One eye on Baltimore City

 I lived in Baltimore City from 1959-2004 and ran for the Baltimore City Council (then 1st District) on the GOP slate in 1999. In the 1980s I spent a lot of time in Fells Point/Little Italy area which was a part of the 1st district. Chesley Patterson, the general manager at La Scala restaurant, was found suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest in the 1700 block of Eastern Avenue around 12:30AM on 1/24/22 and later died. On 4/13/22 Samuel Wise was charged with first-degree murder of Patterson.

Some background on Baltimore City expansion.  In 1817 the city expanded as far as North Avenue, a second move in 1888 up to about 40th Street, and a third in the early years of the 20th Century to close to its present day lines.

Earlier blog on Baltimore related topics: Rappin brown on Cambridge

April 20, 2022

Mayor Brandon Scott's reply to the 100th murder in Baltimore City this year: his violence prevention ecosystem. Mr Mayor, you need a nap.

April 24, 2022

This will probably end any chances for the Washington DC/Baltimore bid to host 2026 World Cup games. FedEx Field in Landover, Maryland, dropped out of bidding.

April 30, 2022

Three Maryland news organizations, The Daily Record, The Baltimore Sun, and The Baltimore Banner have requested that the court unseal documents in the federal case against Baltimore City State's Attorney Mosby. Mosby's lawyers want some documents sealed.

May 8, 2022

Former Baltimore City Mayor Catherine Pugh is back in her home in Ashburton, which was originally supposed to be part of her restitution deal with the Feds, after serving two years in federal prison. Plus, she may get a local radio talk show. Crime Pays!

May 17, 2022

Shooting in Federal Hill, which was part of the 1st District, when I ran for City Council in 1999. 1000 block of South Charles St, not far from the original Hammerjacks. In 1980 I rented an apartment on the 1100 block of William Street.

May 26, 2022

Scorched earth attack: Baltimore City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby released a list of more than 300 Baltimore City police officers that her office claims have credibility issues. Total F'n mess!

June 14, 2022

Pelosi visited Baltimore yesterday to help unveil new home for fireboat named after her father, The Mayor Thomas D'Alessandro Jr. I grew up hearing you had to be Italian to get a contract to pave a road in Baltimore City. And before anyone gets offended, I'm a McWop, 3/4 Irish, 1/4 Italian.

June 19, 2022

 Jade Kala Johnson, 24, an aide to Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby, was arrested on June 6 in Baltimore County on gun and drug charges. She's a recently hired city employee who does not appear on the city's database. How about the Mosbys- what a duo?

June 23, 2022

Judge Nugent wants to see Baltimore prosecutor Mosby in court over comments she made during a radio interview despite the judge issuing a gag order in the Keith Davis Jr. case.

Aug 9, 2022

Mosby’s attorneys asked Judge Lydia Griggsby to prevent the prosecution from using various phrases during the trial, including ‘financial hardship,’ because explaining how Mosby spent the money she withdrew from her retirement account would negatively impact a jury pool. Sure feels like desperation!

Aug 30, 2022

Baltimore Deputy Mayor Ted Carter resigned possibly due to inappropriate behavior around women. In 1996 he, was a staffer in the Clinton administration.

Sept 30, 2022

Jamie Lee Henry, a former staff internist at North Carolina’s Fort Bragg, and his wife Anna Gabrielian, 36, an anesthesiologist at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, have been charged with conspiring to disclose personal medical records to the Russian government.  

Nov 25, 2022

Steny Hoyer will step down from his leadership role for Democrats in the House of Representatives but remain the representative for Maryland's 5th Congressional District, which includes parts of PG. and Anne Arundel counties. Let's see how this changes federal $$$ to MD.

Dec 10, 2022

The U.S. Patent Office rejected the Ravens initial application to trademark the term Charm City, saying it is primarily geographically descriptive. The Ravens claim their intent is not to prevent anyone from the general use of "Charm City,", which I ain't buying.

Dec 16, 2022

Baltimore City Council approved a resolution sponsored by Nick Mosby to honor his wife, State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby, who faces federal perjury charges.  Councilman Zeke Cohen voted against the measure claiming it was inappropriate.

 Welcome to Charm City!!!!

Jan 27, 2023

Ex-Baltimore State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby’s entire legal team wants to withdraw from her case. Another ploy for more time.

Feb 21, 2023

 O's CEO John Angelos and his brother Louis have agreed to end their dispute over a lawsuit in which Louis accused John of seizing control of the team in defiance of Peter Angleos', their dad, wishes. 

Also, they are negotiating a new lease at OPACY. Perhaps this will end the talk of the O's moving to Nashville or elsewhere.

March 17, 2023

Baltimore City Council President #NickMosby is seeking re-election. Baltimore deserves a break from the corrupt Mosbys.

June 12, 2023

Baltimore Police Dept Acting Commissioner Rich Worley is a Baltimore native but does not reside in the city. Same old sh^t.

June 28, 2023

Montgomery County(MD) is limiting access to a public meeting about providing an opt-out option for parents who object to gender and sexuality lessons. 

July 30, 2023

  Since the federal government considers cannabis sales illegal, don't pull out your MasterCard to buy cannabis at Maryland dispensaries.

Aug 26,2023

 On finding out his GM stole about 500K: Ed Hale, the owner of the Baltomore Blast indoor soccer team since 1988. "I'm a former CIA agent. So, I don't get fooled very often. I got fooled." Should I wonder about CIA instructors or Hale, who's faced banking investigations a few times?

Sept 24,2023

Baltimore's failures: I addressed them in my futile 1999 GOP run for Bmore City Council. I spent a lot of time campaigning with the Libertarian candidate. Three seats were up for grabs in the 1st district and the three Dems won. Two R and one L lost. A few ladies told me I looked like a nice Irish catholic boy and would win if I were a Dem.

Nov 1, 2023

FBI raids office of Safe Streets, which uses ex-offenders as ‘violence interrupters’ to ward off crime in Baltimore City. 

Investigators found ammunition belonging to an employee, which not allowed by law. The raid occurred at the Belair-Edison (my childhood neighborhood) branch. Also rumors of fiscal mismanagement.

Nov 10, 2023

Marilyn Mosby convicted on two counts of perjury by a federal jury.

 She falsely claimed financial hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to withdraw money from the city's retirement fund.

Nov 22, 2023

Fourth Circuit struck down Maryland's "HQL" law requiring potential handgun owners to go through a qualification process. 

"The answer is not complicated. If you do not already own a handgun, then the only way to 'keep' or 'bear' one is to get one, either through sale, rental, or gift. And the challenged law cuts off all three avenues -- at least, for those who do not comply with its terms," 

U.S. Fourth Circuit Court Judge Julius N. Richardson.

Jan 7, 2023

The Maryland Board of Public Works approved a $32 million contract that covers the replacement of the pavement on the runway, improvements for taxi connections and upgrades to electrical components at Martin State Airport.

It is a joint civil-military public use airport located nine nautical miles east of the central business district of Baltimore,

It was the former plant airport for the Glenn L. Martin Company, a major producer of military aircraft. between the 1920s and 1960s.

Jan 23, 2024

Marilyn Mosby's, former States Attorney for Baltimore. has a “not my job” defense, My husband did the taxes, and I didn’t know there was debt.

Feb 13, 2024

Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby is running for re-election and defending his handling of his finances and his testimony that it led to his ex-wife, former City State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby’s, federal fraud convictions.

Feb 25, 2024

MD judicial officials told state lawmakers the federal funding for GPS monitoring program for home defendants dried up, which means defendants who would be eligible for coverage might be forced to find a way to pay or go to jail. NO surprise! MD is addicted to fed funds.

March 6, 2024

Sheila Dixon, who was found a guilty of "fraudulent misappropriation by a fiduciary" and stepped down as Baltimore Mayor in 2010, is ahead Mayor Scott in the latest Mayoral polls.

April 3, 2024

Crews opened a second temporary channel on FSK Bridge, which is open primarily to vessels that are helping with the cleanup effort and some barges and tugs that have been stuck in the Port of Baltimore.

Work is ongoing to open a third channel that will allow larger vessels to pass through the bottleneck. are 

April 16, 2024

Anonymous report that alarms went off on some of the refrigerated containers on the Dali when it docked in Baltimore before it sailed and knocked down the FSK bridge. 

This indicates an inconsistent power supply,

April 20, 2024

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott and State’s Attorney Ivan Bates, who endorses Scott's opponent Dixon, allegedly settle public dispute with joint statement that they'll meet weekly. Goofy stuff!

June 19, 2024

Chef Ashish Alfred has shut down three restaurants, Duck Duck Goose, Osteria Pirata,and the Anchor Tavern. No mention of dates to re-open.

Declining revenue! Also, “The perception of those outside the city and even a lot of those within the city is that Fells Point and downtown Baltimore are just not safe.”

July 5, 2024

On Baltimore City ballot in November:  Baby Bonus Fund to give 1k to new parents in an effort to reduce the effect of child poverty. WTF!

The likely cost about 7M which ain't no Big deal according to the  Maryland Child Alliance which collected signatures to get the Amendment on the ballot.

Aug 3, 2024

Johnny (O)Olszewski,  the Baltimore County executive and congressional candidate is facing possible allegations of corruption for his shaky financial moves with the Tirabassi brothers,  and this  could give Klacik (R)  a chance to win a seat in Congress.

    Baltimore County paid Philip Tirabassi 83K when he  requested to transfer retirement credits for his city firefighter service time to his county pension. Officials warned the payment could break state and local laws.

John Tirabassi sold the county $4 million worth of dump trucks through his employer, Peterbilt.

 Tirabassi family handled Olszewski's purchase and sale of property in St. Helena and the acquisition of land for his new residence on Millers Island.

Aug 15, 2024

Renew Baltimore filed an appeal with the SC of Maryland to overturn a city judge’s decision, which keeps the question to cut the property tax rate in half over seven years off the November ballot. The group is Ballots for the 2024 election are due to be published Sept. 6.

The group cites a 1990 case in Anne Arundel County(MD) that allowed voters to set the property tax rate. City officials claim only the Baltimore City Council can do that.

Sept 13, 2024

Investigators of Baltimore’s FSK Bridge collapse discovered a loose cable on The Dali which may have caused electrical issues.

When disconnected during recent testing, it triggered an electrical blackout similar to what happened on 3/26/24 .

Sept 17, 2024

A judge on Monday ruled that a charter amendment in Baltimore City to redevelop Harborplace is unconstitutional.

Some residents filed the motion in Anne Arundel County Circuit Court earlier this month on Question F, claiming it was  vague and unconstitutional and asked for a court-ordered edit.

The judge ruled ballots for the November election have been printed and it is too late for a reprint. However the question will remain on the ballots and the results will be counted, but not certified. 

Artist on art quotes more

 "You're in Russia and a more than a million works of art are whisked out to the woods." from a 1994 Tragically Hip song Scared. 

I dug up one of my old ones about a 2017 late night shooting, not far from Fort McHenry. Title is: Dead at the Door:

Need milk after midnight

cookies, too

young man got the door

bullets, two

  Fresh quotes new blog. Here's the old blog

Artists on art 1

March 27, 2022

A quote from Bill (Spaceman) Lee, who spent most of his MLB career(1969-82) pitching for the Red Sox, on the art of Pitching: "Hell, if KY jelly went off the market, the whole California Angels pitching staff would be out of baseball."

Warren Zevon wrote a song, The Ballad of Bill Lee", about him

April 2, 2022

"Good Time Charley always keeps a stock of rock candy and rye whisky on hand for touches of the grippe" quote from Damon Runyan(1880-1946).

 Grippe- AKA the flu today. Damon was likely referring to the notion that rock candy sweets has therapeutic possibilities, and he was not alluding to cocaine.  There's not much flu relief, if any, from rye whiskey and cocaine.

April 9, 2022

Gang of Four remains one my favorite bands. A week ago I had their tune "Woman Town", a 1980s G4 tune playing on my car CD player,  and this lyric grabbed my attention, again. "She said it's no surprise that you wear shades-Every want rebounds from such a perfect curve"

April 26, 2022

RIP #OrrinHatch who was born in Pittsburg PA. I had no idea the music-download issue was a personal one.

One of his songs, “Unspoken,” went platinum after appearing on “WOW Hits 2005,”

 In 2000, Sen. Orrin Hatch sent a letter to a federal appeals court saying that a brief filed by the Bush1 DoJ and the Copyright Office siding with the recording industry against Napster did not represent the opinion of the full U.S. government.

May 7, 2022

I missed this during the 2021 presidential campaign. Joe Biden campaign ad featured a quote by Charles Bukowski: “What matters most is how well you walk through the fire.” and credited it to a poet.

May 20, 2022

Echo the Bunnymen will open for The Rolling Stones at Liverpool Stadium. Should they perform their cover of "People are strange" ,The Doors tune?

May 29, 2022

I watched  the English language version The Prague Orgy, based on Philip Roth's book about his early 1970's visit to Communist Czechoslovakia and enjoyed this quote:  

"But the police are like literary critics -- of what little they see, they get most wrong anyway."

Olga, played by Kseniya Rappoport who was born on March 25, 1974 in Leningrad, Russia, was an interesting character.  

July 3, 2022

"I’ve always believed that if style takes precedent over the words and music, the audience gets cheated." Judy Garland

Aug 4, 2022

Warner Bros. axed the $90 million "Batgirl" film planned for HBO Max and decided it didn't merit either a streaming debut or a theatrical release. They opted to write it off entirely. Poor test screenings were cited as a major reason.

Aug 29, 2022

A Munich museum reported that the frame of a Rubens painting was damaged by climate activists gluing themselves to it. However, activists claim Art museums, etc need to become the adults in the room. Think about that!

Sept 3, 2022

In 1979, I first heard the song Not Great Men by the Gang of Four and thought the line "It's not made by great men" ,referring to many leaders in world history, rang true. 43 years later the Biden /Trump clown show reminds me that G4 nailed it.

Oct 15, 2022

Two climate change protesters threw soup over Vincent van Gogh’s painting "Sunflowers" at London's National Gallery, but it only caused minor damage to the frame. Inanity is a key component of their playbook!

Nov 1, 2022

Bulgaria Celebrates the Day of the Enlighteners today. The first enlightener of the nation went to Paisius of Hilendar, a writer of history books who is well known for placing this sentence in one of his early books, "why are you ashamed to call yourself Bulgarian?"

Nov 9, 2022

Somehow, I got to talking about hippies at work this week, and these lines from Neil Young's song "Hippie dream" came to mind "wooden ships are a hippie dream capsized in excess"

Dec 13, 2022

I went looking for quotes from Bellow after watching The Adventures of Saul Bellow (2021) last night. “She was what we used to call a suicide blonde-- dyed by her own hand.”

― Saul Bellow

April 5, 2023

Pablo Picasso: Reassessing the artist's toxic masculinity-how about discussing his art. I'm not a huge fan of his paintings but this sh^t is tiresome.

April 28, 2023

I guess this is why famous folks paint other famous people. Warhol's 1977 painting of OJ Simpson is up for auction and here's what Andy said at the time:  “He had a five-day beard and I thought the pictures would be awful.” 

May 21, 2023

Don't tweet quickly on French writers: Reading comments on Celine's Vichy days and translations of Guerre and thinking what was he doing with that bunch. Somehow I was confusing him with Genet, a petty thief, who was arrested a few times for gay prostitution etc. and also a published writer

The pimp has a grin, never a smile

May 28, 2023

 In the woke -oriented documentary White Balls on Walls, offered by Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, Remy Junerman, a Surinamese-Dutch artist, states, "I would find it almost insulting if the Stedelijk were to do an exhibition of my work just because they are looking for BIPOC artists."

BIPOC=Black, Indigenous, and People of Color and they use first person language. Sounds like a cat fight among the woke crowd.

Feb 3, 2024

Gertrude Stein, who presided over Saturday salons in her Paris studio that attracted 20th-century art and literature luminaries, was quite bitchy in print about her guests. Lately folks have been reviewing how she and her girlfriend lived comfortably in Vichy France. I view her as. Perhaps she's lesbian version of Truman Capote.

I enjoy this Charley Chaplin's opinion of GS: "She would like to see me in a movie, just walking up the street and turning a corner, then another corner, and another."

May 7, 2024

 Ivan Lalev, a painter, is honored on Bulgaria's 5 Leva banknote

In 1917 he was a soldier on the Romanian front. While on a brief leave that year, he opened a two-day solo exhibition in Kazanlak.

Bulgaria joined World War I on the side of the Central Powers, alongside Germany, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire, and participated in the war from October 14,1915 until September 30, 1918.

June 6, 2024

Sex Pistols re-uniting w/o Johnny Rotten is completely Bollocks.

July 23, 2024

60 recently returned artifacts from Dikmen ,who had looted them in 1974, were displayed at Cyprus’s archaeological museum. The display includes jewelry from the Chalcolithic Period( 3500-1500 BC) and Bronze Age bird-shaped idols.

Aydin Dikmen, a Turk, took the artifacts from the country’s breakaway north in the years after Cyprus’s split in 1974 during Turkey's invasion

Aug 2, 2024

Caught my attention this morning:Thomas Mann,a German author,opinion on Richard Wagner, a composer: "sniveling gnome from Saxony with exceptional talent and a mean character."

Aug 8, 2024

How about making "Clampdown" by the Clash ,the theme song for PM Starmer's repression of speech in the UK. Not sure what the late Joe Strummer would say?

Oct 14, 2024

Until the 19th century only big time painters could afford an ultramarine blue pigment made from the semi-precious lapis lazuli stone that was mined in Afghanistan.

By the 19th Century industry had created a synthetic alternative.

In the 20th Century archaeologists discovered the Maya had invented a resilient and brilliant blue color.

Blue tape /death squads/crabs

While prepping walls for painting, I consider  the similarities to writing.

Taping  woodwork  and ceilings is similar to structuring chapters.


My writing method is to hurl the words at the paper and edit the splatter later. The cleanup is easier with words than paint. Hence, I never run out of blue tape.

All the activity in the world and I just don't feel like commenting on scandals and wars.

Lyrics and words attract my attention but I'm stuck in neutral.

My interrest in detective stories has found me  returning to book about South America. I'm reading  Ernest Mallo's  Needle in a haystack,  a  book about Inspector Lascano's attempts   to do solid investigations while Argentian death squads prevail in the late 1970's.

9/19/13

Blue theme continues. Last night someone  threw a blue crab on the ice during the Caps NHL exhibition game at Baltimore arena. In the ealy 1970's we  were an AHL affiliate of the Red Wings, the home of squid tossing.

9/29/13

Parker Bilal's series on PI Makana's work solving crimes in the repressive military early 2000's Egypt is interesting. Add to the mix that he's of Sudanese descent  and you're in for a treat. I'll try to get back with more on Dogstar Rising, the second book of the Makana series.

10/1/13

No shutdown blues here. Gridlock works

11/20/13

The level of poverty  and child prostitution in Brazil  is overwhelming.  I shuddered a few times while reading  two detective Silva novels, Dying Gasp & Perfect Hatred by  the late Leighton Gage. Snuff movies, etc.

1/22/14

Will Venezuela need to use death squads, the  country is a mess.

4/26/14

Gage's books  gave me a better view of  Brazil and now  we're seeing  daily the results of the pre- World Cup crackdown. 

6/4/14

Brazilians beware: your President has spoken

Ms Rousseff, who faces the possibility of fresh anti-government protests, said they would not be allowed to disrupt the tournament.

6/9/14

Tear gassin in Brazil http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-27761723  apparently they didn't TCOB before the World Cup.

If the strike runs on until Thursday, it could affect the opening match between hosts Brazil and Croatia.

6/11/14

BRAZIL is a night/day mare waiting to happen and I always chuckle when leaders say this: President Rousseff:

"Rest assured of this, the World Cup accounts are being meticulously scrutinised by the country's auditing institutions," she said.

6/18/14

Caramel spread from Uruguay- that's what bothers Brazils these days.
link

8/19/14

Argentinians don't want to go home  after the World Cup and they don't need a Visa to be there. A Govt Id is good enough. West Ghanans applied for asylum. Open door policies can put a strain on public coffers.

8/25/14

It appears decapitation is a  trend. Brazil prisoners decapitated in Cascavel jail riot.  link

10/06/14

Is the World Cup good for your country? Many folks are discussing FIFA corruption and the prohibitive costs of hosting WC.  link

 Brazil's presidential race will go to a second round after incumbent Dilma Rousseff fell short of an outright victory in Sunday's election.....But the past 18 months have been marred by recession and corruption scandals, and protests over poor public services and the World Cup costs.

The same arguments against hosting the Olympics exist.

1/21/15

Pedro Garcia Arredondo, ex police chief in Guatemala in 1980,  was found guilty of ordering officers to keep anyone from leaving the building as it burned. Crazy , crazy story

link

1/30/15

I need to learn more about how releasing de Kock in South Africa help nation building. South African apartheid-era death squad commander Eugene de Kock has been granted parole Original sentence two life terms + 212 years) after 20 years in jail.  link

4/25/15

Ghost Runner #3 in the Makana series by Bilal was a riveting read. The  desert town of Siwa was  bizarre, and the idea that a town like Koloshna, a meeting place for mercenaries and intellegence operative, exists  give one pause.. Even though you could see where the Serafina story was going it was still interesting.

5/11/15

So Libya won't address  the reasons people are fleeeing its shores. Instead it wants the EU to shoulder the burden. libya

Libya has criticised EU proposals to authorise the use of force against people smugglers taking migrants across the Mediterranean to Europe.

5/12/15

Libya attacks Turkish ship

A Turkish dry cargo ship’s third officer was killed and several other crew members were wounded after the ship was shelled off the Libyan coast and attacked from the air

5/18/15

The Burning Gates, #4 in the Makana series,  is a solid book. Bilal manages to  wrap up a tale involving Saddam bad boys, American mercenaries,  etc w/o being too preachy and w/o a happy ending. The running side story of Makana  thinking  his dead daughter may be alive is growing.

8/3/15

While Brazil decides whether it should clean its water prior to  hosting the 2016 Olympics, the IOC recognized Ultimate Frisbee.

8/14/15

I'm not the biggest tree hugger, but what's with the IOC  mediocre response to the dirty water in Brazil. link. If I were an Olympic sailer or rower, I'd be worried.

The AP viral testing, which will continue through the Aug. 5-21, 2016, games, found not one water venue safe for swimming or boating,

8/17/15

Obviously , it's not dirty water but dirty politicians . link

Overwhelmingly white and middle class, the protesters in Sao Paulo were having none of that argument. In generally jovial mood, they condemned the ruling Workers Party for its role in the corruption scandal surrounding Petrobras.

9/24/15

Perhaps, Pope Francis should direct his "non-political" enviromental speeches at those in charge of Brazil's water venues?

2/2/16

Zika outbreak, dirty water for the Olympic swimmers, but Rio Olympics is still a "go" ??????.
Police state  growing.  rio

2/15/16

It could be time to take the2016 Olympics away from Brazil.

3/23/16

Suddenly no news on the dirty water in Brazil and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has said impeachment proceedings launched against her in Congress amount to a coup attempt. Yes, that where we need the Olympics.

3/29/16

Bad water, shaky government: welcome to the 2016 Olympics in Brazil. impeachment

The PMDB, the largest party in Brazil's ruling coalition, has voted for an "immediate exit" from President Dilma Rousseff's government. The move could hasten impeachment proceedings against President Rousseff, correspondents say.

4/6/16

Getting worse: Brazil may also impeach Vice-President Michel Temer

4/12/16

If impeachment vote goes to the Senate and Ms Rousseff is suspended, Vice-President Michel Temer, from the opposition PMDB party, would take over temporarily.

4/18/16

House votes to impeach Roussef- now up to Senate

5/13/16

Where are all the really  serious enviromentalists  and health care advocates who appear to pick and choose their targets. At least Prof Attaran remains consistent while the  IOC and WHO say don't worry we got this. Attaran

"If the IOC and the World Health Organisation (WHO) do not have the generosity of heart to delay the games to prevent children being born and disabled their whole lives, then they're among the cruellest institutions in the world,'' Prof Attaran said in a telephone interview with the Associated Press news agency.

6/22/16

and a golfer alerts the world. Rory McIlroy opts out of the Olympics in Brazil over Zika concerns.

8/14/16

Argentine President Mauricio Macri has asked Brazilian and Argentine fans at the #RioOlympics to cease their hostile chants and name-calling.  Could this escalate into violence or is it similar to Redskins(NFL) fans who don't like the Dallas Cowboys (NFL) rooting for any team that plays against them?

10/27/16

It turns out that #rorymcilroy may have used  the existence of the #zika virus to  avoid following through on his decision to play for #TeamIreland. He could've played for TeamGreatBritain.

11/8/16

#RioOlympics weren't much help. The Brazilian government has frozen the bank accounts of Rio de Janeiro state, ordering it to pay millions of dollars in overdue debt.

11/9/16

#Rio gets worse. The demonstrators, mostly firefighters, police and prison officers, spent three hours inside the Rio assembly chamber,  and some wrecked windows, doors and offices.

11/17/16

Brazil is in such bad shape that  protesters demanding a military coup  forced their way into Brazil's lower chamber of Congress in the capital, #Brasilia. Be careful what you wish for!

1/26/17

2016 Olympics - #Zika  health issues

2017:   largest outbreak of #yellowfever #Brazil since 2000.

3/22/17

Yes, #Brazil is a nightmare. Waldomiro Costa #Pereira, a land rights activist was killed by five gunmen at a hospital in Brazil where he was recovering from a previous assassination attempt. His guards were surrounded and there's no report on whether they let it occur or were shot.

5/30/17

#zika hasn't gone away. It's spreading and now #india is trying to cover up it's appearance.It was first identified in monkeys in Uganda in 1947.

6/23/17

#OperationWeakFlesh, NOT a sex worker sting or minister's sermon. United States suspends all Brazilian meat imports

7/13/17

Rough times in #brazil : 

Ex-Brazil President #Lula sentenced to nearly 10 years for corruption

Sugar and oil prices decline

Sanitation issues not being addressed.

8/7/17

Looking for water in #Brazil near #Rio don't stray or you'll be shot at by Terceiro Comando Puro gang.The mother, who was with her family, was hit twice in the abdomen.

8/8/17

#IOC chairman #thomasbach is far too kind in giving #Brazil more time to deliver infrastructure promised as its Rio Olympics legacy, Bad aftertaste lingers.

9/11/17

#Batista 's lawyers  accidentally sent a tape to the prosecutor's office incriminating Mr Batista. This not an Onion report on #Brazil

10/25/17

Brazil's President #MichelTemer secured enough votes in the lower house of Congress to avoid facing trial on corruption charges,  and investigations can't resume until he steps down at the end of 2018. Again not an Onion report

10/28/17

When Hollywood folks preach, I go deaf. A photo of #madonna, the rebel with w/o a clue,  dressed in army camouflage fatigues with military police in Rio de Janeiro has gone viral including  a post on the official military police account of Rio de Janeiro. Now that's rich.

11/30/17

#sidewalkgentrification of wealthy #Rio neighborhoods is a new trend.The Homeless, now called rough sleepers, feel insulted. These days everyone's feelings are hurt 24/7.

2/20/18

Brazil: Federal police intervention in #rio ,  soccer riots, prison riots, and the army is moving to protect its  border with #venezuela.

4/10/18

Could Brazil be shifting to the right? Are #brazilians , particularly the young, so frustrated that they'll vote for #Bolsonaro who is second in the presidential polls after former President Lula, who may not be eligible to run because of his corruption conviction.

5/26/18

#Abcam  backs down on trucker strikes after Pres Temer threatens to use the army in Brazil
On Thursday they rejected a deal to scrap fuel taxes and maintain a 10% reduction in pump prices for a month in return for the protests being suspended for 15 days.

7/23/18

#Bolsonaro is only allowed 10 seconds of free television time but leads by 10 points Brazil's Presidential polls. He vows to loosen gun controls to fight crime.

8/15/18

#Bolsonaro has the bullet and bibles crowd behind him and is scaring the he!! out of the mainstream press in Brazil. Pundits say no- Business groups say yes. We'll see!

9/1/18

Brazil's electoral court has voted to bar ex-president Lula da Silva, the front-runner, despite currently serving a 12-year prison sentence for fraud, from running in October's election. His Workers Party has 10 days to swap the candidate names on the ticket.

9/4/18

 Two hydrants closest to the #Brazil National Museum were not working and  water had to be brought from a nearby lake to fight the fire .

9/6/18

Lula banned!  Jair #Bolsonaro jumps to top of the presidential polls in #Brazil with 22 percent of the vote.  Is another right-leaning populist going to win a Presidency?

9/30/18

The Left has the same playbook everywhere: Under the banner "Not him," protesters came out in dozens of cities including Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro to voice opposition to #Bolsonaro who they view as racist, homophobic and misogynist.

10/10/18

#Bolsonaro  didnt make it 50% to win the Brazilian presidency so he ll face Haddad on Oct 28 in round 2. His PSL party did well and this slogan has helped:  "prosperity, liberty, family, on God's side" or the path of Venezuela."

10/16/18

Will the conservative governments of #Macri in Argentina, #Pinera in Chile,  #Duque in Colombia and likely #Bolsonaro in Brazil start to  sway countries such as Venezuela to move to to right?

10/29/18

#Bolsonaro won 55.2% of the vote against 44.8% for Fernando Haddad of the left-wing Workers' Party. I thought the margin of victory would be narrower ,and  he needs to find some buddies because his PSI party is a not the largest among 30 parts in the Brazilian Congress.

1/6/19

 One of the triggers for  the wave of violence in #Brazil is gangs are retaliating for government plans to impose tighter controls in the prisons: blocks on mobile phone signals and an end to a policy of separating prisoners according to gang membership.

3/16/19

USA will strengthen military ties with Brazil to a level usually reserved for NATO allies during #Bolsonaro’s visit to DC Tuesday. This may involve talks on Brazil hosting a USA military base.

3/23/19

Unasur, started by the late Hugo Chavez of Venezuela is defunct. It's replacement #Prosur includes Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Guyana.  Bolivia and Uruguay sent representatives to the meeting in Santiago, Chhile, but did not join the bloc. Venezuela was not invited to the bloc because it's not interested in a full validity of democracy.

4/4/19

#Bolsonaro  is in Israel  to sign agreements on science and technology, trade, defense, agriculture and other areas. It's noteworthy to see the triangle  of Trump/Bolsonaro / Netanyahu.

 5/8/19

  #Bolsonaro loosened restrictions on gun imports to #Brazil and allows people to carry more ammunition. "Public security starts inside your home" is his slogan.

5/31/19

Some soccer news:  FIFA’s appeal committee  rejected an appeal by former Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) president Marco Polo Del Nero against his life ban from the sport for violating ethics rules on bribery, offering and accepting gifts, etc .

7/19/19

 #bolsonaro is becoming a solid ally. Two Iranian ships have been stranded for weeks at Brazilian ports, unable to head back to Iran due to lack of fuel, which  #Petrobras refuses to sell them due to sanctions imposed by the USA.

7/30/19

 I bet #Bolsanoro  uses the military for a long time to handle the prison nightmare.  57 people were killed, including 16 who were decapitated, during a gang battle that erupted in a prison in northern Brazil.

8/2/19

 #Trump designated Brazil as a major non-NATO ally which makes it easier for the country to purchase U.S. weapons and defense equipment.

11/27/19

I wonder how this is going to shake out. Brazilian police arrested four volunteer firefighters for intentionally setting fires in the #Amazon rain forest.The police alleged the four had privileged information and photos of the fire and used them to raise money from donors.

12/11/19

 Brazilian President #JairBolsonaro referring to Greta Thunberg:  "It's impressive that the press is giving space to a brat like that"

April 21, 2020

Gilberto Aparecido dos Santos, AKA #Fuminho,  the fugitive leader of  PCC, one of Brazil's most powerful gangs, was arrested in Mozambique's capital, #Maputo. He had been on the lam for twenty years. Has Sean Penn been consulted- I'm kidding!

Stashing uniforms

I hear the Jim Morrison line "we want the world and we want it now" as I watch the Nigerian-jihad punks slash and cut a British soldier in a London suburb, and edit a Morrissey title to "box-cutters of the world unite."

Eurpean countries are considering asking soldiers to not wear their uniforms off -duty. When does backing up stop? Did giving your lunch money to to the school bully stop his stomping?

Assimilation does not have to be a complete submission. It's an adjustment that does not require immigrants to forget and/or forsake their customs and ways.

 Leave the hate at the door.

And all roads don't lead to Mecca.

9/24/13

Home grown terrorists from Minnesota, etc think the road to Mecca  involves shooting folks in a mall in Kenya. Clueless as to how sweet liberty is.

10/19/13

Meanwhile......Prez BO has brought Abu Anas al Libi -- an alleged al Qaeda operative whom U.S. Army Delta Force soldiers captured in Libya this month -- to New York, a U.S. attorney's office said Monday.  Interrogation over & NYC has to deal with the terror implications.  Holder & BO  pursue their naive  feelgood dreams..

12/11/13

Is Muslim migration into Europe, a slow creep Crusades

1/23/14

Marseille, France- 40% Muslim population and one of the most dangerous cities in Europe. -do the math.

3/24/14

Does the missing Malaysian airliner fit into the terrorist equation? Pilots in uniform.

4/6/14

Dearborn Muslims offended by secular easter egg hunt. GMAFB

5/13/14

Hey Hillary , now you think Boko Haram is dangerous.  Maybe there two many terrorists groups on the State List at the time?

8/27/14

Whatever uniform Al Sharpton wears, it ain't about improving life in the USA.

9/27/14

I guess Muslims  can't be called terrorists inside the USA. Ft  Hood, Oklahoma beheading, etc. Serious reality check needed.

10/14/14

Galligan, the Ft Hood shooter  Hasan's lawyer: 

“I don’t know where they come up with the term workplace violence […] Workplace violence is not the crime with which he was charged,” Galligan said, explaining that Hasan was charged with mass murder.

1/9/15

The world is focused on the Jihad killer in Paris- don't forget Boko Haram.  Tolerance is not in jihad  lexicon.

Boko Haram threatens Cameroon with violence 'unless it embraces Islam'

2/15/15

On the shootings in Denmark: Go back to my opening comments, the Jim Morrison lyric,  and apply it to the these free-speech hating  Islamic terrorists.

2/22/15

BO ADM won't says Islamic extremists but  the DHS will mis-label domestic anarchist terrorists as right wing terrorists.
Meanwhile, Ali-Shabbab threatens malls in the Uk,USA, and Canada .
Ali Shabaab,  Somalia-based militants, have heavily recruited in Minneapolis,  a city is home to the largest Somali population in the United States.

3/9/15

Boko Haram pledged allegiance to ISIS  then Hundreds of troops from Chad and Niger launched a ground and aerial offensive against Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria on Sunday, according to residents and military sources from Niger

4/3/15

"Read the Koran or die now"- 147 dead at the hands of Al-Shabab in Kenya and our White House won't call them Islamic terrorists. Deaf, dumb, & blind.

6/18/15

Chad isn't hanging .. around waiting to deal with Boko Haram. link

Chad bombs Boko Haram bases in Nigeria

3/24/16

Brussels: So Muslims are segregated and disenfranchised?  Do they want to integrate?

8/13/16

After reading an excellent column on the Boko Haram in the WSJ, I'm still poring over this comment from a 13-year-old female rape victim. “We want the government to kill them all, including the children, so we don’t have a resurgence of this,” she said, referring to the Boko Haram fighters.

10/4/16

#RahamaSadau's appearance in a music video "hugging and cuddling" Nigerian pop star #Classiq offended  some people. She's been banned from #kannywood films
If there are moderate Muslims out there, get more vocal.

10/26/16

Alleging Racism has surpassed  using patriotism as the last resort for the scoundrel. Another leader playing with crayons. I 'm not a big fan of the ICC but not for the reason stated by Gambian Information Minister #SheriffBojang :

"an International Caucasian Court for the persecution and humiliation of people of colour, especially Africans"

11/15/16

A body of Muslim clerics in #Mauritania has called for the death sentence to be carried out against Mkhaitir, a blogger convicted of apostasy, the abandonment or renunciation of a religious or political belief, in 2014. 

12/30/16

Zambia's President Edgar #Lungu has called in the air force to help contain an invasion of army worms, which eat most vegetation in their way, in maize fields. 

1/17/17

A Kenyan MP #MishiMboko, the women's representative for the coastal city of Mombasa,   has asked women to withhold sex from their husbands until they register as voters for the 8 August elections. How will we know if this is effective?

1/23/17

More than $11m (£8.8m) is missing from #Gambia 's state coffers following the departure of long-time leader #YahyaJammeh who had refused to accept election results. And no one stopped luxury cars and other items from being loaded on to a Chadian cargo plane as Mr Jammeh left the country.

4/21/17

#Cameroon 's English-speaking regions have Internet again after a three months cut off following protests.The government didn't appreciate phone users spreading what they labeled false information

5/1/17

#Mali is a former French colony so why are 4000 French soldier deployed there?

5/17/17

This is more important than the #trump, #comey, #russia, #ISIS. Nigeria commences #Ebola screening , thermal scanners, at its airports.

6/19/17

Up to half the food aid meant for people who have fled #Nigeria 's Islamist insurgency hasn't been delivered, and it's being described as a "diversion of relief materials."  How's that for a euphemism for theft? Here are some of the culprits
In May two Nigerian officials were jailed for selling food aid.

7/3/17

Is #Sudan progressing or are we being duped?  President Omar Hassan al-Bashir decreed on Sunday,
that Sudan will extend a unilateral ceasefire with rebels until the end of October, two weeks before the United States may end a 20-year-old trade embargo against Sudan.

7/8/17

#kenya is going through a rough election season and this will get  conspiracy talk into high gear.  #JosephNkaissery, Kenya’s 67 year-old interior minister and a retired general,  died of natural causes a few hours after being admitted to a Nairobi hospital for a check up.

10/5/17

Three US soldiers have been killed and two others wounded in an ambush in #Niger near the border with #Mali. How did our  "train, advise and assist" role  become patrolling? It appears we're in deep in #africa.

10/21/17

The World Health Organization (WHO) has appointed President Robert #Mugabe of Zimbabwe as a "goodwill ambassador". Giving a sad LOL  cuz this was a BBC report  not an Onion piece.

10/23/17

#who  rescinds #mugabe appointment. Bet those donations dried up quickly.

11/15/17

#Mnangagwa's dismissal last week left Mr Mugabe's wife Grace as the Zimbawe's president's apparent successor. #Mugabe 's move backfired as the miltiary has placed him under house arrest.

12/7/17

Nigeria's anti-Boko Haram general #AttahiruIbrahim sacked- because the Boko Haram bomb attacks have not stopped in the northeast.

1/19/18

Two American and two Canadian citizens have been kidnapped in the northern state of Kaduna, #Nigeria,. Their police escorts were killed in a shootout with the kidnappers. Will #trump and #trudeau work together on this one. 

3/24/18

Denied  entrance to a hospital because of a crocodile.Yep, a crocodile 6 miles from water, was blocking the entrance to St Patrick's hospital in #zimbawe  before wildlife authorities shot it.  Heavy rains in the area.

4/18/18

Is this coming to your country next? #Tanzania 's new law #TCRA requires bloggers, as well as Tanzanians operating online radio and television streaming services, to apply for a license and pay an annual fee of over $900 (€750) before they can publish any material online. President #Magufuli can revoke a permit if a site publishes content that "causes annoyance" or "leads to public disorder." 

5/7/18

Worth a chuckle : Four men accused of stealing a car  and being chased by police in  #CapeTown South Africa inadvertently drove it straight to prison.

6/23/18

Things are shaking good and bad in #ethiopia .  A deadly bomb blew up at a rally for Ethiopia  PM #AbiyAhmed , the product of a mixed Christian/Muslim, family, who has been loosening up restrictions  on web sites and TV stations. Ahmed was not injured.

7/6/18

Stop enjoying your self cuz we're going to tax you!   #Museveni , the President of Uganda, called social media a "luxury by those who are enjoying themselves or those who are malicious...all the moral reasons are in favour of that tax".

7/10/18

#Ethiopia and #Eritrea leaders formally restored relations Monday, ending 20 years of enmity. Ethiopian PM #AbiyAhmed, and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki,signed agreements to open embassies in their respective capitals, restore flight services, and use port facilities in Eritrea

8/20/18

When Medical staff is targeted  by both the military and armed separatists in #Cameroon 's English-speaking regions, it's time to home.

10/12/18

A growing trend of saying no to mainland #china and its "new colonialism": #SierraLeone is shuttering a $400 million China-financed construction project. #Malaysia cancelled $22 billion worth of China-financed projects in August, 2018.

10/18/18

The fight against breast ironing in #Cameroon continues. Young girls in Cameroon have their breasts bound or beaten with stones. #africa

11/28/18

#JohnMagufuli needs to read the fine print when he states #Tanzania prefers 'condition-free' Chinese aid. Apparently his comment is driven by the EU's  review of its aid packages to Tanzania over the lack of gay rights, etc.

12/04/18

Is black not beautiful? 

Some African women believe that lighter skin enhances their beauty so skin bleaching products are selling well, but Rwanda’s president #kagame set about to confiscate them, and the online response has been ugly

12/12/18

 Proof-of-life test of the #Mozambique civil service between 2015 and 2017 has detected around 30,000 ghost employees costing $250 million according to Public Service Minister #CarmelitaNamashulua 

12/27/18

  Nigeria's military called for the banning of human rights group #AmnestyInternational. The army accused Amnesty of using its operations to demoralize the soldiers fighting Boko Haram, the resurgent jihadists. And it also accused AI of spying but didn't offer proof.

1/17/19

#Ali-Shabaab , terrorists based in Somalia, attacked a hotel in #Nairobi in the heartland of Kenya. Most of their attacks had been along the border.

3/22/19

 #Kenya , located 90 miles from the equator, has a hockey team trying to qualify for the next winter Olympics. And I thought it was wild that the NHL has teams in Florida and Arizona.

 4/20/19

Liberian President #GeorgeWeah was forced to work from home on Thursday after his office was invaded by two black snakes  slithering from a hole in the reception area of the building. A little lighter news for the day.

5/15/19

 This is usually the path to a longer term dictatorship or military junta rule. #Sudan 's military leaders have announced an agreement with the opposition alliance for a three-year transition period to a civilian administration.

08/14/19

  Good luck Nigeria with Operation Safe Corridor: After their release from  rehabilitation centers, ex- #bokoharam insurgents are issued certificates confirming their 'psychosocial normalcy'.

9/15/19

Just a bit uncomfortable at the funeral:   #Mugabe 's family was in attendance right alongside the president and military who had pressured #Mugabe out of office.

9/16/19

Hundreds of doctors have marched through the Zimbabwean capital, Harare, to condemn the alleged abduction of their union leader, Peter Magombeyi, who had organised a series of strikes over poor pay and working conditions in recent weeks.

9/21/19

 Action Against Hunger has been shut down in Nigeria because the military accused it of aiding and abetting terrorists in the country's war-torn northeast region. What's curious is that AAH  won't address the accusations while complaining it just wants to do its work.

11/4/19

African pirates kidnapped nine sailors from Norwegian ship #Bonita which was anchored of the coast of Benin. I'm curious as to why the remaining crew was able to dock at port with its cargo.
The Gulf of Guinea, which extends from Gabon to Liberia, is a notorious haven for pirates.

Jan 22, 2020

Trump may add Nigeria, Tanzania, Sudan and Eritrea to a travel ban list to the USA.

March 3, 2020

  Great Britain is  stepping up its military support in West Africa, particularly in Senegal and Sahel, to combat the world's fastest growing Islamist-led insurgency. France and the UN have been active there for awhile.

May 16

 Rwanda genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga, who was living under a false identity in a flat in Asnieres-Sur-Seine, near Paris, was arrested today after a 25 -year pursuit.Was he that slick or did he bribe well

June 2, 2020

Coronavirus: South Africans cheer as alcohol goes back on sale, and BTW, the government has  lost a fortune in tax revenue.

July 13, 2020

Sudan opens  up a bit and allows alcohol for non-Muslims but it must be consumed in private, and decriminalizes apostasy, the abandonment or renunciation of a religious or political belief. I don't know if the citizens have their religion on their ID cards.