SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO

nineteenseventythree

tw o t h o u s a n dsix33

YEARS

DECEMBER 28, 2006VOL. 33, No. 52

NEWSBRIEFS

See BRIEFS, Page 4

He who receives a good turn should neverforget it; he who does one should neverremember it.

— Quips & Quotes

EL PASO COUNTY — The West TexasHIDTA Stash House Unit comprised of Inves-tigators from the El Paso Police Department,Drug Enforcement Administration, and El PasoCounty Sheriff’s Office has seen continued suc-cess in 2006. The unit has seized 33,116.24pounds of marijuana, 214.89 pounds of cocaineand charged 176 individuals with drug-relatedoffenses as of the end of November. The streetvalue of the marijuana seized is$26,492,992.00. The street value of the cocaineis $15,628,363.60. The combined street valueof the illegal narcotics taken off the streets bythe West Texas HIDTA Stash House Unit is$42,121,355.60 as of the end of November.

The West Texas HIDTA Stash House unitwould like to remind the public of indicatorsthat a house in your neighborhood may be usedas a stash house.

$42 million in illegal drugs confiscatedthroughout 2006 by Stash House Unit

These houses are usually rentals with at-tached garages; have unkempt yards and little,if any, furniture. Occupants usually keep tothemselves, are not visible on a daily basis anddo not hold to a normal pattern of lifestyle suchas putting out the trash regularly or gatheringadvertisements off the front walk. There maybe sudden episodes of activity around the homeafter weeks of apparent vacancy.

There are usually many different vehiclesparked at the residents, especially vans andpickups, which enter and exit the garage fre-quently. These vehicles usually have out-of-town state plates from New Mexico, Mexicoor “buyer” or “dealer” paper plates.

These are some of the typical indicators of astash house. However, these indicators alonedo not necessarily mean that the occupants ofthe home are running a stash house. As a gen-eral rule, if residents believe there is suspiciousactivity in a home in there area they shouldcall the West Texas Stash House Unit at 629-8600 or Crime Stoppers at 566-8477(TIPS).

Special to the CourierBy Darrel Petry

HORIZON — A landlord who had severalfamilies, including half a dozen children, liv-ing in dangerous and unhealthy conditions wassuccessfully prosecuted last week by El PasoCounty Attorney José R. Rodríguez.

Luis Torres, the owner of a trailer park lo-cated at 749 Ascension Rd. in the Horizon area,was found guilty of one violation of the TexasWater Code (failing septic system) and of an-other public nuisance charge of unsanitary andfire-hazard conditions at his property.

Justice of the Peace Precinct 6, Rubén Luján,sentenced Torres to pay a $259 fine for theseptic tank violation, and to pay $200 pluscourt costs for the public nuisance violation.The defendant was also ordered to abate thenuisances, and was prohibited from leasing orotherwise inhabiting any dwelling at 749 As-cension. Torres will also have to remove allbut one dwelling, install a new septic system,and re-apply with the El Paso county Road andBridge Department for a certificate of com-pliance to obtain electrical power and water

Landlord convicted of housing families in dangerous conditionsSpecial to the CourierBy Elhiu Dominguez

for his property.The charges originated from an incident in

September 2006, when a resident reported aspill of raw sewage underneath a mobile homeat 749 Ascension. An investigator from the ElPaso City-County Health District found sev-eral families living in buildings with missingwalls and leaky roofs. The investigator alsofound evidence of cockroach infestation in onekitchen and bathroom.

Some residents complained of sewage dis-charging underneath some of the four mo-bile homes on-site. The investigator alsoreported multiple dwellings connected toonly one septic system, and numerous elec-trical extension cords running from unau-thorized circuit breaker boxes to some of thedwellings, and from room to room through-out the trailer park. Some of the extensioncords were running on the ground and werefrayed.

Torres was issued two violation notices ask-ing him to abate the nuisances; he was also toldthat the multiple electrical extension cords werea fire hazard and that he had to disconnect them.

Two months later, on November 26, 2006, afire caused by an electrical short was reported

No drugs for XmasAgents in the El Paso sector seized mari-juana and cocaine worth almost $1 mil-lion last week. The marijuana seizure wasnear Ft. Hancock at about 8 a.m. on Mon-day when agents stopped a suspicious ve-hicle and a canine alerted on the bed ofthe truck. In a separate seizure near LasCruces that day, agents seized 11 poundsof cocaine in a fabricated compartment ina truck after a canine alerted to the trans-mission area.

Year-end work newsHere’s some good news — according to arecent survey by AccounTemps, a staff-ing agency, 72 percent of the workers whomade career-related resolutions at the be-ginning of last year achieved their goals.The bad news is that only 12 percent ofthe workers surveyed actually made reso-lutions of any kind. As for 2007, a newsurvey finds that of 599 workers surveyed,24 percent have set goals. Enhancing theirskills was number one. Earning a raise orpromotion came in a close second. As fortime off, being a worker rather than a se-nior executive may allow you to truly“leave work at work.” According to anOfficeTeam survey of 150 senior execu-tives and 559 full or part-time workers,the managers stayed tied to the job. Fortythree percent of managers said theyworked at least a few times a week whileon vacation, and 33 percent said they dideveryday while on vacation, via electroniccommunication or by phone. Of the em-ployees only 10 percent did everyday and54 percent said they never did.

Transplant neededSteven Gonzalez needs a bone marrowtransplant and it will cost $90,000 to doit. His friends and family in theFriendswood, Texas area and theChildren’s Organ Transplant Associationare asking for donations to save his life.Steven is the son of Rosie and StevenGonzalez Sr. He has a sister, Sabrina. Hehas been diagnosed with Acute Myelog-enous Leukemia. Individuals and groupsinterested in assisting can contact Cam-paign Coordinator Linda Bankerd at 281-890-7571 or linda.bankerd@hp.com.Donations may be made directly to Bankof America branch locations to the accountnumber 488002987565, or sent to COTA“In Honor of Steven Gonzalez” at 2501COTA Drive, Bloomington, Indiana,47403.

In other news� The 8th Annual National Cheer Asso-ciation (NCA) and the National Dance Al-liance (NDA) Americas Cup 2007 will beon Feb. 2 and Feb. 3 in the Americas HighSchool Blazer Gym. This event is open toall teams and all grades and levels: El-ementary, Middle, Junior High and High

UP IN FLAMES — As a result of hazardous electrical overload, there was a major fire at 749 Ascension on Nov. 26, in which severalmobile homes at this location were destroyed. Three days later it was discovered that a gasoline-powered generator had been broughtto the property as a power source since the electricity had been shut off due to the fire.

at the same address. Three mobile homes wereburned and several families were displaced asa result of the fire.

The next day another inspector from theHealth Department was called to the same ad-dress to investigate a complaint of overflow-ing sewage from the septic tank. The inspectorconfirmed several families with young childrenwere still living on the property even thoughthere was no electrical power because of thefire. Witnesses observed children wadingthrough the sewage.

On Nov. 29, 2006, two of the El Paso CountyAttorney’s Office investigators discovered thatTorres had obtained a gasoline-powered gen-erator and was distributing electricity throughextension cords to several families living in theapartments and mobile homes that were notburned.

Because of the impending freezing tem-peratures over night, the investigators andEl Paso County Emergency Services DistrictNo. 1 Fire Chief Stephen Hoeller were ableto obtain shelter for the families. The Bap-tist Church and El Paso Baptist Association

EL PASO COUNTY — On the third Mon-day in January, people across the country willpay homage to the legacy of Dr. MartinLuther King Jr. by serving those in their com-munities who are less fortunate.

In 1994, congress ratified the King Holi-day and Service Act bringing King’s visionof public service and non-violent socialchange once again to the forefront of theAmerican conscience. Since then, the Cor-poration for National and Community Ser-vice in partnership with the Martin LutherKing Jr. Center for Non-Violent SocialChange, and communities across the coun-try have worked to make the King holiday aday “on,” instead of a day off. The idea is toencourage people to volunteer on the third

Local organizationsto participate in MLKcanned food drive

Special to the CourierBy Jack Galindo

See FOOD, Page 4

See LANDLORD, Page 4

Page 2 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 28, 2006

One perspectiveBy Francis Shrum

PUBLISHED:Published each Thursday byHomesteader News, Inc. Appreciationto our many contributors. Office openMonday through Thursday.

COPYRIGHT:Entire contents © 2006 HomesteaderNews, Inc. Individual authors retain allrights. Pictures, drawings and writtenmaterial appearing in the West TexasCounty Courier may not be used orreproduced without written permissionof Homesteader News, Inc.

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SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO

nineteenseventythree

tw o t h o u s a n dsix

33YEARS

A credible sourceIt’s the

stuff of leg-ends. Urbanlegend that is.That’s what

folks nowadays call folk tales andfables. As history proves, some leg-ends began in truth.

There are two really big problemswith the internet and our ability tosnatch information right out of thinair. First, it is incredibly easy tospread unverified informationquickly. Secondly, once received, itis very difficult to verify if that in-formation is factual.

There is a message entitled “HowLong Do We Have?” that has circu-lated widely across the electroniclandscape of America following thelast Presidential election. There is

little doubt that the ideas quoted inthe message were composed some-time around the early 1800s but thereis plenty of disagreement over whodid the authoring.

The quote goes something like this:“A democracy cannot exist as a

permanent form of government. Itcan only exist until a majority of vot-ers discover that they can vote them-selves largess out of the public trea-sury.

“The majority always votes for thecandidates who promise the mostbenefits from the public treasury,with the result that every democracywill finally collapse due to loose fis-cal policy, which is always followedby a dictatorship.

“The average age of the world’sgreatest civilizations from the begin-

ning of history, has been about 200years. During those 200 years, thesenations always progressed throughthe following sequence: From bond-age to spiritual faith; from spiritualfaith to great courage; from courageto liberty; from liberty to abundance;from abundance to complacency;from complacency to apathy; fromapathy to dependence; from depen-dence back into bondage.”

The message attributes the quoteto Alexander Tyler, a Scottish historyprofessor at The University ofEdinborough, in a 1787 book entitledThe Fall of The Athenian Republic.

According to the research websitesnopes.com — which major searchengines usually run right up frontwhen it comes to urban legends —they can verify that the professor ex-isted, though history spells his nameseveral different ways. However,they can’t find the book nor the quotein any of his writings.

Further research turns up thatvariations of these words have beenquoted as far back as 1804. They’ve

also been used by Strom Thurmond,Ronald Reagan, Bill Moyers and P.J.O’Rourke, and attributed to moresources than most people have fin-gers.

No one, however, including theresearch departments of The NewYork Times and American Notes &Queries, have been able to pinpointthe exact origin. Researcher LorenCollins said the fluidity of this quoteis more common to a proverb.

“(I) suspect that these quoteswere probably coined by separateindividuals in the first half of thetwentieth century… The passage oftime merely encouraged quoters toattach an author ’s name thatstrengthened the authority behindthe words,” Collins wrote.“Anonymous quotes… should notbe given fictitious attributionsmerely to lend credence to the mes-sages they impart.”

I’d have to agree on that point.On the other hand, I’d say these

words, like most proverbs, need nodocumented source to be credible.

History alone is witness to their ve-racity and the behavior of humangovernments are their origin. Overand over again.

Many Americans in leadership to-day — especially those of us who aresecond or more generation — arechildren reaping the rewards of thesowing done by our ancestors. We’vegrown up in a beautiful bubble, iso-lated from the terrors of deprivationand warfare that stalk much of theearth.

Now the borders are encroachingand those outside want inside and weare ill prepared in courage or charac-ter to deal with the challenge, hav-ing grown soft and complacent our-selves. We didn’t earn what we haveso we never learned to value andmanage it properly, let alone share itwith wisdom and compassion.

So where are we now on the so-called “Fatal Sequence” in the mes-sage? Sender of the message says asa nation we are somewhere betweencomplacency and apathy. Individu-ally, the answer lies within ourselves.

Dear Editor:(The recent) well-publicized im-

migration raid on the Swift & Co.meatpacking plant in Cactus, in theTexas Panhandle, serves as a trou-bling reminder that our immigrationsystem is broken and needs to befixed.

Texas businesses want and needto follow the law. Unfortunately,they lack a sensible and reliablesystem to verify an employee’s le-gal status.

Employers are forced to navi-gate tricky waters each time theymake a hire. Texas businessesmust deal with complex immigra-tion regulations; a glut of seem-ingly valid, but sometimes coun-terfeit, worker identificationdocuments; and the threat of dis-crimination lawsuits if they askthe ‘wrong’ questions about em-

ployees’ documents.Enforcement alone will not fix

our immigration system, and it hasfailed in the past. We can’t just buildwalls around a broken system — weneed to fix the system to make surewe achieve real security, restore lawand order and have enough work-ers to continue growing oureconomy.

It is time for a serious solution tothis serious challenge. It is time forCongress to act.

Bill HammondPresident, Texas Association of

BusinessAustin

Dear Editor:So, state lawmaker Rep. Edmund

Kuempel (TX) wants to help hunt-ers who are legally blind by allow-ing them to use laser sights to tar-

Write stuff get animals.What’s he going to do to help

hunters who aren’t visually im-paired but sti l l can’t shootstraight?

Hunters have shot — and some-times killed — other hunters,people walking their dogs, peopletending to disabled cars alongsidethe road, people sleeping in theirbeds (yes, inside their homes), andsometimes, themselves. Other hunt-ers injure themselves falling out oftree stands, they get lost in thewoods, or they suffer heart attacksbecause their bodies are not used toanything more demanding thanchanging channels with the remote.

For the sake of both animals andhumans alike, hunters (legally blindor not) should lay down their weap-ons and stick to less dangerous pur-suits, like bingo or shuffleboard.

Paula MoorePeople for the Ethical Treatment

of Animals (PETA)Norfolk, VA

EL PASO COUNTY — El PasoCounty government will be able tocollect thousands of additional dol-lars yearly from bail bond companies,and District and County Judges allover the state will have better con-trol of their criminal dockets, accord-ing to legal arguments brought for-ward by El Paso County AttorneyJosé R. Rodríguez.

On Nov. 30, 2006 the Court ofAppeals of the Eighth District ofTexas declared unconstitutional a le-gal loophole approved in 2003 by theTexas Legislature that removes thefinancial incentives for bondsmen tokeep track of defendants and makesure they appear in court.

The legal decision arose from a2004 case, where Rocky Bail Bondsrefused to resolve a bail bond caseafter its client failed to appear incourt. Rocky Bail Bonds argued thatArticle 22.13 (a) (5) of the Code ofCriminal Procedure exonerated himfrom having to pay the forfeitedbond.

County attorney wins argument overresponsibility of bail bond companies

The law absolves bail bond com-panies from liability if the accusedwho missed court is reapprehendedby a law enforcement agency withina certain period of time — six monthsin the case of a misdemeanor; ninemonths in the case of a felony. Theamendment was approved in 2003during the 78th Legislative Session.

Assistant County Attorney ArneSchonberger explained that bail bondcompanies were using the loopholeto refuse or delay payment of for-feited bonds, even though their cli-ents failed to appear in court. It isestimated that the County of El Pasofailed to collect nearly $200,000since the amendment went into ef-fect.

The County Attorney’s Office suc-cessfully argued that, by not forcingbail bond companies to pay the for-feited bonds immediately after a de-fendant failed to appear in Court, thestatue effectively limited the DistrictJudges’ control over their dockets.The statue also eliminated their abil-ity to enter judgment amounts whichreflected the evidence submitted inthe case.

The constitutionality of the statue

was first challenged by the El PasoCounty Attorney in a felony bail bondforfeiture case pending before theHonorable Yvonne Rangel of the171st District Court. The bondsmanappealed, but the Court of Appealssustained the ruling of Judge Rangel.

The Eighth Court of Appeals heldthe Texas statute to be unconstitu-tional because it violated the Sepa-ration of Powers Doctrine. The resultof the ruling is that trial court judgescan once again set a bail bond forfei-ture case for final hearing at any timewhich fits the Court’s docket. Uponhearing the case, the judge can entera judgment up to the full amount ofthe original bail bond.

However, the litigation involvingthis issue might not be over. It is ex-pected that the Texas bondsmen willappeal the decision all the way to theTexas Court of Criminal Appeals, theequivalent to the Texas SupremeCourt in criminal cases.

Assistant County Attorney ArneSchoenberger said “This decisionhelps courts protect the public byforcing bondsmen to do their job:making sure the defendants come tocourt to face justice.”

Special to the CourierBy Elhiu Dominguez

December 28, 2006 Page 3WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER

What’s up, doc? By Albert Balesh, M.D.

The next time you go down to yourfriendly, neighborhood physician, besure to wish him or her a fond fare-well. The sun may be setting on ourillustrious healers, who appear benton going the way of bobby socks,juke boxes, and barber shop poles inthe continuing saga of vanishingAmericana.

We have no one to blame for thisbut ourselves. We were just not hun-gry enough, and we let our guarddown. Our elite position in theworld’s pecking order burned stonecold, as legions from Bangalore andother faraway places fueled a reversebrain drain that now threatens theU.S. medical sacrosanct and weak-ens the very foundations of our medi-cal institutions. Think about thatwhen you try to decipher the namesand places etched in cursive ink inyour medical chart, that is, if you areeven provided an opportunity to viewsuch a document and navigate its hi-eroglyphics.

Now, while there are positives tothe outsourcing of U.S. medicine, Iprefer to concentrate on the nega-tives, in order to possibly salvage thatwhich I believe in and hold most dear.

I did not become a physician toobserve glory’s wane and the batonpassed into the hands of a foreigninfidel whose primary concern is fi-nancial. While you may or may notagree with what I have to say, youcannot negate the main premise ofthis piece: that rising health care costshave driven federal and local authori-ties, large corporations, major healthcare institutions, and heads of house-

holds to seek cost-cutting alternativesto “greenback hemorrhage.” If, how-ever, the main impetus for change isstrictly monetary, we are inadvert-ently inviting an unwelcome guest todinner who will most certainly over-stay his or her welcome.

It goes without saying thatoutsourcing medical expertise andjudgment to exotic places creates afertile environment for the germina-tion of charlatans in the ranks of com-petent providers. How will we dif-ferentiate well-schooled and weath-ered medical professionals from thechaff, when different laws, value sys-tems, and licensing criteria cloud thetransparent process of medical quali-fication uniformity?

Human nature being what it is,patients are always going to need, aswell as choose, local physicians andhospitals. We must accede to thosepreferences in a truly connected anddigitized world by finding ways toprovide the highest standard ofmedical care at the lowest price. Acompetitive edge we lost sometime ago must be regained. Other-wise, U.S. physicians will be rel-egated to the same junkyard popu-lated by the U.S auto, manufactur-ing, and textile industries.

Many argue that technology hasprovided a cost-effective means forthe U.S. health care market to remainsolvent via cheap, remotely placedlanguage interpretation services,reading of radiographs, interpretationof laboratory tests, patientmonitorization through electronicintensive care units in real time, bill-ing, and other varied medical servicesby lower-wage foreign professionalswhose appetites for material gain

have paled in comparison to those ex-hibited by their American counter-parts. Furthermore, non-U.S. physi-cians are all too happy to buttress fis-cally challenged U.S. hospitals andto free domestic providers from off-hour duties and round-the-clock ser-vices. Therein lies their attractive-ness.

Beware of what you ask for, how-ever! We, as a nation, must pose twoquestions: are we willing to putAmerican physicians out of work forthe sake of lower prices? And howmuch money are we going to borrowfrom China to rebuild our failinghealth care system? If we cannot findanswers to these queries, then I’mafraid the future health of our nationlooks grim. We must be pragmatic,and, generally speaking, that meansan open-minded change in course,policies, and doctrine when they donot work. Specifically, while we seekbetter training, technical skills, anddelivery systems for our health careprofessionals and institutions, wemust not lose sight of the fact thatlow-tech is not a bad thing. Localdoctors and hospitals can go far byenhancing those proven practicesand patient empathy, which arebest delivered in person. Buildingon what they already do best, whileat the same time increasing theircompetitiveness in the world arena,will keep our physicians closer tohome, even as the outsourcing con-troversy continues.

As our sons and daughters beginto set, this is no time to bury ourheads in the sand!______________________________________________________© 2006, Albert M. Balesh, M.D. All

rights reserved.

Setting sons

This summer, major parts ofQueens, New York, were withoutelectricity following a failure ofpower that plunged much of the cityinto darkness amidst sweltering heatfor more than a week.

For many, it was the Ten Days ofHell. There were thousands withoutair conditioning, lights, refrigeration,internet connections, and modern lifegenerally.

And get this: no one is sure why,precisely, it happened, other than tosay that the system became over-loaded.

What will happen as a result? Hear-ings, reports, meetings, yammering,resolutions, reforms, and, in time,another blackout followed by hear-ings, reports, meetings, etc.

What do the consumers do aboutit? They follow the news and keeppaying the bills, to the same companythat let them down. They can’tswitch. They can’t influence the pro-duction process. They are powerless— in more ways than one.

Meanwhile, on the other side of thecountry, California residents are put-ting up with blackouts, threats ofmore blackouts, denunciations frompoliticians, and even death: 56 peopleso far.

And in Texas, “consumer advo-cates” are pushing for re-regulationof electric rates, having most recentlyconvinced regulators to keep compa-nies from terminating service to cus-

View from here By Llewellyn H. Rockwell, Jr.

The real cause of blackouts is not deregulationtomers who don’t pay their bills.

All because of a heat wave, and allbecause the structure of the industryis not designed for extremes.

Now, if markets were in charge, aheat wave would not be looked at asa problem but an opportunity. Entre-preneurs would be swarming to meetdemand, just as they do in every othersector that is controlled by markets.The power companies would be pray-ing for heat waves!

After all, do shoe manufacturerssee a massive increase in footweardemand as a problem? Do fast foodcompanies see lunchtime munchiesas a terrible threat? On the contrary,these are profit opportunities.

Just who is in charge of gettingelectricity to residents? Public utili-ties, which usually means “state-run”and “state-managed” enterprises, per-haps with a veneer of private trap-pings.

This centralization and carteliza-tion began nearly a century ago, asRobert Bradley points out in Energy:The Master Resource, when indus-try leaders agreed to price controlsbased on a cost-plus formula in ex-change for franchise protection frommarket competition — a formula thatsurvives to this day.

Then the economists got involvedex post and declared that electricalpower is a “public good,” under thebelief that private enterprise is not upto the job of providing the essentials

of life.In this system, the priorities of

regulators rather than customers arethe focus — thus entrepreneurial de-velopment is hindered. Entrepreneursand investors do not compete for theopportunity to meet growing con-sumer demand. Instead, the systemhas become focused on limiting con-sumer demand.

Markets don’t criticize us for our“consumerism” and “greed”; if any-thing, these things are courted andencouraged. Indeed, isn’t this whymarkets themselves are criticized?They encourage consumers to spend,spend, spend, consume, consume,consume. Today, however, we arecriticized for not wanting to live in90-degree houses and sleep inpuddles of sweat.

How New York, California andTexas consumers would adore a set-ting in which power companies werebegging for their business and en-couraging them to turn down theirthermostats to the coldest point.Competition would lead to price re-ductions, innovation, and an evergreater variety of services — thesame as we find in the computer in-dustry.

The Texas Public Policy Founda-tion has documented some of the ben-efits to Texas consumers due to thestate’s partial deregulation of electric

See DEREGULATION, Page 4

Page 4 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 28, 2006

HOW TO APPLY FOR IMMIGRATION BENEFITS IF YOU ARE A VICTIM OF A CRIME:Are you a victim of a crime and don‚t have papers? Are you in a domestic violence or abusive situation?If you answered “yes” to either of these questions, you and your children could be eligible for:• PERMANENT RESIDENCY • WORK AUTHORIZATION • GOVERNMENT BENEFITSUnder the VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT (VAWA), immigrants that are victims of abuse canobtain permanent residency and qualify for other immigration benefits.

For more information on free and confidential legal services, callthe VAWA Project at 1-888-855-8292 or (915) 532-3799.

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rates. Yet, in order to “protect” con-sumers, some would roll back theclock to the old regulatory schemes

that led to the New York blackouts.Contrary to conventional wis-

dom, we are learning that manyessential sectors of life, like elec-tric power, are far too important tobe administered by bureaucraciesunable to respond to consumers’needs. How the electric systemshould be organized we can’t sayin advance: that should be left tocompetitive markets. Whatever theresult, you can bet the grid would notlook like it does today, nor would itsmanagement be dependent on thewhims of political jurisdiction.

Competition exists so long as thestate is not prohibiting other compa-nies from trying their hand. Thismeans we don’t need two or morecompanies serving every market.What we need is full, complete,uncompromised deregulation andprivatization.______________________________________________________Lew Rockwell is president of theMises Institute, editor ofLewRockwell.com, and a fellow atthe Texas Public Policy Foundation’sCenter for Economic Freedom.

DeregulationFrom Page 3______________________

School, All-Star, Recreation andStudio. The dance competitionwill be on Friday at 5:30 p.m.,and the Cheer will be on Satur-day at 10:30 a.m. Deadline isJan. 24, 2007 with limited avail-ability for both events. For in-formation, contact RoseDelgado, Cheerleader andDanzteam Representative at760-6670 orrdelgado@nationalspirit.com; orAmericas High School StudentActivities Office at 937-2832.

BriefsFrom Page 1______________________

Monday in January to help make theircommunities a better place to live byserving others much as Dr. King didthroughout his life.

Thousands of projects acrossAmerica will be held on Monday,Jan. 15, 2007 to help make Dr. King’sdream a reality.

In El Paso, the public can partici-pate by contributing to the 6th An-nual MLK Canned Food Drive,which will be held from Thursday,Jan. 4 through Monday, Jan. 15,2007. Since its inception six yearsago El Pasoans have donated over100 tons of non-perishable canned ordried food to organizations in ourcommunity, which serve the less for-

tunate. Starting on Thursday, Jan. 4,there will be hundreds of drop-offsites throughout the city where indi-viduals can place their donations.

On Jan. 15 the food will be col-lected and sent to a warehouse whereit will be sorted by hundreds of vol-unteers and distributed among sev-eral beneficiaries including the Sal-vation Army, the Opportunity Cen-ter for the Homeless, the HouchenCommunity Center, the La Fe Mon-tana Vista Community ResourceCenter, the Sparks Community Cen-ter and others. These organizationshave their pantries depleted duringthe holidays due to the thousandsof people that come to them forsustenance during that time. TheMLK Canned Food Drive helps toreplenish those pantries. For moreinformation on where to donate call740-7826.

FoodFrom Page 1______________________

provided additional shelter. Inearly December the water servicewas disconnected after the HealthDepartment revoked Torres’ li-cense to operate the septic systemat 749 Ascension.

“Every time we find cases likethese where landlords have fami-lies living in substandard condi-tions, we face a big challenge try-ing to prosecute and find a properpunishment for whoever is respon-sible, because in Texas county gov-ernments lack the power to enactland use and building codes,” saidRodríguez.

“Fortunately no one lost their lifeas a result of the fire, which wascaused by the electrical overload.It is imperative that we protect the

public health and safety by enact-ing and enforcing more stringentlaws. Many people live in substan-dard conditions and are fearful ofcomplaining because they might beevicted, their rent increasing, orbeing deported if undocumented, atthe hands of unscrupulous, avari-cious landlords.”

The County Attorney’s Office isworking to convince the Texas Leg-islature to give counties the power toenact land use and building codes tohelp prevent the development of newColonias.

Rodríguez added that public nui-sance is an on-going problem in thecounty of El Paso, and his officewill continue to prosecute such of-fenders.

The penalty for the crime is a fineof up to $200. To report public nui-sances, call the El Paso City-CountyHealth and Environmental District at860-2378.

LandlordFrom Page 1______________________

UNSAFE WIRING — Unauthorized circuit breaker boxes and a gasoline-powered generator were host to adeadly mish-mash of electrical cords running throughout set of dwellings at 749 Ascension being rentedout by Luis Torres. Overflow from an over-loaded septic system on the property was also creating a majorhealth risk.

To AdvertiseCall 852-3235

December 28, 2006 Page 5WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER

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UPPER VALLEY — Studentsat Deanna Davenport ElementarySchool in the Canutillo Indepen-dent School District recentlyjoined thousands of other studentsacross the United States to breakthe Guinness Book of WorldRecord for most people readingaloud simultaneously in multiplelocations.

Approximately 120 fourthand fifth grade students fromDavenport ES read aloud a pas-sage from the book Charlotte’sWeb, written by E.B. White atexactly 10 a.m. (MST). Stu-dents, educators, librarians, and

— Photo courtesy Canutillo ISD

READY, SET, READ! — Davenport ES Fourth Graders in Dolores Amero’s class participated in the World RecordProject. Shown in foreground from left is Vanessa Campa and Samantha Gutierrez, who led their class in thereading exercise.

Davenport Elementary studentsjoin with others nationwide to breakGuinness Book’s reading record

By Kim GuzmanSpecial to the Courier

fans across the U.S. gathered inschools, hospitals, libraries andcommunity centers to read thesame passage at the exact sametime, hoping to break the worldrecord held in the GuinnessBook. The current record is heldby 155,528 students from 737schools in the United Kingdom.

Jane Weatherly, special edu-cation teacher at Davenport ES,coordinated the event with thefourth and fifth grade teachers.“Our students are currentlystudying this book, so the recordbreaking attempt also helps toencourage them to read,” saidWeatherly. “Each student whoread during the event receiveda certification of participation,”she added.

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Page 6 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 28, 2006

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Friday (excludingholidays). The en-velope containingthe bid submittalshould be plainlymarked in the lowerleft corner: “HOMEREHABILITATIONBID.” Be sure toclearly mark yourcompany name andreturn address onthe envelope.There is a $50.00fee per package.Fee needs to bepaid in cash and/ormoney order. TheCity of Socorro re-serves the right toaward the best bid-der, and not neces-sarily the lowestbid.

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dition, the Contrac-tor must ensure thatemployees and ap-plicants for employ-ment are not dis-criminated againstbecause of theirrace, color, religion,sex, or national ori-gin. The City ofSocorro, Texas re-serves the right toreject any or all Bidsor to waive any in-formality in the bid-ding. The City ofSocorro, Texas isan Affirmative Ac-tion/Equal Opportu-nity Employer.

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It isn’t often that El Pasoans get the chanceto watch an NBA player show off his skills.

Watching an NBA player hit shots from ev-ery angle, drive to the basket with ease andsingle-handedly lead his team to victory issomething we seldom have the opportunity toenjoy.

But we saw it last week, though we didn’t

exactly enjoy it.The NBA player I’m speaking off doesn’t

even play in the NBA yet — but he’ll be therenext year.

Jackson State’s Trey Johnson was named theState Farm Sun Bowl Basketball TournamentMost Valuable Player after breaking the event’sall-time scoring record of 66 points in twogames.

But it was what he did in the tournament’sopening game against the Miners that had DonHaskins Center fans’ jaws dropping.

Three-and-a-half minutes into the game,UTEP had scored seven points. Jackson Statehad 15 points, every one of them scored byJohnson.

This was just the beginning. Thetournament’s all-time single game record was38 points, set back in 1977. Against the Min-ers, Trey Johnson had 30 points — at halftime!

Johnson destroyed the record by finishingwith 49 points. But it was the final three, a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give his team a 100-97win, that were the most incredible.

I didn’t know what to expect after the gamebut I was delightfully surprised. I figured sincethe guy played like an NBA star that he prob-ably acted like most NBA stars.

You know what I mean — a dismissive atti-tude, a nauseating arrogance and a look-at-mephilosophy. But like I said, I was delightfullysurprised.

Johnson answered every question after thegame from the press with class, a smile, andeven a barrage of yes sirs and no sirs.

Johnson seemed embarrassed by all the ac-colades bestowed on him by those of us whoweren’t used to what we had just witnessed onthe court.

His class and respect was so refreshing. Itreminded me that not all superstars have superegos.

Though the Miners lost a heartbreaker, youhad to leave the arena happy for a young manwho conducted himself like a real man.

And though there are multi-millions in hisfuture, he’ll always be measured by his char-acter — which is priceless.

Cowboys buckedWatching the Dallas Cowboys on Christmas

day you get the feeling that this team is begin-ning to break down piece by piece.

Considered one of the front-runners for theSuper Bowl a few weeks ago, the Cowboysare now very lucky the rest of the NFC is so

bad that they clinched a playoff spot early.Being spanked at home, by a Philadelphia

Eagles team that was left for dead afterDonovan McNabb went down with an injury,showed the rest of the NFL that the Tony Romoexperiment is winding down.

I have no doubt that the quarterback is go-ing to be a star in this league. But it will hap-pen next season when he’s had time to reflecton this whirlwind season. He will also appre-ciate it more and take it more seriously.

Things came too quick for Romo. The wins,the media, the women, the love, all came toofast for a young man with enough talent to savethe season, but even Romo has limitations.

The Cowboys’ defense, which started theseason so strong, is now being pushed aroundthe field. The special teams are anything butspecial and the offensive play-calling is asoriginal as the newest “Rocky” film.

Can the Cowboys get it together in time forthe playoffs? It’s a possibility, but if you cherishyour hard-earned paychecks, don’t bet on it.

Kobe?Did you happen to hear about the 60 points

the Washington Wizards’ Gilbert Arenasdropped on Kobe Bryant and the Lakers a weekago?

Arenas scored all those points in an over-time win over Los Angeles, but Kobe didn’thide his disgust after the game.

Amazingly, Kobe was quoted as sayingabout Arenas, “He doesn’t seem to have muchof a conscience. I really don’t think he does.Some of the shots he took tonight, you missthose, and they’re just terrible shots. Awful.”

Let me get this straight, Kobe was putting aguy down for taking too many shots that couldhave cost his team the game.

What’s next, Kobe’s going to get after otherNBA stars for fighting with their teammatesand their coaches, or maybe he’ll chastise themfor disrespecting women?

A talented player with a good attitude — priceless

send us yourcommunity news:

wtxcc@wtccourier.com

December 28, 2006 Page 7WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER

King Super Crossword

ComixOUT ON A LIMB By Gary Kopervas

AMBER WAVES By Dave T. Phipps

THE SPATS By Jeff Pickering

R.F.D. By Mike Marland

By Don FloodThere’s good news for lovers of

literature: actress Tori Spelling isplanning to write a memoir.

Finally, all the questions thatreaders have been screaming forwill be answered:

• How did Spelling, daughter ofAaron Spelling, one of the biggestproducers in television history, gether first big break in TV?

• Does she have any talent?• Where and why does she keep

it hidden?As exciting as this book prom-

ises to be, Spelling is, at 33, a latestarter in the writing business.

Lindsay Lohan, at the tender ageof 20, has already assured her placein the History of Great Quotations.

In a rambling, ungrammaticaland occasionally incoherent pub-lic letter of condolence to the fam-ily of Robert Altman, the late filmdirector, Lohan redeemed herselfby signing off with the enigmaticbut profound message of solace forthe mourners: “BE ADEQUITE.”

Yes, indeed.It’s sad that it sometimes takes a

person’s death to make us stop andrealize the importance of being“adequite.”

But that’s the way life is, espe-cially in Hollywood.

Elsewhere in her letter, Lohanencourages people to “make asearching and fearless inventory”of themselves.

(I heartily endorse this. Eachmorning I look myself fearlesslyin the mirror and courageously ask:Do I need to shave today? If it’sthe weekend, I get to bail out.)

So ask yourself, have you been“adequite” today?

Have you encouraged your fel-low travelers on this journey wecall “Lyfe” to be “adequite”?

If you’re honest with yourself,which is not something I person-ally recommend, the answer isprobably: What the heck does“adequite” mean?

Some have said she meant “ad-equate,” in the sense of passable,tolerable, acceptable, etc.

But that’s not much comfort toa family of mourners: “Be pass-able.” Gee, thanks.

So perhaps Lohan was reachingfor a much deeper meaning here,such as: Use spell check. Use a dic-tionary.

And if you’re writing somethingto be released to the public, youmay want to employ both.

Or perhaps Lohan, in her ownway, was exploring the very mean-ing of words, and why finding theright words can be so difficult.

That’s why it’s important tomake up new words, as Lohan did.The English language, after all, isrestricted to a few hundred thou-sand words, many of them old-fashioned and hard to spell.

But it’s not fair for Lohan toshoulder the burden all by herself.We all must do our part.

Miss Lohan, if you ever readthis, let me say that I find yourwriting very “schmerfluous.”That’s a new word I made up es-pecially for you. I would tell youwhat it meant, but then everyonewould know.

Lohan also wrote, “Everytimethere’s a triumph in the world amillion souls hafta be trampled on.altman its true. But treasure eachtriumph as they come.”

I’m dying to know what thatmeans.

I really hafta know, or else Iwon’t be “adequite.”______________________________________________________(c) 2006 King Features Synd., Inc.

Use spell check; dictionary too

HOPE SPRINGSETERNALACROSS

1 “Outta here!” 6 Acted kittenish 11 Cul-de- _ 14 Select, with “for” 17 Porthos’ pal 19 She knew how toget a head 20 Blunder 21 Kind of cross 22 Start of a remarkby Florida Scott-Maxwell 26 Loser’s locale 27 Prepare to fly 28 Maria _ Trapp 29 Inflict 30 Daly of “JudgingAmy” 31 ’81 Albert Finneyfilm 35 Decorate 36 Tennis legend 39 Uproar 41 Knight fight 43 Stalls 46 Courtyards 47 Baseball’s “MasterMelvin” 48 “The Raven”monogram 51 Part 2 of remark 56 Dundee denial 57 Networks 58 Formerly knownas

59 _ as a beet 60 Drink like adachshund 62 Menu phrase 63 California resort 66 Let 68 Seance sound 70 Relaxes 73 ChanteuseLemper 74 Woodworking tool 77 “Eugene Onegin”character 78 Candidate’sbacker 80 AAA offering 83 Take by force 84 Prone 86 Bridal path? 88 _ -Locka, FL 90 Part 3 of remark 96 Be in debt 97 Seville shout 98 _ France 99 Did withoutdessert100 Put on102 Coercion104 Famed loch105 Daphnis’ darling107 Allure109 “Against All _” (’84film)112 Sign of spring113 “So there!”114 Nastase of tennis115 “Pshaw!”118 End of remark

125 Wonderment126 _ tai127 “Walker, TexasRanger” star128 Big name infashion129 _ judicata130 Matterhorn, e.g.131 Put down132 First Americansaint

DOWN 1 Without 2 Cut short 3 Sita’s spouse 4 Doctors’ org. 5 DaydreamerWalter 6 _ -jongg 7 “Evil Woman”group 8 “Holy cow!” 9 Funnyman Philips 10 Probe 11 John and Yoko’sson 12 Peacoat part 13 Packs 14 Different 15 Hymn of praise 16 Ottoman 18 Hockey’s Mikita 19 _ Lanka 23 Part of CEO 24 “Carmen”character 25 Horse’s gait

30 TV host John 31 Pianist Andre 32 King of Israel 33 Meat cut 34 Wittenberg wife 35 Car 36 Related 37 Rope material 38 Biblical book 40 Martin of “TheMajestic” 42 Aquatic mammal 44 Beer barrel 45 Nick one’s knee 48 Raison d’_ 49 Sailed through 50 Third degree? 52 “Lorenzo’s _” (’92film) 53 Oklahoma city 54 Poverty 55 Fall flower 61 Periscope part 63 He gives a hoot 64 Lively dance 65 Santa _, CA 67 He knew all theangles 69 _ Spumante 71 A bit of Bach 72 Curry components 74 Sailors 75 Present 76 Mete out theminestrone 79 Timber tree 81 Bakery buy 82 Duel-use items?

83 “Says _?” 85 Vows 86 TV’s “The Black _” 87 Ivy Leaguer 89 “No ifs, _, or buts” 91 Make too much of 92 “O patria mia”singer 93 Melancholy 94 Architect Saarinen 95 Bears’ lairs100 Heady quaffs101 Mrs. RichardWagner103 Go it alone105 Russell of“Gladiator”106 Takes on board108 Hotelier Helmsley110 Pons or Ponselle111 Exploits112 Out of range113 Cut a cuticle114 April initials115 Fedora fabric116 Facts, for short117 School founded in1440119 Guy’s counterpart120 Watch pocket121 Author Levin122 “_ Brown” (’97film)123 Quiche or pizza124 Shemp sib

Answer Page 6

Page 8 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER December 28, 2006

Social Security Q&A By Ray Vigil

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Q: I’ve always kept my Social Se-curity card in my wallet, right withmy driver’s license and other iden-tification cards. My co-worker toldme that I should not carry it withme. Is that true?

A: We advise people to keep theirSocial Security cards in a safe place.Don’t carry your Social Security cardwith you unless it is needed, such asto show to a new employer. It is bestto keep your card in a place whereothers cannot find it, because if iden-

tity thieves get your card, they canuse the information to apply forcredit, employment or bank accounts.By stealing your card or information,they can steal your identity.

Q: I was thinking about buying a lifeinsurance policy to provide for mywife and kids in case I die, but myboss told me I already have one —with Social Security. Is that true?

A: If you are a worker and pay SocialSecurity taxes, your dependent chil-

dren and spouse may receive monthlybenefits if you die. Currently, the av-erage monthly benefit is about $970for an aged widow or widower and$2,100 for a widow or widower withtwo minor children. It is still a goodidea to consider an additional life in-surance policy for expenses involvedwith a death, but to learn more aboutSocial Security survivors benefits, goto www.socialsecurity.gov/survivorplan.

Q: My husband and I both receiveSupplemental Security Income (SSI).A couple of months ago he took apart-time job as a doorman for a fu-neral home near our house. My situ-

ation didn’t change, but because ofhis work both of us will get less inSSI payments. Why is that?

A: Because it is a needs-based assis-tance program, eligibility for SSI andthe amount of any benefit paymentdepend largely on the applicant’s in-come. A husband and wife who livetogether normally share their income.Therefore, when one of them appliesfor SSI, part of the other’s incomemust be counted as though it werethe applicant’s.

Q: I currently get Social Security dis-ability benefits. Will my Social Secu-rity benefits go up when I reach re-

tirement age in 2007?

A: No, the amount of your monthlySocial Security benefit will not in-crease. It will, however, be changedfrom disability to retirement benefitsin our records when you reach yourfull retirement age.______________________________________________________For more information on any of thequestions listed above, visit ourwebsite at www.socialsecurity.gov orcall us at 1-800-772-1213. If youhave any questions that you wouldlike to have answered, please mailthem to the Social Security Office,11111 Gateway West, Attn: Ray Vigil,El Paso, Texas 79935.

The patented RealFeel Temperature® is AccuWeather's exclusive index of the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine, precipitation, and elevation on the human body.

7-DAY FORECAST FOR EL PASO, TX

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2006

Thu. 7:04 a.m. 5:10 p.m.Fri. 7:05 a.m. 5:10 p.m.Sat. 7:05 a.m. 5:11 p.m.Sun. 7:05 a.m. 5:12 p.m.Mon. 7:06 a.m. 5:13 p.m.Tues. 7:06 a.m. 5:13 p.m.Wed. 7:06 a.m. 5:14 p.m.

Thu. 12:28 p.m. 12:53 a.m.Fri. 1:02 p.m. 2:00 a.m.Sat. 1:41 p.m. 3:09 a.m.Sun. 2:27 p.m. 4:19 a.m.Mon. 3:20 p.m. 5:28 a.m.Tues. 4:20 p.m. 6:32 a.m.Wed. 5:25 p.m. 7:27 a.m.

SunRise Set

First

12/27

Full

1/3

Last

1/11

New

1/18

IN THE SKYWEATHER TRENDS THIS WEEK

Moon

Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

Atlanta 58 42 c 60 52 c 57 43 r 53 35 shBoston 42 26 pc 39 29 pc 42 32 c 38 31 rChicago 42 35 c 46 39 c 49 35 r 40 29 sfDenver 38 15 sn 28 11 sn 30 11 pc 37 14 pcDetroit 40 31 pc 42 34 c 45 37 r 43 31 sfHouston 73 64 c 69 47 t 64 41 pc 60 39 sIndianapolis 47 35 c 51 42 c 54 38 r 42 29 sfKansas City 47 40 pc 50 35 r 41 24 sn 37 21 sfLos Angeles 63 44 s 64 46 s 68 47 s 72 47 sMiami 75 69 sh 80 71 c 82 70 c 80 64 rMinneapolis 37 27 c 36 26 sn 34 23 sn 28 19 sfNew Orleans 71 63 pc 75 56 t 68 44 c 62 41 sNew York City 50 35 s 48 42 pc 51 39 r 44 38 rOmaha 38 34 c 46 31 r 34 22 sn 30 19 sfPhoenix 58 40 pc 63 39 s 63 42 s 68 43 sSan Francisco 56 41 s 58 46 pc 60 47 pc 58 46 cSeattle 38 30 pc 44 35 sh 44 36 r 47 40 rWashington 53 36 pc 50 42 pc 58 45 r 59 40 r

CITY HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W HI LO WThursday Friday Saturday Sunday

Abilene, TX 70 42 pc 59 35 c 53 31 s 50 30 sAlbuquerque, NM 43 27 sn 40 23 c 42 23 s 45 23 sAmarillo, TX 54 27 r 41 24 sn 43 21 s 44 23 sAustin, TX 68 57 pc 68 43 t 64 34 pc 60 31 sBrownsville, TX 80 63 pc 81 53 pc 76 50 s 71 50 pcDodge City, KS 44 30 r 41 22 i 33 21 c 36 17 pcJackson, MS 63 56 pc 75 52 c 62 39 pc 53 29 pcLaredo, TX 75 51 pc 71 46 pc 71 45 s 65 45 sLittle Rock, AR 54 50 pc 60 46 t 51 36 sh 49 34 pcLubbock, TX 60 32 c 48 26 c 50 24 s 51 24 sMemphis, TN 57 51 pc 61 50 c 54 38 sh 47 31 pcMidland, TX 61 36 pc 52 27 c 52 28 s 52 29 sPueblo, CO 43 18 c 31 7 sn 35 8 pc 42 8 pcRoswell, NM 55 32 c 52 26 pc 53 22 s 54 23 sSt. Louis, MO 53 43 pc 54 45 c 56 36 r 41 30 sfSan Antonio, TX 69 52 c 69 45 c 64 37 s 62 36 sTexarkana, AR 61 55 sh 62 45 t 53 37 sh 48 34 pcWaco, TX 68 55 sh 63 41 t 58 37 pc 55 33 sWichita, KS 45 40 r 49 30 r 34 23 sf 37 21 c

CITY HI LO W HI LO W HI LO W HI LO WThursday Friday Saturday Sunday

REGIONAL CITIES U.S. CITIES

Rise Set

Mostly cloudy andwindy

Thu. night

34°

24°RealFeel

Partly sunny andcool

Friday

RealFeel

32°51°

25°46°

Sunny much of thetime

Saturday

RealFeel

29°55°

24°54°

Sunny most of theday

Sunday

RealFeel

28°55°

26°55°

Mostly sunny

Monday

RealFeel

30°59°

27°62°

Plenty of sun

Tuesday

RealFeel

30°57°

33°58°

Plenty of sunshine

Wednesday

RealFeel

31°61°

37°66°

A shower possible;cooler

Thursday

53°

44°RealFeel