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LAREDO GATEWAY ROTARY CLUB
MEXICO VIOLENCE
$1 trillion decrease U.S. budget deficit drops since 2009 peak By PHILIP BALLI THE ZAPATA TIMES
The U.S. budget deficit has decreased by nearly $1 trillion since its peak in 2009, Congressman Henry Cuellar said Monday at a Laredo Gateway Rotary Club meeting. Cuellar was a guest speaker at the meeting where he addressed attendees on a number of topics, including the nation’s budget deficit, job growth,
Ebola and the ISIS threat. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the U.S. government’s deficit will fall to $492 billion this year. Cuellar attributed the decrease to fiscal restraint, the wind down of two wars and economic growth. “The U.S. economy is doing a lot better; in the last quarter, we finally added all of the jobs we lost since the recession of 2008,” Cuellar said. “Now
that we’re back to normal, we are working to create more jobs.” Cuellar cited information from the Labor Department indicating there have been more jobs added to the economy under President Barack Obama’s first four years than all eight years of the George W. Bush presidency. Cuellar said that some areas are doing better than
Photo by Felix Marquez | AP
Firefighters try to extinguish the flames after the state capital building was set on fire by protesting college students in Chilpancingo, Mexico, on Monday.
CUELLAR
Alleged capo of drug gang kills self
See GATEWAY ROTARY PAGE 12A
LOS REYES LA PAZ, MEXICO
A SON’S LOVE FOR HIS MOTHER
Benjamin Mondragon committed suicide to thwart Mexican forces By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO AND FELIX MARQUEZ ASSOCIATED PRESS
CHILPANCINGO, Mexico — The alleged leader of a drug gang implicated in the disappearance of 43 college students committed suicide during a confrontation with Mexican forces, a day after protesters demanding an investigation into the students’ whereabouts burned government buildings in the southern state of Guerrero. Federal forces, which include federal police and military personnel, were carrying out an operation to capture Benjamin Mondragon, or “Benjamon,” the alleged head of the Guerreros Unidos gang in the neighboring state of Morelos, when a gunfight broke out, according to a federal official who was not authorized to be quoted by name. The official, who spoke Tuesday, did not say which federal force had taken part in the confrontation. Mondragon killed himself as he was about to be arrested, the official said, though he had no details on how. The official said it was unclear whether Mondragon had been involved in the students’ disappearances.
Photo by Dario Lopez-Mills | AP
Dario Guerrero stands for a portrait on the rooftop of his grandparents’ home in the outskirts of Mexico City on Oct. 3. Guerrero, a Harvard University junior, accompanied his dying mother to Mexico without government permission, and is now unable to return to the U.S.
Son took dying mom to Mexico, now stuck By LAURA WIDES-MUNOZ AND PETER ORSI ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOS REYES LA PAZ, Mexico — The chemotherapy stopped working last spring, as did the radiation. Doctors had already removed a kidney. So Harvard University junior Dario Guerrero Meneses did what any computer-savvy millennial might do for a dying parent — he searched online and acted quickly. Guerrero found clinics offering alternative treat-
ments in Mexico and took his mother across the border, hoping to keep her alive. In an immigration system where even the smallest mistake can bring dire consequences, Guerrero knowingly broke a rule by leaving the U.S. without federal authorization. It may have been the most costly decision of his 21 years. “He panicked. His dad and mom wanted him to go, and he did the best thing he thought he could do for his family,” said his lawyer
Alan Klein. Guerrero had lived in the United States illegally since he was 2. His parents brought him from Mexico City to California, and they overstayed tourist visas. He breezed through school, earning a scholarship to a John Hopkins University summer school program at 13. Eventually, along with hundreds of thousands of other young immigrants, he was granted a temporary reprieve from the threat of deportation under a 2012 Obama administration or-
der. The catch: If these immigrants ever leave the U.S. without government approval, they lose their protected status. Guerrero was at his mother’s side when she died weeks later. But now, instead of cramming for exams in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the film studies major is stuck at his grandparents’ house in a gangcontrolled suburb of Mexico City, hoping to persuade the
See SON’S LOVE PAGE 11A
Guerreros Unidos allegedly had ties to the family of the mayor of Iguala, the city in Guerrero where the students disappeared on Sept. 26 after a confrontation. Police in Iguala killed six people and carried off many of the students before reportedly turning them over to gunmen working for the gang. Investigators are conducting tests on 28 sets of human remains found at five mass graves outside of Iguala to determine whether they are the bodies of the missing students. Police also have found four other burial pits at a different site, but have not said how many bodies were recovered there. On Tuesday, Guerrero Gov. Angel Aguirre said many of the bodies appeared to have been in the graves for some time, suggesting they belonged not to the students but to earlier victims of criminal gangs operating in the region. “Some of these graves were not recently dug,” Aguirre told MVS radio. “Some of them are not recent, some are from months ago,” he said. Some of the bodies had been burned, making identification harder.
See VIOLENCE PAGE 12A
MEXICAN CHECKPOINT MODERNIZATION PROJECT
48 of 62 remaining plots of land acquired THE ZAPATA TIMES
The modernization project at the Mexican checkpoint at the Juarez-Lincoln International Bridge continues as 48 of the 62 remaining plots of land needed have been acquired. But Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, Mayor Carlos Canturosas Villarreal said the Tamaulipas state govern-
ment could soon order the remaining land, an area totaling 4.05 hectares (10 acres), to be acquired under eminent domain. “We have continued to make progress as we said when we asked at a City Council meeting about eminent domain. We’ll no longer be buying land,” Canturosas Villarreal said in a press release. He said the city govern-
ment is offering situation, and landowners a the outcome will purchase price be determined above its asby the adminissessed value. trative authority “Our intention at that time.” as a municipal The project at government is to the checkpoint negotiate with includes inspecthe owners to CANTUROSAS VILLARREAL tion stations reach a settlefrom nine to 16, ment,” Canturosas Villar- and from six to 24 inspecreal said. “Then it will be tion tables; have areas for harder for them to fix the trailer parking and light
vehicles; offices and space for foreign trade officials and a warehouse for temporary storage of seized items. The plan, which is being done in conjunction with the Treasury and Public Credit Department and Mexican Customs, will occupy four blocks that include Leñado Valle and Degollado avenues. “Investment will include
about 350 million pesos ($26,028,692) from the federal government and 75 million pesos ($5,577,577) each from the city and state governments,” Canturosas Villarreal said. He said he will continue to negotiate with the owners of the 14 properties to reach an agreement that benefits all parties. (Translated by Mark Webber of the Times staff.)
PAGE 2A
Zin brief CALENDAR
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
AROUND TEXAS
TODAY IN HISTORY
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 15
ASSOCIATED PRESS
“The Next America: Boomers, Millennials, and the Looming Generational Showdown.” From 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. TAMIU Student Center Ballroom (SC 203). Contact Amy Palacios at cswht@tamiu.edu. Website: http://freetrade.tamiu.edu/whtc_services/ whtc_speaker_series.asp.
Today is Wednesday, Oct. 15, the 288th day of 2014. There are 77 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On Oct. 15, 1914, the Clayton Antitrust Act, which expanded on the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, was signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson. On this date: In 1860, 11-year-old Grace Bedell of Westfield, New York, wrote a letter to presidential candidate Abraham Lincoln, suggesting he could improve his appearance by growing a beard. In 1917, Dutch dancer Mata Hari, convicted of spying for the Germans, was executed by a French firing squad outside Paris. In 1946, Nazi war criminal Hermann Goering (GEH’-reeng) fatally poisoned himself hours before he was to have been executed. In 1954, Hurricane Hazel made landfall on the Carolina coast as a Category 4 storm; Hazel was blamed for some 1,000 deaths in the Caribbean, 95 in the U.S. and 81 in Canada. In 1964, Britain’s Labour Party, led by Harold Wilson, returned to power in general elections. The St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series, defeating the New York Yankees 7-5 in Game 7 at Busch Stadium. Songwriter Cole Porter, 73, died in Santa Monica, California. In 1969, peace demonstrators staged activities across the country as part of a “moratorium” against the Vietnam War. In 1989, South African officials released eight prominent political prisoners, including Walter Sisulu. In 1991, despite sexual harassment allegations by Anita Hill, the Senate narrowly confirmed the nomination of Clarence Thomas to the U.S. Supreme Court, 52-48. In 1999, the humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders was named winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Ten years ago: The Food and Drug Administration ordered that all antidepressants carry strong warnings that they “increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior” in children who take them. Five years ago: A report of a 6-year-old Colorado boy trapped inside a runaway helium balloon engrossed the nation before the boy, Falcon Heene (HEE’-nee), was found safe at home in what turned out to be a hoax. (Falcon’s parents served up to a month in jail.) One year ago: Abu Anas al-Libi, an alleged al-Qaida member who was snatched off the streets in Libya, pleaded not guilty in New York to bombing-related charges. Today’s Birthdays: Former auto executive Lee Iacocca is 90. Jazz musician Freddy Cole is 83. Singer Barry McGuire is 79. Actress Linda Lavin is 77. Rock musician Don Stevenson (Moby Grape) is 72. Actress-director Penny Marshall is 71. Baseball Hall of Famer Jim Palmer is 69. Singer-musician Richard Carpenter is 68. Actor Victor Banerjee is 68. Tennis player Roscoe Tanner is 63. Singer Tito Jackson is 61. Actor-comedian Larry Miller is 61. Thought for Today: “If you love someone, let them go. If they return to you, it was meant to be. If they don’t, their love was never yours to begin with.” — Author unknown.
THURSDAY, OCT. 16 Los Amigos Duplicate Bridge Club will meet at the Laredo Country Club from 1:15 p.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, contact Beverly Cantu at 727-0589. Pet Fest Laredo 2014. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Laredo Civic Center. Contact at woof@gopetfest.com. Website is www.gopetfest.com. Planetarium movies. From 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. TAMIU Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium. Contact Claudia Herrera at claudia.herrera@tamiu.edu, or visit the website www.tamiu.edu/planetarium. At 6 p.m. Wonders of the Universe. At 7 p.m. Lamps of Atlantis.
FRIDAY, OCT. 17 Planetarium movies. From 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. TAMIU Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium. Contact Claudia Herrera at claudia.herrera@tamiu.edu, or visit www.tamiu.edu/planetarium. At 7 p.m. Live Star Show. Movies on the patio. From 7:30pm to TBA. Villa Antigua Border Heritage Museum, 810 Zaragoza St. Contact Margarita Araiza at araiza@webbheritage.org Or visit the website at www.webbheritage.org
SATURDAY, OCT. 18 Planetarium movies. From 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. TAMIU Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium. Contact Claudia Herrera at claudia.herrera@tamiu.edu or visit www.tamiu.edu/planetarium. At 2 p.m. The Little Star that Could. At 3 p.m. Force 5: Nature Unleashed. 4 p.m. Wonders of the Universe. At 5 p.m. Lamps of Atlantis.
TUESDAY, OCT. 21 Planetarium movies. From 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. TAMIU Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium. Claudia Herrera at claudia.herrera@tamiu.edu, or visit www.tamiu.edu/planetarium. 6 p.m. Wonders of the Universe. 7 p.m. Lamps of Atlantis. Fashion show. Breast cancer survivors will model clothes from Joe Brand. Event is free and open to the public. To RSVP or for more information, contact Diana Juarez at 7239682. Liberty Tax Services Income Tax classes. From 9:00am to 12:00pm. 1102 N Meadow Corner Chihuahua . Contact JF Meyrat for more information at libertytaxschool.laredo@gmail.com or call 717-1040.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 22 Molina Healthcare’s “Tour of Giving," event. From 4:00pm to 7:00pm. Iglesia Senda de Gloria, 125 E. Mendoza Street in Colonia Pueblo Nuevo off Hwy 359. Contact Leigh Woodward at leigh.woodward@molinahealthcare.com.
THURSDAY, OCT. 23 Laredo Genealogical Society presents “Ayer,” 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at St. John Neumann Catholic Church, Guadalupe Hall. Contact Sanjuanita Hunter at 722-3497 for more information. 120th anniversary observance in Laredo: the Sisters of Mercy will present, “Band of Sisters” from 6 p.m. to TBA. TAMIU Center for Fine & Performing Art Theatre. Contact Rosanne Palacios at rosanne.palacios@mercy.net for more information.
FRIDAY, OCT. 24 Planetarium movies. From 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. TAMIU Lamar Bruni Vergara Planetarium. Claudia Herrera at claudia.herrera@tamiu.edu, or visit tamiu.edu/planetarium. At 6 p.m. Wonders of the Universe. At 7 p.m. Lamps of Atlantis. Mass for Breast Cancer Survivors. 6 p.m. Holy Redeemer Church, 1602 Garcia St. 30th Annual Update in Medicine Conference. Noon to 5 p.m. UTHSC Laredo Regional Campus. Geared for medical professionals, social service providers, medical/nursing students and others interested in learning the latest medical information on cancer, diabetes, mental health and other topics. For continuing education and other information call the Area Health Education Center at 712-0037.
Photo by LM Otero/file | AP
A sign points to the entrance to the emergency room at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, where U.S. Ebola patient Thomas Eric Duncan was being treated, in Dallas, on Oct. 8. A Texas nurse who contracted Ebola while caring for Duncan who later died of the disease understood the risks and tried to reassure her family that she would be safe.
Nurse knew of risks By MATT SEDENSKY AND NOMAAN MERCHANT ASSOCIATED PRESS
DALLAS — A Texas nurse who contracted Ebola while caring for a Liberian man who later died of the disease understood the risks and tried to reassure her family that she would be safe, a family friend said. When Nina Pham’s mother learned her daughter was caring for Thomas Eric Duncan, Pham told her: “Mom, no. Don’t worry about me,” Christina Tran told The Associated Press Monday at Our Lady of Fatima church in Fort Worth, where about 30 people gathered for the regular evening Mass and offered extra prayers for Pham. But despite wearing protective gear that included gowns, gloves, masks and face shields while caring for Duncan, the 26-yearold nurse became the first person to contract the disease within the United States.
On Tuesday, Pham said through a statement released by Texas Presbyterian Hospital Dallas that she is “doing well,” and she thanked supporters for their kind wishes and prayers. It was her first statement since contracting the disease. The hospital CEO issued a statement saying that the medical staff is “working tirelessly to help her in this courageous fight. The doctors and nurses involved with her treatment remain hopeful.” Duncan died Wednesday at the same hospital, where Pham was among about 70 staff members who cared for Duncan, according to medical records. Authorities have said they do not know how Pham was infected, but they suspect some kind of breach in the hospital’s protocol. Tran said said Pham’s parents are praying for their daughter’s recovery.
Woman sentenced in 1982 death of niece
American Eagle jet makes emergency stop in Texas
About 500 Fort Hood troops West Africa-bound
FORT WORTH — A woman has been sentenced to 10 years’ probation after pleading guilty to murder in the 1982 death of her 15-month-old niece. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that Teena Mathis accepted a plea deal Monday. Prosecutors contend that the 55-year-old Mathis beat Heidi Page at Mathis’ Fort Worth home 32 years ago. But the child’s mother, Jolene Price, says she believes the death was accidental.
ABILENE — An American Eagle jet has made an unplanned landing in West Texas after a cockpit light indicated a possible problem with the braking system. Airline spokesman Matt Miller says the plane was flying Tuesday from Midland to DallasFort Worth International Airport when the pilots declared an emergency and landed in Abilene. Miller says none of the passengers and crew members are injured.
FORT HOOD — The U.S. Army is deploying about 500 Fort Hood soldiers to Liberia to back U.S. efforts in the fight against the spread of the deadly Ebola virus. A Fort Hood statement says a ceremony today at Fort Hood to case the colors of the 36th Engineer Brigade will mark the formal beginning of the deployment.
Football player finds skull at cemetery
ZAVALLA — Two boys have survived a lightning strike in East Texas while both were in a metal deer stand in the Angelina National Forest. Angelina County Sheriff Greg Sanches says one of the boys was hospitalized in Lufkin then transferred to Houston but that both youths, ages 14 and 15, should be fine. — Compiled from AP reports
Body along Trinity River believed to be kayaker FORT WORTH — A body has been found along the banks of the Trinity River during the search for a man reported missing while kayaking last weekend. The Fort Worth Fire Department reports a body discovered Tuesday is believed to be Tyler Smith.
EL PASO — An El Paso middle school football player discovered a human skull Monday while cleaning a pauper cemetery as part of a community service project. Police are working to determine where the skull came from.
2 boys survive East Texas lightning strike
AROUND THE NATION Tropical Storm Ana heads for Hawaii HONOLULU — Tropical Storm Ana (AH - nah) is forecast to strengthen to a hurricane this week as it moves toward the southern edge of Hawaii’s Big Island, which was hit by a destructive tropical storm two months ago. National Weather Service meteorologist Chris Brenchley says Ana is expected to become a Category 1 hurricane — the lowest level, with winds of 74 to 95 mph — on Wednesday morning. The storm is forecast to clip the Big Island on Saturday afternoon. It is expected to pass about 70 miles south of Maui the next morning.
Beachgoers form human chain to rescue swimmer NEWPORT, Ore. — Beachgoers in Oregon helped pull a struggling swimmer to shore by
CONTACT US Publisher, William B. Green........................728-2501 Account Executive, Dora Martinez ...... (956) 765-5113 General Manager, Adriana Devally ...............728-2510 Adv. Billing Inquiries ................................. 728-2531 Circulation Director ................................. 728-2559 MIS Director, Michael Castillo.................... 728-2505 Copy Editor, Nick Georgiou ....................... 728-2565 Sports Editor, Zach Davis ..........................728-2578 Spanish Editor, Melva Lavin-Castillo............ 728-2569 Photo by Kathy Willens | AP
On vacation in New York, Maria Rodriguez of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, has her photo taken with two men dressed n Statue of Liberty costumes in Times Square in New York on Tuesday. forming a human chain after she and seven others were stranded on a rocky outcropping during high tide. Five people in the group remained on the rocks near Depoe Bay and were rescued one-by-one by a Coast Guard helicopter Sat-
urday, but three opted to take their chances in the surf. Ray Felle (fehl-EE’) of Portland said the girl was separated from the group and struggling when the people on the beach worked to pull her in. — Compiled from AP reports
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Local
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 3A
FIRE PREVENTION EVENT
Bank to hold opening ceremony
The Zapata County Fire Department held a fire prevention event for school children. The Fire Department taught the children about fire safety; smoke alarms; what to do in case of a fire; stop, drop and roll; and the science of fire.
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Citizens State Bank will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony at its new facility Thursday. The event will take place beginning at 10 a.m. at the bank, 134 South U.S. Highway 83. An open house will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. the same day. Bank Vice President Veronica Rivera is branch manager. The ribbon cutting is being held by the Zapata Chamber of Commerce.
Courtesy photo | Zapata County Fire Department
School scare fest today SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Fidel and Andrea R. Villarreal Elementary School is holding University Scare Fest today, from 5 to 9 p.m. at the school. Offerings include a bungee trampoline, mechanical bull, flying swings, rock wall, obstacle course and much more. In addition, booths selling food will be available. A carnival bracelet is available for $10. Entertainment will be provided by Zapata County Independent School District.
Stripes raises $1.4M-plus for kids with cancer SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Stripes Stores raised more than $1.4 million for The University of Texas MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital as part of the “Stripes Celebrates Tomorrows” campaign during Pediatric Cancer Awareness Month in September. Stripes Stores raised a total of $1,405,706 from Sept. 1 to 28 in more than 645 store locations, surpassing its initial goal of $500,000. Stripes employees asked customers to make every dollar count by purchasing a $1 paper pinup to help local kids with cancer. Each customer donation was rewarded with a free 12-ounce Slush Monkey and a buyone-get-one free Smokin’
Barrel snack promotion. In addition, the James B. and Lois R. Archer Charitable Foundation and Triumph Over Kid Cancer Foundation matched all donations dollar for dollar, doubling the “Stripes Celebrates Tomorrows” donation for a final contribution of more than $2.8 million to MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital. “On behalf of Stripes, what an honor it is to present $1,405,706 to MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital,” said Stripes Convenience Stores Vice President of Marketing Eduardo Pereda at a check presentation ceremony to MD Anderson representatives. “Together, with the support of our generous
customers and our passionate Stripes team members, we surpassed our highest expectations. The grand total of this campaign, along with the matching funds from our partnering foundations, will impact the Children’s Cancer Hospital and pediatric hospitals in our Stripes communities, allowing them to offer more hope and healing for many children.” MD Anderson will direct 100 percent of donations from the “Stripes Celebrates Tomorrows” campaign toward research for improved cancer treatments that will help save lives. Funds will also go to MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital’s Pediatric Education and Creative Arts Program.
STFB gave 9.5M pounds of product SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
The South Texas Food Bank distributed 9.57 million pounds of product equivalent to just over one million meals during the fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30. The numbers were reported by STFB Executive Director Alfonso Casso at the recent October monthly board meeting at Commerce Bank in Laredo. The 9.5 million pounds surpasses last year’s total by 42,000 pounds. Meals served last year were 919,746 compared to 1,003,485 over the last 12 months. It was also announced at the meeting that longtime board member Erasmo Villarreal has been named to the Leadership Council of Feeding Texas and businessman Hugo Flores is a new board member, replacing Tano Tijerina, who resigned. A nonprofit, STFB, celebrating its 25th anniversary, opened in 1989 under the auspices of H-E-B as the Laredo Webb-County Food Bank, distributing supplemental food to the unemployed, under-employed and those living on fixed incomes, especially the elderly. STFB, member of Feeding Texas (formerly Texas Food Bank Network) and the national organization Feeding America, now serves an eight-county area from Del Rio (Val Verde County) to Rio
Grande City (Starr County), helping an average of 28,000 families, 7,000-plus elderly and 500 veterans and their widows per month. The Kids Café program serves an average of 1,600 children 2,560 after school meals Monday through Friday at 23 sites. “The South Texas Food Bank mission of feeding the hungry continues to be huge. Hard-working wage earners have difficulty making ends meet, and the food bank is their safety net for food insecurity,” Casso said. He noted the USDA and TDA-sponsored Commodity Supplemental Food Program, mostly for individuals 60 years and older, has an average waiting list of 1,300. The adopt-afamily program serves 450 per month with a waiting list averaging between 60 and 90. Emergency walk-in bags average 200 per month compared to a 141 average last fiscal year. STFB, located at 1907 Freight in west Laredo, is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, contact 726-3120 or visit southtexasfoodbank.org. The STFB board meets at noon the second Wednesday of every month at Commerce Bank on Mann Road in Laredo. Anna B. Galo is the board president.
PAGE 4A
Zopinion
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR SEND YOUR SIGNED LETTER TO EDITORIAL@LMTONLINE.COM
COMMENTARY
OTHER VIEWS
Family planning programs By JASON MILLMAN THE WASHINGTON POST
WASHINGTON — Publicly funded family planning services help low-income Americans avoid serious health conditions while saving billions of dollars each year, according to a new analysis — benefits that go beyond providing contraception that can prevent unintended pregnancies. Past research from the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports publicly funded family programs, already found that family planning services helped prevent an estimated 2.2 million unintended pregnancies in 2010, which would have resulted in about 1.1 million unplanned births. A new Guttmacher report out Tuesday morning finds that the public investment in family planning actually saved taxpayers $13.6 billion in 2010 from the costs of those unintended pregnancies, as well as from other services the programs provide, like testing for sexually transmitted infections and cervical cancer. About 9 million women received contraceptive services from publicly supported providers in 2010, costing about $2.2 billion and accounting for about one-third of all women who received such services that year. Most of these publicly funded visits occurred in Title X-supported health centers, as well as Medicaid physician offices, report author Jennifer Frost and her colleagues write in the new study published in The Milbank Quarterly. Title X funding, in particular, has come under attack from some conservatives in recent years. Some objected to the federal family planning funds going to groups that provide abortion services, like Planned Parenthood. Mitt Romney called for the elimination of Title X during his 2012 campaign, while Texas Gov. Rick Perry and the conservative state legislature cut state family planning dollars by two-thirds in 2011 — only to restore some of the cuts two years later after too many facilities closed or stopped providing those services. The Guttmacher report is a reminder that family planning services are about much more than just contraception. More than 90 percent of these publicly funded providers offer screening for HIV and sexually transmitted infections, like chlamydia and gonorrhea. Catching these diseases early can pay off down the road through immediate treatment and long-term changes in a patient’s behavior. According to the report,
about half of female clients (or 4.4 million in 2010) at these publicly funded centers were tested for chlamydia, the same amount for gonorrhea, and 19 percent received an HIV test in 2010. Without access to these services, about 3.2 million women wouldn’t have been screened for chlamydia or gonorrhea, the authors estimate. That would have meant “tens of thousands of undetected and untreated STIs,” and that includes the prevented transmission of these infections to partners. The numbers here are pretty striking — Guttmacher researchers estimated this reduced chlamydia infections by an estimated 99,100 cases; gonorrhea infections by 16,240; HIV infections by 410. There are life-saving benefits, too. The report estimates that 3.2 million women received a cervical cancer test during a publicly funded family planning visit in 2010, including 2.3 million who otherwise would have forgone such screening. That helped identify 3,600 potential cases of cervical cancer, averting 2,090 deaths from the disease, the authors estimate. Now to the estimated cost-savings. By avoiding 2.2 million unintended pregnancies in 2010, Medicaid paid $15.2 billion less than what it otherwise would have for maternity care and infant care through a child’s first five years. Medicaid would have spent another $409 million on care for miscarriages from these unintended pregnancies, and the 17 states that use their own funds to pay for abortions for Medicaid enrollees saved an estimated $44 million. The authors estimate another $123 million was saved through testing for STIs and HIV, as well as another $23 million from Pap and HPV testing and vaccines. In all, these savings meant a $7.09 return on investment for each public dollar spent on family planning services in 2010, according to the report. Even when the authors adjusted the assumptions made to reach these numbers, “the most extreme and unlikely scenarios would still produce substantial cost savings,” the authors write. The report looks at 2010 data, which is before the Affordable Care Act’s coverage expansion took effect. The law’s new coverage scheme, especially in states that expanded their Medicaid programs, should mean an increase ease in patient visits to publicly funded health centers and Medicaid providers, the authors write. That means more opportunity for improved health outcomes and even more savings.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY The Zapata Times does not publish anonymous letters. To be published, letters must include the writer’s first and last names as well as a phone number to verify identity. The phone number IS NOT published; it is used solely to verify identity and to clarify content, if necessary. Identity of the letter writer must be verified before publication. We want to assure our readers that a letter is written by the person who signs the letter. The Zapata Times does not allow the use of pseudonyms. Letters are edited for style, grammar, length and civility. No name-calling or gratuitous abuse is allowed. Via e-mail, send letters to editorial@lmtonline.com or mail them to Letters to the Editor, 111 Esperanza Drive, Laredo, TX 78041.
COMMENTARY
Surgery in the time of Ebola By DR. SHERRY M. WREN AND DR. ADAM KUSHNER SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS
Daily reports and statistics on the worsening Ebola crisis no longer shock us. An Ebola patient dies in Dallas and a nurse who treated the patient is infected there, too. Cuban physicians and U.S. military personnel arrive in West Africa. Infected international aid workers evacuated and local health care workers die. These are the headlines of the Ebola crisis, but one word is not among the headlines: Surgery. But why should anyone care about surgery and Ebola? Ebola is a virus. The health systems in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea failed. Now the emphasis is on building Ebola isolation wards. Yet routine medical emergencies still occur. Car accidents happen. Difficult deliveries and obstructed labor occur. Children fall from trees and break bones or need stitches. As surgeons with more than 30 combined years working in developing countries, we recognize the need for surgery. But as World Bank President Jim
Kim first stated over six years ago, surgery is still the neglected stepchild of global health. So what about surgery and Ebola? News outlets ran the story about Shacki Kamara, a 16-year-old youth shot during the quarantine of West Point, Liberia. He bled to death from treatable leg wounds because people were afraid to help. A lack of surgical care led to his death. A Sierra Leone surgical colleague recently related that emergency surgical procedures are ongoing. We shudder at the personal sacrifice and bravery of these unsung heroes. They are often not equipped with even the basic protective items that are standard issue in U.S. operating rooms. They lack fluid impervious gowns, aprons, and proper eye protection. But providing surgical care in Sierra Leone is even more complicated. Surgeons are willing to operate, but patients with a fever or vomiting, common with surgical emergencies, are often first sent to the Ebola evaluation and isolation wards. Forced to wait days for a negative test for
Ebola, many die before getting needed operations. At a Sierra Leone district hospital, one doctor recently performed a cesarean section on a woman with Ebola. She was at risk of dying from Ebola, but without the operation, her child would die. She too would be at risk. With supportive medical care, patients may survive an Ebola infection. Without surgery for severe trauma, obstructed labor, a strangulated hernia, or a perforated ulcer, some patients may die. The moral dilemma is overwhelming. How does one operate on a patient infected with Ebola, yet at the same time protect the surgical staff ? The issues with surgery and Ebola are reminiscent of discussions and shunning of patients in the early days of AIDS. In the mid-1980s AIDS was often a fatal diagnosis. Operating room personnel and physicians often declined to treat infected patients. Training, protocols and personal protective supplies helped remove the stigma and allow for safe treatment. Last week we wrote an Ebola surgery protocol and sent it to the largest surgical or-
ganization in the United States. Within a day the guideline went worldwide, hospitals and the CDC started discussions. In Africa adoption occurred in 10 countries. A whirlwind response to an unanticipated need. The management of Ebola is new to many clinicians in the United States and elsewhere. We hope to see more training, protocols and personal protective supplies to lower risks to surgical staff and patients. Just as surgery is a necessary part of a functioning health system, surgery must be part of the discussion during this time of Ebola; otherwise, the death toll will not only include those unfortunate to have died from the virus but also those unlucky to have developed a treatable surgical condition in this time of Ebola. Dr. Sherry M. Wren is a professor of surgery and director of the Global Health at Stanford University. Dr. Adam Kushner is a surgeon at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. They wrote this article for the San Jose Mercury News.
COMMENTARY
Obama is a man of his times By CHARLES M. MADIGAN CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Does the president create the times, or do the times create the president? Midway through the recent documentary from filmmaker Ken Burns about the Roosevelt political family — Teddy, Eleanor and Franklin D. — I got stuck on that question. The record is not yet settled on FDR, who was either the savior of the nation (my thought) or an evil manipulator who pushed the nation toward socialism and
undermined its values of independence. There are many viewpoints between those extremes. Because my family was determinedly blue collar, Roosevelt certainly was OK by us. He is viewed as the man who saved the nation from the Great Depression, and German and Japanese imperialism too. Not a bad legacy, if we could only agree on it. I present this reality as a way to get into talking about President Barack Obama, who, the record indicates, cannot walk on wa-
ter, calm the troubled masses with his words, vanquish enemies at will or deliver flawless health care for everyone. The president has clearly defined enemies all over the place and is not shy about blowing up at least some of the most distant of them. You would think the Republicans would be cheering. They cheered for President George W. Bush when he was warring but accomplishing nothing. Obama at least has key bodies to show for his aggression. But that is a big disap-
pointment for those of us who thought we were voting for a man of peace who would solve the world’s problems. It’s probably a big disappointment for him too and a history lesson in how the world actually works. Elections and inaugurations are dandy, but not long after that, reality comes in. Obama can say the nation’s economy turned and that health care became widely available. These are accomplishments surrounded by embarrassing failures. Every president has them.
CLASSIC DOONESBURY | GARRY TRUDEAU
National
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 5A
Republicans likely to control Senate By JOSH KATZ NEW YORK TIMES
Photo by Brynn Anderson | AP
Montgomery attorney Julian McPhillips speaks to the press at the Montgomery County Courthouse on Tuesday in Montgomery, Ala. McPhillips announced that he filed a lawsuit Tuesday against longtime pastor Juan D. McFarland.The Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church wants to remove McFarland after being accused of having sex with the congregation members while infected with AIDS.
Ala. pastor with AIDS had multiple affairs By PHILLIP RAWLS AND JAY REEVES ASSOCIATED PRESS
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — After listening to his sermons for 24 years, parishioners of the Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church probably thought they knew the Rev. Juan D. McFarland. But from the very pulpit where he preached about God’s love and service to the community, he delivered some stunning revelations: He had had affairs with women in the parish — and neglected to tell them he had AIDS. Perhaps because McFarland was so well-regarded, the church’s deacons initially had sympathy. “It was surprise, shock, but I think the leadership team did not react wanting to get him out. We wanted to get him help,” said James Long, vice chairman of the board of trustees. McFarland refused — and in a later sermon dropped another bombshell: He had been abusing drugs. That was enough. The deacons voted 80-1 to fire him on Oct. 5, but McFarland refused to leave, going so far as to change the building’s locks and the numbers of the church’s bank account before returning to the pulpit on Oct. 12, Long said. On Tuesday, the first business day following his last appearance, the deacons announced that they had filed a lawsuit to force McFarland out. The church’s website portrays the pastor as a man of passion, prayer and purpose “whose life is centered in Jesus Christ.” The suit describes McFarland as a man practicing “debauchery, sin-
The deacons voted 80-1 to fire (Rev. Juan D. McFarland) on Oct. 5, but McFarland refused to leave. fulness, hedonism, sexual misconduct, dishonesty, thievery and rejection of the Ten Commandments.” It asks a judge to block him from serving as minister and give them control of the church complex, its bank accounts and a Mercedes Benz furnished for the pastor’s use. “We are just trying to minister to the flock and get the church back in order,” Long said. McFarland remained unfazed by the news. “I will command the pulpit from this day forward,” he said in a brief telephone interview Tuesday. He declined further comment, saying he and his attorney needed more time to review the suit. He would not disclose his attorney’s name. In a related development, Wells Fargo Bank filed court papers Tuesday saying that because McFarland sought to change control of the church’s bank account, it can’t determine who has the rightful claim to $56,211 in the account. It sent the court a check for the full amount and asked to be relieved of responsibility. Nathan Williams, chairman of the board of deacons, said the church normally has about 170 members show up each Sunday. Only about 50 heard McFarland’s most recent sermon. Wil-
liams and other church leaders said they went elsewhere to avoid any confrontation. In the sermon, McFarland recounted stories from the books of Matthew and Luke about Jesus healing people. “Sometimes the worst times in our lives is when we have a midnight situation — and we are in a midnight situation,” he said. “When you pray, you’ve got to forgive. You can’t go down on your knees hating somebody, or wishing something bad will happen to somebody.” An attorney for the church leaders said the sermons need to end. “He needs to get the message that he needs to be gone,” attorney Julian McPhillips said. McFarland, 47, has not been charged with any wrongdoing. Knowingly spreading a sexually transmitted disease is a misdemeanor in Alabama punishable by up to a year in jail. Court records show McFarland had two marriages end in divorce after wives filed suit to end the unions. Neither complaint mentioned allegations of adultery or other wrongdoing. Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church was founded in 1919. McFarland became pastor in 1990, and the church built a new complex near Alabama State University in 1993.
Republican chances of taking control of the Senate have risen to 72 percent, the highest level yet in the almost six months that The Upshot’s forecasting model has been tracking the race. The odds rose from 68 percent on Monday and from a low of 50 percent last month. The main cause of the latest shift is new polling in Kansas, which suggests the race is now a true tossup rather than a race in which the Republican, Sen. Pat Roberts, is a slight underdog. Our latest forecast gives Roberts a 52 percent chance to win in November, making the race between him and Greg Orman, an independent candidate, essentially a coin flip. As outside money has poured into the state over the past month, Kansas is emerging as one of the most competitive Senate races of 2014. The Democratic candidate, Chad Taylor, quit the race in early September, and Orman’s chances then spiked. Orman has said he would caucus with the majority party if he won, converting a sure Republican seat into a possible pickup opportunity for Democrats. Campaigns over the past month have been trending toward the Republicans in Arkansas, Alaska and Louisiana, and the odds of a Republican upset, though still fairly long, have also risen in Michigan and New Hampshire. To some extent, Orman’s earlier gains obscured these trends. Now that these gains may be slowing or reversing, the full effect of the erosion in the Democratic position is starting to be felt. Thus in many ways, the latest increase in the GOP’s overall chances is less of a surge and more of a return to normal. Still, the race has three weeks remaining, and perhaps the most notable aspect of this election cycle (from a forecasting perspective at least) is the uncertainty. The most competitive races are also those surrounded by the biggest question marks. Forecasting models are designed to predict the future by analyzing past data. As a general rule, the
less relevant that the past data is, the less certain you can be that your model still makes sense, and a race like Kansas’ falls well outside the scope of past data. Races in Alaska and Louisiana bring their own challenges. Alaska has a history of polling difficulties, and there has been but one nonpartisan, liveinterview poll of the state this cycle. Recent polling has shown the Republican, Dan Sullivan, with a consistent 4- to 6-point lead, but questions remain about how much stock to put in those numbers. Meanwhile, Louisiana seems almost certain to be heading to a December runoff between Sen. Mary Landrieu and Bill Cassidy, a Republican challenger. Neither seems likely to get a majority in the so-called jungle primary on Election Day. But it remains an open question how much and in which direction conditions will shift after the first election. If it is clear that electing Landrieu would also give the Democrats the Senate, does that help or hurt her chances? Will she better be able to capitalize on her family’s long history in politics in a head-to-head race? The answers to these questions are by no means clear. One thing that is more certain is that, as the Senate campaigns enter their final weeks, we should expect to see more sudden shifts in the race win probabilities, as our Senate model is designed to be more sensitive to changing conditions as Election Day approaches. Polls in October - when voters are more engaged in the campaign process simply contain more information than polls in May or June. There are fewer undecided voters, and in some cases votes have already been cast. Every data point, every new poll, becomes more valuable. For the moment, the conditions on the ground favor Republicans in enough races to give them a moderate edge in the battle for control of the Senate. But with three weeks left in the campaign and pivotal races shrouded in uncertainty, a Republican Senate in 2015 is far from a sure thing.
Obama speaks to allies about ISIS plan By DAVID LERMAN AND ANGELA GREILING KEANE BLOOMBERG NEWS
President Barack Obama sought to shore up the coalition fighting against Islamic State forces amid questions over whether an air campaign is enough to stop the extremist Sunni group from gaining territory in Iraq and Syria. After speaking with top military commanders from 21 countries allied with the U.S., Obama said Tuesday the U.S. and its partners are in agreement on the goals and on extending the effort beyond the battlefield to dealing with sectarianism and economic deprivation in the region. He also acknowledged that there will be no easy roll to victory. This is going to be a longterm campaign, Obama said after the meeting hosted by Army General Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. There will be periods of progress and there will be setbacks. They convened at Andrews Air Force Base just outside Washington following a new round of airstrikes near the Syrian town of Kobani, which is under siege by Islamic State fighters. The U.S. has little to
show for the thousands of flights and hundreds of air attacks it has conducted over the last two months with European and Arab partners, and even former administration officials say the strategy is foundering. Baghdad, Iraq’s capital, is the target of frequent attacks, and the airport is under grave risk. Dempsey told ABC television that the U.S. had to call in Apache attack helicopters to prevent Islamic State forces from overrunning Iraqi troops and seizing the airport.
Serious threat The towns of Hit and Kubaisa were captured last week and Haditha could fall within days, said Faleh al-Issawi, the deputy head of Anbars provincial council, in a phone interview. This is a very, very serious threat, said James Jeffrey, a former U.S. ambassador to Iraq under Obama who is now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Time isn’t on our side. We’re going to start losing coalition members. Jeffrey said the administration’s steadfast opposition to U.S. ground combat troops is making it harder to reassure allies of an American commitment to the battle.
and Iraqi troops havent stopped Islamic State from advancing.
Anbar province
Photo by Evan Vucci | AP
President Barack Obama speaks during a meeting with more than 20 foreign defense ministers on the ongoing operations against the Islamic State group Tuesday at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. Constantly whining about how we’re never going to put ground troops in there is simply not going over well, he said. White House and Pentagon officials defended the effectiveness of the U.S. and coalition airstrikes. White House press secretary Josh Earnest said there is early evidence that Obama’s strategy is succeeding. Acknowledging that airstrikes alone won’t change the balance in the fight overnight, Earnest said it will still take some time to get a ground force of local troops and Syrian rebels in place.
Strategic nature Pentagon spokesman Ar-
my Colonel Steve Warren said today that the strikes in Syria are more of a strategic nature to try and choke off the Islamic States ability to resupply to reequip and to train its forces in Iraq. Warren outlined successes and setbacks in both Iraq and Syria, noting to judge the success or failure of airstrikes after only several weeks of what will be months and possibly years of effort is simply too premature. The strikes on a broad array of targets and positions in the next year or two will have a cumulative impact, Warren said. Even with some initial success at forcing a retreat from Iraqs largest dam and a town populated by the minority Yezidis, the airstrikes
The group, which declared an Islamic caliphate and has beheaded American and European aid workers and journalists, came closer to gaining full control of Iraqs Anbar Province after seizing a military base west of Baghdad. The problem in Syria is even worse. The U.S. and allies are conducting airstrikes without any ground forces to help them spot targets and conduct the kind of urban warfare needed to dislodge extremists from cities. Kurds just across the border in neighboring Turkey have watched with alarm as Islamic State forces move toward the Syrian town of Kobani, whose fall would give the extremist group control of territory stretching from the Turkish border to the outskirts of Baghdad. President Obama’s pledge to degrade and ultimately destroy the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL, is plainly failing, said John Nagl, a retired Army officer who served in Iraq, in a column for Politico. Today, the barbarians are literally at the gates of Baghdad.
Assad regime The effort is further complicated by U.S. reluctance to attack the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, which opposes Islamic State but is also battling the moderate rebels the U.S. seeks to train. While the administration doesn’t want to go after Assad’s forces, they may be pushed to do that because the Sunni states and Turkey are absolutely committed to fighting Assad, Jeffrey said. Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, who left office last year, criticized Obama for ruling out ground troops and not showing enough passion in leading a military offensive. I don’t mind presidents who have the quality of a law professor in looking at the issues and determining just exactly, you know, what needs to be done, he said of his former boss on CBS television on Oct. 12. But presidents need to also have the heart of a warrior. That’s the way you get things done, is you engage in the fight. Obama, who won office by pledging to get the U.S. out of Iraq, has been adamant that American troops won’t return to ground combat there since leaving the country in 2011.
National
6A THE ZAPATA TIMES
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
Signs of gunshot residue on St. Louis victim By JIM SALTER ASSOCIATED PRESS
ST. LOUIS — Gunshot residue was on the hand, waistband and shirt of an 18-year-old man killed by a St. Louis police officer, authorities said Tuesday. Police union leaders said the lab test by the Missouri State Highway Patrol dispels claims that Vonderrit Myers didn’t shoot at the officer on Oct. 8, initiating a fatal exchange of gunfire. The shooting led to a new wave of protests in St. Louis, two months after a white officer in neighboring Ferguson shot and killed an unarmed black 18-year-old, Michael Brown. St. Louis Police Officers’ Association business manager Jeff Roorda cited other evidence against Myers during a news conference: Social media photos that
Roorda said show Myers holding three guns, one of them a 9 mm Smith & Wesson. Roorda said it is likely the stolen gun Myers used to shoot at the officer. He did not provide copies of the photos. Myers’ family contends that he was unarmed and that the officer, who was in uniform but who was off-duty and working for a security company at the time, mistook a sandwich Myers was holding for a gun. Myers’ father, Vonderrit Myers Sr., declined to comment Tuesday. Gerryl Christmas, an attorney for the family, said they want complete investigation, not one conducted in bits and pieces. “When somebody’s son is dead, don’t they deserve a full and thorough investigation?” he said. The shooting set off a
Police union leaders said the lab test dispels claims that Vonderrit Myers didn’t shoot at the officer. new round of intense protests similar to those in Ferguson after Brown’s death. Both Brown and Myers were black. Both officers are white. A state grand jury is deciding whether charges will be filed against the Ferguson officer, Darren Wilson. The St. Louis officer has not been named and is on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. The officer was working a moonlighting job as a security officer hired to patrol a neighborhood near the Missouri Botanical Garden in south St. Louis.
Though not on duty, he was wearing his police uniform and armed with his department-issued gun, which is common practice in St. Louis. Police Chief Sam Dotson said the officer became suspicious when Myers and the men with him started to run. A chase ensued and the officer and Myers got into a physical confrontation. After Myers pulled away, Dotson said, he went up a hill and started shooting at the officer. Ballistic evidence shows Myers fired three shots before his gun jammed, Dot-
son said. Police said they recovered the gun, which was reported stolen on Sept. 26. Roorda said the gun in the photo was an exact match for the gun found on Myers after his death. “This is a distinct-looking gun, not one seen on the streets very often,” he said. Roorda called political leaders who blamed the police for Myers’ death “irresponsible and despicable.” “The allegation that the young man had nothing but a sandwich was a silly allegation proven quickly to be untrue,” he said. The officer fired off 17 rounds. Preliminary autopsy results show Myers was struck six or seven times and died from a wound to the head, according to medical examiner Dr. Michael Graham.
Online court documents show that Myers was free on bond when he was killed. He had been charged with the unlawful use of a weapon, a felony, and misdemeanor resisting arrest in June. The officer’s attorney, Brian Millikan, said the shooting was “a traumatic event in his life.” He said the officer is undergoing counseling. Several protests have taken place in the area of the shooting, some that have turned violent, with several police cars damaged. Officers arrested 17 protesters and used pepper spray Sunday after 200 people gathered not far from where Myers was killed. The protesters, some wearing masks, marched toward a QuikTrip convenience store and tried to force open its doors, according to police.
National
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 7A
Police: Megabus crashes, 18 injured By TOM DAVIES ASSOCIATED PRESS
INDIANAPOLIS — A double-decker passenger bus flipped onto its side on a highway in suburban Indianapolis on Tuesday after striking a crashed car, leaving 18 people with mostly minor injuries, police said. The bus, operated by Megabus, was traveling from Atlanta to Chicago, said Sean Hughes, spokesman for the line’s parent company, Coach USA North America. It was carrying 50 to 60 people when it crashed about 4:30 a.m. on Interstate 65 in Greenwood after coming upon a car that had crashed about 10 minutes earlier, state police Sgt. Shawn O’Keefe said. “The driver apparently didn’t see it because of the rain or something and
swerved to avoid it,” O’Keefe said. “The bus driver swerved and ended up turning the bus over on its side, and it went into the median.” The roadway was wet from overnight storms and some light rain continued in central Indiana. A witness who had stopped to check on the crashed car told police the bus struck the rear of the car, a news release said. The collision sent the bus into the median and the car into a ditch. The car’s driver was among 11 people injured who complained of pain, bruises and small cuts from broken glass, police said. Seven other people also had injuries, the most serious of which was a possible broken arm. Most of the injured passengers were Illinois residents, and others were
Photo by Scott Roberson/The Daily Journal | AP
Windows are broken on a Megabus that crashed on I-65 in Greenwood, Ind., early Tuesday. The double-decker passenger bus flipped onto its side after apparently swerving to avoid an earlier crash. from Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, and Minnesota, according to an incomplete list released by state
police. Police identified the bus driver as Randall Flowers, 37, of Illinois, and the driver of the car
as 22-year-old Logan Thompson of Columbus, Indiana. Passenger Devin David, 31, of Louisville, Kentucky, said he was half asleep on the bus’ upper level when the crash happened. “I was able to put my head down and brace myself for impact before it turned over,” he said. “I felt it swerve, I felt it lose control, so I was able to get down in a pretty safe position.” David said the bus landed on the side where he was sitting and a couple of other people fell on top of him. At first many passengers were screaming and crying, he said. An inspection of the bus found no pre-existing mechanical issues, police said. The budget bus company has had other crashes
in recent years. In Syracuse, New York, in 2010, the driver of a Megabus missed his exit and was using a personal GPS to find the bus station. He passed 13 low-bridge warning signs before hitting an overpass. Four people were killed. In 2012, a blown tire was blamed in a Megabus crash that killed one passenger and injured dozens of others. Greenwood Fire Department Battalion Chief Chris Harrell said the Indiana crash could have been worse. The bus became entangled in the median’s cable barrier, which likely prevented a more serious crash, he said. Hughes said the company was assisting authorities with their investigation and working to help the passengers.
PÁGINA 8A
Zfrontera
Ribereña en Breve FESTIVAL DEL MIEDO La Escuela Primaria Fidel and Andrea R. Villarreal realizará un Festival del Miedo Universitario (University Scare Fest) hoy de 5 p.m. a 9 p.m. en la escuela. Habrá un trampolín para saltar, un toro mecánico, alas para volar, pared de roca, camino con obstáculos, entre otras cosas. Además, habrá disponibles varios puestos con venta de comida. El brazalee para entrar al carnaval tiene costo de 10 dólares. El entretenimiento estará a cargo del Distirto Escolar Independiente del Condado de Zapata.
CORTE DE LISTÓN Citizens State Bank llevará a cabo una ceremonia de corte de listón de sus nuevas instalaciones el jueves. El evento dará inicio a las 10 a.m. en el banco ubicado en 134 South U.S. Highway 83. Un recorrido del banco se realizará de 9 a.m. a 5 p.m., el mismo día. La Vice Presidenta del Banco, Verónica Rivera, es la gerente de la sucursal. La ceremonia de corte de listón es organizada por la Cámara de Comercio de Zapata.
CAMINATA La Comisión de Parques y Recreación de la Ciudad de Roma, invita a la primer Caminata Comunitaria Anual “Camina Sobre el Cáncer”. El evento será el sábado 25 de octubre a partir de las 8:30 a.m. cubriendo desde el Citizens State Bank hasta Guadalupe Plaza. El registro es de 25 dólares, lo cual incluye una camiseta, y se puede realizar, de lunes a viernes, en horario de 8 a.m. a 5 p.m. en las Oficinas del Ayuntamiento de Roma. Las ganancias serán destinadas al Pink Positive Breast Cancer Foundation. Se invita a todos los sobrevivientes de cáncer, familiares y amigos.
REFORMA ENERGÉTICA Humberto Rene Salinas Treviño, Secretario de Desarrollo Urbano y Medio Ambiente, (Seduma) dijo que el sector energético que se viene a raíz de la Reforma Federal en la materia generará un gran desarrollo económico, social y laboral en Tamaulipas, ese auge va a traer grandes beneficios por lo que es fundamental que se desarrolle en armonía con la conservación y en respeto del medio ambiente. Aseguró que es importante ver que se lleve de manera adecuada el desarrollo, el crecimiento de las ciudades, la reutilización de algunos materiales que puedan ser reciclables en cuanto a los residuos sólidos urbanos. La Agencia de Seguridad Industrial y Protección al Medio Ambiente emitirá los permisos.
ENFERMERA CON ÉBOLA DALLAS — Una enfermera de Dallas infectada con el virus del ébola mientras trataba al primer paciente diagnosticado en Estados Unidos recibió una transfusión de plasma de un médico que sobrevivió al virus. La enfermera Nina Pham fue una de unos 70 miembros del personal médico del Hospital Presbiteriano de Texas que atendió a Thomas Eric Duncan, según los registros médicos. Pham y otros trabajadores de la salud usaron trajes protectores, incluso guantes y máscaras, cuando cuidaban de Duncan, pero ella fue la primera persona que contrajo la enfermedad estando en Estados Unidos.
MIÉRCOLES 15 DE OCTUBRE DE 2014
SALUD
Ejército de Junior Caso de lisencefalia une a familia y sociedad POR CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
E
l 5 de agosto fue la fecha en que el oficial del Alguacil del Condado de Zapata, Manuel Longoria y su esposa Leslie Vela, recibieron una bendición, dijeron. Ese día Vela dio a luz a su segunda hija, Leslie Raquel “Junior” Longoria, quien ahora tiene 14 meses de edad. Durante los siguientes meses, sus padres comenzaron a notar que algo no andaba bien. Leslie no había mostrado conductas tales como sentarse, gatear y jugar, como otros niños de su edad. Longoria y Vela asistieron a Early Childhood Intervention Project Niños (ECI — Proyecto de Intervención Anticipada en la Niñez, Niños). El 29 de agosto, los doctores dijeron a Longoria y Vela que Leslie tiene lisencefalia, que es suavidad cerebral. La lisencefalia causa retrasos en el desarrollo y una “cabeza pequeña”, dijo Longoría, de acuerdo a lo que los doctores le indicaron. Longoria y Vela siguieron adelante y llevaron a Leslie a Houston, al Texas Children’s Hospital. “La enfermedad no es reversible. No hay nada que podamos hacer al respecto”, dijo Longoria. “Es una cuestión diaria. No sabemos que nos esperará mañana. Pero sabemos que es lo que llevaremos a la mesa todos los días… La parte del duelo ha terminado. Ahora solamente estamos trabajando con ella y disfrutando cada día de vida que tenemos a su lado”. Vela comenzó una investigación sobre lisencefalia, lo que la llevó al sitio en Internet de Foundation for
Foto por Cesar G. Rodriguez | The Zapata Times
Manuel Longoria, oficial del Alguacil del Condado de Zapata, besa el rostro de su hija, Leslie Raquel “Junior” Longoria, de 14 meses de edad. "Junior" sufre de lisencefalia, que es suavidad cerebral. Children with Microcephaly (Fundación para Niños con Microcefalia), una organización sin fines de lucro dedicada a ayudar a niños diagnosticados con microcefalia, lisencefalia, polimicrogiria y otras enfermedades neurológicas relacionadas, se lee en la pagina. Vela descubrió que el 30 de septiembre es el Día de Concientización sobre Microcefalia. Al principio, quiso hacer lo que ella llamó una “cosa familiar” y contactó a familiares para pedirles que vistieran algo amarillo, como apoyo por el Día Nacional de Microcefalia. La Oficina del Alguacil emitió un comunicado de prensa el 30 de septiembre en apoyo a Leslie. Las personas en la oficina vistieron de amarillo. “No hay nada, en ningún lenguaje, que haya creado una palabra pa-
ra describir lo agradecidos que estuvimos en estas personas (el 30 de septiembre)”, dijo Longoria. Pero las noticias de Leslie se esparcieron a través del Condado de Zapata y fuera de él. Longoria creó un grupo de apoyo en Facebook, llamado “Junior’s Army”. Comenzó con la página publicando actualizaciones de las mejoras que presentaba su bebé, y de sus citas médicas. “El lema de Junior’s Army es ‘sus batallas son nuestras batallas’. Por lo que sea que tenga que pasar, pasaremos por ello juntos”, dijo Longoria. Añadió que la familia busca hacer conciencia sobre los otros niños que se encuentran luchando esta batalla en la comunidad. Longoria y Vela han visto grandes mejoras en Leslie, gracias a la
ROTARIOS
terapia. Leslie ha recibido terapia de habla, terapia física, ocupacional y de habilidades especiales, durante visitas semanales y mensuales. “Nuestro programa está diseñado para incrementar la funcionalidad de cada niño”, dijo Alexis Flores, coordinador de bienestar de menores y concientización pública para Early Childhood Intervention Project Niños. ECI, es programa estatal y federal que ha existido en Laredo por más de 30 años. ECI apoya a familias con niños que se encuentran experimentando retrasos en el desarrollo o que padecen de un desorden de desarrollo. Acerca de Leslie, Flores dijo que ha tenido muchos progresos. Dio el credito a sus padres por apoyarla abrumadoramente. (Localice a César G. Rodriguez en 728-2568 o en cesar@lmtonline.com)
MIGUEL ALEMÁN
Congresista analiza temas Combates dejan a 4 sin vida POR PHILIP BALLI
TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
El déficit presupuestal de EU ha disminuido por casi 1 trillón de dólares desde su máximo alcanzado en 2009, declaró el Congresista Henry Cuellar durante la reunión del Laredo Gateway Rotary Club, el lunes. Cuellar fue el orador invitado en la reunión donde habló ante invitados acerca de una variedad de temas, incluyendo el déficit presupuestal, el crecimiento laboral, el Ébola y la amenaza del ISIS. De acuerdo a la Oficina de Presupuesto del Congreso, el déficit del gobierno de EU caerá a 492 billones de dólares este año. Cuellar atribuyó la disminución al control fiscal, la disminución de dos guerras y el crecimiento económico. “La economía de EU está mucho mejor; en el último cuarto, finalmente agregamos todos los empleos que perdimos desde la recesión del 2008”, dijo Cuellar. “Ahora que hemos regresado a
lo normal, trabajamos para crear más empleos”. Cuellar citó datos del Departamento del Trabajo indicando que se CUELLAR han agregado más empleos a la economía bajo los primeros cuatro años del presidente Obama, que en todo el periodo de ocho años de la presidencia de Bush. Cuellar dijo que algunas áreas del país y del mismo Estado están mejor que otras. “El Sur de Texas y la frontera de Laredo son puntos positivos debido al comercio internacional y a las industrias de hidrocarburos”, sostuvo Cuellar. La actual crisis del Ébola en las naciones de África Occidental representa lo pequeño que es el mundo, dijo Cuellar, haciendo referencia al paciente en Dallas quien recientemente falleció del virus. Ahora una enfermera se ha convertido en la primer persona conocida en contraer el virus aquí en EU.
Thomas Frieden, director de los Centros para el Control y Prevención de Enfermedades, dijo el lunes que la enfermera estaba “clínicamente estable”, pero que los investigadores siguen buscando determinar cómo fue que ella resultó infectada. La amenaza del ISIS es otro factor que puede mostrar lo pequeño que el mundo es, agregó Cuellar, haciendo referencia a las tácticas de reclutamiento a través de las redes sociales de la organización terrorista. “Nuestro mundo está conectado de muchas maneras, y hemos sido testigos de las revoluciones que han surgido de las redes sociales”, dijo Cuellar. “ISIS está utilizando las redes sociales para reclutar personas de EU y de partes de Europa”. Cuellar dijo que ISIS difiere de otras organizaciones en una variedad de formas. Agregó que la información de inteligencia indica que ISIS obtiene de 1 mdd a 3 millones diarios de los campos petroleros de los que se apoderaron en Irak.
TEXAS
Gobernador debe comparecer POR WILL WEISSERT ASSOCIATED PRESS
AUSTIN — El gobernador de Texas, Rick Perry, tendrá su primera comparecencia en la corte el día de Halloween, mientras su equipo de defensa trata de invalidar los dos cargos de abuso de poder en su contra acudiendo a argumentos tanto constitucionales como técnicos. El político republicano está en una misión económica del estado en Europa y se le concedió permiso para no asistir a una audiencia previa a juicio agenda-
da para el lunes en Austin, durante la cual el juez estatal de distrito Bert Richardson estableció la siguiente fecha de presentaPERRY ción en la corte. Durante la próxima comparecencia en el tribunal, los abogados de Perry argumentarán que McCrum nunca fue juramentado de manera correcta, y que además debe presentar transcripciones de testimonios secretos del jurado investigador para que los revise el .
“Se han lanzado un par de platos al fregadero, así que tenemos que examinarlos”, dijo. “Pero tengo confianza en que todo va a proceder de buena manera”. También el lunes, el juez estableció el 7 de noviembre como fecha límite para que McCrum presente respuestas por escrito a las dos mociones de invalidación de la defensa. Perry fue acusado en agosto por un jurado investigador de Austin después de amenazar públicamente con un veto a fondos estatales para fiscales encargados de casos de corrupción.
TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
Un saldo de cuatro personas muertas y un supuesto líder de un grupo delincuencial lesionado, es el saldo oficial de los enfrentamientos ocurridos el domingo entre civiles armados en Miguel Alemán, México. Rafael Joaquín Salinas Aparicio, conocido como “Metro 32” y/o “Comandante Salinas” recibió varios balazos durante un enfrentamiento ocurrido a las 5:15 a.m. en el sector centro de la ciudad. En ése punto, agentes federales y estatales encontraron el cuerpo sin vida de dos hombres, dentro de una camioneta GMC Sierra, modelo 2013, abandonada. Una de las víctimas fue identificada como Edgar Gilberto Cortez Mata, de 27 años de edad. La otra víctima aún no ha sido identificada. A 50 metros fue localizada una camioneta Ford Escape modelo 2002, con las puertas delanteras abiertas, varios impactos de bala y rastros de sangre. El herido, Salinas Aparicio, fue trasladado por particulares al municipio de Camargo, para posteriormente ser llevado a bordo de una ambulancia a un hospital privado en Reynosa, indicaron autoridades. En un comunicado del Gobierno del Estado se indica que Salinas continúa internado y está bajo custodia. Autoridades decomisaron armas, cartuchos y las camionetas GMC y Ford Escape. También el domingo, en el arroyo “El Buey”, fue localizado el cuerpo sin vida de un hombre no identificado, de 30 a 35 años de edad. Presentaba impactos de bala. Finalmente, en el interior de las instalaciones de una empresa dedicada al servicio de grúas en la carretera a Monterrey y Kilómetro 6 del poblado Los Guerra, fue encontrada una camioneta que contenía el cuerpo sin vida de un hombre no identificado, de 35 a 40 años.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM
Sports&Outdoors HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETICS: ZAPATA HAWKS
Zapata shines before district By CLARA SANDOVAL
at Grulla (0-6, 0-1).
THE ZAPATA TIMES
The Hawks cross country team traveled down Highway 16 to compete at the Hebbronville Invitational this weekend at the county airport. It was the last tuneup before the district meet to be held on Oct. 20 at Progresso. Zapata flew under the radar and captured the team title in the varsity and junior varsity divisions. The Hawks were once again led by team captain Danny Hinojosa, who obtained the overall individual title as well. All of Zapata’s runners finished in the top 13 of the standings. After Hinojosa, Jesus Rubio, Mike Trevino and Luis Rodriguez finished fifth through seventh. Robert Salinas took ninth while Isauro Sanchez and Alvaro Rodriguez took 11th and 13th, respectively. The junior varsity team was led by freshman Erick Resendiz, who also captured the individual title. He finished directly ahead of his teammates Jose Alvarado (2nd), Jorge Garcia (3rd) and Pedro Gonzalez (4th). Also finishing in the top 10 were Maycol Mendoza (6th), Pascual Martinez (8th)
Volleyball
Courtesy photo
At the Hebbronville Invitational at the county airport, the Zapata varsity and JV teams took home first place this weekend in their last meet before district. and Ruben Castillo (9th). The rest of the Hawks who finished close behind included James To, Albert Hinojosa, Juan Angel Barrientos, Ricky Garcilazo, Hector Barrientos and LeeRoy Bautista. The Hawks will continue to prepare and get ready for what seems to be a very exciting and competitive district meet.
Football Following their season-opening loss to Laredo Cigarroa, the Hawks just keep rolling. Zapata won its sixthstraight game on Friday with a 37-19 victory at home over Hidalgo. The win opened District 16-4A play as the Hawks move
to the top of the five-team district along with La Feria (5-1, 1-0 District 16-4A). With three district games remaining in the season, Zapata hits the road to face King (2-4, 0-0) for its district opener on Oct. 17 at 7:30 p.m. The Hawks will then finish off the season hosting La Feria on Oct. 31 before ending the year
The Lady Hawks volleyball team had to hit the floor Saturday without their leader as head coach Rosie Villarreal was unable to make the game due to illness. Zapata did not skip a beat under assistant coach Mario Benavides and took down Raymondville in four sets, 3-1 (2523, 25-21, 16-25, 25-21) to stay at the top of District 16-4A. Zapata’s balanced offense featured three players in double figures and proved to be too much for the Lady Kats. Senior Cassey Garcia grabbed 13 kills while Tere Villarreal followed closely behind at 12 and Alexis Alvarez with 10. The Lady Hawks also came out swinging from the service line, recording eight aces behind the arms of Alex Gonzalez (4), Villarreal (3) and Kaity Ramirez (1). Kaity Ramirez finished the game with 19 assists and 10 digs, while Tere Villarreal (2 blocks) and Marla Gonzalez (1 block) helped out defensively. Clara Sandoval can be reached at Sandoval.Clara@Gmail.com.
International
10A THE ZAPATA TIMES
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
North Korean leader reappears publicly By FOSTER KLUG ASSOCIATED PRESS
SEOUL, South Korea — After vanishing from the public eye for nearly six weeks, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is back, ending rumors that he was gravely ill, deposed or worse. Now, a new, albeit smaller, mystery has emerged: Why the cane? Kim, who was last seen publicly at a Sept. 3 concert, appeared in images released by state media Tuesday smiling broadly and supporting himself with a walking stick while touring the newly built Wisong Scientists Residential District and another new institute in Pyongyang, part of his regular “field guidance” tours. The North didn’t say when the visit happened, nor did it address the leader’s health. Kim’s appearance allowed the country’s massive propaganda apparatus to continue doing what it does best — glorify the third generation of Kim family rule. And it will tamp down, at least for the moment, rampant rumors of a coup and serious health problems. Before Tuesday, Kim missed several high-profile events that he normally attends and was described in an official documentary last month as experiencing “discomfort.” Archive footage from August showed him overweight and limping, prompting the South Korean media to speculate he had undergone surgery on his ankles. Some experts thought he was suffering from gout or diabetes. In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the U.S. didn’t have any reason to doubt the authenticity of the latest images, although she added that because of the opacity of the North Korean regime, there’s always a question about the reliability of publicly available information. A South Korean analyst said Kim probably broke his
Bomb kills 19 in Iraq By VIVIAN SALAMA ASSOCIATED PRESS
BAGHDAD — An Iraqi police official says a suicide bomber rammed his explosive-laden car into a security checkpoint in northern Baghdad, killing at least 19 people, including civilians. The attack happened Tuesday in Baghdad’s Shiite-majority Khazimiyah district. The official says at least six police officers were among the dead. Another 35 people were wounded. Hospital officials confirmed the casualties.
Photo by Kin Cheung | AP
Photo by Ahn Young-joon | AP
A shopper passes by TV monitors displaying a news program at an electronic shop in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday showing a photo of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un smiling, reportedly during his first public appearance in five weeks. media silence to dispel outside speculation that he wasn’t in control and to win sympathy from a domestic audience by creating the image of a leader who works through pain. The appearance may be a form of “emotional politics meant to appeal to the North Korean people’s sympathy,” said Cheong Seong-chang, at the private Sejong Institute in South Korea. It was the first time a North Korean leader allowed himself to be seen relying on a cane or crutch, South Korean officials said. Kim’s father, Kim Jong Il, who reportedly suffered a stroke in 2008 before dying of a heart attack in late 2011, was seen limping but never with a walking stick, nor was the country’s founder and Kim Jong Un’s grandfather, Kim Il Sung, said Lim Byeong Cheol, a spokesman from Seoul’s Unification Ministry. Cheong said Kim appeared in the recently released images to have lost about 10 kilograms (22 pounds) compared to pictures from May. He speculated that since Kim was holding a cane on his left side he may have had surgery on his left ankle. Kim “appears to want to show people that he’s doing fine, though he’s indeed still
having some discomfort. If he hadn’t done so, excessive speculation would have continued to flare up and anxiety among North Korean residents would have grown and calls by outsiders for contingency plans on dealing with North Korea would have gotten momentum,” Cheong said. The South Korean government has all along seen no signals of any major problems. In deciding to resume his public activity before fully recovering from his condition, Kim was looking to quickly quell rumors that his health problems were serious enough to threaten his status as North Korean leader, said Lim, the government spokesman. “The cane aside, he looked to be in good health,” Lim said. The recent absence was, in part, “probably an attentiongetting device — and it certainly works,” Bruce Cumings, an expert on Korea at the University of Chicago, said in an email. “The North has been on a diplomatic offensive in Europe and elsewhere, it feels isolated — and is, if we’re talking about relations with Washington,” he wrote. “All this puts them back on the front page.”
Demonstrators block the underpass with concrete slabs taken from drainage ditches at the main roads outside government headquarters in Hong Kong’s Admiralty on Wednesday. Pro-democracy activists clashed with police and barricaded a tunnel near Hong Kong’s government headquarters late Tuesday, expanding their protest zone again after being cleared out of some other streets.
Police clear protesters By KELVIN CHAN AND SYLVIA HUI ASSOCIATED PRESS
HONG KONG — Hundreds of Hong Kong police officers moved in early Wednesday to clear pro-democracy protesters out of a tunnel outside the city government headquarters. Officers, many of them in riot gear and wielding pepper spray, tore down barricades and removed obstacles such as concrete slabs in and around the underpass. The operation came hours after a large group of protesters blockaded the tunnel. They outnumbered the police officers, who later returned with reinforcements to clear the area. Local television broadcast live footage of the operation and its aftermath, with officers taking away many protesters, their hands tied with plastic cuffs, and pushing others out to a nearby park. The student-led protesters are now into their third week of occupying key parts of the city to pressure the Asian financial hub’s government over curbs recommended by Beijing on democratic reforms. Positions on both sides have been hardening since the govern-
ment called off negotiations last week, citing the unlikelihood of a constructive outcome given their sharp differences. Police have chipped away at the protest zones in three areas across the city by removing barricades from the edges of the protest zones, signalling growing impatience with activists’ occupation of busy streets. The clearance operation was the latest in a day of tit-for-tat actions between authorities and demonstrators that began Tuesday morning when police used chainsaws and sledgehammers to tear down barricades on a road on the edge of the protest zone. Activists responded Tuesday evening by barricading the tunnel with tires, metal barricades, waterfilled plastic safety barriers and concrete slabs taken from drainage ditches. They used the slabs to form the shape of an umbrella on the road. Umbrellas have become a symbol of the protests after demonstrators used them to protect themselves against pepper spray and tear gas used by police in an attempt to disperse them two weeks ago.
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
THE ZAPATA TIMES 11A
Citigroup to exit 11 markets By KEN SWEET ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — Citigroup customers across Central America and parts of Eastern Europe will be looking for a new place to bank next year. Citigroup said Tuesday that it will bow out of the retail banking business in 11 markets, part of its ongoing effort since the financial crisis to restructure and slim down. The news came as the bank announced third-quarter earnings. Citi said the impact would primarily be smaller countries in Latin America: Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama and Peru. It will also exit consumer banking in Egypt, Japan, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Guam. The bank is exiting those areas to focus on market share and growth potential in places where it believes it can be competitive, Citigroup CEO Michael Corbat said in a statement. It will still have institutional banking operations in these areas. “I am committed to simplifying our company and allocating our finite resources to where we can generate the best returns for our shareholders,” Corbat said. The bank said sales of the businesses were underway in the majority of the markets affected. Citi expects the sales to be substantially complete by the end of 2015. Even with Tuesday’s announcement, Citi will still
Photo by Julie Jacobson/file | AP
Facebook president and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, right, walks with Priscilla Chan in Sun Valley, Idaho, on July 9, 2011.
$25M to CDC for Ebola By BARBARA ORTUTAY ASSOCIATED PRESS Photo by Matt Rourke/file | AP
A person walks past a Citibank location in Philadelphia on Jan. 14. Citigroup customers across Central America and parts of Eastern Europe will be looking for a new place to bank next year. be the most internationally focused of the big U.S. banks, serving 57 million clients in 24 different countries or markets, it said. Citi has been selling off assets and consolidating its operations for several years now, both under Corbat as well as former CEO Vikram Pandit. The company sold the rest of its Smith Barney retail brokerage business to Morgan Stanley in 2012. Earlier this year it sold its consumer banking businesses in Greece and Spain. Citi’s announcement came at the same time the company announced its quarterly results. The bank reported earnings of $3.44 billion, or $1.07 a share, for the three-month period ending in Sept. 30. Stripping out one-time items, Citi said it earned an adjusted profit of $3.67 billion, or $1.15 a
share. Last year the company earned $3.23 billion, or $1 a share. Revenue rose 9 percent to $19.6 billion from $17.9 billion a year ago. The results exceeded Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for earnings of $1.12 a share. Citi’s stock rose $1.43, or 3 percent, to $51.33. In a separate announcement, Citi said it had discovered $15 million in fraud following an investigation into the bank’s Banamex unit. The fraud came from personal security services that were provided to individuals outside the bank. The bank said it will use its internal security division going forward. In February, Citi disclosed that its Banamex di-
vision had lost $400 million as a result of fraud related to a Mexican oil services company known as Oceanografia. The bank lent Oceanografia the money based upon invoices that were later found to be fake. The $15 million announcement came as a result of an investigation into the Oceanografia incident. Citigroup was one of a few large banks to report their quarterly results Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase reported earnings of $5.6 billion, or $1.36 share, compared with a loss of $380 million, or 17 cents a share, in the same period a year ago. The results missed expectations. Wells Fargo said it had a third-quarter profit of $5.73 billion, or $1.02 per share, meeting Wall Street’s expectations.
NEW YORK — Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are donating $25 million to the CDC Foundation to help address the Ebola epidemic. The money will be used by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Ebola response effort in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone and elsewhere in the world where Ebola is a threat, the foundation said Tuesday. The grant follows a $9 million donation made by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen last month. Zuckerberg and Chan are making the grant from their fund at the nonprofit Silicon Valley Community Foundation. “We need to get Ebola under control in the near term so that it doesn’t spread further and become a long term global health crisis that we end
up fighting for decades at large scale, like HIV or polio,” Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page on Tuesday. “We believe our grant is the quickest way to empower the CDC and the experts in this field to prevent this outcome.” Also on Tuesday, the World Health Organization said West Africa could see up to 10,000 new Ebola cases a week within two months and confirmed that the death rate in the current outbreak is now 70 percent. The disease has killed more than 4,000 people, nearly all of them in West Africa. The WHO has called the outbreak “the most severe, acute health emergency seen in modern times.” “The most important step we can take is to stop Ebola at its source. The sooner the world comes together to help West Africa, the safer we all will be,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden in a statement.
SON’S LOVE Continued from Page 1A U.S. government to let him come home. Guerrero’s initial re-entry request was denied, so now Klein is requesting a special “humanitarian parole,” which the government grants “based on urgent humanitarian reasons or if there is a significant public benefit,” according to the U.S. Customs and Immigration Service website. But the agency cautions against trying use it to avoid normal visa procedures. Last year, it approved only about a third of the humanitarian parole petitions it received. Agency officials declined to discuss any details of Guerrero’s case because it is ongoing. However, spokesman Chris Bentley said “Immigration law is complex; Anyone considering taking an immigration action needs to clearly understand the potential consequences of that action first.” Guerrero told The Associated Press that he submitted two requests for fast-tracked permission to leave while his mother’s health declined, and was asked to more fully document his mother’s medical condition. He could have tried to plead his case in person, but he left instead before getting an answer. “My mom had a lot of ups and downs,” he said. “The decision to actually leave was made overnight.” Miami-based immigration attorney Ira Kurzban says it’s not infrequent for immigrants to lose their legal status by leaving the country without permission. It happens when they go on cruise ships — thinking
they haven’t really left the U.S. — or take off due to a family emergency. Many discover only later that they can’t return, or are barred for entering for as much as 10 years. “There’s no question (Guerrero) didn’t follow the rules. The question is what the penalty should be,” Kurzban said. Any immigrants with pending cases need permission to go abroad, which is not difficult to get eventually, if their requests are deemed valid. But those who don’t wait for sometimes slow responses are considered to have voluntarily given up their effort to remain in the U.S. Advocates say it should be easier for immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for many years to get permission to travel. Visas for skilled H-1B temporary workers already allow travel internationally without preapproval, and giving others this freedom would reduce heartbreak and add only minimal administrative work, Kurzban said. But no such provisions were included in last year’s immigration reform bills, and they aren’t expected to be included in any executive action President Barack Obama might announce later this year. Kurzban thinks that’s because the issue affects a relatively small group, and there are so many other priorities. Rocio Meneses Diaz died Aug. 14 at the age of 41 at her oldest brother’s house in the central state of Guanajuato. Guerrero’s 16-year-old brother also was by her side. As a U.S.-born citizen, he is allowed to travel
freely. Their father, a building contractor in the U.S. illegally, stayed behind at the family’s Long Beach home with their 9-year-old sister. Guerrero says he regrets his rash decision most of all because he thinks his mother would have been happier living her final days in Southern California with her husband and children, “but then we still had hope — and if we delayed that treatment any longer because of immigration issues, I don’t think I would have been able to forgive myself.” Guerrero’s parents had kept his immigration status secret for years. They came clean only when he began taking community-college engineering classes while still in high school, and the Social Security number his parents submitted bounced back. Before her death, Guerrero’s mom opened up about the past and her reasons for leaving Mexico: Her father had been kidnapped twice; her father-in-law and other relatives faced extortion; armed thieves broke into her clothing and jewelry store, holding a knife to her stomach. Guerrero recorded her stories and her struggle with kidney cancer, hoping to turn it into a documentary back at school. Instead, he’s passing time in a room next to a garage just big enough to fit his twin bed and bureau. A picture of his mother and a single rose hang above the bed. His grandparents rent out the nearest bathroom during weekends for a pop-up street market. Guerrero sees his cousins after
they get off work, and “writes poetry and stuff” at night. Former Harvard lecturer Eoin Cannon, who taught history to Guerrero, was surprised to learn of his student’s predicament. Cannon described him as “one of the most thoughtful and creative and original students that I had the pleasure of teaching,” and “an exceptional writer.” Guerrero tackled homelessness in a student film, and later co-produced “A Dream Deferred,” a documentary about other immigrants like himself at Harvard. “He’s as American as anyone I know,” Cannon said. “The law needs to sort of recognize that and have a mechanism for accounting for that ... For the law not to be able to handle his kind of case is hurting America.” Guerrero says it’s been liberating to have no term-paper deadlines to worry about, but the lack of a routine keeps him edgy. He watches his back when he ventures outside. Crime cartels have moved in, extorting neighborhood businesses. Weeks ago, a relative was mugged and shot in the stomach. Harvard has been supportive, granting him leave and helping him find sympathetic ears in Washington, including Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat. Guerrero now talks about when he’ll return, not if. But when asked what’s hardest about being stuck in Mexico, he loses his bravado and his voice drops to a whisper: “That I don’t have a mom anymore.”
12A THE ZAPATA TIMES
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2014
VIOLENCE Continued from Page 1A
Photo by Gregorio Borgia | AP
Bishops and Cardinals attend a morning session of a two-week synod on family issues at the Vatican on Monday.
Conservative bishops move from overture By NICOLE WINFIELD ASSOCIATED PRESS
VATICAN CITY — A fight for the soul of the Catholic Church has broken out, and the first battlefield is a document on family values that pits increasingly alarmed conservatives against more progressive bishops emboldened by Pope Francis’ vision of a church that is more merciful than moralistic. On Tuesday, conservative bishops distanced themselves from the document’s unprecedented opening toward gays and divorced Catholics, calling it an “unacceptable” deviation from church teaching that doesn’t reflect their views and vowing to make changes to the final version. The report, released midway through a Vatican meeting on such hot-button family issues as marriage, divorce, homosexuality and birth control, signaled a radical shift in tone about welcoming gays, divorced Catholics and unmarried couples into the church. Its message was one of almost-revolutionary acceptance and understanding rather than condemnation. Gays, it said, had gifts to offer the church and their partnerships, while morally problematic, provided gay couples with “precious” support. The church, it added, must welcome divorced people and recognize the “positive” aspects of civil marriages and even Catholics who live together without being married. The leaders of the bishops’ meeting, or synod, that produced it stressed Tuesday that it was merely a working paper and was never intended to be a statement of church doctrine, but rather a reflection of
bishops’ views that will be debated and amended before a final version is released on Saturday. Still, its dramatic shift in tone thrilled progressives and gay rights groups, and dismayed conservatives already deeply uncomfortable with Francis’ aim to make the church a “field hospital” for wounded souls that focuses far less on the rules and regulations emphasized by his two predecessors. The document was remarkable both in what it said and what it didn’t say: Absent were assertions of Catholic doctrine present in most church documents that gay sex is “intrinsically disordered” and that couples who cohabitate are “living in sin.” In their place were words of affirmation and welcome. “The report, obviously composed under pressure, has easily given rise to some misinterpretation,” British Cardinal Vincent Nichols said Tuesday. “It is not a doctrinal or decisive document. It is, as stated in its conclusion, ‘intended to raise questions and indicate perspectives that will have to be matured and made clearer on reflection.”’ Several conservatives who participated in the synod immediately distanced themselves from the report. The head of the Polish bishops’ conference, Cardinal Stanislaw Gadecki, called it “unacceptable” and a deviation from church teaching. South African Cardinal Wilfrid Fox Napier said the report didn’t reflect the opinion of the synod in its entirety and contained problematic positions. He hoped the final report “will show the vision of the synod as a whole and not the vision of a particular group.”
At least one detained gang member has said another Guerreros Unidos leader known as “El Chucky” had ordered him to kill 17 students. Twenty-six local officers have been detained. Police are looking for the mayor of Iguala, Jose Luis Abarca, in order to question him. His wife’s brothers include two deceased top-level members of the gang, which split off from the Beltran Leyva cartel. The gang controlled drug routes in Guerrero and Morelos. On Tuesday, protesting teachers sprayed graffiti in support of the missing on bank buildings, a day after hundreds of students and teachers smashed windows at the Guerrero state capital building complex in Chilpancingo, 132 miles (212 kilometers) south of Mexico City, and set fire to some of the buildings. Students from the school and local teachers blockaded the capital complex, pelting it with sticks, rocks and Molotov cocktails. The protesters are calling for the missing students to be returned alive, even though fears have grown that the mass graves could contain their bodies. The finance secretary of Guerrero state said six buildings were affected. Monday’s protests came after police shot and wounded a German university student who had been traveling in a van with other students as they passed
through Chilpancingo on their way back from Acapulco. Kim Fritz Kaiser, an exchange student at Mexico City campus of the Monterrey Institute of Technology, was in good condition Monday at a hospital, the institute’s director, Pedro Grassa, told Milenio television. The shooting happened shortly after a police officer had been killed in a confrontation between officers and kidnappers. Police tried to stop the van, believing it was suspicious, and opened fire when they heard something that sounded like a shot or detonation, said Victor Leon Maldonado of the Guerrero state prosecutor’s office. The students kept driving, fearing that armed men might be trying to kidnap them, state prosecutor Inaky Blanco said. The police involved have been detained and their weapons were being tested, according to the state attorney general’s office. A U.S. State Department travel warning issued last week said U.S. citizens should avoid Chilpancingo along with all parts of Guerrero state outside of the tourist destinations of Acapulco, Ixtapa, Zihuatanejo, Taxco and the Cacahuamilpa caves. A previous warning in January already advised against travel in the northwestern part of the state near the border with Mexico state, where Iguala is located.
GATEWAY ROTARY Continued from Page 1A others. “South Texas and the border of Laredo are bright spots because of the trade and oil and gas industries,” Cuellar said. “We’re just blessed to have an abundance of both of those factors that are so important to our area.”
Ebola crisis The current Ebola crisis in West African nations depicts how small the world is, Cuellar said, referencing the patient in Dallas who recently died from the virus. Thomas Eric Duncan, the first Ebola patient to die in the U.S., was being treated at the Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital. Now a nurse who cared for Duncan has become the first person known to contract the virus while in the U.S. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday that the nurse was “clinically stable,” but that investigators have yet to determine how she was infected. “What happens in one part of the world can certainly have an impact here,” Cuellar said. “We have to look at whether our
hospital systems are ready for that.”
ISIS threat The ISIS threat is another factor that can show how small the world is, Cuellar added, referencing the terrorist organization’s tactics of recruiting through social media. “Our world is connected in so many ways, and we have seen some of the revolutions that have come from social media,” Cuellar said. “ISIS is using social media to recruit people from the U.S. and part of Europe.” Cuellar said ISIS differs from other terrorist organizations in a number of ways. “If you think about terrorist groups in the past, you picture them in old pickups holding beat up rifles,” Cuellar said. “When you think about ISIS, you see them in black uniforms driving tanks and Hummers.” Cuellar added that intelligence information says that ISIS makes approximately $1 million to $3 million per day from oil fields they have taken over in Iraq. (Philip Balli may be reached at 728-2528 or pballi@lmtonline.com)