Música: Now

I'm a huge fan of rock/pop en espaniol. From Enanitos Verdes to Fabulosos Cadillacs to Los Amigos Invisibles to [Old school] Mana. As I was e-browsing and watching Telehit [& its unique programming], I realized that rock/pop en espaniol is really exciting right now. Really exciting...interesting enough, coming from MX [and the trifecta of Guada, DF, Leon].

Elis Paprika [Guada, Jalisco, MX]:

Los Concorde [DF]:

Mothora [Guada, Jalisco, MX]:

Playa Limbo [Guada, Jalisco, MX]:

Ximena Sariñana [DF]:

Pambo [DF]:

Maria Daniela y su sonido lasser [DF]:

Jesse Y Joy [DF]:

& from Chile:

Francisca Valenzuela [Santiago]:

Kudai [Santiago]:

==========
After writing the "Música: Empowerment"...I felt that I needed to revisit this post...while, I enjoy all the aforementioned artists [& I own/sing out loud to them], they're very much mainstreamed and Myspace-able [I mean, they have actual, physical CDs out, purchaseable]. Check 'em out, but also check out the independents out there...

Don't blame us. part II.

It's pretty easy to tell that I am a fan of the los tiempos de nueva york y los angles and the el chronicle de san pancho...! Gooooo liberal media! [uh huh, sure; I will not try to operationalize liberal here]. Operationalize! That's a fun grad student word. Use it.

Anyguey, the folks o'er at San Pancho keep bringing up "El Ocho" [which I am so 8ver, I mean over]. Today, they posted this interesting articulo sobre Blacks, gays, and the "fallout" [gotta love the word usage! & their operationalizing].

Don't blame us.

So, I'm a lil' bitter towards the queer community, I mean the queer white male community. So, after getting visibly emotional after an Obama victory [I cried thrice in the evening and, then, thrice in the morning], I was disappointed with Prop. 8's passing [though I knew it was going to pass, esp. thanks to the Central Valley and all those posters I saw around the area' clear sign it was going to pass, in mon point de vue]. But, then 'em [white male] queers started to blame Blacks and Latin@s for the passing of the[ir] proposition. Umm, no. Wait a minute. Stop. Don't blame us for its passing. After hearing and reading QPOC's opinions and thoughts on the issue, I'm tired of it. Ok, Prop. 8 pass. It was "unconstitutional" from the beginning. But when the media started covering anti-8 rallies post-last Tuesday's results and then I realized [again] that immigration has been very much absent in this never-ending, but thankfully fini, election season, it makes me irksome. Where was the media when mis herman@s were out there speaking against the inhumane treatment towards immigrants? Where was the colloboration between the queer community(ies) and immigrant/POC communitIES? Why isn't there dialogue happening between our causes? Why is everything rest in isolation?

In any case, I'm still a lil' bitter...well, it's added bitterness that I have towards that/my community(ies). Irksome, indeed. Damn the rhetoric! I suggest however the read this article about the myths and truths exposed about who voted for/against the aforementioned proposition.

Don't blame us. White people voted for it to pass, tambien. Let's dialogue across/between causes. & work proactively together.

Vote!

....that is all.

A Night of Comedy Chicano Theatre: Fall Performance

TEATRO LOS HIJOS DEL CAMPO
PRESENTS
"A NIGHT OF COMEDY CHICANO THEATRE"
FEATURING
"LOS VENDIDOS & SOLDADO RAZO" BY LUIS VALDEZ
&
OTHER COMEDY ACTOS

NOVEMBER 6th, 7th & 8TH

CSUS, CAROL BURKE LOUNGE.

8PM (DOORS OPEN AT 7:30PM)

$6 General Admission
$3 Under 10
TICKETS SOLD AT THE DOOR
OR TO RESERVE TICKETS,
CALL (209) 485-6243

visit: teatrolhdc@blogspot.com

1968 v 2008

In a recent SF Chronicle article, which deals with generational shifts among voter trends and the buzzword "historical" weight of this election, among other things, a Boston Univeristy professor states:

"A conservative in 1968 was far more liberal than a liberal is in 2008."

It's v true.

La prop del 8.

While I personally push for more rights for single people (why do you need to be in a relationship with another person to get more rights? Coupled people have more rights and "voice" than single people and I don't get that), I am adamantly against Prop. 8. The SF Chronicle gives an interesting, albeit frustrating, read and the Central Valley will lead to its success. The CV will always be the "bible belt" of California...from Stockton to Modesto to Livingston to Fresno to Delano. I have yet to see a No on 8 sign anywhere. Why oh why?

No on 8. Where is the progress?

The silent elephant in the debate room

Not a debater, talking head, or person at a rally have asked either of them- Obama & "the other one"- about immigration and immigration reform. The SF Chronicle today came out with this question that I have been wondering: when are they going to address this big silent elephant in the room, known as immigration. An interesting, quick read with direct quotes from the candidates.

El debate, estilo VP...

...AGAIN!

Fallece lider campesino, Ramiro Guillén Tapia, en Jalapa, VZ

Un gran hombre, paisano, campesino, lider de la Co­mi­sión Pro De­re­chos Hu­ma­nos, persona, ser hombre passed away by lighting himself on fire en Xalapa, Vz, outside the Governor's office...in the name of the revolution, x los derechos de los indigenas, l@s campesin@s, y pa' tod@s...

¡Qué viva! En español y en ingles.

"If BS were currency, Palin could bail out Wall Street herself."

The media seems to be fascinated....and so does the Chronicle.

[No mo' Palin-ness...I'm trying, I'm trying].

PD. When is immigration going to come up in the debates?!?! We are ALL aware of the economy, but what about us immigrants?!?!

SNL does it again...sort of.

SNL is brillz.

...as the youth say (what is up with 'em abbreviating words and adding -z's at the end? Me confused).



Tina Fey got it down.


And another interesting read from Nueva York Tiempos re: Palin and her (super sketchy) rise to "governor." Such the Paris Hilton of politicians. I wish I had been her high school classmate; then I would have a nicely paid job. & another one from columnist Dowd:

"I’ve been in Alaska only a week, but I’m already feeling ever so much smarter about Russia.

I can’t quite see it from my hotel window, but, hey, I know it’s out there somewhere, beyond all the stuffed bears and cruise ships and glaciers and oil derricks."

I once flew Alaska Airlines, I guess I should be a diplomat for all Russia-Alaska affairs.

& one from SFGate. Willie Brown begins his op-ed with: "For first time in modern history, a presidential race is actually going to be decided by the vice presidential pick." So (unfortunately) true.

FYI, (I think) I will stop posting Palin-related posts. Or, at least, keep it down to a minimum.

Gracias Newsweek!

Even though I'm not the biggest fan of Newsweek [since allegations of false reporting arose awhile back], they come out with this factcheck of Sra. Palin. So, if Newsweek says it's true, then it must, right? {shrug}.

Here ya go:

Re: Secession of Alaska & the Independent Party, Newsweek says this:

"She was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Party, a group that wants Alaskans to vote on whether they wish to secede from the United States. She's been registered as a Republican since May 1982."

& more:

"Palin was never a member of the Alaskan Independence Party – which calls for a vote on whether Alaska should secede from the union or remain a state – despite mistaken reports to the contrary. But her husband was a member for years, and she attended at least one party convention, as mayor of the town in which it was held.

The party's chair originally told reporters that Palin had been a member, but the official later retracted that statement. Chairwoman Lynette Clark told the New York Times that false information had been given to her by another member of the party after she first told the Times and others that Palin joined the AIP in 1994. Clark issued an apology on the AIP Web site.

The director of Alaska's Division of Elections, Gail Fenumiai, confirms that Palin registered to vote in the state for the first time in May 1982 as a Republican and hasn't changed her party affiliation since. She also told FactCheck.org that Palin's husband, Todd, was registered with AIP from October 1995 to July 2000, and again from September 2000 until July 2002. (He has since been registered as undeclared.) However, the AIP says Todd Palin "never participated in any party activities aside from attending a convention in Wasilla at one time.""

& there you have it...for now.

"More than a Google Internet search"

I really do enjoy the LaTiempos, especially when Steinem writes.

A few excerpts I enjoyed de la Sra. Palin:

Title: "Palin: Wrong Woman, Wrong Message" by Steinem [04/09/2008]:

"Palin shares nothing but a chromosome with Clinton." [¡Eso mero!]

"To vote in protest for McCain/Palin would be like saying, "Somebody stole my shoes, so I'll amputate my legs." "[" "]

"When asked last month about the vice presidency, [Palin] said, "I still can't answer that question until someone answers for me: What is it exactly that the VP does every day?" When asked about Iraq, she said, "I haven't really focused much on the war in Iraq." " [What a great response!]

"[Palin] was elected governor largely because the incumbent was unpopular."

"McCain could have chosen a woman who knows what a vice president does and who has thought about Iraq; someone like Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison or Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine."

"[Palin] opposes just about every issue that women support by a majority or plurality."

Gotta love a smart, well-versed mujer. Steinem for VP [?].

Non-Mexican Chican@

"Tú eres Chicano, pero eres de Cuba? ¿Como puede ser eso? Pensé que los Chicanos eran Mexicano-Americanos, super pochos,... y viven en este lado...qué no son de una isla, qué son de México, de una familia mexicana, y católicos. Pero, tú eres judío, 3era generación cubano? No los entiendo."

Non-Mexicans Chican@s are re/shaping Chican@ identity(ies) in (non) academia

Not a new idea, but it's something that I have been thinking about (otra vez recientemente): the influences/voices non-Mexican/individuals - who are not (self-identifying) Mexicans folks/scholars/academians/other bloggers types- possess are really shaping the direction(s) that Chican@ studies [as a recognized, but lightly weighted "academic discipline"] is going [the exact (e-)location is still up in the air].

True, the idea/label of Chican@s, many argue, is not based on nationality, but rather on a shared group of ideas (i.e. Asian nationals can self-identify as Chican@s).

True, the idea/label of Chican@, many argue, is pan-ethnic/racial for Latin@s (i.e. Cubans can self-identify as Chican@s). (But, be careful to call a Mexican national Chican@...they might not like that word...which is another topic of divide: Mexicans & Chican@s tensions).

But, just leafing through the "new," "in," "buzz-worthy" thoughts of Chican@ Studies, I can't help but notice that they are being spearheaded by non-Mexicans and bi/multiracial self-identifying Chican@s [Duke's Antonio Viego (of Cuban raíces); Berkeley' Juana Maria Rodriguez (of Cuban raíces)], who are younger scholars/academians/profes who are adding to the increasing canon of thought/ideas/etc.

Are they the nueva generación de Chican@s scholars?

True, that adds to the depth and layers of Chican@s on a macro-level, adding more, unique, different, compelling, critical, and important puntos de vistas.

Pero, que pasa con l@s Chican@s quien son mexican@s en el area de Chican@s Studies? Que pasara con sus/nuestra voces?

What would Yoya Anzaldúa say? Her and her border politics? (Do they still resonate in this hyper globalized e-world?)

I argue that we are living, in 2008-& on, in a post-Chican@ society. We need new terms that can help us understand (better) our identities. Chican@ isn't doing it anymore (whatever it is).

To be continued...

Next blogs: light-skinned Chican@s; Chican@s & elitism; Chican@s & exclusivity: Chican@s & Mexicans tensions

Equis with the Tina Fey & Megan Mullaly comparisons...

...& let's get down to the real juice.

Thanks to all the news outlet (¡Gracias NYTiempos!)...we get more information about Sarah Palin-Fey/Mullally.

-17-year old hija, Bristol (Muy cute name), is 5-months pregnant with a child (out of wedlock)
-Sra. Palin was a member for two years in the 1990s of the Alaska Independence Party, which has at times wanted Alaska (not the campy chica of the 80s) to secede
-22 years ago, Sra. Palin was arrested for drunk driving (¡Q peda!)

About the choice:
"They [The VP committee] didn’t seriously consider [Sra. Palin] until four or five days from the time she was picked, before she was asked, maybe the Thursday or Friday before,” said a Republican close to the campaign. “This was really kind of rushed at the end, because John didn’t get what he wanted. He wanted to do Joe [Lieberman] or [Tom] Ridge."

¡Y más!

The current mayor of Wasilla, Dianne M. Keller, said she had not heard of any efforts to look into Sra. Palin’s background.

...Interesting choice.

"Don't know how I feel about that."

Update (02/09):
From the LATiempos:

"One Republican strategist with close ties to the campaign described the candidate's closest supporters as "keeping their fingers crossed" in hopes that additional information does not force McCain to revisit the decision. According to this Republican, who would discuss internal campaign strategizing only on condition of anonymity, the McCain team used little more than a Google Internet search as part of a rushed effort to review Palin's potential pitfalls. Just over a week ago, Palin was not on McCain's short list of potential running mates, the Republican said."

Thanks google for helping out McCain!

con paz.

El regreso.

...a Califaz.