My View by Silvio Canto, Jr.

Pollsters flop in Michigan and what lessons can we learn. Dems go left and set the table for a contrast election. WNBA in a state of confusion over gender. President Nixon resigned 1974.

2026-08-08T16:00:00.000-05:00

Pollsters flop in Michigan and what lessons can we learn. Dems go left and set the table for a contrast election. WNBA in a state of confusion over gender. President Nixon resigned 1974.

I read the news today, oh boy, about pollsters who flunked the grade

2026-08-08T07:00:00.000-05:00

I read the news today, oh boy, about pollsters who flunked the grade:

Polling was never an exact science, but the exploding number of polls and pollsters may explain why it’s having more problems than usual now.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/i-read-the-news-today-oh-boy-about-pollsters-who-flunked-the-grade/

We remember Frank Howard (1938-2023)

2026-08-08T01:00:00.000-05:00

We remember Frank Howard who was born on this day in 1936 in Columbus, Ohio. He died in 2023.

Frank broke with the LA Dodgers in 1958 and became a regular in 1960 when he hit 23 HR and won the NL Rookie of the Year Award. Eventually, he was traded to the Washington Senators where he hit 246 HR in 8 seasons and led the AL in HR twice with 44 in 1968 and 1970.

From 1967 to 1970, Howard hit 198 HR over 5 seasons. He and Killebrew were the two biggest power hitters in the AL during that time.

In 1972, the Senators became the Texas Rangers and Howard hit the first HR in the team's history. However, he was traded to Detroit and his career was over in 1973.

Overall, Frank Howard hit a very decent .272 average with 382 HR & 1,119 RBI.

My one memory of Howard is a line drive HR that left the park in a heart beat. I have never seen a ball hit harder than that. It was amazing!

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Remembering the very beautiful Esther Williams (1921-2013)

2026-08-08T00:30:00.000-05:00

We remember Esther Williams who was born on this day in 1921 and died in 2013: She was 91.

I've seen some of her movies on TCM and they are a joy to watch. Esther was one beautiful woman as well.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

The summer of 1967 and The Bee Gees

2026-08-08T00:04:00.000-05:00

Summer is here and it's time to think back and recall some of our favorite summer memories.

Let me remember the summer of 1967 and The Bee Gees.

In the spring of '67, Barry, Robin & Maurice Gibb released their first US album. It was called "First" and it included three of their greatest songs: "New York Mining Disaster 1941", "To love somebody" & "Holiday".

There were others, such as "Turn of the Century" and "Cucumber Castle".

The Bee Gees "First" sounds as fresh today as it did back then. I bought the CD version and the brothers are great.

"Horizontal" (the second album) was released later in the winter and it included "Massachusetts", "World", & "And the Sun will shine", and quite a few others.

It was enough to make me a Bee Gees' fan!

As this summer ends, let's remember the Bee Gees 1967 and wonderful music!

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

1974: Nixon resigned the presidency

2026-08-08T00:03:00.000-05:00

President Nixon made his resignation announcement on TV on this day in 1974. VP Ford assumed the presidency the next day.

After the speech and his departure from Washington, President Nixon went into political exile but made a comeback in the 1980's with some great books, one of them his memoirs, RN. He became one of the premier foreign-policy statesmen in the world.

President Nixon died in 1994 and was given a full presidential funeral.

This is a great book..

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

August 8, 1988: Lights at Wrigley Field

2026-08-08T00:02:00.000-05:00

americanthinker.com/blog/2021/08/remembering_the_good_ol_days_of_prewoke_daytime_baseball.html

Well, let me steal an idea from The Beatles and the first line of "Sgt Pepper's": "It was 33 years ago today that Wrigley turned the lights to play ... "

Like many pre-woke baseball fans, I got ready to watch the national broadcast. Our second son was two weeks old, and the first one had a baseball jersey on, and our family was ready for a night game in famous Wrigley. How could my young sons miss history being made in Chicago? Such was the passion for baseball before the commissioner decided to go woke and turn off millions of us.

As I recall, the game was rained out, but the lights went on before the summer showers came.

It all started at 6:05 P.M.., when 91-year-old Cubs fan Harry Grossman began the countdown. "Three...two...one...let there be lights!"

Grossman pressed a button, and light towers were on. Wonder if Mr. Grossman was around for the 2016 World Series title? Hopefully yes, but I don't know for sure. Millions around the country were probably caught up in the whole thing.

For years, Cubs fans were raised on day baseball. It was charming, especially for kids off from school. One of my first summer memories in the U.S. was walking to a park and seeing this older couple listening to the Cubs on their front porch. As I recall, the lady was keeping score because she was holding a book and a pencil.

During my time in Mexico, one of my neighbors had an early version of a satellite antenna, and we would often light up the grill and catch the Cubs on TV.

It made afternoon rush-hour traffic a bit interesting listening to WGN radio and driving home. It brought morning baseball to West Coast fans. It allowed the players to play ball and have dinner with their families.

Eventually, economics caught up with the Cubs. It's hard to play daytime baseball when TV viewership is crucial to pro sports. It was fun while it lasted.

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

1588: The defeat of Spanish Armada with Barry Jacobsen, war historian

2026-08-08T00:01:00.000-05:00

1588: The defeat of Spanish Armada with Barry Jacobsen....click to listen....

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Listen to "The defeat of Spanish Armada & national security today with Barry Jacobsen" on Spreaker.

Rep. Jasmine Crockett should turn into a political consultant. Michigan polls were really bad. Todd Blance has the votes to be AG.

2026-08-07T16:59:00.000-05:00

Jasmine Crockett, political consultant

2026-08-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

Jasmine Crockett, political consultant:

Rather unexpectedly, her take on the state of the Texas race for the U.S. Senate is an intelligent one.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/jasmine-crockett-political-consultant/

August 1971: Remembering "How can you mend a broken heart" by The Bee Gees!

2026-08-07T00:05:00.000-05:00

Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb had the # 1 song in the US back in August 1971. In fact, it was # 1 for several weeks and their first # 1 in the US. Of course, they had more in the 1970's..........9 in total.

Today, we remember one of the Gibbs' most beautiful songs. It was written by Barry and Robin. Maurice played piano & background vocals.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

We remember Felice Bryant (1925-2003)

2026-08-07T00:03:00.000-05:00

We remember Felice Bryant. She was born Matilda Genevieve Scaduto in Wisconsin on this day in 1925 and died in 2003.

Along with her husband Diadorius Boudleaux Bryant, they composed some of the most popular tunes of the 20th century. One of their greatest songs was " All I Have To Do Is Dream", a hit for The Everly Brothers.

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog.

1967: Remember when "To love somebody" and "Somebody to love" were on the charts?

2026-08-07T00:02:00.000-05:00

Once upon a time, we collected 45s. My brother and I spent every bit of our "savings" building a 45s colection second to none. It worked out because we shared the same stereo, slept in the same room and had identical tastes. Therefore, I liked what he contributed and vice versa.

I remember one time when I was accounting for our batch of 45s. I realized that we had a song called "To love somebody" and another one "Somebody to love".

They are both classics from that wonderful musical year of 1967.

"To love somebody" was The Bee Gees' 2nd international hit, or the follow up to "New York Mining Disaster". It was recorded by several artists and it is still very popular today.

"Somebody to love" was the first big hit by Jefferson Airplane, a California band. The lead singer was Gracie Slick.

It was a great summer of songs.

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

The WNBA and men plus a few other stories

2026-08-06T14:00:00.000-05:00

The WNBA and men plus a few other stories......

Julie, Julie, Julie do you love me?

2026-08-06T07:00:00.000-05:00

Julie, Julie, Julie do you love me?:

The time has come for the WNBA to take a position and stop sending virtue signals for the benefit of woke reporters.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/julie-julie-julie-do-you-love-me/

We remember Lucy (1911-1989)

2026-08-06T00:05:00.000-05:00

We remember Lucille Désirée Ball who was born on this day in 1911. She died in 1989.

For my money, Lucille Ball is the funniest lady around.

Lucy and Desi gave us "I love Lucy", perhaps the greatest TV show ever. You can now purchase the entire series here. As I've heard, the show is seen in over 70 countries and many languages. Can you imagine Lucy dubbed in Japanese?

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

1971: "Melody" is a year older

2026-08-06T00:02:00.000-05:00

Like some of you, I caught the "rent a video" bug in the mid-1980's.

I remember going to the store one weekend and finding a British movie called "Melody" from 1971. I read that it featured the music of The Bee Gees so that was enough to rent and watch the movie. I don't think that the movie was released in the US.

Frankly, it turned out to be one of the most enjoyable movies that I've ever seen. It did not win any awards or get inducted in some Hall of Fame but it was entertaining.

"Melody" was the story of a boy and girl living that "moment" when we all figure out that boys and girls are different.

You can call it your "first crush" moment! Remember that time when you kept looking at some girl across the room? Remember how she looked back? Remember the Friday night dance with all of the boys on one side and the girls on the other?

"Melody" was very nice and the music was fabulous, specially "First of May", one of the greatest songs from The Bee Gees' repertoire.

Rent "Melody" and you will enjoy it, specially if you were once a 12-year old boy with a crush on a cute girl in school.

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Hiroshima 1945: Truman and the bomb with Barry Jacobsen

2026-08-06T00:01:00.000-05:00

We remember another anniversary of one of the most consequential days of the 20th century.

Back on this day in 1945, many people heard about Hiroshima on the radio or perhaps saw the scenes on one of those newsreels.

In the summer of 1945, President Truman was confronted with one of those decisions that only a president faces. He looked at the horrible options and made the right call, as my friend Bill Katz explained. The bomb stopped the war and the killing:

Of course we regret the lives that were lost, as we always regret death and destruction in war, but guilt is not required. In what is sometimes called the bloody arithmetic of war, the nuclear bombs reduced the ultimate death toll of World War II dramatically. And as the late historian Paul Fussell, a soldier in the Pacific at the time of Hiroshima later wrote, recalling his thoughts when he learned of the atomic bomb's use, "We were going to live. We were going to grow to adulthood after all." For that we can be grateful.

We will probably hear the usual criticism of President Truman's decision, specially from those who were not alive back then nor have taken the time to study the real options on his desk. In other words, President Truman was not choosing between war and peace but rather war and more war. He also knew that there would be huge casualties on both sides, if he decided to invade Japan.

Today's anniversary reminds us that presidents often face awfully difficult choices. In this case, President Truman made the right decision.

Click to listen to our 2015 show with Barry Jacobsen about President Truman and the decision to drop the two bombs:

Listen to "Hiroshima/Nagasaki 1945 & national security issues of the week" on Spreaker.

P.S. You can listen to my show. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

Michigan the day after plus “bodegas” in NYCity.

2026-08-05T17:00:00.000-05:00

Michigan the day after plus “bodegas” in NYCity.

Mamdani should talk to Cubans about bodegas

2026-08-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

Mamdani should talk to Cubans about bodegas:

Bodegas are capitalism at its finest, and they will survive long after Mamdani’s grocery stores have empty shelves and angry taxpayers.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/mamdani-should-talk-to-cubans-about-bodegas/

1977: "I Just Want To Be Your Everything" by Andy Gibb was # 1 this week

2026-08-05T01:00:00.000-05:00

Frankly, I thought that it was The Bee Gees when I heard "I just want to be your everything" on the radio. Then the announcer said that it was Andy Gibb, the Bee Gees' little brother.

Andy Gibb had incredible success for a couple of years. He has huge hits and sold millions of records on his own. Unfortunately, he couldn't handle success and died very young in 1988.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

1981: Leadership Reagan style and the air controllers

2026-08-05T00:09:00.000-05:00

A few years ago, President Reagan once again demonstrated that he understood leadership and the presidency.

On this day in 1981, President Reagan "fired" 11,359 air-traffic controllers on strike. It was a tough call but President Reagan was right. It was also one of the first times that a leader of a democracy stood up to a public sector union and prevailed.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos. If you like our posts, please look for ”Donate” on the right column of the blog page.

1957: Dick Clark and "American Bandstand"

2026-08-05T00:04:00.000-05:00

We grew up watching "American Bandstand". Like "The Lone Ranger", the show went from one generation to the other.

AB went national on this day in 1957 and the rest is TV and music history. AB was on every Saturday at noon central time or something like that .

AB's success was due to the music and the kids who danced every week. Dick Clark understood that the audience wanted to hear the music and see the couples dancing. And that's why he was so successful.

PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter. If you like our posts, drop a dime here.

The week in review with Bill Katz, the editor of Urgent Agenda

2026-08-04T16:00:00.000-05:00

Guest: Bill Katz, the editor of Urgent Agenda. We will discuss the upcoming Michigan and Wisconsin primaries and what it means for Democrats. The weekly Iran update. "Bodegas" in New York City. We remember Louis Armstrong (1901-1971).......

Click to watch:

Maybe midterm history won't repeat itself this time

2026-08-04T07:00:00.000-05:00

Maybe midterm history won't repeat itself this time :

Yes, history favors Democrats, and they may take the House. At the same time, it's not a done deal.

Click to read:

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2026/08/maybe-midterm-history-won-t-repeat-itself-this-time/