confederate flag final

A complaint to Bee County commissioners sparked a debate in our community about just how far government regulations should go. Should the county ban the flying of the Confederate battle flag by those using the county-owned Exposition Center grounds? Some chili cook-off teams had flown that flag for many years at the annual Western Week Celebration, entering what once was known as “The South’s Gonna Rise Again Chili Cook-off.” The county leaders were split on their decision but ultimately decided by majority vote that it was within their authority. This sparked a debate among our readers. Some favored the ban because the flag was seen as a racist symbol. Others said that government doesn’t have the authority to ban the flag, seen by them as a symbol of our Texas heritage, not racism. Allowing the government the power to take that away that First Amendment right would have repercussions that far exceed this philosophical debate. This paper stood on the side of free speech, noting that the message can often be despised or misinterpreted but still should not be silenced. It took only a month before the commissioners reneged and allowed the flag on the property everywhere except the county-owned flagpole.

!See video from the Western Week celebration where some of the people there talk about the recent debate over the flying of the Confederate battle flag on the grounds of the Expo Center.!This video has been uploaded to youtube to make viewing easier. It is also online on our website at www.mySouTex.com!!http://youtu.be/w0qgh7aOSVk

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later. Page 15A •Highlightsfromweekendboxingbouts.

SPORTS

Inside: Veterans asked to travel for help. Page 5AObits: Barter, Camareno, Ford, Garcia, Gutierrez, Pearson. Page 2A

Vol. 127 — No. 43 Beeville, Texas Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2013 Two Sections, 26 Pages 75¢

and BarreDBy Jason CollinsBee-Picayune staff

BEEVILLE – Commissioners approved banning the display of the Confederate flag by those using the Expo Center.

The ban, part of a broader prohibi-tion on anything deemed inappropri-ate by the commissioners court, came as a result of last year’s Western Week Celebration.

“I think this should have never have been allowed,” said Commissioner Eloy Rodriguez during Monday’s

court meeting.

“I got a call right after the Western Week Celebration about a Confederate flag being flown. Not only was it being flown, but there were guns going up in the air.”

Rodriguez said that he asked oth-ers, and they too had received com-plaints about the flag.

“Bee County commissioners and/ or Expo Center management reserves the right to reject any offensive

County leaders ban Confederate flag on Expo Center property

Bee-Picayune file photo

The Confederate flag, as seen in the far left of this tent set up by one of the barbecue contest entrants at Western Week, will no longer be allowed. County leaders banned the flag on the property, which sparked debate among the commissioners surrounding freedom of speech.

By Gary KentBee-Picayune staff

BEEVILLE – Beeville boxer Robert Serna was the hero of the night on Friday when he won his first-ever pro-fessional fight by a unanimous decision after four rounds with Anthony Gali of Ardmore, Ala.

Boxing fans were on their feet as Serna, a three-time regional Golden Gloves champion and longtime member of the Azteca Warriors Boxing Club in Beeville, won his first professional box-ing match.

Gali came out charging as soon as the bell sounding, marking the beginning of the first round.

But Serna held his ground and took the offensive, landing some punishing blows on his opponent.

The fight was the semi-main event for the inaugural Friday Night Fights contest at the Bee County Expo Center.

Police Chief Joe Treviño brought the excitement to Beeville for the first time.


BEEVILLE – “She was an icon at the court-house,” said successor and protege Mirella Escamilla Davis this week as she remembered her old boss, Julia Torres.

A familiar face at the Bee County Clerk’s Office for four decades, Torres died Sept. 19 at the age of 84.

“She did 40 years of service in that office,” said her daughter, Diana Salazar.

“We had a good working relationship,” said one-time County Commissioner Victor Salazar. In spite of the fact that they were members of differ-ent political parties, he said she always had his respect.

“Nobody could beat her,” Salazar said. “If she wanted to continue working, she would never be defeated.”

Friends remember Torres as mentor

Julia Torres1929 - 2013

4-round decision

Beeville’s Robert Serna, left, slams a jab into the face of his opponent, Anthony Gali of Ardmore, Ala., during the semi-main event at Solid Knockout Promotions’ Friday Night Fights event at the Expo Center. Serna, shown below between

rounds, won the fight by a unanimous decision from the three judges after four, four-minute rounds of boxing. He is a long-time member of the Aztec Warriors Boxing Club in Beeville and a three-time Golden Gloves regional champion.

(See Concerns, 6A)

(See Fight, 12A)(See Torres, 11A)

Paul Gonzales photos

1st pro win

A Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2013 Beeville Bee-Picayune

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language or displays, including the Confederate flag, or other offensive flags, banners, posters, signs, etc., that it feels are inappropriate or offensive and will not (be) permitted to be dis-played at any part of the Expo grounds during any and all events,” the new clause in the Expo Center rental agreement reads.

County Attorney Mike Knight said that the county has the right to ban the Confederate bat-tle flag, nicknamed the Stars and Bars, as part of the agreement for use of the Expo grounds.

“That is fine if the court wants that in the con-tract. Then you simply need to vote on that par-ticular issue, and it will be included, subject to the acceptance or rejection of any show promoter,” he said.

Knight urged the court to offer guidance to those renting the grounds as the new exclusions are broad in scope.

“Anyone who is going to conduct any type of event on the grounds has to know what to expect,” he said.

This new contract with the included ban was not approved by unanimous vote.

Commissioner Carlos Salazar, Rodriguez and Judge David Silva voted to approve the ban. Commissioners Dennis DeWitt and Ken Haggard voted against it.

DeWitt voiced concern that the ban was too far reaching and was verg-ing on a limitation of free speech.

“We have constitutional issues of free speech,” he said. “It is a touchy sub-ject.”

Rodriguez was ada-mant that the flag not be allowed on county proper-ty and that the clause be included in the contract.

“The Confederate flag symbolizes a dark peri-od in American history,” Rodriguez said. “It sym-bolizes a period of hatred, discrimination, murder, lynching of innocent peo-ple by the Klu Klux Klan.

“It is demeaning, demor-alizing, and it brings back terrible memories.

“The flying of the Confederate flag cannot be morally defended by anyone.

“The flying of the Confederate battle flag or similar flags, including the Texas Confederate flag, has no place in our society.

“The flag certainly has no place in Bee County.”

Rodriguez said that other flags, such as col-lege flags, are flown, but those do not offend visi-tors to the Expo Center.

“We make the rules,” he said. “It is our property.

“It is comparable to sex-ual harassment. It is all

in the eye of the person being harassed.”

Knight said that as written the county was within its rights to ban inappropriate and offense language and symbols.

“We have the ability to control the use of county property,” he said. “But we have to balance that against other interests.”

Reagan Scott, with the Go Texan organization and the Western Week Celebration, said that he wasn’t there Monday to voice an opinion about the court’s decision, only to voice his concern of the repercussions.

“Our main concern is that there is going to be a political backlash out at

our event because of dis-agreements based on her-itage of the Confederate flag or lack thereof, its beliefs or not.

“What we don’t want to do is hamper our organi-zation or this event...”

This year’s Western Week Celebration at the Expo grounds runs Oct. 18 and 19.

Reagan said that he spoke to the group who flew the flag, who he did not name, and they agreed not to fly the flag this year.

“I have been in con-tact with them and asked them to make conces-sions, and they have agreed to do things in a different way,” he said.

He added that as the limitations are written, it gives no definitive guide-lines to those renting the Expo grounds beyond just the issue of the flag.

“My concern is the sec-tion is very broad,” he said. “There are no limita-tions or guidelines in it or standards in it.

“I don’t know where this starts or stops.

“I would ask that the laws be applied that are in existence instead of creating new guidelines outside of those laws.”

Rodriguez defended his motion.

“If there is a political backlash that is fine,” he said. “I would rather have that than a human back-lash.

“By us voting to allow this flag, or those vot-ing to on this board, it is going to represent you as a racist.”

Jason Collins is the editor at the Bee-Picayune and can be reached at 358-2550, ext. 121, or at [email protected].

Concerns raised that ban may be limit on free speech

Bill Clough photo

Daniel Hinojosa, the 5-year-old son of Victor and Daisy Hinojosa of Beeville, displays a cucumber — one of two — he grew in his backyard garden. He had picked up some organic seeds from the local McDonald’s this summer and harvested the cucumber after last week’s rains.

Proud young gArdener

‘By us voting to allow this flag, or those voting to on this board, it is going to represent you as a racist.’

— Eloy Rodriguez, commissioner

(Continued from 1A)

OPINIONS

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Published by Beeville Publishing Company, Inc., 111 N. Washington St., Beeville, TX 78102. Periodicals postage paid at Beeville, Texas, and additional office. POSTMASTER: Send address change to Beeville Bee-Picayune, P.O. Box 10, Beeville, Texas 78104.

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Beeville Bee-PicayuneSection A, PAge 4SAturdAy,SePt. 28, 2013

Short of semaphore, flags can send mixed signals

Stepping up to defend the “Stars and Bars” Confederate battle flag in these days of political cor-rectness and Twitter is a fool’s

errand. Different perspectives, however, are worth exploring.

For many, maybe even a majority, it represents slavery, and as such, it is offensive on its face.

That position was voiced by Commissioner Eloy Rodriguez in lead-ing the ban on the flag at functions at the Bee County Expo Center. We don’t doubt his offense at the flag and his con-viction in the matter.

History, however, is rarely a simple matter of one-sentence issues, even though we compress it into such on social media. Lost in doing so for the Civil War is to discount major issues such as states’ rights which was in debate in 1860, just is as it is today.

Also overlooked in the condensed con-viction of the Stars and Bars was the simple motivation of defending “home.”

In reading the personal accounts of many Texans at the time – the vast majority owned no slaves – defense of home was a prime motivator. Many joined the fray to keep the invading “Yankees” out of Texas and away from loved ones.

National pride remains a primal moti-vation we see everywhere.

When some of us fly the flag of Mexico here in the United States, are we not celebrating Hispanic culture, roots and, yes, home, even though we’re not in Mexico? It’s not that anyone is advocat-ing revolution or revenge for Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna.

But the motivation of home when combined with “group think” has some-times led otherwise potentially good people into awful positions. Ever wonder how a practicing Christian in Germany could have been sucked up into the Nazi movement?

Did the average North Vietnamese soldier really want to live under a repressive communist regime, or was he largely fighting to unite his country and evict the invaders?

One has to wonder how did a prac-ticing Christian in the Confederacy reconcile his religion with the issue of slavery? Home and patriotism aren’t always the best guiding lights in and of themselves.

It’s easy to clearly see the pathway from a historical perspective but also not always easily negotiated in real time.

We don’t fly a Confederate flag. Don’t own one or a T-shirt, hat, decal or bum-per sticker with it. But we seriously doubt that the vast majority of people who display the Stars and Bars these days wish to bring slavery back. It’s just a symbol of home and Southern pride in who they are and from whence their people came.

That doesn’t mean others are wrong to take offense at the flag. It’s just the perception between the sender and receiver – a classic communication breakdown. One sees it as one thing, and the other fellow sees it as another.

Six flags over Texas is more than just the name of a theme park. It represents the six national flags that have flown over the state in its various incarna-tions under Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the United States and the Confederate States of America.

For many, it’s just history. And home. Before declaring all who display the Stars and Bars as de facto racists, it might not hurt to give them the benefit of the doubt. And if you choose to fly the flag, then just know you will be offend-ing many.

Free speech. Even when embraced, there’s no guarantee everyone will understand your message. Or what beats in your heart

– Jeff Latcham

Voters reject BISD bond issue(Bee-Picayune

Sept. 26 & 29, 1988)Voters defeated the $4.5

million school bond issue during Saturday’s election by a margin of nearly two to one. The total vote was 605 against to 346 in favor.

Beeville ISD Superintendent Harold Reynolds said he was dis-appointed but understand-ing. “People are just not able to do it right now,” he commented.

“The message I get is that the people don’t ques-tion the need but they can’t afford it. We have to think in terms of meeting those needs when econom-ic times are better.”

Reynolds said that some of the work that the board had hoped to accom-plish with the help of the bond issue will still have to be done but the funds will have to come out of reserves.

“We’ll have to renovate

the gymnasium, the gym floor and the seating.” He said work also would have to be done in the audito-rium to include renovation of the seats, lighting and wiring.

Dr. Dudley Braly, chair-man of a citizens commit-tee appointed to study the schools’ needs, observed, “People made their wishes known and I respect their feelings.”

Though Hurricane Gilbert averted the Texas coast, thoughts last week-end were on those who were affected by the disas-trous storm. Local vol-unteers gathered at the Beeville Vineyard early Saturday morning to load up a Mexican-bound truck with clothing and other items for the victims.

The effort was coordi-nated by Ed Lovelace and

David Silva, who were aided by the generosity of numerous individuals, businesses and agencies. Tindol Distributing Co. donated an 18-wheeler and driver.

Bee County sheriff’s deputies have arrested a man and charged him with murder for allegedly shooting his son in the head with a pistol.

Deputies arrived at the home of Arthur Vaughn, off FM Road 798 in north-west Bee County, shortly after 11 a.m. Sunday and found the victim, Eddie Gilbert Vaughn, 53, lying dead in the front yard with a gunshot wound to the head, said Chief Deputy Eddie Hons.

Arthur Vaughn, who turned 76 on Saturday, was arrested and charged with murder.

Vice President George Bush has appointed attor-ney Jay Kimbrough as the Bush campaign chairman for Bee County along with County Commissioner Susan Stasny, who will serve as co-chairman.

Bill and Marjorie Ocumpaugh will lead this year’s Christmas Angels project, which has begun at the Vineyard office.

The Trojans will face an old foe, Gregory-Portland, in a key District 30-4A football contest here tomorrow night. The teams match identical 1-2 season records.

The 16th annual Western Week Celebration (Oct. 12-16) will feature a wedding at the chili cook-off and a round of golf at the fourth annu-al Miller Lite Open Golf Tournament with former Dallas Cowboy kicker Efren Herrera and Miss Texas-USA.

– Chip Latcham

25 years ago

Greed leads to swift justice process for bank robbers in Wichita Falls

In the late winter of 1896, two Waggoner Ranch cowboys took a notion that robbing banks would be less work – and definitely more profitable – than wrangling cattle.

Foregoing any fond farewells or formal notice of resignation, William Foster Crawford and Elmer “Kid” Lewis left the sprawling ranch and rode toward Wichita Falls, a county seat cowtown only 15 miles south of the Red River. One of the men sat astride a thorough-bred that just happened to be ranch owner W.T. Waggoner’s favorite horse.

Suffice it to say, the horse had not been a going-away present. Whether Crawford or Lewis stole the horse has blurred with time, but whoever rode Waggoner’s prized mount did so without permission.

Bursting into City National Bank with pistols drawn, the two cowboys demanded money from chief cashier Frank Dorsey. After the well-liked teller handed over $410, the robbers gunned him down and ran from the bank to their waiting horses.

Happening to be checking a nearby saloon, deputy sheriff Frank Hardesty heard the commotion and ran outside to see what was going on. As the robbers raced by, Hardesty opened fire. The law-man missed the riders, but one or more of his bullets brought down the stolen Waggoner horse.

Proving there is at least some honor among thieves, the robber who still had a healthy horse beneath him waited for his partner to jump up behind him before galloping out of town. Local officers and a number of deputized citizens soon took to the saddle to track down the killers.

Texas Ranger Capt. Bill McDonald and most of his company worked out of Wichita Falls but were on the 1 p.m. train headed toward Fort Worth when the holdup occurred. When the train stopped at Bellevue, the captain received a telegram informing him of the rob-bery-murder. The captain wired back to request that horses be waiting for him at the station and took the next train back to Wichita Falls. Arriving that evening, the rangers rode out of town to catch up with the posse.

Meeting the empty-handed posse members on their way back to town, McDonald declared that he and his men would press on. Inspired by the captain’s tenacity, the posse decided to stay on the chase. Late that night, the captain and two of his men slipped up on the suspected robbers as they rested under a tree near the Red River.

Both men held cocked pistols, but they decided against a shootout and surren-dered. Back in town, the rangers locked their prisoners in the Wichita County jail and went to get some sleep.

The next day, satisfied that local offi-cers augmented by 25 deputized citi-zens could protect the two prisoners, McDonald and his rangers left again for Fort Worth. Unfortunately for the two men behind bars, the captain had under-estimated the determination of local citi-zens to speed up the justice process.

A mob surrounded the jail, using a telephone pole to break down the back door. Once inside, they quickly con-vinced the jailer of the futility in trying to protect the two prisoners. The vigi-lantes bound the two bank robbers with ropes, dragged them from their cells and roughly returned them to the scene of their crime.

Outside the bank, at the intersection of Seventh and Ohio, two wooden boxes stood beneath a telephone pole. A pair of ropes dangled from the cross arm of the pole. Nearby sat a coffin and the crate it had come in.

Showing no fear in his final moments, the 19-year-old Lewis cursed the mob until he had no more breath to do so. Taking a different tact, Crawford, a man in his mid-30s, kept a civil tongue and begged for mercy. As soon as he real-ized he had no hope of that, he asked for whiskey. Whether the mob allowed him to knock down a bracing shot of alcohol went unreported, but before the drink could have taken effect, Crawford had begun a suspended sentence not subject to appeal.

Downstate in Austin, when Adjutant General W.S. Mabry learned of the double lynching, he ordered McDonald to make a full report on his actions in the affair. The adjutant general accept-ed McDonald’s assertion that he had thought the prisoners would be safe and took no further action.

With one of their bodies in a cof-fin and the other in the crate it had come in, the two robbers ended up in Riverside Cemetery. Someone was at least thoughtful enough to place a white marble marker over the grave bearing their names and date of death, Feb. 27, 1896.

Not far from where the bank once stood, the Museum of North Texas History has an unusual artifact on display – a hair-covered jewelry box that Waggoner Ranch foreman William Carrigan paid a taxidermist to make from one of the hooves of his boss’ dead horse.

Texas tales

By Mike Cox

Beeville Bee-Picayune Saturday, Sept. 28, 2013 Page 5A

Bee County Area Go Texan presents:

Western WeekOctober 17 - 19, 2013

westernweek.org

Event ScheduleSaturday, October 12th 5 pm Bee County Western Week Queen Contest - AC Jones High School Auditorium

Thursday, October 17th 6 pm Western Week Kick-o� - Downtown Depot Welcome - Event Hosted By Beeville Main Street and Bee County Western Week 6:05 pm Miss Western Week Scholarship Pageant 6:15 pm Youth Boot Scramble and High Heel Race and Youth Boot Scramble - Sponsored by Committee for Bee County Queens Contest 7:30 pm 9th Annual Western Week/Junior Service League Glow-n-the Dark 5K Fun Run/Walk - Downtown Beeville 6:00 - 9:30 pm Live Music, In� atable Games and Vendors

Friday, October 18th 1 pm Registration/Check-in - Bee County Area Go Texan “Blazin’ Saddles BBQ Cook-o� ” 1 pm WW Vendors Registration/Check-in 6 pm 40th Annual Western Week Celebration Grounds Open - Bee County Expo Center $5.00 for 12yrs and Older $3.00 for 5yrs to 11yrs Old Free for Kids under 5yrs. 6 pm Pride of Texas Carnival

Tent Show Times 7 pm Magic G (Magic Show by Paul Gallagher) 8 pm A&J Snake Handlers

Exhibit Area Mechanical Bull and Water Bubbles Cow Milking Contest Silver Spur Mercantile: Indoor & Outdoors Booths, Exhibits, Arts & Crafts and Food Court

Pavilion Stage 6 - 11 pm DJ Music

12 am Grounds Close

Saturday, October 19th 7 am Bee County Area Go Texan “Blazin’ Saddles BBQ Cook-O� - Bee County Expo Center 10:30 am 76th Annual Bee County Chamber of Commerce Parade - Downtown Beeville (For more info: [email protected] or

call 361-358-3267)

12 pm Festival Grounds Open - Bee County Expo Center $10.00 for 12yrs and Older $5.00 for 5yrs to 11yrs Old Free for Kids under 5yrs. 12 pm Pride of Texas Carnival

Tent Show Times 12:30 pm Magic G (Magic Show by Paul Gallagher) 1:30 pm Concho Cowboys 2:45 pm A&J Snake Handlers 4 pm Magic G (Magic Show by Paul Gallagher) 5 pm Concho Cowboys 6 pm A&J Snake Handlers 7 pm Magic G (Magic Show by Paul Gallagher)


Music Stage , Live Music

1 pm Jason Madox 2:30 pm Richie Albright 4 pm Ty Dietz 5:30 pm Pake Rossi

Rodeo Arena

6 pm Gates Open 7 pm Lester Meier Pro Rodeo Bull Riding (Free Grounds Admission with Pre-Sale Bull-Riding Ticket, SATURDAY ONLY)


7 pm Matt Gruetz Band 8:30 pm Britt Llyod 10 pm Pear Ratz 11:30 pm JB & Moonshine Band

1 am Grounds Close

A flag is freedom of speech Editor:

I am so disappointed in our Bee County Commissioners Court. They have disgraced the Confederate flag under which Texas fought for its freedom from the centralized government that Lincoln sacrificed the South to acquire. I fly my Confederate flag proudly for what it represents. The pledge to this honorable flag reads, “I salute the Confederate Flag with affection, reverence and undying devotion to the cause for which it stands. The cause: resistance to national-ist tyranny and the preservation of states’ rights and individual free-dom.”

The South fought to preserve individual freedoms, sovereign states and a small, central govern-ment. The Commissioners Court seems to be rewriting history. We should all be mindful that our proud state was a nation under six flags. Shall we remove one of these flags in ignorance of our state’s history and that of the Confederate States of America? The South fought the Battle of the Aggression of the North. Lincoln sent the Union Army with his favorite generals — Grant, Sherman and Sheridan — to destroy the South totally, includ-ing a war on its civilians. It was a shameful war. The states had the right constitutionally to secede if the central government became oppressive. They were not trying to take over the government of the North; it was not a civil war; it was a war to preserve our freedoms.

P.S. Slavery had nothing to do with the war; Lincoln hated abolitionists and dismissed their prattle until he saw a way to use them to incite a war. Suggested reading (keeping in mind that the North wrote the history we read in our textbooks because they won): The Real Lincoln,

Thomas J. DiLorenzo; Everything You Were Taught About the Civil War Is Wrong—Ask a Southerner, Lochlainn Seabrook; The South was Right, James Ronald Kennedy and Walter Donald Kennedy; and Killing Lincoln, Bill O’Reilly.

I am a concerned citizen of a misled county. A flag is freedom of speech. Jane Turner Wicker

Recognition for St. Philip’s board Editor:

As a former headmistress of St. Philip’s Episcopal School, I would like to give a special thanks to former school board members, Hilton Hughes, Daren Wilder, Jodi Huegler and Serena Mann. These individuals served the school through the years in a most admi-rable and valuable way.

Mr. Hughes and his family have shown much generosity in keep-ing the school up to date in many areas and in serving as board chairman and keeping the school board focused on the children. Mr. Wilder served as treasurer and gave his time to keep check of the school’s finances, always think-ing of the future and keeping the school strong. Ms. Huegler and Mrs. Mann have worked through the years to keep the policies and priorities of the school focused on the children and traditions of St. Philip’s.

I am saddened that these indi-viduals were not recognized in any way by the school for their service. I hope all former students and parents will thank each of them for helping create the wonderful mem-ories they and their children have of this great school, St. Philip’s Episcopal School.Sincerely, Claudia Nelson

Stacking the deck Editor:

Everything is set and in motion. First, get rid of Jimmy “Jimbo” Martinez Jr. as mayor. Second, get rid of former City Manager Deborah Balli. Next, get a quorum of pro-BDA people in charge of your money, which now includes Trace Morrill, former BDA attor-ney; David Carabajal, present BDA board director; John Fulghum, joined at the hip of David Carabajal; and Libby Spires, personal friend of the BDA president.

How’s that for stacking the deck? The perfect solution for getting at your money (taxes). The very personification of the “good ol’ boy network” and, yet, Beeville, you do nothing. The time for a recall is now. If you wait for the election in May, you are going to wind up with a water contract with the BDA and who knows what else that will prop up the BDA, like lower sewer rates for this organization that was approved by the current council of BDA supporters. This council will continue to be propped up because you don’t vote and their supporters do. George Balli

The Bee-Picayune welcomes letters to the editor. Anyone wishing to sub-mit a letter for publication may do so, provided that his/her name, address and telephone number is included. It is our longstanding policy not to accept or run unsigned letters. All others, provided they are authenticated, perti-nent to the community’s interests, not libelous, not self-promotional in lieu of purchasing legitimate advertising, or overly lengthy, may be run on a space-available basis as determined by the editor. All letters must be no longer than two, double-spaced, typewritten pages (or 500 words) and may be subject to editing. E-mail can be sent to [email protected].

Letters to the editor

For Democrats, defund or double-down on Obamacare?On the morning of

Christmas Eve, 2009, I cast my vote against Obamacare on the floor

of the Senate.In the years since, I have intro-

duced and co-sponsored 27 bills to repeal or defund Obamacare and have voted to do so at every oppor-tunity.

Last week, thanks to the sup-port of conservatives in the House of Representatives, that chamber passed a bill that funds the govern-ment while defunding Obamacare. I support this measure, and that is why I voted to bring it before the Senate for an up-or-down vote.

This isn’t a show vote. This is a unique and rare opportunity to defund Obamacare with a simple majority — 51 votes. That means Harry Reid can lose, at most, four members of his caucus and still succeed in funding Obamacare. If he loses five, Obamacare is defund-ed. I want to have that vote.

In my view, filibustering and blocking a bill that defunds Obamacare is not the best strat-egy to defund Obamacare. The only thing it guarantees is a gov-ernment shutdown, during which Obamacare would still be funded.

History has taught us that Republicans would unduly shoul-

der the blame in such a scenario. This would weaken our party, hurt us at the polls and remove us even further from our goal of defunding Obamacare.

An up-or-down vote, on the other hand, forces vulnerable, red-state Democrats to either double-down on Obamacare or move to defund it. We need to convince five to take the latter approach.

In my view, passing bipartisan House and Senate defunding bills is a better strategy than no vote at all.

It’s no secret that Obamacare is crumbling under its own weight. The fact that the country is still debating it three-and-a-half years after it was signed into law is a testament to how ill-conceived, unpopular and damaging it is.

Examples of its failures abound: Insurance premiums are rising;

doctors are taking fewer Medicare patients, and businesses are cut-ting jobs and reducing hours. All this, and the law hasn’t even been fully implemented yet.

Second chances in life are rare. For the Democratic senators who voted for Obamacare in 2009 — and those who were elected after it became law — this is their second chance.

With the benefit of hindsight and pressure from the American people, they now have the oppor-tunity to recant their support with dignity.

And for those Democrats who insist on riding this train wreck of a law over the cliff, they will have to stand in front of their constitu-ents and explain why it is worth spending more borrowed money on.

Republicans are united against Obamacare. In approaching this vote, we must be united in pressur-ing our Democratic colleagues to stop listening to President Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign rhetoric and start listening to their con-stituents.

If they truly do this — if they use their vote in the U.S. Senate to honestly reflect the will of their constituents — I have little doubt that a vote to defund Obamacare will prevail.

Texas times

With Senator John Cornyn

Enrollment opens for Tuition Promise Fund

Sept. 1 marked the opening of the enrollment peri-od for the Texas

Tuition Promise Fund, the state’s prepaid col-lege tuition program. This program allows for families to prepay for a child’s higher education at a Texas public two- or four-year college or uni-versity, determined by today’s tuition rates.

The Texas Tuition Promise Fund helps families to make col-lege affordable. “You can prepay for a four-year degree, or you can prepay in small bites-for just a few classes or semesters,” says Texas Comptroller

Susan Combs. “Starting early makes saving for college more affordable and increases a child’s expectations of going to college and achieving his or her dreams.”

A college education can be one of the great-est expenses a family can face. The Texas Tuition

Promise Fund helps to make it more affordable by offering different pay-ment plans and options to purchase tuition units. While the Tuition Fund is designed to be used at Texas public colleges or universities where tuition and required fees are locked in, families have

the flexibility to use the transfer toward tuition and required fees at most Texas private or out-of-state colleges and univer-sities or career schools.

The U.S. Department of Education indicates that nearly 80% of the fast-est growing occupations will require some kind of formal training after high school. Families who are considering saving money for college may want to see if the Tuition Promise Fund fits their needs. More information can be found by contacting 800-445-4723, select option #5 or at www.tuitionprom-ise.org.

From the desk of Lozano

By J.M. Lozano,State Representative

Beeville Bee-Picayune Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2013 Page 5A

“Carlos Garcia” “Caiden & Caleb Garcia”

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Government shutdown has little impact on oil industry

So the federal government is shut down – at least tem-porarily, as of this Tuesday morning writing – and

several folks have inquired about what, if any, impact this will have on the continuity of the U.S. oil and natural gas industry. The short answer is, not much.

A longer answer came via email yesterday from my friends at an industry trade association in Washington, in the form of the fol-lowing report on impacts to various federal agencies that have regula-tory authority over the industry in some form or fashion. The report reads, in part:

“Offshore oil and gas: The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement would ‘continue opera-tion of about 53% of its functions,’ paid for via non-appropriated funds, according to Interior’s shutdown plan. Inspections will continue, as well as processing of development plans and applications for drilling permits.

“Onshore oil and gas: Processing of oil and gas permits by the Bureau of Land Management comes to a halt. BLM will continue to moni-tor ongoing oil, gas, coal and other mineral operations. BLM will keep inspectors and enforcement person-nel on the job for some activities, including overseeing some drilling operations and patrolling oil and gas fields ‘to make sure that theft of oil or condensate is not occurring.’

“Environmental Protection Agency: EPA would keep 1,069 (of 16,205) employees on the job, includ-ing those involved in law enforce-ment, employees whose funding comes from other sources and others performing exempted activities

“Interior Department: DOI would keep about 14,000 employees (of 72,562) on the job most of them to discharge its law enforcement activ-ities and responsibilities overseeing national parks.

“NOAA: The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would keep a total of 5,368 peo-ple working through a shutdown, almost 4,000 of whom are National

Weather Service employees.”Several things about this report

stick out to me, which we’ll dis-cuss later. But overall, the impact on the oil and gas industry from this “shutdown” of the federal gov-ernment is basically going to be a further slowing of the already glacial pace of issuing onshore drill-ing permits from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), offshore permits by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and various permits issued by the EPA.

Given that getting permits out of these agencies is already compa-rable to pulling teeth with a rusty screwdriver and no anesthesia, fur-ther delay added by the handful of days this “shutdown” is likely to last is unlikely to have any significant or lasting impact on the nation’s ability to continue to access cheap oil and natural gas.

Only a fraction of current oil and natural gas drilling in the U.S. today takes place on federal lands or in federal waters. Heck, almost half of all the drilling rigs in the country are operating today in Texas, and unless you’re trying to drill wells in Lake Falcon on the Rio Grande River or on one of the various mili-tary bases in the state, chances are very, very good this “shutdown” will have no impact on you at all.

You’ll note that I keep putting the word “shutdown” in quotes. This is because I’m having a real hard time seeing this as being any sort of actual “shutdown” at all, given that, if you add up the numbers in the trade association memo, you come up with more than 20,000 employ-ees still actively on their jobs at the agencies discussed. Given that is

more employees than are gain-fully employed at companies like Anadarko Petroleum, Chesapeake and Apache Corporation com-bined, that is plenty of people to get out a whole bunch of produc-tive work were they so inclined.

Finally, this brings me to a cou-ple of points that were recently pointed out to me about the BLM. On Aug. 23, the Government Accountability Office issued a

report which found that permits to drill issued by that agency were half the number that were issued in 2007. The report also found that, despite this massive decline in per-mits issued, the agency somehow managed to find the time to perform 17,866 environmental inspections in 2012, a 70% increase from the 10,941 performed in 2007.

Another fact that was brought to my attention was that, when my career in the oil and natural gas industry began in 1979, the BLM’s San Juan Basin office in New Mexico employed a single permitting agent, despite the fact that there were more than 60 rigs drilling wells in the basin. Today, there are still around 60 oil and gas rigs active in the San Juan Basin, but the BLM now employees hundreds of people, many of whom find it somehow necessary to carry firearms while performing their environmental inspections and other duties. If you wonder why the nation’s massive oil and natural gas shale revolu-tion in recent years has taken place almost exclusively on private and state lands, wonder no more.

My, how the world has changed in 34 years. But it hasn’t changed enough for the BLM to get a drilling permit issued in its legally required 30 day time window. And so, the industry will by and large barely notice that the federal government is temporarily shut down, and the shale revolution will continue apace.

Editor’s note: David Blackmon, a longtime political columnist for the Bee-Picayune, grew up in Beeville and is now a project management consultant in the oil and gas indus-try. Email David at [email protected].

Now wait a minute...

By David Blackmon

Flag banning Editor:

Some of our illustri-ous county commission-ers have taken it upon themselves to tell us, the people, what is and is not appropriate on “our” property.

They have banned what many consider an honorable flag that like it or not, is a piece of “our” history and flew over this very state. My great-great-uncle fought and died for the “Stars and Bars.” Two of the greatest, God-fearing Americans who ever lived served under that flag the commissioners deem inappropriate.

A dark period they call

it. Really? Darker than the days “our” fellow coun-trymen were massacred by those slave-holding Mexicans? Darker than the day “our” countrymen were massacred by those same slave-holding, mur-dering Mexicans whose flag I see is free to fly anywhere in this county?

What about the Union Jack? Ever read of those dark days? Since we’re getting into the flag-banning business, lets see about the “Stars and Stripes,” which flew on the slave ships while the Confederate flag never once flew on such a ship! Is not every flag offensive to someone?

And then the gall to

declare it cannot fly on “our” property. That statement speaks vol-umes. You see, that’s not “your” property! It’s “our” property! You know, the ones who pay you. And we don’t pay you to decide our freedom of speech. L.E. “Smokey” Neal

Addendum Editor:

This is an addendum to my previous letter of last week. I am address-ing the comments made by Mr. (Eloy) Rodriguez regarding the War of the Aggression of the North, 1861-1865. To quote the quote credited to him in your article regarding our Confederate Flag, “The

Confederate Flag sym-bolizes a dark period in American history. It sym-bolizes a period of hatred, discrimination, murder and lynching of innocent people by the Ku Klux Klan.”

It was the North who hated, discriminated, murdered and lynched Southerners. The cruelty and needless violence per-petrated on Southerners can be compared to the Huns’ destruction of Europe. It was more ruth-less than even Hitler’s treatment of the Jews and Christians in Germany. It was a deliberate attempt, approved by Abe Lincoln, to wipe the South off the


(See Letters, 6A)

opposition to Obamacare, which means the federal government will run the exchange throughout the state.

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that 25 percent of people who live in Texas are uninsured, ranking at the highest percent in the nation. It is projected that 3 mil-lion Texans will become insured providing that all of Obamacare’s provi-sions are implemented.

Even with the high projection numbers, Republican Gov. Rick Perry said that the state government would do as little as possible to help implement the Affordable Care Act.

Cigna, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas and Community Health Choice are all participat-ing in the exchanges and are working as private organizations to edu-

cate Texans about their options for health cover-age through the exchange.

Mimi Garcia is the state director in Texas for the nonprofit organi-zation “Enroll America,” whose mission is to “maximize the number of uninsured Americans who enroll in health cov-erage made available by the Affordable Care Act.”

Garcia said that the organization has been determined to reach as many uninsured Texans as they can, despite the lack of support from state leaders.

“We have been work-ing with churches, county and city leaders, commu-nity organizations such as the PTA, food banks and other partners who are really connected to their communities,” she said.

“We are working to edu-cate the 6 million Texans who are uninsured by

talking about the chal-lenges and what it’s like without having the secu-rity of health insurance,” she explained.

Garcia was at an enroll-ment center on Tuesday morning where she said people were waiting in

line outside before the doors opened.

Due to the enormous number of hits it was getting, the government website designated for health care registra-tion, healthcare.gov, quit working properly on the

day the exchange opened.Dr. Michael Dunn,

a practicing physician at the Beeville Family Practice, said the compa-ny has no plans to drop or change any insurance that they are currently accepting, and they will

be seeing patients as usual.

“I highly recommend that people have health insurance,” he said. “Those who don’t have it or if their employer is planning on dropping it, I recommend that they at least look into the exchange to see if it can benefit them.”

While state leaders voice their opposition about Obamacare, private organizations and medi-cal practices are working to educate Texans on the potential benefits of the plan.

Whether the Health Insurance Exchanges are seen as negative or positive, they aren’t going anywhere. They will not be affected by the current government shutdown.

Lindsey Shaffer is the regional editor at the Bee-Picayune and can be reached at 358-2550, ext. 119, or at [email protected].

Page 6A Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2013 Beeville Bee-Picayune

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face of America. Following this war, Lincoln estab-lished Yankee control over the states’ recon-struction. He put in mili-tary officers in the state houses and scalawags, along with the enemies of the South, who ruled for 10 long years. They taxed the Southerners, stripped them of their properties and holdings and distrib-uted them among them-selves.

The Ku Klux Klan did not even exist during the War of the Aggression of the North. It was formed by locals in the vari-ous communities to act as vigilantes and defend those being mistreated in all ways by the Yankees. Injustice was abroad throughout the South, and the once most prosperous states in all America were destroyed, and many will never regain the wealth they once had.Jane Wicker

Response to ‘Stars and Barred’Editor:

Bee County Area Go Texan- Western Week Celebration has seen the emotions swell on both sides of the current flag issue and would like to make sure the facts are clear. The issue arose in our lease agreement

with the Bee County Exposition Center, which is controlled by the Bee County Commissioners Court. Some of the com-missioners have an issue with the Virginia Confederate Battle Flag that has been flown by one of the participants in the barbecue cook-off for several decades.

Bee County Area Go Texan Western Week Committee is nonparti-san on this issue. The Bee County Area Go Texan Committee is comprised of several volunteers who, through Western Week and several other events hosted through-out the year, are able to raise funds that go toward scholarships for graduating Bee County students. Bee County Western Week is the lon-gest running fair in Bee County and has brought people from all around the area to Beeville to celebrate in our rich heri-tage and history. Beeville as a community has always greatly benefited from the Western Week Celebration as a way for family and friends to join in the fun and festivities, and Beeville businesses have reaped the rewards of the increased business over the Western Week weekend.

Most importantly to the Bee County Area Go Texan Committee is we have been able to host

an event that is fun for all attendees while being blessed, due to the com-munity’s support, to be able to raise money for scholarships.

We ask the community to remember the purpose of Bee County Western Week as we move closer to the event. We would also ask that if you sup-port or oppose the com-missioners’ decision and you wish to express that support or opposition that you do so through the Commissioners Court and not during the Western Week Celebration.

We thank you again and look forward to a fun and successful Western Week 2013.Sincerely,Bee County Area Go Texan- Western Week Committee

The Bee-Picayune wel-comes letters to the editor. Anyone wishing to submit a letter for publication may do so, provided that his/her name, address and telephone number is included. It is our longstanding policy not to accept or run unsigned let-ters. All others, provided they are authenticated, pertinent to the community’s interests, not libelous, not self-promo-tional in lieu of purchasing legitimate advertising, or overly lengthy, may be run on a space-available basis as determined by the editor. All letters must be no lon-ger than two, double-spaced, typewritten pages (or 500 words) and may be subject to editing. E-mail can be sent to [email protected].

(Continued from 5A)

Letters

However, this pay increase for JP clerks means some of them will receive close to or more than her employees.

“I brought documenta-tion to the court outlining disparity among offices and positions,” Bridge said.

“The only thing I ask is fair compensation in line with other departments in Bee County.

“At what point were these elected officials able to ask for salary increases when I was not afforded the same opportunity?”

Judge David Silva responded, “I think we have moved in that direc-tion a couple of times, but we have not adopted a scale; we need to do that quickly to address these disparities and inequities in pay for doing the same job.

“If we can, maybe we can look at it again this

budget year.”According to the motion

made when the budget was adopted though, no salary increases can occur during this year.

“What we are saying is whatever salaries are there for this fiscal year will not change until next year,” Commissioner Carlos Salazar said previ-ously.

Bridge said, “(My employees) will have a to go a full year without that additional money. It is unfair for this court to address this in this man-ner.”

Last week, during the final budget hearing and budget adoption, two other issues arose — funding of a clerk at the county clerk’s office and switching the part-time administrative assistant in the county judge’s office to full time.

Salazar said, “The county judge’s office real-ly needs a full-time posi-

tion vs. a part-time that it currently has. This is the time that the court can make that part-time into a full-time position.”

The $20,000 question though was where would the funding come from.

Blandina Costley, county auditor, reminded commissioners that this would increase expenses and that they would have to cut the budget some-where else to fund it.

At that late hour, only a week before they had to have a budget adopted, they could not change the tax rate.

Salazar said, “I have been here long enough to know it can be done. Madam auditor, you know it can be done.”

Costley responded, “I am going to leave it to the court to decide who or what you want to reduce from your budget.”

Salazar continued, “This is a budget. You project revenue. You proj-

ect expenses.”

Salazar was advocating simply projecting higher revenue to cover the new expenses.

Silva said, “Given the situation as it is and the lateness of the hour, I think it is best to leave it alone.”

Salazar, however, was adamant that a solution could be found.

“I have been here 11 years,” he said. “We add stuff. We subtract stuff. It can happen.

“I think we have an auditor that doesn’t want to work with us.”

Silva responded, “She

keeps us in line, and we don’t want to go into areas that will really cause some problems.”

Ultimately, it was Davis who was able to help the court find the money.

Her solution: she would implement the Scofflaw Program that is currently in use by the tax office to help recover unpaid fines and fees.

“I am willing to do it for the sake of the commis-sioner getting that pro-jection and getting that position,” she said.

What does this mean for county residents?

Anyone with unpaid

fines or fees to the coun-ty clerk’s office will not be able to register their vehicle until that money is paid.

Davis said, “It is going to help my office. It is going to help Bee County.”

After the final vote, Salazar said to the audi-ence watching, “County budgets are all projec-tions. At the end of the day, this time next year, we might be over like we were this year. Twenty-three thousand dollars out of an $8 million bud-get is a drop in the buck-et.”


(Continued from 1A)

(Continued from 1A)

County able to fund pay raises with final balanced budget

Enrollment opens for government run insurance

Those wanting to know more about the new healthcare can do so online at Healthcare.gov.

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BEEVILLE – Comments made by Tea Party official Mike Keeney at a meeting held at the National Night Out event Tuesday night elicited numerous respons-es from community leaders.

Mayor David Carabajal responded to Keeney’s comment that he should be recalled because of possible conflicts of interest.

Carabajal said the state legislation that approved the bylaws of the Bee Development Authority included a para-graph in Article III that one of the four appointees to the BDA board must be a member of the City Council.

Carabajal said he is a member of the

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Vol. 127 — No. 46 Beeville, Texas Saturday, Oct. 5, 2013 Two Sections, 28 Pages 75¢

recall threat a few bags

shy on factsCounty leaders stand by flag banBy Jason CollinsBee-Picayune staff

County leaders issuing a ban on the display of the Confederate flag by those renting the Expo Center property has divided the county into two groups.

And those who made the decision are hearing from both sides.

County Judge David Silva said that, since that court meeting Sept. 23, he has received numerous calls.

He has even received calls from people saying that they find other flags offensive, including one who found the Catholic and the Mexican flag offensive.

“He was offended by the Catholic flag because they

had so many people killed,” Silva said.

This ban, now included in the contract presented to those renting the Expo Center, states, “Bee County commissioners and/or Expo Center management reserves the right to reject any offensive language or displays, including the

By Bill CloughBee-Picayune staff

NORTH BEE COUNTY – James Phillips of Houston rejects the title of sculptor.

“I’m just a shade-tree whittler.”

Correct – as far as it goes.

“Whittler” brings up the image of someone sitting on a front porch of a cabin nonchalantly using a pock-etknife to carve a stick.

Phillips uses chain saws; five of them. His “sticks” are trunks and branches

of large trees – really large trees.

When a beloved live oak tree split apart in north-ern Bee County, the own-ers — who were strongly attached to the tree — wanted to use the large branches for something besides firewood.

They remembered seeing sculptures by Phillips that he created in Galveston after Hurricane Ike, turn-ing damaged and broken trees into works of art.

To his surprise, an art

James Phillips of Houston was recently featured on Texas Country Reporter, and his work is now on prop-erty in north Bee County. On the far left is the piece he did to represent not only the oil industry in Bee County but also the area’s cattle raising roots.

Bill Clough photos

‘Shade tree whittler’ carves out unique work

Drought persists despite

showers

By Lindsey ShafferBee-Picayune staff

It’s no secret that the state of Texas is in a drought. The lack of rainfall is evident in the brown grass, low lake levels and the current water conservation efforts.

The majority of the state has been under drought condi-tions for about three years. 2011 ranks in at the driest and warmest year ever for the state of Texas, with an average rainfall of only 14.8 inches.

Bill Clough photo

The area under this pier at Lake Corpus Christi State Park is dry now, which would make fishing a bit difficult. Recent rains have not brought lake levels back up to normal and likely won’t for some time

Local leaders discuss city’s option to secure stable water supply.

Page 11A

(See Confederate, 6A)(See Drought, 10A)

(See Phillips, 10A)

Mayor CaraBaJaL:

Carabajal(See Community, 6A)

‘Yes, you have freedom of speech but

not to incite a fight or disruption.’

— Carlos Salazar, commissioner

INSIDE: WHAT CAN WOMEN DO TO STAY HEALTHY?

council. He was elected by the council in May for a one-year term.

Carabajal pointed out that he is not the first mayor to sit on the BDA board. He said Santiago “Jimbo” Martinez was on the BDA board when he was mayor, and he is fairly certain that Mayor Kenneth Chesshir also sat on the BDA board.

Carabajal also assured citizens that any time a vote comes before the BDA board that might conflict with his position on the City Council, he has abstained from vot-ing.

“I’m on there by state statute,” the mayor said. “State law requires that a City Council member must be on that board. I was on that board long before I was mayor.”

Carabajal also pointed out that he was appoint-ed to that position by a unanimous vote of his fel-low council members.

As to the claim that the City Council has fired three city manag-ers recently, Carabajal said Martinez voted for the first two to leave the post. In fact, former City Manager Ford Patton was not fired. He resigned.

Carabajal also said that Martinez’s comment about the council’s chang-ing the meeting date for the adoption of a bud-get and the setting of a city property tax rate was made because of recent changes in the city staff.

Finance Director Caron Vela told the council she could use the extra day to complete her work on the budget.

Also, Carabajal said he understood that every member of the council was interested in approving at least a small decrease in the tax rates for property owners.

The mayor said he is not recommending that the city purchase water from the wells drilled on BDA property because he supports drilling wells within the city limits.

The mayor said he is not opposed to building a reverse osmosis plant to filter chlorides and dissolved solids from the deeper Jasper aquifer.

But he prefers to drill wells into the shallow-er Evangeline aquifer because it does not need the same level of treat-ment.

Carabajal said the city could drill up to five wells in different parts of town and be able to reduce the $0.87 per 1,000 gallons of raw water the city now pays the City of Corpus Christi for water from its reservoir system.

That savings could then be used to pay for either all or most of the cost of the construction of an RO plant.

“I just want to take the less expensive route first,” Carabajal said.

Local attorney and longtime Bee County Chamber of Commerce board member Tom Beasley responded to Keeney’s claim that the chamber is consider-ing plans to ask the city for $400,000 of city tax money.

“Where did that come from?” Beasley asked. “There is no possibility, none, nada, zilch that the chamber would ask for or receive $400,000. But Mr. Keeney is the one who made the unsubstan-tiated charge, and it was included in this unfortu-nate article without chal-lenge or verification.”

Beasley criticized the Bee-Picayune for quoting someone without inquiry as to the reasonableness or accuracy of the quote.

“The chamber has

received a number of cheap shots recently in letters to the editor, and this is yet another phony claim,” Beasley said.

“First of all, Beeville is NOT a failed school,” said Beeville Independent School District Superintendent Dr. Sue Thomas.

She was answering Keeney’s claim that the district is failing.

“Our district received the ‘Met Standard’ score from the TEA this year, the same score as the other two Bee County school districts,” Thomas said.

“The only other score available for school districts was the ‘Improvement Required’ score, which one district in Bee County received.”

“Mr. Keeney was not at the school board meeting in which we discussed our ratings from last year,” Thomas continued. “Had he been there, or read the article in the newspaper, he would have had that information.”

“More importantly, we have excellent teachers and a sound academic program,” the superinten-dent said.

BISD students often graduate with two-year college degrees and grad-uates go on to excel at major universities. The high school also offers advanced placement and dual credit classes.

Thomas said the district does have challenges, but the BISD had pioneered innovative programs and collaborated with schools such as the George West and Gregory-Portland districts.

“Our schools are good,” Thomas said. “It is very easy for politicos to spout opinions on everything from city government to schools, especially when they have not been part

of the process or even vis-ited a classroom. I have an open invitation to any community member who would like to visit about our schools and our com-mitment to the children in our community.”

BDA Executive Director Joe B. Montez had a busy day Thursday but also responded to Keeney’s claims regarding the county’s economic devel-opment efforts.

“The BDA has made a proposal to the City of Beeville to sell the city water at $0.31 per 1,000 gallons,” Montez said.

“That is not a subsidy,” the director said. The city would be paying the BDA a fair price for a commod-ity. “That is not a grant or a contribution, it’s a busi-ness deal.”

Montez said the city now pays much more to Corpus Christi than it would pay for the same amount of water if pur-chased from the BDA.

As an example, he men-tioned going to the store and paying $1.20 for a bottle of water.

“The BDA is not broke!” Montez said, responding to Keeney’s claim that the authority is in the hole financially.

“The audit report end-ing Dec. 31, 2012, as performed by the firm of Lovvorn & Kieschnick, CPAs, under “Statement of Net Position,” cites cur-rent assets to include cash and equivalents, money markets, lease receiv-ables and investments at

$2,531,226, total capital assets of $7,174,324 for total assets of $9,705,550.”

Compare that to total current liabilities of $26,199 and zero long-term liabilities, Montez said.

The BDA director said the audit will not be released for public scrutiny until the board approves it at its meeting next Thursday.

As far as the authority living off its own means, Montez said it has gen-erated sufficient revenue to maintain its operating and maintenance expens-es in the last several years.

Grants the author-ity has received from the Beeville Economic Improvement Corporation and approved by the city have been used to per-form capital improve-ments at the facilities at Chase Field.

Those improvements include work done on hangars, warehouses, a paint booth and airport navigation aids.

“After the renova-tions, Sikorsky Aerospace Services Inc., a subsid-iary of a Fortune 500 company, employed up to 305 employees for six years with a total pay-roll of approximately $60 million. If a dollar cir-culates three times in a rural area, the $60 mil-lion turns into a $180 mil-lion impact.”

Montez said that has been the aviation-related economic contribution to Beeville and Bee County.

“Did we take the money in vain?” the director asked. “We used the money to improve com-munity assets and to gen-erate jobs.”

“Surely the BDA was not alone in this devel-opment. It was a part-nership that included the BEIC board of directors, the Beeville City Council, the Bee County commis-sioners and Coastal Bend College.”

Gary Kent is a reporter at the Bee-Picayune and can be reached at 358-2550, ext. 120, or at [email protected].

Kelly McNeese-Hensley of the financial ser-vices firm Edward Jones recently earned the firm’s Service Award for 15 years of work.

Edward Jones provides financial services for individual investors in the United States and, through its affiliate, in Canada.

Edward Jones has its headquarters in St. Louis.

Page 6A Saturday, Oct. 5, 2013 Beeville Bee-Picayune

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Confederate flag, or other offensive flags, banners, posters, signs, etc., that it feels are inappropriate or offensive and will not (be) permitted to be displayed at any part of the Expo grounds during any and all event.”

As a history teacher, Silva said he understands the significance of the Confederate flag.

It should be noted that there are actually two Confederate flags.

There is the national flag and the battle flag. The battle flag—the one most often displayed—contains the crossed blue bars with white stars.

The second flag resem-bles the current Texas state flag but with two red stripes, one white stripe and a blue field in the left containing seven stars in a circle.

While the two are often either confused or simply referred to as the Confederate flag, it was the battle flag that the

court banned, Silva said.Commissioner Eloy

Rodriguez, who made the request during that meet-ing for the ban, said, “The flying of the Confederate battle flag or similar flags, including the Texas Confederate flag, has no place in our society.


While the Confederate flag is often associated with racism because of its use by hate groups, the American Civil War was about more than that.

The War Between the States is more complex

than just whether slavery was allowable.

Silva adds that he always reminds his stu-dents that not everybody in the South believed in slavery, and not every-body in the North was opposed to it.

“There we good godly people in the North,” he said. “There were good, godly people in the South.”

For many, the war wasn’t about slavery but more about protecting the rights of states.

Today, though, the flag represents something dif-ferent to people.

“It is a hot button issue,” Silva said.

Native Americans could say that the U.S. flag is offensive because of what they endured.

“Every flag comes with something,” he said.

A flag that symbolizes heritage to some has neg-ative connotations to oth-ers.

“Where are we going to draw the line?”

Salazar said that calls to him have been both pro and against their decision.

“You have different points of view,” he said.

“Now, we have offended those people that don’t see it that way.”

Salazar adds that he respects the views of both sides. “If that is the way they feel, I respect that.”

He agreed that the flag does hold historical sig-nificance but that its con-nection to hate groups has placed a stigma upon it that cannot be ignored.

“You can see why peo-ple take offense to that,” Salazar said.

He cited one occurrence where a student wore a shirt with the Confederate flag emblazoned on the

front.The student, he said,

was made to turn the shirt inside out, and a court upheld the school’s right to not allow the symbol to be displayed on campus.

“Freedom of speech is not 100 percent,” he said. “Yes, you have freedom of speech but not to incite a fight or disruption.”

His viewpoints come from his upbringing and stories told him by his elders.

“You have to recognize that the Hispanic and black culture have experi-enced racism,” he said.

He remembers his father telling him stories of his youth and the signs displayed forbidding his entry into businesses.

“We are more sensitive to that because we lived it,” Salazar said. “We felt it.

“It is embedded in our hearts already.

“For an Anglo to say there is no racism or dis-crimination, they can’t say that. They didn’t live it.”

Confederate flag ban sparks strong emotions(Continued from 1A)

What some people may not realize is that there are two Confederate flags. Commissioners recently issued a ban on what is consid-ered the battle flag, as shown on right. The other is the national flag and not typically banned by counties and cities.

McNeese-Hensley receives 15-year service award

(Continued from 1A)

Community leaders say Tea Party comments wrong

Beeville Bee-Picayune Saturday, Oct. 5, 2013 Page 5A

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Texas remedial history Editor:

Now Commissioner Salazar, Commissioner Rodriguez and County Judge Silva decide that the Civil War and the Confederate flag never happened and has no place in Bee County. Does this mean that the Mexican, French or Spanish flags never flew over Texas and cannot be shown either because it never happened?

How convenient — come to Bee County where you can change history and the First Amendment or the Constitution at will.

These three individuals must have been absent or on timeout when the school teacher was

explaining history.The Texas Convention

met in Austin on Jan. 28, 1861. An ordinance of secession was adopted on Feb. 1, 1861, by a vote of 166 to 7. The ordinance of secession — and join-ing the Confederacy — was submitted to popu-lar vote on Feb. 23, 1861, and adopted by a vote of 44,317 to 13,020.

The Confederate con-stitution was ratified by the Texas Convention on March 23, 1861.

The last battle was on May 13, 1865 — the Battle of Palmito Ranch near Brownsville.

An American Library Association slogan reads: “think for ourselves and let others do the same.”Aurora Perez

Just two flags Editor:

I’ve been noticing let-ters being written about the Confederate flag been flown at the Expo Center.

The only flags that should be allowed are Stars and Stripes and the Texas flag. Period.

Msgt Juan G Rangel, USMC Ret.

The Bee-Picayune welcomes letters to the editor. Anyone wishing to submit a letter for publication may do so, pro-vided that his/her name, address and telephone number is included. It is our longstanding policy not to accept or run unsigned letters. All others, provided they are authenticated, pertinent to the community’s interests, not libelous, not self-promotional in lieu of purchasing legitimate advertising, or overly lengthy, may be run on a space-available basis as determined by the editor. All letters must be no longer than two, double-spaced, typewritten pages (or 500 words) and may be subject to editing. E-mail can be sent to [email protected].

Going ‘a day without sugar’“A Day Without Sugar/

Un día sin azúcar” is the title of a bilin-gual children’s book

which the Beeville Pan American Round Table recently donated to the Joe Barnhart Bee County Library.

Written by Diane de Anda, the book is dedicated “To my grand-mother Nacha; my mother Carmen and my uncle Rubén for their brave struggle with diabetes. And to my sister Lori and her husband, Don, for inventing a natural sugar-free apple pie as their gift to family members with diabetes.”

The story begins with five young cousins spending a weekend with their Tía (Aunt) Sofía, who tells them the doctor says that Tito, one of the five, is at risk for developing diabetes and must watch what he eats. “Así que mañana tendremos una cacería de azúcar,” Tía Sofía announced. (Tomorrow we’re going on a sugar hunt.)

The plan is to find sugar hidden in favorite foods—and to spend a whole day without “azúcar.” Although the kids are not con-vinced they want to give up sugar, they agree that they don’t want to get a shot every day “like Abuela and Tío Pedro.”

For breakfast Tía Sofía serves them bowls of hot, unsweetened oatmeal, raisins and milk. One bowl has peanut butter in the bottom; another, banana slices; a third, peaches; a fourth, cinnamon and vanilla; and the fifth, straw-berries. “¡Qué rico!” exclaim the primos (cousins) as they clean their bowls.

Tía Sofía explains that fruit pro-vides natural sugar that is good for them. Then she sends them outside to burn that natural sugar playing ball and jumping rope.

At lunch Tía Sofía serves ham-burger on whole wheat buns. “At least we don’t have to worry about putting sugar on our burgers,” laughed Beto.

“Ay, pero lo hacen todo el tiem-po,” Tía Sofía said. (But you do it all the time.)

When they read the label on the ketchup bottle, they discover that sugar is one of the ingredients, and it’s also in mayonnaise and relish. Tía Sofía recommends mus-tard, pickles and/or picante sauce instead, for flavor without sugar.

When the cousins get thirsty, Tía Sofía advises them to avoid bever-ages labeled “drink” or “punch,”

heavy on sugar and light on juice. “You shouldn’t even drink too much 100% juice, because you don’t need a lot of natural sugar,” she tells them. “Lo major es beber agua.” (It’s best to drink water.)

When their parents come to take the children home, Tía Sofía sends them home with empanadas de manzana (apple turnovers), sweet-ened only with apple juice and cin-namon.

As they tell her goodbye, she says, “Hay un tipo de azúcar que sí pueden tener” (There is one sugar that you can all have)—and she kisses each one on the top of the head!

The simple story with appeal-ing, colorful illustrations by Janet Montecalvo provides a prompt to discuss eating habits with chil-dren. (And the bilingual format allows readers to build Spanish vocabulary at the same time.)

Such discussions are definite-ly needed. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that the rate of obesity among US children ages 6-11 tri-pled from 1980 to 2008, from 6.5% to 19.6%. Among adolescents 12-19 years of age the increase was also dramatic, from 5% to 18%.

Doctors warn that excessive weight increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, gall bladder disease, depression, anxi-ety and lower self-esteem, while increasing the risk of chronic dis-ease in adulthood. (According to the CDC, 63.2% of US adults were obese or overweight in 2009.)

I asked Dr. Sue Thomas, superin-tendent of the Beeville Independent School District, how such statis-tics have affected school policies regarding sugar.

“I can’t guarantee that the guide-lines are always followed,” she said, “but the rules adopted some

five years ago only allow elemen-tary students to have two par-ties a year, for Christmas and for Valentine’s Day.”

Parents may no longer bring cakes, cookies or other sweets for class birthday celebrations. “There are many children who are already diabetic,” Dr. Thomas explained. “It’s hard for them when sweets are offered—and not good for the others, either.”

One could not guess this new policy from looking at store shelves stacked high with Halloween candy, soon to be followed by Christmas sweets, then Valentine treats and finally, Easter goodies, which now are evidently consumed at home. How do candy manufacturers sur-vive from Easter to Halloween?

I think most of us have been guilty of buying happiness with sweets. When I taught Spanish, my students were offered “cala-bacitas” (candy pumpkins), “bas-tones de dulce” (candy canes) and “corazones” (conversation hearts with Spanish phrases: “Bésame,” “Te quiero,” “Amor,” etc.) for holi-days.

We had “fiestas” to celebrate Diez y Seis de Septiembre and Cinco de Mayo. In addition to “comida mexi-cana,” there were always sodas and “dulces.”

The problem is that sweets are a cultural tradition, and that’s hard to change.

Our daughter Mariana is trying. Grandchildren Ray and Ana occa-sionally get watered-down apple juice, and they consider low-calorie fruit snacks a treat. Their coopera-tion can be bought with sugar-free gum. When they get traditional candies, amounts are carefully rationed. Although they’d happily eat more sugar, their parents pre-fer to give them a healthy future, with little risk of diabetes.

Un poco de todoBy Kay Past

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horns. Page 18A

SPORTS

Letters to the editor: Readers weigh in on flag ban. Page 5AObits: Baker, Paulk, Salinas, Zapata. Page 2A

Vol. 127 — No. 47 Beeville, Texas Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2013 Two Sections, 28 Pages 75¢

Multiple choice drug indictmentBy Gary KentBee-Picayune staff

BEEVILLE – Authorities in dis-trict court here may wonder exact-ly who they are dealing with when a man with five aliases makes an appearance before a judge.

The defendant, George Steven Ramirez, is accused of “possession of certain chemicals with the intent to manufacture a controlled sub-stance.”

According to a Beeville Police

Department investigator, Ramirez, also known as George Steven Ponce, also known as George Acosta, also known as James Cosa, also known as George Steven Guerra and also known as George Ponce, was caught with pseudoephedrine on

Feb. 13.

The chemical is the active ingredient in methamphetamine. It is strictly controlled by state law, and adults must show identification to purchase over-the-

By Jason CollinsBee-Picayune staff

County leaders are in what they describe as a no-win situ-ation following a ban on the flying the Confederate battle flag by those renting the Expo Center.

They cannot make everyone

happy, and, ultimately, it could end up in court despite the county attorney assuring them their actions were within legal bounds.

Nothing as of yet has been filed, although Judge David Silva said this was possible.

It is a position that is not unique to this county.

“We don’t know the specifics of this case, but people have a constitutional right to free speech, even offensive or rac-ist speech. In our view, the best answer to offensive speech is not government restriction,

but more speech,” said Tom Hargis, director of communica-tions, American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.

During their Sept. 23 court meeting, when the ban occurred, commissioners were told that the order was legal.

Mike Knight, county attor-ney, said, “That is fine if the court wants that in the con-tract. You simply need to vote on that issue....”

The ban passed three to two. Silva along with Commissioners

Oil field blasts close parts of Hwy. 80

Confederate flag ban could go to court

S-TISD facing financial strife


SKIDMORE – School trustees were given news Monday that Skidmore-Tynan ISD is strapped for cash and is having difficulty finding funds to pay for needed repairs and anticipated technol-ogy installations due to recent budget cuts.

No total dollar amount was pre-sented during their meeting, but school officials listed everything from a leaking roof at the high school to safety concerns for the stadium bleachers and even digi-tal projectors that sit in boxes

because funds are lacking to com-plete installation.

This news comes on the heals of an adopted tax rate lower than school leaders recommended and a budget $2.5 million less than they anticipated. The adopted tax rate saved residents of the school district 15 cents from last year.

Trustee Troy Hughes, after hearing the list of concerns, said, “We have the option to borrow money against our fund balance and then adjust our tax rate next year since we didn’t do it this year.

Man with five aliases faces charge of cooking meth

GILLETT – Emergency workers responded to the scene of a reported oil field explosion in Gillett on Tuesday, Oct. 8, at around 4:45 a.m.

One man was injured with second or third degree burns and was transported by Methodist AirCare helicopter to the San Antonio Military Medical Center for treat-ment to his injuries. The man is 38-years-old and a resident of Gonzales.

Contributed photo

Fire burns brightly in the early morning hours Tuesday fol-lowing an explosion at this oil field in Gillett. One man was airlifted to a San Antonio hospital with second and third degree burns.

Jason Collins photo

S-TISD board President James Bennett, left, and Superintendent Dr. Bret Belmarez discuss how to handle what school adminis-trators are calling a shortfall of funds this year. Trustees cut the tax rat and, therefore, the budget in September.

Contributed photo

One man was burned in an oil field related explosion that also closed a part of Highway 80 in Gillett.

(See Ramirez, 6A)

(See Fire, 6A)

(See Confederate, 3A)

(See S-TISD, 11A)

Jason Collins photo

Carol Estes, S-TISD business manager, expresses concerns about the financial situation of the district.


Photos for illustration purposes only.

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Carlos Salazar and Eloy Rodriguez voted in favor of the ban.

Commissioners Dennis DeWitt and Ken Haggard voted against it.

This comes up now because in just over a week, residents will gath-er for Western Week — which includes a barbe-cue cook-off.

Rodriguez said that he received a call after last year’s celebration that one of the competitors was flying the Confederate flag. That group was also flying at least four other flags, including the U.S. and Texas flags.

“The flying of the Confederate battle flag or similar flags, including the Texas Confederate flag, has no place in our society,” Rodriguez said during that meeting.


Silva said that he knows this issue is far from over.

He said it could even go to court — if some-one files suit against the county over the issue.

In July, the Associated Press reported that Lexington’s ban on the flying of the Confederate flag on city light poles does not violate a heri-tage group’s right of free speech, a federal appeals court ruled.

“The Sons of Confederate Veterans had challenged the ordi-nance, saying it violated its constitutional rights and violated a 20-year-old court order when it enacted the ordinance in September 2011,” AP reported.

The appeals court panel said that, while the First Amendment guarantees free speech in a public forum, it “does not guar-antee access to proper-ty simply because it is owned or controlled by the government.”

Last year, Hays High School board members issued a ban on the flag anywhere on district property.

The board previously removed the flag from the “home of the Mighty Rebels” 12 years prior.

The school’s superin-tendent, Jeremy Lyon, told reporters, “You can debate it endlessly as to what the meaning of the Confederate flag is. I do have a great respect for history, but the reality is that it’s a racially insensi-tive symbol.”

Also in 2012, Ben Jones, one of the stars of the hit television show “The Dukes of Hazzard,” began waging a war of words with NASCAR after they banned the General Lee from Phoenix International Raceway because the car’s rooftop Confederate flag.

“It’s political correct-ness run amuck, and I’m outraged,” Jones told Fox News.

This past Saturday, hundreds gathered along I-95, just south of Richmond, for the raising of the Stars and Bars.

The Virginia Flaggers erected the 10-by-15-foot flag atop a 50-foot flag-pole.

The group says the goal is to “remind drivers of our honorable Confederate history and heritage.”

Knight said that Bee County’s policy was in line with what is permis-sible.

“We do control the use of that property subject to the other laws of the land,” he said.

Maintaining a balance between free speech and fair use is not always easy.

“This court, in its dis-cretion, sits to balance those,” he said.

Silva said that he rec-ognizes the historical sig-nificance of the flag.

“The Confederate flag is part of who we are,” he said. However, its use by hate groups has altered its meaning for so many that allowing it to be displayed would not be appropriate.


Confederate flag ban discussion part of nationwide trend(Continued from 1A)

Flag’s use by hate groups has altered its meaning.

— David Silva, county judge

No one was around Saturday morning when this photo was taken of the Beeville Independent School District’s one-time administration offic-es. The movers were ready to haul off the build-ing, a piece at a time. However, most of the structure was gone by Sunday evening. The

district sometime back moved its administra-tive offices to the corner of Bowie and North St. Mary’s streets. This property is located where North Washington and North St. Mary’s streets meet just west of the Walmart Supercenter.

MOving dAy

gary Kent photo

More on flags Editor:

Regardless of anyone’s particular opinion of the Confederate flag, I think it should make all of us uncomfortable when a local government entity decides to tell us what flags and symbols we can display. While I am sure that the county com-missioners had the best intentions with this ban, I am personally opposed to the idea that they, or any other governmental body, has any business deciding what flags are acceptable to fly in this county.

I would have been much more impressed with our local govern-ment had they sought to protect the rights of anyone expressing an unpopular (but perfectly legal) message. Their job isn’t to ban things they think are unpopular, but to represent the interests and rights of their con-stituents, even those who they might not agree with personally. Kenneth Bethune

Political correctness decision absurd Editor:

I was greatly dis-turbed about the decision reached by three mem-bers of a five-member Commissioners Court to ban the Confederate flag. This is another example of absurd political cor-rectness, and why should their opinion affect the entire population of the county?

The Confederate flag has every bit as much right as the Mexican flag to be seen in Bee County; especially considering Mexico’s history in Texas. Bee County has seen fit to celebrate Mexican holi-days every year and yet have decided that a flag that has deep significance to this part of the South should not be seen. That is just petty and arbi-trary, and I hope coming elections will solve that problem. Yours truly,Charley Dorsey

Wonderful coverage Editor:

I am writing to express appreciation for Bill Clough’s nice feature on my recent success in the “Wildlife in Focus” photo competition. While I worked hard and over-came obstacles in achiev-ing that success, nothing happens in a vacuum. I therefore wish to thank some folks who were and are important to me in my photography endeav-ors, as well as in my life.

Were it not for the men-torship and enthusiasm of lifelong friend Jimmy Jackson, I likely would not have embraced photogra-phy to the extent I have today. From examples set by his own fantastic photography, to his tute-lage on bird species and behavior, explanations as to what constitutes a truly special photo and

time spent with me in the field, he has infused my approach to photography with much substance and style. To him I remain ever grateful. Jimmy also took the inset photo of me that appeared in last week’s feature.

In terms of the photo contest, I wish to extend special thanks to Sylvia Garcia-Smith. I will never forget her generosity in readily lending insights from her experience with the contest, and explain-ing nuances of rules and other facets of the com-petition. Any time I was discouraged or confused, Sylvia provided direction and guidance; her ongo-ing support and encour-agement set her apart as a true and noble friend, then and now.

Once again, I greatly appreciate the wonderful coverage provided by the Bee-Picayune.Regards, Cissy Beasley

Slamming BISD does not helpEditor:

As a teacher in Beeville ISD, I feel I must speak up. In a recent article in the Bee-Picayune, a “Tea Party” member talked about Beeville’s failing schools. I am not sure how many classrooms Mr. Keeney has taught in BISD; I have taught 25 years. I am here to tell you our schools are not failing. We have some of the best teachers and administrators in the state. These people work hard every day educating the children of Beeville and making sure they are productive citizens.

To make a claim that businesses will not come to Beeville because our schools are failing is sim-ply a ridiculous statement to make. People saying our schools are failing will keep business away.

I not only work for BISD, I graduated from BISD, my children gradu-ated from BISD, and I am glad to be able to say that. I, for one, am tired of hearing such comments; tearing down our schools does not and will not help anything. We have our fair share of challenges, yet we are making great strides to overcome them all.

To Mr. Martinez, if you would like to run for a seat on the board of BISD to help with these challenges and make our schools even better, I say “bring it on.” To all BISD employees — staff, teach-ers and administrators — I salute you all. Job well done!John Johnson6th-grade teacherTeach Loud, Learn Proud!

BCA thanksEditor:

On behalf of the Beeville Concert Association, I would like to thank the many talented local musi-cians and dancers who made our opening con-cert a huge success. We

appreciate all the time and effort you so gener-ously shared with us — the audience loved your performances!

A special thanks to James and Kathy Taylor, whose amazing and pro-fessional young dancers from the Dance Studio delighted everyone, and to Dr. Jim Lee and Jeff Brewer, who directed the excellent Beeville Community Chorus in the grand finale to our program.

We encourage everyone to check the community events calendar at mySou-Tex.com and/or www.Facebook.com/Beeville ConcertAssociation to be sure you don’t miss any of our great upcoming con-certs.Kay PastBCA President

No, banning the Confederate flag is probably not legalEditor:

The First Amendment is one of the most con-tentious amendments of the U.S. Constitution and often misunderstood. Every political sign, every Facebook comment, bum-per sticker and even this publication depend on the sanctity and robustness created by its confines. It is in defense of this cor-nerstone of liberty that compels action to speak in its behalf.

Most recently, the county commissioners have voted to ban the dis-play of the Confederate battle flag from Expo Center grounds, directly touching upon the protec-tions offered by the First Amendment. While their motives may be laudable, due to the violence they present to free speech I feel them to be misguided.

Being a contentious amendment has one ben-efit: the Supreme Court has often decided juris-prudence as it relates to this amendment to provide guidance as to its confines. Absent an exception to the First Amendment protections, any such action under-taken by the commission-ers to restrict said speech would be unlawful.

As with all rights, exceptions do exist that allow those rights to be restricted in narrow cir-

cumstances. It appears that the county commis-sioners were relying on a few of these instances in support of this decision. I do not believe these apply, however.

The “fighting words” exception only applies when there is an imme-diate danger of violence or if a reasonable per-son would be compelled to violence. The fact that the Confederate flag has been displayed in prior years without incident calls such a justification into question.

Next, contained in the contract to utilize the Expo Center is specific language which bans certain displays which the commissioners deem inappropriate. This provi-sion runs afoul of what the Supreme Court calls “unbridled discretion.” Simply put, this tenant provides that any provi-sion that allows full dis-cretion to state actors is unconstitutional as it cre-ates a chilling effect on speech.

The final justification alluded to was that of the limitations of the First Amendment in schools. In the cases that create this exception, the Supreme Court was very clear this exception only applies due to the special nature of the learning environment and is limited to schools. The Expo Center is not a school, and those partici-pating in the cook-off are not children (though such a prohibition calls into question what some com-missioners might think of their voters).

While there is some question as to if the Civil War was fought over slavery or states’ rights, I believe the legality of this provision is not in question. I understand why the commissioners chose to ban such display and empathize with those who take offense to the flying of the battle flag. Although I choose not to fly the flag for these rea-sons privately, I cannot join the public ban due to the curtailment of indi-vidual liberty it would entail. Indeed, it is the responsibility and duty of every citizen to speak out and protect the rights of those with whom they may disagree. Respectfully, Tres Beck


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Where’s the reason?Editor:

Someone once said (paraphrased): “Those who fail to learn from his-tory are doomed to repeat it.”

Case in point: the con-troversy regarding the Confederate battle flag.

The Bee-Pic editorial appearing in the Sept. 28 issue was arguably one of the finest examples of a measured response to inflammatory rhetoric. Jeff Latcham ended the editorial with a call for reason and unity.

Fast forward to the Bee-Pic issue of Oct. 5. One of our county commission-ers had the audacity to claim that Latinos and blacks are victims of the misinformed, insensitive Anglos. (What happened to reason and unity?)

Well, here we go again. We’re witnessing Chicago Politics 101 as champi-oned by Saul Alinsky. When your radical ideas fail to gain a fol-lowing, you attack your opponents, resorting to character assassination, intimidation and playing the race card.

Sad to say, we’ve come to expect this disease of vicious and pathetic pos-turing from our politi-cians in Washington, D.C. Now, it would appear that our Bee County Commissioners Court has been similarly infected.

Martin Luther King Jr. prayed that (para-phrased): “We be judged by the quality of our char-acter, not the color of our skin.”

Let’s pray that the character, words and actions of our Bee County Commissioners Court and our beloved United States of America will, one day,

reflect Martin Luther King Jr.’s “dream.”Daniel G. Winters

Flag thoughts from a veteranEditor:

I am a 20-year U.S. Navy veteran. I gave 20 years of my life to pre-serve the right of people in this country to have their freedom of speech. I support that with all of my heart. Whether I agree, disagree or stand indifferent for the cause.

However, I have noticed that most of the letters against the ban of the Confederate flags at the Expo Center are by people who have probably never felt the twinge of being treated differently because of the color of their skin.

I volunteered to take a flight to Paducah, Ky., one time because a ship-mate of mine from that town was being honored for his service to our country. My crew and I went to the ceremony at the local VFW. We were sitting around a table and music started to play. I love to dance. Anyone that knows me knows that I love to dance. One of my crew members was a pretty blond-haired, blue-eyed young lady. I asked her to dance and we went out to the dance floor. We were there not more than a minute when I felt someone grab me by the arm and spin me around. All I heard was

a gruff voice saying, “We don’t like your kind danc-ing with our women” and then I heard the distinc-tive click of a switchblade knife being opened.

A lot of thoughts went through my head at that instance. Luckily for me, my other crew members grabbed this guy and pulled him away before he could cut me. I was grabbed by a few other people in there and was not so politely escorted out of the building. As I was walking out the door there was the Rebel Confederate flag flying proudly in the corner of the room. The crew member that was being honored came to me and apologized but he told me that I couldn’t go back in and I had to wait in the car until they were fin-ished and then we could leave. So I sat there in the car by myself for over an hour fuming and mad but without recourse unless I wanted to get hurt, dis-cretion being the better part of valor. I remember that like it was yesterday; it was in the late ’70s.

I understand the his-torical significance of both Confederate flags. It is the Rebel Confederate flag that is used by many as a racial symbol that can be disturbing to some. It has been banned by many organizations including churches, schools, cities, businesses and others in many parts of this coun-try. To those of the great-est generation ever, it is

no different than flying a German flag with a swas-tika which would not be tolerated by most who are writing these letters of support. I would like to think that includes my good friend Smokey.

Having told my story I stress that I am a strong supporter of free-dom of speech. Much like the gentleman who flew the American flags upside down in protest recently it was his right to do so. We as veterans didn’t like it but it was his right to do so on his own personal property. You want to fly the Rebel Confederate flag on your personal property, that is your business. Fly it on your bike, your bar, your home or your RV... that is your right and I support you. However, there are places where flying that flag is inappropriate. Our churches, our schools, our government build-ings, including the Expo Center, are just a few.

I suspect that the majority of the people writing the letters of support understand the racial symbolism of the Rebel Confederate flag but until you have felt the hatefulness, the hurt, the disgusting feeling you get in the pit of your stomach because you are told you can’t do something sim-ply because of the color of your skin, you will never truly UNDERSTAND! Let’s not allow that in our community.Armando Musquez

Beeville Bee-Picayune Saturday, Oct. 12, 2013 Page 5A

$5,000 REWARDfor information leading to the arrest and conviction

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to make an anonymous tip @ 362-0206 or 877-362-0206www.coastalbendcrimestoppers.com



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The Bee-Picayune wel-comes letters to the editor. Anyone wishing to submit a letter for publication may do so, provided that his/her name, address and telephone number is included. It is our longstanding policy not to accept or run unsigned let-ters. All others, provided they are authenticated, pertinent to the community’s interests, not libelous, not self-promo-tional in lieu of purchasing legitimate advertising, or overly lengthy, may be run on a space-available basis as determined by the editor. All letters must be no lon-ger than two, double-spaced, typewritten pages (or 500 words) and may be subject to editing. E-mail can be sent to [email protected].


Lack of action could leave rural Texas in the dustBy Austin Brown IIISpecial to the Bee-Picayune

A recent announcement by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to start converting asphalt roads to gravel has a lot of ranchers worried. Safe and well-maintained farm-to-mar-ket and rural-ranch roads are the lifeline of the Texas cattle industry, and I fear this proposal could leave us literally in the dust.

It’s easy to put all the blame on TxDOT for this predicament. We are all aware of the issues land-owners have experienced with our state’s transportation department over the years. But, I’ll go out on a limb here and say they aren’t solely to blame.

During the third and final spe-cial session of the 2013 Texas Legislature, lawmakers finally passed legislation to help fund TxDOT. That’s a good thing because, as you well know, our state population is growing rap-idly. This means more vehicles on all of our roads.

What’s bad is the legislation fell billions of dollars short of the funds needed to maintain the roads we have. What’s more, it forced

TxDOT to make $100 million in cuts. The legislation also called for a constitutional amendment to be passed by Texas voters to initiate much of the funding, but this elec-tion will not occur until 2014.

TxDOT needs more money. Finding this money is the hard part.

With a lack of necessary dollars, TxDOT has only three choices. They

can do nothing to those rural roads that are in need of major repairs. They can fully pave and repair a select few roads and do nothing to the others. Or they can stretch their dollar as far as they can and temporarily turn those deteriorat-ing paved roads into gravel roads. This would make them slightly safer in the short term, but is still not a long-term solution.

At this point TxDOT has opted for the third choice. The roads they’ve initially proposed to con-vert to gravel are in four counties in South Texas and two counties in West Texas, totaling around 85 miles. These roads are in such bad shape because thousands of trucks travel them due to the oil and gas boom in these areas.

Maybe the oil and gas industry should share in the costs to help maintain these roads.

The oil and gas industry is impor-tant to the Texas economy, and we need to work with this economic engine to keep it thriving. That means taking care of the roads that allow them to produce and trans-port their product.

(See Brown, 6A)

Austin Brown III

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SUNSATFRITHU SPORTS

•Confederateflagisfinetoflyoncountyproperty

LAtestonLinevideo

Inside: Report details good news of well at park. Page 12AObits: Alvarez, Dieringer, Garcia, Rodriguez, Rozell. Page 2A

Vol. 127 — No. 49 Beeville, Texas Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2013 Three Sections, 40 Pages 75¢

Confederate flag can flyBy Jason CollinsBee-Picayune staff

BEEVILLE – County com-missioners said at Monday’s meeting that they will only pro-hibit the Confederate flag from being flown on the county flag-poles at the Expo Center.

Those wanting to display it in the parking lot or at any

booth can do so.

Their words though are different in the agreement approved for those wanting to use the Expo Center grounds.

“Bee County commissioners and/ or Expo Center management reserves the right to reject any offensive language or displays, including

the Confederate flag, or other offensive flags, banners, posters, signs, etc., that it feels are inappropriate or offensive and will not (be) permitted to

be displayed at any part of the Expo grounds during any and all events,” the new clause in the Expo Center rental

— just not on county flagpole

COWgirl up

The Western Week pageant Saturday kicked off this year’s celebration. Events continue Thursday starting at 7 p.m. near the downtown depot pavilion. Along with a 5K run/walk, there will be a youth boot scramble and high heel races along with music. Friday afternoon, the Expo Center opens with a carni-

val, music, magic show and a variety of booths. Saturday is a full day of events at the Expo Center including a pro bull riding at 7 p.m. Shown above dancing during the pageant are Teresa Trevino, in front, and Arianna Calero. More photos and a list of pageant winners on Page 3A.

S-TISD leader’s fate in question

Hair-raising chase ends with three in custody

(See County, 11A)


BEEVILLE – Three Mexican nationals ended up in the custody of the U.S. Border Patrol Saturday morning after a hair-raising chase on U.S. Highway 59 east of the city.

At times, Patrolman Jared Moore said, vehi-

cles involved in the chase topped 100 miles per hour as they sped from East Houston Street to the other side of Berclair.

Moore said it was about 7:30 a.m. when he spot-ted a 1999 Toyota Four Runner going east on Houston Street.


SKIDMORE – Trustees at Skidmore-Tynan ISD have called a special meet-ing for Thursday to dis-cuss, among other items, the dismissal or resigna-tion of the superintendent.

The superintendent has been in the spotlight recently after making alle-gations that the board was meeting illegally. He also claimed whistle-blower protection.

Thursday’s meeting begins at 5 p.m. in the school’s special events cen-ter board room.

“As the superintendent of schools in Skidmore-Tynan ISD, I can and very well may be subject

to attempted retaliation by my employer for mak-ing this report,” Belmarez

Belmarez

(See S-TISD, 11A)

(See Chase, 10A)

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agreement reads.Commissioner Eloy

Rodriguez, who voted in favor of the original ban and helped craft its wording, said after this week’s meeting, “I think that needs to be changed.”

“If individuals have it on their cars or at their stands — I am not saying that is appropri-ate — but I can live with it.”

Rodriguez, during this week’s meeting, also said, “We are not asking for a complete ban. In fact, we don’t need that flagpole in the back. I think we can just get rid of it.

“I respect the nonviolent side of the Confederate flag,” Rodriguez continued. “I respect the Confederate soldiers that fought under it.

“The nonviolent history of the Confederate flag is a good history.”

It’s the hate groups that give the flag a negative image, he said, citing one report that said more than 500 racist groups use it as their symbol.

“It is not the nonviolent his-tory I am opposing. I support the soldiers that fought under this flag but not what it sym-bolizes now.”

Commissioner Carlos Salazar said during Monday’s meeting, “All this court meant... when we said we wanted to restrict the Confederacy battle flag is on our flagpole.

“If you have a stand out

there... you can fly any flag you want to.”

Rodriguez, who also voted in favor of the ban, echoed Salazar’s comments during the meeting, saying, “The flag that was being objected to was a full size flag that was being raised on the flagpole. Not only was it being hoisted on the flagpole, but there was a gun show going along with it, and people were offended.”

Rodriguez commented Monday that the people plac-ing flags on their cars or having smaller flags flying was fine.

However, during the Sept. 23 session, his words were dif-ferent.

“The flying of the Confederate flag cannot be morally defend-ed by anyone...

“The flag certainly has no place on Bee County property.”

All of this sparked some concern about the upcoming Western Week Celebration which, while it has nothing to do with the issue at hand, could have become a political battle-ground.

Reagan Scott, who is helping organize Western Week and the barbecue cook-off for the Bee County Area Go Texan group, said during the September meeting that he was fearful that the court’s action could have a negative effect on the celebration.

“Our main concern is there is going to be a political back-lash at our event based on the Confederate flag or lack there-of, of its beliefs or not.

“What we don’t want to do

is hamper our organization or this event.”

Rodriguez, also during that September meeting, said that he would accept the political backlash.

“If there is a political back-lash, that is fine,” he said then. “I would rather have that than a human backlash.

“By us voting to allow this flag, or those voting to on this board, it is going to represent you as a racist.”

This Monday, however, he said that he had hoped the banning of the Confederate flag would have brought the com-munity together.

“I think I was trying to unite, in my own way, not divide the community,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez, like other com-

missioners, said that he has heard from people concerned about the county’s stance.

“I have had friends on both sides of the issue,” he said.

“I think what I was seeing is they were concerned that we were taking away their First Amendment rights.”

Interestingly, the whole issue was actually a moot point as the group who did the display that sparked the discussion had agreed not to do it this year — before commissioners even took their vote on the issue dur-ing that September meeting.

Scott said, “I know that orga-nization, and I asked them to make a concession, and they agreed to do things differently.”


County leaders say that Confederate flag is allowed at Expo(Continued from 1A)

‘All this court meant... when we said we wanted to restrict the Confederacy battle flag is on our flag-pole. If you have a stand out there... you can fly any flag you want to.’— Carlos Salazar, commissioner

writes in a letter dated Sept. 30 to District Attorney Jose Aliseda.

Belmarez declined to comment specifically about the agenda, saying only that “we are continu-ing to fulfill the mission of providing a great edu-cational program for our young people. The focus continues to be on the educational process and its improvement.”

Details about the agen-da items were not avail-able Tuesday.

However, items on it appear to connect with issues discussed in prior meetings.

Following a four-hour

executive session last week, trustees unani-mously approved an investigation into allega-tions made by the super-intendent.

“I move the board authorize the board presi-dent and legal counsel to proceed with retaining an appropriate person to con-duct an investigation of allegations made by the superintendent in accor-dance with board policy DIA local,” Trustee Troy Hughes said during that meeting.

DIA local, according to information on the dis-trict’s website, deals with employee welfare and freedom from discrimi-nation, harassment and

retaliation.Included in Thursday’s

agenda is the decision by the board to take action on the status of the inves-tigation.

Also included are the items specifically dealing with the employment of the superintendent.

• Consider and take possible action regarding resignation agreement with the superintendent

• Consider and take possible action regarding administrative leave for superintendent

• Consider and take possible action regarding proposed termination of superintendent

• Consider and take

possible action regard-ing appointment of acting superintendent.

For the past several meetings, the board has also had items relating to the superintendent on its agenda.

About a month ago, trustees met on a Friday afternoon to discuss “matters of employment of the superintendent of schools.”

After a 2 1/2-hour exec-utive session, the board returned from behind closed doors.

Trustees simply voted to “authorize legal counsel to proceed as discussed in closed meeting.”

Earlier this year,

Belmarez reported that he believed the board had met illegally.

In the letter to the dis-trict attorney, released as part of the open records request, Belmarez writes, “Please understand that there are not just spe-cific events, but a pattern that should be examined to reveal an ongoing vio-lation pattern using new technologies. The method-ology for these violations of the act mostly involves using new technologies that are deceptive and inventive. It is as if they can only be planned and organized by one who is trained and skilled in the art of deception.”

The letter alleges that a

quorum of trustees met to discuss school issues that should be talked about only during a posted, pub-lic board meeting.

According to the letter, “When these combined meetings are held in a manner that is the same as an ongoing board meet-ing, there is no written notice of the date, hour, place and subject of the meeting in order to make the meeting open to the public.”

Board President James Bennett declined com-ment on these issues because of the investiga-tion.


(Continued from 1A)

S-TISD trustees will discuss fate of superintendent

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Council postpones action on engineering for utility projects By Gary KentBee-Picayune staff

BEEVILLE – City Council members post-poned taking any action on two utility-related items on last week’s agen-da until they can deter-mine whether the proj-ects will require action by a registered engineering firm.

One was for the prepa-ration of plans and speci-fications for an emer-gency generator at the Moore Street Wastewater Treatment Plant, and the other was for the prepara-tion of specifications for repairing and painting elevated water storage tanks within the city.

Water Superintendent Cesario Vela said he pre-pared the specifications for both types of projects

for municipal govern-ments in Portland and Weslaco while working in those cities.

He said he was able to accomplish those jobs without the services of an engineer.

“I’m just trying to save the city money,” Vela said.

Engineer Stephen Grunewald of Urban Engineering in Corpus Christi recommended that the council table the agenda items until he could determine whether the state requires a regis-tered engineer to sign off on the specifications.

Vela said he did not think the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality would require an engi-neer for either project.

Council members sug-gested they would like to save money on the proj-ects, if possible. But they wanted to make sure the state would allow the projects to be prepared for bidders without the assistance of an engineer.

Previously, the coun-cil voted to pay Urban $8,500 for the firm’s preparation of plans and specifications on sidewalk renovations downtown. That was to be paid out of the Beeville Main Street budget.

The council also agreed to pay Urban $99,750 for engineering work performed by the com-pany on an irrigation well recently drilled at Veterans Memorial Park.

Rains fill Lake CC almost to capacityBy Gary KentBee-Picayune staff

Lake Corpus Christi was at 92.8 percent of capacity Tuesday morn-ing, according to the City of Corpus Christi’s report.

That is an increase of 75.5 percent when com-pared to the 17.3 percent figure reported on the same day in 2012.

It is the best news the Coastal Bend has had after about three years of drought.

However, the situa-tion at the Choke Canyon Reservoir is not as rosy.

The level of that lake was reported at 36.1 per-cent at the same time. That is down consider-ably from the 51 percent level reported on this day last year.

Most of the rainfall that

ended up in Lake Corpus Christi was on the Nueces River watershed.

Choke Canyon Reservoir is fed by the Frio River.

Still, the increase in the level at Lake Corpus Christi is positive news for several municipali-ties in the Coastal Bend which depend on the lake for their water.

Currently, Beeville pumps all its municipal water from the Nueces River at the headwaters of Lake Corpus Christi.

The extended drought has led to serious consid-eration of alternate water sources in the city, all centered on using wells.

Voters overwhelmingly rejected a bond issue in May that would have pro-vided $15.3 million for

the city to build a reverse osmosis plant and drill wells in the Evangeline and Jasper aquifers.

Water from the deeper Jasper aquifer is saltier and contains more dis-solved solids.

Although a recent report from an employee of Urban Engineering confirmed that water from the shallower Evangeline aquifer would meet the drinking water standards of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, water from the Jasper would need to be filtered by an RO plant.

The concern is that the Jasper offers an almost unlimited supply of water.

The Evangeline does not have as much avail-able water.

Confederate flags fly at Western Week eventBy Jason CollinsBee-Picayune staff

BEEVILLE – County leaders stating that the ban on the Confederate flag was a misunder-standing seemed to quell much of the public outcry.

But not all.A few flags could be

seen on booths at Western Week and in the barbecue competition area.

Nick Bauer, who owns Beeville Armory, was one of those who flew the flag at his barbecue area “to express our support of your constitutional rights...

“I don’t care if you don’t believe what we believe or I don’t believe what you believe.

“You have the right to believe that in this coun-ty.

“You have the right to express it, and that is why we fly the flag.”

The controversy was initially sparked because of a Confederate battle flag being flown on the Expo Center flagpole dur-ing the Western Week barbecue cook-off.

Commissioner Eloy Rodriguez brought it to the attention of the other county leaders, saying that he had received a

complaint about it.By a vote of three to

two, the court issued a ban on the flag’s being flown on the property.

“Bee County commis-sioners and/ or Expo Center management reserves the right to reject any offensive language or displays, including the Confederate flag, or other offensive flags, banners, posters, signs, etc., that it feels are inappropriate or offensive and will not (be) permitted to be dis-played at any part of the Expo grounds during any and all events,” the new clause in the Expo Center rental agreement reads.

About two weeks ago, commissioners said that they never meant for this to be an all-out ban on the Confederate flag. Instead, they only meant on the flagpole owned by the county.

Commissioner Carlos

Salazar said during that meeting, “All this court meant... when we said we wanted to restrict the Confederacy battle flag is on our flagpole.

“If you have a stand out there... you can fly any flag you want to.”

Kirk D. Lyons, with Southern Legal Resource

Center, said that the lan-guage in the contract still needs to be changed.

In a letter to the editor, he writes, “But, happy as we are with the outcome of this serendipitous event, the illegal Expo contract language remains on the books.”

Donnie Schmidt, bar-becuer with the Hole in the Wall Gang, said that he has been participating in the cooking competi-tion as part of Western Week for years. It was his group that hoisted the flag which sparked the issue.

“I was recruited here back in the ’80s to take the flag down and put the flag up. I did it as a favor to the people running this thing,” he said. “We have been doing it ever since.”

Even prior to the meet-ing that banned the flag, Schmidt said that he agreed to discontinue the group’s tradition.

“It is that tradition that has been carried on since the ’70s when this thing (once known as the ‘South’s Gonna Rise Again Chili Cook-off’) started, and we continued it,” he said.

“(Someone) decided it ought not be here.

“So, when they called me, and I said, ‘You peo-ple live there. You tell me want you want me to do, and I will do it.’”

It could have ended there as the flag was not going to be raised, but it didn’t.

Gary Kent photo

Higher water levels in the Nueces River have brought in and floated existing logs and other debris that had been sitting high and dry for two or more years now. Water running into Lake Corpus Christi has submerged the openings in the Beeville Water Supply District’s raw water intake struc-ture and boosted the level of water in Lake Corpus Christi.

Paul Gonzales photo

County commissioners say that Confederate battle flags like this one are acceptable during events at the Expo Center. Their objec-tion is to this flag being raised on the county-owned flagpole. Their contract, for events like the recently held Western Week, says it slightly differently.

Barbara Treviño, who had been given the temporary appointment to the posi-tion six weeks ago.

Treviño had agreed to take on the position for only two weeks, but it had taken the council longer to find candi-dates who could potentially replace her until a long-term city manager could be hired.

Townsend comes to the position with considerable experience. He was city manager in Corpus Christi from the late 1960s until 1982. He then served as the city manager of Laredo until 1989.

In 1990, Townsend went to work with the Texas Municipal League’s Intergovernmental Risk Pool. He stayed

in that position until last year.Townsend is semi-retired. He will

start the job Monday morning.Council members also approved a

contract with Texas First.Before going into execution session,

the council voted to amend the contract with Roland Berrera, who oversees the city’s health insurance program.

Barrera will see his monthly stipend increase from $400 to $1,300, as agreed earlier.

That move came after Director of Finance Caron Vela assured the council that the increase had been included in this fiscal year’s budget.

Gary Kent is a reporter at the Bee-Picayune and can be reached at 358-2550, ext. 120, or at [email protected].

Townsend replaces Treviño as interim city manager(Continued from 1A)

Donnie Schmidt, barbecuer with the

Hole in the Wall Gang

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