(With dismal regularity: The Roundup)

Continuing our survey of Immigration and attempts at Immigration reform, here's a documentary produced for NPR's All Things Considered in 1973. Titled "The Desperate Journey", it traces the steps most illegals take in getting across the border to the U.S., what happens, who takes advantage of the situation and what was happening in 1973 to reform it. Peter Rodino, who was co-author on a number of bills dealing with Immigration reform (including an early incarnation of the Simpson-Mazzoli Bill initially called the Simpson-Rodino Bill in 1986) is interviewed on what the then-current problems were and what was being done to change it.

It makes for interesting listening, especially when you consider the climate they were talking about was 1973 and not 2010. You begin to realize nothing has changed much. There has always been the threat of vigilante violence and "get tough" policies - but as history has shown, they haven't worked nor are they very likely to work in the future.

And the problem goes on.

("will pick fruit, trim trees, clean toilets - all the jobs you wouldn't be caught dead doing")

(Note: This is a repost from February - the Newstalgia House computer is still dead and we're trying as quickly as possible to get back up and running, but in the meantime . . . since the Health Care Bill has passed a major hurdle and become a historic landmark, there are other issues going on in our country right now. And as was evidenced by the 100,000+ rally yesterday in Washington, Immigration and its reform is the next big issue to tackle. It's no recent problem. It's been with us longer than the issue of Universal Health Care, and battle lines are clearly being drawn as we speak. As soon as is humanly possible, I will be posting speeches and documentary material pertaining to the Immigration question going back to the 1930s in an effort to try and provide you with historic perspective on a very thorny and passionate issue for a lot of people. And as soon as we get back up and running, I will bring those to you. Bear with me. - Gordon)

Ever since we actually became a country we've been tackling the issue of what to do about the unannounced, the undocumented, the illegal. That group of people which, in lieu of the Red Scare (now that it's gone) has given whole other groups of people something new to attach fear and hysteria (and a goodly amount of hate) to - illegal aliens and the immigration issue.

In retrospect the issue flairs up every few years, usually in the context of bad economic times. The desire to lay blame usually goes to the easiest targets; people you know nothing about and yet (we're led to believe) are seemingly everywhere. Just like Communists in the 1950s.

It was the same in 1988, when this documentary first aired (January 10, 1988). CBS Radio ran an installment of their Newsmark series on the then-burning issue of illegal aliens in the U.S.

John Blackstone (CBS News): “Whether we see them or not, these undocumented workers are part of this society, but for most of us their lives remain a mystery. According to Government figures, undocumented workers contribute $23 billion a year to the U.S. economy. And while some blame illegal aliens for American unemployment, the General Accounting Office report released in 1984 says undocumented workers do not take jobs from American citizens. To most Americans, the illegal immigrant is more a statistic than a real face.”

Twenty-two years later, the fingers of blame are pretty much pointing in the same direction with hate and fear achieving the same results.

News on May 31, 1942 may not have seemed like it at the time, but it marked a decided change in how the war would be waged from the air.

News reports on this day told of the first massive RAF bomber raid on the German city of Cologne the night before. Some 1,000 planes, the most of any air raid, and the first of what would become a new policy of mass bombing of cities throughout Germany, left the city almost totally destroyed. Fires could be seen some 150 miles away. RAF losses were reported at 44, which was a surprisingly small number in lieu of the damage inflicted on Germany.

In other news - From Moscow came reports the Germans had claimed to retake the industrial city Kharkov and that the much anticipated Spring Offensive was underway.

Fighting around Libya was continuing with German Field Marshall Rommel aiming to take Tobruk and staging an attempt to cut off British supply lines at the Suez Canal.

From Belfast came reports that U.S. troops, isolated from news of the war were starting to pass rumors, allegedly supplied by "Lord Haw-Haw", that the war was going badly for the allies and that the need arose for some method of supplying the American troops with useful information on news of the war, rather than propaganda.

From Washington came word that the former War Production Chief during World War One, Bernard Baruch, had been tapped to repeat his performance in this war. News also came of Chinese reports that the Pearl Harbor attack was originally intended to be one of two major attacks on U.S. targets. The other being The Panama Canal. But the Japanese aircraft carrier reportedly heading to the area was sunk somewhere in the Eastern Pacific, and the raid was thwarted.

News also came of an Allied Oil Tanker was sunk in Tampico Harbor in Mexico, under suspicious circumstances. Since Mexico had declared War on the Axis a day earlier, it was widely believed this was the work of sabotage.

And that's what was going on this May 31st in 1942, as broadcast by The NBC World News Roundup.

The Benitez Sisters got their start in their native Cuba. Fashioning themselves after the more popular singing groups around Havana at the time. However, as the times dictated Hermanas Benitez found themselves settling in Mexico in the early 1960's where their recording career took off.

Tonight it's a track from 1960 and an early stab at a Girl Group rock n' roll sound. Pepito has none of the trappings of the Havana singing groups of the time. Rather they tried to emulate a modified Doo-Wop approach. The result is . . .well . . interesting.

I would imagine you probably haven't heard this track before - I don't think it's been reissued on any of their compilations, and if you can get past the Accordion that plays a prominent position in the song it's rather catchy.

But don't take my word for it.

Jiony is a producer/DJ from Mexico City who has been getting a reputation as a pretty outrageous talent in the area of sampling, and Techno. Tonight's track, A Vecas, from his new ep Waiting For The Sun came out roughly a day ago via Soundcloud and is available as a download along with the rest of the ep and a number of other tracks from as far back as a year ago.

Techno and sampling may not be up your street. But in the case of an artist like Jiony, you might be missing something if you don't at least check out a minute's worth.

You just never know what happens when you keep an open mind. Usually good things.

I thought I would finish up this week in Mexico with some electronica from Mexico City by way of Veneno Para Las Hadas. Rather than gum it up with my clumsy explanation, I'll let the entry via their MySpace page explain it:

Veneno Para Las Hadas

Poison for the Fairies The fairies live beneath the world of men and this distance equals the size of their loneliness, where every man is the limit of his degradation.
Monochrome nostalgia as a vessel where sound and silence co-exist: This music is the sweetest poison for those who want to reach the sky.
A project conceived near 1998 merges diverse and often opposite concepts into a voice for everybody:

Continue reading »

Like their Shoegaze brothers Ambiente, Urban De Falla comes from Tijuana and have been together for only a couple of years. Urban De Falla is probably best described as an Indie band (who are, as of this writing, still unsigned) and have a new ep out, from which this track Chetes-15 anos comes from.

A lot more polished than some of the other bands I've played during this week and in the past, Urban De Falla are extremely accessible, even if you don't know the language. They have assembled a strong batch of tracks and are doing their level best to hawk them on their My Space page (hint-hint).

As always, they can use your support, even if it's just going over there and signing their guest book.

Since we're spending some time in Mexico this week, I thought I would post a relatively recent discovery from Tijuana. Ambiente are an alternative/shoegaze band that have been together since 2004.

Tonights track is Cronica, and I think it's off one of their recent releases. They have a Myspace page with all their updates and more tracks. So if you feel like lending some support . . . .

Just goes to show you that surprises lurk around every corner, if you just let them.

There's a lot going on south of the border, and it's not all drug wars. There is a very interesting music scene happening in Mexico these past several years with bands popping up all over the place. And, from what I'm able to gather, a rather healthy club scene. Although I understand night-life in Mexico at the moment is a little tenuous.

Telekrimen is one of those bands who embrace a Punk/Surf/Psych ethic with heavy emphasis on Surf. I did a post on them in February and the response was pretty good. In case you missed the last post, Telekrimen have been around since 2005 and judging from the poster, they have a pretty good reputation all around Mexico (and I suspect further south). Tonight's track, El Circo Del Brujo is a new track that's available via their MySpace page. It's an instrumental so you don't have to get all bothered if you don't know the language. But that shouldn't stop you anyway. Notes are notes. And the one's Telekrimen are using are pretty cool.

So if you thought everything musical out of Mexico had something to do with Mariachis or accordions or Ranchero - you'd be really wrong. Way wrong. Totally wrong.

Check them out and come back tomorrow - I think we're going to spend the week sampling some Hecho en Mexico for your mind-melting and head banging pleasure.

(Efecto Moare` - until the group photos happen . . . . red lips and jawbreakers)

Back to Mexico tonight. An Alt/Shoegaze/Prog band called Efecto Moare`. As usual, I ran across them on MySpace and thought I might turn you on to them. Interesting band - in fact, I'm finding a lot of interesting bands directly south of our borders right now. I don't know if it's the water or they've come out of hiding, but there's a lot of talent coming out of Mexico, and it has nothing to do with Ranchero or Nortena. Fancy that.

This track, not off an album or an ep is called Bloody Mary, which I'm not too clear the significance of. Nevertheless, it's a nicely done track from a band that can use some support.

So fall by their page and check out their other stuff.