Maino-All The Above (feat. T Pain)

Human Chain from NikeSportswear on Vimeo.

Cool ass commercial. Enjoyo.

In 1916, an intrepid reporter, Guillermo Ojara, was assigned by his paper, El Demócrata, to go south to seek and interview Emiliano Zapata.
After harrowing incidents with hundreds of Zapatistas in the mountains, valleys, even The Hill of the Scorpions inhabited by thousands of those deadly creatures, Ojara was finally brought to his subject.

It is interesting to note that Zapata was called “El Attila del Sur” by his men, and frequently signed his public proclamations with that title. Without further delay, here, in part, are Ojara’s words, which tell us much about Zapata’s physical appearance, charismatic presence, and philosophy of justice for the poor.
More at the Jump.

“I advanced toward the hut. Entirely surrounding the little stone house were men, all dressed in black, all armed with rifles and revolvers, all evidently on guard. The entrance to the hut, a doorway, the stones of which were held up by uncut timbers from the hills, was closed by a blanket hung loosely from the top, beneath and around which light came. The guard rose as we approached and barred the way into the hut, but as we talked, the curtain was brushed aside and Zapata himself stood in the doorway.

“More than ever seeming the creature of ill omen which he has been to Mexico, the bandit leader, almost six feet in height and thin to the point of slenderness, stared out into the darkness, the blackness of his charro suit accentuated by the light which flowed around him.

“What do you want?” he asked

My guard started to reply and Zapata broke in:

“I am talking to the stranger, not to you; speak when I speak to you. Go to your post.”

The guard left me, though I was still surrounded by the personal bodyguard of Zapata, who had risen from their positions around the hut and stood in a semi-circle back of me, as if to prevent flight.

“Now,” said Zapata, “come in here where I can see you. Too many people want to see me. What do you want?”

I presented first my letter from El Democrata, … and told him that I had been sent to secure an interview. About a dozen men lounged in their serapes on the dirt floor of the hut, while a rough table, containing several bottles of wine and cognac, stood in the centre. Zapata pretended to read the letters, though he can neither read nor write, and then, complaining that the light was poor, called a short, stout fellow, whom I afterward learned was Ismael Palafox, his “secretary,” to read them for him.

Apparently satisfied, Zapata offered me one of the bottles on the table, from which I took a drink of the fiery cognac de Madero, so well known throughout Mexico. Sweeping his hand around the room, Zapata invited me to sit down, and, dropping into the crosslegged seat of the Mexican Indian, proceeded to stare at me for fully five minutes, during which time I had ample opportunity to study him.

Dressed simply in a plain black suit, but with large diamonds on both hands, and a heavy gold watch chain running across his breast, his belt filled with cartridges and an automatic pistol slung at either hip, Zapata turned toward me the unexpressive face of an Indian of about 50 years of age, relieved by remarkably penetrating eyes. His head was small for his size, his face oval, and rather whiter than that of the average Guerrero Indian, thus betraying his share of Spanish blood, but his hands and feet were large, his mouth, under the heavy black moustache, loose and sensual, though the chin was firm, and the ears large but set close to the head.

“So you want to know why I fight, and how strong my forces are?” Zapata asked.

“Yes,” I replied. “Your career has attracted much attention in Mexico and in the world outside, and I have come a long way to tell all these people just what you want and how you expect to get it.”

“I am fighting for three things,” replied Zapata, when coffee was brought: “first, to free all Mexico of foreigners,, especially the Spaniards and the Americans; second, to give back to the Indians their lands, taken from them by the Diaz Government, the Madero Government, and now by the Carranza Government; third, to give Mexico an honest President, a ruler who will give justice to the 14,000,000 poor people as to the 2,000,000 so-called upper classes and the few hundred thousands of foreigners who have been allowed to drain the country of the great riches of the soil. I have fought for these things for nearly six years, and in the territory under my control every foreigner has been driven out or killed; every wealthy Mexican has been compelled to return his wealth to the Indians, to whom it rightfully belongs, and the land has been distributed to every peon who wanted a share of it.

“I am the man who should be President,” Zapata continued. “Diaz, de la Barra, Huerta, Carranza, and Villa have tried to rule the country, along with half a dozen others, and all have failed. When I was in control in Mexico City I maintained better and more honest government than any of them. Thus I have proved that I am best fitted to rule the country.”

“Do you plan to seize the Presidency?” I asked.

“That is something I do not care to disclose,” Zapata answered.

“But if you become President what do you plan to do?” I persisted.

“The first thing will be to drive all the foreigners from Mexico. All of them have done Mexico much harm but the first ones to go will be the Americans. Then I will destroy all the railroads, so that they cannot come back. Before we had railroads we had few foreigners, especially few Americans, in Mexico and we were happy. If we had no railroads now we should have no foreigners, and we should have peace and happiness again. Mexico can produce everything she needs; therefore we do not need any foreign trade. Outside commerce always has been for the profit of the foreigners and not to the gain of us Mexicans, so why should we allow it?”

“But what if the foreigners, especially the Americans, should demand that you open your ports to their trade, as they once did to the Government of Japan?” I asked.

“When?” Zapata questioned, and, without waiting for a reply, went on:

“The United States could not compel the great Japan to do anything. Once the United States invaded Mexico, and I have heard that the Mexicans of that day drove them out with fearful slaughter. What we did once we can do again, and if the Americans come into Mexico we will drive them clear beyond Texas, and maybe take that away from them.”

It seems impossible that any man of the age of Emiliano Zapata should entertain such ideas, yet, he spoke with the utmost sincerity and with a note in his voice that left the hearer sure that he, at least, believed fully in what he said.

“I have nearly 25,000 men,” he continued, “and each one of them believes as I do — that we are the men to govern Mexico. Every one of the rulers Mexico has had has sent an army against us and we have defeated all of them. They sent good armies, as good as those of the United States; if we defeated them, why should we not defeat those of the northern republic We have killed many Americans, and nothing has been said about it, so the Americans must realize that we are all-powerful, and when we want to kill we kill, being responsible only to ourselves.”

“Then, if the United States sends troops into Mexico, you and your army will fight them?” I asked.

“Certainly, we have voted on it, and every one of all my army is in favor of fighting for Mexico against any one who tries to interfere in our affairs. When the United States landed troops in Vera Cruz, and the coward Huerta refused to fight, did I not send my men down to the outskirts of the town of Vera Cruz? Why did I send them? To look at the American troops? To see the disgrace of the Mexican flag?” Zapata got up, and walked across the room, shoving his men out of his way with his foot as they slept on the floor.

“No! I sent them to fight the invaders, if Huerta had shown the bravery of a mole.

But I could not fight them alone; they were too many for me, and I could not spare more of my troops from Morels and Guerrero, where we had to stand guard to keep Huerta and his army from robbing the poor people again.

“But, if the United States comes into Mexico again, I shall call every Mexican to me, and every loyal man will come. I have found it easy to gather and maintain an army against the usurpers of power in Mexico City, so shall I find it easy to gather twice as large an army to give battle to a foreigner who is trying to seize our country.”

Zapata discusses with Ojara how he obtains food and ammunition for his men, how they use it, and about crimes he and his brother, Eufemio, committed in the Southern States. Here we pick up more of Ojara’s observations on the legendary General Zapata:

“As dawn came, he politely excused himself, rolled in his serape on the dirty floor and fell immediately asleep. I followed his example and it was nearly noon before I awoke. There was no one in the cabin, and when I looked out, only a group of about 50 men remained of all the Death Legion which had been on guard the night before. Zapata was nowhere in sight.

I was informed by the leader… that “Attila has gone, but has left word that we are to follow him. … It is General Zapata’s wish that you accompany him,” was all the answer I could get.”

Ojara has no choice but to follow and connects with General Zapata four days later “riding his huge black horse and directing the attack of nearly 5,000 men on the cuartel in Coyoacan” with dynamite blowing the roof off the barracks and Carranza soldiers covering their retreat with the fire from two machine guns, fleeing into the plaza of Coyoacan “where a number of street cars on the suburban lines from Mexico City had been stopped. After all available street cars had been filled and gone, machine gun operators drew their automatic pistols and fought until they were overwhelmed by a charge of the Zapatistas…. After some weeks the watch on me relaxed a little, as Zapata appeared to have some important business with outside agents who were constantly sending him couriers, and I finally escaped early one morning, and by hard riding reached Mexico City March 2. I abandoned my horse and saddle at Xochimilco, and, catching an interurban electric car, rode into the capital.”

Zapata was such a powerful figure in Mexico, that it seems fitting an actor with the power of Marlon Brando play him in the movie, “Viva Zapata!,” written by John Steinbeck, directed by Elia Kazan, with Anthony Quinn as Eufemio Zapata. How close did these great artists come to the real thing?

The 1916 interview above supports the film, and supplies additional facts: The real Zapata commanded vast sums of money from those in power, as much as $1,500,000 pesos every ten days, although, as he said himself, “The poor people bring me food, the Indians give me men and horses, and I have taken much money from the rich whom I have killed or driven from the country.”

Brando’s Zapata rode a white stallion, while the real Zapata rode a “huge black horse.” Brando’s Zapata married Howard Hughes’ wife, Jean Peters, while the real Zapata “talked of his triumphs with women, largely made by force of arms….”

I like to think the real Emiliano Zapata would be pleased with the resemblance between himself and Brando. He may not have liked the studio’s original choice for the part, Tyrone Power.

I love when you use old movies as an art form, it connects with you so much since you probably grew up watching a lot of these or have seen some parts of it. A while back I designed a couple of Latin Themed Vintage movie posters, and I had a lot of fun, I know that filming this video must of been a cool experience. Enjoy.

The trailers just get better and better, aghhh I can’t wait now.

“Song banned, band pulls out…. Organizers of the show insisted [Los Tigres del Norte] refrain from playing its latest single, ‘La Granja’ (‘The Farm’)… In the song and a video accompanying it, fat pigs represent politicians who get rich on the backs of the people, and a vicious dog with fiery red eyes represents drug trafficking. A zorro, or fox (former President Vicente Fox), releases the dog and there is hell to pay, especially for peasant farmers who get caught in the middle“– Los Angeles Times

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I present to you the DIMEX team. When we have shows, I like to take the whole squad but it’s very hard to get the team together and share the excitement one gets when you get to meet your customers and friends in person. Honestly priceless.

Saludos to Yessenia who did a great job last year on expanding the brand to it’s point today, selling here and there presenting to some retail stores, ordering the shirts and picking them up from the printers, managing our funds and keeping me up to date on everything all of this while working full time behind and office desk (boring) but it has to be done like this for now.

Ashley my sister for supporting the brand to it’s fullest rocking the gear at her school showing it off to her friends and sometimes modeling since our budget is low we kinda use “US” just your regular kiddos from DIMEX , she helps me tag the shirts and goes to show with us every now and then, you got a great future keep up the good work with your studies and soccer you’ll be rewarded.

My Homie John Salazar who has been with the brand since the start. John has been my friend since Junior High around 14 years “got’ damn” We have worked together to create some old and upcoming concepts for the brand and the brands future, “Gracias Hermano” pretty soon we’ll be drawing everyday like we wished when we were little.

Mom and Pops for bringing me to this country leaving everything you knew about to give me a better future, for all the advice and motivation given to work hard every day and live life to the fullest also “Hehe” for helping me build our new desk for the office, mom for making me a “cafecito” when I work late nights. Tio Tiano for helping wrap all the shirts together and giving our loyal customers the good quality product that they paid for.

Martin our part time photographer thanks for all those shoots we have had so far, it’s amazing watching you grow as time passes “Algun Dia Vas A Ser Chingo, That It’s Going To Be Hard To Contact You ” Thanks for believing in the brand and supporting it to the fullest.

Juanito Lopez My “Primo” thanks for helping in getting the street team together and actually making it happen.

The crazy “Los Classics” we have some crazy ish’ going on this year so let’s get ready to cause some chaos, “Gracias Camaradas For all the support” I hope you guys still wash your Tees Like I showed you .

My good friend Rolando Gutierrez who helped me promote the brand thru his nightclub, and for all the good advice both business and as a good friend. I hope “que te la estes pasando chingon en tu tierra, nos vemos por alla en un rato”. Gracias Ro.

Juliancito my son and future model for the kids line, gracias for making me smile when I work.

And last but not least to all of the models/dj’s/rappers/artists/friends who participated in our photo shoots during the past year, gracias for coming out and showing the love, hopefully we can get together for a reunion, hehe. Also to all of our good friends in the industry, thank you for giving us a change to place our product in your stores and for believing in our concept, for all the advice as experienced small business owners and your friendship. “Gracias Compas Y Que Siga La Mata Dando, This Year Will Bring Us New Challenges And New Goals. Saludos.

Las Pochadas Art Show will be held on December 19th from 4pm-10pm at Mi Vida in South Pasadena. 100% of tickets sales and 50% or all art work sold goes to the scholarship foundation.
Tickets are only $5
$5 Orale wear t-shirts
Free Jarritos!!

Join us and help make a difference in Education!!

Saturday, December 19, 2009
Time:
4:00pm – 10:00pm
Location:
1325 Huntington Drive South Pasadena, CA 91030-4511

“Se nos fue el tata” that’s what my cousin said when I got to Guaymas Sonora, on a unplanned trip to Mexico this past week. In this blog we write about everything from things that inspire the brand to the very smallest things that make it a more enjoyable collection. In this case “El Tata Raul” is the main topic in my story telling. My Tata was very quiet didn’t talk much, last time I visited him he barely answered my questions and if he did it was with a funny smart response. I asked him let’s take a picture and he said “para que si estoy bien feo” that was some funny shit, this man at 92 years old and a great sense of humor. Another one was when we gave him a little cup of Coca-Cola and he said “mejor dame un basito de cervezita” and he did drink some behind my aunt who would take care of him . I would say he lived a happy life. Born in 1917 and the myth says he is from Nogales, Arizona but no one knows, other people say that he was adopted by a family from Guaymas. He was a baseball player, played for the Ostioneros De Guaymas as a pitcher in his time and a great chef at the Playa De Cortez Hotel in Miramar, Sonora a Hotel visited by a lot of celebrities on a regular basis and a father of seven kids one of them being my mom, my Tata Raul was a great man and lived his life to the fullest, that is why me as a family member of his am proud to share his story with you, “Descansa Tata, Ya Estas Con Tu Lolita”.

A Big Smile To This.

Robert Williams: Vans Vault x DQM from OFF THE WALL on Vimeo.

Customizing is sick, love the last touch ups he applies. Enjoy

LUIS from diluvio on Vimeo.

Halloween may have passed, but this beautifully done stop motion film carries all the creepy wonder of the holiday with a story that’s simply enthralling. This film, Luis, is the second short in a series titled Lucia, Luis y el lobo by Chilean artists Niles Atallah, Cristobal Leon, and Joaquin Cociña.

Luis was created using dirt, flowers, charcoal, found objects, and cardboard. It’s sister video, Lucia, was also shot frame by frame with a digital photo camera.

Sick, via Juxtapoz

If you have seen the Movie “UP” by Disney then you can related to this video a lot.  The story of a man that has had a successfully journey thru time founding one of the most famous Banda Sinaloenses in Mexico.  It reminds me of a story an old relative would tell, “when I was little I found a clarinet as I walked by the shore, from that day on it became my passion to play it and make a living off of it” a story like this can make you think of what type of story am I going to tell when I am that age.  Well, I hope it’s a good one and it has to do a lot with our beloved brand.  Enjoy the video, feel it when the old couple hug while looking at past photographs of their life, looking back and remembering that they have “the right of antiquity”.  Saludos.

EL GALLO PLAZA

Sun, November 1st 09 at 5:00 pm
Entrance is GRATIS
4545 Cesar E. Chavez Ave. E. Los Angeles, CA 90022

Para culminar los 3 días de celebración de “Día de los Muertos” que toman lugar en la mayoría de las comunidades latinas, Al Borde será el anfitrión de una noche de música, exposiciones de arte, bellos altares, pan dulce, chocolate caliente, café y tamales … todo GRATIS!
Grupo musical invitado, La Santa Cecilia

“Mictlantecuhtli (“Lord of Mictlan”), in Aztec mythology, was a god of the dead and the king of Mictlan (Chicunauhmictlan), the lowest and northernmost section of the underworld. He was one of the principal gods of the Aztecs and was the most prominent of several gods and goddesses of death and the underworld (see also Chalmecatl). The worship of Mictlantecuhtli sometimes involved ritual cannibalism, with human flesh being consumed in and around the temple.”
Learn More Here.

I remember when I was little and lived in Mexico we would go to our local cemetery “El Panteon Viejo de Guaymas” and indeed it was very old, you can walk in and feel the chills going down your collar bone but at the same time you would see it as an adventure. There was graves with holes that the recent hurricane had left (that was creepy), crosses in the floor like someone had just knocked them down, Baby angels without heads, jars filled with old flowers barely alive because of the black water in their jars, and grave stones decades even centuries old. I don’t recall going on the Day of the Dead at night but do remember visiting all my ancestors during the day, the cemetery would get so full you had to park very far and start your walk from there, some even preferred to take the bus along with many other “Guaymenses” We would get there arrange a fresh set of flowers that we had just bought from the “Mercado Municipal” and set some items that that one particular family member enjoyed. From there we would stay and talk about them during the day then we would go home. We would visit our ancestors a couple times a month, something we did when our grandma died here back in 2000 but now we only go on holidays. Those childhood memories connected with me again when I returned to Guaymas after a 14 year absence (until I got my residency), I took a trip to the “Panteon” to pay homage to them again, and wished that one day I too would lay next to them.

“The Day of the Dead celebrations in Mexico can be traced back to the indigenous Olmec, Zapotec, Mixtec, Mexican or Aztec, Maya, P’urhépecha, and Totonac

More at the Jump

Rituals celebrating the deaths of ancestors have been observed by these civilizations perhaps for as long as 2500–3000 years.[1] In the pre-Hispanic era, it was common to keep skulls as trophies and display them during the rituals to symbolize death and rebirth.
The festival that became the modern Day of the Dead fell in the ninth month of the Aztec calendar, about the beginning of August, and was celebrated for an entire month. The festivities were dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl,[2] known as the “Lady of the Dead,” corresponding to the modern Catrina.In most regions of Mexico, November 1 honors children and infants, whereas deceased adults are honored on November 2. This is indicated by generally referring to November 1 mainly as “Día de los Inocentes” (Day of the Innocents) but also as “Día de los Angelitos” (Day of the Little Angels) and November 2 as “Día de los Muertos” or “Día de los Difuntos” (Day of the Dead).
The Day of the Dead (El Día de los Muertos or All Souls’ Day) is a holiday celebrated in Mexico and by Latin Americans living in the United States and Canada. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. The celebration occurs on November 1st and 2nd in connection with the Catholic holiday of All Saints’ Day which occurs on November 1st and All Souls’ Day which occurs on November 2nd. Traditions include building private altars honoring the deceased, using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed, and visiting graves with these as gifts.
Scholars trace the origins of the modern holiday to indigenous observances dating back thousands of years, and to an Aztec festival dedicated to a goddess called Mictecacihuatl. To learn more go Here.

Mexico finally woke up during this match for the 2009 Sub 17 World Cup being held in Africa. Good luck boys, let’s take the remaining teams down.

I was happy to see the different ethnic groups at this event, I’m usually used to seeing Latinos at the events I go to but on this day on this event we all celebrate the dead.  There was booths everywhere offering there services and selling their crafts, from Muerto skulls to more muerto/bone designs.  Big sponsors were backing this event up and were there to also sell their product all wrapped up by a great performance by the one and only Lila Downs, her style is unbeatable in my ears, she can perform and sing songs like no other, fully taking me back to the little towns in Oaxaca and Veracruz.  She didn’t sing some of my favorite songs like “El Feo”, “La Llorona” and “La Bruja” but it was all good I still got to experience her energy as a performer and loved it.  As I walked back I saw in the very far a similar face in the Latino Radio industry “Pepe Garza”  but didn’t get a chance to talk to him since he left and got lost into the crowd.  The show was very fun, different and inspirational I would love to set up a booth here in the future to show to the people what DIMEX is all about, well see first I would have to get a hold of the person in charge, if anyone knows the that person please let me know.  Thank You.

I don’t own a console, but I sure hell want one now. I got the chills and they are multiplying.
Enjoy.

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Ahhh, I want them all, here’s the “Where The Wild Things Are” toy collection by Medicom. Enjoy