Here is another one of these tea party congressional candidates who seems to have, to paraphrase Limbaugh, both halves of his brain tied behind his back.  Rick Barber from Alabama has a TV ad advocating the taking up arms against the government.  From Palin’s crosshairs to this, the taking arms meme is pretty consistent and dangerous.  In this interview Barber calls this a metaphor, but words mean things and there are plenty of nuts out there who will find resonance in these types of messages.

Matthews also calls him out on this other ridiculous comparison these people like to make between the plight of the American colonists and America under Obama as if we have taxation without representation.  This displays a clear lack of understanding of the casus belli of the American Revolutionary War very characteristic of these tea partiers.  With the exception of DC, Puerto Rico and the overseas possessions, we all have representation in Congress, and specifically in the House of Representatives where all tax bills originate.  The colonists were not protesting the Tea Act per se, but its imposition upon the American colonists by far off Westminster without having any representation in Parliament.  I just wish these guys would take a trip down to their local socialist public library and check some history books.

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To illustrate how drastically political parties can change in just a little over 50 years, I offer you some choice excerpts from the Republican Party platform as passed by the 1956 Republican National Convention held at the Cow Palace in Daly City, just outside of San Francisco…

Our great President Dwight D. Eisenhower has counseled us further: “In all those things which deal with people, be liberal, be human. In all those things which deal with people’s money, or their economy, or their form of government, be conservative.” /* Good quote! */

…

Republican leadership has enlarged Federal assistance for construction of hospitals, emphasizing low-cost care of chronic diseases and the special problems of older persons, and increased Federal aid for medical care of the needy.

We have asked the largest increase in research funds ever sought in one year to intensify attacks on cancer, mental illness, heart disease and other dread diseases.

We demand once again, despite the reluctance of the Democrat 84th Congress, /* I guess even then Republicans didn’t know how to use nouns and adjectives */ Federal assistance to help build facilities to train more physicians and scientists. /* Oh oh, them communist scientists */

We have encouraged a notable expansion and improvement of voluntary health insurance, and urge that reinsurance and pooling arrangements be authorized to speed this progress.

We have strengthened the Food and Drug Administration, and we have increased the vocational rehabilitation program to enable a larger number of the disabled to return to satisfying activity.

We have supported measures that have made more housing available than ever before in history, reduced urban slums in local-federal partnership, stimulated record home ownership, and authorized additional low-rent public housing.

…

We recommend to Congress the submission of a constitutional amendment providing equal rights for men and women. /* What? The GOP supported ERA? */

Read the entire platform here.

A reader sent over a link to his blog with an interesting article listing “13 Surprising Facts about Cinco de Mayo.” Please pay them a visit and thanks for sending this over, Christian.

A feliz Cinco de Mayo to everyone!

1. Cinco de Mayo is NOT Mexican Independence Day. In America, we say “The 4th of July” when talking about our Independence Day. It would seems natural, then, that “The 5th of May” would be the Mexican equivalent. Not so. Actually, Cinco de Mayo is the anniversary of an 1862 battle between an under-armed, under-manned Mexican army against a well-armed French Army led by Napoleon III. Clearly, the Mexican army won, hence the celebration every 5th of May.

2. So What Is Mexico’s Independence Day? Mexico celebrates its Independence Day – the day it declared its independence from Spanish Rule – on September 16th every year. Mexico declared its independence in 1810, more than 50 years prior to the battle that we commemorate with Cinco de Mayo.

3. The Battle of Puebla was short. When we think of war in a modern sense, we think of prolonged battles that last days, or even weeks, with ground forces trudging forward. The Battle of Puebla commemorated on Cinco de Mayo, however, featured about 12,000 soldiers combined (8,000 French and 4,000 Mexican). Yet, the entire battle lasted just about two hours and changed the course of history in North America.

4. So wait, what were the French doing in Mexico in 1862? Think of them as an armed collections agency. After declaring their independence in 1810, Mexico went through decades of infighting, as well as fighting with America. this cost a lot of money. In 1861, Mexican President, Benito Juarez, declared a 2-year moratorium on loan repayments to foreign nations, including Spain, England, and France in an attempt to avoid bankrupting the country. All three nations invaded Mexico to collect on debts. While Spain and England left, France tried to stay and take over the country. Obviously, it didn’t work out for the French as we celebrate Cinco de Mayo and not Cinq mai.

5. Cinco de Mayo must be HUGE in Mexico! Not really. While the Batalla de Puebla helped to unify Mexico around one event, the major celebrations of Cinco de Mayo has largely been contained to the village of Puebla, about 100 miles east of Mexico City, where the original battle took place. In reality, Cinco de Mayo is much more popular in America, where citizens of Mexican descent (and those who just like a good margarita) hold festivals from sea to shining sea.

6.Just How Popular is Cinco de Mayo in America? In a word: VERY. Annual Cinco de Mayo festivals in Houston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Denver, and St. Paul, regularly draw hundreds of thousands of people. In fact, the world’s largest Cinco de Mayo celebration is the Festival de Fiesta Broadway held in Los Angeles, California. It routinely draws about 600,000 people to partake in song, spirit, and dance!

7. My grandparents say they don’t remember celebrating Cinco de Mayo when they were kids. What gives? Cinco de Mayo, as we know it today in America, didn’t begin until 1967. Some students from California State University noticed that there weren’t any Mexican holidays celebrated in America like there were for citizens of other descent, like St. Patrick’s Day, Oktoberfest, or Chinese New Year. So they chose Cinco de Mayo as the day to celebrate and gathered Chicano students in unity and celebration. It has gotten a little bigger since then.

8. So they don’t party so much in Mexico, huh? Whoa, hardly. In fact, Cinco de Mayo is just one of more than 365 festivals that are celebrated by Mexicans and people of Mexican descent. No wonder Mexico is such a popular spring break destination!

9. Do they celebrate Cinco de Mayo anywhere besides Mexico and America? While the celebrations aren’t as large or as well-publicized in other nations, some nations mark the day in their own special way. In Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for example, a particular sky-diving club holds their annual Cinco de Mayo jump. Meanwhile the Mediterranean island nation of Malta simply encourages the enjoyment of Mexican beer on Cinco de Mayo.

10. Have margaritas always been the unofficial drink of Cinco de Mayo? Hardly. While Tequila holds a long and storied place in Mexican and Mexican-American celebratory traditions, the margarita didn’t even exist in 1862! While tequila, ice, lime, and sugar all existed in 1862, they weren’t brought together in the form of a margarita until about 1930. Maybe that’s another day that deserves celebration. Just sayin’.

11. Are there any traditional Cinco de Mayo songs? While there are no songs specifically for Cinco de Mayo, there are plenty of songs with Cinco de Mayo in the lyrics, including “Isis” by Bob Dylan and “Mexico” by Cake. In fact, the following bands/artists all have songs titled “Cinco de Mayo”: War, Liz Phair, Senses Fail, and Herb Alpert.

12. The banks are open in Mexico on Cinco de Mayo. Because Cinco de Mayo is a national holiday, and not technically a Federal holiday, the banks stay open. It’s sort of like Arbor Day, but with more tequila.

13. Why Cinco de Mayo still matters. As any celebratory holiday, it is important to honor those moments in a nation’s history when it overcomes tremendous odds. That alone would be reason to keep remembering Cinco de Mayo. The other noteworthy element of Cinco de Mayo is that it represents the last time a foreign army waged aggression in North America… 148 years ago.

César Chávez Estrada
March 31, 1927 – April 23, 1993

The Fifteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution was passed on February 3, 1870 which protected the right of African-Americans to vote.

It reads,

Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Of course this wasn’t the end of discriminatory disenfranchisement practices which went on for another century in this country with acts of violence and intimidation, the Jim Crowe laws, literacy tests, etc. These efforts at going around the Fifteenth Amendment were addressed by the Voting Rights Act passed in 1965 during the height of the Civil Rights Movement.

On February 1, 1960, four African American college students from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical College sat down at a lunch counter at Woolworth’s in Greensboro, North Carolina.  The seats were white-only and blacks were expected to stand up to eat lunch. After asking for service they were denied and remained in their seats after being asked to leave.  The sit-ins continued for the next several days and by February 5th, over 300 students had joined the Greensboro Four in the peaceful demonstration. On the 6th, however, tensions mounted resulting a bomb scare and the store was closed for the next two weeks. This was one of the big sparks of the civil rights movement in the South.

The four men were Ezell A. Blair, Jr. (now Jibreel Khazan), Franklin E. McCain, Joseph A. McNeil, and David L. Richmond.

… plus today is my birthday!

At 108 years of age, Frank Woodruff Buckles is the last known surviving World War I veteran. He enlisted in the Army in 1917 at the age of 16 just as the United States was entering the war. He served in the U.K. and France in the Army’s 1st Fort Riley Casualty Detachment. He left the Army after the war. During World War II he worked as a civilian in the Philippines and was captured by the Japanese and spent three years as a POW.

This is our very last link to the war that gave us Armistice Day. What a treasure! Thank you for your service, Mr. Buckles.