The sun rose in the east today
I sat up and sighed for the millionth time
As the dawn was phasing a night away
The blues can last for just so long
And from the depth
There will arise another song
And I'll sit here in the sea and the sun
Waiting for that other song to come
That other song to come"
From "Miracles" by Joan Baez
In an analytical, but fair-minded critique of those inhabiting the blogosphere over Brownsville, Duardo Paz-Martinez, a blogger from somewhere near Austin, rates the performances of local bloggers "covering" the recent May 11 City Commissioner Election.(A month from now one final runoff will finish the process.)
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| Duardo Paz-Martinez Brownsville's 2013 Blogger of the Year |
Veteran bloggers Juan Montoya of El Rrun Rrun and Jerry Mchale of the Brownsville Blues were credited with having the right stuff, but chastised for being low performers. Both were credited with the facility to turn
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| Brownsville's Blogging Also-Rans |
The most unflattering associations by DP-M were saved for my Mean Mister Brownsville blog, linking my function to circus master, con artist P.T. Barnum, for whom a "sucker is born every minute," the freakishly afroed boxing promoter, Don King, who would talk up an epic battle between two cucarachas for a buck and Col. Tom Parker, who forced Elvis to toil in all those B movies.
Duardo added these sharp words of counsel:
"After Saturday's crushing defeats at the polls, it's all he has left. Barton would be wise to re-visit his opinion of Brownsville, to take his brain to quiet study, to come away with a true analysis of what he has before him. The city commission is not the enemy. Something tells me Jimmy would endorse Letty, Roberto and Martin for the U.S. Senate."
That's total silliness, Duardo. I was not defeated Saturday because I wasn't a candidate. You won't understand this because you don't live here, but Brownsville lost on Saturday, because the pattern of the mayor using tax dollars to placate his cronies will continue undeterred by a questioning voice or two on the city commission. As for backing this set of candidates on a national stage, that's ludicrous. This blog has tried to carefully explain my view on that several times, but evidently not clearly enough. This is my latest effort on April 27:
"That is why local bloggers have spoken out for three flawed, but independent candidates for city commission: Roberto Uresti, Letty Perez-Garzoria and Martin Sarkis. All three have eccentricities, flaws and accents, but none are running for president of the United States. They are running for a unpaid job to provide basic services for the residents of Brownsville and to protect the city's financial, structural and topographical assets."
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| Governor Rick Perry |
The disadvantage in blogging from 500 miles away about Brownsville is the difficulty in actually knowing the candidates personally. On paper Rose Gowen may outclass Roberto Uresti, but Uresti is different, without an opportunist bone in his body. He already embarrassingly outworks the entire city commission in terms of identifying, satisfying basic citizen needs. Had he been elected, he would have worked night and day to run down the individual needs of taxpayers and his phone would have been ringing off the proverbial hook. Gowen has four years of "service," seldom making a peep unless it was a health-related or green issue. She stands aloof, superior, indifferent. Yes, Brownsville lost.
Retired nurse Letty Perez-Garzoria would fail Austin's chic test. Garzoria is earnest, straightforward and unlike incumbent John Villarreal, outspoken. While Letty was speaking out at city commission meetings, John Villarreal was being groomed to roll over for Mayor Tony by receiving a United Brownsville directorship. Some say that behind closed doors, Mayor Martin totally disrespected John, calling him a "boy," and ignoring his attempts to participate. While John should have fought back, he wimped away. With the Villarreal victory, Brownsville lost again!
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| Kim Jong-un |
We can only support or not support candidates who file for the job. Like Rick Pitino, who briefly coached the Boston Celtics in the late 90's used to say to his team and the media:
"Larry Bird ain't walkin' through that door, folks."
Politically speaking, we could speak similarly:
"Julian Castro ain't walkin' through that door, folks."
The voters have spoken.....they don't give a shit and are willing to accept the autocratic government of Tony Martinez and his hand picked commission (a management style copied from Juliet Garcia and her hand picked TSC Board....before she crashed and burned). The public, by not voting, has agreed to accept higher taxes, higher PUB service charges, the transfer of public property to UTB and other entities and worst of all.....continued funding of Brownsville's shadow government...United Brownsville. Since the election didn't directly spell out what the public potentially loses with this slate of commissioners....the public sat on its thumbs and stared wildly into the tube instead of voting. We have an ignorant population and Tony Martinez, like Juliet Garcia, will use that ignorance to dictate, not legislate. Brownsville continues to spiral downward....as we did under Ahumada and other leaders.
ReplyDeleteJimmy, please indulge me: I never have personally struck out for the mayor, nor for Rose Gowen, nor for John Villarreal. In fact, we roasted John in a story titled "Tortilla Flat," as you surely know. Ms. Gowen was chastised in Dos Frias for that hot dog caper, and Mayor Tony Martinez has been the target of much of what we have written about "dusty" Brownsville. Re-read our posts. It is true that I do not live in town and do not know these candidates or incumbents first-hand. I see that as a plus, as it would be hard for any of them to sway my thinking, as the "trio" has swayed yours. It's not that being swayed is bad; it's that there being no possibility of that in my case allows me to be clinical. Some would say I've been cruel in respect to your challengers.
ReplyDeleteThere's this that is part of my motivation: Your challengers were never vetted, from what I could gather. And they were never asked the "tough" questions. You merely allowed them a free run after deciding they were the answer to the city's problems. Even from "500 miles" away (it's closer to 300, but what the Hell, right?) I could see the behavior your candidates exhibited. I would think that you as a resident would want to better the city commission, thus bettering the community while you're at it.
This is dragging, but I'll simply say that I stand by our stand on the candidates - all of them. Frankly, I am at a loss to explain to even myself why you don't see what the voters ultimately saw, as well. Ms. Perez-Garzoria is likely a nice lady, but that wasn't at issue, and that wasn't the measure. Same for Mr. Uresti. His value to Brownsville is not necessarily as a member of the commission. He is doing yeoman's community work that may be thankless and not carry the prestige he imagines comes with being a commissioner. As for Mr. Sarkis, well, you really should pose the unanswered questions to him about his past and his taxes, if for no other reason than to satisfy yourself. I have forwarded a list of questions to him and have, as yet, received no reply.
I am not the ultimate judge. I played no part in the voting or in the counting.
It was the Brownsville voters who didn't buy it, Jimmy. Theirs was the meaningful verdict in all this. I'd say they spoke loudly and will again in the run-off. I am, btw, not related to the mayor or anyone that I know of in town. I write from afar, but there are times when I'm right there, man. Experience counts for something. That, and the fact that I lived through - and reported on - enough elections to know when a candidate is being coddled and when he/she is being put through the credibility grinder. You should try it. You'll sleep better, my friend...
/DP-M
In short, I'm not political. Accidentally, I started commenting, not reporting on local issues. I have very few skills. Kip Thrasher told me in high school: "Jim, the reason no one makes eye contact is because you see right through them." Yes, I'm a sucker for honest, "salt-of-the-earth people.
DeleteJim
To DPM, in the words of Charlie Brown's teacher, " blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, bland". Go spread yourself somewhere else! Your writing is nauseating, really, it is!
DeleteJim why are u wasting your time over TRAILER TRASH EL JOTO Duardo Paz-Martinez. Who ever named him "Brownsville's 2013 Blogger of the Year" is an invalid and discredited organization.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
DeleteDon't know who is more self-serving, the politicians or some of you bloggers.
ReplyDeletePolitics is always about getting the government you can afford. And losing does not make you more righteous.
Jim, no le des bola a este Trailer Dweller!!! he is a low tier self writer wannabe!!! Dejalo. el esta alla en su traila!!
ReplyDelete(A ver si no te hace como a Jerry y te habla pa' llorarte que borres los comentarios).
Duardo Paz-Martinez is a neo-classical dilettante who has parleyed his "Hispanism" into an insipid literary career. I wish him well in the rarefied Austin air where seldom is heard a discouraging word from the politically correct payasos. The only person more overrated in Austin than Mac Brown is El Duardito himself.
ReplyDeleteAh, shut up!
DeleteYou may criticize DPM's literary career as "insipid" and that is your opinion but what do you have to show that you are able to judge his work? How many books have you written? How many stories in foreign countries have you covered? How many articles have you written that have been printed in professional newspapers or magazines. I'll be waiting breathlessly for a response.
Deletenot DPM
DeleteI notice that you place the word insipid in quotes. Not sure why, but it could be because of the following style rule: Use quotation marks around a word or phrase that we want to make "special" in some way.
Insipid is a fairly common adjective used when describing bad prose. From your slant, I would assume you think Duardito's style is closer to turgid.
I tried to read "Inside the Volcano" but came to an abrupt halt after a few pages. The title caught my eye as a take-off on Malcom Lowry's epic, "Under the Volcano". Needless to say, it is a long way from Oaxaca to Matamoros. Sounds like I hit a nerve, Duardito.
I have to admit that I find his "blog" humorous. However, it does get old watching someone slip on the same banana peel over and over again.
Good luck with that writer's block. I read once that a bottle of mescal might unlock the muse. Regarding my "qualifications" to critique the Almighty, I was drinking in the "Golden Palace" before El Duardito was born. Quote, unquote.
Even "el libro vaquero" is better than the toilet paper "books" of Duardy, and I can't stop laughing when he mentioned "foreign countries", but wait, yeah he's right, Mexico is a foreign country! yeah, he covered stories on prostitutes in Matamoros, foreign? I still can't stop laughing!!!
DeletePlease clean your traila house DPM...
Why is it that Pendejos like this commenter forever wish me to be everyone who criticizes this God-abandoned city? Could it be some need to be in my same neighborhood? Is it hate, and is that hate real? You'd think grown-ups would control their urge to display their lack of brains in a public forum. I did not post anything on here, yet this border asshole immediately throws me into the mix. Get a job, Vato. And do it before you keep trolling and choke in your own envy. I have no way of knowing who you are, so I can only surmise that identifying yourself would yield nada. So, again, you people show yourselves to be what everybody elsewhere believes you are - Morons. Come at me with something new. This stuff you write has been written hundreds of times on McHale's many blogs. You'd think that one of you had at least one novel approach. Writer's block? What the fuck would you know about writer's block? Struck a nerve? An anonymous clown throws crap at me and you strike a nerve? I've said it for years, you fucks love to yell at me from across the street. Can't let me just walk by. I will give you the short shrift you have earned today and end this in the same manner that I've ended similar replies since time immemorial: NEXT!...
Delete/DP-M
/DP-M
@anonymous 12;34
DeleteNot sure why you are confused about my putting quotations marks around a word that YOU used, that is the whole point of a quote. This tells me that either you are easily confused or unfamiliar with literary terms, especially since you had to look it up. Add that to the fact that you were unable to completely read a book that would not require an average reader to refer constantly to a dictionary and the fact that you reference drinking twice while admitting to a long history of imbibing leads me to believe that you may be suffering from liver damage and/or dementia (and not even "early" dementia if you've been drinking since before DPM was born). Last, but not least, there is no point in writing "Quote, unquote" UNLESS YOU ARE ACTUALLY QUOTING SOMETHING.
Finally, once again, I will tell you that I am not DPM, although I must admit to a shared impatience of terminal stupidity.
@ Still not DPM
DeleteDPM
You must be one in the same, no two "writers" could share the same extreme lack of imagination. Schoolyard attacks on someone you do not even know is certainly a symton of advanced paranoia. As Maria Sabina once said, amazing things can blossum out of shit. Take it easy Duardito, if your skin gets any thinner we will be able to see your bowels.
Seeing that summer is coming up, maybe you should plan a little rest and relaxation. I would suggest you call on someone of your same grandure who managed to escape the hell-hole of the Magic Valley and become famous, not unlike yourself. I am sure Julian will let you have a room in his mansion out on Montauk and the use of one of his long boards.
That should be "blossom," not "blossum," ya hack. And it's "grandeur," not "grandure." You embarrass the entire Mexican culture, Bozo!
DeleteRey
"...'Julian Castro ain't walkin' through that door, folks.'..." ARE YOU KIDDING???? castro and tonia martinez are COMMIES JUST LIKE "obammie" LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL
ReplyDeleteALL ENGAGING IN AN "autocratic government"
ALL ENGAGING IN SHADOW GOVERNMENTS, tonia's united browntown, obammie;s 44 CARZS.
AND ALL ARE COMMUNIST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!