Trite but True
The U.S. media is all abuzz about Mexico's "Dirty War" of the sixties and seventies and the "genocide" plan ordered by the pigs, President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz and his Interior Minister Luis Echeverría resulting in the savage slaughter of young Mexican students on October 2, 1968, in the square known as the Plaza de Tlatelolco. The events were admirably chronicled by brilliant Mexican author Elena Poniatowska.

Schuyler was still stirring up a batch of Sauza Cosmopolitans as Max and Charlotte began their discussion of the events at Tlatelolco. Max was telling us that it seems a bit ludicrous that U.S. papers should, at this point, be making such a hoopla over what happened in Mexico back then. Max was there when it happened. It was horrendous, the torture and killing. Where was the U.S. when that was going on? Why did the Olympic Committee not have the decency to cancel the Olympic games? Max seems to find these reports coming out about Mexico's "Dirty War" as sounding a bit sanctimonious, since the U.S. media does not do its real duty and report, as it should, daily, the torture, killing and mayhem unleashed upon the world under the direct orders of that other pig, George W. Bush.

Bush vs. Pinochet, Díaz Ordaz, and Echeverría
Poor Díaz Ordaz, Echeverría and Pinochet: Babes in Toyland; they should have waited and held off their practicing torture, genocide, murder, killing, mayhem, annihilation, fratricide, infanticide, etc., until they could sit at the knees of the collective heinous cadre of truly dastardly and seriously inhuman grotesques of the 21st Century: Papa Doc Bush, Swastika-lipped Drink, Shoot Your Friends and Torture Everybody Else Cheney, Approve Condone and Foster Torture Condosleazza Rice, Stick Your Nose Way Up Until It's Fully Brown Raccoon Eyes Miers and Walmarted Pantsuited Inanity Butchy Hughes, Smarmy-to-the-Marrow Derrière-Mouthed Rumsfeld, and that Filthiest Scum cum Torturing Aztec Toad Gonzáles. Now they could have taught our Latin neighbors a thing or two about torture and mass murder.

The Dinner Gong in Time to Ward Off Total Disgust
The whole gang got involved in preparing dinner tonight. The teenagers have been after us to serve a bit of what they call "American food," by which they mean Mexican, Italian or Chinese food. So, we thought we'd cater to their whims, but of course, with a twist. If they thought that calling out for Italian was going to get them pizza or spaghetti and meat balls, well, they should know us better by now. They got Italian all right, but OUR Italian.

Marie Christine started our dinner with two different kinds of Crostini. The first were Anchovy-based Crostini, the second were Chicken Liver and Juniper Berry Crostini. Both were exquisite, and we had ours with chilled Martini & Rossi chilled, dry, white vermouth. The teenagers were served non-alcoholic sparkling grape juice.

You have all heard of the famous hearty Italian soup Pasta e Fagioli, the wonderful Pasta and Bean Soup. Tonight, with a slight chill in the air, the soup was comforting. Marie Christine paired it with a González Byass Tío Pepe Palomino Extra Dry Fino Sherry, so, the dinner started out grandly!

Charlotte, who enjoys spending hours over elaborate dishes, prepared a Shrimp and Mushroom Stuffed Whole Fish in Beef Aspic. She had, of course, baked it to perfection, and the aspic was impeccable, as was the whole presentation, knocking the socks off the kids, who had, after all, wanted "Italian." Charlotte and Max brought some bottles of fresh-as-spring Soave from the wonderful Italian winery Zonin.

Judy served us small dollops of Quince Sorbet to cleanse our palates and prepare us for the meat course, Florentine Lamb Chops that she and Bob prepared for us. For vegetables, they asked Charlotte to help them fix a picture-perfect Vegetable Terrine, which when sliced, produced little slices of art. For the chops, Bob and Judy poured us glasses of Bertani Valpolicella, marrying perfectly with the perfect chops.

Dessert? Simple Biscotti and some sweet Asti Spumanted sparkling wine.

End of a Perfect Evening
Deeply saddened to find that the president of the United States was a worse torturer and killer than the despicable rulers of Latin American countries, we assuaged our grief with a great dinner. The teenagers were satisfied with their dinner, though a few were still wondering where the pizza and spaghetti and meatballs had gone.

Sweaters on, everybody left for their respective farms and ranches, able to smell the approach of spring, thinking that soon the horses wouldn't need their blankets anymore.

Liz, right before everybody left told us something Thomas Jefferson had once said, and that the U.S. press, complacent liberals, and all Republicans, have failed to heed: " I have sworn upon the altar of God, eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of men." And, she said, every day we let Bush and his cabal get by with what he's getting by with, we're forfeiting our rights and our heritage. We're allowing the Bushites to turn us into Banana Republic citizens.

Summary
Every day we let Bush and his cabal get by with what he's getting by with, we're forfeiting our rights and our heritage. We're allowing the Bushites to turn us into Banana Republic citizens. It's insane, to pay attention to the media's recent reports on Mexico's "Dirty War" of the sixties and seventies, and not realize that that was Shirley Templish in comparison to the torture, mayhem and hell that we're allowing Bush to rain down upon the world; all the world.