MC-13 and Baton Rouge

Nightmare Coming to Baton Rouge?

Nightmares are terrifying, especially when they are still crouching and gnashing their teeth in your room after you awake. The MS-13 Latino gang is described as the most violent in the world. Unbelievably, the gang is estimated to have well in excess of 10,000 members in 33 states and up to 150,000 total in countries scattered around the world. Authorities say membership is increasing exponentially every day with the addition of illegal aliens and unemployed or underemployed Latinos.

MS-13 is heavily armed with automatic weapons as well as heavier military weapons. The gang was founded by veterans of the El Salvador civil war.

The gang is heavily involved, according to authorities, in contract killings and drug trafficking. Homeland security is concerned about the possibility of one of the militaristic gangs actually taking over a town or small city and the logistical problems of ousting them while protecting the citizens.

State and federal law enforcement agencies are taking the threat very seriously and are becoming educated on how to indentify gang members and the tactics they employ in their criminal activities.

The criminal acts committed by the gang include home invasions, drugs, and protection racket along with contract killings.

While the gang has ties to Mexican Cartels, they are not under control of the Mexican mafia although they may do business with and for them.

In 2005, over 700 MS-13 members were arrested and sent to prison. Upon release, they will be deported, which according to one cynical viewpoint merely provides them with an all-expenses paid vacation with their families at home in El Salvador. After which, they will illegally return to the United States.

Baton Rouge Cajun Gumbo

Traditional Dish of Baton Rouge

Roux is a French word for a thickening agent and is made by mixing an equal amount of wheat flour with oil, fat or traditionally butter, by weight. The mixture is cooked over medium to medium-high heat while stirring constantly. Butter is somewhat more difficult to work with since it is easier to burn. Roux is used to either thicken a sauce or to flavor it. It is cooked until it reaches different degrees of color to satisfy one purpose or the other.

Roux is cooked to a tan color to thicken a recipe. The darker the color of the roux the less thickening power and the more flavoring potential it has.

Cajun cuisine is typically made with oil and is cooked a dark brown—even black by some accomplished chefs—and is used to flavor the dish.

It is used in Cajun dishes to prepare gravies, sauces, soups and stews and of course, the Cajun specialty of gumbo.

There is no set recipe for gumbo. Every restaurant has its own carefully guarded secret recipe and every family follows a traditional family recipe, usually handed down from generation to generation.

Gumbo is made with chicken, chicken and sausage, seafood, pork and even catfish or shrimp gumbo. The one constant is okra and lots of it. Most people in the South also believe file seasoning powder is a must. File has been used for generations and is made from the leaves of the Sassafrass tree.

Beyond that, people argue over using a chicken base or one of oyster liquor. Rice soaks up flavor and is used as the body of the gumbo.

The rest of the ingredients are up to the chef, but it is always a rich, filling and fragrant stew.

Baton Rouge Police Probe

Civil Rights Violations?

In 2010, five years after Hurricane Katrina, the Baton Rouge Police Department was being besieged by complaints from out-of-state law enforcement agencies sent in to help with the relocation of citizens coming to Baton Rouge. The U.S. Department of Justice—Civil Rights Division—is leading the investigation.

The gist of the allegations is that the Baton Rouge police used excess force, unnecessary violence, harassment techniques and illegal search, during a wave of crime that occurred after Hurricane Katrina. These actions were taken against black people, primarily those moved to Baton Rouge from New Orleans by state and federal agencies.

The police department was “low hanging fruit” for the Justice Department since it and many other agencies and organizations are currently dissecting the actions of the New Orleans Police Department during the same period.

The black Mayor of Baton Rouge, Kip Holden made a statement that “I was not going to let Baton Rouge be overrun by some people from New Orleans who was hell-bent on committing crimes.” In a separate statement, the tough talking Holden also said “If there’s a blame to be placed on aggressive enforcement, blame it on me.”

Cities such as Houston, Texas and others also experienced a wave of crime after government sanctioned relocations of people from New Orleans who lost their homes during Katrina. Many others simply joined the relocation effort to take advantage of the benefits, including debit cards, doled out by the government.

When the government hands out free money by the fistful, all manner of people are going to queue up to get as much as possible. Living off the government allows a lot of free time for illegal pursuits.

Spanish Aid to Baton Rouge

The Seven Flags of Baton Rouge

Since the first Acadians worked their way from the tip of Iceland to the New World colonies and into the swamps and upon the grassy plains of Louisiana, the city named for a “red stick” has successively been under the rule of France, Britain, Spain, Louisiana, the Florida Republic, the Confederate States, and the United States.

In the mid-1700s when French-speaking settlers of Acadia entered the area they immediately observed red cypress trees stripped of their bark and decorated with skulls of birds and animals. They later found out that this line of trees marked the boundaries of tribal hunting grounds between two Indian tribes. The red Cypress trees reminded the French of red sticks which translates to Baton Rouge in French.

Due in large part to their continuing struggles with Britain; Spain became a clandestine ally of the American Colonies during the early part of the Revolutionary War, supplying the revolutionaries with gun powder and other military supplies for a price. The Spanish began smuggling arms and ammunition from the port of New Orleans—by the Roderigue Hortalez and Company trading company and up the Mississippi river, as well as Spanish warehouses in Havana, the Spanish port city of Bilbao and through the Gardoqui family trading company.

As the war progressed the Spanish became more active in their support of the Patriots by capturing the city of Baton Rouge from the British who had taken it from the Acadians.

The capture of Baton Rouge opened up—for the transport of military supplies—the Mississippi river from the port of Baton Rouge to the Gulf of Mexico and all points in-between. This was a great strategic victory for the Colonies.

The Spanish never formally declared their alliance with the Colonies because to do so would precipitate war from Britain before the Spanish were ready to go to war with the King.

Louisiana-Home of the Cajuns

Baton Rouge

Cajuns are the descendents of approximately 6,000 French settlers of Acadia, present day Nova Scotia who were exiled in 1755 after the conquest of Acadia by the British. The Acadians were Roman Catholic, which the Crown demanded they renounce and which the Acadians refused to do.

The French exiles then began several decades of an arduous and deadly exodus as they were shipped to the New England Colonies and back to France. Eventually, the word that the exiles were welcome in the French Colony of Louisiana triggered a journey overland from the Colonies and by ship from France to Louisiana. The original 6,000 French have multiplied into 500,000 Cajuns today—as of the 1990 census—and live all over Louisiana with many settled in Baton Rouge.

The name of “Cajun” is a derivative of the French term les Cadiens or les Acadiens. The French term was corrupted over time so the pronunciation of Acadian became A-ca-jun or Cajun. The French settlers found the swamps and bayous of Louisiana to be a rich source of food, furs, and fuel and building materials. Oysters, crawfish, crab, oysters and shrimp became staples of the Cajun diet. The fertile ground yielded bountiful crops of corn, sugar cane and cotton. The prairies of Louisiana appealed to other settlers who turned them under to plant rice and raise cattle. In recent years, the burgeoning oil industry employs many Cajun workers.

Today, Cajuns hold to their Roman Catholic faith. They speak a distinctive dialect of French, English, German, Spanish and various Indian languages. They maintain a number of customs developed over centuries in the wetlands and on the prairies of Louisiana.

Cajun cooking is world renowned for its diversity of food and richness of seasonings.

Baton Rouge is home to some of the best Cajun restaurants in the world.

Baton Rouge Station

Border Patrol

Baton Rouge lies approximately 85 miles northwest of New Orleans and 192 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. The shipping dock area extends from Baton Rouge to Reserve, Louisiana, approximately 50 miles away.

Built in the late 1900’s, the Baton Rouge Station was established to prevent desertions and illegal entry into the United States among alien crewman serving on foreign ships. The station was and is to this day engaged in anti-smuggling operations, employer sanctions investigations, apprehension of aliens identified as criminals, and transportation checks of ships entering the port. The stations area of responsibility is an area encompassing the central and northern parts of Louisiana.

The highway system surrounding Baton Rouge—a major port—is extensive and while built for the transportation of cargo around the nation is an excellent conduit into the country for smugglers and human traffickers.

Initially, the station was under the general supervision of the Border Patrol and on-the-job-training was the accepted method of preparing new agents for duty.

The station was closed during the Great Depression due to monetary problems but was reopened during World War Two to deter enemy agents from entering the country.

The station was closed again after the war and was not reopened until 1958 when the sheer numbers of deserting alien crewman illegally entering the United States became a major issue.

Today, after 911, the station operates at full potential to prevent illegal aliens from entering the country and in fact handles the full battery of Border Patrol responsibilities. Anti-terrorism is a major part of the station’s duties.

The Capitol Huey Built

Louisiana Capitol History

Huey long served as Governor of Louisiana in the state capital of Baton Rouge from 1928 to 1932, whereupon he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1930. Huey Long was a man who knew what he wanted and generally got it; regardless of the methods necessary to do it.

He named himself “Kingfish” because of his status in his home state of Louisiana and to satisfy his enormous ego. Allegations and investigations of graft and corruption riddled his administrations and if not for his “take no prisoners” policies would have crippled his Governorship.

A democrat and radical populist, Long was revered by those who had little to nothing and weren’t likely to get more; as well as those who wanted from someone else what they did not get out and earn for themselves. The reason for his popularity was simple: Governor Long wanted to confiscate the wealth of those who had money and use it to guarantee an income of $5,000 annually (a princely sum in 1928). He also demanded the government provide every American family with a home, job, radio and automobile. He wanted to limit private fortunes to $50 million, legacies to $5 million and annual incomes to $1 million.

Huey Long called his plan the “Share the Wealth Plan” with his slogan, “Every Man a King.”

Many political observers have opined that America will never see someone in government as radical a populist as Huey Long.

Many believe and it seems obvious that Mr. Long was buying votes by promising everyone a share of what the other guy worked so hard to earn. I assert—along with many others—that the current democratic administration is doing the precise same thing today.

Term limits in Louisiana restricted Huey Long to only two terms of irreparable damage to the Capitalist System in that state. Again, as a member of Congress, Louisiana was only one state in the Union and Long was once again limited, this time by his colleagues, to the damage he could inflict.

Today, it’s the President of the United States and his administration with the populist plan: Who’s there to stop them?

 

Baton Rouge Historical Information

Baton Rouge - Then and Now

The Baton Rouge Metropolitan Area is composed of Baton Rouge City and The Parish of East Baton Rouge – each administered by the Mayor-President and a council of 12 Metropolitan Council members. The total population of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Area is approximately 802,000 – as of the 2010 census – and the citizens represent a rich diversity of French, Spanish, Cajun and Native American cultures.

The city was settled by the French after explorers located the site on Istrouma Bluff in 1699. The strategic importance of the bluff was immediately apparent to the French. The first bluff located upriver from the Mississippi River Delta, it offered natural protection from flooding and disasters such as hurricanes.  

The explorers had noticed a number of stripped red cypress trees coated with blood and bird and animal heads. Finding out from the native Indians that these trees designated the boundary lines between the Houma and Bayou Goula tribal hunting grounds: The explorers named the city “le baton rouge” meaning red stick in French.

In 1719 a military post was established in the city, making it a magnet for settlers, and becoming the state capital in1862. The civil war left the city untouched – except for occupation by Union Force – during which time the capital was moved to Shreveport. The capitol was returned to Baton Rouge in 1882.

The Mississippi River was soon being plied by steamboats moving trade goods, settlers and travelers to and through the city causing Baton Rouge to grow and prosper.

Today Baton Rouge still depends upon the Mississippi River for its growth as a major petrochemical production and center. The Technology industry is also a major growth area in both research facilities and production plants. Ocean-going tankers and cargo carriers have replaced steamboats and now ply the river where Baton Rouge enjoys it position as the farthest inland port that accommodates these huge, deep-draft ships.

Deaf Valley-Tiger Stadium

LSU Tiger Stadium

Louisiana State University’s Tiger Stadium is perhaps the most popular destination by visitors to Baton Rouge. The stadium has a long history of some of the greatest games in college football. The stadium is known as Death Valley to opposing teams whose coaches voted it one of the 10 stadiums they most dreaded playing in. This assessment has been backed-up by many surveys and quotes from such legendary coaches as Bear Bryant. Conversely, The Sporting News once named Tiger Stadium one of the 10 best places to watch a college game. The electric atmosphere intensifies before the game. When the band takes the field to play the National Anthem and the LSU Tigers fight song, some fans break down and cry as they sing both songs loudly and proudly. As the players burst through the gate 90,000 emotionally charged fans are on their feet, stomping and screaming at the tops of their voices. The screaming doesn’t stop until their voices give out or the game ends.

Many other fans refer to Tiger Stadium as Deaf Valley because of the continuous noise level generated by the fans during the length of the game. Tiger Stadium is huge, averaging over 90,000 fanatical fans per game for three straight seasons. The stadium has a seating capacity of 90,600 and has been known to cater to overflow crowds. It is the fifth largest college stadium that is located on campus and is the sixteenth largest outdoor stadium in the world: It is definitely one of the loudest stadiums on record.

On August 8th, 1988, in what was later called the “Earthquake Game” against Auburn, the crowd reacted to winning touchdown with such a sudden earsplitting noise burst that an earth tremor was registered on a seismograph meter in LSU’s Geology Department.

 

 

 

Baton Rouge City Climate

Baton Rouge City Atmosphere

With a population of approximately 230,000 as of 2010, Baton Rouge was named in the “Top 10 Places for Young Adults” by Portfolio Magazine. The Brookings Institution ranked Baton Rouge as one of the top 20 cities in North America for economic strength. Finally, in 2009, CNN declared it the 9th best city in the nation to begin a business. Contributing to the animated atmosphere that abounds in Baton Rouge is Louisiana State University – home to over 38,000 students and 1,200 faculty members – is a boon to the city’s economy, diverse population and quality of life.

These attributes combine to stimulate an already vibrant economy in this diverse and exciting capital city and Parish Seat. The state government is the one of the single largest employer’s in Baton Rouge. The city has the furthest inland port on the Mississippi allow access to ocean-going vessels and cargo carriers. Additionally, Baton Rouge has an extensive rail and highway system to speed cargo around the country once it has been offloaded from ships. The petrochemical industry is led by Exxon Mobile which operates the second largest refinery in the nation and attracts people from around the country for jobs in manufacturing and production.

Baton Rouge has emerged as a premier research and treatment center for major hospitals such as Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital and Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. The city is being positioned to support a medical corridor similar to other major facilities such as the Texas Medical Center.

The film industry is strong in Baton Rouge with several movies filmed annually. Post production facilities and movie studios are expanding steadily throughout Baton Rouge.

Baton Rouge is a wonderful place to work, study and live life to the fullest.

 

 

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