TAKE YOUR PICK.....PLEASE.
If you thought the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s kept a grudge a long time, forget about it. If you dreamed that IRA and Protestant extremists would sign a peace treaty and go dancing hand in hand to visit the head leprechaun…dream no more. If you hoped that warring ethnic peoples all over the globe would lay down their arms and allow their neighbors to live in peace – grow up. None of those things are going to happen.
Anna Alicia Salas and Esteban Volkov make Ted Kennedy and Karl Rove look like lovers. They are locked in a battle to the death. The reason? Ownership of one of history’s most infamous murder weapons. The ice pick police believe was used to kill Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky, has reared its ugly head just weeks before the 65th anniversary of his assassination.
Trotsky helped lead the 1917 Russian Revolution but split (no pun intended) with Josef Stalin and fled to Mexico in 1937, accusing Stalin of betraying the revolution. Josef, who did a wild Lindy and loved to wear a fake nose and glasses to parties, was not a man who took criticism well. As proof there are tens of millions of bodies buried in Russia of people he considered enemies. He saw enemies behind every stuffed cabbage roll. Stalin arranged Trotsky’s Aug. 20, 1940 murder by having one of his men sneak up behind Trotsky and sink the ice pick into his skull.
Tests to authenticate the weapon have been delayed by a dispute between the current owner and Trotsky’s grandson. The ice pick is in the hands of Ana Alicia, whose father removed it from an evidence room while serving as a secret police commander in the 1940s. Why Mr. Salas stole the foot long ice pick is anybody’s guess? Maybe he had run out of toothpicks and thought he could save a few pesos. Perhaps he wanted to surprise his daughter with the bloody ice pick because she had expressed the hope that Santa would bring her a backscratcher on Xmas.
Ms. Salas wants to sell the weapon but hasn’t decided on a price. She was hoping for the best offer on eBay. Trotsky’s grandson, Volkov, who keeps the revolutionary flame alive by maintaining Trotsky’s home in Mexico City as a museum, wants the ice pick for his display. As you can imagine, Esteban who believes in the ongoing struggle between socialist ideals and capitalism is not known for his sense of humor. Although, he loves to watch people’s reaction when he pulls a large, frozen halibut from his frock coat. The Trotsky museum isn’t attracting too many visitors – at last count 7 people visited in the past 30-years. Esteban hopes that if he can get his commie-hands on the ice pick, bus tours will line up in front of the house. The amount of visitors will surpass those wanting to see a Ricardo Montalban film festival..
The only way Ana Alicia Salas can prove that her ice pick is the authentic murder weapon is if Volkov contributes his DNA for testing. He will do so only if Salas donates the artifact to his museum. Since he charges a $1 entrance fee to the house, Esteban’s looking to make a killing. (pun intended) Alicia, on the other hand, won’t even be able to take the ice pick to The Antique Road Show to find out what the damn thing’s worth. So, there they are. A potential fortune at their beck and call and these two warring parties won’t budge an inch.
Maybe the IRA and Protestant militants should start skipping down the yellow brick road. “We’re off to see the Leprechaun….”
Anna Alicia Salas and Esteban Volkov make Ted Kennedy and Karl Rove look like lovers. They are locked in a battle to the death. The reason? Ownership of one of history’s most infamous murder weapons. The ice pick police believe was used to kill Russian revolutionary Leon Trotsky, has reared its ugly head just weeks before the 65th anniversary of his assassination.
Trotsky helped lead the 1917 Russian Revolution but split (no pun intended) with Josef Stalin and fled to Mexico in 1937, accusing Stalin of betraying the revolution. Josef, who did a wild Lindy and loved to wear a fake nose and glasses to parties, was not a man who took criticism well. As proof there are tens of millions of bodies buried in Russia of people he considered enemies. He saw enemies behind every stuffed cabbage roll. Stalin arranged Trotsky’s Aug. 20, 1940 murder by having one of his men sneak up behind Trotsky and sink the ice pick into his skull.
Tests to authenticate the weapon have been delayed by a dispute between the current owner and Trotsky’s grandson. The ice pick is in the hands of Ana Alicia, whose father removed it from an evidence room while serving as a secret police commander in the 1940s. Why Mr. Salas stole the foot long ice pick is anybody’s guess? Maybe he had run out of toothpicks and thought he could save a few pesos. Perhaps he wanted to surprise his daughter with the bloody ice pick because she had expressed the hope that Santa would bring her a backscratcher on Xmas.
Ms. Salas wants to sell the weapon but hasn’t decided on a price. She was hoping for the best offer on eBay. Trotsky’s grandson, Volkov, who keeps the revolutionary flame alive by maintaining Trotsky’s home in Mexico City as a museum, wants the ice pick for his display. As you can imagine, Esteban who believes in the ongoing struggle between socialist ideals and capitalism is not known for his sense of humor. Although, he loves to watch people’s reaction when he pulls a large, frozen halibut from his frock coat. The Trotsky museum isn’t attracting too many visitors – at last count 7 people visited in the past 30-years. Esteban hopes that if he can get his commie-hands on the ice pick, bus tours will line up in front of the house. The amount of visitors will surpass those wanting to see a Ricardo Montalban film festival..
The only way Ana Alicia Salas can prove that her ice pick is the authentic murder weapon is if Volkov contributes his DNA for testing. He will do so only if Salas donates the artifact to his museum. Since he charges a $1 entrance fee to the house, Esteban’s looking to make a killing. (pun intended) Alicia, on the other hand, won’t even be able to take the ice pick to The Antique Road Show to find out what the damn thing’s worth. So, there they are. A potential fortune at their beck and call and these two warring parties won’t budge an inch.
Maybe the IRA and Protestant militants should start skipping down the yellow brick road. “We’re off to see the Leprechaun….”
posted by THE RANTING OLD GEEZER at 6:18 AM
<< Home