The Ice Cream Cone Which Changed the World

This story has been told for many years amongst the family. But it is such a beautiful story, that it needs to be told again.

They were teenagers in high school, in Queens, New York. They didn't know each other, didn't know the other existed. But on that fateful day in December, many lives would be changed forever.

It started when he was chasing a friend and in his haste, he threw his ice cream cone at him. But as it happened, he missed his mark and instead, it hit her square on her skirt. She swore to him that he would pay dearly for that.

Four years later, on October 2, 1949, he was waiting at St Anthony of Padua for her to show up. He looked around, turning to his brother, wondering where she was. His brother shrugged.  He started to panic.

Suddenly, he looked to the back of the church because he was blinded by the angel walking toward him with her father. You would think it was a Tony and Maria moment at the dance, where they only saw each other.

It is hard to imagine that these two twenty-year-olds would be able to overcome so many of the obstacles of the time, since he was Irish and she was Sicilian. But they were strong, they were fighters. He loved her more than life itself and she was a devoted wife, who was there for him in his darkest moments. She was his rock.

This was a seventy-one-year love story that most of us can only dream to have. It was like a story written by Charles Perrault or the Brothers Grimm, a real fairy tale. Their love for each other always transcended any negatives they faced. Through it all, it was their love for each other which made a difference.

Six children, fourteen grandchildren and a bevy of great-grandchildren later, this will be only the second time they have not been together on October 2. The last time was in 1951, when he was defending his country and freedom in Korea.

They would be married for 67 years but for the fact that he passed in March. She was strong throughout his illness, again like a rock.

Although he is no longer here, at least physically, he still lives in her heart, much like the one he gave to her many years ago. She grieves for him but she knows she has her children to help her through those trying moments. And in the end, this strong, little old Sicilian lady is able to hold her head high, knowing that she is still loved by him, that he is giving her the strength to continue.

Yes, Sunday will be difficult for her to get through, but like every other day, she will get through it with the grace and aplomb, to those who know her, which is her.

So, Happy Anniversary, Mom and Dad, because even death cannot overcome the love you exemplified for all those years. You told him years ago that he would pay dearly. Well, he did with his love for you. And it will live forever, in your, and our hearts, because you both lived it every day and we bore witness.

Term Limits, the Congress and We, the PEOPLE

The Framers gave us a tool to use when We, the PEOPLE, who have given our government the license, but not the Right, to act on our behalf, and have annexed that right to itself, have finally become fed up with said government, whether it is run by the Democrat Party or the Republican Party. It is called Article V of our Sacred Document, AKA the Constitution of the United States.

They realized that they revolted against the most powerful nation in the world at that time because the King and the Parliament ignored the basic Precepts of the English Constitution, AKA the Magna Carta. As free Englishmen, they knew their rights as Englishmen were slowly and systematically taken from them, much like we are starting to realize that our rights as free Americans are being lost.

The premise by which they wrote Article V was based on the following sentence from our other Sacred Document, the Declaration of the United States:

"But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security."

Many of us are calling for the Several States to hold a Constitutional Convention under Article V for a Constitutional amendment to instill Term Limits on Representatives and Senators to no more than twelve years, and also a Constitutional amendment to abridge their pension rights and other benefits which We, the PEOPLE do not enjoy in our occupations.

I have written about this in the past and have updated, in May, 2015, the original commentaries over the years in order to strengthen this argument, as I am doing again today. The first is called The Push for Article V and Term Limits and the second is called A Restriction on Congressional Salaries. I feel even more strongly today than when I original wrote these in 2013.

The Framers did not create these positions for the wealthy or powerful to enrich themselves on the backs of the PEOPLE. These are not career civil service positions, like a postman, police officer, teacher or sanitation worker. These are PUBLIC SERVICE positions created to serve US, you know, We, the PEOPLE.

It is about time We, the PEOPLE, take back our government. By the way, did you know that if term limits were in place, 272 seats between the House and Senate would be termed out this cycle? That's more than half the total of 535 House and Senate seats combined, because they will have served twelve years or more as of January 3, the Constitutional date of the start of a term.

In January, term limits would result in fresh ideas and clearer thinking than all the old, tried and probably corrupt men and women in there now, protecting their fiefdoms.

For your information, Article V reads as follows:

"The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate."

Thirty-four states are needed to convene a Constitutional Convention and thirty-eight states are needed to pass amendments. Perhaps, now is the time for this to happen. There are presently twenty-eight states who have passed legislation calling for a Constitutional Convention.

You KNOW the Members of Congress won't vote for term limits. But, We the PEOPLE can ... and should.

Tell your State Legislator to do so TODAY, since they also work for us, you know, We, the PEOPLE.

The Beach Hut Pals and Me

The Summer of 2016, sadly, is drawing to a close. However, unlike last year, I was able to enjoy so much of it without the pains I suffered through in 2015. For that, I am grateful.

I spent many summer evenings at my favorite place, the Venetian Shores Beach Hut, with so many old and new friends. We danced many nights to the great bands that only Long Island can produce.

Some of my favorites included the Ronald Reagans, an 80s tribute band, the Rocking 45s, a band which highlighted 60s and 70s pop music, and Modern Justice, a band which featured Classic Rock mixed with many oldies favorites. As an aside, I am friends with some of these guys, but the music outdoors can't be beat.

There will still be dancing at the Cedar Beach Hut on the weekend until the end of October, including the season-ending All Weekend Halloween Party.

But since this is right on the ocean, it is advisable to bring something warm. Trust me, last week when I was at the Venetian, I wore shorts and a knit shirt. Suffice to say, we had to leave once the sun set because the cold air was unbearable. But the Sunsets ARE SPECTACULAR.

Anyway, the Beach Hut Pals are a fun group of mostly 60-plus somethings, but we have friends who are not yet members of the AARP crowd, too. That is the beauty of good music - it brings great friends together. 

We will be together during the cold winter nights, as well, but not outdoors. No, the next time we will be brave enough to be at the beach at night will be in May, 2017. But there are great cabarets on long Island which love to cater to those who come for a night of great music and terrific dancing. After all, we all seem to have "the beat to move me, baby", even if we move just a little slower than we did yester-year.

Something else you need to know about my Beach Hut Pals - they are the most caring and loving group of men and women I have ever met. We were there for the friends around us who celebrated birthdays and anniversaries, became sick or hospitalized, or, sadly, lost loved ones.

Just know this, as well. The Beach Hut Pals are like Family. We stand together like our own blood siblings would for us. In fact, I have always believed this - our blood siblings and cousins are the families our parents gave us, but our friends are the family we choose for ourselves. And in my case, I have one who crosses both spectra. My cousin Jolynne is the reason I am a member of this great family I call the Beach Hut Pals. If it weren't for her telling me about her nights at the beach, I never would have discovered this great family who is now a part of my life, too.

So, as we say good -bye to summer, the Beach Hut Pals will still have plenty of warm nights and weekends together in the great indoor venues to hear and dance to great music until we can walk of the sands of Long Island again.

I can’t wait.

Reasonable Actions for and by Reasonable People

This is not for humorous effect. This is a very serious discussion for anyone wanting to be president or any other high stress job. In this case, Hillary Clinton really should submit to an independent exam to remove, or at least, to allay concerns about her health. We don't need her to die in her first year, should she be elected.

If she were running and there were no past medical episodes to look at, this would not necessarily be a major concern for the electorate at large. After all, we have elected several people as President who were well over 65. But none of them had known potential health issues prior to their elections.

There is an interesting and sobering article in The Hill  written by John R Coppedge, MD, a general surgeon from Texas, who admits he isn't a neurologist or an opthamologist, but he also indicates that all people who attend medical school are taught to recognize brain trauma early in their education. So his diagnosis and recommendation for followup is based on the concept of reasonableness. Seems reasonable to me.

For her and her handlers to ignore some very basic common sense actions borders on narcissism to think we are so stupid to believe there is nothing wrong with her, just because she says so. This is not 1841, where a President caught pneumonia and died a month later. Nor is it 1944, when a man ran for his fourth term, knowing he would not see its end.

The lesson of the 1984 election was that we had a man run for his second term who, looking back now, probably was in the early stages of what we now call Alzheimer's disease. Certainly, to be sure, by 1986, it was actually a struggle for us not to think there was something wrong with him.

For the good of the nation, especially in these explosive times, Hillary Clinton should at least submit to an independent medical exam to finally remove any doubt of her fitness to serve. And then, if the exam proves that she is healthy, then all the stories and speculation concerning her health would then be put to rest.

Until then, this issue will not go away. Those who want her will claim it is a bunch of conspiracy theories and those don't want her will claim she is a narcissist, out for her own self- aggrandizement, and not a care for the rest of America.

A reasonable person on either side will agree that a full medical evaluation is both to her advantage and to the country's. It seems reasonable to me.

How about you? 

A Beatles Fan's Delight

This past weekend, I went to see the Ron Howard documentary, The Beatles in Eight Days a Week - The Touring Years, that period from 1962 to 1966. As you could imagine, the performance I attended was sold out.

After we purchased our tickets, we stood on a looooong line which seemed to have a lot of silver, white, gray and bald on the men's heads, and plenty of "blonde" on the women. It didn't matter; we all were 16 again for a few hours. And I can assure you, there wasn't a Gen-X or Millenial in sight. Baby-boomers reigned supreme.

Of course, there was plenty of anticipation for what we were about to watch. It was, after all, the story of the band who changed a generation and the music we would listen to and enjoy forever.

Within the context of this film of four lads from Liverpool, we learned that both Mozart and Strauss wrote over 300 hundred songs which was a rare feat indeed. The only other songwriters who accomplished this were John Lennon and Paul McCartney. Yes, you can say it: WOW!!!

We saw rarely shown footage of the Fab Four in private moments as they wrote and recorded the music we have come to love. We saw snippets of interviews with all of them, showing them as regular people looking for some of the same answers we do. We saw parts of many concerts they performed live, and in a world before digital and computer enhancements, it was remarkable how they were able to perform on key and on beat without all of the ecouchrement today's musician use to sound perfect.

This was a film, which sadly for now will have limited engagements in select theaters. But for true Beatles fans, it was just perfect. The film ended with a ten minute peek of the last live concert The Beatles ever performed together, The Lunchtime Rooftop Concert of January 30, 1969. 

As an extra added attraction, there was a thirty minute presentation of the fifty minute 1965 Shea Stadium concert, which was phenomenal. Their humor and talent were truly on display. If you were at Shea so long ago, you probably didn't really see this side of them because you were so far away from the performers and the screaming was deafening. And maybe you would now be able to see your young self with all the shots which were taken by the producers of that event.

In any event, make the time to see this documentary. I, like the rest of the audience, had a "feel-good" moment at the end of the film and at the end of the added Shea event, as we all stood and applauded as if it were live and in person.

And for that brief moment you, too, can be 16 again.

Finally! Another Frank McHale Commentary

Hi Friends. I am pleased to announce that I am now affiliated again with my friend Steven Foley and his new venture, Liber8r, a libertarian and conservative site. I enjoyed my years at The Minority Report, but I felt that after he sold it, the direction of the site became much more extremely right wing, and my more moderate and libertarian voice was becoming lost.

I had many people come to me to say they, too, did not like many of the articles and commentaries that were now being posted, and that my brand could be damaged. So, I stopped posting on March 11.

In addition, I want to share with you that since the Republican Party of Ronald Reagan left me long ago, I am now registered as a Libertarian in New York. I have always voted for the person and not for the letter next to his or her name, and as many of you know, I was inspired to write commentaries by the late, great Mayor of New York, Ed Koch, a JFK Democrat who described himself as "a liberal with sanity." He, too, would be today a Libertarian.

So, now that you are up to date for where I was and where I am now, let me share with you some of my political choices and endorsements for this election cycle.

President/Vice President - Donald Trump/Mike Pence
Senator - Wendy Long
CD   1 - Lee Zeldin
CD   2 - Peter King
CD   3 - Tom Suozzi
CD   5 - Gregory Meeks
CD 13 - Adriano Espaillat
CD 22 - Claudia Tenney

There are other New York Congressional District elections up this year but these are the most interesting to me, and as you can see, three are Democrats.

Understand though, I will not be restricting myself to writing about politics and current events. Instead, my writings will encompass all things of interest to me, including sports, music, entertainment and other venues of interest.

And finally, if you want to read my past commentaries, just know they are available on my personal blog site, frankmchalesviews.blogspot.com for your reading pleasure. You may agree with my views or not, but be assured, your thought process will be challenged.

Thanks for your patience and loyalty. It means so much to me.