B'NVenidos, that's California for welcome to the July 22nd edition of National Reviews, Radio Free California Podcast.

I'm Will Swain, president of the California Policy Center. You can find my colleagues and me at California PolicyCenter.org. You can find my friend and co-host, David Bonson, right here. He's an economist, the host of the Capitol Record podcast. He's author of the book, Full Time Work and the Meaning of Life. And of course, he's founder of the eponymous investment firm, the Bonson Group. Good morning, David. Good morning, Will. How are you, sir?

I. the meaning of life. And of course, he's founder of the eponymous investment firm, the Bonson Group.

Good morning, David. Good morning, Will. How are you, sir?

I am so good. As per usual, like 60 stories we could have covered this week, almost all of them having to do with Gavin Newsman, Donald Trump. I just selected a few. But are you okay if we go back to the 16th century for just one sec? I wouldn't have it any other way.

This is the month, David, July, when in 1510 a Spanish novelist, the guy's name is Garcia

Rodriguez de Montalvo. How do you like me pronouncing that?

Sounds like I'm ordering in a fine Mexican restaurant nearby. Garcia Rodriguez de Montalvo.

He writes this novel called The Adventures of Esplandian, and it's about a Spanish nobleman

who goes to Constantinople to fight off the Muslims trying to invade that city-state in the 1400s.

And it's this kind of thing that inspires the French nobility, of course, this novel does.

And it's part of the whole story of Don Quixote.

When you go into his library, Cervantes tells us there in Quixote's library is this book.

It's supposed to teach the Spanish nobility about the virtues of martial participation of warfare, of soldiering, and defending the Christian faith all over the globe.

This novel publishes to great acclaim, and 25 years later, this novel is on the minds of Spanish explorers in the new world.

Again, it features this prince, Splandiani, goes to Constantinople.

He meets this captive Muslim warrior princess, and you'll appreciate her name. Her name is Quandion. He goes to Constantinople. He meets this captive Muslim warrior princess, and you'll

appreciate her name. Her name is Queen Calafia. She's a black Amazon warrior princess from some

mystical island in the new world, somewhere near the Indies. And he interviews her. They agree. They're

madly in love, and she is inspired by his Christian virtue, and she marries him.

So when Hernan Cortez, 25 years after publication of this book, arrives in Mexico, they march off, they're looking for the new world, they're looking for the Indies.

They arrive in Baja, California, somewhere we believe, near La Paz, that's kind of down near the

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