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"Our republic and its press will rise or fall together." — Joseph Pulitzer

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The Orange Crusher's presidential denial of COVID-19 danger caused somewhere between 200,000 and half a million needless American deaths.

Greatest Hits Dept. WE WON: BIG NEWS FROM THE NEVADA PRESS ASSOCIATION CONFAB IN GOMORRAH SOUTH —> BARBWIRE NOMINEE GUY RICHARDSON INDUCTED INTO HALL OF FAME ON FIRST BALLOT Barbwire nominee Dennis Myers elected to NPA Hall of Fame Support Don Dondero and Jake Highton and David Toll and Foster Church and Norman Cardoza and Guy Louis Rocha next. Send endorsements Eee-yo-leven! Barbwire wins 11th Nevada Press Association award GOLD 2017-18 2018 First-Place Winners From the depths of despair to the den of iniquity & holy of holies "Excellent work. These are some of the most moving columns I've read." — NPA contest judge/9-29-2018 The Grasshopper and the Dragonfly 9-6-2017 Kicked off the Ledge 4-18-2017 NATIONAL NEWS FIRST-BREAK Back to the Future in Mississippi West Nevada 10-18-2017 Gold 2017 Don't ask Renown Med for marijuana to help your chemo 10-4-2016 We Don't Need No Education Toxic turf threat ignored 12-13-2016 Kate Smith & Lady Gaga 2-14-2017 Bronze 6-pack In the Uber-Nevada legislature, words can kill 4-28-2015 On artificial turf, don't breathe unless absolutely necessary (above) 11-24-2015 Leading questions, lead-headed leaders 1-19-2016 Hopelessly trying to win an earthquake 4-18-2013 2013 Loony Tunes Legislative Lexicon 5-30-2013 The politics of media ga-ga boosterism 3-20-2014 More statewide and national award winners We Don't Need No Education—> Neverending Barbwire Series 1997 Pulitzer Prize entries Barbwire.TV: 15-year overnight success Daily Sparks Tribune 2-10-2008 The Barbwire's Greatest Hits BEATING LUSH RAMBO AT HIS OWN GAME: Highlights from radio days mp3 file The Dean's List    The Dean of Reno Bloggers could very well be Andrew Barbano, self-described "fighter of public demons," who started putting his "Barbwire" columns online in 1996 and now runs 10 sites. RENO NEWS & REVIEW, 11-9-2006 Tomorrow's news today —> Subscribe to Barbwire Confidential TOP SECRET— HushHush!

Now, Dr. T-Rump is favored to re-take the presidency.

Politics is just a big tailgate party for the Red Team. Covid, RSV and Influenza are just liberal hoaxes. The Washoe County School District no longer requires vaccinations.

Just sign a paper, then avoid breathing.

Pause for a reality jab from the fake news New York Times. First, "1,380 Days with Long Covid" by victim Giorgia Lupi.

Then, the story of mourning father George Watts, Sr., of Elmira, NY.

His 24 year-old son died in 2021. The local coroner listed Covid vaccine as a main cause, Watts posted the report online and the anti-vaxxers went ballistic, nuking science.

The CDC is analyzing tissue samples but George Jr. was cremated, stifling inquiry.

He apparently had undetected heart disease among other serious health issues, but some Americans loathe details.

That has not stopped Internet experts who get their health advice from Dr. Donald "Drink Bleach" Trump.

SUICIDAL R US. Despite being in the red zone (and not in the good football way) for cascading viral infections and hospitalizations, Nevada is not among six states which recently required masks at all hospitals.

ThisIsReno.com's story of the year was the case of a Gomorrah South doc who prescribed hydroxychloroquine to cure COVID, killing a Sparks man.

That fish tank cleaner was second only to bleach in Dr. T-Rump's pharmacy.

HELP THE LIBRARY. Moonhowlers are trying to take over and ban books. Apply for a board position before January 17. ThisIsReno. com named this the most under-reported story of the year.

T-Rump's PLAZA SUITE. The nation's newest hip-hop rapper (Barbwire 12-27-23) recently denied bullying his way into a movie cameo.

"Home Alone 2" director Chris Columbus said Trump insisted on his own scene in the 1992 film or he would not allow filming at the hotel.

Trump said the producers begged him to appear.

Columbus called him a liar.

I believe Columbus.

"The Associate," a delightful 1996 Whoopi Goldberg/Diane Wiest Wall Street satire, was also partially filmed at the Plaza.

And Trump scored another cameo.

Coincidence? I don't think so.

SINGING THE BLUES. Blue State footballers beat two red state teams on Monday after Georgia started the hat trick last Saturday against Florida State.

The Bulldogs whomped the formerly undefeated avatars of DeSatanistLand 63-3.

In the Orange Bowl.

In Republican "we still hate Fidel" Miami.

To be fair, Florida State had lost many star athletes seeking greener pastures.

Can't blame any of the helmet-wearing cannon fodder.

They sacrifice their health and often their sanity for a humanity devouring sport.

The national championship playoffs are again on paid cable, not public airwaves.

Which is obscene, because not only are some top players making half a million a year, but many have been paid by tax-exempt non-profits.

Translation: You.

HOW TO BET? Fair warning from an oft-disappointed 49er fan: Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh's madcap playcalling might suggest a bet on Washington.

I've neither forgotten nor forgiven Harbaugh for ordering UNR legend Colin Kaepernick to thrice throw from the five-yard line against the Baltimore Ravens, thus losing the 2013 Super Bowl.

Meanwhile, the best running back in NFL history, Frank Gore, was left to twiddle his thumbs.

Bet against Harbaugh's suicidal ego.

54 YEARS AGO THIS MONTH. A kid was transferred to Reno from Gomorrah South to expand the northern operation of what would become Nevada's largest ad agency.

In January 1971, I arrived at the Reno quonset hut airport. (Yes, WW2 quonset huts!)

I had breakfast at Sambo's Coffee Shop at the southwest corner of Plumb Lane and S. Virginia and was then transported to my first Reno twilight zone.

In KOLO TV-8's studio at 5th and Wells under the overpass, I beheld two tables of bloody meat dripping on the floor under hot lights.

Our clients, Nevada Chrysler-Plymouth's good old boys, Jim Hayes and Odis Bass, pitched a free side of beef with every purchase and two free New York steaks just for taking a demo ride.

I was aghast.

It sold a helluva lotta cars. I didn't want to take the job but I'm glad I did.

When the firm wanted to transfer me back to Vegas, I resigned to start my own shop.

ADIOS BILL PAGANETTI. My first office was an unused closing booth at the new Chrysler store. The dealership had relocated from mid-town to S. Virginia & Carano. (The Peppermill eventually bought the Chrysler property for its north parking lot.)

I beat several local ad agencies to represent the new European Health Spa which still stands today on the Peppermill block. Their execs told me about this crackerjack manager running the Sizzler Family Steak House up the street. His name was Bill Paganetti. I first saw him working the charbroiler.

Bill and Nat Carasali apparently persuaded the Hill Family, which owned property on both sides of Virginia Street, to let them start the Peppermill Coffee Shop in front of their motel. The place featured double the usual portions for three times the price, perfect for American tastes.

Despite a forthcoming media image fostered by former general manager Phil Bryan, the Peppermill was always anti-organized labor. Bryan once told a TV station that however employees wanted to be represented, individually or thru a union, it was fine with management.

Not necessarily.

Every time housekeeping staff wanted a raise, they'd start openly meeting with Culinary Union organizers. They always got a raise and the organizing drive fizzled. Offering perks to your staff to avoid unionization is a wee bit illegal, but hey, this is Reno.

In 2006, after his staff refused, I was able to persuade Bill to buy a congratulatory program ad for the Sparks Plumbers & Pipefitters union's centennial dinner held at his towering achievement.

He was a helluva manager and apparently a very persuasive salesman.

Requiescat in pace.

Hope you and yours enjoyed Happy High Holly Days
Christmas/Kwanzaa/Solstice/Festivus/Chanukah/Thanksgibleting
Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad
HAPPY NEW YEAR / Feliz Año Nuevo / Felice Anno Nuovo
Frohe Weihnachten und beste Wuensche fuer 2024

Vaxx up, stay safe, pray for Ukraine and almost 100 other currently war-torn lands.

¡Sí se puede!

Be well. Raise hell. / Esté bien. Haga infierno. (Pardon my Spanglish.)
être bien, élever l'enfer (Pardon my French.) Stammi bene. Scatenare l'inferno. (And Italian.)
___________________
Andrew Quarantino Barbano is a 55-year Nevadan and editor of NevadaLabor.com, SenJoeNeal.org, DoctorLawyerWatch.com, BallotBoxing.US, ConsumerCoalitionv.org, ChantalCoalition.org, Rentvolution.org, MIssissippiWestNV.org and CesarChavezNevada.com among others. He is a longtime member of the Reno-Sparks NAACP and Sparks-based Communications Workers of America Local 9413/AFL-CIO. As always, his comments are entirely his own. Barbwire by Barbano has originated in the Sparks Tribune since August 12, 1988.

Breaking News —> Masks work!

 

 

Betty J. Barbano 2-7-1941 / 12-27-2005 Remember her laughter Larry Barbano, Frater Mei 1947-2023

An eye for an eye
A tooth for a tooth
Vote for me
and I'll set you free.
Rap on, brother, rap on
                                        — The Temptations 1970

Donald Trump's campaign is going hip-hop.

The legendary Barbwire investigative team, as always, has spared every expense bringing you this exclusive.

Trump advisors view the Orange Crusher's increasing poll numbers among black and Latino voters as the potential stake (or McDonald's burger) thru the heart of President Biden's campaign.

For months, Czar Donaldov's brain trust has mulled strategies to make an overt racist and bigot palatable to minority voters, according to Barbwire interviews with key insiders.

They took clues from 2020. The New York Times interviewed a young Latino man in west Texas where Trump showed surprising strength.

The man said he voted for Trump because he looked strong "and my friends and me, we couldn't wait to see what crazy shit he was going to say next."

That echoed NBC reporter Katy Tur's 2022 comment to Steven Colbert as to why Trump won: "He entertained them and he looked strong."

As I've written many times, Americans insist on daddy in three key positions: governor, not senator; network news anchor (check Norah O'Donnell's ratings) and president. We still desire grandfatherly CBS News legend Walter Cronkite tucking us in every night making us feel everything will be better in the morning.

Hillary Clinton learned that lesson the hard way, as did now-Congressperson Dina Titus, D-Las Vegas, when she ran for Nevada governor in 2006. Nikki Haley and Kamala Harris, take note.

So what will be Trump's magic bullet with minorities that will wash away all sins, including putting Latino refugees in concentration camps?

He will start doing hip hop music and videos under the name of T-Rump. Here is an exclusive transcript of the first recording session:

UNIDENTIFIED PRODUCER: OK, Mr. President. Let's try a run-thru.

TRUMP: This is really good stuff. It will get the spics and ni..., oh, I forgot, I shouldn't say that anymore. OK, I'm ready now.

PRO: Cue the beats and...action —

TRUMP:

          I'm a lawnmower baby,
gonna mow 'em all down
          Only I can fix it
for the black and the brown.

          Charizzma galore, money and more
Vote big cha-rizz,
          Plop plop, fizz fizz
The cure for what ails you
          Plop plop, fizz fizz

          Cover your rump
Vote Big T-Rump
          Got the rizz and the class
Up to the task
          Vote Big T-Rump
Or your ass is grass.

PRO: OK, cut.

TRUMP: I think that was great. Who knew I was such a natural performer? Now let's try another take, but get a camera on me so I can watch myself.

PRO: Will do. As soon as we lay down the audio, we'll bring in the dancers.

TRUMP: Do all of them have to be black? Make sure they've all got big hooters. I want to review them before recording.

IT CAN'T HAPPEN HERE, RIGHT? It already has and you know it.

FOX News impresario Rupert Murdoch proved correct when he blurted decades ago that "Americans are retarded."

Comedian Bill Maher once wryly noted that "Americans don't do nuance."

If you can't fit it on bumper stickers (aka memes) it won't work.

As H.L. Mencken is oft paraphrased, nobody ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public.

Yes, Mr. Barnum, there is a Santa Claus.

Impartial — as if anyone can be impartial about mass death — expert analyses have found that Trump's presidential inaction and denialism caused between 200,000 and half a million needless COVID deaths.

No more serious than a cold? Drink bleach? This is the guy who bragged of himself as a world class epidemiologist — in front of real experts who just bit their learned PhD lips.

And the charlatan who let COVID run wild is now the frontrunner less than a year out of the 2024 general election.

As his supporters tell pollsters, "he got things done." Indeed.

President Biden last week told reporters they are reading "the wrong polls."

That was not flip. I remember what Sen. Harry Reid's northern boss Mary Conelly of Sparks told depressed Democrats in 2010. All publicly released polls showed Reid losing to madcap church lady Sharron Angle.

Mary's comments were almost verbatim Biden. Reid's internal polls showed him trending well.

Turned out Reid had the money to pay for "deep polling," where interviewers could spend an hour or more speaking with likely voters. Deep polls cost a million a pop in 2010 dollars.

They showed Reid moving toward a relatively easy victory. He won by about 40,000 votes.

The media were reading the wrong polls.

Trump's opening with minorities is no fluke. All the benefits of Biden programs have not reached many minority communities.

Republican Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has been deftly taking credit for all the new federal money showering his state.

Savannah Mayor Van Johnson told the Times that Biden's accomplishments have yet to resonate among southeast Georgians.

Breaking News —> Masks work!

PLAGUE ALERT. In addition to orange political poxes, COVID, RSV and influenza are running wild and killing Americans, especially the un-vaxxed and maskless.

Alas and alack, many will die due to attending holiday dinners with family and friends.

Americans just don't do nuance.

ROCK JOCK JOKE: Why are pop diva Taylor Swift and NFL player Travis Kelce a perfect match? Both are world class tight ends.

ON DECEMBER 27, 2005 Betty Joyce Luffman Donlevy Barbano died in Reno at 64. Remember her laughter.

Hope you and yours enjoy Happy High Holly Days
Christmas/Kwanzaa/Solstice/Festivus/Chanukah/Thanksgibleting
Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad
HAPPY NEW YEAR / Feliz Año Nuevo / Felice Anno Nuovo
Frohe Weihnachten und beste Wuensche fuer 2024

Vaxx up, stay safe, pray for Ukraine and almost 100 other currently war-torn lands.

¡Sí se puede!

Be well. Raise hell. / Esté bien. Haga infierno. (Pardon my Spanglish.)
être bien, élever l'enfer (Pardon my French.) Stammi bene. Scatenare l'inferno. (And Italian.)
___________________
Andrew Quarantino Barbano is a 55-year Nevadan and editor of NevadaLabor.com, SenJoeNeal.org, DoctorLawyerWatch.com, BallotBoxing.US, ConsumerCoalitionv.org, ChantalCoalition.org, Rentvolution.org, MIssissippiWestNV.org and CesarChavezNevada.com among others. He is a longtime member of the Reno-Sparks NAACP and Sparks-based Communications Workers of America Local 9413/AFL-CIO. As always, his comments are entirely his own. Barbwire by Barbano has originated in the Sparks Tribune since August 12, 1988. Opening lyrics are from "Ball of Confusion —> That's what the world is today" by Barrett Strong and Norman Whitfield, 1970.

Breaking News —> Masks work!

Betty J. Barbano 2-7-1941 / 12-27-2005 Remember her laughter Larry Barbano, Frater Mei 1947-2023

It was the summer of 1947 and starving young Hollywood screenwriter Hymie Schwartz was pitching a film idea to rapacious MGM movie mogul Louis B. Mayer.

This report is based on recently unearthed notes discovered by the vaunted Barbwire investigative team. As always, we have spared every expense to bring you the news you never knew you needed to know till now.

"Thank you for seeing me, Mr. Mogul, er...Mayer."

"Skip the niceties, kid. Show me how your movie is going to make me big money."

"Well, sir, uh, you see, I know that motion pictures are big financial risks so studios want to reduce the downside. My idea is timely and includes elements of already successful films: Classic horror like 'Dracula,' the desire to live forever like 'The Mummy,' and 'Lost Horizon,' and a glimpse of the future like 'It's a Wonderful Life.' "

"Hold it right there kid," Mayer interjected. "Frank Capra and the studio lost their asses on 'Wonderful Life' and he went way over budget on 'Lost Horizon.' Came close to losing a million or more."

Schwartz's foot began tapping uncontrollably.

"Yes, Mr. Mayer, I know. But this film adds timeliness like none other."

"OK, pitch me in one sentence."

"Hitler comes back from the dead in the 21st Century and does it all over again."

Mayer was speechless.

"Gotta hand it to you kid, you got balls to pitch a movie about Hitler to an old Jewish guy."

Schwartz got enthusiastic.

"This American fuehrer creates national fear of anyone not of 'pure blood' heritage. Instead of starting concentration camps, he labels his as 'detention centers.' He viciously and violently suppresses any criticism. The resurgent Confederacy supports him because he looks strong. Underestimated like Hitler, he becomes president for life.

"It's a cautionary tale, Mr. Mayer. I got the idea from Madame Rue, the psychic at 34th and Vine. She said that suicides always come back quickly. The universe gives them another chance to get it right. Hitler killed himself in 1945, so he may have returned as soon as last year.

"Reincarnation is a staple of many religions. Sherlock Holmes' creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was a spiritualist. There's a lot we can't explain. Look at all the stories about that UFO crash in Roswell, New Mexico this month."

Mayer's face betrayed a thin smile. "Alright, kid. How does a lowlife like Hitler make a comeback?"

"Well, America loves money and forceful businessmen. No offense. Hitler endlessly pursued bragging rights, had to have the biggest tanks, battleships, buildings — you name it. The blonde guy in my film will even lie about building the tallest skyscraper in New York City and get away with it.

"Hitler returns as a totally ruthless, laws-be-damned, rich businessman. Again, no offense."

"Don't worry kid. I've been called worse."

Schwartz was gaining confidence and speaking more enthusiastically, according to notes taken by Mayer's secretary.

"Mr. Mayer, America is booming with enthusiasm now that World War Two is over. Some feel another depression will follow the war, as depressions often do. The country is placing a premium on predicting the future. This film, 'Hitler Returns,' will capitalize on that."

"I don't know kid, most would just like to forget the son of a bitch."

"With the scare of totalitarian communism burgeoning worldwide, they can't, sir. People get reminded and warned about dictatorship every day. This idea can be a drama, a comedy, a satire or all of the above. Maybe several films. Remember, no less than American hero Gen. George Patton believed himself a reincarnated Roman soldier."

"I'll think it over kid but I just don't think the world wants that kind of stuff right now. Let it cool a few years till people start to forget."

"That's exactly what worries me, sir. Thanks for your time."

REALITY BREAK: Donald Trump was born in 1946, 13.5 months after Adolf Hitler's suicide. Trump has recently been criticized for increasingly blurting Hitler Nazi phrases during his campaign speeches.

EPILOGUE: Hymie Schwartz never made it big. He consulted on director Ed Wood's 1959 sci-fi debacle "Plan 9 from Outer Space," which critics have called the worst movie of all time. In 1965, Hymie worked on "My Mother, the Car," about a schlub whose domineering mother is reincarnated as a 1927 Tin Lizzie. It often tops lists of goofiest-ever television concepts.

Metro Goldwyn Mayer (aka "Money Grabbing Moguls) missed a huge opportunity. In 1951, 20th Century Fox's "The Day the Earth Stood Still" shook the nation. And made big money. Paramount's 1956 reincarnation classic "The Search for Bridey Murphy" came from a blockbuster book.

Mel Brooks' 1967 "The Producers," about "Springtime for Hitler and Germany," was a comedy sensation. It was reissued in 1973 and its 2005 remake also hit big, as did a Broadway musical version.

In 1974, Hymie Schwartz's nephew Hermie worked at the studio which owned the rights to "It's a Wonderful Life." He forgot to renew its copyright. Television executives took advantage of the freebie and it became a revered Christmas classic, successful at long last.

PAVING PARADISE, ROUND OR RECTANGULAR. Yeah, I know, I know — It's not a roundhouse but a gigantic, historic railroad maintenance building that Sparks needs to save before Union Pacific bulldozes it for semi truck parking. (Last week, I only caught part of a TV story at deadline. Mea culpa.)

Union Pacific executive suites must be suffused with closet Joni Mitchell fans: "To pave paradise, put up a parking lot."

But hey, Gomorrah South implodes its history on a regular basis.

Perhaps this is an opportunity to show that the Rail City is becoming competitive at forgetting the past.

Kinda like Trump supporters.

Maybe U.P. will hire Joni Mitchell to sing at the execution.

Hope you and yours enjoy Happy High Holly Days
Christmas/Kwanzaa/Solstice/Festivus/Chanukah/Thanksgibleting
Feliz Navidad, próspero año y felicidad
HAPPY NEW YEAR / Feliz Año Nuevo / Felice Anno Nuovo
Frohe Weihnachten und beste Wuensche fuer 2024

Vaxx up, stay safe, pray for Ukraine and almost 100 other currently war-torn lands.

¡Sí se puede!

Be well. Raise hell. / Esté bien. Haga infierno. (Pardon my Spanglish.)
être bien, élever l'enfer (Pardon my French.) Stammi bene. Scatenare l'inferno. (And Italian.)
___________________
Andrew Quarantino Barbano is a 55-year Nevadan and editor of NevadaLabor.com, SenJoeNeal.org, DoctorLawyerWatch.com, BallotBoxing.US, ConsumerCoalitionv.org, ChantalCoalition.org, Rentvolution.org, MIssissippiWestNV.org and CesarChavezNevada.com among others. He is a longtime member of the Reno-Sparks NAACP and Sparks-based Communications Workers of America Local 9413/AFL-CIO. As always, his comments are entirely his own. Barbwire by Barbano has originated in the Sparks Tribune since August 12, 1988.

Breaking News —> Masks work!