California Governor Jerry Brown gave a speech to a large audience in Los Angeles that included Mexican President Nieto and a whole lot of other Mexicans. Now, mind you, I wasn’t there and did not write down the governor’s speech word for word, but this is pretty close to what he said:

“You’re all welcome in California, whether you are visiting or have lived here illegally for years. Entering California from Mexico should take no more than 20 minutes, if you are Mexican. Of course if you’re an American Marine, it can take many months, and I don’t care.

“I love Mexicans so much that, by executive order, I’m changing the name of this state to North Mexico. We want even more millions of Mexicans to come to the new state of North Mexico. We have sunshine, beaches, mountains, forests, farmland, milk and honey, fruit and nuts. Lots of fruits and nuts, especially in Sacramento. And deserts. Lots of deserts.

“In fact we have everything except water. I suggest you bring your own water, preferably a tanker truck full of water. But we’re gonna solve our water shortage, and you Mexicans are essential to the solution. My plan is to dig a ditch from our fine parched state all the way to Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes. It may take a couple million of you with picks and shovels to build this 2000-mile long trench but it will be worth it. I understand they have excellent lake water at Duluth, in fact it’s superior.”

The economy is still moping along in low gear, with no early prospects of shifting into high. More people are pessimistic today about the economy than they were five years ago. But economists are optimistic that things will look up in 2015. Of course, a year ago those same economists said the same thing about 2014. There are a couple of bright spots. If we can avoid an early freeze in the Midwest, a record crop of corn and soybeans will help keep food prices low. And our booming American oil and gas production will keep a handle on energy costs.

Putin has invaded Ukraine, the same as Hitler invaded France except Putin didn’t have to go through Belgium to do it. Putin is as determined to turn Ukraine into “West Russia” as Nieto and Gov. Brown are to covert California to North Mexico.

Historic quotes by Will Rogers:

Will wrote a mock “debate” between California and Florida. Here is one exchange:

“FLA: We have 3,000,000 acres of Everglades, and when they are drained they will support 3,000,000 people.
CAL: California has 20,000,000 acres of mountains, and when they are leveled out they will support the whole of India, with the Chinese nation invited as week?end guests. I know you may ask, ‘Who is going to flatten the mountains?’  Why, the same fellow that drains the Everglades. In fact, to show them that there is no hard feeling, and that we don’t even look on them as a competitor, we will give them enough dirt to fill up their Everglades.  They can’t drain their Everglades, as there is nowhere to put the water.  If they drain them into the ocean, why, that will raise the ocean higher than the land.”

And one more poke at California: “As for California, Mexico and the United States had a war… The war was really over the following question: ‘Who will have to take California?’ Mexico won and America had to take it.” May 29, 1926, Saturday Evening Post

“Tomorrow is Labor Day, I suppose set by an act of Congress. Everything we do nowadays is either by or against acts of Congress. How Congress knew anything about labor is beyond us…” Sept. 1, 1929, DT #967