The Holy Innocents

Sandy Hook Elementary School, December 14, 2012, Massacre of the Innocents

Bethlehem, 2012 years ago, Massacre of the Innocents

This Friday, the Catholic Church honors the Feast Day of the Holy Innocents.  On that day, the Church remembers King Herod's diabolical massacre of the small children in Bethlehem who resembled in age and sex the newborn King and infant boy, Jesus Christ.  It has been written that 20 very young boys were murdered by the barbaric Herod. Infanticide carried out on the basis of "mistaken identity."  On that day, innocence was lost and martyrs were made.

In 2012, two weeks ago, another act of immoral barbarism was committed upon the very young by a madman. 20 boys and girls, mostly first graders, of ages 6 and 7, were murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, Connecticut.  Another six adults were also were murdered.  On that day again, innocence was lost and martyrs were made.

As the peace of Bethlehem was shattered that day by the cries of the slaughtered and of their weeping mothers, so too, the peace of Sandy Hook School was shattered by unfathomable madness and evil.

"Jesus Christ was slain and the peace of the world was shattered by the single cry from the cross. Yet through that death and mourning, peace was reborn, indestructible now, in the Resurrection of the slain Christ."

May the grieved families of the taken innocents today receive the many graces of the "Resurrection of the slain Christ."

May God bless those little children, brave adults and their surviving families.

Merry Christmas 2012

Fresco of the Nativity of the Birth of Jesus, by Giotto in 1306, Arena Chapel, Padua, Italy

"Try to imagine what I gave up when I came into your world as a baby.  I set aside My Glory, so that I could identify with mankind.  I accepted the limitations of infancy under the most appalling conditions - a filthy stable. That was a dark night for Me, even though angels lit up the sky proclaiming 'Glory!' to awe-struck shepherds."  Jesus Calling on December 25

Merry Christmas and Feliz Navidad to you and your families.

California taxin'

Albert Pujols, St. Louis to Anaheim, $240MILLION, 10 years
California State Income Tax bill  = $32MILLION

Dwight Howard, Orlando to Los Angeles, $20MILLION, 1 year
California State Income Tax Bill  = $2.7MILLION

Zach Greinke, Texas to Los Angeles, $147MILLION, 6 years 

California State Income Tax Bill  = $19.6MILLION

Josh Hamilton, Texas to Anaheim, $125MILLION, 5 years
California State Income Tax Bill  = $16.7MILLION 

Governor of California Jerry Brown, the tax man cometh
State of California Tax Revenue from four people above = $71MILLION

Not so long ago on a planet far different from the one today, the thought of raising taxes was a death sentence for any politician, particularly, one running for president.

The fear of a tax increase was so palpable to the electorate in 1988,  Republican nominee for president, George H.W. Bush #41, uttered these famous words at the Republican National Convention to quell the nation's fears, "Read my lips, no new taxes."  Bush won that election on that promise.  However in two years, he broke his own pledge, raised taxes to combat the deficit and was publicly pilloried coast to coast.

Enter Bill Clinton in 1992, the Democratic nominee for president.  Bush lost his re-election because of what Clinton phrased as Bush's "untrustworthiness" for breaking his own promise of no new taxes and Bush was booted out of office with some help from third party diluter Ross Perot.

Fast forward to today.  Oh, how the planet has changed.

In the last election cycle, President Barack Obama and California Governor Jerry Brown campaigned on what used to be political suicide, raising taxes.  Both Obama and Brown flatly stated that new higher taxes were needed for the governments to function and for the entitlements to continue period.  Against a painful backdrop of an anemic economy, they both won on that blanket tax dictum with no mention of specific spending cuts.

Obama won a second term and Brown won with the passing of his new revenue pet Proposition 30 insuring higher taxes.  So in a span of 20 years, the thought of raising taxes on the populace which was an anathema to a center right American citizenry changed to a righteous hip center left culture of today that paying "our fair share is the right thing to do."

Specifically, on the state level, California's money cash flow woes are very serious due to generational political incompetence and malfeasance in Sacramento. Shockingly,  California's debt is $400BILLION.  California's scale of debt is similar to Greece debt size.  Greece is done.  California is on the ropes. How to keep California breathing? "Raise taxes", says Jerry.  And Jerry implied, 'if you don't raise taxes, California will not have enough money in its coffers to do most anything for the public good.' Terrified voters bought the message.

In California, the new tax increase retroactive to 2012 are stunningly onerous. The newly passed Prop 30 increases state taxes on the wealthy by 30% to 13.3% from 10.3%.  State sales tax and local taxes will rise to 10% plus or minus for all citizens.  California now has the dubious distinction of being the most heavily taxed state in the country surpassing the old standard bearer of statehood fiscal irresponsibility, New York.

Astonishingly, the recent megastar signing events in California have given much needed oxygen to Jerry and his Sacramento spenders and looters.  The four major athletes pictured above have all signed humungous contracts to move from tax friendly states to the most hostile tax grabbing state in the country.  These four men and their agents are either the most clueless businessmen on earth or they like the geography and weather of SoCal so much that paying Jerry a major surcharge is "the right thing to do" to call Cali home.  Or, maybe they just found out about Cali's exorbitant taxes and cost of living and that's why none of them are smiling.  Oops.

Needless to say with this sudden infusion of revenue,  Jerry is in full downward dog repose...with a wide Mr. Burns grin. Christmas came early.

In closing, let me get this right.  Josh Hamilton just left Texas that has zero state income tax for tax crazy California. He will gross $25MILLION his first year of a five year deal with the Angels. His tax bill in 2013 will be 40% Federal, 3.8% Obamacare surcharge and 13.3 % State of California income tax on that $25MIL.  That equates to a total tax bill for his first year in sunny SoCal of $14.275MILLION.  Josh nets $10.725MIL.  Not bad in a lousy economy.

Sacramento and DC thanks Mr Moreno, 'the feeling crummy of oneself' spendthrift owner of the Angels, for helping "level the playing field" (no pun intended).

Now that raising taxes are cool and in, what's next? Eating brussel sprouts enhances one's sex life.  No way!

Take Five Forever

Dave Brubeck at 2009 Monterey Jazz festival at age 89.

Dave Brubeck, 45, in 1965 among his young admirers.

Today, the jazz world and the greater music world lost a true legend in the art of composing and performing on the piano, Dave Brubeck. Brubeck, 92, died of heart failure in Norwalk, Connecticut.

The self-proclaimed "composer who plays the piano" traveled the world for over 60 plus years with a sound and an artistry that transcended the jazz genre and appealed to music lovers of all stripes. His seminal piece, Take Five, written by the brilliant alto saxophonist, Paul Desmond, and arranged by Brubeck, sits equally amidst such jazz piece heavyweights as John Coltrane's, A Love Supreme, and Miles Davis's, Kinda Blue.

I was lucky enough to hear Brubeck several times at the Monterey Jazz Festival.  In fact, Brubeck was one of the founding musicians behind the longest continuous running jazz festivals in the world, MJF.  Brubeck always delivered the goods and with that trademark joyful smile of his.  He made music which made his audience happy and made himself delirious with joy.  He truly loved his art. And for that, we all loved him.

Brubeck was born in Northern California into a musical family. His mother taught piano.  His brothers were both musicians.  Brubeck enrolled at the University of Pacific with an interest in veterinary science. But quickly changed his major to music.

After graduating from college in 1942,  Brubeck was drafted in the Army.  It was this moment of time that changed his life's path.  He met Desmond in the Army which furthered his love of and talent for music, and as they say "the rest is history." 

In 1959, Desmond and Brubeck collaborated in producing Take Five.  Desmond with his restrained white "cool school" saxophone style melded with Brubeck's riff-like block chords created this timeless masterpiece we enjoy today, 53 years later.  With it's truly renegade (at that time) quintuple time 5/4, hence the name Take Five, Desmond and Brubeck gave us all something to cherish in forever time. 

After listening to this piece, can you imagine these two cool cats together in the same barracks in the Army?

RIP Dave Brubeck.

Have a laugh or two this Thanksgiving

Here are a few classic lines from the comedic personalities past and present on Thanksgiving:

"My cooking is so bad my kids thought Thanksgiving was to commemorate Pearl Harbor."
Phyliss Diller

"Thanksgiving dinners take 18 hours to prepare.  They are consumed in 15 minutes.  Football half times take 15 minutes.  This is no coincidence."
Erma Bombeck

"The turkey that President Obama will pardon this Thanksgiving is from California. The turkey said, I don't need a pardon.  I need a job."
Conan O'Brien

"Thanksgiving is an emotional holiday.  People travel thousands of miles to be with people they only see once a year.  And discover once a year is way too often."
Johnny Carson

Wherever you may be on this fine day of Thanksgiving have fun, laugh and make someone else laugh amidst it all. For laughter is key in this world.

And think about and rejoice for all of our multitudinous blessings.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Most Beautiful Race on the Planet

Why do we run? For 9,000 reasons.

Honeymooners take first place for both men's and women's divisions.

This past Sunday, my family and 9,000 of our closest friends, ran along the Monterey Coast in the 10th Annual Big Sur Half Marathon.  The weatherman predicted a cold rain but the good Lord thought otherwise.  We were blessed with warm air, sunny skies and no wind.  A runners delight.  All this set against a backdrop of  incomparable beauty and a restless sea. It could not have been better for the runners but it was truly magical for two very elite athletes.

For the first time in modern day running history, methinks, a husband and wife won their respective divisions in the same long distance race.  Arizonans Ben Bruce, 30, and his wife, Stephanie Rothstein-Bruce, 29, won first place in both the men's and women's division.  At one point, I saw Ben cruising at top speed with three Kenyons in hot pursuit on his tail.  At mile 9, Ben had a healthy lead over the Kenyons but was still concerned. "Even when I got the big lead, I was wondering, are they coming back on me? You feel hurt, too.  It just becomes a matter of hanging on from there."  Boy, did Ben hang on and beat the tireless Kenyons.  Impressive. His time was 1:04:45.  A shade under 5 minutes a mile.  First place for men.

His wife, Stephanie, was equally impressive.  I saw Stephanie motoring back to the finish line in pure chettah stride. Her body was and is a finely tuned machine with every muscle in concert with one goal...to go really fast.  A lovely athletic motion to witness. She finished the race with a personal best time of 1:12:19. A shade under 6 minutes a mile.  First place for women.

And that's not all regarding the husband and wife dual victory on Sunday past.  You ready for this?  They were on their HONEYMOON!!!  Forget Cancun.  Forget Hawaii.  Forget Bahamas.  'Babe, let's run a marathon together...and win the darn thing on our honeymoon. OK.' Incidentally, they both won $3000 each for first place and guess where they are headed next?  To run in the Honolulu Marathon next month. Now those are some runnin' foos!

Congrats to Bruce and Stephanie and I hope you have a very happy life together. And major props for all of us runners who gutted it out and rode in on Ben and Stephanie's wake. It was a spectacular race and an astonishing accomplishment for the entire field of runners.

Everybody won that day.

See you next year.

"stupid is as stupid does"

Would you hire this guy to run your company?  Probably not.  So why is he governing over the largest economy in the world (for now) for a second term? Because we're stupid.

President Obama stunningly won a second term as President of the United States this past Tuesday.   With a lot of help from his loyal friends:  students, blacks, Hispanics, women, left wing radicals and an ever-growing number of government largesse receivers, Obama narrowly defeated Governor Mitt Romney by 2% points 50-48.  How?  Regardless of his pathetic four year record as president, simply, Obama again proved to be more rockstar likeable, an expert campaigner and an effective demagogue against the richer than Croesus but boring as burnt toast, Romney. Welcome to American Idol, White House edition.

Romney and the Republican braintrust should have seen this coming long before this past Tuesday. A wealthy boringly normal 1% Republican guy or gal does not have a chance against a self-professed "liberal warrior idol" for the middle class on today's unsavory and angry political stage.  One can't buy any office anymore much less the presidency. Want proof? Cue up super rich Meg Whitman's failed run for Governor in the State of California two years ago.  She was trounced by Governor Moonbeam and he who sleeps on the floor, septuagenarian (74 years old) Jerry Brown. (Incidentally, the odd Brown is the perfect gov for the failed state of Cali.)

Romney was painted fictitiously by the Obamanistas as another rich capitalist who exploited the middle class.  'How dare he succeed in Obama's America at the expense of all of us regular folk', was the nationwide murmur by the other side all the way into and out of the voting booth.

Obama, the black everyman, whose cunning heart beats for the downtrodden middle class of all colors, waged a full frontal relentless assault against the wealthy, successful, white businessman, Romney.  While Romney promised jobs and an opportunity for work to those 23 million supposedly in need, Obama promised everything but jobs and a repudiation of everything Romney represented.  And the foolish 50% American electorate swallowed that class warfare claptrap by the incumbent...hook, line and sinker.

Mitt lost for three reasons:  one, he was too financially successful (a new negative in the USA) which Obama exploited to his advantage; two, he was too decent to the incumbent particularly on the Benghazi murders; and, three, Obama's likeability proved to be more important to many voters than his record.  Other factors may have played a part, such as: Hurricane Sandy which stalled Romney's surge a week before election Tuesday,  Romney's fluid position on issues, and, frankly, an electorate that is about as smart as a box of buttons and as gullible as a third grade class. Nonetheless, it was the third point which ultimately proved to be the most powerful force against Romney, that is, Obama's likeability.  Simply, Obama appeared to be more likeable and not stereotypical of the angry black man. That one stark contrast swayed people of all stripes.

 "So why is Obama so likeable?  It's a way for people to say that even when they don't approve of what he does, they still appreciate the fact that Obama isn't Jesse Jackson or  Al Sharpton.  White Americans will always take a bargainer over a challenger. Consequently, there is an unspoken force drawing Obama forward, and this makes him much harder to beat at the ballot box than a white Democrat who might be identical to him in all other aspects.  This is something Obama's opponents must always keep in mind.  They must figure out how to give people permission to vote against Obama: if they cannot do this, they will never defeat him."                                                                                      Dinesh D'Souza, Obama's America.

Regrettably, Romney's hopeful message of American exceptionalism, jobs and a plan to revive an anemic economy fell on many deaf ears.  Those simple truths were not enough of a reason to vote against the "Likeable One" in office. Romney did not "figure out how to give people permission to vote against Obama." As a consequence, he lost to a very vulnerable opponent. Obama played "rope-a-dope" while Romney punched himself out.

So, as Forrest Gump said, "stupid is as stupid does."  America just got a whole lot more stupid this past week in front of the whole astonished world.

As a result of Tuesday's outcome, our landlord, China, is gleefully grinning ear to ear and our dogged enemy, Islamic terrorists, are high fiving each other in caves around the globe. For nary a shot being fired nor a bomb dropped, America is defeating itself from within....vote by vote.