Monthly Archives: May 2021

local news

Yes, welcome them, but no need to embrace them

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

An earlier blog post compels me to make a declaration.

In no way at all do I object to Amarillo (Texas) Mayor Ginger Nelson welcoming New Mexico Republicans to her city; the NM Republican Party took its annual conference across the state line because of objections to the state’s ongoing COVID pandemic protocols.

Fine. Whatever they want to do is fine with me. That’s their call.

Nor should it bother anyone in Amarillo, even if they disagree politically with the GOP, or the Democratic Party … any political organization on Earth.

Ginger Nelson’s welcoming of the New Mexico GOP conference crossed a couple of important lines.

One line is that the mayor — by embracing the ideology expressed by the likes of Reps. Ronny Jackson (the former Navy admiral who moved to Amarillo to run for Congress) and Jim Jordan of Ohio — has thrown in with the nuttiest of the nut jobs of the current Republican Party. Nelson did not advertise herself as a 2020 election conspiracy theorist when she won re-election earlier this month. Now, though, she has aligned herself with those nut jobs. Jackson and Jordan stand among the few and the ridiculous in their view of Donald Trump’s Big Lie.

The other line involves the non-partisan nature of her elected office. Her cuddling up to the GOP in this manner reminds of the time a 1990s candidate for Amarillo mayor, Mary Alice Brittain, sought to recruit “good Republicans” to vote for her over the incumbent mayor, Kel Seliger. I called Brittain out at the time for poisoning the non-partisan nature of the office she sought. The good news is that she didn’t win and has disappeared from the Texas Panhandle political grid.

I shudder to think that Mayor Nelson, who I believe has done a stellar job as the city’s presiding elected official, is about to cross the line that separates her non-partisan duties from partisan political hackery. 

Please say it isn’t so, Mme. Mayor.

local news

Mme. Mayor, you have messed up

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Ginger Nelson has been elected and re-elected mayor of Amarillo, Texas, as a non-partisan public official. In her capacity as mayor, she officially belongs to no political party.

Which brings me to this point: What in the name of political sanity is the city’s non-partisan mayor throwing her arms around the likes of some of the most partisan Republicans on the national stage today?

The New Mexico Republican Party moved its annual conference to Amarillo because the party doesn’t like New Mexico’s continuing COVID pandemic restrictions. They came to Amarillo to sing the praises of the disgraced Donald Trump and to whoop and holler at the likes of South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and the Panhandle’s Rep. Ronny Jackson, all of whom have served as Trump suck-ups and sycophants.

She could have just welcomed the New Mexico GOP to the city she governs, encouraged them to spend some dough and revel in the sights and sounds of the Texas Panhandle.

Then Nelson posted this on Facebook: Conservative ideals are good for our city, our states and our nation. We live those ideals everyday in Amarillo, and I’m glad that Amarillo is participating in the national political dialogue about what is best for our families, our businesses, our cities and our nation.

Conservative ideals? Really, Mme. Mayor? Sure thing. What about conspiracy notions about “stolen elections” and “rampant voter fraud,” which are two of the idiotic propositions being promoted by the folks with whom Nelson is proud to hobnob at the NM GOP conference?

My goodness. This is profoundly disappointing to me. I barely know Ginger Nelson; I have had precisely one brief conversation with her. I supported her election and re-election as mayor because of her economic vision for the city.

I didn’t give a damn about about her political leanings. She serves as mayor with no regard to partisanship. I do give a damn now because she has embraced the political toxicity these GOP wackos have brought to Amarillo.

Very disappointing, Mme. Mayor.

Sports news

Pujols finds a new team … yes!

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Albert Pujols will take his place in due course in the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame.

But first the former three-time National League Most Valuable Player, two-time World Series champ (with the St. Louis Cardinals) and arguably the best right-handed hitter in the past 60 years will get to play one season for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The LA Angels gave Pujols the boot in the final year of the huge contract he signed prior to the 2012 season. The all-timer didn’t perform up to the standards he set while playing for the Cardinals.

Free agent Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Dodgers agree to major-league contract (msn.com)

He is now 41 years of age. He doesn’t have much time.

The only downer I see in this signing is that Pujols won’t get to play the Cardinals in St. Louis this year, as he did in 2019 when the Angels visited Busch Stadium for a three-game set against the Cards. The reception the St. Louis fans gave Pujols was remarkable in the extreme.

I’ve shared this video already, but it’s worth seeing again.

Enjoy …

Cardinals fans give Albert Pujols a standing ovation in his return to Busch Stadium – YouTube

DC riot, national news

Civil discourse? It’s MIA

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

What in the name of uncivil backstabbing is going on atop Capitol Hill?

Democrats and Republicans continue to detest each other. My particular concern rests with GOP lawmakers who seem to pose an actual physical threat to their Democratic colleagues.

The latest high-profile confrontation included two relatively junior members of the House of Representatives. They haven’t been there but both of ’em have taken full advantage of their position to reap the highest profile possible.

The Memo: Lawmakers on edge after Greene’s spat with Ocasio-Cortez | TheHill

The House’s QAnon queen, Marjorie Taylor Greene, seemed intent on confronting lefty darling Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She followed AOC down the hall and out the door of the Capitol Building, berating her with every step. AOC didn’t respond.

Cortez has expressed concern for her physical safety because of antics performed by Greene and some of her other right-wing lunatic colleagues.

This seems to stem from the insurrection of Jan. 6. You remember that, yes? Donald Trump incited the terrorists to storm Capitol Hill. They did and shouted their desire to “hang Mike Pence!” as the vice president was doing his constitutional duty by certifying the Electoral College victory of Joe Biden over Trump.

It hasn’t abated much since that terrible day.

That the confrontation between Green and AOC, though, illustrates something strange about the current political climate. Both of these women are newbies to Congress; Greene was elected in 2020 and AOC was elected in 2018. Yet we find that the skyrocketing influence of social media has elevated both their profiles.

It well might be igniting the hard feelings that exist among members of the far left and the far right. It bothers and frightens me terribly.

As for MTG vs. AOC, hmmm … I’ll pull for the lefty.

International news

Stay the course on Israel, Mr. POTUS

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By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

President Biden needs to resist the pressure coming from the left wing of the Democratic Party regarding the exploding tensions between Israel and the Palestinians.

Israel is striking back hard at Hamas terrorists who have been launching missiles into Israeli neighborhoods, targeting civilians in their attempt to get Israel to change its settlement policy in Palestinian territory.

Joe Biden has long held during his half-century in public life that Israel is our most important ally in the Middle East, yet the far-left within the Democratic Party are pressuring him to look more kindly on the terrorists who are demanding social justice.

I get their concern. I want Israel and the Palestinians to live in peace as much as anyone. I also believe the Israelis have shown sufficient patience at terrorists — such as Hamas — keep threatening the lives of Israeli civilians.

As the New York Times reported: Less than 24 hours later, on Friday, nearly 150 prominent liberal advocacy organizations issued a joint statement calling for “solidarity with the Palestinian residents” and condemning “Israeli state violence” and “supremacy” in Jerusalem.

Tensions Among Democrats Grow Over Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (msn.com)

Biden’s instincts are correct. He needs no lecture from those on the fringes of his party on how to deal with the Palestinians. Does he want a two-state solution? Yes. Does he want to stand in “solidarity” with Palestinians? That’s a dicey proposition, given this nation’s long-standing “solidarity” with Israel.

We should stand strongly with Israel while seeking a permanent peace in the region that knows unbearable heartache.

medical news

Delighted with ruling, however …

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By John Kanelis / johnkanelils_92@hotmail.com

As delighted as I am with the new masking and social distance guidelines from the federal government, I want to offer a word of caution.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says we no longer need to wear masks if we are fully vaccinated. OK, we qualify for that; we are vaccinated and we have the documentation to prove it.

I do not know what the guy next to me at the grocery store has done. Nor do I know what so-and-so waiting in line to buy a burrito at the convenience store has done.

My hope today is that we do not see a dramatic reduction in mask wearing as we go about our day.

We’ve been following the rules in our North Texas community and for that I am glad and delighted that my neighbors haven’t flouted the advice given to us by CDC, President Biden and his senior medical team.

The COVID pandemic is still out there. It’s lurking. I intend to wear masks for until we get the all clear signal from those in the know.

Join me, eh?

local news, Sports news

Soddie fans get good news

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

So help me I thought I could hear some wild cheers coming from Amarillo when news came from federal medical experts about the mask and social-distancing mandate.

The cheers would have come from fans of the Amarillo Sod Poodles, the city’s minor league baseball team that opens its home season next week at Hodgetown.

Why the cheers? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has relaxed the mask and social distance mandate for those who are fully vaccinated against the COVID pandemic.

That means, if I get this right, that Hodgetown can be filled to the max with fans who don’t need to sit six feet apart from each other.

I am happy for the fans who get to go to the ballpark to cheer the Soddies on. I hope they exercise at least a modicum of caution. How? They ought to wear their masks, even if they are fully vaccinated against the killer virus.

I wish everyone in Amarillo the best as we all take these baby steps toward what we used to think was a “normal life.” As for the Sod Poodles’ fans, they now get a chance to show the Central League — where the Soddies play their hardball — how rock-solid baseball fans act when they get the chance to cheer for the home team.

national news

GOP gap set to widen

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

I have this burning need to inform the Republican Party that booting out a conservative leader of the GOP House caucus only widens the divide between two factions within the party.

The Trump faction has its suck-up in the chair, Rep. Elise Stefanik. The establishment wing’s darling, Rep. Liz Cheney, has been cast aside.

The Trumpsters vs. The Establishment.

Let the battle commence. I am going to pull for The Establishment wing. It’s not that I am one of them. It is that the Trumpsters now are seeking to become poised to ruin the country, not to mention their political party.

The Trumpsters in the House, now led by Stefanik, are going to promote the Big Lie, that Trump lost the election via theft and vote fraud. They are lying their a**es off. They are continuing The Big Lie that Trump himself keeps alive.

They disgust me to no end.

As for Liz Cheney, she is far from my favorite House member. However, she voted to impeach Trump after the then-POTUS incited the insurrection on Jan. 6. What’s more, she has continued to stand strongly behind her vote and has drawn the wrath of the Trumpsters with whom she serves.

The fight for control of the congressional Republican caucus ain’t ending. You go, Rep. Cheney.

national news

Cheney for POTUS? Wow!

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

The Liz Cheney soap opera is getting downright weird, man.

The congresswoman from Wyoming, who has just lost her job as House Republican caucus chair, has been asked whether she would run for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024. Her answer: She said she will do anything to stop Donald Trump from getting the nomination.

“I’m very focused on making sure that our party becomes again a party that stands for truth and stands for fundamental principles that are conservative,” she said. “And I won’t let a former president or anybody else unravel the democracy.”

Well …

What do you think of that one?

Cheney won’t rule out running for president to stop Trump (msn.com)

Cheney lost her GOP congressional post because she voted to impeach Donald Trump after he incited the Jan. 6 insurrection. She hasn’t let up on the ex-POTUS. She calls him a threat to our democratic process.

She is correct about the danger Trump poses. The House GOP, though, is looking to populate its leadership roster with Donald Trump suck-ups. That ain’t Cheney.

Now she’s talking openly about running for POTUS?

Why, we’ll just have to stay tuned.

national news

Liberal: no epithet

By John Kanelis / johnkanelis_92@hotmail.com

Yes, the term “liberal” has become a four-letter word.

For that we all should share in the shame of the demonization of a proud political philosophy. The quote attached to this brief blog post is attributed to the woman pictured with it, Eleanor Roosevelt … arguably the prototype of the modern first lady.

What troubles me about the degeneration of the term “liberal” is how liberals don’t even call themselves that these days. They call themselves “progressive.” I hear congressional liberals, virtually all of them Democrats, refer to their “progressive” agenda. They are afraid of what and who they are.

When did it become an epithet? I’ll go back to the days of the Contract With (on) America election of 1994. The conservative fire-breather who led the Republican takeover of Congress that year was Newt Gingrich, a House member from Georgia, who said the following:

“We intend to make liberals the enemy of normal Americans.”

I did not make that up. He actually said that and exhorted the conservatives who comprised the Republican ticket in all 50 states to do as Newtie suggested; they made liberals the “enemy of normal Americans.”

Here’s the weird part of that story: They succeeded. They whipped conservative Americans into a frenzy to establish the evil credentials of liberal politicians.

The conservative movement has continued to demonize liberal politicians. They have called them un-American. They speak to many Americans’ darker instincts.

The term “liberal,” though, is meant to connote an open mind, to look beyond the strict boundaries, the limitations of government. My goodness, there’s nothing evil in that.

So, I will examine the remarks attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt with thought and will make a solemn vow: I will not shy away from the term that defines my political world view.