Monthly Archives: March 2021

environmental news

Eagle makes heroic return

(Photo by: Prisma Bildagentur/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

We have been languishing in a flood of negative news of late: the pandemic, Donald Trump’s shenanigans, economic collapse … blah, blah, blah.

I want to share a bit of seriously good cheer: the return of the bald eagle.

This is worth cheering. The nation’s proud symbol once was on the brink of extinction. Then the federal government banned the use of DDT, a powerful pesticide that had poisoned water that provided fish for the eagles to consume. The birds would feed on the poisoned fish and die from DDT-related complications.

As National Public Radio reported: Contamination from DDT, a powerful insecticide that found its way into eagles’ prey, made their eggs so fragile that they often broke while their parents incubated them.

Then came the Endangered Species Act in 1972. DDT was banned. The eagles began their comeback. The eagle population has quadrupled since 2009, according to the Interior Department.

This is a bit of a mixed blessing in one aspect. The overall bird population continues to decline. So, I am not going to offer a full-throated cheer for the eagle’s return. I remain concerned about the decline in wildlife numbers.

Interior Secretary Deb Haaland calls the eagle’s comeback a “historic conservation success story.” Haaland, the first Native American appointed to a Cabinet post, said the eagle “has always been considered a sacred species to American Indian people, and similarly it’s sacred to our nation as America’s national symbol.”

Once Imperiled, America’s Bald Eagle Populations Are Soaring | 88.9 KETR

To think, also, that at the founding of this great nation, that one of our founding fathers, Benjamin Franklin, disliked naming the eagle as our national symbol; he preferred to give that designation to the turkey. What in the world was Ol’ Ben thinking?

Indeed, the phrase “soar like a turkey” just doesn’t have the same ring as “soar like an eagle.” 

The nation’s grand bird has come back. For that I want to salute not only the bird, but those in government who in 1972 had the good sense to take action to stop its senseless slaughter.

DC riot, national news, political news, State news

What is Texas AG hiding?

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

What in the name of full transparency is Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton hiding from the public he took an oath to serve?

This guy is beginning to redefine the term “slime bucket” by refusing to release the text of emails he sent and received while attending a rally that preceded the Jan. 6 insurrection against the federal government.

The Texas Tribune reports:

Several news organizations in Texas have requested copies of the attorney general’s work-related communications. The Texas Public Information Act guarantees the public’s right to government records — even if those records are stored on personal devices or online accounts of public officials.

After Paxton’s office refused to release copies of his emails and text messages, The Texas Tribune and ProPublica, The Austin American-Statesman, The Dallas Morning News, The Houston Chronicle, and The San Antonio Express-News are working together in an effort to obtain the documents and review Paxton’s open-records practices.

Ken Paxton refuses to release messages about attendance at pro-Trump rally | The Texas Tribune

Paxton attended the rally on The Ellipse, the one in which Donald J. Trump exhorted the mob to march on the Capitol Building and “take back” the government. You know what happened next, right?

Paxton was among the attendees. News organizations want to know what in the world he was doing there, what he said, what was said to him, whether he was a principal in the effort to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden’s election as president of the United States.

Paxton already has slimed his office. He is under indictment for securities fraud and is awaiting trial. The feds are examining a whistleblower complaint that he allegedly broke the law as attorney general of Texas. He filed that laughable lawsuit that sought other states to overturn their election results that helped elect Biden as president.

Now he is stonewalling media representatives seeking access to records to which they public is entitled.

What is he hiding? Hmm?

media news

POTUS vs. media: It’s not warfare

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden has brought back what looks to me like the traditional give-and-take between the nation’s chief executive and the men and women who report on it all to the people of this country.

It’s a classic confrontation between the president and the media.

Why is this refreshing? Why even comment on it? Because for four years prior to Biden becoming president the nation witnessed what looked at times like a mortal struggle between the president and the organizations he routinely called “fake news.”

Donald Trump poisoned the traditional relationship, turning it into a ridiculous exhibition of presidential petulance. It fed into the anger that reporters had to have felt as they were berated and ridiculed by Trump, who lied to them, then denigrated them for revealing his lies.

Donald Trump infamously labeled the media the “enemy of the people.” They aren’t. The media comprise professionals who do their level best to report on the administration’s statements and actions.

Today, we witnessed a return to how it used to be and how it likely will remain for the foreseeable future.

The reporters gathered for President Biden’s first news conference as president did not ask softie questions. They pushed him on immigration policies, on the border crisis. They wanted to know how he intended to handle our ongoing military engagement in Afghanistan. They pressed Biden on the pandemic response.

During the Trump years, reporters would ask those kinds of questions and would get snarky responses questioning their integrity, their intelligence, their honesty or even the financial condition of their employer.

Joe Biden has felt the sting of intensely negative media  reporting. It occurred in 1988 when the media report to describe his own life story. It happened again when his second presidential campaign flamed out in 2008. Even in the early months of the 2020, the media reported that Biden was nothing more than political road kill after his dismal Democratic Party primary finishes in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada.

The media report on these matters. Joe Biden knows it. He gets it. He lives with it.

Now, as President Biden, he will continue to be examined critically by the media. As he demonstrated at his presser today, the president understands the traditional role the media play. It is an essential part of the greatness imbued in our democracy and our nation.

national news

Don’t know about a GOP in the future?

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden said today isn’t sure there will even be a Republican Party in existence by the time 2024 rolls around.

I’ve got a flash for him: I believe the GOP will exist in some form.

It is possible — if not probable — that it won’t resemble the Republican Party with which he worked as a U.S. senator and as vice president.

The GOP that Biden knows was able at times to work with Democrats, to find common ground. Republicans knew how to legislate, as does Biden.

The cult of personality that has replaced the once-great political party is, well, something quite different.

It will call itself the Republican Party, but it likely will be a “Republican Party In Name Only.”

local news

COVID vaccines abound for foreigners, too?

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Texas Panhandle media are reporting that flights are arriving from Mexico carrying so-called “elites” who are getting vaccinated in Amarillo against the COVID-19 virus.

A news report from KVII Channel 7 says the flights are departing from near Mexico City, stopping in San Antonio and then going to Amarillo where passengers are getting the vaccines.

What is not being reported, and which could place this matter in its proper context, are the numbers of foreign nationals who are getting the vaccines. Is it in the dozens? Hundreds? Thousands?

I doubt it’s in the thousands of individuals. Hundreds might be a stretch.

Foreign elites flying to Amarillo for vaccination | KVII (abc7amarillo.com)

U.S. Rep. Ronny Jackson, the area’s newly elected congressman, said he opposes giving the shots to foreigners. He doesn’t stipulate, though, whether any local residents are being deprived of the vaccine. He said in a statement: “If this report is true, it is a serious problem. Amarillo should not be a hub for medical tourism at the expense of hardworking Texans. Non-citizens should not receive the COVID-19 vaccine in our state until all Texans who want a vaccine are vaccinated — bottom line.”

Amarillo has become something of a case study for how administering this vaccine is supposed to work. The inoculation protocol there reportedly has gone very well, and it has gotten the attention from those around the nation — and apparently across our borders.

If there remain enough vaccines for everyone, then I do not see a problem.

national news

Crisis requires urgent response

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden can dance around the use of certain words all he wants, but what he shouldn’t deny in his gut is the existence of a “crisis” on our southern border.

He used the word “thousands” today when describing the influx of immigrants from Latin America into the United States. He did not use the word “crisis” to describe what is happening there. However, that is what it is.

He said during his press conference day that more immigrants arrived at our southern border at a comparable period during the final year of the Donald Trump administration than so far during the Biden administration. He also said immigration officers are turning back the “overwhelming majority” of those who are fleeing their home countries.

As an American observer of these matters, though, I just grow weary of hearing politicians and their spokesmen and women shy away from what we all know to be true. The Biden administration has a crisis on its hands with regard to unaccompanied minors seeking entry into the United States. They need to call it what it is, not hide behind terms such as “challenge,” which is what press secretary Jen Psaki did the other day after letting slip that the administration is dealing with a “crisis” on the border.

It reminds me in a perverse way of how the Trump administration kept downplaying the severity of the coronavirus pandemic that began killing Americans each day. The docs called it a grave problem. Meanwhile, Donald Trump refused to acknowledge the brutal truth.

There’s a bit of that occurring now as President Biden seeks to dress up what is happening now. He is dealing with a crisis and he should call it what we all know to be occurring.

national news

Not bad at all, Mr. POTUS

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By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Well now, that wasn’t so bad.

President Biden held the first news conference of his presidency and it turned out to be, oh, pretty normal as far as these events go.

There was no berating of reporters — even though one of them kind of ventured way ahead of herself; more on that in a minute. There was some good-natured jabs, but all told the president answered the questions fairly, squarely and truthfully.

Biden holds 1st formal news conference, faces questions on pandemic, migrant surge (msn.com)

Kaitlin Collins of CNN, though, seemed to get ahead of the curve when she asked Biden if he intends to run for re-election in 2024. Biden, whose life experience has taught him grim lessons about fate, declined to say categorically that he will, although he did say he is planning on a re-election campaign.

Then she asked Biden if Vice President Kamala Harris would run with him, which seemed to be a seriously wasted moment. President Biden said Harris has been a valued partner and suggested clearly that she will be on the ticket with him if he decides to seek a second term.

Oh, and then Collins asked if he expected to run against Donald J. Trump. To which Biden laughed.

All in all, a solid effort. The president appears to be on top of matters and indicated that his years as a U.S. senator and as vice president will serve him well as he seeks to navigate his way through the legislative process.

We all will need to watch as the Biden presidency plays out.

local news, Sports news

Let’s play ball!

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

This news knocks me out, man!

The college students who played this past summer while the pandemic had put minor-league baseball on the shelf in Amarillo … are coming back for a second season!

The Texas Collegiate League is going to begin playing hardball at the Amarillo Sod Poodles’ home field when the Soddies are on the road. The college students’ season begins May 28 and will last through July 17. The teams will play a 22-game schedule.

The teams from across the state will comprise college students from around the nation. They are varsity athletes and, to be totally honest, they play some pretty good hardball.

The Sod Poodles will embark soon on their second season after winning the Texas League title in 2019. They now play in the Central League. I personally hope to see them this season when they venture to Frisco, near my new home in Princeton, to play the Roughriders. Yes, I’ll cheer for the Soddies when they do well on the field.

As ABC 7 reported: “We are very excited to again partner with the Texas Collegiate League,” said Sod Poodles President and General Manager Tony Ensor. “Baseball has become a huge part of our culture in Amarillo and the best and most exciting baseball environment in the country has been built at HODGETOWN because of our great fans and community. We look forward to hosting and creating more local and nationwide opportunities for these college athletes and showcase some of the best talent college baseball has to offer!”

Texas Collegiate League baseball returning to Hodgetown | KVII (abc7amarillo.com)

The return of the Texas Collegiate League bodes well for the future of baseball in Amarillo. I recall hearing former Amarillo College President Paul Matney once say that “Amarillo is a baseball town” as he sought to sell the notion of building the ballpark in downtown Amarillo. The Sod Poodles’ initial season bore that out as fans flocked the ballpark.

This year will be different only in that the team so far is planning to sell enough tickets to put about 75 percent of the park’s capacity in the stands.

Whatever. The college athletes are coming back, giving baseball fans another reason to cheer while they chew on Cracker Jack.

Joe Biden

Stand tall, Mr. POTUS

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden had expected to stand triumphantly before the media at his first full-scale press conference.

He’ll be standing as tall as ever when reporters gather Thursday at the White House. However, he’s got some problems to confront.

Sure, he has the legislative triumph of securing the COVID-19 relief package to boast about; vaccines are rolling out by the millions of doses; he has exceeded his goal of 100 million vaccines in the first 100 days of the Biden presidency.

Biden faces a flurry of new challenges ahead of first White House news conference (msn.com)

But …

He has that crisis at the southern border. The nation is reeling from two massacres and the deaths of 18 Americans at the hands of lunatic gunmen. Pressure is growing within the Democratic Party for the president to put more Asians and Pacific Islanders in key government positions.

It won’t be a cakewalk to be sure. Reporters won’t be asking softball questions, nor should they. I have every expectation that President Biden will handle the tough questions with aplomb. What’s more, I do not expect him to label any reporter as “incompetent,” or “the enemy of the people,” or a “loser” who works for a “failing” media organization. He will stand firm and he will conduct himself in a manner we had grown to expect from our president.

It won’t be a walk through the White House Rose Garden, which goes with the territory. This lifetime public servant, President Biden, knows what to expect. I trust he’ll be ready for it.

national news

Can we debate like grownups?

By JOHN KANELIS / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

We have begun to debate — once again — the issue of guns, the Second Amendment and whether we can find a way to stop the madness of gun violence.

I’ll have to acknowledge that it hasn’t started off well. Republicans in the Senate, namely Ted Cruz of Texas, already have begun demagoguing the matter into insanity.

In a span of a little more than a week, shooters opened fire in Atlanta and Boulder, Colo. Eighteen people died in both massacres. The suspects are in custody and have been charged with multiple counts of murder. I feel confident that justice will do its work with regard to these two individuals.

What gives me concern is whether Congress, President Biden and all the political interests involved in this matter will allow the debate to proceed without scare tactics, lies, and demagoguery.

As I have noted already, the first signals don’t bode well.

I believe firmly that there must be a legislative — or an executive — solution to the issue of restricting gun sales without infringing on the Second Amendment guarantee of firearm ownership. Ted Cruz seems to think that any effort to enact those restrictions inhibits “law-abiding citizens” from owning a gun. That, as I see it, is a preposterous notion, because citizens who obey the law would have zero cause for worry.

Cruz then went after Democrats for chastising those whose only solution is to offer “thoughts and prayers,” suggesting that Democrats belong to some sort of Godless organization. Ridiculous.

I want to hear from constitutional scholars — from both sides of the great divide — who can tell us whether there exists a legislative solution that (a) limits the ability of nut jobs to purchase a gun and (b) doesn’t violate the Second Amendment’s constitutional guarantee that allows us to “keep and bear arms.”

I also want to stipulate that I do not have any solutions to this quandary. I know, though, that this great country is full of learned men and women who can produce a remedy to what I consider one of this nation’s existential threats.

Gun violence has turned damn near every venue that we all enter — churches, grocery stores, schools, playgrounds — into potential killing grounds. It has to stop!