. “Put them in an envelope and mail them to me”, Soupy instructed the children. “And I’ll send you a postcard from Puerto Rico!” He was then hit with a pie. Several days later, a chagrined Soupy announced that money (mostly Monopoly money) was unexpectedly being received in the mail. He explained that he had been joking and announced that the contributions would be donated to charity. As parents’ complaints increased, WNEW’s management felt compelled to suspend Sales for two weeks. Young viewers picketed Channel 5. The uproar surrounding Sales’ suspension increased his popularity. Sales described the incident in his 2001 autobiography Soupy Sez! My Life and Zany Times.

Wikipedia

Soupy Sales died in 2009. He and his guests had been hit with an estimated 20,000 pies by then.

Today is also the birthday

… of Larry Storch of F Troop. He’s 89.

… of newscasters Sander Vanocur (84) and Charles Osgood (79).

… of Dame Shirley Bassey. The singer of “Goldfinger” is 75.

… of Bob Eubanks. “The Newlywed Game” emcee is 74.

… of Stephen Hawking. The physicist and author is 70.

… of Yvette Mimieux. The actress is 70.

Born to a French father and Mexican mother, actress Yvette Mimieux grew up within shouting distance of Hollywood Boulevard. The blonde, well-proportioned Mimieux was a beauty contest winner and model when signed to an MGM contract in 1959. With her second film appearance as ethereal 800th century girl Weena in The Time Machine (1960), Mimieux achieved stardom; with her next film, Where the Boys Are (1960), she proved capable of heavy dramatics via a discreetly handled “gang rape” sequence. An appearance as a terminally ill girl on the 1964 Dr. Kildare episode “Tyger Tyger” drew a great deal of press attention for Mimieux, principally because she spent most of her early scenes in a bikini.

All Movie Guide via New York Times

… of David Bowie. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is 65.

David Bowie is rock’s foremost futurist and a genre-bending pioneer, chameleon, and transformer. Throughout his solo career and in his alliances with other artists – including Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, Brian Eno and Nine Inch Nails – Bowie has positioned himself on the cutting edge of rock and roll. His innovations have created or furthered several major trends in rock and roll, including glam-rock, art-rock and the very notion of the self-mythologized, larger-than-life rock star.

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame pitcher Bruce Sutter is 59 today.

Bruce Sutter was on the fringes of professional baseball, a struggling Minor League pitcher with an injured arm, until he received a gift that changed his life forever. A wise, old man of the game taught him a new pitch — a split-fingered fastball — and in a matter of years, Sutter took this new weapon and blazed a trail as one of the game’s top relief pitchers. A six-time All-Star, Sutter was the 1979 National League Cy Young Award-winner and was on the mound for the last six outs of the Cardinals’ 1982 World Series championship. He saved at least 20 games in nine consecutive seasons and set an NL mark with 45 saves in 1984. The right-hander retired following an arm injury with 300 saves and a 2.84 ERA to his credit.

National Baseball Hall of Fame

R. Kelly is 45. Sean Paul’s Temperature is 39 today.

Kim Jong-un is 28 or 29 today.

Rose Louise Hovick was born 101 years ago today. As Gypsy Rose Lee she was a burlesque star. Her memoir was made into the stage musical and film Gypsy.

Albert Bierstadt was born in Solingen, Germany, in 1830 but came to American in 1833. His landscape paintings of the American west are among the best of their kind.

Albert Bierstadt, "The Oregon Trail"1869

Three Classics from the NewMexiKen Archives

These three posts were published here seven years ago today. I re-post them because my headlines are so good. 🙂

Judge Hardy wouldn’t approve either

From USATODAY.com —

A year after Janet Jackson’s breast brought a crackdown on indecency, Fox has rejected an ad for the Super Bowl offering a rare view of another celeb: Mickey Rooney’s backside.

In the spot for Airborne, a natural cold remedy, the 84-year-old star of such 1940s staples as National Velvet and the Andy Hardy films is in a sauna when someone behind him coughs. He overreacts, jumps up, screams and heads for the door. In his rush, his towel drops, baring his buns for about two seconds.

Paper or Plastic?

From the Des Moines Register —

A 65-year-old Wal-Mart greeter has been fired for greeting customers with a computer-generated photograph of himself wearing nothing but a Wal-Mart sack.

Dean Wooten was fired in September from his job as a greeter at the Muscatine Wal-Mart store where he had worked for seven years, state records show. He was accused of greeting customers with a picture of himself in which he appeared to be naked except for the carefully placed sack.

Wooten allegedly told customers that Wal-Mart was cutting back on expenses and that the sack represented the new employee uniform.

Well, they might want to rename the school

From The Indianapolis Star —

IPS police and Marion County child protection workers are investigating an incident involving two first-graders who officials said were caught trying to have sex Wednesday at an Eastside school.

District officials worried that the incident may have signaled that at least one of the 6-year-olds had been abused before. A child psychologist acknowledged that possibility but said the behavior simply could have been an attempt to copy something seen on a video or cable TV.

“One of them may be a victim,” said Indianapolis Public Schools Superintendent Duncan Pat Pritchett. “We’re waiting for the conclusion of the two investigations. At that age, that’s learned behavior.”

The names of the two children have not been made public. But the girl and boy, who were released to their parents, received five-day suspensions and could be booted from classes at School 69 for the rest of the year.

“It’s extremely troubling because of their young ages. I have never in my life experienced anything like this,” said School 69 Principal Gary W. Davis, a 22-year educator.

El Paso

Yesterday was the 100th anniversary of the admission of New Mexico as a state. To avoid the tumult and hullaballoo I decided to leave New Mexico altogether and so headed down I-25 to El Paso, Texas, Thursday for a 22-hour visit. There I was given a most excellent tour by Annette, native of El Paso and long-time friend of this blog. (Her first comment here was almost eight years ago, in March 2004.) Click any of the photos for the gallery or larger versions.

The first European settlement in that area was El Paso del Norte, founded on the south side of the Rio Grande (Río Bravo del Norte in Mexico) by the Spanish in 1659. (Even before that, a Thanksgiving mass was celebrated near the river in April 1598.) A smaller community was established on the north side of the river in 1680. This northern village, which was part of New Mexico until 1850, became El Paso. The older, much larger city in Chihuahua, Mexico, El Paso del Norte, was renamed Ciudad Juárez for five-time president of Mexico Benito Juárez in 1888. In 2010 El Paso had approximately 650,000 people with another 90,000 in the metropolitan area. Ciudad Juárez has twice that many residents.

The first item of business Thursday evening was dinner at Forti’s Mexican Restaurant, deep in an older part of town, though established just in 1976. The decor included every Mexican restaurant motif known; it was delightful. After dinner was a tour of downtown El Paso, including San Jacinto Plaza still lighted for the holidays, a surprising number of large buildings compared to Albuquerque, and many variations of the dollar store. The highlight was a spectacular view of the lights of both the American and Mexican cities from Rim Drive. I can’t remember a more spectacular view of city lights since on approach into LAX.

Friday was a superb January day, crystal clear with the temperature in the 60s by early afternoon. The first stop was Chamizal National Memorial.

The boundary between Mexico and the United States after the war between the two countries was first set in the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848; 1,248 miles of the 1,900 mile boundary followed the Rio Grande/Río Bravo. Under international law, if a river changes its course gradually, the boundary moves with the channel. If, though, the river changes its course dramatically in a flood, the boundary remains in the old river bed, even if dry. The Rio Grande/Río Bravo did both; beginning in the 1850s it moved south, gradually and at times abruptly. Mexico complained over the loss of land. Ultimately, after more than 100 years of contention, the U.S. and Mexico agreed to the Chamizal Treaty. President Kennedy and Mexican President Adolfo Lopez Mateos initiated the settlement in 1963; it was furthered and completed by President Johnson. Land was exchanged and the river was fixed in a concrete channel. The National Memorial commemorates the settlement.

Mural by Carlos Flores on outside of Chamizal National Memorial visitor center.

U.S. side of original boundary marker (not in actual location).
Mexican side of original boundary marker.

A border crossing as seen from the Memorial grounds.

The morning’s second stop was the Lucky Cafe on Alameda where breakfast is served 24 by 7. I believe I was the only person there who didn’t speak Spanish.

Nearby was the grave of my grandfather, John Louis Beyett, who died in March 1944, before I was born. My mother was raised by an uncle and aunt, so her father is little more than a few stories and a few photographs to me. Nonetheless, I have been wanting to make a pilgrimage to his grave for many years. I knew it was unmarked, but not unrecorded and the cemetery staff was able to direct me. Beneath the dried winter grass of the inexplicably named Evergreen Cemetery, next to the stone for Mowad lies the source for one-fourth of my DNA.

Evergreen is also home to at least two notorious individuals. Albert B. Fall, a prominent lawyer and judge, was elected as one of New Mexico’s first two United States senators after statehood in 1912. He served until 1921, when he became Secretary of the Interior in the Harding Administration. The naval petroleum reserves were soon transferred to Interior management and, in 1922, Fall provided favorable leases for the Teapot Dome reserve (Wyoming) to his friend Henry Sinclair and for Elk Hills (California) to Edward Doheny. Fall was suddenly rich, though the records were strikingly vague how. Eventually a $100,000 loan to Fall from Doheny was uncovered. Fall was convicted of receiving bribes, fined $100,000 and served a year in prison. Doheny was acquitted. Sinclair was fined $100,000 and served a short sentence for contempt and jury tampering. Fall was the first cabinet member to go to prison for actions while in office. Like my grandfather, Fall died in El Paso in 1944.

José Victoriano Huerta Márquez was a Mexican military officer and president of Mexico. Huerta took power in a coup in February 1913; both the existing president and vice-president were shot. A harsh military dictatorship followed and the Wilson Administration opposed him. Venustiano Carranza’s led the plan for Huerta’s removal and the restoration of constitutional government; supporters included Emiliano Zapata, Francisco “Pancho” Villa and Álvaro Obregón. Obregón and Villa defeated Huerta’s federal army at the Battle of Zacatecas and Huerta resigned the presidency on July 15, 1914. He went into exile but was arrested in Newman, New Mexico, in 1915 aboard a train bound for El Paso, allegedly intent on regaining the Mexican presidency through another coup. He died of cirrhosis in 1916 while under house arrest in El Paso. In Mexico Huerta is known as El Chacal, the Jackal.

A view of “The Fence” from the Border Highway, Texas Loop 375 in El Paso. Photo was taken from moving car.

Last, I visited the Socorro Mission in the adjacent town of Socorro, Texas. Nuestra Señora de la Limpia Concepción de los Piros del Socorro (Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception of the Piros of Socorro) was founded in 1682 by the Franciscans to serve Indians (Piro, Tano and Jemez) and Spanish displaced from New Mexico during the Pueblo Revolt. (Socorro, New Mexico, was named by Oñate in 1598 after the Piros assisted his expedition as it emerged from the Jornada del Muerto. Socorro means aid or succor.) The present building was constructed by 1840 to replace a church flooded by the Rio Grande in 1829.

Legend has it that this statue of Saint Michael was being transported in a carreta (oxcart) from Mexico to Santa Fe in 1845. The cart became stuck and the locals took it as a sign the statue should remain with them. Note the beams.
I wasn't and didn't speed. The Z4 got 31 mpg on the 560 mile round trip.
Better warned than bitten. Yes, that's the remnants of last month's snow.

More on the Celebration Over December’s Job Report

An excerpt from Beat the Press, always a good source for understanding the day’s economic news:

So we’re supposed to be happy about 200,000 jobs in December?

Another way to think about this is that we currently have a shortfall of around 10 million jobs. If we generate 200,000 jobs a month, then we are cutting into this shortfall at the rate of 100,000 a month, since we need 90,000-100,000 jobs a month just to keep pace with the growth of the population. This means that in 100 months we should expect to be back to full employment. So the champaign bottles for that happy occasion will be dated 2020.

Okay, but this puts too bright of a picture on the data. The 200,000 jobs number reported for December was distorted by unusual seasonal factors, the most obvious of which was the 42,200 job growth reported in the courier industry. This is primarily companies like Fed Ex and UPS who hire additional workers to deal with holiday demand.