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Trump’s war plan involves more troops Brendan Smialowski / AFP/Getty Images
An estimated 3,900 extra soldiers to be deployed By Lolita C. Baldor and Matthew Pennington ASSOCIATED PRE SS
Mark Wilson / Getty Images
U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks on America’s military involvement in Afghanistan at the Fort Myer military base on Monday in Arlington, Virginia.
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s plan to end America’s longest war and eliminate Afghanistan’s rising extremist threat involves sending up to 3,900 additional U.S. troops, senior officials said Tuesday. The first deployments could take place within days. In a national address Monday night, Trump reversed his past calls for a speedy exit and
recommitted the United States to the 16-year-old conflict, saying U.S. troops must “fight to win.” He warned against repeating what he said were mistakes in Iraq, where an American military withdrawal led to a vacuum that the Islamic State group quickly filled. Trump would not confirm how many more service members he plans to send to Afghanistan, which may be the public’s most pressing question about his strategy. In interTroops continues on A12
Nuclear crisis fades as optimism grows TRIBUNE WASHINGTON
WALL CAUSES DIVISION BETWEEN AGENTS, COMMUNITY Leaked plans bring hundreds to protest By Aaron Nelsen SA N A NT ONI O E XPRE SS-NEWS
Border continues on A12
Tillerson hints ‘restraint’ in NKorea
By Tracy Wilkinson
BORDER SECURITY
WESLACO — No cement has been poured nor bollard thrust into the ground, and yet President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful” wall has driven a wedge between the Border Patrol and communities on the border. During a recent stakeholder meeting intended to strengthen relations with farmers, border agents fielded hard questions about the fate of properties and livelihoods in the path of Trump’s wall. “The average American does not understand that we’d be giving up our sovereign territory,” said Foss Jones, 68, whose family farms would be cleaved, leaving hundreds of acres pinched between the wall and the Rio Grande. “Who will feel safe in that no man’s land behind the wall?” Earlier this month, Border Patrol maps depicting plans to build 32 miles of fencing in Starr County and 28 miles of levee wall in neighboring Hidalgo County were leaked to
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson pauses before speaking during a briefing at the Department of State on Tuesday in Washington, D.C.
Photos by Bob Owen / San Antonio Express-News
A U.S. Customs and Border Protection river boat agent patrols the banks of the Rio Grande River at the Santa Anna National Wildlife Refuge near Hidalgo, Texas on Aug. 17.
BUREAU
WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Tuesday voiced a rare note of optimism in the North Korea nuclear crisis, saying ruler Kim Jong Un may be showing signs of restraint that could lead to dialogue. Tillerson noted that North Korea had not launched a ballistic missile nor done other "provocative acts" since the United Nations Security Council voted unanimously Aug. 5 to impose blistering economic sanctions on Pyongyang. "I’m pleased to see that the regime in Pyongyang has certainly demonstrated some level of restraint that we’ve not seen in the past," Tillerson said in a briefing with reporters at the State Department convened primarily to discuss the Trump administration’s plans for Afghanistan. He expressed hope that such restraint was "the beginning of this signal that we’ve been looking for." "Perhaps we are seeing our pathway to some time in the near future to having some dialogue," Tillerson said, adding that he still wanted to see more signs but also thought it important to acknowledge the steps taken. Though sanctions have been used repeatedly to punish and isolate North Korea over the last two decades, the U.N. package was described as the most severe. If enforced, the penalties could cut that country’s export income by one-third, around $1 billion. Before the U.N. Security Tillerson continues on A12
Zin brief A2 | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
CALENDAR
AROUND THE WORLD
TODAY IN HISTORY
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 23 Release of new pictorial history of Laredo by Dr. Jerry Thompson. 6
ASSOCIATED PRE SS
p.m.-8 p.m. Villa Antigua Border Heritage Museum, 810 Zaragoza St. The brand new edition of “Laredo: A Pictorial History” by Thompson makes its long-awaited debut at a reception hosted by the Webb County Heritage Foundation. The event celebrates the latest publication of this exciting local history which features five new chapters and beautiful photos. To pre-order the book, call the Heritage Foundation at 956-727-0977.
Today is Wednesday, Aug. 23, the 235th day of 2017. There are 130 days left in the year.
Today's Highlight in History: On August 23, 1927, amid worldwide protests, Italian-born anarchists Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti were executed in Boston for the murders of two men during a 1920 robbery.
First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
SATURDAY, AUG. 26 Football Tailgating Cook-Off. 2 p.m. - 11 p.m. Uni-Trade Stadium. Event will feature cook-off competitions, brisket tasting/sampling for People's Choice from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., car show, live music, food vendors, arts & crafts and merchandise vendors and much more. For more information, contact LULAC Council 14 at 956-286-9055
MONDAY, AUG. 28 Google Computer Science Club. 4
p.m. - 5:30 p.m. McKendrick Ochoa Salinas Branch Library. 1920 Palo Blanco. This free program is limited to 18 participants each week. Participants, ages 12-17, will receive community hours. Learn to code social media projects with the Scratch programming language.
WEDNESDAY, AUG. 30 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
THURSDAY, AUG. 31 Spanish Book Club. 6 p.m.-8 p.m.
Joe A Guerra Public Library off Calton Road. For info, call Sylvia Reash 763-1810,
Vadim Ghirda / AP
Hundreds of disabled people joined a protest Tuesday to express their anger at a government emergency decree that changes the current law and no longer obliges companies with more than 50 employees to hire a number of disabled people.
ROMANIA: PROTEST SLAMS DECREE ON JOBS FOR DISABLED PEOPLE BUCHAREST, Romania — People with disabilities have protested outside Romania’s labor ministry against a measure they say could leave them jobless. About 200 protesters — some in wheelchairs, others with crutches — carried banners Tuesday in Bucharest saying “We want to work, not beg!” They were angry at a government emergency decree that means companies with more than 50 employees no longer have to hire a certain number of disabled people
or to use a department that hires specialneeds personnel. It is scheduled to take effect Sept. 1. A federation that represents non-governmental social services said the decree could lead to 2,000 people with disabilities losing their jobs. A statement said, “We refuse to be considered invisible and unimportant and to ... obey decrees that can change our lives with a single signature.” — Compiled from AP reports
SATURDAY, SEPT. 2 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 6 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 13 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 20 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 27 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 4 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
SATURDAY, OCT. 7 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
India’s Supreme Court strikes down ‘instant divorce’ NEW DELHI — India’s highest court struck down a legal provision Tuesday that allowed Muslim men to instantly divorce their wives, taking a stand against a practice increasingly deemed unacceptable in the Muslim world. In India, Muslim men have been able to end their marriages by saying the word “talaq” — Arabic for divorce — three
times. They could do this in person, by letter or even over the phone. By contrast, a Muslim woman in India seeking a divorce must generally gain the permission of her husband, a cleric or other Islamic authorities. The method of divorce was available only to men, who in many cases ousted their wives from their homes without alimony or other financial support. The practice is frowned on by many Muslims worldwide, and the case was being closely watched in India.
On Tuesday, by a 3-2 vote, a Supreme Court panel declared the provision that had allowed for Muslims’ instant divorce unlawful. Of those who voted against, two said the practice was unconstitutional and one said it went against Islamic law. One of the dissenters was a Muslim judge; the other was the court’s chief justice, who urged Parliament to come up with a new provision. — Compiled from the New York Times News Service
AROUND THE NATION Commuter train crashes into parked train, injuring dozens UPPER DARBY, Pa. — A commuter train crashed into a parked train at a suburban Philadelphia terminal early Tuesday, injuring dozens of passengers and the train’s operator, a transit spokeswoman said. None of the 42 people hurt in the crash suffered life-threatening injuries, said Heather Redfern, a spokeswoman for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. “Some were considered walking wounded,” she said. An inbound Norristown High Speed train crashed into an unoccupied train at the 69th Street Terminal in Upper Darby around 12:15 a.m. Redfern said hours later that the train operator had been treated at a hospital and released.
National Transportation Safety Board / AP
In this photo, investigator Rick Downs takes measurements at the scene of a commuter rail accident Tuesday in Pennsylvania.
National Transportation Safety Board officials were at the scene and planned a 5 p.m. briefing. A passenger, Raymond Woodard, told WPVI-TV that he was riding home from work on the train when it crashed. “I heard the train going real fast ... like, super-fast,” Woo-
dard said. “And I looked up, and I saw that we’re at 69th Street and said, ‘Why are we going so fast?’ And then we just hit the train. Boom! I fell out of my chair, glass from the window shattered, I hit my head. Everybody was on the floor.” — Compiled from AP reports
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 18 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
McClelland Ave. Hard cover $1, paperback $0.50, magazines and children’s books, $0.25. Public is invited. Proceeds are used to support the church’s missions.
Ten years ago: A report by top U.S. spy analysts concluded the Iraqi government was strained by rampant violence, deep sectarian differences among its political parties and stymied leadership. Five years ago: Lance Armstrong chose not to pursue arbitration in the drug case brought against him by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, setting the stage for his Tour de France titles to be stripped and his name to be all but wiped from the record books of the sport he once ruled. One year ago: Standing amid piles of waterlogged debris, President Barack Obama promised a sustained national effort to rebuild flood-ravaged southern Louisiana "even after the TV cameras leave" on a visit aimed in part at stemming campaign-season criticism that he was slow to respond to the disaster. Today's Birthdays: Actress Vera Miles is 87. Actress Barbara Eden is 86. Political satirist Mark Russell is 85. Pro Football Hall of Famer Sonny Jurgensen is 83. Actor Richard Sanders is 77. Ballet dancer Patricia McBride is 75. Former Surgeon General Antonia Novello is 73. Pro Football Hall of Famer Rayfield Wright is 72. Country singer Rex Allen Jr. is 70. Actor David Robb is 70. Singer Linda Thompson is 70. Actress Shelley Long is 68. Actor-singer Rick Springfield is 68. Country singer-musician Woody Paul (Riders in the Sky) is 68. Queen Noor of Jordan is 66. Actor-producer Mark Hudson is 66. Actor Skipp Sudduth is 61. Retired MLB All-Star pitcher Mike Boddicker is 60. Rock musician Dean DeLeo (Army of Anyone; Stone Temple Pilots) is 56. Country musician Ira Dean (Trick Pony) is 48. Actor Jay Mohr is 47. Actor Ray Park is 43. Actor Scott Caan is 41. Country singer Shelly Fairchild is 40. Figure skater Nicole Bobek is 40. Rock singer Julian Casablancas (The Strokes) is 39. Retired NBA player Kobe Bryant is 39. Actress Joanne Froggatt is 37. Neo-soul musician Andy Wild is 36. Actress Annie Ilonzeh is 34. Dance musician Sky Blu is 31. Actress Kimberly Matula is 29. NBA player Jeremy Lin is 29. Thought for Today: "The chains which cramp us most are those which weigh on us least." — Anne Sophie Swetchine, Russian-French author (1782-1857).
CONTACT US
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 11 First United Methodist Church Used Book Sale. 10 a.m. - noon. 1220
On this date: In 1305, Scottish rebel leader Sir William Wallace was executed by the English for treason. In 1775, Britain's King George III proclaimed the American colonies to be in a state of "open and avowed rebellion." In 1858, "Ten Nights in a Bar-room," a play by Timothy Shay Arthur about the perils of alcohol, opened in New York. In 1913, Copenhagen's Little Mermaid statue, inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen story, was unveiled in the harbor of the Danish capital. In 1914, Japan declared war against Germany in World War I. In 1926, silent film star Rudolph Valentino died in New York at age 31. In 1939, Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union agreed to a non-aggression treaty, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, in Moscow. In 1947, an audience at the Hollywood Bowl heard President Harry S. Truman's daughter, Margaret, give her first public concert as a singer (she had previously peformed on the radio). In 1960, Broadway librettist Oscar Hammerstein II, 65, died in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. In 1973, a bank robbery-turnedhostage-taking began in Stockholm, Sweden; the four hostages ended up empathizing with their captors, a psychological condition now referred to as "Stockholm Syndrome." In 1982, Lebanon's parliament elected Christian militia leader Bashir Gemayel president. (However, Gemayel was assassinated some three weeks later.) In 1989, in a case that inflamed racial tensions in New York, Yusuf Hawkins, a 16-year-old black youth, was shot dead after he and his friends were confronted by a group of white youths in the Bensonhurst section of Brooklyn. (Gunman Joey Fama was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison; he will be eligible for parole in 2022.)
AROUND TEXAS Court temporarily blocks Houston homeless ordinance HOUSTON — A federal judge has issued a temporary restraining order blocking the city of Houston from enforcing an ordinance that bans homeless camps in public places. The order, issued Tuesday by
U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt, is part of a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of three homeless individuals challenging the constitutionality of the ordinance. The ordinance, approved in April, prohibits temporary shelters, tents and unauthorized cooking devices in public areas.
A spokesman for the city didn’t immediately reply to an email seeking comment Tuesday. Trisha Trigilio, senior staff attorney for the ACLU of Texas, says her organizations is calling on Houston “to stop enforcing ordinances that criminalize such a basic human need” as seeking shelter. — Compiled from AP reports
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THE ZAPATA TIMES | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 |
A3
STATE
Human biology tested at space station By John Wayne Ferguson TH E GALV E ST ON COUNT Y DA ILY NEWS
GALVESTON, Texas — Two hundred and fifty miles above the Earth’s surface, scientists have begun testing the limits of human biology. In the sterile environment of the International Space Station, cells are being prodded to grow and multiply. The Galveston County Daily News reports the goal is to grow human body parts, without the rest of the human attached. The experiment sounds like a plot for a science fiction movie. But it’s actually one of the newest experiments to be conducted on the space station. The experiment, launched earlier this month, was designed by a University of Texas Medical Branch team. Researchers aim to study how stem cells develop in a zero-gravity environment. The results could lead to new possibilities to help with longdistance space flight and terrestrial medical treatments, said Joan Nichols, a professor of internal medicine, and microbiology and immunology and the associate director of the Galveston National Laboratory. The experiment was developed over the past five years. It was launched as part of the payload aboard a SpaceX Dragon Cargo ship. The ship carried 6,400 pounds of equipment, experiments and supplies, including a freezer full of Blue Bell ice cream cups. Nichols and her team spent the week before the launch in Florida, preparing the experiment. It
Stuart Villanueva / AP
This Aug. 18 photo, Joan Nichols, the associate director for research and operations for the Galveston National Laboratory at University of Texas Medical Branch, holds up samples of living lung tissue stem cells similar to samples sent up to the International Space Station in Galveston, Texas.
went off without a hitch and the capsule has arrived at the space station. “Everything went smoothly,” Nichols said. Nichols has studied lungs and their development on a cellular level for 15 years. The lab, which is focused on studying how lungs grow and heal, is not new to pushing scientific boundaries. In 2015, researchers from the lab successfully transplanted a bioengineered lung into a living pig. Over time, the limits of growing cells on Earth has become apparent, she said. Studies have already shown that stems cells grow and multiply better in a zero-gravity environment than they do down below, she said. The results could be used to develop treatments for problems astronauts develop on a long space flight, such as lung disease or traumatic injury. “We’ve discovered what our limits are for doing large tissue constructs is the fact that the stem cells don’t proliferate very well,” Nichols said. Stem
cells stay “stemmy” in space, she said, they don’t mature and become other types of cells as fast. “If the cells stay stemmier and produce better, that’s a huge thing that we can’t do here on Earth,” Nichols said. “It will answer some questions about these cells.” Nichols and her team will be in communication with NASA and the astronauts on the space station over six weeks as the experiment is conducted. While tests are done in space, her team will replicate the experiment at the Galveston National Laboratory, to provide a control sample to compare the results. Being able to expand the program to the stars has been a dream come true, Nichols said. “Being at Kennedy and Cape Canaveral, and working at the lab there, at the building where all the Apollo missions happened — I grew up with that,” Nichols said. “We worked hard and there were really long days, but it really was the most amazing experience ever.”
Cuate Santos / Laredo Morning Times
The Diocese of Laredo announced Monday that its nonprofit organization Catholic Social Services has changed its name to Catholic Charities. Pictured is the group’s executive director, Rachel Flores, standing next to a Catholic Charities banner during a news conference.
Nonprofit Catholic organization rebranded SPECIAL TO THE TIME S
The Diocese of Laredo’s nonprofit organization Catholic Social Services has announced a change in its name. By changing the organization’s name to Catholic Charities, it is now easily identified as being affiliated with Catholic Charities USA, which is a national organization that offers support to member agencies. “We proudly reflect unity and are committed to serving all our community,” a news release states. “We serve everyone regardless of religion or faith. It is through our faith, that we are empathic and encourage concern for everyone in need. Our social outreach meets the temporal needs of our community, which are nextdoor neighbors, colleagues, friends, family
and loved ones." Catholic Charities – Diocese of Laredo, through its multi-program human services agency, which serves all seven counties within the diocese. “We are committed to serving the emergency needs of the indigent and believe that all people have the right to live in an environment that is free of abuse, violence, fear and oppression,” a news release states. “We look forward to continue serving our community and advocating for social justice. As our vision statement declares, we remain committed to finding solutions to reduce poverty and to strengthen and empower families through our diverse programs and social services. “As Catholics, we have a responsibility to help the needy in any way we
can. Catholic Charities diverse programs has served thousands of families and individuals in our communities who are in crisis and most in need of assistance.” Catholic Charities has the following programs: Emergency and Poverty Assistance Working to reduce poverty by providing: Emergency assistance Advocacy/awareness Medical mission Disaster relief Humanitarian relief services Volunteer income tax assistance Food Drives, toy drives, blanket drives Immigration Services Keeping families unified Senior Center Program Providing a safe place for seniors
Opinion
Letters to the editor Send your signed letter to editorial@lmtonline.com
Wednesday, August 23, 2017 | PAGE A4 | LAREDO MORNING TIMES
COLUMN
OTHER VIEWS
Afghanistan is Trump’s war now By Trudy Rubin TH E P H ILADE LPHIA I NQUIRER
In his Monday speech on Afghanistan, President Trump admitted something he’s rarely faced up to: Decisions are "much different" when you are president than in the heat of a campaign. The president’s original instinct, expressed repeatedly over the years, was to pull any remaining troops out of Afghanistan. The American public is understandably tired of America’s longest war that has dragged on for nearly 16 years. There are no good military options in sight. Yet after a policy review that dragged on for seven months and bitterly divided the White House, the president finally faced up to grim reality: a full retreat from Afghanistan meant al-Qaeda and ISIS would find havens again as the Taliban seized more swaths of the country. Trump’s new policy, while vague and marked by some glaring holes, contained several shifts in direction that could make a difference on the ground. Let’s call those directional shifts the four Nos. The first No is no deadline for troop withdrawal. President Obama made a huge error when he surged troops in Afghanistan in 2009 but announced in advance the date for their pullout. The Taliban just waited him out, as did Afghanistan’s mischief-making neighbor Pakistan. Given the small number of U.S. troops - and their primary role as trainers - it makes more sense to see their presence as part of a longterm investment in order to prevent a terrorist resurgence. Their presence also reminds regional neighbors Iran, Russia, India and Pakistan that America is still paying attention. The second No refers to no more efforts at nationbuilding. We tried that and failed. The few thousand remaining U.S. troops will focus on training Afghan special operations forces and commandos, and, learning from lessons in Iraq, on calling in air and artillery strikes to support Afghans. This is how a limited number of U.S. troops helped the Iraqi army finally defeat ISIS in Mosul. The third No is the apparent veto of a bizarre idea that the president toyed with: to hire Eric Prince, founder of the notorious Blackwater private contractor outfit that shot up Baghdad, to lead a mercenary force replacing U.S. troops in
Afghanistan. Most important is the fourth No: No more havens for Afghan Taliban in Pakistan. The Pakistani military and intelligence services have long played a double game, warring on Pakistani Taliban that attack their own military and civilians while giving safe haven to Afghan Taliban leaders and fighters. The Pakistanis have also hosted other Islamist terrorists that attack India, and, harbored Osama bin Laden for years. Islamabad plays this double game because it views the Afghan Taliban and other terrorist groups as vital tools in its endless struggle against India. Both the Bush and Obama administrations tried fruitlessly to persuade Pakistan with financial carrots to shut down these terrorist safe havens. McMaster is known to have sought a tougher line on Pakistan. And Trump proclaimed, "We can no longer be silent" about Pakistani safe havens for terrorists. The success of any Trump policy on Afghanistan may depend on whether his team can figure out how to change Pakistan’s behavior. Which brings me to the big holes in Trump’s "strategy." The president paid lip service to diplomacy, saying his policy would "integrate all instruments of American power." But the troubled State Department has been denuded of expertise on South Asia, and the president’s words made clear his skepticism about diplomatic efforts. Trump repeatedly promised to "win" in Afghanistan and called for "outright victory." Afghanistan’s history shows that "victory" within its borders is a dubious hope. Ultimately, the point of military progress in Afghanistan would be to provide muscle behind a diplomatic push in the region - aimed at persuading all of Afghanistan’s neighbors that its stability was in their interests and they should stop backing factions on its soil. Short of that, the best U.S. hope may be to prevent ISIS or al-Qaeda from establishing new bases, which will require a long-term U.S. presence and focus. Continued bluster about swift and outright victory will only make Americans antsy. Afghanistan is Trump’s war now, and it will require the kind of longrange thinking he hasn’t demonstrated up until now. Trudy Rubin is a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer.
LETTERS POLICY Laredo Morning 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. Laredo Morning Times does not allow the use of pseudonyms. This space allows for public debate of the issues of the day. Letters are edited for style, grammar, length and civility. No name-calling or gratuitous abuse is allowed. Also, letters longer than 500 words will not be accepted. Via email, send letters to editorial@lmtonline.com or mail them to Letters to the Editor, 111 Esperanza Drive, Laredo, TX 78041.
COMMENTARY
Condemn, but protect, the speech of hate THE CHARL OTTE OB SERVER
The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution means nothing if its highest ideals are not staunchly protected during times of unrest. It means nothing if we reconsider — or undermine — the principles embedded in those words when public hate is on the rise and the purveyors of that hatred turn it into a weapon. The First Amendment wasn’t crafted to be used only by those we deem good and righteous or in times of unity and prosperity. It was written because the Founders knew strife was going to be a feature of our form of democracy, and the
most tempting way to re-establish calm and comfort would be to silence those we think ugly and unworthy of the unalienable rights bestowed upon us. White supremacists and nationalists deserve First Amendment protections, too. Just as we thought it ill-advised when the Trump administration coyly floated the idea of gutting the First Amendment because the president didn’t like news coverage, we think it is equally inadvisable to even toy with the notion of rolling back free speech protections, a notion that has at least some support in the ACLU and progressive
communities in the wake of Charlottesville. As vile as they are - racial epithets and "Jews will not replace us" were among the many things they said - there should be no white supremacist exception to the First Amendment. That’s why we found it questionable last week when the ACLU announced it wouldn’t defend the free speech rights of white supremacists who legally carried weapons at rallies. At issue, however, is more than the letter of the First Amendment, which is focused on the legal limits the government faces regarding speech. We are talking
about its spirit, which is designed to foment a robust exchange of ideas to strengthen this country. That means even private institutions and organizations should consider the ramifications before firing employees because of unpopular speech, and it means those involved in the Antifa movement, which is purportedly a vanguard against the rise of white supremacy, must honor it as well. Violence and threats of violence should be neither encouraged nor tolerated. This is not easy. But the First Amendment has served us well. We should do nothing to dilute its power.
COMMENTARY
White supremacists are openly using Nazi symbols By Sara J. Bloomfield WASHINGTON P O ST
In an era when emoji, memes and logos can drive a national conversation, symbols are more powerful than ever. Americans are grappling with the tragic loss of life and eruption of neoNazism this month in Charlottesville, Virginia. What does it say about our society that neo-Nazi and white-supremacist symbols and slogans were deployed in the streets of 21st-century America? What is striking is how much of what was on display was taken directly from Nazi Germany and Holocaust-era fascist parties. Longtime Holocaust denier and Ku Klux Klan member David Duke, white nationalist activist Matthew Heimbach and their like-minded followers who brought those symbols into public view that day know their resonance and use them deliberately. Many of these words and images were once hidden away in dark corners of the Internet, a coded language spoken by white-nationalist believers. Now they are being brought into
the open, and it is incumbent upon all Americans to understand their origins, what they represent and the dangers they pose. The swastika is the most recognizable symbol of Nazi propaganda. Despite its ancient history, by the early 20th century it was adopted by a number of far-right nationalist movements and became associated with the idea of a racially “pure” state. Adolf Hitler personally designed the Nazi flag with a black swastika positioned at the center of a white disk on a red background. But other lesserknown Nazi references were evident throughout the rally, including chants of “blood and soil.” The concept of “Blood and Soil” (in German, “Blut und Boden”) was foundational to Nazi ideology. “Blood” referred to the goal of a “racially pure” Aryan people. “Soil” invoked a vision of territorial expansion and was used to justify land seizures in Eastern Europe and the forced expulsion of local populations in favor of ethnic Germans. The term was a rallying cry
during the 1920s and early ‘30s, when the Nazis and other far-right political parties opposed the fledgling Weimar German democracy. This concept played on resentment about German territories lost under the terms of the post-World War I Treaty of Versailles. Last week in Charlottesville, Heimbach wore a T-shirt emblazoned with the image of Corneliu Zelea Codreanu. While few Americans could identify him, white nationalists know him as a violent anti-Semite and the leader of the main Romanian fascist organization formed in the 1920s, the Legion of the Archangel Michael, also known as the Iron Guard. Codreanu was killed in 1938, but his ideology continued to animate Romanian fascism. The Romanians were directly responsible for the second-largest number of Holocaust victims after the Germans. Duke and Heimbach and their ilk are not Hitler, but they are inspired by the same worldview that history is ultimately a racial struggle and that
pluralism and the dignity of all individuals, ideals that most Americans espouse, are weaknesses that must be overcome if the “Aryan race” is to survive. The Nazis eventually launched a world war and imposed this racial worldview across occupied Europe. Six million Jews and millions of others were murdered and persecuted because they were deemed “inferior.” The Holocaust teaches us the dangers of unchecked hatred and that while it may start with the targeting of one group, it always spreads. Elie Wiesel, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s founding chairman, envisioned it as a living memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, serving as a cautionary tale and an urgent message - about human nature, our capacity for evil and the fragility of societies. History speaks to us for a reason. But we can heed its warning only if we are listening. Sara Bloomfield is the director of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
THE ZAPATA TIMES | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 |
A5
CRIME
3 guilty in rare turtles 3 jailers accused of trafficking case assaulting an inmate A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
BEAUMONT, Texas — Investigators say three men have pleaded guilty in a scheme to sell dozens of rare alligator snapping turtles caught during Texas fishing trips and hauled to Louisiana. Prosecutors on Tuesday announced Travis Joseph Leger and Rickey Paul Simon, both of Sulphur, Louisiana, and Jason Gene Leckelt of Wilburton, Oklahoma, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to illegally traffic alligator snapping tur-
tles. They face up to five-year federal prison terms during sentencing in Beaumont. Experts say alligator snapping turtles are the largest freshwater turtles in the world — weighing up to 200 pounds and living as long as a century. They’re protected under Texas and Louisiana wildlife laws. Federal agents last summer recovered about 30 alligator snapping turtles from ponds in Sulphur. Investigators believe the turtles could have brought up to $1,000 apiece.
By César G. Rodriguez LAREDO MORNING TIME S
Bruce Lipsky / AP
This 2014 file photo shows an alligator snapping turtle in Jacksonville, Florida. Investigators in Beaumont, Texas said Tuesday that three men have pleaded guilty in a scheme to sell dozens of rare alligator snapping turtles.
Prison guard gets time for smuggling phone-linked watches A S S OCI AT E D PRE SS
BEAUMONT, Texas — A former guard at a federal prison in Southeast Texas must serve 18 months behind bars for smuggling cellphonecapable watches to inmates. Anqunett Vernetta Lewis of Houston was sentenced Monday in Beaumont. The 34-year-
old Lewis in March pleaded guilty to bribery of a public official. Prosecutors say Lewis was working at the Federal Correctional Institution in Beaumont, during 2015 and 2016, when she was paid to smuggle watches with cellular capabilities into the lockup. Inmates are barred from having phones,
watches or other devices that can be linked to cellular service. Investigators say Lewis acknowledged smuggling numerous watches into the prison and was paid by inmates, or on their behalf, via wire transfer. Lewis, who had faced up to five years in federal prison, must also forfeit $1,700.
Three correctional officers have been arrested for allegedly assaulting an inmate, Sheriff Martin Cuellar said in a statement Monday. Authorities identified them as correctional officer Ávila Jose M. Avila, five years of service; Deputy Alfredo Sandoval Jr., seven years of service; and correctional officer Jorge Ramos, two years of service. All have been terminated, the Webb County Sheriff’s Office said. Each was charged with official oppression, violation of civil rights of a person in custody and abuse of official capacity. Sandoval was also charged with tampering with government records. All charges are Class A misdemeanors punishable by up to one year in jail and a $4,000 fine. A fourth jailer, who is not facing criminal charges, was also terminated for allegedly being involved in the same incident for violation of policies and procedures, the Sheriff’s Office said. Authorities did not identify him.
Ramos
Sandoval
Details on the allegations were not available. “As soon as I learned about the alleged assault, I proceeded to call the Texas Rangers to lead the investigation as means to be transparent,” Cuellar said in the statement. “While I am pleased that our surveillance system of cameras we began installing in 2009 worked as designed, I am profoundly disappointed that four jailers decided the rules and polices don’t apply to them. “They have been stripped of their equipment, their uniforms and their jobs. Although this is an isolated incident, I remain proud of the men and women of the Webb County Sheriff’s and I thank them for maintaining the public’s trust and confidence.” The investigation continues. Jail referendum The allegations came to light in the wake of Commissioners Court approving Monday a referendum to be placed on the November ballot for the
“As soon as I learned about the alleged assault, I proceeded to call the Texas Rangers to lead the investigation as means to be transparent. Martin Cuellar, Webb County sheriff
voters to decide if the construction of a new jail should move forward. Cuellar added, “This jail is 31 years old and has an outdated design that makes it impossible for supervisors to adequately monitor interactions between jailers and inmates in real time. A new jail would employ a modern design and adequate protection for both jailers and inmates, eliminating blind spots like the hall where this assault occurred, and reduce liability for county taxpayers. “I thank the Texas Rangers for their assistance in this investigation. I reaffirm my commitment to maintain the public’s trust and confidence, and assure we will continue to strive to put our best foot forward to serve and protect Webb County.”
Court voids prosecutor fees in Paxton fraud case A S S OCI AT E D PRE SS
AUSTIN, Texas — A Texas appeals court has determined state law and other rules do not allow the special prosecutors in Attorney General Ken
Paxton’s felony securities fraud case to collect their $300-anhour rate. The 5th Court of Appeals as part of a ruling Monday voided the prosecutors’ $205,000 invoice that dates to early last
year. The court sided with commissioners in Collin County, northeast of Dallas, who filed a lawsuit claiming the prosecutors charged a rate that was too high.
The court said Texas law requires that counties set both minimum and maximum hourly rates. The Dallas Morning News reports that Collin County has since changed its fee schedule.
Paxton prior to becoming attorney general was indicted for allegedly steering investors to a technology startup in 2011 without disclosing that he was being paid by the company.
Zfrontera A6 | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
RIBEREÑA EN BREVE NOCHE CONOZCA AL MAESTRO 1 Meet the Teacher Night para todas las escuelas primarias del distrito escolar ZCISD se llevará a cabo el jueves 24 de agosto de 4 p.m.a 6 p.m. PERMISO DE ESTACIONAMIENTO
1 El Departamento de Policía del distrito escolar Zapata County Independent School District invita a los estudiantes de preparatoria que son conductores de vehículos a que recojan su permiso de estacionamiento del martes 15 de agosto al viernes 25 de agosto de 9 a.m. a 12 p.m. y de 1:30 p.m. a 3:30 p.m. en la oficina frontal de la preparatoria Zapata High School. Estudiantes deberán presentar comprobante de seguro vigente y licencia de manejo. Costo del permiso 5 dólares. Mayores informes al departamento de policía de ZCISD o con Patricia Flores. CONSULADO MÓVIL
ALGUACIL DEL CONDADO DE WEBB
Agresión a prisionero Acusan a oficiales correccionales de agredir a reo Por César G. Rodríguez TIEMP O DE ZAPATA
Tres oficiales correccionales han sido arrestados por supuestamente agredir a un prisionero, dijo el Alguacil Martín Cuéllar en una declaración el lunes. Las autoridades los identificaron como los oficiales correccionales José M. Ávila, con cinco años de servicio; el Oficial Alfredo Sandoval Jr., con siete años de servicio y el oficial de correccional Jorge Ramos, con dos años de servicio. Los tres han sido despedidos, dijo la Oficina del Aguacil del Condado de Webb. Cada uno fue acusado de opresión oficial, violación de derechos civiles de una persona en custodia y abuso de su capacidad oficial. Sandoval además fue acusado de manipular registros gubernamentales. Todos son crímenes menores Tipo A penados con
hasta un año en prisión, una multa de 4.000 dólares o ambos. Un cuarto carcelero, que no se enfrenta a cargos criminales, también fue despedido por su supuesta participación en el mismo incidente por violación de políticas y procedimientos, dijo la Oficina del Alguacil. Las autoridades no lo identificaron. Detalles sobre los alegatos no estuvieron disponibles. “Tan pronto como me enteré de la supuesta agresión, procedí a llamar a los Texas Rangers para que inciarán la investigación con la finalidad de ser transparente”, dijo Cuéllar en una declaración. “Mientras que me alegra que nuestro sistema de cámaras de vigilancia que comenzamos a
instalar en el 2009 trabajó para lo que fue diseñado, estoy profundamente decepcionado de que cuatro carceleros hayan decidido que las reglas y políticas no aplican para ellos”. “Ellos han sido despojados de su equipo, sus uniformes y su trabajo. Aunque éste es un incidente aislado, permanezco orgulloso de los hombres y mujeres de la Oficina del Alguacil del Condado de Webb y les agradezco por mantener la confianza del público”. La investigación continúa. Referéndum para prisión Estos alegatos llegan a la luz tras que la Corte de Comisionados aprobara el lunes un referéndum para poner en la bole-
ta electoral con la finalidad de que los constituyentes decidan si deben continuar con la construcción de una nueva cárcel. Cuellar agregó, “Esta cárcel tiene 31 años y un diseño anticuado que hace imposible que los supervisores monitoreen adecuadamente las interacciones entre carceleros y prisioneros en tiempo real. Una nueva prisión emplearía un diseño moderno y adecuado para la protección de ambos, eliminando puntos ciegos como el pasillo donde esta agresión ocurrió, y reduciría el riesgo para los contribuyentes del condado”. “Agradezco a los Texas Rangers por su ayuda en la investigación. Reafirmo mi compromiso de mantener la confianza pública y aseguro que continuaremos haciendo todo para dar lo mejor de nosotros y servir y proteger al Condado de Webb”.
MIGUEL ALEMÁN, MÉXICO
INICIA CICLO ESCOLAR 2017-2018
1 El Consulado General de México en Laredo tendrá el Consulado Móvil en la Ciudad de Roma el sábado 26 de agosto de 8 a.m. a 1:30 p.m. Centro Mundial de las Aves ubicado en la Plaza Histórica. Esquina de Portscheller St. y Convent Ave. Se realizarán los servicios de trámite de pasaporte mexicano, matrícula consular, credencial para votar, y actas de nacimiento entre otros servicios. Se requiere programar cita en http://consulmex.sre.gob.mx/ mcallen/ o en la aplicación móvil mi Miconsulmex o llamar al teléfono 1877-MEXITEL DÉFICIT DE ATENCIÓN 1 NAMI Capítulo Laredo invita la junta educativa que ofrecerá una conferencia con el Dr. Henry Carranza sobre trastorno de déficit de atención e hiperactividad (ADD-ADHD), el 24 de agosto, de 6 p.m. a 8 p.m., en Border Region Behavioral Health, ubicado en 1500 Pappas St.. REGRESO A CLASES 1 El primer día de clases para las escuelas del distrito escolar Zapata Independent School District se realizará el 28 de agosto. SOCIEDAD GENEALÓGICA 1 La Sociedad Genealógica Nuevo Santander invita a su reunión el sábado 9 de septiembre a las 2 p.m. en el Museo de Historia del Condado de Zapata. Moisés Garza, Somos Primos/We Are Cousins, presentará: “Recursos para obtener el máximo de su ADN”. Admisión 5 dólares. Evento gratuito para miembros de la sociedad. GRUPO DE APOYO ENFERMEDADES MENTALES 1 NAMI Capítulo Laredo ofrece grupos de apoyo sobre personas con enfermedades mentales cada segundo jueves de mes. Informes al 956-235-2359
Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Miguel Alemán
En una ceremonia llevada a cabo el martes, la alcaldesa de Miguel Alemán, México, Rosy Corro dio por inaugurado el ciclo escolar 2017-2018 del Conalep Campus Miguel Alemán, en donde se hicieron entrega de reconocimientos a los estudiantes más sobresalientes y maestros destacados.
TAMAULIPAS
COLUMNA
Invitan a concurso de cortometrajes
Damas promueven erección de obelisco en Camargo
E SPECIAL PARA TIEMP O DE LAREDO
La Secretaría de la Función Pública del gobierno mexicano está invitando a la población juvenil a participar en un concurso de cortometrajes que tiene la finalidad de elevar la conciencia contra la corrupción entre la juventud. A través de un video los gobiernos de los estados invitan a los jóvenes a expresar sus ideas en un cortometraje que ayude a promover la cultura de la transparencia y la rendición de cuentas en el XII Concurso Nacional de Transparencia en Corto, cuyo tema es “Uso de herramientas digitales para el combate a la corrupción”.. Con frases como “No sabes con quién te metes”, “El que no tranza no avanza” y “¡Ay! robé pero poquito”, entre otras, el video cuestiona a los jóvenes sobre lo qué están haciendo para frenar la corrupción y los exhorta a darle acción a las ideas que puedan tener sobre esta problemática a través del concurso de cortometrajes. Los participantes deben tener entre 16 y 25 años de edad, la duración de los cortometrajes no
Nota del editor: Esta serie de artículos sobre la historia de Ciudad Guerrero, México, fueron escritos por la guerrerense Lilia Treviño Martínez (1927-2016), quien fuera profesora de la escuela Leoncio Leal. Por Lilia Treviño Martínez TIEMP O DE ZAPATA
Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de México
El XII Concurso Nacional de Transparencia en Corto promovido por la Secretaría de la Función Pública en México busca promover la cultura de la transparencia y la rendición de cuentas entre los jóvenes.
debe exceder los 90 segundos y sólo se aceptarán trabajos inéditos hasta el 29 de septiembre de 2017. En el caso de participantes menores de edad, se deberá acompañar carta de autorización del padre de familia o tutor, aprobando su participación, se lee en las bases del concurso en la página del gobierno de México. Los premios para los tres primeros lugares son: 40 mil, 30 mil y 20 mil para el primer, segundo y tercer lugar respectivamente. Consulte las bases en http:// www.comisioncont ralores.gob.mx/
Los pueblos de la región fronteriza de Tamaulipas siempre han sido reconocidos por dos caracterísricas: su cultura y su hospitalidad. Guerrero no ha sido la excepción. En mención al acervo cultura del municipio, se cuenta con un rico e interesante Archivo Municipal, proveniente de los tiempos de la Colonia. Actualmente está debidamente ordenado por el eficiente trabajo de organización de la Sra. María del Carmen González de Carvajal. Desde el siglo XIX había proyecciones culturales notables en varios aspectos: publicaciones de periódicos semanales, conmemoraciones cívico patriotas, montajes de obras de teatro experimental, literatura, música y poesía. En la última década de ese siglo Dn. José Ma. González Benavides, fundó con sus pro-
pios recursos una escuela para niñas donde además de las asignaturas propias de la educación primaria, se inculcaban valores morales, clases de urbanidad y se preparaba a las jóvenes para la economía doméstica y la elaboración de preciosos trabajos de bordados de aquella época. En el inicio del siglo XX (1908), un grupo de damas promovió la erección del obelisco que corona las lomas de Santa Gertrudis del municipio de Camargo, para conmemorar en forma perenne el triunfo de los republicanos sobre las intervencionistas al servicio de Francia. Las damas que hago referencia pertenecían a una Asociación Guerrerense llamada “Grupo Femenil Patriótico Mutualista”, cuyo lema era “Patria y Unión”, presidido por la culta dama Elvira Yáñez de Escutia, quien en el mes de marzo de 1908 emitió circulares anunciando la Inauguración del Obelisco para el próximo 15 de septiembre. La primera notificación del evento fue, acertadamente, para la R. Autoridad del Municipio de Camargo, que desde leugo se aprestó a los preparativos para recibir a las damas promotoras y colaborar en todos los aspectos para el acto patriótico-cultural.
Sports&Outdoors THE ZAPATA TIMES | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 |
A7
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION: DALLAS MAVERICKS
Dallas’ Rookie of the Year favorite Fellow upcoming first-year players tab Mavs’ Dennis Smith Jr. as the best of the bunch By Brad Townsend TH E DALLAS MORNI NG NEWS
The Mavericks organization and many of its fans believe that No. 9 overall draft pick Dennis Smith Jr. will be such an on-court sensation that he could leap-frog the eight players selected before him and win NBA Rookie of the Year honors. Earlier this month, NBA.com’s John Schuhmann surveyed 39 rookies from the 2017
draft class. A little more than one-fourth of them (25.7 percent) tabbed 6-foot-3, 190pound Smith as most likely to win this season’s Kia Rookie of the Year award. The rookie garnering the next-most votes was Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball, at 20 percent. It’s worth noting that players were not permitted to vote for themselves. The Mavericks have only had one Rookie of the Year in the franchise’s 37-year history. In
the 1994-95 season, Mavericks point guard Jason Kidd was voted co-Rookie of the Year with Detroit’s Grant Hill. In the NBA.com survey, Smith Jr. also was voted "most athletic," by a wide margin, earning 43.6 percent of the vote to the 12.8 percent of runner-up Terrance Ferguson of Oklahoma City. And he came in as the second-best "steal" of the draft, behind Utah’s Donovan Mitchell, the No. 13 pick.
Elsa / Getty Images
Dallas rookie Dennis Smith Jr. was selected ninth overall in the 2017 NBA Draft.
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: DALLAS COWBOYS
NFL: HOUSTON TEXANS
COWBOYS ENTERTAIN FANS IN HOMECOMING Over 6,000 fans attended Dallas’ first home practice of 2017 season By Schuyler Dixon A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
FRISCO, Texas — Jason Witten has practiced in front of thousands of Dallas Cowboys fans during training camp plenty of times in his 15 seasons. Just never a few paces and a left turn from the locker in his home away from home — team headquarters, with the 12,000-seat stadium that serves as an indoor practice field for America’s Team at its posh year-old facility. The same could be said for the 16 members of the team’s ring of honor who attended a ceremony a few hours before the Cowboys opened practice to the public at their home base for what is believed to be the first time Monday. Dallas has held camp practices at its stadium about 35 miles to the southwest, and the Alamodome in San Antonio. The Cowboys have trained in California off and on (mostly on) since soon after their inception in 1960, including about four weeks in Oxnard this year. While the crowd of 6,052 wasn’t quite as big as expected for this kind of first for a storied franchise, it was notable nonetheless. “It really was a function that we dreamed out when we were putting The Star together,” owner and general manager Jerry Jones told The Associated Press, using the team’s name for its sprawling complex in Frisco, 30 miles north of Dallas. “That this would be an excellent experience that so many fans in the Dallas area haven’t gotten to be part of, the training camp. We didn’t have the facilities for it.” That was the case in the early days of the Cowboys, when they trained at a no-frills facility in Dallas until the mid-1980s. And it was still the case at the Valley Ranch complex in Irving, which was also home to Texas Stadium. Jones built $1.2 billion AT&T Stadium in Arlington, where they team moved in 2009. The Cowboys moved into their new practice place after training camp last year, and knew it was just a matter of time before they’d be holding full-scale camp workouts in front of the home folks. “I think it’s the neat thing about this, it sounds like that’s what it’ll be like as it moves forward,” said Witten, who rivaled quarterback Dak Prescott for the loudest ovation when he emerged from the walkway leading to the field Monday. “And it’s great for the fans to get a glimpse of that.” On that question of the future, Jones reiterated his commitment to California, and there’s little question
Karen Warren / Houston Chronicle
Houston wide receiver Jaelen Strong caught a 2-yard touchdown pass from Tom Savage in the Texans’ preseason win over New England.
Jaelen Strong appealing one-game suspension LM Otero / Associated Press
Dallas tight end Jason Witten and the Cowboys host Oakland on Saturday in their fourth preseason game of 2017.
he enjoys the visibility just a few dozen miles north of Hollywood. The Cowboys are committed to Oxnard next year, followed by a two-year option. The local option is a good one for Carrie Himel, a 38-year-old realtor from Frisco who made plans to attend the practice soon after she heard about it. “Because it’s the first training camp right here in our city and it’s freaking awesome that it’s right here in our backyard,” she said. “You don’t have to go to California. It’s right here. So why not?” Emmitt Smith, the NFL’s all-time rushing leader, was among the ring of honor recipients who were recognized at the opening of a display of the 21-member group in a plaza near the indoor stadium. He said the upcoming practice would be just like ones the 48-year-old remembered from San Antonio and Oxnard. “The only difference is now they host it in their own facility, which is great,” said Smith, who was joined by his fellow three-time Super Bowlwinning “Triplets,” quarterback Troy Aikman and receiver Michael Irvin. “I think it’s pretty unique. It’s pretty special. They have the best facility in all of sports, so why not
just do it here.” Like Himel, 50-year-old Mark Gatica of Fort Worth has never been to Cowboys camp anywhere else. And he’s a lifelong fan who could have gone in Wichita Falls, about two hours northwest of the Dallas area. “Probably because it was outdoors,” Gatica said with a smile on a mild-for-Texas day of 93 degrees. “Indoors, the nice A/C and everything. It’s really nice.” The practice was routine, with the typical cheers for catches by Dez Bryant and chants supporting new star running back Ezekiel Elliott, facing a six-game suspension to start his second season. Fans bought concessions and milled about on the concourse during the workout. Admission was free, but tickets were required. After the lower-thanexpected turnout, the Cowboys announced that tickets won’t be required for the remaining practices: three this week and two next week before the team officially breaks camp. “It was super fun,” Himel said. “It’s so awesome being this close to players. It feels like they’re right there.” And it felt like a first for her and others.
Houston’s WR was arrested for possession of marijuana By John McClain HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Third-year Texans receiver Jaelen Strong is appealing his NFL-mandated one-game suspension for an arrest on a marijuana possession charge in February of 2016 in Scottsdale, Ariz. If Strong loses his appeal, he'll be suspended for the Texans' first regular-season game Sept. 10 against Jacksonville, according to an NFL official familiar with the situation. Strong, who's had an excellent training camp, according to his coaches and teammates, would return for the second game at Cincinnati. Strong, a third-round pick in 2015, was arrested on Feb. 28 of last year by Scottsdale police after a routine traffic stop. He was one of two passengers in a car driven by Green Bay cornerback Damarious Randall, a
former teammate at Arizona State. Strong gave police a cigar box with three marijuana cigarettes. He later agreed to enter a drug diversion program and undergo counseling to get the charge dropped. Strong, who caught a 2-yard touchdown pass from Tom Savage in the preseason victory over New England, has been the Texans' No. 1 receiver since the first preseason game against Carolina. DeAndre Hopkins (hand), Braxton Miller (ankle) and Will Fuller (collarbone) have been out with injuries. Hopkins and Miller are expected to be ready for the Jacksonville opener. Fuller could return in early October. In his first two seasons, Strong has started three games. He has 28 catches for 292 yards (10.4-yard average) and three touchdowns.
A8 | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
ENTERTAINMENT
Bill Cosby’s retrial delayed as new legal team joins case By Michael R. Sisak ASSOCIATED PRE SS
Valerie Macon / AFP/Getty Images
This 2016 file photo shows actor George Clooney and wife Amal at the Regency Village Theatre, in Westwood, California.
George and Amal Clooney donate $1M to fight hate groups A S S O CIAT E D PRE SS
LOS ANGELES — George and Amal Clooney are donating $1 million to fight hate groups. The couple announced Tuesday that their Clooney Foundation for Justice is supporting the Southern Poverty Law Center with a $1 million grant to combat hate groups in the United States. George Clooney says in a statement Tuesday that they wanted to add their voices and financial assis-
tance to the fight for equality. Clooney said, “There are no two sides to bigotry and hate.” The Southern Poverty Law Center monitors the activities of more than 1,600 extremist groups in the U.S. and has used litigation to win judgments against white supremacist organizations. Last month, the Clooney Foundation announced a $2 million grant to support education for Syrian refugee children.
NORRISTOWN, Pa. — Bill Cosby’s retrial on sexual assault charges will be delayed until next year as his new legal team gets up to speed on the case, which pits the 80-year-old comedian against a woman who says he drugged and molested her more than a decade ago. Judge Steven O’Neill on Tuesday granted a defense request to postpone the retrial, which had been scheduled to start in November, saying there’s no way that Cosby’s lawyers would be ready by then. “To ask someone to review the voluminous record over 18 months — now 20 months in this case — simply cannot be done,” O’Neill said from the bench. Cosby’s new lawyers made their first court appearance on behalf of “The Cosby Show” star, who’s charged with knocking out accuser Andrea Constand with pills and sexually assaulting her at his home near Philadelphia in 2004. He says Constand, a former executive with Temple University’s
Michael Bryant / AP
Bill Cosby, center, leaves the Montgomery County Courthouse on Tuesday, lead by Andrew Wyatt, left, after a pretrial hearing in Cosby's sexual assault case in Norristown, Pennsylvania.
women’s basketball program, consented to their sexual encounter. His first trial ended without a verdict after the jury deadlocked, setting the stage for a retrial. The judge on Tuesday asked Cosby’s lawyers to consider a start date sometime between March 15 and April 1. He said he’ll issue a firm date once they get back to him. “Hopefully they’ll get up to speed quickly so we can bring this case to justice. It’s a case that deserves a verdict and we intend to get there,” District Attorney Kevin Steele told reporters
outside court. The jury for the retrial will likely come from the Philadelphia suburbs. Signaling an early change in strategy, Cosby’s new lawyers said they would be willing to pick a local jury, and Steele’s office said it wouldn’t object. Cosby’s former defense team insisted on picking a jury from a different county, partly because the case was a campaign issue in the 2015 race for Montgomery County district attorney. The jury in Cosby’s first trial came from the Pittsburgh area and spent two weeks in June sequestered 300 miles (483 kilometers) from home.
The attorneys who represented Cosby at that trial, Brian McMonagle and Angela Agrusa, had asked to be let off the case. O’Neill approved the request Tuesday, praising them for their “extraordinary advocacy.” As they left the courtroom, the departing lawyers shook hands with Cosby and his new legal team, which includes Tom Mesereau, the highprofile attorney who won an acquittal in Michael Jackson’s child molestation case. Mesereau told TMZ last month that the case against Cosby was “weak” and that retrying him was “a waste of time.” Other lawyers on the retooled legal team are former federal prosecutor Kathleen Bliss and Sam Silver, who represented now-imprisoned former U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah in a corruption case. None of the defense lawyers commented as they left court Tuesday. The AP does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they grant permission, which Constand has done.
Morgan Freeman to get Screen Actors Guild award A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
LOS ANGELES — Morgan Freeman will receive the SAG Life Achievement Award at next year’s Screen Actors Guild Awards ceremony.
Freeman
The actors union announced Tuesday that Freeman will accept its
highest honor on Jan. 21, 2018. The 80-year-old Freeman has already received lifetime achievement prizes from the American Film Institute and the Hollywood Foreign
Press Association, among many other acting accolades. He has been nominated five times for an Academy Award and won for his performance in 2004’s “Million Dollar Baby.”
Freeman’s voice is among the most recognizable in entertainment. He has narrated many documentaries and lent his voice to the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and Hilla-
ry Clinton. Previous SAG Life Achievement Award recipients include Carol Burnett, Betty White, Elizabeth Taylor, Sidney Poitier, George Burns and James Earl Jones.
THE ZAPATA TIMES | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 |
A9
BUSINESS
Millennial women losing ground in race for equal pay By Jeanna Smialek B L OOMBE RG NEWS
Women between 25 and 34 years old are slipping when it comes to pay equality with men, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show. In that
age group, of mostly millennials, women made just under 89 cents on a man’s dollar in 2016, down from a high of 92 cents in 2011. That means the gender gap in median weekly earnings is the widest in seven years.
Young women’s experience stands in contrast to that of their older counterparts, who are starting from a lower level but continue to creep toward equality. The dip is surprising, given that millennial women are increasingly
highly-educated relative to their male peers. Part of the explanation could be that in recent years, a big chunk of gender-wage parity had come because men’s wages weren’t doing well. “Men just had been losing ground, and in-
stead are doing better now,” said Heidi Shierholz, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington and a former Labor Department chief economist during Barack Obama’s administration.
Stocks rise as political tension cools, bonds slip By Randall Jensen BL OOMBERG
Brett Gundlock / Bloomberg
A Federal Police officer patrols a beach in Cancun, Mexico on July 12.
US warns citizens about travel to Cancun as homicides rise By Nacha Cattan B L OOMBE RG NEWS
The U.S. State Department warned its citizens about traveling to parts of Mexico including Cancun and Playa del Carmen, as homicides rise at resorts popular with American tourists. The advisory issued on Tuesday upgraded the warnings for two states, Quintana Roo and Baja California Sur, saying turf wars between crime gangs have led to a surge in violence. The only warning for Quintana Roo in a December statement was about lack of cellular and Internet service in some areas. The expanded travel advisory hits at the heart of a tourism industry that brings in $20 billion a year for Mexico. The state of Quintana Roo, where the resorts of Tulum and Cozumel are also located, gets 10 million tourists a year, a third of the national total. The warnings come as homicides in Mexico are set to rise to their highest since at least the turn of the century. Quintana Roo alone has seen 169 murders this year. “Shooting incidents, in
which innocent bystanders have been injured or killed, have occurred” in both states, the U.S. warned. “While most of these homicides appeared to be targeted criminal organization assassinations, turf battles between criminal groups have resulted in violent crime in areas frequented by U.S. citizens.” While Quintana Roo’s advisory is now stricter, it isn’t included among the most dangerous spots in Mexico, where U.S. government personnel are told to defer nonessential travel. That restriction is reserved for parts of Chihuahua, Coahuila and Colima states, among others. U.S. travel warnings of differing levels exist for most Mexican states. Business group Coparmex, which represents more than 200 hotels, restaurants and other companies in Cancun, said the advisory will likely affect bookings this winter, when Americans head to the beaches. Adrian Lopez Sanchez, who heads Coparmex in Cancun, says security is beginning to improve after deteriorating earlier this year and last year.
Quintana Roo’s Tourism Ministry was quick to respond to the advisory, issuing a statement to say travelers to the state are “safe and protected” and the government will keep collaborating with federal and U.S. officials on security. Hotel occupancy in Cancun, Playa del Carmen and surrounding resorts rose to 78.6 percent in the year through July from 75.1 percent in the year-earlier period, according to STR, a provider of data and analytics on the lodging industry. In January, Asur, the airport operator that services Cancun, saw its stock slump after five people were gunned down at the Blue Parrot nightclub during an electronic music festival in nearby Playa del Carmen. The airport’s stock rose slightly to 361.20 pesos per share at close of market Tuesday. More recently, in early July, one person died after a shootout at a club right across the street from the Blue Parrot. “Tourism is very sensitive,” Coparmex’s Lopez Sanchez said. “Warnings directed toward the U.S. market are significant.”
U.S. stocks rose the most in a week, while Treasuries declined and the dollar gained on growing speculation the Trump administration is gaining momentum in its efforts to reform the tax code. Industrial metals rallied. The S&P 500 Index jumped 1 percent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added almost 200 points amid reports the Trump team and lawmakers may be making progress toward pro-business reforms. Emerging-market and European equities also advanced. The risk-on tone lifted the dollar and weighed on havens from
Treasuries to gold. Crude gained ahead of a U.S. government report that’s forecast to show stockpiles fell. Investors seem to be getting over some of the sensitivity that characterized the past week following political turmoil in Washington, terrorist attacks in Europe and ongoing tension between the U.S. and North Korea. Nonetheless, Ray Dalio, the billionaire founder of Bridgewater Associates Inc., the world’s largest hedge fund, said he’s “tactically reducing” risk because he’s concerned about growing internal and external conflict “leading to impaired government efficiency” in the U.S., ac-
cording to a LinkedIn post Monday. With little top-tier economic data out this week, markets are set to focus on the annual conference of global central bankers hosted by the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. It starts on Thursday. “No one has a lot of interest in being very negative in the market right here, knowing that there’s this whatever-ittakes backdrop where central bankers globally just have zero interest in seeing financial conditions tighten too much,” Dennis DeBusschere, head of portfolio strategy at Evercore ISI, said Tuesday in an interview on Bloomberg Television.
Panera to list amount of sugar, calories of drinks on cups By Joseph Pisani AP BUSINE SS WRITER
NEW YORK — Panera Bread will start listing the amount of added sugar and calories on the cups for seven drinks, including cola and iced teas. The move is the latest by the company to appeal to Americans who are increasingly concerned about what’s in their food and drinks. Panera and other restaurant chains have been tweaking their recipes and removing artificial ingredients to match consumer’s changing tastes. Panera said the new cups will be available in eight cities this week, including New York, Chicago and St. Louis. They will be in all the chain’s more than 2,000 locations by the middle of September. CEO Ron Shaich said the cups list the amount of added sugar in teaspoons instead of grams because it’s less confusing. “I think the only
Courtesy of Panera Bread / AP
This photo shows a 20-ounce fountain drink in a cup that lists the amount of added sugar and calories in seven of the restaurant's drinks, including cola and teas.
people who really understand grams are drug dealers and Walter White,” Shaich said in an interview, referring to the drug-dealing character from the TV show “Breaking Bad.” A 20-ounce cola is listed as having 17.25
teaspoons of added sugar and 250 calories. Panera’s blood orange lemonade has 8.25 teaspoons of added sugar and 160 calories, while a plum ginger hibiscus tea has no added sugars and zero calories. Panera had begun listing sugar counts near its soda fountains in March when it launched its new iced teas, lemonades and other fruity beverages. Since then, 8 percent of its fountain soda-drinking customers have switched to iced teas and other non-bubbly drinks, the company said. Shaich said PepsiCo, which provides the soda that’s sold at Panera, was told about the new cups, but he declined to describe the discussions. PepsiCo said in a statement that it offers several drinks with no sugar added and no calories, and that the company and Panera “are both on a journey to offer consumers healthier beverage options.”
A10 | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
INTERNATIONAL
Italian boy credited with helping save brother after earthquake By Colleen Barry ASSOCIATED PRE SS
By Raphael Minder N EW YORK T I ME S NEWS S ERVIC E
BARCELONA, Spain — A Madrid judge charged four suspects in last week’s attacks in Spain with terrorism offenses Tuesday, after a day of questioning that seemed to confirm that the group had initially planned a more ambitious strike. The four suspects — accused of being the only survivors of a 12-person terrorism cell that killed 15 people in and near Barcelona — were transferred overnight to Madrid, where they appeared before Fernando Andreu, the judge from Spain’s national court in charge of the case. Andreu questioned each one in turn Tuesday, starting with Mohamed Houli Chemlal, 21, who appeared in court in hospital garb. He had been admitted for treatment after being wounded in an explosion at a house that the terrorism cell had
used as a bomb factory. The explosion apparently derailed their initial plans for a bombing in Barcelona. Tuesday’s court sessions were held behind closed doors. But court officials told the Spanish news media that at least one of the suspects had confirmed that the cell had planned a larger attack that included detonating a bomb at landmark monuments and churches in Barcelona. The court appearances came a day after the police killed Younes Abouyaaqoub, the last unaccounted-for member of the terrorism cell, in the countryside west of Barcelona. Abouyaaqoub, 22, was believed to have driven the van that killed 13 people last Thursday on Las Ramblas, the famous Barcelona promenade. Abouyaaqoub then stabbed a man to death during his getaway. Another person was killed in a separate attack in Cambrils, a seaside resort.
Stringer / AP
Rescuers pull out 7-month boy Pasquale from the rubble of a collapsed building in Casamicciola, on the island of Ischia, near Naples, Italy, a day after a 4.0-magnitude quake hit the Italian resort island Tuesday.
Casamicciola in 1883 that killed more than 2,000 people. Another died in the same apartment complex where the family was saved. Rescuers hailed the courage of the older boys, who spent 14 and 16 hours respectively waiting to be freed, talking with firefighters all the while, eventually receiving water and a flashlight. One official credited the older boy, 11-year-old Ciro, with helping save his 8-yearold brother, Mattias, by pushing him out of harm’s way under a bed. The boys’ grandmother described Ciro as shaken by the ordeal. While Mattias was scared, he also “was sorry because he lost the money in his piggy bank, and lost his toys,” she told the ANSA news agency. When the quake struck just before 9 p.m. Monday, the boys’ father, Alessandro Toscano, said
he was in the kitchen while his wife, Alessia, was in the bathroom and his two older sons in their bedroom. His wife managed to free herself through the bathroom window, Toscano told RAI state television, while he was rescued soon afterward by firefighters. But the three boys remained trapped when the upper story of the building collapsed. In their bedroom, 11year-old Ciro pushing Mattias under the bed. “The gesture surely saved them both,” said Andrea Gentile of the Italian police. “Then with the handle of a broom he knocked against the rubble, making them heard by rescuers.” The baby, 7-month-old Pasquale, was in the kitchen in a playpen, and the first to be rescued around 4 a.m., seven hours after the quake
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A policeman hugs a boy and his family that he helped during the terrorist attack, at a memorial to the victims on Las Ramblas, Barcelona, Spain on Monday.
MILAN — An Italian family of five was “reborn” after all three children buried in the rubble of their home by a 4.0magnitude quake were pulled to safety Tuesday in a painstaking 16-hour rescue operation on the popular Mediterranean resort island of Ischia. The Toscano family’s happy ending brought cheers from the dozens of firefighters who worked through the night to extricate the two boys and their infant brother, trapped alone for hours after their father was rescued and their pregnant mother managed to free herself from their collapsed apartment in the hard-hit town of Casamicciola. “I don’t know how to define it if not a miracle,” the boys’ grandmother, Erasma De Simone, said after the family was reunited at a hospital. ‘’We were all dead, and we are reborn.” Though relatively minor in magnitude, the quake Monday night killed two people, injured another 39 and displaced some 2,600 people in Casamicciola and the neighboring town of Lacco Ameno on the northern end of the island. The damage in Ischia focused attention on two recurring themes in quake-prone Italy: seismically outdated old buildings and illegal new construction with shoddy materials. One woman was killed by falling masonry from a church that had suffered damage in a quake centered in
struck. He cried as rescuers passed him to safety, but looked alert in his still-white onesie. Firefighters said reaching the two older boys was more delicate, requiring them to create a hole in the collapsed ceiling without destabilizing the structure. Mattias was extricated first, emerging seven hours after his baby brother, covered in cement dust in his underwear as he clung to firefighters. He was quickly strapped onto a stretcher and whisked into an ambulance. Finally came Ciro, who rescuers said kept the conversation going throughout the ordeal even though one of his legs was immobilized by the rubble. At the hospital emergency room entrance, his parents awaited his arrival, his mother, who is five months pregnant, sitting in a wheel chair alongside his father, whose hand was bandaged from a fracture. “It was a terrible night. I don’t have words to explain it,” Alessandro Toscano told RAI television. Despite their ordeal, hospital officials say the three children were in remarkably good condition. The two older boys were being treated for dehydration and Ciro for a fracture to his right foot. They were expected to be discharged from the hospital Wednesday. “For three children saved from the rubble, we have witnessed a true miracle. They are miraculously healthy,” said Virginia Scafarto, director of the island’s Rizzoli hospital.
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THE ZAPATA TIMES | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 |
A11
NATIONAL
Charlottesville votes to shroud Confederate statues By Sarah Rankin ASSOCIATED PRE SS
Charlie Neibergall / AP
Former lottery computer programmer Eddie Tipton, center, speaks during his sentencing hearing Tuesday at the Polk County Courthouse in Des Moines, Iowa.
Computer programmer gets 25 years for lottery scam By David Pitt A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
DES MOINES, Iowa — A former lottery computer programmer who admitted to rigging computers to enable him to pick winning numbers and cheat four states out of $2.2 million in several lottery games over six years was sentenced to up to 25 years in prison in Iowa on Tuesday. “I regret my actions and I’m sorry for the people I hurt,” said Eddie Tipton, 54, the former information technology manager for the MultiState Lottery Association, a central Iowa organization that provides number-picking computers for lotteries in 33 states the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Tipton’s voice quivered when asked by Judge Brad McCall to speak during the sentencing hearing. After McCall issued the sentence, Tipton was handcuffed and taken away by sheriff’s deputies. Under Iowa law, Tipton is likely to serve far less than 25 years — probably between three and five years, said Iowa Assistant Attorney General Rob Sand, who prosecuted the case. The Iowa Board of Parole will ultimately determine how long he’s behind bars. “I think when you’re an insider who abuses your position of trust and privilege you should expect to see the inside of a jail cell,” Sand said. Tipton’s attorney asked McCall to give Tipton probation in Iowa, arguing his client was unfairly being treated far more harshly than other people involved in the scheme. As part of his plea deal, Tipton also admitted to committing theft by fraud and a computer crime in Wisconsin, where he’ll be sentenced Sept. 18. The agreement allows him to serve his Wisconsin sentence — likely to be three to four years — at the same time he serves the Iowa prison sentence. Tipton also agreed to
repay the $2.2 million to the four states from which he rigged games and jackpots were paid, but he told McCall it’s unclear how he will get the money. He said he hopes to study ministry and get a job in that field after prison. “Hopefully you’re going to get rid of that greed and gain a little common sense during your prison stay,” McCall said. Tipton helped write the computer code behind several U.S. lottery games, including some of its biggest including Powerball, Mega Millions and Hot Lotto. He worked for the lottery association from 2003 until 2015 and was its computer information security director for his last two years there. Tipton admitted in June to installing code that prompted the computers to produce predictable numbers only on certain days. Tipton said he gave the numbers to his brother, Tommy Tipton, and longtime friend Robert Rhodes and others to play and often split the winnings with them. Tommy Tipton is serving a 75-day jail sentence in Texas after pleading guilty to a theft charge. Rhodes is expected to get probation when he’s sentenced on Aug. 25 for a computer crime charge. The games Eddie Tipton fixed included Colorado Lotto in November 2005, Megabucks in Wisconsin in December 2007, 2by2 in Kansas and Hot Lotto in Iowa in December 2010, and Hot Lotto in Oklahoma in November 2011. Iowa Lottery officials became suspicious and never paid the jackpot when Tipton and Rhodes tried to cash a $14 million Iowa Hot Lotto ticket bought in 2010. “Eddie Tipton had the keys to the kingdom and those are the things we changed immediately to make sure any equipment he touched was removed and we continue to look ahead and make sure we have those checks and balances as we proceed,” Iowa Lottery CEO Terry Rich said.
2 US sailor identified after warship crash A S S OCIAT E D PRE SS
DETROIT — Sailors with ties to Michigan and Illinois are among 10 who are missing after a U.S. warship collided with an oil tanker in Southeast Asia. Illinois U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis says Logan Palmer’s mother told him that her son is missing. In Michigan, April Brandon says her son, Ken Smith, is also missing. Brandon was visited by two officers Monday at
her home in Oakland County. The USS John McCain collided with an oil tanker off Singapore. Adm. Scott Swift says some bodies have been found in a flooded compartment of the warship. Brandon says her 22year-old son grew up in Novi, Michigan, but moved to Norfolk, Virginia, as a teen with his father. Davis says Palmer comes from a “patriotic family” in the Decatur, Illinois, area.
The Charlottesville City Council voted to drape two Confederate statues in black fabric during a chaotic meeting packed with irate residents who screamed and cursed at councilors over the city’s response to a white nationalist rally. The anger at Monday night’s meeting, during which three people were arrested, forced the council to abandon its agenda and focus instead on the tragedy. Covering the statues is intended to signal the city’s mourning for Charlottesville resident Heather Heyer, who was killed when a car slammed into a crowd protesting the rally. “I think what you saw last night was a traumatized community beginning the process of catharsis,” Mayor Mike Signer told The Associated Press on Tuesday. The council meeting was the first since the “Unite the Right” event, which was believed to be the largest gathering of white nationalists in a decade. The demonstrators arrived in Charlottesville partly to protest the city council’s vote to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. That removal is in the midst of a legal challenge. A state law passed in 1998 forbids local governments from removing, damaging or defacing war monuments, but there is legal ambiguity about whether that applies to statues such as the Lee monument, which was erected before the law was passed. A judge has is-
Andrew Shurtleff / AP
Tanesha Hudson addresses the Charlottesville City Council during a meeting Monday in Charlottesville, Virginia.
sued an injunction preventing the city from removing the Lee statue while the lawsuit plays out. Signer said Tuesday that city staff had begun working to find a way to cover the large statues with a material that can withstand the elements. The council believes doing so would not violate the state law, he said. At the meeting, many speakers directed their anger at Signer. They expressed frustration that city leaders had granted a permit for the rally and criticized police for allowing the two sides to clash violently before the rally even started. That fighting went on largely uninterrupted by authorities, until the event was declared an unlawful assembly and the crowd was forced to disperse. “Why did you think that you could walk in here and do business as usual after what hap-
pened on the 12th?” City Council candidate and community activist Nikuyah Walker said. The mayor tried to restore order, but as tensions escalated, the meeting was temporarily suspended. Video showed protesters chanting “blood on your hands” as Signer stood at the front of the room. Others held signs calling for his resignation. When the meeting resumed, the agenda was scuttled and the council listened to input from residents. Three people were arrested on charges of disorderly conduct or obstruction, police said. The council also voted to take the procedural first steps toward removing a statue of Confederate Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. City leaders had initially planned to leave it in place. “I believe that the removal of the Confederate statues is a necessary part
of showing that this community can be truly a community of mutual respect,” Councilwoman Kristin Szakos, who proposed covering the statues, said in a statement. “We must do that if we hope to move forward to true justice and equity. We should have done it years ago.” A woman who told the council her daughter was hurt in the car collision also asked why the number of injured had been widely reported as 19 when she believed it was higher. The University of Virginia Medical Center said it treated 19 patients — a number the city repeated in a news release. On Tuesday, a spokesman for Sentara Martha Jefferson hospital said it treated 15 patients from the rally over the weekend. Eleven were directly related to the car incident, and one was transferred to UVA, he said.
Authorities eye immigration status of children found at New Mexico sect By Russell Contreras and Morgan Lee ASSOCIATED PRE SS
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Authorities investigating a paramilitary Christian sect for child sexual abuse say they are looking into whether the New Mexico group brought children into the country illegally. Former group members say leaders kept them and the children living at sect’s compound in “slavery.” Cibola County Sheriff Tony Mace told The Associated Press Tuesday that investigators found numerous children during a Sunday raid of the armed Aggressive Christianity Missions Training Corps in remote Fence Lake. Exactly where the children came from is unknown because the sect apparently kept members from reporting births to state officials, Mace said. A former sect member says the group illegally brought at least one child to the United States from one of its foreign missions, which according to its website were operated in Africa, India and the Philippines. “The children were trained not to talk to law enforcement or to hide from law enforcement,” Mace said. During the raid, authorities arrested three sect members in connection with a child abuse and child sex abuse investigation. A former group member was arrested in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. Sect co-leader Deborah Green was arrested on
charges that included failure to report the birth to child abuse and sexual penetration of a minor. Peter Green, also known as Mike Brandon, faces 100 counts of criminal sexual penetration of a child on suspicion of raping a girl “at least four times a week” from the time she was 7, according to court documents. Joshua Green, the son of sect founders Deborah and James Green, was charged with failure to report a birth. Stacey Miller faces one count each of intentional abuse of a child age 12 to 18, bribery of a witness and not reporting a birth. The group in a statement called the allegations “totally false.” “We don’t know who all the accusers are, but the accusations are just re-runs of old lies that have been investigated and shown to be malicious attacks against a legitimate ministry,” the statement said. The raid followed a two-year investigation of the sect by the Cibola County Sheriff’s Office in connection with the 2014 death of Miller’s 12-yearold son, Enoch Miller. Mace said deputies surprised the sect’s Fence Lake compound during church services to ensure they arrested all group members at once. He said authorities were worried that armed group members would try to block the arrests. The sheriff said deputies found weapons and silencers that they turned over to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Orange County Sheriff’s Office / AP
This photo shows Jocsan Rosado after he was arrested Monday when he parked a stolen car to watch the solar eclipse, in Orlando, Florida.
Auto theft suspect arrested after stopping to watch eclipse ASSOCIATED PRE SS
ORLANDO, Fla. — Authorities in Florida say an auto theft suspect who wanted to watch the moon blot out the sun instead has a blot on his record. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said on its Facebook page that Jocsan Rosado was arrested Monday after he parked what deputies say was a stolen car to watch the eclipse. Deputies say Rosado stole the vehicle, and un-
beknownst to him, was being followed by detectives with the auto theft unit. Deputies say he stopped at a hardware store to purchase a welding mask for watching the eclipse safely. He was arrested next to the stolen car, wearing the welding mask and looking up at the sky. There were no online court records for Rosado early Tuesday, and it was unknown if he had an attorney.
A12 | Wednesday, August 23, 2017 | THE ZAPATA TIMES
FROM THE COVER BORDER From page A1 the public. Days later, hundreds of protesters marched in the Rio Grande Valley to oppose the plan that would maroon large swaths of refuge land, including the popular Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge. Though the U.S. House last month passed a $1.6 billion budget for new fencing in Texas, the Senate has not voted on the budget. Existing plans are preliminary and likely will take shape as feasibility studies guide the project, not to mention the changing views of the commander in chief, agent Raul L. Ortiz assured landowners. Uncertainty has fed
anxieties and has strained relationships for an agency charged with securing the border and helping fulfill Trump’s most evocative campaign promise. “I don’t make policy,” said Ortiz, deputy chief of the agency’s Rio Grande Valley sector. “I create strategy.” An integral part of that strategy is to shore up a roughly 10-mile gap in existing border fence, which goes through farms and a piece of the Santa Ana refuge. Jones and his wife’s family own much of the farmland that surrounds Santa Ana, which has become a rallying point for environmental groups and community activists who argue that the only strategy involved in building a wall through
the 2,088-acre refuge is expediency. Ortiz acknowledged that with the federally owned refuge, the government won’t have to use eminent domain or negotiate costly compensation to take property. For that reason alone, the refuge figures prominently in the border wall plans, he said. But agents also say the Weslaco station of the Border Patrol is the region’s second-busiest drug trafficking corridor. The Rio Grande City station is the busiest and the most volatile along the border, according to the agency. After the stakeholder meeting, Ortiz recited the three elements that broadly describe the agency’s strategy: personnel, technology and infra-
TROOPS From page A1 views with television networks Tuesday, Vice President Mike Pence similarly wouldn’t give any clear answer, but he cited Pentagon plans from June calling for 3,900 more troops. “The troop levels are significant, and we’ll listen to our military commanders about that,” Pence said. Although the Pentagon’s plans are based on 3,900 additional troops, the exact number will vary as conditions change, senior U.S. officials said. Those officials weren’t authorized to speak publicly on the figures and demanded anonymity. They said the Pentagon has told Trump it needs the increase, on top of the roughly 8,400 Americans now in the country, to accomplish Trump’s objectives. Those goals, he said Monday night, include “obliterating ISIS, crushing al-Qaida, preventing the Taliban from taking over Afghanistan and stopping mass terror attacks against America before they emerge.” Speaking to reporters in Iraq, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis declined to confirm a precise number Tuesday, saying he was waiting for more input from Gen. Joseph Dunford, America’s top military official. Mattis said he will “reorganize” some U.S. troops in Afghanistan to reflect the new strategy. Meanwhile, the top U.S. commander for the Middle East said he expects the first reinforcements to arrive “pretty quickly,” within days or weeks. “What’s most important for us now is to get some capabilities in to have an impact on the current fighting season,” Gen. Joseph Votel, who spent last weekend in Afghanistan, told reporters traveling with him to Saudi Arabia on Tuesday.
Carolyn Kaster / AP
Members of the U.S. Military listen as President Donald Trump speaks at Fort Myer in Arlington, Virginia on Monday during a Presidential Address to the Nation about a strategy he believes will best position the U.S. to eventually declare victory in Afghanistan.
Most of the new forces will train and advise Afghan forces to improve their combat abilities, or provide security for American adviser teams in the field, Votel said. U.S. counterterror forces will make up a smaller portion, as will other support forces and medi-
cal personnel. About 460 of the total troops will help the U.S. train more Afghan special commandos in more locations, said U.S. Maj. Gen. James Linder, commander of U.S. and NATO special operations forces in Afghanistan.
structure. As these pieces have been implemented in some areas, smugglers have shifted operations to exploit areas lacking them. “Smugglers look for the path of least resistance,” Ortiz said. “If the refuge doesn’t get a fence and the area around it does, Santa Ana becomes a thoroughfare for illegal traffic.” But as plans have emerged, several congressmen from border
districts, including Reps. Vicente Gonzalez, DMcAllen, Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville and Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, penned a letter to the Homeland Security Department, expressing concerns about the potential for environmental damage to the refuge. The Real ID Act of 2005 made it possible for the department to waive environmental laws and expedite building 54 miles of border fence a
decade ago. The agency announced that it would again be waiving environmental laws to build a section of wall near San Diego, California. Legal challenges to the waivers in 2007 and 2008 were unsuccessful. “The wall doesn’t work,” said Scott Nicol, co-chairman of the Borderlands Team for the Sierra Club. “I just saw a group of immigrants run through here.”
TILLERSON
That led to particularly belligerent rounds of threats from North Korea state media and President Donald Trump, who at one point vowed "fire and fury" against North Korea and then warned that U.S. military weapons
were "locked and loaded." Earlier Tuesday, the United States had imposed a separate round of sanctions on 16 Chinese and Russian companies and individuals accused of working with North Korea.
From page A1
Council’s action, North Korea had launched two intercontinental missiles within a few weeks of each other in July.