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Issue 589
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July 30, 2015
Around The Island By Dale Rankin editor@islandmoon.com
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Offshore Rig Moves into Harbor Island
New Island Fire Station Will Need Voter Approval By Dale Rankin
About the time our last issue hit the streets the city’s water system hit the chop.
Proposed Location of Island Fire Staion
It wasn’t the prohibition on drinking the tap water. The fact is that most people who have lived on The Island very long don’t drink the tap water anyway, and heck, it’s the weekend we got beer! But the boil water order that resulted from contaminated water in Flour Bluff lasted until Saturday evening and meant that ice from Island icemakers could not be used over the weekend. Anyone who has spent a weekend on The Island in July knows that few things are as discombobulating as having no ice. It just ain’t right. It throws everything way off track. The ice trucks were busy making emergency runs to Island stores even as we Islanders kept our ears glued to the AM radio checking to see if there was a palace coup at city hall because it felt like we were in a third world country where governments come and go according to fortune and firepower; if there was in fact a new ruling junta we needed to know who to make the next round of checks out to. So we spent the weekend trying to find the right-sized containers for freezing boiled water in our refrigerators; it turns out plastic water containers work great and once the boil order is lifted you can throw them into the pool to cool it off. Maybe we should send that one to Heloise. Then on Saturday night we were at Cancun when a crawl came across the television screen announcing the water was safe and the boil order was lifted. A cheer went up from the crowd until someone said, “Hey wait, that was channel K%&? You better check one of the others to see if it’s true!�
This rescue pumper truck is one of the vehicles that would be permanently stationed at the Island fire station.
Port Aransas residents now have a new neighbor as this drilling platform was moved in this week for storage at Harbor Island by the Canyon Port – Harbor Island Group which is using the site to provide deep-water port facilities for operations in the Gulf of Mexico. The company has been using the site to store fracking sand for drilling in the Eagle-Ford Shale Formation. The site is 219 acres with 3700 feet of bulkheads adjacent to the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. Recent renovations include extensive bulkhead repairs with an enhanced new whaler system, new fender
bumper system, bulkhead cap repair/ replacement, sheet pile reinforcement and enhanced mooring. Land based improvements consist of repair/replacement of site drainage system, additional site stabilization, repurposing of existing warehouses, complete renovation of all buildings on site, and upgrade of onsite utilities including main water supply lines and underground power. Port Aransas City Manager of 1 David 1 Parsons said while the city is monitoring noise and light emanating from the site the company is in compliance with all city permits and ordinances.
Island Water “Not Likely� Effected by Pollution City says Flour Bluff wells suspected as source of problem. “Not a system failure, a rogue property owner�
So Sunday afternoon we Islanders sat in the weekly traffic jam to go OTB and buy filters for our icemakers, only to find out that by the time we got OTB they were sold out! Dang‌
If reminded us of the Flood Advisory we got a few months ago because it was raining in Alice. If rain in the flatlands around Alice causes flooding on The Island we won’t need an advisory folks, we’re going to need an ark! This is the time of year when the Weather guys can record their forecast for the month; “Hot in the morning, then hotter in the afternoon with continued hotness until October. Wind picks up in the afternoon. Chance of rain took the night train out of town, and if it does happen to rain for more than ten minutes run! Hurricane! We can’t help but think of our old friend Al Sleet the Hippy Dippy Weatherman who told his viewers, “Tomorrow we will have a Canadian Low‌not to be confused with a Mexican High.â€?
Island fireworks show Next year will mark the fourth year for the Island Blast Fourth of July Fireworks Show and even though it is still a long way off organizer Jerry Watkins is already thinking ahead. Next year the 4th is on a Monday, the question is whether to have the
Around continued on A3
The new station, at the corner of Beach Access Road #6 and Park Road 22 would also include a Nueces County Constable’s office and possibly a substation for the Corpus Christi Police Department. “The Nueces County Constable’s office has agreed to contribute
$35,000 for their office,� said Fire Chief Dale Scott. “We are also talking to CCPD about locating a substation there.�
The Service District, commonly referred to as the Flour Bluff Fire Department which it was prior to annexation of Flour Bluff in the 1970s, is funded by an ad valorem tax across the district which includes The Island. Voter approval in November would raise the taxes for the District from the current 3 cents per $100 of
Fire Station continued on A6
Value of City and County Property Jumps by 7%
Question now is whether Effective Tax Rate will follow suit By Dale Rankin The value of taxable property in both the City of Corpus Christi, Nueces County as a whole, and Flour Bluff Independent School District is up between six and eight percent. The largest jump is in property inside the Corpus Christi City Limits at 7.98% with Nueces County not far behind at 7:42
percent. That means if those taxing entities keep their current tax rate it will mean a tax increase in both cases of just under 8%; an tax hike which requires holding two public hearings to explain to taxpayers why the tax increase is needed, but not about the 8% tax hike level which allows voters to force a tax rollback. Both the City of Corpus Christi
Taxes continued on A3
Tax Rolls for 2015 Fiscal Year Issued Last Week by the Nueces County Appraisal District
Who knew!? For the last few days the National Weather Service has put out heat advisories for the’ Coastal Bend and Brush Country.’ We thank them for their diligence, but folks, just between us I’m not sure we needed an advisory about the heat. Watching a bald guy fry an egg on his head on the beach gave us about all the climatological data we needed.
The Island could get a new fire station complete with a full-time ambulance, brush truck, rescue pumper truck, and rescue boat if voters approve a tax increase for the Nueces County Service District #2 in November.
The work along the Island side of the JFK Causeway is part of a city project to extend the new water line recently brought to The Island. The new line is actually three lines – an eighteen inch water line, an eight inch gas line, and a four inch line for information service lines. It will extend the line, recently brought across the Laguna Madre, to the intersection of Aquarius and SPID. By Dale Rankin City staff said Tuesday that the Island water supply was “not likely� affected by the E-coli bacteria found at two water stations in Flour Bluff that caused a citywide boil order last weekend. “There are 126 registered wells, and others we don’t know about, in the vicinity of the two places where the bacteria was found,� City Manager
Ron Olson told the Corpus Christi City Council on Tuesday. “While we can’t say for certain the probability is quite high that one or more of them is the cause of the pollution.� Two of 49 water sampling points in the city tested positive for the E. coli bacteria Tuesday. After samples from the sites were incubated and retested
Water continued on A6
Police Begin Patrols in Ski Basin Will continue through Labor Day
Beginning last Sunday the Corpus Christi Police Department began the Ski Basin Marine Patrol Initiative in which Dive Team officers and Uniform Personnel will patrol the Ski Basin waterways by boat to enforce city and state laws in an area usually not accessible to law enforcement. According to CCPD, “The goal of this operation is to provide a safe atmosphere in the Ski Basin waterway through strong law enforcement
presence and diligent enforcement of offenses such as boating while intoxicated, public intoxication, drug possession, underage consumption of alcohol, intoxication assault and stem the dangerous operation of watercraft in this area.�
Police continued on A3
Editor’s note: Market value is before any exemptions or special appraisals are applied and taxable value is after those exemptions and special appraisals are applied.
The Ghosts of the Tarpon Inn By Ronnie Narmour In 2007 I moved to Port Aransas and lived at the Tarpon Inn, in the manager’s quarters at the back of the inn. At the time, Barton Simpson, a real estate magnate, owned the inn. I had worked for Bart for several years in San Antonio as General Manager of a live music venue and brew pub, The Laboratory Brewing Company. I ran into Bart one day in S.A. and one thing led to another and I agreed to move to the Tarpon Inn and help him open an upscale martini and cigar bar in the building where Roosevelt’s is today. At the time, I only knew one person in Port A, Susan Powell (Lagedrost at the time), the owner of the Back Porch Bar.
So when I blew onto the island in my U-Haul, I blew in blind. I had one friend here and hadn’t been to the island in years. By the time I got to the Tarpon, it was late and the innkeeper at the time, Dana Spinks, had left the door open in my quarters and the plan was to meet her the next morning. I had a basic knowledge of the Inn. I knew it was the oldest building on the island, established in 1886 as a barracks for Confederate troops and was built from wood salvaged from those barracks. It was
Tarpon continued on A6
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July 30, 2015
Island Moon
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H. Lancaster Co. Grand Opening at Cinnamon Shores Herb Lancaster celebrated the Grand Opening of his second location inside of the Cinnamon Shores development in Port Aransas on Friday, July 24th. H Lancaster Company offers quality, handcrafted furniture and accessories made by local artisans. Stop by and visit his new location at 5009 Highway 361 or his original store located at 260 E. Goodnight in Aransas Pass. You can also visit his website at www. hlancasterco.com Photos by Jan Rankin
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Mailbox Killer Strikes Island! He struck in the dead of night. He came in hard on the low side, that is to say the wrong side, of the road and he was moving fast. He smashed through three fences, took out two mailboxes, landscaping and a street sign, which read, "15 mph Speed Humps," The time was Monday night and the murder scene was on Hawksnest Bay, near Three Fathoms Bank Drive. Judging by the pieces he left behind it is believed the Mailbox Killer was driving a white truck or SUV. There was damage to the vehicle since one of the mailbox victims was made of stucco as seen in the photo. Aside from the body damage there was antifreeze on the pavement so there was some radiator damage to the Mailbox Killer’s vehicle. So if you know anyone who has a white truck or SUV with a smashed up front end that is running hot, you may be friends with a Mailbox Killer. No mailbox is safe until he is found.
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Sunday, August 2nd, 2015 10am-10pm
City & County Employee Appreciation Day
City/County employees & families get in free with city/county issued ID KIII-TV, Channel 3’s ‘Domingo Live’ will broadcast from the Freedom Stage, 10:30am-12pm Boogie Bahn Competition Water Volleyball Tournament Clowns at Buccaneer Bay, Lil’Skippers Cove The Travel Channel will be at Schlitterbahn Corpus Christi to film a segment of “Extreme Water Parks.” 5pm-6pm
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John Cortez Band (Blues/Jazz)
7pm-7:30pm
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7:30pm-8:30pm
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July 30, 2015
Island Moon
Letters to the Editor
Moon Monkeys Mike Ellis, Founder
Vietnam II
Distribution Pete Alsop Island Delivery Coldwell Banker Advertising Jan Park Rankin Classifieds Arlene Ritley Production Manager Jeff Craft Contributing Writers Joey Farah
Were US Navy destroyers attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats in international waters off the coast of North Vietnam in August, 1964? President LBJ said so to the American public on national television on the evening of August 4, 1964, saying there had been repeated attacks on US destroyers by North Vietnam, including a torpedo boat attack against the USS Maddox on August 2, and several torpedo boat attacks against the Maddox and another destroyer, the USS Turner Joy, on August 4, so LBJ had ordered retaliatory air strikes on North Vietnam on August 4 and was asking Congress to authorize increased military action. Defense secretary Robert Macnamara also told Congress the same thing, and said the US ships had done nothing to provoke those attacks. Macnamara denied that the US ships were in any way involved with the contemporaneous nearby attacks by South Vietnamese gunboats against North Vietnamese targets. He falsely told Congress that the US ships were merely patrolling peacefully in international waters. LBJ and Macnamara and other administration officials deliberately lied to the public and Congress, causing the Tonkin Gulf Resolution to sail through Congress on August 7, with only two Senators voting against it. That Resolution gave LBJ the green light to do whatever he chose to do in escalating the war.
Andy Purvis Devorah Fox Mary Craft Maybeth Christiansen Jay Gardner Chad Peters Todd Hunter Dotson Lewis Ronnie Narmour Brent Rourk Dr. Donna Shaver Photographers Miles Merwin Jeff Dolan Mary Craft Ronnie Narmour Office Security/Spillage Control (Emeritus)
Riley P. Dog Publisher Dale Rankin About the Island Moon
The Island Moon is published every Thursday, Dale Rankin, Editor / Publisher. Total circulation is 10,000 copies. Distribution includes delivery to 4,000 Island homes, free distribution of 3,000 copies in over 50 Padre Island businesses and condos, as well as 600 copies distributed in Flour Bluff, 1,400 copies on Mustang Island and Port Aransas businesses. News articles, photos, display ads, classified ads, payments, etc. may be left at the Moon Office.
The truth has been known and widely reported for many years. If interested, Google "Tonkin Gulf Truth". The Maddox was conducting recon and electronic signals intelligence against North Vietnam, and covering for and protecting South Vietnamese gunboats that were attacking North Vietnamese shore installations and radar sites. North Vietnamese torpedo boats were sent out on Aug. 2 against the South Vietnamese gunboats. One of the North Vietnamese torpedo boats might have fired at the Maddox, but did no harm and the US did not react. However, there were no North Vietnamese boats sent out on Aug. 4 and there were no attacks on the US ships on Aug. 4. The skipper of one of the destroyers had called for some air cover on Aug. 4 from carrier fighters on the USS Ticonderoga, even though there had been no visual or radar sightings of any North Vietnamese boats. The only "evidence" was sonar interpretations of noises in the water mistakenly believed to be torpedoes by inexperienced and over eager young sonar operators on one of the destroyers. The skipper of the fighter squadron, Cdr. Stockdale, reported that he had a bird's eye view of everything and there were no North Vietnamese boats out there on Aug. 4, and no attacks. He later questioned why the US was declaring war, the Tonkin Gulf Resolution, over something he knew did not happen. One of the articles you will see referenced in that Google search is a research study published by the US Naval Institute, US Naval History Journal, that concludes from all available data, including more recently declassified records, that there were no attacks of Aug. 4, and US officials including LBJ and Macnamara knew
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Staying hydrated reduces blood pressure; helps the body repair itself and flush out toxins; and can whip the body into shape. Drinking more water can help burn calories and get rid of that fat. And—the best part of all for teens— staying hydrated can reduce acne and other disorders! It makes the skin practically glow. The advantages of drinking water as often as possible are endless. So until our water is clean, shell out a few extra bucks and drink more… your body will love you for it. Elizabeth Clark
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It is hard for nations, at least this nation, to admit mistakes and reverse or change course. There is a compulsion to find justifications, particularly where there have been great losses and sacrifices. Recall the arguments that we cannot just declare peace and withdraw from Vietnam (or Iraq or Afghanistan or wherever) because that would dishonor our fallen comrades, we owe it to them to keep the war going until we "win"? But that is "slot machine" logic, if we just keep going, keep spending and losing more, maybe there will be some eventual payoff? That faulty logic makes these wars of choice endless quagmires. One positive development is that the US in cooperation with Vietnam is starting to do some cleanup of the Agent Orange contamination. It is a persistent herbicide, dioxin, that can only be neutralized by removing soil and heating it to high temperatures, then replacing it. The initial project is around the former Danang airbase where dioxin was stored. The estimated cost for this cleanup area will be about $41 million dollars. It is not yet announced what efforts may be made to clean up the vast countryside that remains contaminated by Agent Orange. It is embarassing that our government in the recent past undertook to condemn and seek to punish Syria, whether the government or the rebels, for using chemical weapons against civilians or military targets "in violation of all recognized norms of civilized warfare", after we forfeited any claim to the moral high ground when we poisoned vast areas of Vietnam with a deadly chemical weapon that continues causing terrible consequences. Bob Nash, Island
Ski Car
The E.coli bacteria in our water supply have really reminded us of how much we usually drink. Nobody wants to spend $10 on bottled water when they can just drink from the tap, so a lot of people aren’t getting as much water as they should right now. However, the price is worth it. There are endless benefits to drinking 8-10 cups of water a day.
Stripes @ Beach Access Rd. 1A
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Years after the war ended, Robert Macnamara admitted in a 1995 publication and later, in his memoir "The Fog Of War", and in an interview you can see on YouTube, that the Vietnam War was a horrible mistake, the Tonkin Gulf Incident used as the pretext to go to war had never happened, the war was not one of Russian/Chinese communist expansion, we were wrong to apply "Domino Theory" thinking and reactions, it was a Vietnamese civil war, it was unwinnable by the US, and we should never had gotten involved. Macnamara had also met, well after the war, with his former arch nemesis, North Vietnamese General Nguyen Giap, the chief strategist and military commander who defeated the French at Dien Bien Phu in 1954 and over 20 years later defeated the South Vietnam government and captured Saigon in 1975. Giap confirmed that there had been no Tonkin Gulf actions or attacks on Aug. 4, 1964, the war was always a civil war, and the US made a horrible miscalculation by treating it as a Domino Theory action to contain communism.
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that, but had deliberately and knowingly lied to the American public and Congress about that to bring the country to war. That Google search will also disclose many more articles and records showing the Tonkin Gulf Incident was fabricated and how we were lied into the war.
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A3
by Mary Craft mkay512@aol.com or @padreeyelander on twitter
New Advertisers Alkaline Water is now being sold inside the Donut Palace. This water is said to help overcome back pain, high blood pressure, ulcers, arthritis, weight problems, fatigue and more. Look for their free gallon coupon in their ad. Island Pet Sitting Service is available and has references. Call 537-3637 for more info.
Business Briefs Padre Island National Seashore has a 45 minute “Beach Walk” by a ranger daily through the end of August. They have a 45 minute “Plant Walk” every Wednesday until August 26th. The cost is included in the admission. The Price is Right with host Jerry Springer will be at the Selena Auditorium on Wednesday, September 9th at 7:30 pm. Ticket prices start at $52. The World’s Largest Golf Outing will be held at Palmilla Resort on Monday, August 3rd. Hundreds of courses will be participating in this event which benefits the Wounded Warrior Project. Registration is open until July 30th and is is $70/person. The Travel Channel will be filming their show “Extreme Water Park” at Schlitterbahn on Sunday, August 2nd. The Domingo Live Show will broadcast from the Freedom Stage starting at 10 am with great interviews, dancers and music. Beginning at 12:30 pm – 10 pm there will be a variety of ands and DJs performing. The Boathouse Bar & Grill has a new lunch special menu with a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, fried fish tacos topped with cole slaw, the popular fish & chips and more. Uber is a service I use often while traveling and it is now available in Corpus Christi but currently has a limited number of drivers and none on the Island. Becoming an Uber driver on the Island I would assume it would be quite profitable and ideal for college students or retirees. If there are any takers let me know so I can pass the word.
Taxes continued from A1 and Nueces County Commissioners approved tax increases of just under 8% last year. The previous Nueces County Commissioners Court raised taxes three years in a row, including last year. The Corpus Christi City Council has also raised taxes in each of its last three budgets. In each case elected officials claimed a “tax cut” because they lowered the tax rate, however, the rate cut failed to offset the increase in appraised value meaning the budget of each entity increased – a tax increase requiring public hearings under state law. The aggregate value of taxable property in the Flour Bluff Independent School District increased by just over 6%.
Around continued from A1
Someone was parked at the ramp without a sticker. The POA don't play. Good to see my dues at work. CI KI
Corpus Christi Children Need Fluoride Currently the Corpus Christi water supply does not have fluoride supplementation. Fluoride protects children from tooth decay. “Adding fluoride supplementation can reduce your children’s risk of tooth decay by twentyfive percent,” said Dr. Arnold Cuellar, a local dentist and president of the Nueces Valley District Dental Society. “Fluoride supplementation should begin at age six months and continue through age sixteen when teeth are mature. One dollar spent on fluoridation saves thirty-eight dollars in dental care.” Fluoride is available by prescription through your dentist or health care provider. The American Dental Association recommends that fluoride be dosed by age. Most bottled water does not contain fluoride but water with fluoride added is available. Fluoride supplements are available as either drops or tablets. “Residents with children should consult their dentist, pediatrician, or family physician to obtain a prescription for one of these fluoride supplements,” said John D. Bowman, Associate Professor at the Texas A&M HSC Rangel College of Pharmacy. “Fluoride provided in the supplements becomes part of the developing enamel, making the teeth stronger and more resistant to cavities. Non-prescription mouth rinses will not take the place of the systemic fluoride supplements.” San Patricio County and Robstown provide fluoride supplementation. Customers on these water systems do not need additional fluoride. The Regional Health Awareness Board was created by an inter-local agreement between San Patricio County, Nueces County and the City of Corpus Christi to promote dialogue on the health/welfare and environmental issues that affect our communities. The Regional Health Awareness Board’s primary mission is to encourage communication using the best science and information available on issues of concern to Coastal Bend residents. For further information contact Dr. James Mobley at 361643-4546. Regional Health Awareness Board
fireworks show on Saturday night or wait until the actual 4th on Monday. Tell us what you think. There is some thinking time because the Watkins have migrated to the Keys for lobster season.
Also, Jerry has $5000 saved toward the $15,000 needed to pay for next year’s show, but the down payment needed to keep the fireworks company happy is $7500 due by January 1. The show is paid for entirely with donations and since many come in right before the July 4 holiday Jerry needs donations this year for the early payment. If you can help please drop a check by the POA office. Plans are also in the works to move the launch site next year to provide room for a 4th of July festival.
That’s all for now everybody. Say hello if you see us Around The Island.
Police continued from A1
This initiative will continue until the end of Labor Day weekend, Monday, September 7, with the shifts beginning after 12 noon each weekend day.
The Ski Basin area consists of the undeveloped fingertip peninsulas across the Main Canal from the Yacht Club where boaters often go to beach up and swim, avoiding the crowds on area beaches.
Officers were also seen patrolling canals behind Island residences over the weekend.
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July 30, 2015
Island Moon
First Friday at Port Aransas Art Center The First Friday Reception at the Port Aransas Art Center will be on August 7th, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Island Area Development Plan
painting in acrylics on the plywood they had used to board up windows during hurricane season, she also enjoys working with other found objects. Nancy is from Port Aransas TX
It will feature art, live music, fun , food and shopping – which just about covers everything!
Plus a Book Signing by Devorah Fox- She wrote her first novel in the third grade and has written several more since. The Art Center is located at 323 N. Alister 361-749-7334
The art will be provided by the Merit Show Winners from March2015. They are Sally Mitchell – Thomas Stinson Janelle Cox -Katie Kaufman - Nancy Hyder. Plus a Book Signing by Devorah Fox-Masters of Time. 1st Place –Sally Mitchell is a photographer who also enjoys the freedom of watercolor. She is from Rockport TX 2nd Place– Thomas Stinson is a photographer who enjoys transforming basic photographs into artistic renderings. He lives on North Padre Island, C.C. TX 3rd Place- Janelle Cox is an oil painter portraying landscapes, seascapes, boats, plus figurative painting & still life. She is from Cedar Park TX Honorable Mention-Katie Kaufman enjoys drawing, pastels,painting & has been a member of the Art Center for over 10 years. She is from Cuero TX. People’s Choice- Nancy Hyder After retiring from teaching here in Port A. Nancy started out
We are rerunning this map this time for those who missed it in the last issue. It is part of Plan CC 2035 which is the roadmap for growth over the next twenty years. It prohibits any new construction on the bay side of State Highway 361 as well as on any of the 2000 lots located on the finger tips around the Ski Basin. It also would outlaw the building of condominiums, townhomes, or hotels on the Gulf side of the highway from Packery Channel to the Corpus Christi City Limits.
Robert Pruski, Jr. 361.652.2278 adventure1mgmt@gmail.com
The Island Strategic Action Committee met in a specially-called session last Thursday and voted to advise the Corpus Christi City Council which must approve the plan, that while they agree with the general direction of the latest draft of Plan CC they want the land map revised or removed from the plan before its final approval. The ISAC is working on an Island Area Development Plan that will detail growth plans for the next twenty years, however, that plan must be in compliance with the provisions of the map you see here, in whatever final form it may take.
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July 30, 2015
Stuff I Heard on the Island by Dale Rankin
As the end of July approaches we are entering the Tax Raising Season here in our fair city. But this year looks to be a bit different than years past. Those of you who are regular readers of this column are familiar with my annual caterwauling on how the tax code works and how it has annually and historically been manipulated by the serial tax hikers who have peopled some of our local councils and commissions; let me be more specific here – our Nueces County Commissioners and the Corpus Christi City Council. Each year our city and county leaders have played hide and seek with the facts and raised taxes while claiming they are cutting taxes. How can they get away with that you might ask?
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Island Moon
question is how to have their political cake and eat it too. How to provide more services that will garner favor with voters but which require more taxes, without having to own up to raising taxes which will anger voters. It’s a sticky wicket that requires a slight of hand move that has been perfected, particularly by our Nueces County Commission, over the years and passed down through generations of serial tax hikers. But the city has taken its 8% bite regularly as well and, it appears, will do so again this year; albeit with a dose of honesty.
city officials this budget cycle showed they understand that the old methods won’t work anymore
News from your POA By Maybeth Christensen
We had some calls over the last few weeks (before the latest City E-coli problem) about whether our canals were being tested for bacteria. Dr. Russ Miget provided the test results and the map showing the test sites which answers those questions.
The rest of the tests sites were well within the acceptable limits, even the area by the outflow of the wastewater treatment plant. Dr. Miget offers some suggestions for swimming in our canals and provides good information about the bacteria.
As you will see, the canal between Ducat and Peseta is way over the “acceptable” level of bacteria. Dr. Miget noted there were many dogs on the decks and docks in that canal and is pretty sure residents are simply washing the dog feces into that canal. The other canal with higher than the mean is at the end of Cruiser by the German Bakery. A great deal of the runoff from Park Road 22 ends up in that canal.
For our residents who seem to not understand, please quit washing the dog feces into our canals and please quit dumping fish carcasses into our canals. We all need to work together to keep our canals clean and safe. The PIPOA does have a canal clean-up person and the loads of trash he picks up every week are unbelievable! It’s not just cups, bags, and buckets, but there are tree limbs, palm fronds, lawn chairs, and dock boards, to name of a few of the items he finds.
8% Solution Here’s how. The Nueces County Appraisal District last week released its findings of the value of taxable property in Nueces County and the Corpus Christi City Limits that government bodies will use to set their budget for the coming fiscal year. For the exact and full numbers see the story in this issue. You will notice that the increase in each case is just under 8%. What a coincidence. It so happens that 8% is the amount a city or county, or any public body in Texas, can raise taxes without facing the possibility of a rollback election. If the Effective Tax Rate increase is over 8%, then 7% of the number of voters who voted in the last election can sign a petition and force a public vote to roll the Effective Tax Rate back to that of the previous year forcing the city/ county to live within the means of its last year’s budget. That’s the first step in the 8% Solution. The key is the 8% Solution. If property values across the city/county rise by just under 8% then the city and county can keep their Tax Rate steady and increase their tax levy/budget by 8% while claiming (fibbing) that they kept taxes level. In fact, if appraisals rise by 8% and the budgetmakers drop the Tax Rate by 3% then they can actually claim they cut taxes by 3% when in fact they raised them (the Effective Tax Rate) by 5%. As fibs go that’s a pretty good one; you can have your political cake and eat it too. It’s a slight of hand move so deeply engrained in Texas politics that state lawmakers passed a law specifically to stop it. They created the Effective Tax Rate which ratchets down in the same amount that appraised values ratchet up to keep revenues – taxes – steady. In the past city and county leaders denied they were raising taxes even as they held budget hearings that are only required when they raise taxes and they thought nobody noticed. Island taxpayers have figured this out and the politicians know it, and we vote in numbers higher than any precincts in the county. Our votes swing elections. And, I might add, the Nueces County Appraisal District has figured it out too. Their Chief Appraiser is hired by a Board of Directors appointed primarily by...the city and county. Funny how that works.
Serial tax raisers It’s also funny a thing how good people who volunteer for public service hate tax hikes during the campaign season but can’t get seem to get enough of them once their elected. Very few of them want to live within the means of last year’s budget; and the longer they are in office it seems the less they like it. The first time they run for office they are all going to “cut the fat.” But when they run for re-election they want to be able to point to the new services they have provided voters during their time in office and that requires money. Your tax money. The
The political skill required is as old as sin and politics; to be able to prevaricate with a straight face. Prevaricate often, prevaricate loudly, and when challenged prevaricate louder, and never, ever, under any circumstances admit you are prevaricating. If you are cornered attack the questioner. Call him an idiot and a liar. That is pretty much the position I have found myself in for the past few years as I began to push this rock uphill. That’s okay. I’ve been guilty on both counts over the years and probably will be again. But I will say this. Times are changing around here. Taxpayers have wizened up. Prevaricating aint what it used to be.
Changing times To their credit city officials this budget cycle showed they understand that the old methods won’t work anymore when on Tuesday they discussed hiking taxes to pay for streets. This is progress. In past years they would have simply kept the Tax Rate steady as appraisal values rose and claimed they weren’t raising taxes even as they raised the Effective Tax Rate by the same amount as the appraisals rose – in this year’s case just under 8%. That’s what they did last year. They can still raise the Effective Tax Rate by under 8% and not have to worry about a tax rollback; but they can’t do it without admitting they are raising taxes and folks, that is progress. I complement them for their candor. It will be up to voters to decide if they did the right thing by raising taxes instead of cutting spending when the next election cycle comes around. That’s how Participatory Democracy is designed to work.
What about the county? Now the question is whether the Nueces County Commissioners Court will follow suit. New Precinct 4 County Commissioner, Republican, Brent Chesney ran on a No Tax Hike platform, Precinct 1 County Commissioner, Republican, Mike Pusley has his sights on the County Judge’s seat when current County Judge, Republican, Loyd Neal’s term is up so pushing for a tax hike likely will be unpalatable for him. The two Democrats on the court have always voted against the budget put together by the three-Republican majority even though the last three have included tax hikes because, well, that’s what Democrats on the Nueces County Commissioners Court do unless they have a majority, in which case they tax the daylights out of everybody and send the money to Robstown. So a tax hike this time around might be a tough sell. They can still raise taxes by 8% without taxpayers doing anything about it until the next election but they can’t fib about it anymore. And friends, that is progress.
The BACK PORCH Open at 2 pm Mon - thurs Fri-Sun + nOON-2AM Live Music
The BACK PORCH The War Party Aug 6 Cruise Control Aug 7 Bar Larry Joe Taylor Aug 8 The Deadbeats July 30
Finding Friday July 31- Aug 1
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PortA
A6
July 30, 2015
Island Moon
Tarpon continued from A1
Water continued from A1
Fire Station continued from A1
on the National Historic Registry and had a ton of history… but at the time, I couldn’t tell you what that history was. This was truly a new adventure.
Wednesday, city officials issued a boil water notice Thursday. The sites that tested positive for the bacteria, 1607 Amber Drive and 753 Orleans Drive, are about a mile apart.
So here I am in my brand new digs, it’s late, and I’m tired and am getting ready for bed. As I’m brushing my teeth, I hear a humming noise coming through the bathroom wall. It was so predominate that I actually went through the door to the next room, which housed the washers and dryers, to see what was making that noise. When I dashed into the room, I could hear no humming. When I went back into my apartment, the humming would start again. It was maddening. I must have run into that room half a dozen times trying to catch the source of that humming. At one point, I actually grabbed a flashlight and went outside to look underneath the apartment thinking perhaps there might be a cat in heat or some animal in distress, but found nothing. It finally stopped and I went to bed.
Olson said city workers collected two routine samples Tuesday at the sites, and after both tested positive for E. coli, three additional samples from each location were tested within 24 hours. Three of the six samples tested positive for E. coli.
appraised property value to 10 cents per $100 of value and boost the department’s budget from the current $883,211 to about $2.9 million. Under state law the steep increase in the Effective Tax Rate requires the matter must go before voters for approval.
The next morning I went to meet Dana and asked her about the humming I kept hearing the night before. Dana said, “Oh that’s just Beulah, honey. She’s just welcoming you to the neighborhood.” Turns out that room used to be the kitchen when the restaurant, Beulah’s, was there and the old lady Beulah who lived and worked there her whole life, would hum while she worked. Dana said, “Don’t worry about it. She’s a sweetheart.” I thought she might be pulling my leg, but she was dead serious. Thus began my ghost hunt at the Tarpon Inn. I know there were several violent deaths through the years at the Inn. During the devastating hurricane of 1919, a young married couple tied themselves to a piling beneath the Silver King building (now Roosevelt’s) and drowned when the inn was destroyed. In the 20’s a young prostitute committed suicide in room 29. And in the 50’s, a cook at Beulah’s was killed with a meat cleaver by another cook. Room 29 has often been reported to have paranormal activity surrounding it. There is an incredibly heavy cast iron bed in there that more than one guest claims levitated in the night. When I worked there, there was a plastic palm tree in there. I remember winter months when the inn was empty and the room would remain undisturbed for weeks at a time, yet whenever I checked the room, I would find the leaves on the floor. I would snap them back into the trunk only to find them on the floor the next day. That same palm tree now resides in the lobby of the inn. There has also been suspicious activity in room 40 where a male spirit supposedly resides. The inn’s current front desk clerk, Marquise Olvera, told me that his sister gets nose bleeds when she walks in Room 40 and that the fire alarm goes off when his grandmother walks into the room. Also, he said they often find dimes on the floor when no one has been in the room. Several of my friends have worked and lived at the Inn through the years and had ghost encounters during their tenure. The innkeeper before Dana, Pam McNeil, tells the story of going to unlock the Silver King early one evening and something grabbed her by the nape of her neck and pulled her off her feet. When she looked around, nobody was there. Local artist, Kathleen Moore lived and worked at Beulahs in the 70’s and was good friends with Beulah Mae Williams. Beulah lived in the less than modest building behind the inn, referred to as the “slave shack”. Many of the inn’s employees lived there through the years. Kathleen told me that Beulah would never leave her quarters after dark, because she “didn’t want to talk to the dead girls on the second floor.” In the 20’s, there were prostitutes that occupied the second floor, and for $100 and a bottle of rum, the sailors had a straight shot at them coming across the flats. Beulah lived at the inn her whole life and Kathleen would sometimes see her carrying on conversations and no one was there. Kathleen also told of many noisy nights when no one was there at the restaurant, with dishes rattling, chairs and tables scooting around and lots of activity in the pantry… the sounds of a normal busy day at the restaurant, even though it was closed. I’m told that eerie, hazy apparitions of a middle aged woman were sited by more than one employee.
That would increase the tax for the district from the current $30 per year on each $100,000 of property value to $100 per year for each $100,000 of value. “We understand that is a big jump,” Scott said. “But we want to stress that this equipment would never leave The Island. It would mean there would always be an ambulance, fire trucks, and a rescue boat on The Island.”
E. coli is a type of coliform bacteria that can cause illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. The city of Corpus Christi is required to collect 150 routine samples per month in accordance with Environmental Protection Agency standards. The last boil water notice was issued in 2007.
Scott said the new station’s primary coverage area would be the south end of The Island, in the area the furthest away from the Fire Station #15 on Commodores but would be available for calls anywhere on The Island.
“Given the number of wells in Flour Bluff we are lucky we have not had a problem like this in eight years,” Olson said. He said the problem arises when homeowners drill wells and hook the water into their homes which are also hooked in the city water supply. If the house has no backflow preventer, and Olson said while there is no way to know how many of the homes have, or don’t have, the device city crews are assuming none of the homes with wells, registered or non-registered, have the backflow preventers. They are currently going door to door in the area around the stations where the E-coli was found doing inspections.
He said if the new station is approved it would increase the number of full-time firefighters in the department from the current eleven members to twenty-five, with fifteen members at the current stationhouse on Yorktown Road in Flour Bluff transferring full-time to the Island station.
“We would transfer the staff from here because they are all trained in water rescue,” Scott said. “The boat we have is equipped with a sonar system for finding people in the water and with divers.”
“A lot of people do their own plumbing,” one official said, “There is no way of knowing how many homes have done plumbing without permits. This was not a system failure, this was a rogue property owner.”
Land at the location could be donated by the Jones family who also donated the land to Nueces County for Bob Hall Pier and Balli Park, other sites are also under consideration.
The city does daily water releases through fire hydrants in Flour Bluff and on The Island. They were releasing water from three hydrants in the area around the area where the dirty tests were taken during the time the problem surfaced. However, Olson said monitoring equipment system wide allows officials to keep the pressure above 20 pounds per square inch to keep water from flowing into the system from wells or irrigation systems.
The current coverage area of the department, besides Flour Bluff, is the area south of the Corpus Christi City Limits in Kleberg County, Padre Island National Seashore. That area includes a resident population of over 36,000 and covers urban, suburban and rural areas encompassing 80 square miles and over 150 miles of waterfront. Their brush trucks are often the first responders to brush fires which have plagued the area south of the city limits for the past decade. The project will be discussed at the next meeting of the Island Strategic Action Committee at Comfort Suites on Windward on August 4th at 5:30.
They said that because The Island is its own “pressure zone” which works to keep unwanted water from seeping into the city lines. However, they said the failure rate of the backflow preventers is about 15%. They said the high number of septic tanks in use in Flour Bluff may have contributed to the presence of the E-coli but the most likely cause is backflow from a well. Olson said the city is considering how to pay for the backflow preventers which will need to be installed in Flour Bluff. He said either the city will pay for them or homeowners will be billed after the work is done. “I am leaning toward having the city pay for it.” he said, “This is a matter of public safety and protecting the integrity of the system.” The water which flows to The Island, and subsequently on to Port Aransas, comes through the city line that passes through Flour Bluff. However, Olson said there is no reason to believe the water was contaminated during the passage. He said the city will now move to make Flour Bluff its own pressure zone so if the problem reoccurs there it will not necessitate a boil order for the entire city.
This rescue boat is one the vehicles that would be stationed at the Island Fire Station
The boil order over the weekend shut down ice machines and coffee houses which use city water. The problem comes even as city crews are in the process of finishing a new 18-inch water line to The Island.
Contemporary Masters: Works on Paper Opens at Art Museum of South Texas Fire Chief Dale Scott with some of the equipment that would be kept at the new Island fire station
Long time islander, Julie Caraker managed Beulah’s in the 90’s. Julie had quite a few stories about a ghost named Sammy who resided at the restaurant. Sammy was a young cook named Samuel who had died years before. It seems that he had an attraction to Julie. One night she was mopping the floor and turned around to find large footsteps following her small footsteps on the damp floor she had just mopped. He was following her around all night as she worked. Sammy was reportedly a mischievous spirit who would turn lights on and off and open and close doors and drawers. Julie told me a story of one busy night at Beulah’s. The proprietor Guy Carnathan was known for his great gumbo. On this night, several of the customers had sent the gumbo back because it was too salty. When Guy investigated the situation, he found the salt container on a shelf above stove was on its side and had emptied into the pot of gumbo. Guy, by the way, did not believe in ghosts or in Sammy. When he told Julie about the salt, she told him that if he would just make peace with Sammy, this stuff wouldn’t happen. So, in a half hearted response, he acknowledged Sammy’s presence. And just when he did, the row of wine glasses in the overhead rack, clinked together one after another, right down the line. Julie also had another ghost living in her house right by the Mercer cemetery. This ghost was a female with long petticoats and flowing hair. She would often rearrange Julie’s collection of fans and opera glasses she kept on the bureau where they were displayed. Both she and her son had personally witnessed the apparition on several occasions. Julie said that one night Sammy followed her home and caused a violent scene in her house when the female ghost objected. Doors opened and slammed. Objects flew off shelves. The curtains blew violently, though there was no wind. Finally, Julie screamed at Sammy to go home and the flurry ceased.
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If you have a ghost story from your experiences at the Tarpon Inn, please email me at ronnienarmour@gmail.com
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July 30, 2015
A7
Island Moon
Backwater Adventures On the Rocks
Small Summer Meals By Joey Farah
Wow, lots going on in the world of conservation and education lately. Well, maybe my world view of conservation at least, LOL. Everything from nature educational trips to international fishing law to local cleanups. All VERY good stuff!!!
Farah’s Fishing Adventures
As temperatures are shooting to the hottest of the year, water temperatures push predatory fish to take smaller meals that are easier to digest. We have seen a big switch now in the local waters of trout and redfish hunting small baitfish during daylight hours, rather than large meals such as big mullet and large croakers. The live croaker are approaching 5”at times and are quite a big bait, especially during off times, or minor feedings. The smaller piggy perch are a great alternative, as well as mud minnows and small finger mullet. The Piggy perch can be bought at most bait camps, but can be a little different to use than the croaker. I use the same wide gap #6 hooks but the difference is that the live croakers swim up and are kind of lazy in their struggles. The piggy perch search for a hiding place as soon as they hit the water. With this, we must change the places we fish and the techniques we use to present them. The best place to start right now is the Intracoastal Canal, the water is cooler and the piggy perch are exposed on the open bottom along the edge of the channel. Look for the best action to be along the west edge of the channel south where grass skirts the drop-off. The trout patrol the edges of the grass waiting for baitfish to come out of the flats. You will find many flounder in the sandy pockets along the channel as well. At times the current will be strong, this is when I use a small pinch weight just enough to anchor the bait along the grass line. Out in the flats find sand pockets in 4-5foot of water and throw piggy perch without weight into the open pockets. Try to search out the larger pockets where they can’t find grass to hide in. As the baits settle down and flutter to the bottom anglers should tighten the line and lightly fluff the bait up off the bottom. Many anglers jerk the baits hard, but this just kills and moves them out of the sand pockets. I like to use the TEXAS RATTLER CHATTER WEIGHTS when I’m using the live pigs. The extra weight lets you cast them farther and makes a lot of noise when you softly shake the line. These are available at most bait camps and sporting goods stores.
By Jay Gardner
Another big flounder from the sand pockets near Pita Island. spring months. Some of our morning trips are finding us catching 50 trout per person. The top water bite is on fire the first hour of the day. The best colors have been natural colors with chartreuse tails. The small top waters are getting pounded with trout hitting top waters along the west edge of the intracoastal canal in the Land Cut. The boat traffic on the weekends have been busy but nothing during the week. Keep your eyes open for reds as they have been along the grassy edge here and there as well. The shrimp have been migrating south on their way out the Mansfield Jetty and the trout are following. With their smaller size the trout are hitting small baitfish and shrimp lures like the 3”CAL SHADS from DOA LURES, and the 1/2ounce DOA SHRIMP. These baits are tough to beat down there right now and can stay on the hook for many fish. If an angler is constantly changing his bait then he is missing fish.
First up is our buddy William “Buzz” Botts out at the Padre Island National Seashore. For folks who are in town for that last hurrah before school, or locals looking for something fun to do, the Seashore has educational programs out there on a daily basis, and they’re free (with your entrance fee, of course). Buzz was telling me the other day that they have beach walks, plant walks, and the Jr. Ranger Program. He gave a little hint that his Hidden Treasures Program was very popular, every Friday at 11am where they pull seines in the water and a few other creature collecting activities. In addition, another popular activity is the Deck Talk, which is at 1pm, and they have their collection of shells and curios that have been found over the years. If you haven’t been out there to the Visitors Center (VC) at Malaquite, then you really need to go check it out. You can get more information from calling 361949-8069. And of course Donna still has a few turtle releases yet to go this season, and make sure to catch one of the last ones this year in the next couple of weeks. A Hugely popular activity, and you can call the Hatchling Hotline at 361-949-7163 to get the up-to-date news on releases. Really good stuff going on out there at the Park. H.R. 774 has been proposed in legislature to help protect our fisheries from overseas threats. I’m thinking this would include the incursions of the Launchas from Mex. from coming across the border and poaching our fish. Good to see that this issue has raised enough interest from D.C. to actually get something going to help protect our natural resources. I’m sure you loyal readers remember me writing about all the poaching that occurs almost daily during good
The heat is on and that is taking its toll on fish and anglers. Take precautions to keep hydrated and protected from the sun. I mentioned the HEADHUNTER SUNSCREEN last week and really hope that some of you stopped by one of our local surf shops to try some out. It is the absolute best stuff I’ve ever used. Never runs into you eyes and will not come off. You never feel greasy and with the stick it’s easy to put it on your face and ears without getting any on your hands, THAT WILL KILL YOUR BAIT! Another big thing is a good hat and sunglasses. I hate wearing hats, but I enjoy my new FCS Surf Hat. It is light and comfortable, and has a strap so it won’t fly Brian and Jamie Meadows with a big 30.5 inch trout we off my head when I’m running. caught in Baffin Bay. Many of my customers say I look like a KOOK but I don’t care! DRAGON SUNGLASSES Smaller baits can also include finger mullet, have been making it much easier to see those pin perch, and mud minnows. These baits can sand pockets and guts. The relief on my eyes be bought or caught easily. The finger mullet have been the biggest difference. Taking off will be on the move soon and become the bait your regular sunglasses then putting on the of choice for redfish. If you are wanting to have DRAGONS will convince you right away that a great few months of fishing for redfish learn you have been stressing out your eyes. Look how to throw a cast net. These small baitfish online and check out some of the awesome will be what you need to use to cash in on all the colors and combinations of lenses to fit your flounder action that has been going on around taste and fishing preference. These sunglasses the bridge and Packery Channel area. The times float and are resistance to fish oils and water. of moving tide are the key, fish the grass lines Swing by DOCKSIDE SURFSHOP and ask and edges of the channel where it bends and to try a pair on, they will be light as a feather, turns. you won’t want to take them off. Hit the water The same is true for anglers using soft plastics and get wet! FOLLOW OUR HOOK-UP’S ON and top waters. The action down south on lures FACEBOOK AND LIKE JOEY FARAH’S right now is what you would expect from the FISHING, WE PUT PICS AND FISHING REPORTS UP EVERY DAY!
conditions on our side of the border. Hopefully the new bill will step up enforcement a bit down and there and “encourage” the people fishing out of Playa Bagdad to stay on their side.
And then closer to home is the Friends o Padre Adopt-a-highway program that is also on-going. As you know, the Friends of Padre was started by our hero Billy Sandifer, and has blossomed into an organization that is getting things done and cleaning up around here. They adopted the stretch of Park Road 22 from Commodores to Whitecap, and clean i up several times a year. This past clean up was delayed due to all the rains that have kept the ditches flooded, although I suppose they could have used kayaks. Lately the crew got out there and did their duty and found the usual; plastic bags, ice bags, beer cans and bottles, coffee cups and the odd piece of clothing. Tyler says cleaning up the median is the scariest part, as people fly by you at a high rate of speed. He thinks people would slow down if they had to help clean that section up once in their lives The Friends of Padre monitor the situation and clean it up when it needs it, sometimes every quarter since they’ve had it (they are mandated to do at least two clean ups a year). Good job to Billy, Aaron, Tyler, Troy, and Cody, and also volunteers Kevin, Kelle, and Emma. This is one of the most highly visible clean up stretches and folks are welcome to get involved if they would like. Make sure to go to FriendsofPadre com and they will take it from there.
Well, the upwelling event still has the beach water temps cooler and conditions dirty. Las I looked at the charts, there is another batch o more of the same headed at us from south of the border. Maybe one of these days it will go away and let us get out there and enjoy the dog days of summer. In any regard, I’m going to head ou to the jetty this evening and see what’s shaking despite the water conditions. Drop me a line a jaygardner@scientist.com, and I’ll see you On the Rocks.
Moon Phases July 2015
August 2015
Tides of the Week Tides for Corpus Christi (Bob Hall Pier) July 30 - August 5, 2015
These two ladies stomped the trout with me in the Land Cut this week on live croaker.
Two nice trout of a limit on a afternoon trip.
Day
High /Low
Tide Time
Height in Feet
Sunrise Moon Time Sunset
Th
30
High
5:03 AM
1.6
6:51 AM Set 5:59 AM
30
Low
8:57 PM
-0.6
8:19 PM Rise 7:42 PM
F
31
High
5:30 AM
1.6
6:52 AM Set 7:03 AM
31
Low
9:45 PM
-0.5
8:19 PM Rise 8:32 PM
Sa
1
High
5:54 AM
1.5
6:52 AM Set 8:08 AM
1
Low
11:46 AM
1.1
8:18 PM Rise 9:19 PM
1
High
2:44 PM
1.2
1
Low
10:35 PM
-0.3
Su
2
High
6:17 AM
1.4
6:53 AM Set 9:13 AM
2
Low
12:02 PM
1.0
8:17 PM Rise 10:04 PM
2
High
4:09 PM
1.2
2
Low
11:26 PM
-0.1
M
3
High
6:37 AM
1.3
6:53 AM Set 10:18 AM
3
Low
12:33 PM
0.7
8:17 PM Rise 10:47 PM
3
High
5:36 PM
1.2
Tu
4
Low
12:20 AM
0.2
6:54 AM Set 11:22 AM
4
High
6:56 AM
1.2
8:16 PM Rise 11:31 PM
4
Low
1:16 PM
0.5
4
High
7:10 PM
1.1
W
5
Low
1:21 AM
0.6
6:54 AM Set 12:25 PM
5
High
7:13 AM
1.1
8:15 PM
5
Low
2:08 PM
0.3
5
High
8:58 PM
1.2
Moon Visible
96 99 99
97
92
84
74
A8
July 30, 2015
Island Moon
SPORTS Sports Talk
Roger Goodell's handling of deflate-gate has been a 3-ring circus
By Dotson Lewis
Special to the Island Moon Dotson’s note: It’s only a few days until NFL pre-season starts. I believe it’s time the “Commish” quits being a mugwump, stops messing around and makes a decision on “Deflate Gate.” I have news for you Mr. Goodell, it ain’t going away! My thanks to Don Wetzel Yahoo Sports, for the information and some opinions in this article. One month has passed since Tom Brady's appeal hearing in deflate-gate. One month and Roger Goodell still hasn't announced a decision. Nothing. No upholding the suspension. No reversing the suspension. No lightening of the suspension. This isn't a Supreme Court case. This isn't complicated. It shouldn't take a month of leaving a player hung out to dry, as the biggest storyline going into the start of training camp remains an overblown, self-inflicted soap opera from last season. One month and Goodell still can't figure out what to do, which somehow isn't really all that surprising since if he knew what to do in the first place the entire story would have been snuffed out in a day or so, or handled properly.
this could in no way be considered any place for accurate scientific work and in part because Anderson used separate, and wildly different, gauges to take the data. The pro-Brady folks say the NFL should have realized that this case was a loser. Suspicious district attorneys have to do this all the time and just refuse to prosecute. Even if the league thought the Pats were up to something, generally you have to have some kind of “decent evidence.” A good commissioner, they go on to insist, or a good leader of any organization, would have bailed, squashed, protected and vowed to solve the problem going forward. They believe there is no way is this a scandal in the NBA or even in the old NFL. They say to fine the Pats for lack of proper pregame protocol because a guy took the footballs into the bathroom. Then call it case closed. Instead, ESPN coincidentally (or not) ran with a bombshell report that 11 of the 12 Patriots footballs were underinflated by more than two pounds per square inch and, conversely, none of the Indianapolis Colts' measured as such. It was damning. It may also have been false.
Day of Days By Andy Purvis Special to the Island Moon It took him years to be the “first.” Twenty years to be exact. He will be the first to wear the star of Houston, Texas Astros on his cap, which will proudly be displayed on his Hall of Fame plaque. Day after day, he did his thing. He hit leadoff homers, doubles up the middle, or took a pitch on the elbow and trotted to first base. Along the way, he began to lead the team out onto the field at the start of each game. We quickly found out that he was a natural born leader. Very rarely was he hurt, or at least he was good at keeping it from us. Little did we know that he played through illnesses, soreness, injuries to his knee in 2000, shoulder and broken fingers? He never made excuses, busted his tail during every at-bat, and man, could he turn on a fastball. He was always there; in the middle of a rally, stretching a single into a double, bunting to get on base, and diving to keep a ball in play. For twenty years he showed up for the same team and we never noticed he was there until something good happened. He was a grinder, a winner, and an old fashion ballplayer. He always respected the game and his ability to focus on the next play separated him from most. Whether something good or bad happened on the field, he was able to define it as “that’s baseball.” He never charged the mound, never showed up other players or the club, and has never been thrown out of a game. Oh, there was a fire, a fire burning deep down inside him, but he always had it under control. His motto may have been, “Never let them see you sweat,” like the commercial. He never grew his hair long, pierced his ears or tattooed his body. You never read bad things about him in the press. The only thing dirty about Craig Biggio was his uniform.
Tom Brady has a ball tossed to him during warm-ups before the AFC championship game against the Colts.
“ProFootballTalk” reports that a "small group of influential owners" are pushing Goodell to uphold the suspension. It's not a coincidence that Brady and the NFL Players Association are left to do their own saber rattling in the media, claiming they'll sue everyone and everything if the New England Patriots quarterback isn't exonerated. It's fairly easy to envision Goodell locked in
Essentially, whoever leaked it to ESPN counted on the report being so big that the public would believe it no matter what came out later. It worked. ESPN has never retracted it even though stats show it may have breathlessly ran with bad info. The NFL has declined comment on it. Ted Wells didn't investigate how such a media leak could occur. The Wells Report, the independent investigation commissioned by the league, is long though, 243 pages. And it's repetitive, the lawyers just repeating the same stuff over and over like a desperate high school kid trying to pump up a term paper to the proper length. It takes a while to read and you really have to concentrate and you actually have to go through it a couple times because it's poorly written. This may be intentional.
Craig Alan Biggio, who was born in Smithtown, New York, on December 14, 1965, announced his retirement from Major League Baseball on July 24, 2007. Unlike most professional athletes, he went out on his own terms. After twenty years of taking infield practice, twenty years of getting in and out of that batting cage, he’s had enough.
A Grinder
He was a husband, a father, a religious man, rancher, head of the Sunshine Kids, (an organization that takes care of cancer stricken kids) and yes, he played baseball. He could have been your next door neighbor and you would have never known he was a professional athlete. Now people name their kids after him.
The Washington Post is reporting some owners are trying to figure out how the NFL commissioner can come out of this appearing "credible and looking like he's dealing from a position of strength." They might try encouraging him to just rule on the evidence.
He was ok with who he was and proud to be a professional baseball player. I remember being late arriving to a game once and while standing outside, in line to get in, I smiled at hearing this loud roar rumble from deep inside the park, B-G-O, B-G-O. Over and over, the crowd chanted B-G-O, as he approached home plate. It was just another “Day of days,” in the life of Craig Biggio. Baseball, in Houston, Texas, as we know it, was about to begin.
“I’m at peace with it and I’m at peace with how things have gone for me. I’m in a good place,” said Biggio. “It couldn’t get any better than it did on June 28, when I reached my 3,000th hit. It can’t get any better than that, other than winning the World Series. That was the greatest day of my life and my family’s life. That’s what I want the fans to remember.”
Yes, he will be remembered. He will be remembered as a first round draft choice from Seton Hall University, a seven time All-Star at two different positions, winner of four Gold Gloves, five Silver Slugger Awards, 3,060 hits, 291 home runs, 55 triples and 1014 extra base hits, 414 stolen bases, six postseason appearances, and the most doubles (668) hit by any right-handed batter to every play the game. There is one other record that he accomplished that no one seems to talk about. In 1997, Biggio became the first and only player in baseball history not to hit into a double play, while playing an entire 162-game season. He will also be remembered as a Killer Bee forever in the minds of Houston fans. For eighteen of his twenty years you could not say Biggio without saying Bagwell, Jeff Bagwell that is.
And now he is the first Astro to make it into the Baseball Hall of Fame, on the Day of Days.
Andy Purvis is a local author and radio personality. Please visit www.purvisbooks. com for all the latest info on his books or to listen to the new radio podcast. Andy’s books are available online and can be found in the local Barnes & Noble bookstore. Andy can be contacted at purvis.andy@mygrande.net. Also listen to Sports talk radio on Dennis & Andy’s Q & A Session every Thursday 6-8 PM on ESPN 1440 KEYS.
Craig Biggio
While plenty of people believe the Patriots and Brady cheated, there are far fewer who have read and studied the Wells Report with an open mind who believes it to be anything but a pile of confusing junk. Now the owners are scrambling to find a way to make Roger Goodell's office look competent? And other owners are pressuring for him to stick it to the Patriots, likely well aware that bailing on Roger Goodell (R) and Patriots owner Robert Kraft may this case now will only cause not be so buddy-buddy right now. further embarrassment? his office trying to figure out how to get out of a mess in which he put himself, the league and Brady. One month later and he apparently hasn't figured it out, or had anyone figure it for him. Much suspicion came from having some Foxborough locker room lackey calling himself "The Deflator" and taking the balls into a bathroom just before kickoff. At halftime of that game, referee Walt Anderson had some measurements taken of the footballs. Those who believe Brady to be innocent claim that the measurements came in with a wide range of data, many of them not particularly out of the norm. This pro-Brady group says that's in part because of natural gas law, in part because
It's been six months since, according to the Wells report, Walt Anderson couldn't figure out if the balls were all that deflated. It's been one month since Brady spent 10 hours arguing his appeal. It's less than a week to the start of training camp. Roger Goodell is in his office, still not ready to say what he's going to do. Dotson’s other note: All veterans are invited to our “Veterans Weekly Round Table” each Tuesday 9 a.m.-11 a.m. in the Del Mar College, Center for Economic Development, Room 130. We plan to discuss any concerns veterans may have. Spouses, relatives and interested friends are welcome to attend. As I have said before, I know referee Walt Anderson very well, I am positive he followed the rules to the letter. What do you think Goodell will/should do? Your comments, suggestions, questions and concerns regarding “Moon Sports Talk” are appreciated. Please call the Benchwarmers at 361-560-5297 weekdays, Mondays thru Fridays, 3-6 P.M. or contact me. Phone: 361-949-7681 Cell: 539748-8475 Email: dlewis1@stx.rr.com
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