Happy Mexican Independence Day, everybody. Last night at midnight, Mexican President Felipe Calderon came out on the balcony of the National Palace in Mexico City, before thousands of citizens, as is the custom, and gave the Grito de Dolores. The grito is traditionally done at midnight because on September 16th in 1810, a priest named Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla in a village in the state of Guanajuato rang a church bell at dawn and called on Mexicans to fight for independence from Spain. The original speech has been lost, so the presidents kind of make some shit up to suffice. The words are just as threatening as Hugo Chavez’s speech last week but since this one happened 198 years ago, it’s considered patriotic now.

The whole evening is something like New Year’s Eve with fireworks and festivities going on into the night and culiminating with a military parade through the capital at dawn. Meanwhile, last night in the Mexican state of Michoacan, site of much drug violence, explosions killed three and injured 50 during independence day festivities in Morelia.

Violence mars Mexico’s independence day celebration [CNN]
Grito de Dolores [Wikipedia]
Earlier: Presidents Yelling Day: Hugo Chavez Says, “Fucking Yankees, Go To Hell A Hundred Times!”