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HEALTH CARE
TERRORIST ATTACKS
Clinic up for new contract
Officials recall 9/11 Police, fire chiefs work to ensure local citizens’ safety By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
Zapata Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez Jr. and Fire Chief J.J. Meza are the top officials ensuring the safety and security of residents.
Their commitment has grown greater since 10 years ago when two jets crashed into the Twin Towers in New York City. Each man recalls that incident with disbelief. Meza was attending a disaster
Current doc, 3 others seek to run facility
recovery class in Round Rock. At the time, attendants were coming back from a break. Instructors told the audience the Twin Towers were attacked. Not many believed that, including Meza. He, along other
fire officials, believed their instructors were giving them a scenario for training. Suddenly, it was decided everyone should take another 10-minute break.
See ATTACKS PAGE 10A
CENTRAL TEXAS
By MIKE HERRERA IV THE ZAPATA TIMES
The Zapata County Commissioners’ Court will discuss bids for the operation of the Zapata County Medical clinic during its meeting Monday at 10 a.m. The clinic, which provides basic medical services and stabilizing care, is currently run by Dr. Edmundo O. Garcia, who is both the holder of a soon-to-expire contract and a bidder for the new contract. “As required, we gave Dr. Garcia 90 days notice that we were going out for proposals,” said Commissioner Jose Vela, who said the county paid $1.7 million per year over the last two years for operation of the clinic. He estimated that amount will change to $1 million per year with the new county budget.
See CLINIC PAGE 9A
WAR ON DRUGS
Mexican ‘copters can land in US By DANE SCHILLER HOUSTON CHRONICLE
With a Mexican navy helicopter whirring low over a rural community on the U.S. side of the Rio Grande, an American military veteran armed with marksmanship skills and a hefty rifle hankered from the ground to shoot it down. “Don’t do it,” Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez Jr. recalled warning the man on that Sunday afternoon last year. The flight is one of as many as 10 in the past 17 months in which South Texans spotted Mexican helicopters hovering overhead in broad daylight. The aircraft was so close to the ground that day that military personnel could be
See ‘COPTERS
PAGE 10A
Photo by LM Otero | AP
Wildland firefighter Jayan Palecek from the Sequoia National Forest in California douses a hot spot on the fire near Bastrop, on Friday.
CREWS CONTAINING FIRE Officials: Almost 1,400 homes burned by massive blaze By CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN AND APRIL CASTRO ASSOCIATED PRESS
B
ASTROP — Firefighters are tamping down hotspots and holding back flames from a wildfire that has burned for days across Central Texas, incinerating nearly 1,400 homes and tens of thousands of acres of droughtparched land, officials said Friday. The fire in and around Bastrop, about 25 miles east of Austin, officially remained 30 percent contained, but crews had surrounded and closed in on the flames and no new
homes were reported destroyed overnight. “It seems to be holding well today,” public information officer Annette Grijalva-Disert said. Authorities had planned Friday to deploy a converted DC-10 jetliner capable of dropping 12,000 gallons of fire retardant on the blaze, but Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Holly Huffman said the massive plane was not immediately needed in Bastrop and was instead sent to fires burning in a mostly rural area north of Houston. Retardant is dropped to help shorten and shrink flames, allowing firefighters on the
ground to make headway, but it does not extinguish the fire. “What puts fires out, what’s most effective are the men and women on the ground,” said Tom Harbour, national fire director for the U.S. Forest Service. Huffman agreed firefighting crews have made significant strides in Bastrop County and said the jet “can be diverted at any point if a new fire pops up,” but it was first sent to blazes in Grimes, Montgomery and Waller counties that have blackened about
See WILDFIRES PAGE 10A
PAGE 2A
Zin brief CALENDAR
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
AROUND TEXAS
TODAY IN HISTORY
SATURDAY, SEPT. 10
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The Environmental Medicine and Toxicology Conference will be held from 8:15 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. today at the UTHSCSA Laredo Regional campus, 1937 E. Bustamante St. The conference is free for medical doctors, registered nurses, doctors of osteopathy, licensed vocational nurses, social workers, students and any other allied health care workers. For more information, call the Area Health Education Center office at 712-0037 or Rodolfo at the South Texas Environmental Education and Research office at 7537418.
TUESDAY, SEPT. 13 A workshop entitled “The Art of Starting a Business: Basic Business Essentials in Zapata, Texas” will take place from 9:30 a.m. through noon at the Zapata County Courthouse, suite 248. The workshop is free. Photo by Jae C. Hong | AP
SATURDAY, SEPT. 18 The first day of the two-day South Texas Archery Shootout takes place today. This will be a 3D pop-up tournament. For more information or to register, call Gil Gamez at 512-4264255.
SUNDAY, SEPT. 19 The second day of the two-day South Texas Archery Shootout takes place today. This will be a 3D pop-up tournament. For more information or to register, call Gil Gamez at 512-4264255.
WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 21 The 18th Annual Logistics and Manufacturing Association’s Symposium will be taking place today, tomorrow and Friday at Texas A&M International University. The theme, entitled “Mexico’s Top Manufacturing and Consuming Regions Utilizing Port Laredo,” will focus on the ability for transportation and communications infrastructure, port and border administration, market access, and the overall business environment to govern a port’s ability to become a leader in facilitating global supply chains. For more information, contact Joseph Mendiola at info@ldfonline.org.
TUESDAY, SEPT. 27 The “Anatomy of a Business Plan Workshop in Zapata” is set for 9:30 a.m. through noon at the Zapata County Courthouse, suite 248. The fee for the workshop is $20.
FRIDAY, OCT 7 The first day of the three-day Bass Champs tournament takes place today. For more information or to register, call 817-439-3274 or check the website at www.basschamps.com.
SATURDAY, OCT. 8 The first day of the three-day Bass Champs tournament takes place today. For more information or to register, call 817-439-3274 or check the website at www.basschamps.com.
SUNDAY, OCT. 9 The first day of the three-day Bass Champs tournament takes place today. For more information or to register, call 817-439-3274 or check the website at www.basschamps.com.
Republican presidential candidate former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, left, looks over at Republican presidential candidate Texas Gov. Rick Perry as he answers a question during a Republican presidential candidate debate at the Reagan Library on Wednesday in Simi Valley, Calif.
Perry, Romney clash By PHILIP ELLIOTT ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — A growing divide over Social Security splits the two leading contenders for the Republican presidential nomination, and the differences between Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney foreshadow a tricky political dance with older voters. Romney has seized on what he perceives as Perry’s vulnerability on a program that seniors hold dear, Democrats venerate as sacrosanct and Perry calls a “Ponzi scheme.” That sets up a battle for older voters in Iowa, retirees in Florida and the Sun Belt, and Baby Boomers everywhere worried about their own recession-scarred retirement plans. “If we nominate someone who the Democrats could correctly characterize as being
against Social Security, we would be obliterated as a party,” Romney said on Sean Hannity’s radio program Thursday. Perry is unyielding. At a Friday fundraiser in California, Perry stood by his criticism of Social Security and his position that the program is best left to states to administer — a non-starter for many, including some Republicans. “For people who are on Social Security now, like my folks, and people who are approaching Social Security, like me, it’s going to be there,” he said. But, he said, he didn’t know at what point age-eligibility will have to be raised because the funds simply aren’t there. “Anybody that’s for the status quo with Social Security today is involved with a monstrous lie to our kids, and it’s not right,” he said earlier this week during a debate.
SEC: Texas man defrauded deaf investors
Police: Dallas mom glued daughter’s hands to wall
Obama proposal could mean 141,000 Texas jobs
PLANO — The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a Texas man with securities fraud for allegedly soliciting more than $3.45 million from several thousand deaf investors as part of a scheme involving the trading of insurance policies that falsely promised big returns. In a complaint filed in federal court in Plano on Thursday, the SEC alleges Dunn solicited investments for Imperia over a three-year period and used the funds to pay for a variety of personal expenses .
DALLAS — A 22-year-old mother was facing child abuse charges Friday after police say she glued her toddler daughter’s hands to a wall, kicked her in the stomach and beat her over a potty training issue. Joselyn Cedillo, 2, was on life support with multiple internal injuries at a Dallas hospital Thursday.
AUSTIN — The White House says President Barack Obama’s proposed Jobs Act could create 141,500 jobs in Texas. The proposal met with immediate disdain from Gov. Rick Perry, who is also running for president. Perry said Obama’s proposal “offers little hope for millions of Americans who have lost jobs.” Perry said the answer was to cut spending, not spend more.
Texas zoo: Tiger’s killing of mate surprising EL PASO — The killing of a tiger by his mate caught handlers at the El Paso Zoo by surprise because there were no warning signs and the pair were seen playing together only hours earlier, the zoo director said Friday.
Bigamy trial for polygamist pushed back SAN ANGELO — Convicted polygamist leader Warren Jeffs is getting his next trial on bigamy charges pushed back until February. The 55-year-old remains in a Galveston prison hospital after becoming ill upon starting a life sentence last month. A jury convicted Jeffs in August on child sex charges. A separate bigamy trial had been scheduled to start in October.
Prison for Dallas bank robber who fled in taxi DALLAS — A convicted Dallas bank robber who used a taxi to flee has been sentenced to nine years in prison. A federal judge in Dallas on Friday sentenced Joseph Lamon Williams of Houston. Prosecutors say Williams on Nov. 16 held up a Wells Fargo Bank by handing a teller a threatening note. — Compiled from AP reports
FRIDAY, OCT. 28 The first day of the three-day 2011 Pro/Am Event sponsored by the Couples Association of Sport Tournaments fishing tournament takes place today. For more information or to register, call 281-796-7486 or check the website at www.fishcast.com.
SATURDAY, OCT. 29 The second day of the three-day 2011 Pro/Am Event sponsored by the Couples Association of Sport Tournaments fishing tournament takes place today. For more information or to register, call 281-796-7486 or check the website at www.fishcast.com.
SUNDAY, OCT. 30 The third day of the three-day 2011 Pro/Am Event sponsored by the Couples Association of Sport Tournaments fishing tournament takes place today. For more information or to register, call 281-796-7486 or check the website at www.fishcast.com. To submit an item for the calendar, send the name of the event, the date, time, location and contact phone number to editorial@lmtonline.com.
AROUND THE NATION Homes and businesses swamped in Pa., NY
CONTACT US
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — The swollen Susquehanna River began returning to its banks Friday in Pennsylvania and New York after swamping thousands of homes and businesses in some of the highest floodwaters ever seen. But most of the 100,000 people forced from their homes could do little more than worry as they waited for the all-clear.
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NY, Washington, aware of terror threat, not afraid WASHINGTON — Undaunted by talk of a new terror threat, New Yorkers and Washingtonians wove among police armed with assault rifles and waited with varying degrees of patience at security checkpoints Friday while intelligence officials scrambled to nail down information on a possible al-Qaida strike timed to coincide with the 10th
Today is Saturday, Sept. 10, the 253rd day of 2011. There are 112 days left in the year. Today’s Highlight in History: On Sept. 10, 1813, an American naval force commanded by Oliver H. Perry defeated the British in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. On this date: In 1608, John Smith was elected president of the Jamestown colony council in Virginia. In 1846, Elias Howe received a patent for his sewing machine. In 1919, New York City welcomed home Gen. John J. Pershing and 25,000 soldiers who’d served in the U.S. First Division during World War I. In 1939, Canada declared war on Nazi Germany as Parliament acted at the behest of Prime Minister Wiliam Lyon Mackenzie King. In 1945, Vidkun Quisling was sentenced to death in Norway for collaborating with the Nazis (he was executed by firing squad in Oct. 1945). In 1960, Hurricane Donna, a dangerous Category 4 storm eventually blamed for 364 deaths, struck the Florida Keys. In 1961, a President Airlines DC-6B charter crashed after takeoff from Shannon, Ireland, killing all 83 people aboard. During the Italian Grand Prix, German driver Wolfgang von Trips lost control of his car and crashed into spectators, killing 14 of them as well as himself. (American Phil Hill won the race.) In 1963, twenty black students entered Alabama public schools following a standoff between federal authorities and Gov. George C. Wallace. In 1979, four Puerto Rican nationalists imprisoned for a 1954 attack on the U.S. House of Representatives and a 1950 attempt on the life of President Harry S. Truman were freed from prison after being granted clemency by President Jimmy Carter. In 1987, Pope John Paul II arrived in Miami, where he was welcomed by President and Mrs. Reagan as he began a 10-day tour of the United States. Ten years ago: A Marxist militant suicide bomber blew himself up in a popular Istanbul square, killing himself, two police officers and an Australian woman, Amanda Rigg. Charles Ingram won a million pounds during a taping of the British TV game show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire,” but was later exposed as a cheat who’d gotten help from a coughing accomplice in the studio. Today’s Birthdays: Golfer Arnold Palmer is 82. vibraphonist Roy Ayers is 71. Singer Danny Hutton (Three Dog Night) is 69. Singer Jose Feliciano is 66. Former Canadian first lady Margaret Trudeau is 63. Political commentator Bill O’Reilly is 62. Rock musician Joe Perry (Aerosmith) is 61. Actress Amy Irving is 58. Actor Colin Firth is 51. MLB AllStar pitcher Randy Johnson is 48. Olympic bronze medal figure skater Timothy Goebel is 31. Actress Hannah Hodson is 20. Thought for Today: “If there is no knowledge, there is no understanding; if there is no understanding, there is no knowledge.” — The Talmud.
Photo by Jin Lee | AP
A New York police officer examines the rear section of an SUV at a vehicle check point on Friday in New York. The city is deploying additional resources and taking other security steps in response to a potential terror threat before Sept. 11. anniversary of 9/11.
Fear about Europe, US drags Dow down 300 NEW YORK — The problems that have weighed on investors
all summer — the European debt crisis and fear of a new recession in the United States — hammered the stock market Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average fell more than 300 points on Friday. — Compiled from AP reports
SUBSCRIPTIONS/DELIVERY (956) 728-2555 The Zapata Times is distributed on Saturdays to 4,000 households in Zapata County. For subscribers of the Laredo Morning Times and for those who buy the Laredo Morning Times at newsstands, the Zapata Times is inserted. The Zapata Times is free. The Zapata Times is published by the Laredo Morning Times, a division of The Hearst Corporation, P.O. Box 2129, Laredo, Texas 78044. Phone (956) 728-2500. The Zapata office is at 1309 N. U.S. Hwy. 83 at 14th Avenue, Suite 2, Zapata, TX 78076. Call (956) 765-5113 or e-mail thezapatatimes.net
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
Zlocal
PAGE 3A
SCHOOL RETIREES PLAN FOR 2011-2012
Grant designed to aid residents
President Dahlia Lopez and members of the Retired School Employees met in August to plan the program for the new year. The year’s first meeting is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Holiday Restaurant. Members, from left standing, are Nilda Gutierrez, Olga Flores, Mary Morales, Avon Hatfield, Esperanza Navarro and Cruz Torres. Seated, from left, are Amparo Gutierrez and President Dahlia Lopez. Recent retirees are welcome to join.
SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Courtesy photo
Prison for woman in conspiracy case SPECIAL TO THE TIMES
Elvia Elvira Uriegas, 27, of Roma, has been sentenced to 27 months in federal prison for conspiring to transport illegal aliens, U.S. Attorney José Angel Moreno announced this week. U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez, who handed down the sentence today, also ordered Uriegas to pay restitution totaling $18,767.81 for the medical expenses of two Sullivan City police officers injured as a result of a collision that oc-
curred during a high-speed chase while trying to stop Uriegas and for the resulting damage to the police vehicle. Uriegas pleaded guilty Tuesday, June 7, admitting to conspiring to transport illegal aliens by motor vehicle on April 2, from Roma to Sullivan City. According to court documents, Uriegas was driving a Dodge Durango carrying six undocumented immigrants as passengers on April 2. When the Sullivan City police tried to initiate a traf-
fic stop, she fled, prompting police to pursue her. Driving erratically onto some dirt roads and nearly causing the Durango to flip over, Uriegas eventually slammed on her brakes, causing a collision with a police vehicle. Uriegas and two passengers fled on foot, but were apprehended with the help of a U.S. Customs and Border Protection helicopter pilot. Two police officers and three of the undocumented immigrants were taken to the hospital for treatment. At the time of her guilty
plea, Uriegas admitted she had been hired to transport the illegal aliens. Uriegas has been in federal custody without bond since her arrest and will remain in custody pending transfer to a Bureau of Prisons facility to be designated in the near future. Following her release from prison, she will serve a three-yearterm of supervised release. The charges against Uriegas are the result of the efforts of the U.S. Border Patrol and the Sullivan City Police Department.
The Texas Health and Human Services Commission Friday awarded BCFS Health and Human Services a grant to increase access to and improve the quality of health and medical care for more than 1,400 families living in Webb and Zapata County colonias. The initiative expands BCFS’ existing community-based programs that serve impoverished families in many communities along the Texas-Mexico border. “This effort is designed to break down barriers that, for too long, have prevented families in the colonias from achieving healthy living standards,” said Cindi Garcia, executive director of BCFS’ Community-Based Services Division. Language barriers as well as a lack of transportation are the two most common inhibitors of accessing medical care. Therefore, BCFS’ new health initiative will be implemented through promotoras who will reach families through face-toface visits, community
meetings and special events, such as health fairs conducted within the colonia community. Through these efforts, families will have easy and better access to immunizations, vision and hearing screenings, dental health and disease management programs. They will also be better informed about available resources that promote good nutrition and healthy lifestyles. BCFS has served Webb County colonias since 2001 through its Healthy Start program, which aims to decrease disparities in access to maternal and child healthcare by providing mobile, community-based medical care and case management services to colonia residents. Thanks to BCFS’ program, more women in Webb County are receiving prenatal care than ever before. “By bringing health education and medical care directly into these communities, we expect that not only health outcomes will improve, but also the socioeconomic and self-sufficiency status of families,” Garcia said. For more information visit www.bcfs.net.
THE BLOTTER ASSAULT Jorge Hugo Flores was served with a warrant, charging him with assault family violence at about 5 p.m. Monday in the intersection of Second and Ramirez streets. A sheriff’s office incident report states Flores slapped a woman he knows and busted her lip. Flores was taken to the Zapata Regional Jail.
Juan Carlos Aguilar-Lopez was arrested and charged with assault family violence after a domestic disturbance reported at 11:39 a.m. Monday in the 1500 block of Hidalgo Boulevard. The man was taken to the Zapata Regional Jail.
11:56 p.m. Sept. 2 in the 1400 block of Ramireño Avenue to report that someone burglarized his mobile home. A burglary of a vehicle was reported at 3:08 a.m. Monday along FM 496, about half a mile from the cemetery.
BURGLARY
CRIMINAL MISCHIEF
A man called deputies at
A woman reported at 2:15
p.m. Monday in the 1000 block of Bravo Street that a person he knows scratched her Ford Expedition.
POSSESSION Silvestre Grimaldo-Rivera was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance at approximately 10:15 p.m. Wednesday in the 400 block of Ra-
mireño Avenue.
PUBLIC INTOXICATION Mario Medina Jr. was arrested and charged with public intoxication at about 1:15 a.m. Sept. 2 near Hidalgo Boulevard an Seventh Street. The man was taken to the Zapata Regional Jail. Benito Garcia Jr. was arrested and charged with public intoxi-
cation just before noon Sept. 4 at Los Ebanos Park near Ninth Avenue and Kennedy Street. The man was taken to the Zapata Regional Jail.
THEFT A man called deputies at 3:25 p.m. Sept. 3 from the 5100 block of Victoria Lane to report that someone stole three of his rifles.
PAGE 4A
Zopinion
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR SEND YOUR SIGNED LETTER TO EDITORIAL@LMTONLINE.COM
YOUR OPINION
OTHER VIEWS
Local doctor gets support of lifetime friend for operating medical clinic To the Editor: This letter is in support of Dr. Edmundo O. Garcia, M.D. I understand Commissioners’ Court is accepting bids for operating Zapata County Medical Clinic. We all know about fiscal policy and the budget and how Commissioners’ Court looks out for the best interest of our community. That being said, I grew up across the street from Mundie, as we all know him. We were altar boys and played sports in the barrio. We went through our education system and graduated with Hawk Pride. We then went to Laredo Junior College and transferred to the University of Texas At Austin, where we both graduated. Mundie went to medical school and I went for my master’s degree. Mundie has practiced medicine for almost 30 years now and since he came to Zapata to man-
age our clinic he has helped me, my family, friends and our community. I know his staff is satisfied with his leadership and he has proven to be a financial success to our county budget, that after what was left from our previous clinic management. We all know about that. I, as a veteran of our armed forces, know Mundie has helped our fellow veterans with the Veteran’s Administration. I, as well as other friends, can call Mundie on his cell here or in San Antonio and he will be there for you. You don’t get that with other M.D.s. I ask our community to talk to our Commissioners’ Court, which we all know as our friends, to keep Mundie as our medical doctor. Mundie is my friend and I believe it is in the best interest of our community for him to practiv3e medicine in our clinic. Hector F. Lopez Jr.
COLUMN
Support care COLUMN grandparents 9/11 still hard to comprehend give families By JONATHAN GURWITZ
SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS
By MARQUEECE HARRIS-DAWSON MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE
E
very year, the second Sunday in September is National Grandparents Day. For many grandkids, grandparents are the idealized version of our parents — similar to them but without all the rules and discipline. However, increasingly for millions of children across the country these days, grandparents are more than just a pleasant Sunday visit. They are the parents. Currently, more than 6 million children are being raised by a grandparent or another relative, according to Generations United. And at least 2.5 million grandparents are considered the primary caregivers for their grandchildren. In many poor minority communities, there is a long tradition of grandparents stepping in as temporary parents. Since the mid-1980s, these arrangements have become increasingly prevalent as families have been torn apart by the onslaught of widespread poverty, addiction and incarceration. At Community Coalition, the nonprofit based in South Central Los Angeles that I head, we routinely see the remarkable sacrifice these grandparents and family members make for their loved ones. They often take on their new responsibility with little time to prepare. They must make a life-changing decision in a moment’s notice when they receive an urgent call from a relative or a social worker looking for a safe home to place a child who has just lost a parent to illness, death or jail. They often risk their own financial, physical and emotional health to provide a safe, stable and loving home for a grandchild, niece or nephew. These family members are saving children from entering a broken foster care system or worse. More than 70 percent of all California State Peni-
tentiary inmates have spent time in the foster care system, according to a May 12, 2006, Select Committee Hearing of the California Legislature.
Fewer problems Numerous studies have shown that children who live with relatives are more likely to find permanent homes and thus less likely to experience behavioral problems or require mental health treatment versus those in foster care. In the long run, they are more likely to do better in school, stay out of jail and not become homeless. Unfortunately, while child welfare agencies may understand the benefits to children, they fail to adequately support these families. For example, more than 50 percent of children removed from their homes by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Families are placed with relatives but they receive nowhere near the same access to support and services available to non-relative foster care parents. These barriers often lead many grandparents who were once economically stable into poverty or illness in the process of caring for young children.
Assist family Grandparents and other relatives should not have to risk their own health and financial wellbeing to care for a child who would otherwise end up in a broken foster care system. Child welfare agencies and policymakers should develop coherent and comprehensive approaches to delivering services to kinship families in order to remedy this disparity. In the end, what these grandparents and other relatives do is nothing short of heroic. And they certainly deserve a lot more than one day of recognition.
B
ernard Brown, Asia Cottom and Rodney Dickens had just begun the sixth grade in the District of Columbia 10 years ago. They were all 11 years old, standout students who had earned the distinction of being selected by the National Geographic Society to participate in a field workshop in the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary off the coast of California.
Early deaths They arrived early on the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, at Dulles International Airport with their teacher chaperones. They boarded American Airlines Flight 77 to depart on the adventure of a lifetime. A bright future lay ahead of them. A little more than an hour later, the lives of these shining children were snuffed out. Among many horrible images we did see on 9-11, the most horrific image we did not see was of these children, herded with their teachers and other passengers to the back of the plane, hurtling
toward their deaths. The hijackers had sat in the airport lounge with them, boarded the plane with them, stared into their frightened eyes — and showed them no mercy.
Hate on display What kind of hatred, what kind of fanaticism would compel such intimate cruelty? The evil of 911 with its box cutters and knives was hideously personal. After a decade, it is still difficult to comprehend. 9-11 was also personal in the sense that so much of it was visible and audible. No narrative was needed when cameras, already focused on the blazing North Tower of the World Trade Center, captured United Airlines Flight 175 smashing into the South Tower.
No accident You might have held out hope that the first crash was the result of some sort of accident. When you saw that hellish second fireball, you knew immediately that hope was gone. Passenger jets don’t fly into skyscrapers.
All that was familiar was suddenly uncertain. Pieces were falling from the buildings, only some of the objects weren’t pieces. They were people — fathers and mothers, friends and spouses who had simply gone to work in the morning and then jumped to their deaths. What kind of heat, what kind of pain would drive people to leap from 100 floors? After a decade, it is still difficult to comprehend.
War, attacks Two days before 9-11, HBO premiered the first episode of “Band of Brothers,” its miniseries based on historian Stephen Ambrose’s account of a company in the 101st Airborne Division during World War II. For eight more Sunday evenings during that fall of 2001, I faithfully watched the story of the men of Easy Company. As the haunting theme from “Band of Brothers” would end, I’d switch over to the national news, which invariably showed the still smoldering mound at Ground Zero. What kind of fire burns underground for two
months? After a decade, it is still difficult to comprehend. The incomprehensible nature of 9-11 shocked Americans out of a deep sense of complacency. Oceans and standing armies were no longer protection against a terrorist enemy willing to fly jets full of passengers into buildings full of people. Against all expectation, the death cult that perpetrated 9-11 has, thus far, not been successful in carrying out a follow-on attack against the United States, though not for lack of trying. The danger today is that the complacency that allowed the 9-11 plot to succeed has reemerged. Much will be written about how the nation has changed since Sept. 11, 2001. What has not changed is the persistent desire to see the world as a place devoid of evil, the willingness to assess the threat of terrorism as a manageable law enforcement risk and the hope that men who can stare into the eyes of children they murder will not return to our shores. That, too, is difficult to comprehend. (Email: jgurwitz@express-news.net)
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY The Zapata Times does not publish anonymous letters. To be published, letters must include the writer’s first and last names as well as a phone number to verify identity. The
phone number IS NOT published; it is used solely to verify identity and to clarify content, if necessary. Identity of the letter writer must be verified before publication. We want to assure our
readers that a letter is written by the person who signs the letter. The Zapata Times does not allow the use of pseudonyms. Letters are edited for style, grammar, length and civility. No name-call-
DOONESBURY | GARRY TRUDEAU
ing or gratuitous abuse is allowed. Via e-mail, send letters to editorial@lmtonline.com or mail them to Letters to the Editor, 111 Esperanza Drive, Laredo, TX 78041.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
Zentertainment
PAGE 5A
Arcade brings the games to gamers By MIKE HERRERA IV THE ZAPATA TIMES
It’s been a few years since Gateway City and Zapata gamers had a real arcade to go to. But now, due to the efforts of Laredo Carlos Vasquez, that won’t be a problem. The arcade will go to the gamers. “I think of the concept as a mobile arcade,” said Vasquez, a gamer and computer specialist. “It’s going to be something really different for (the area).” The Game Zone, as Vasquez has dubbed it, is a 2011 car hauler trailer 24 feet long and 7 feet wide. The iconic Mario in his raccoon-eared and -tailed variation from Nintendo’s 1990 Super Mario Brothers 3 spreads his arms on the side of the truck. Once inside the truck, customers will see four 46-inch flat screen TVs and an ambient glow emanating from behind the screen during play. “The light changes color to go along with the action of the game,” Vasquez said. A counter in the middle holds the four Xbox consoles and a Nintendo Wii. On the other is enough couch space for 17 people chatting, cheering their friends or waiting for a turn at the control. There’s also a 1,300 BTU air conditioner for customers’ comfort, and a black floor and wall carpets help keep the gaming environment dark, much like the vintage arcades of days gone by. Laredoans who came of age in the ’90s may remember these halls of homework avoidance stocked with coin-operated fighting games and shooters. For Vasquez, they’re a family tradition. “My father (Vicente) was in the arcade game business,” he said, reminiscing.
Photo by Cuate Santos | Laredo Morning Times
Carlos Vasquez poses outside his mobile gaming truck Thursday morning. The gaming business is a family tradition in the Vasquez family. “You know those huge machines? He owned Donkey Kong, Galaga, Centipede. We used to service them together and collect the coins.” This experience gave Vasquez some informed opinions on what happened to the console-arcade period of the early ’90s, during which a popular arcade game eventually found its way to a home system, yet gamers still visited the arcades. “They both existed because people would get excited about playing an arcade game they liked at home,” said Vasquez, citing the ’90s’ classic Street Fight-
er II as an example. “But the arcade version still had better graphics and handling. But eventually, the home consuls had better graphics. They evolved.” As the consuls evolved, so has the concept of the arcade, as Vasquez pointed out the recent trend of game rooms offering, in effect, a place to play home consuls on giant TVs. Because he gets to vary his location by driving his arcade all over town, Vasquez believes his is a sound business idea. “I’m really looking at targeting the party market,” he said. “In Laredo, parents will go all out for a kid’s
party. They’ll rent Peter Piper and they still have to spend on food and other things. Me, I’ll go right to their curb.” One local gamer, Omar Anzaldua, thinks Game Zone will work. “For the budget-conscious gamer who wants to get a good gaming experience, this sounds like a great idea,” Anzaldua said. Acknowledging the recent negative attention brought to obesity in Laredo, Vasquez emphasized that what he offers will, for most families, be a rare in-
dulgence. “I made sure to include games for the Wii that require movement,” he said. “Many video games require thinking also. This is a form of entertainment people can enjoy once in a while. Of course no one expects kids to play every day.” As the business just started, few families have rented the truck. However, one parent whose kids have played in it likes it. “It was very novel,” said Tricia Driscoll, who runs the local parenting blog
Critters and Crayons. “I saw the older kids were enthralled.” As a parent, Driscoll doesn’t see any negative side to playing video games in moderation. “As long as their not addicted to it and it’s not detracting from schoolwork, I think it’s fine,” she said. For more information on scheduling Game Zone or to see when new games are offered, visit www.laredogamezone.com. (Mike Herrera IV can be reached at 728-2567 or mherrera@lmtonline.com)
ZAPATA COUNTY INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT JOB POSTING Position: Instructional Assistant Salary:
$15,932.00 Minimum
$23,891.00 Maximum
Pay Grade: Instructional Support Pay Ranges Pay Grade II Minimum Duty Days:
187 Days
Minimum Requirements: Possess a high school diploma or its equivalent, and meet one of the following qualifications: (a) Completion of an associate's degree or higher degree from an accredited institution; (b) possess 48 semester credit hours from an accredited Institution; or (c) successful completion of a rigorous training program approved by the Superinendent. Special Knowledge/Skills: Demonstrate ability to work effectively and harmoniously with administrators and other staff; general knowledge of teaching and Interacting with special needs children; demonstrate Ibility to communicate effectively both in written form lind orally; possess technical skills necesary to perform essential job requirements, such as adequate knowledge of subject matter, sound teaching methodology and effective discipline techniques; and treat all people with dignity and respect.
Deadline for Applying: Tuesday, September 13, 2011 Applications May Be Obtained From: Human Resources Department 17th & Carla Streets P.O. Box 158 - Zapata, Texas 78076 (956) 765-6858 - Fax (956) 765-5940 Website: www.zcisd.org We consider applicants for all positions without regard to race, cofor, national origin, age, religion, sex, marital or veteran status, the presence of a medical condition, disability or any other legally protected status. An Equal Opportunity Employer
National
6A THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
Ever try moving a flood to a drought? By SETH BORENSTEIN ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON — As the soggy East tries to dry out from flooding and Texas prays for rain that doesn’t come, you might ask: Isn’t there some way to ship all that water from here to there? It’s an idea that has tempted some, but reality gets in the way. A Texas oilman once envisioned long pipelines carrying water to drought-stricken Texas cities, just one of several untested fantasies of moving water vast distances. Parched Las Vegas still wants to indirectly siphon off excess water from the overflowing Mississippi River. French engineers have simulated hauling an iceberg to barren Africa. There are even mega-trash bags to move heavy loads of water. There’s plenty of rainwater available. Tropical Storm Lee dumped enough on the already saturated Mid-Atlantic, Northeast and Gulf Coast to bring 9.6 inches of rain across the state of Texas, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and The Associated Press. “One man’s flood control is another man’s water supply,” said Patricia Mulroy, general manager of the Southern Nevada Water Authority. “Doesn’t it make you want to think about a larger distribution that helps both? That’s the crazy part of this. It’s a winwin. There’s no loser.” But moving quantities of water is not simple or cheap, and thus not realistic, experts say. Mostly, it’s too costly and political. However, these dreamed-up concepts show that a quiet water crisis is getting more desperate. “We will go to any lengths to avoid confronting the reality of water shortages,” said University of Arizona professor Robert Glennon, author of “Unquenchable.” “What all those zany ideas suggest are the traditional beliefs
Photo by Tony Gutierrez/file | AP
In this Sunday, Aug. 7 photo, Eddie Ray Roberts, superintendent of the city’s waste and water department, looks toward the water pump that sits just feet away from the water line at Lake E.V. Spence in Robert Lee. As the soggy Northeast tries to dry out from flooding and Texas prays for rain that doesn’t come, it seems like an ideal match of oversupply and unquenchable demand. It isn’t. that we can control nature and there must be some oasis out there where we can go to, to import water.” But those are mirages, he said — tempting, but not realistic. Mike Halpert, deputy director of the NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, knows the temptation. He’s about to fly from Washington, which has had 7 inches since Monday, to Houston, which got about that amount of rain for the entire spring and summer. All that D.C. rain would be enough water for every person in Hous-
ton for 10 days. He jested that he would love to carry water in his suitcases. He said colleagues have been “joking that we’ll send Texas our water. Will they send us their oil? But I don’t think that’s going to fly.” The trouble with water is “there’s enough quantity but it is not always in the right places,” said G. Tracy Mehan, who was chief water regulator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency during the George W. Bush administration. So how about moving it?
“The short answer ... is that it costs too much. It’s not a technical problem,” said Peter Gleick, president of the Pacific Studies Institute and a MacArthur genius grant recipient for his work on water. Las Vegas’ grand proposal is to take water from the mighty Mississippi in a series of smaller pipeline-like exchanges among states just west of the Mississippi to refill the overused Colorado River. There are no official cost estimates, but it likely would be in the hundreds of billions dol-
lars. Texas oilman T. Boone Pickens abandoned his plans for a massive water pipeline stretching across Texas to just moving water around the Texas Panhandle. Water weighs a lot — about 8.3 pounds per gallon — so moving massive amounts, often up mountains, costs a lot, Glennon said. Building a pipeline to pump water from flooded areas is foolish because each year somewhere different gets drenched, so you can’t build something permanent based on a unusual rainy weather, NOAA’s Halpert said.
States getting relief from Lee flooding By MARK SCOLFORO AND MICHAEL RUBINKAM ASSOCIATED PRESS
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — Northern stretches of the swollen Susquehanna River began receding Friday after days of rainfall from the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee flooded communities from Virginia to New York, leading to evacuation orders for nearly 100,000 people. Some evacuees were allowed back home. The damage was concentrated along the Susquehanna in Binghamton, N.Y.; in towns up- and downriver from levee-protected Wilkes-Barre, Pa., where more than 70,000 people were told to evacuate; and communities farther downstream in Maryland. The Susquehanna crested at 42.66 feet Thursday night in Wilkes-Barre — beyond the design capacity of the city’s levee system. “They did what was right for them, the people down there,” said Tom Vaxmonsky, a resident of West Pittson, just upstream from Wilkes-Barre. “But it’s like everything else, for every action there’s a reaction. And the reaction is that we got a lot more water than we did in ‘72 with the Agnes flood.” As flood waters that inundated the city of Binghamton, which the mayor called the worst in more than 60 years, and surrounding communities began subsiding, the first of the 20,000 evacuees began returning to their homes. Robert Smith, 35, made it back around noon to his home in a struggling section of Binghamton. Mud and debris covered pavement, and water still blocked streets closest to the river. But he felt inspired by the time he spent in a shelter; when a woman collapsed on the floor there, he said, strangers rushed to tend to her. “Everybody was helping each other out, just total strangers,” he said. “You’ve never seen it before in your
life.” The flooding was fed by days of drenching rains from what had been Tropical Storm Lee, and followed a little more than a week the dousing that Hurricane Irene gave the East Coast. In some areas of Pennsylvania, the rainfall totals hit 9 inches or more, on top of what was already a relatively wet summer. Authorities in Pennsylvania closed countless roads, including some heavily traveled interstates, and evacuation shelters opened to serve the many displaced people. In Wilkes-Barre, officials said the levees holding back the Susquehanna were under “extreme stress” but holding. A broken flood gauge had hampered officials’ ability to measure the river’s height, but the U.S. Geological Survey on Friday estimated that the river
Photo by John C. Whitehead/The Patriot-News | AP
Two flooded buildings are seen along Front Street on Friday in Wormleysburg, Pa. Days of rainfall from the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee flooded communities from Virginia to New York, leading to evacuation orders. had crested at 42.66 feet, well above earlier estimates and higher than the 1972 record of 40.9 feet. Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority executive director Jim Brozena said the river was dropping Friday but that the flood control system was at its “extreme limits.” The heavy rains also shut down parts of the Cap-
ital Beltway in Fairfax County, Va., but some portions have reopened. As much as 10 inches of rain has fallen in some places in the area around Washington since Wednesday.
SÁBADO 10 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 2011
Agenda en Breve SÁBADO 10 DE SEPTIEMBRE LAREDO — Pase la tarde en el Planetario Lamar Bruni Vergara de TAMIU y explore “One World, One Sky: Big Bird’s Adventure” a las 4 p.m., “Earth, Moon and Sun” a las 5 p.m., “Seven Wonders” a las 6 p.m. y Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side of the Moon” a las 7 p.m. Entrada general 5 dólares; y 4 dólares para niños. NUEVO LAREDO, México — “El Traje de la Patria está de Fiesta” en el Teatro Principal del Centro Cultural, a las 6 p.m. Entrada libre. Participan el Grupo de Danza Mextli, entre otros grupos de danza.
Zfrontera INFORMAN REQUISITOS PARA SER POLICÍA EN TAMAULIPAS
Nuevo modelo policial TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
Las personas interesadas en formar parte de los departamentos de policía en Tamaulipas, estarán obligados a registrarse y actualizarse constantemente. La Secretaría de Seguridad Pública (SSP) anunció además que el registro de aspirantes a formar parte del Nuevo Modelo Policial estará abierto de manera permanente. Los interesados además debe-
LUNES 12 DE SEPTIEMBRE LAREDO — La exhibición “Mark Anthony Polizzi Show” se presenta en el CFPA de TAMIU, en horario de lunes a jueves de las 12 p.m. a 5 p.m. Más información en el 326-3079. LAREDO — La exhibición “Habitat for Humanity…Building Homes, Changing Lives through Volunteer Service” abre hoy en la Biblioteca Yeary del Laredo Community College, de 10:30 a.m. a 11:30 a.m.
MARTES 13 DE SEPTIEMBRE ZAPATA — El taller gratuito “Art of Starting a Business: Basic Business Essentials”, es hoy de 9:30 a.m. a 12 p.m. en el Zapata County Corthouse, suite 248. Instructor: Yael Rodríguez. El objetivo del taller es evitar pérdidas económicas, evaluar fortalezas y debilidades.
rán participar en el Curso de Formación Inicial, tiempo durante el cual recibirán alimentación, alojamiento, atención médica y una beca mensual. “Una vez concluido el curso, los seleccionados contarán con ingresos a nivel profesionista, becas de educación y apoyo para vivienda, entre otros beneficios”, informó el Director del Instituto de Reclutamiento y Formación Policial, Juan Manuel Palomino Maldonado.
Entre los requisitos dados a conocer por la SSP destacan: tener entre 19 y 35 años de edad y, de acuerdo con su perfil y nivel profesional, tendrán la oportunidad de integrarse en las unidades de Análisis Táctico, Investigación y Operaciones. Para ingresar a las unidades de Investigación y de Operaciones el solicitante deberá contar con un grado de estudios de nivel medio superior; y para la Unidad de Análisis Táctico, contar con una
carrera profesional. Los que consideren son candidatos para ser parte de la policía de la entidad, pueden acudir al Instituto de Reclutamiento y Formación Policial ubicado en carretera interejidal kilómetro 1.5, en Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas. También se pueden comunicar a los teléfonos (834) 3 18 62 75 o lada sin costo 01 800 122 23 36. Otra opción es visitar la página de Internet www.ssp.tamaulipas.gob.mx/ nvomodelopolest.html.
TEXAS
LUCHA CONTRA INCENDIO
DOMINGO 11 DE SEPTIEMBRE LAREDO — Hoy es la 2da Expo Anual Exclusiva de Bodas, de 1 p.m. a 5 p.m. en el San Agustin Ballroom del Hotel la Posada. La expo mostrará diferentes opciones para vestidos de novia, pasteles, florerías y fotografías, bajo un mismo techo. NUEVO LAREDO, México — “El Traje de la Patria está de Fiesta” en el Teatro Principal del Centro Cultural, a las 4 p.m. Entrada libre. Participa el grupo de danza magisterial de la secundaria 46 de Guadalajara, Jalisco, así como exhibición de diferentes trajes regionales.
PÁGINA 7A
Bomberos logran avance POR CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN Y APRIL CASTRO ASSOCIATED PRESS
B
ASTROP — Los bomberos han apagado algunos focos y detenido el avance de las llamas de un incendio que ardió durante días en el centro de Texas, dijeron las autoridades el viernes. El fuego ha destruido unas 1.400 viviendas y calcinado miles de hectáreas de terrenos resecos. El incendio en Bastrop, 40 kilómetros (25 millas) al este de Austin, y alrededores estaba contenido recién en un 30%, pero los bomberos lo han cercado y no se reportaron viviendas destruidas durante la noche. Las autoridades planeaban el viernes utilizar un jet DC-10 convertido capaz de arrojar 45.000 litros (12.000 galones) de retardador de fuego sobre las llamas, pero la portavoz del Servicio Forestal de Texas, Holly Huffman, dijo que el aparato no se necesitaba por el momento en Bastrop y que era despachado en cambio a los incendios que
Foto por LM Otero | Associated Press
Un nuevo equipo de bomberos, de Sequoia National Forest en California, pasan sobre una malla ciclona para apagar puntos cerca de Bastrop. arden al norte de Houston. El retardador se arroja para ayudar a reducir las llamas, lo que permite el avance de los bomberos en tierra, aunque no extingue el fuego. “Lo más efectivo son los bomberos en el terreno”, afirmó Tom Harbour, direc-
tor nacional de incendios en el Servicio Forestal Nacional. Bomberos de todo el país seguían llegando a Bastrop, y un funcionario del Servicio Forestal de Texas, Bob Koenig, dijo que 844 estaban trabajando el viernes. Huffman afirmó que las
cuadrillas han logrado progresos significativos en el condado de Bastrop y agregó que el jet puede ser enviado a cualquier sitio si se aviva el fuego, pero que fue enviado por ahora a combatir los incendios en los condados de Grimes, Montgomery y Weller a 65 kiló-
metros (40 millas) al noroeste de Houston. Texas padece el peor estallido de incendios en su historia. El de Bastrop ha sido el más grande de casi 190 que según el servicio forestal estallaron esta semana y que mataron a cuatro personas.
JUEVES 15 DE SEPTIEMBRE LAREDO — El poeta Martín Espada, considerado, el siguiente Pablo Neruda, se presenta hoy en la Sala de Usos Múltiples H-E-B de la Biblioteca Pública de Laredo, 1120 E. Calton Road, de 7 p.m. a 8:30 p.m. dando inicio a la celebración del Mes de la Herencia Hispana.
VIERNES 16 DE SEPTIEMBRE LAREDO — Shrine Circus inicia sus presentaciones en Laredo Energy Arena. La entrada para el show de hoy a las 7:30 p.m. es de 9 dólares. LAREDO — Randy Rogers Band en concierto, hoy a las 9 p.m. en Laredo International Fair and Exposition. SAN YGNACIO — El primer evento para avistamiento de aves de la Sociedad Monte Mucho Audubon es hoy de 6:30 a.m. a 12:30 p.m., justo al norte de San Ygnacio. Favor de reserva su espacio con Raul Delgado al 763-7624 o escriba a rcdelg@sbsglobal.net, para mayores detalles. SAN ANTONIO — El Instituto Cultural de México, en colaboración con Jazz 91.7 FM, invita al concierto ‘México Azul’ con Magos Herrera & Trío, hoy a las 7 p.m. en el ICM, 600 Hemisfair Park. Donación: 10 dólares. Reserve al (210) 2270123. Puede estacionarse en el estacionamiento ubicado en la esquina de César E. Chávez (antes Durango) y Alamo.
TAMAULIPAS
MÉXICO
FIT 2011 mostrará política cultural
Renuncian dos secretarios de Calderón
TIEMPO DE ZAPATA
Tamaulipas está listo para celebrar del 24 de septiembre al 8 de octubre la XIII edición del Festival Internacional Tamaulipas (FIT). Reunidos ante representantes de los medios de comunicación a nivel estado, la Directora General del Instituto Tamaulipeco para la Cultura y las Artes (ITCA), Libertad García Cabriales, dijo que “la política cultural de Tamaulipas es permanente”. En tanto, el Director del FIT y Eventos Especiales, Sergio Cárdenas Tamez, sostuvo que la oferta cultural no se concentrara en una sola época sino que abarcara todo el año. La idea es crear el diseño de una política integral, que durante el año siga apoyando eventos tales como el Festival del Altiplano, la academia musical de verano Musicorum o el JazzTamFest. “Este festival (FIT) se constituye en una fiesta emblemática de los tamaulipecos, pero no es la única”, dijo García. “El ITCA trabaja todos los días en todos los municipios”.
POR ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON ASSOCIATED PRESS
Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Tamaulipas
Dando a conocer los detalles del FIT, la Directora General del ITCA, Libertad García Cabriales, y el Director del FIT y Eventos Especiales, Sergio Cárdenas Tamez.
En la edición 2011 del FIT, los creadores tamaulipecos serán los protagonistas principales en los 43 municipios tamaulipecos. Además participarán un millar de artistas en 350 espectáculos, 90 por ciento de los cuales se ofrecerán sin costo para el público. Torre Cantú realizará la inauguración oficial el 24 de septiembre en Ciudad Victoria. Ése día se realizará un homenaje a la coreógrafa y
bailarina tampiqueña Cecilia Lugo, acto al que le seguirá la presentación de la compañía Contempodanza, que, por cierto, dirige Lugo. En tanto, el artista plástico Federico Silva, cuya obra será expuesta en el Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Tamaulipas, donará una escultura monumental, “Principio”, que se instalará frente al puente internacional de Matamoros “Ignacio Zaragoza”. El FIT tendrá durante sus semanas de duración presentaciones en música, teatro, danza, pintura y literatura, cortometrajes, funciones de magia, clases magistrales y exposiciones.
MÉXICO — El secretario de Hacienda, Ernesto Cordero, renunció el viernes a su cargo, aparentemente con la intención de obtener la postulación del oficialista Partido de Acción Nacional (PAN) para los comicios presidenciales del 2012. El presidente Felipe Calderón dijo que aceptó la dimisión y reconoció que “su labor (de Cordero) ha permitido mantener la estabilidad de las finanzas públicas y con ello la estabilidad económica del país”. El mandatario del país dijo que desde hace tiempo Cordero había querido dejar el cargo, más que él había instruido esperarse a presentar el paquete económico.
Futuro Ninguno de los dos mencionó las elecciones presidenciales que se llevarán a cabo en julio de 2012, pero Calderón le de-
seó suerte en “proyectos futuros”. “Emprendo un nuevo camino impulsado, no por un afán personal, sino por la voluntad de avanzar en un proyecto de país que nos permita mantener el rumbo y consolidar lo que hasta ahora y con tanto esfuerzo los mexicanos hemos logrado”, expresó Cordero. El hasta ahora secretario de Energía, José Antonio Meade, ocupará la vacante dejada por Cordero. Meade será reemplazado por Jordy Herrera. Calderón también anunció la renuncia a la Secretaría de Salud de José Angel Córdova, quien quiere ser candidato a gobernador de Guanajuato. Reemplazará a Córdova, Salomón Chertorivski, ex comisionado nacional de protección social en salud. El presidente también anunció cambios en la dirección del Centro de Investigación y Seguridad Nacional. Guillermo Valdés dejó el puesto para regresar a ser académico y lo sustituirá Alejandro Poiré.
National
8A THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
Doc, 2 others charged in medical fraud By HOLBROOK MOHR ASSOCIATED PRESS
Photo by Miranda Pederson/Daily News | AP
Warren East Middle School eighth graders release 144 balloons in honor of the 10 year anniversary of the Sept.11 terrorist attacks on Friday, in Bowling Green, Ky. Each student picked five names from the 3,000 victims of the attacks to write on an attached card, with a personal message.
Mayor has doubts about memorial By SAMANTHA GROSS ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — With the opening of the Sept. 11 memorial days away, Mayor Michael Bloomberg still wonders if the choice of a design for the tree-lined, 8acre plaza may have been too rushed. “I always thought that we did it a little bit wrong,” the mayor, who is also the chairman of the memorial foundation, said ahead of the 10th anniversary of the attacks. “We picked a design right away and then waited for things to quiet down before raising the money. You want to raise money when the juices are flowing and then have the perspective of history as opposed to journalism to design things that go on for a long time.” “The connection between today and 100 years from now is pretty tenuous,” Bloomberg added.
“Hopefully this memorial will still ... give a message 100 years from now.” The decision to place the memorial on the World Trade Center site made it necessary to move forward fairly quickly on its creation, Joe Daniels, the president of the memorial foundation, said Thursday. “We’re building on the site where the atrocity took place,” Daniels said. “It’s very important to stitch back together the actual, physical real estate.” In a wide-ranging interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday, Bloomberg spoke about the attacks that helped define the final months of his campaign for office — and may have helped him win the city’s top job. The mayor will join President Barack Obama and other officials at Sunday’s national commemoration ceremony. A decade ago, Bloomberg told voters that his years
building and directing his media empire would help him repair the city’s economy, and he has a reputation as a business-minded, pragmatic politician. At times, his brusque manner has led to misunderstandings with family members of 9/ 11 victims. But the mayor says that, from his perspective, a focus on the city’s finances is a key way to honor the dead. “They wanted to build a better life. They were working for a living to take care of their families,” he said. “We can’t bring them back, but we can take over that responsibility for them. And that means you have to have an economy. You have to have a tax base. You have to have social programs, and schools.” Now in his third and final term, the mayor said that he didn’t see the attacks and their aftermath as a significant part of his
legacy, although he did say he believed he was a catalyst in getting past impasses among stakeholders in the rebuilding of the site. “I don’t know that I want to be remembered in terms of 9/11,” he said. “I want the public to remember that somebody was there — not even knowing who they were. That they built the right thing. That they did the right thing. That they made the right decisions.” Bloomberg said, he may significantly change future observances, which have always been marked by the reading of the names of the thousands of victims of the attacks. “The names were read because there was no other place where you could see the names. Now the names are all around both the (memorial) voids. And maybe it is time,” he said. “We’ll have to ask people. And I guarantee you it will be controversial.”
JACKSON, Miss. — A shuttered clinic in south Mississippi gave cancer patients less chemotherapy or cheaper drugs than they were led to believe and reused the same needles on multiple people as part of a multimillion-dollar Medicare and Medicaid fraud, a 15-count indictment says. Three women, including Dr. Meera Sachdeva, the 50-year-old founder of Rose Cancer Center in Summit, were charged Thursday. The clinic had already been shut down by the state Health Department. Sachdeva has been ordered held without bond. Her attorney, Rob McDuff, said she will plead not guilty “and we’ll go from there.” The defendants “knew that the liquid solutions that were infused into the patients treated at Rose Cancer Center contained a smaller amount of the chemotherapy drugs than the defendants had billed to various health care benefit programs, or contained different, less expensive drugs,” the indictment says. The clinic also billed the agencies for new syringes for each patient, even though it reused some on multiple people, authorities said. Prosecutors say Medicaid and Medicare paid the clinic $15.1 million during. Authorities have seized $6 million. Others charged are employees, 24-year-old Brittany McCoskey of Monticel-
lo and 43-year-old Monica Weeks of Madison. When contacted Friday, McCoskey said she did not know about the indictment and wanted to read it before commenting. It wasn’t clear if Weeks had an attorney. A phone call to a listing for Weeks was not immediately returned. McCoskey was a receptionist and later the office manager. Weeks submitted claims to Medicare, Medicaid and private insurance companies. McCoskey and Weeks are both charged with 11 counts and, if convicted, face 125 years in prison and $2.25 million in fines. Prosecutor Scott Gilbert said Sachdeva was arrested in August and ordered held without bond. She appealed that ruling, but it was upheld Friday by a different judge. Prosecutors argued Sachdeva should remain in jail until trial because she’s a naturalized U.S. citizen from India, and is a flight risk. “Moreover, the defendant has substantial financial resources available to her, in spite of the seizure of almost $6,000,000 by the government,” court records said. Rose Cancer Center came under scrutiny earlier this year when 11 patients went to hospitals with bacterial infections, according to the Mississippi Department of Health. A Health Department spokeswoman, said Friday that the clinic was closed July 20. The Health Department advised patients to get screened for Hepatitis B and C and HIV.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
THE ZAPATA TIMES 9A
FIGHTING THE FALLOUT FROM EUROPE
MARIA CELIA VANN
Photo by Richard Drew | AP
Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on Friday in New York City. U.S. stocks plunged Friday, erasing the week’s gains, amid rising fears about fallout from Europe’s debt crisis.
Very little growth seen in August retail sales By SHOBHANA CHANDRA BLOOMBERG NEWS
U.S. retail sales rose in August at the slowest pace in three months, tempered by limited job and income growth, economists said before a report this week. The projected 0.2 percent gain would follow a 0.5 percent increase in July, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey ahead of Commerce Department figures on Sept. 14. Production slowed in August and inflation cooled from the previous month, other reports may show. Retailers J.C. Penney Co. and Target Corp. say sales gains are more difficult because of a stagnant labor market that’s battered confidence. The risk of a broader pullback in spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, increases pressure on the Federal Reserve, Obama administration and Congress to craft a plan to ensure the recovery is sustained. “Consumers are reluctant to spend on anything outside of what they need,” said Sean Incremona, a se-
nior economist at 4Cast Inc. in New York. “Policy support is going to be needed.” The retail report may also show purchases excluding automobiles rose 0.2 percent last month after a 0.5 percent increase in July, economists said. The auto industry is recovering from supply disruptions due to Japan’s earthquake in March, which hurt production and sales the past few months. Cars and light trucks sold at a 12.1 million seasonally adjusted annual rate in August, down from a 12.5 million pace in the first half of the year and little changed from July, according to researcher Autodata Corp.
Labor Market Spending on so-called big-ticket items such as cars and appliances is threatened by a lack of job creation. Payrolls were unchanged last month and the unemployment rate held at 9.1 percent, Labor Department figures showed. A plan from President
Barack Obama, announced before a joint session of Congress on Thursday, called for an extension of a payroll-tax break for Americans and unemployment assistance. He also pushed for a payroll tax break for small businesses, an increase in infrastructure spending and more aid for cash- strapped state governments. Congressional approval “would dramatically reduce the risk of a long period of much weaker growth,” Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner said in a Sept. 9 interview with Bloomberg Television in Marseille, France. Americans are pessimistic, a report may show on Sept. 16. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary index of consumer sentiment rose to 56.6 in September from an almost three-year low of 55.7 the prior month, economists in the Bloomberg survey projected. Sales gains at Target, the second-largest U.S. discount retailer, are “a bit more challenging” than expected at the beginning of the year, according to executives.
SAN YGNACIO — Maria Celia Vann, 69, passed away Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011, at Laredo Medical Center in Laredo, Texas. Ms. Vann is preceded in death by her husband, Staten L. Vann; parents: Julio Medrano and Celia R. Medrano; son-in-law, Tomas Garcia; brothers Raymond Medrano, Flavio (Elida) Medrano, Guillermo Medrano and Eustacio (Hortencia) Medrano; brother-in-law, Higinio Gonzalez; and a sister-inlaw, Mary “Candy” Medrano. Ms. Vann is survived by her sons: David (Carla) Vann and James (Barbara) Vann; daughters: Norma J. (Mario) Muñoz and Fransis Vann (Gustavo Garza); grandchildren: William (Shasta) Vann, Jimmy (Jamie) Vann, Victoria Vann, Megan Vann, Dakota Vann, Christopher (Tracy) Kitts, Cody Campbell, Ja-
mie (Jonathan) Ruffin, Roxeanna (Calvin), Kaitlin Vann, Felicia Flowers, Danyell Flowers, Tommy Jr. (Priscilla) Garcia, Christina (Romeo) Garza, Carlos (Gloria) Garcia, Mario Garza Jr., Michael, R.J. and Marc Anthony Vidal; 22 great-grandchildren; brothers Eustolio Medrano, Genaro (Josie) Medrano and Julio Medrano; sister, Noelia Gonzalez; and by numerous nieces, nephews and many friends.
Visitation hours were Monday, Sept. 5, 2011, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. with a rosary at 7 p.m. at Rose Garden Funeral Home. The funeral procession departed Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011, at 9:30 a.m. for a 10 a.m. funeral Mass at Nuestra Señora del Refugio Mission in San Ygnacio, Texas. Committal services followed at Panteon del Pueblo in San Ygnacio, Texas. Special thanks to Valentin, Joan Medrano, Lucia and Evaristo Botello. Funeral arrangements were under the direction of Rose Garden Funeral Home, Daniel A. Gonzalez, funeral director, 2102 Highway 83, Zapata, TX.
RUBEN BENAVIDES-SANCHEZ Ruben Benavides-Sanchez, 37, passed away Friday, Sept. 9, 2011. Mr. Benavides-Sanchez is preceded in death by his paternal grandparents: Ruben and Dora Saenz Benavides; maternal grandparents: Eduardo and Paula Medina Sanchez; and his mother-in-law, Margarita Bautista. Mr. Benavides-Sanchez is survived by his wife, Maria Del Refugio Zamora; sons: Abelardo Caballero, Gilberto Benavides and Gi-
lardo Benavides; parents: Esequiel and Eva Benavides; brothers: Mario Alberto (Sofia) Benavides and Esequiel Benavides; fatherin-law, Refugio Zamora; and by numerous aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. Visitation hours will be Sunday, Sept. 11, 2011, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. with a rosary at 7 p.m. at Rose Garden Funeral Home. The funeral procession will depart Monday, Sept. 12, 2011, at 9:45 a.m. for a 10 a.m. funeral Mass at Our
Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. Committal services will follow at Zapata County Cemetery. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Rose Garden Funeral Home, Daniel A. Gonzalez, funeral director, 2102 Highway 83, Zapata, TX.
JOSE A. “CHARRO” ARAIZA SR. Jose A. “Charro” Araiza Sr., 54, passed away Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011, at Laredo Medical Center in Laredo, Texas. Mr. Araiza is preceded in death by his mother, Rosa H. Araiza; granddaughter Kaylie R. Araiza; and a brother, Jesus Araiza. Mr. Araiza is survived by his wife, Felicidad M. Araiza; sons: Jesus J. (Blanca) Araiza, Jose A. (Rosanna) Araiza and Santiago J. (Abigail) Araiza; daughter, Susie (Ernesto) Gillen; grandchildren Victoria, Jesus Jr., Jose A., Summer M., Stacy A. Araiza, Ernesto I. and Devanhi
Visitation hours were Thursday, Sept. 8, 2011, at 8 a.m. with a chapel service at 10 a.m. at Rose Garden Funeral Home. Committal services followed at Zapata County Cemetery. Funeral arrangements are under the direction of Rose Garden Funeral Home, Daniel A. Gonzalez, funeral director, 2102 Highway 83, Zapata, TX. D. Gillen; partner, Mary Reyes; son Humberto J. Araiza; father, Santiago Rocha; and by numerous nieces, nephews and many friends.
CLINIC Continued from Page 1A In addition to Dr. Garcia, three other prospective operators have submitted bids for consideration. One of them is Laredo Medical Center, and the other two are individual medical professionals whose names were not yet confirmed by The Zapata Times. Because the bids will be dis-
cussed at Monday’s meeting, county officials contacted by The Zapata Times did not wish to say much. Vela wanted it known that all four are priced within the county’s ability to pay and all proposals included 24-hour service, the county’s top requirement.
Other items to be discussed include the adoption of the county budget for fiscal year 2011-2012. The proposed budget is available for public view on the court’s official website. The court will also deliberate authorizing the county treasurer and the county auditor to close
all accounts and make all necessary line item transfers. A solid waste contract between the county and Grande Garbage will be considered, as will a proposal for installing new technology at the Zapata County Advanced Education Center. The court will also hear a pre-
sentation by the Border Damage Prevention Council, an organization “dedicated to the prevention of damage to underground utilities” in excavation projects, according to its website. (Mike Herrera IV can be reached at 956-728-2567 or mherrera@lmtonline.com.)
10A THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
‘COPTERS
Photo by Danny Zaragoza | The Zapata Times
A Customs and Border Patrol agent looks at lines of vehicles lining up on the Laredo side of the Lincoln-Juarez international bridge, on Wednesday morning.
ATTACKS Continued from Page 1A Meza went back to his room. His wife had the television on a newscast broadcasting the attack. Nothing had prepared the couple for what they were about to witness next. “We saw the second plane crash into the other tower,” Meza recalled. “It’s a really important day we need to remember for the rest of our lives, and remind our small children … This was something drastic that happened to the United States. I hope it doesn’t happen again.” Gonzalez was home, getting ready to go to his office. He was watching The Today Show and then saw the planes crashing. The sheriff quickly monitored the situation, waiting for any type of security en-
hancement for the county. A day later, the sheriff ’s office began receiving calls reporting suspicious packets believed to contain anthrax. In addition, Gonzalez said his office received calls reporting Middle Eastern people in the Zapata County area, but nothing developed from those reports. “We’re better prepared, better equipped. We remain vigilant because of the possible threat,” Gonzalez added. “Our main thing is border security, not just narcotics.” Sept. 11, 2001, changed law enforcement training in many ways. Training became available for deputies, which included dealing with bomb threats, bomb disposal and bomb investigation, but more specifical-
ly, how bombs could be smuggled across the border onto U.S. soil, Gonzalez said. The area law enforcement community came together and created the Texas Border Sheriff ’s Coalition in May 2005. That united front grew in November 2006 when the coalition extended its coverage and became the Southwest Border Sheriff ’s Coalition. Firemen also evolved. Meza has seen how firemen increased their training and expanded their communication with surrounding counties, noting that open channels of communication are key in emergency situations. (César G. Rodriguez may be reached at 728-2568 or cesar@lmtonline.com)
WILDFIRES Continued from Page 1A 15,000 acres 40 miles northwest of Houston. Texas is in the midst of its worst wildfire outbreak in state history. The Bastrop-area fire has been the largest of nearly 190 wildfires the forest service says erupted this week, leaving nearly 1,700 homes statewide in charred ruins, killing four people and forcing thousands to evacuate. Federal forest service officials earlier this week contacted 10 Tanker Air
Carrier LLC, of Victorville, Calif., which leases the DC-10 to the U.S. Forest Service and states as needed. The state asked that the company “ferry it as quickly as possible” to Texas, which also used the tanker in the spring, said CEO Rick Hatton. The plane arrived Tuesday night in Austin, about 25 miles west of the blaze, but could not be used until Friday as crews worked to set a temporary plumbing
system to funnel retardant into the plane, said Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Holly Huffman. Huffman said Texas has retardant plants in place at airports other than Austin, but runways at those sites are not approved to handle such a large aircraft. She said the DC-10 — which costs the state $12,000 per flight hour as well as a $45,000 per day availability fee — is used in addition to smaller aircraft.
seen inside, Gonzalez said. While an array of U.S. federal and state agencies declined to comment, a Mexican government official confirmed that Mexican military helicopters have permission to use Texas as a staging ground for missions into Mexico to fight drug traffickers. “Yes, I can tell you they exist, they are going on,” said the official, who has knowledge of the flights. “Certainly, for the last couple of years,” he said, noting that the U.S. government also has permission to fly remotely manned surveillance planes into Mexico. Most sightings have been in the vicinity of Falcon Lake, a region where authorities in Mexico are fighting Los Zetas. In some instances, American civilians snapped photos of the flights and shared them with police. In the most recent incident last month, a Mexican military helicopter landed at Laredo International Airport. U.S. Customs and Border Protection offered minimal details, saying the pilot was lost.
Working together Although such operations are apparently rare, permission to allow Mexican government helicopters to fly out of the United States goes back at least until 1987, when Mexican federal police flew in from West Texas to attack legendary drug boss Pablo Acosta, a marijuana kingpin. U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, who represents part of Harris County and is chairman of the Homeland Security Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, declined to confirm details about the Mexican military’s involvement with the United States. “It is a highly sensitive, coordinated effort to take out the cartels that has
Continued from Page 1A
been effective,” he said. Officials from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Aviation Administration and Border Patrol would not comment when contacted by the Houston Chronicle. Gonzalez, who testified before a Congressional committee in May about border security and is retiring soon, said he doesn’t have answers and doesn’t know what he can tell the citizens of Zapata County, which hugs Falcon Lake. The lake, a massive Rio Grande reservoir, is where an American jet skier was reportedly killed last year while fleeing Zeta gunmen in boats. His body was never found. “Given the corruption in Mexico, how do I know what these guys are doing, dropping something off, picking something up — kidnapping somebody and taking them back to Mexico?” the sheriff asked. “Citizens have complained,” he said. “What do we do, shoot them down? Can you imagine someone saying, ‘This is my country, I’m protecting it’?” Robert Kline, a retiree who lives part of the year in Zapata, said that in March 2010, the thump of helicopter rotors moving over Falcon Lake from Mexico startled him. “I am standing on the deck looking at it. ‘Holy man, that’s not one of ours,’” he recalled. On the helicopter was the word “Marina,” the word the Mexican government uses for navy. Catherine Frazier, deputy press secretary for Gov. Rick Perry, said state law enforcement is not being told in advance of any operations in which Mexico’s military has permission to fly over Texas. “Failure to do so stirs up unnecessary concern among local people, and could result in situations of mistaken identity or friendly fire, putting our peace officers and citizens in harm’s way,” she said. In years past, the U.S.
government has labeled some flights as “incursions,” or unauthorized border crossings. Conservative group Judicial Watch, which specializes in obtaining government documents, has posted reports listing incursions by Mexican government employees, including at least eight helicopters in 2007, apparently the last year in-depth descriptions were available.
Concern Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said he can’t imagine the Mexican military being permitted to fly over U.S. soil. “There are always excuses that can be made for flying helicopters around … but to have authorized activity of that nature would be explosive,” he said, adding it would “make the ‘Fast and Furious’ program seem like a tempest in a tea pot.” “Fast and Furious” was an operation in which federal agents let guns slip into Mexico as part of a plan to track them to cartels. But the weapons were lost, and some later turned up at the scene where a Border Patrol agent was killed. U.S. Rep Ted Poe, whose district stretches from Spring to Beaumont, asked for an official explanation for at least one of the flights, which occurred over Starr County, not far from Falcon Lake. “My office contacted Homeland Security, and they confirmed that there was an unauthorized flight over Falcon Heights that day, but they said it was impossible to confirm whether or not it was actually a Mexican military helicopter or the drug cartels flying in a helicopter painted to look like a Mexican military helicopter,” he said, “The Mexican military denies that they had any military helicopters flying the area that day.” Neither scenario is acceptable, he said.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM
Sports&Outdoors COMMENTARY
Remembering the day T
he 10th anniversary of September 11, 2001 is a day away, and the American society will always recall what they were doing when those devastating events unfolded in New York,
Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania. At that time, I was starting my rookie year as head coach at United South High School and the day started like any other.
On my way to school, I had heard a brief message on the radio about a plane hitting the World Trade Center, so when I got to the coaches’ office I turned on the television. The other coaches and I
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
were transfixed on what was unfolding in front of our eyes. Watching smoke coming out of the towers, I just kept praying that all the people made it
See SANDOVAL PAGE 2B
HIGH SCHOOL VOLLEYBALL
Photo by Clara Sandoval | The Zapata Times
Quarterback Manuel Salinas has developed into a star leader for the Hawks.
QB Salinas stars for Hawks Signal-caller leads way for Zapata football By CLARA SANDOVAL THE ZAPATA TIMES
When Manuel Salinas first slipped into his shoulder pads and helmet at Zapata Middle School, he never envisioned himself as a quarterback. Salinas was vying to become the team’s halfback. But as fate would have it, the coaching staff as Zapata Middle saw something else in Salinas. He was moved to quarterback and he has never relinquished the position, going on to become Zapata’s premier signal-caller the past three years. “I was never thought of playing quarterback, but I guess the coaches saw something in me,” Salinas said. “I started to like the position, continued to play quarterback from that moment.” Now Salinas likes everything that comes with playing one of the most pressure-filled positions in all of sports. “I like everything about being a quarterback: the pressure, the atmosphere and just getting out there with your teammates with one goal in mind, to win,” Salinas said. “Being a quarterback, you have to know all the plays and just be on your toes all the time.” Salinas is an all district quarterback and has steered the Hawks’ offense to the top of District 32-3A the past two years. “Manuel has developed as a quarterback,” Zapata coach Mario Arce said. “He is our leader and done everything that we ask him to do.” Salinas got the nod to become the starting quarterback during his sophomore year, thanks to the maturity he displayed. In his first drive as a Hawks quarterback, Salinas led Zapata to a touchdown. “I was really nervous and excited at the same time,” Salinas said. “After a few snaps, I felt OK and just started playing.” It turned out Salinas led the team to a victory in his first outing, but things turned sour in his next game when the pressure was hard to overcome. “I just felt that we lost because of me and I took it hard,” Salinas said. As the season progressed his sophomore
See SALINAS PAGE 2B
Photo by Clara Sandoval | The Zapata Times
Kristina De Leon and the Lady Hawks are off to a 2-0 start in district play.
FAST AND FURIOUS Lady Hawks get off to undefeated district start By CLARA SANDOVAL THE ZAPATA TIMES
The Lady Hawks are flying after opening defense of their district title
with two district wins. Zapata has been sensational sweeping its first two opponents in three games. Zapata (2-0 District 32-3A, 8-7), behind the dynamic play of Kristina De Leon
and Shelby Bigler, beat Port Isabel, 2519, 25-15 and 25-19, a week ago and then turned around and beat Progreso, 25-6,
See VOLLEYBALL PAGE 2B
CROSS COUNTRY
Zapata girls, boys run on By CLARA SANDOVAL THE ZAPATA TIMES
The Zapata girls’ cross country team returned to the course after a taking a week off and the Lady Hawks did not skip a beat at the 2nd Annual Rio
Grande Valley Classic last weekend. The Lady Hawks were the only 3A team to enter in the elite division and they fared very well, placing seventh amongst some of the best competition the Valley had to offer, including state qualifier Edinburg, Edinburg North and
Sharyland. State qualifier Jazmine Garcia led Zapata with a solid third place finish and was clocked at 11:47. Erica Hernandez and Cassie Pena val-
See CROSS COUNTRY PAGE 2B
PAGE 2B
Zscores
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
Cowboys’ Garrett remembers 9/11 By JAIME ARON ASSOCIATED PRESS
IRVING — Jason Garrett was groggy and grumpy when he arrived at his Upper West Side apartment following a cross-country flight from Denver. Sleep was hard to come by as he thought about a season-opening loss to the Broncos, a potentially serious injury to a star receiver, and another injury that was likely to make Garrett the holder on place kicks — for a left-footed kicker, no less, which would mean catching and placing the ball on the opposite side than he was used to doing. Drifting off became even tougher because a slew of fire trucks were blaring their sirens as they sped through the streets below. He put a pillow over his head to try muffling the
noise, but it was of little use. Then came the interruption he’ll never forget: a call from a former teammate letting him know the World Trade Center was burning. Living just 5 miles from ground zero, Garrett — then a backup quarterback on the New York Giants — vividly remembers every detail of Sept. 11, 2001. Memories of that day and the months that followed have surged back this week, and will again Sunday when Garrett and the Dallas Cowboys spend the 10-year anniversary of the terrorist attacks in New York. They’ll be playing the Jets in a prime-time season opener wrapped in tributes to those who died that day and everyone else affected by the tragedy. “It was a day like none
Photo by Tony Gutierrez | AP
In this Aug. 11 file photo, Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett looks on during a preseason game against the Denver Broncos in Arlington. On Sunday night, Sept. 2011, the Cowboys will be playing the New York Jets in a prime-time season opener wrapped in tributes to those who died that day in 2001, and to everyone else affected by the tragedy. other for anybody in our country,” Garrett said. “Being there close to it, it was an emotional day, and it was one I certainly will
SANDOVAL Continued from Page 1B out alive, but I knew some of them already had perished because the plane had struck the first tower. We were watching it when, all of a sudden, you see a back dot coming into the television screen from the left side. For some reason, I thought it was a bird and it started getting closer to the other twin tower building. But the object hit the tower, and that is when I realized that this was no accident. Someone or some organization was set on venting its rage against America. This was done deliberately. I, like all the other Americans, were upset and felt my stomach drop. How could people be so cruel and evil that they would take innocent lives? We stayed glued to the television, and for the rest of the day we could not think about anything else. I could not teach. What was there to say when your country had just been invaded? That day I went home and even recorded some newscasts, because I wanted to keep it and show my nieces and nephews these events when they were older because at the time they were in elementary school. It is going to be 10 years tomorrow and I still cannot get myself to rewind the tapes and view what I
have recorded. I always have this uneasiness come over me and I just can’t seem to get myself to watch them. What for? I can still see the images of people jumping off buildings because their floor was burning. They say when a tragic event of this magnitude happens; a person always remembers what they were doing and even what they were wearing. September 11 is this generation’s Pearl Harbor, but the difference is America was being attacked by a military and it was aimed at our military, although some civilians also died that December 7 day in 1941. The following day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war on the Empire of Japan and it was approved right away. On September 11, it was an organization that attacked our innocent civilians who were just starting out their day. We figured out who the organization was and went after them. I was angry when reports out of the Middle East had people celebrating what they did to the United States. How can people celebrate the deaths of thousands of people and be joyous over it? That made me angry
and just felt like crying for what they did to us. It shook the fabric of the American society and changed the way that we fly. I have flown before 9-11 and after, and the changes are visible. Only passengers that are flying are allowed to pass through security, as before everyone could go through. Nowadays, it a practically a strip search, though I understand why they make us go through that. It changes the United States so many ways and took away some of our innocence, but we are a strong nation that comes together in the most bleak moments in our history. Even typing this column, I am getting choked up about September 11. It is something that will live with us for many years to come and we will not forget the brave men and women who raced to help; the first responders. So many perished and left families behind. Children grew up without fathers and mothers; wives and husbands were left widowers. We will never forget all those brave men and women who died that fateful day. God bless America and all its citizens. (Clara Sandoval can be reached at sandoval.clara@gmail.com).
never forget.” The following days and weeks were memorable, too, because of the recovery efforts that brought the city
and nation closer together. For instance, Garrett recalls so many people donating blood that the blood banks said they had more
than enough. For Garrett and the Giants, their role in the recovery began that weekend. NFL games were postponed, so players went to ground zero to hand out water and show their appreciation for the workers. He believes the Yankees’ run to the World Series that September and October helped heal the community. “I just can’t describe to you how emotional that whole thing was for so many people,” Garrett said. “It’s very different than the real-life situations going on. But hopefully in some small way the Giants, the Yankees and the Jets, and all the teams that were playing at that time, gave those people of that community who were so affected by this event an opportunity to get away from it.”
SALINAS Continued from Page 1B year, Salinas started to get a feel for the position. The Hawks put together a string of victories and captured second place in district. Salinas was tabbed Newcomer of Year by the district coaches. In last year’s campaign, Zapata grabbed third and lost to Corpus Christi Miller in its playoff game. The district title has eluded Zapata in Salinas’
career and this year he is aiming for the top prize in 32-3A. “We want to win a district title,” Salinas said. “I have experienced going to the playoffs, but never a district championship. That would make a perfect ending to my high school career.” Salinas and the Hawks are also aiming to take a step to the second round in the playoffs.
As the years have gone by, Salinas has matured into the quarterback Arce envisioned when he saw Salinas play in middle school. “I follow the kids since they are in middle school and saw him develop as a quarterback,” Arce said. “He just has a lot of confidence and is very poised out on the field.” (Clara Sandoval can be reached at sandoval.clara@gmail.com)
VOLLEYBALL Continued from Page 1B 28-26, 25-9, to stay at the top of District 32-3A. The Lady Hawks have been led by the play of De Leon and Bigler, who have become one of the deadliest 1-2 punches in the district. During the Port Isabel game, De Leon and Bigler dropped 20 and 19 kills, respectively, that kept the Lady Tarpons busy all day long. De Leon and Bigler were unstoppable, while Estella Molina fed the ball to them and finished the day with 38 assists. Abby Aguilar led the Lady Hawk defense with 24 digs. Zapata continued to roll against Progreso on Tuesday as it jumped all over the Lady Red Ants to take the first set, 25-6.
Abby Aguilar led the Lady Hawk defense with 24 digs. De Leon and Bigler dominated the game as they combined for 37 kills to lead the team at the net. In the second set, Zapata struggled to keep back a pesky Progreso team and had to throw out everything against the Lady Red Ants. Zapata squeezed out a 28-26 second set and took a 2-0 lead. The Lady Hawks got a second wind and came out with a vengeance to take the third set and the win. The next games for Zapata take place today against PSJA Southwest
and Tuesday at home against Rio Hondo. ZAPATA STATS vs. Port Isabel: De Leon (20 kills, three service aces, nine digs, four blocks), Shelby Bigler (19 kills, one block), Vanessa Martinez (four kills, two blocks), Estella Molina (three service aces, 38 assists), Abby Aguilar (24 digs). ZAPATA STATS vs. Progreso: De Leon (22 kills), Bigler (15 kills, five serves aces), Vanessa Martinez (six kills), Estella Molina (five serves aces, 43 assists, nine digs), Liana Flores (two serves aces), Abby Aguilar (12 digs).
CROSS COUNTRY Continued from Page 1B iantly fought to get on the medal stand, but fell short when all the dust was settled. Not all was lost at the meet, however. Sara Pena and Wendy Medina broke through in their quest to drop some times in their race and recorded personal records to solidify their spot on the varsity team. The junior varsity squad ran in the 3Aand-under division, which included many 5A and 4A schools. The JV team battled throughout the course and went home with the runner-up trophy behind Brownsville St. Joseph’s varsity squad. Top runners for the JV girls were Maria Rodriguez (personal record) in sixth, Angela Darnell (PR) in ninth, Jannet Chapa (PR) in 11th and Brianna Gonzalez (PR) in 12th. Closing out the squad were Alexandra Garcia, Daniela Vela (PR), Norma Cepeda (PR), Joyce Garcia and Alma Perez. The freshmen girls were not to be outdone as they took second place honors in their division. Bianca Ponce continues to impress with another top finish, taking sixth place and setting a huge personal record to start making a strong statement. Following close behind were teammates Evelin Huerta (PR), Maria Angeles (PR), Kassandra Galvan (PR) and Corina Martinez (PR), all setting personal marks. “There were 12 runners who set personal bests at this meet, a great accomplishment this early in the season,” Zapata cross country coach Mike Villarreal said. The Lady Hawks’ next competition is at Falfurrias this morning. Ten girls will run varsity this weekend to determine who the top seven runners are for the next few meets. “The competition has been a great motivator for the girls and I believe it’s bringing out the best in them,” Villarreal said.
Zapata boys boast perspective The Hawks boys’ cross country team has been keeping this season in perspective despite having a state ranking in its back pocket. In order to move toward their ultimate goal of a trip to state, the Hawks have been going against some of the toughest competition that South Texas has to offer. Zapata, along with some of the best cross country teams in the Rio Grande Valley, made its way to Edinburg last weekend for the 2nd Annual Rio Grande Valley Classic. Zapata placed fourth overall in the elite division behind Sharyland, Los Fresnos and Eagle Pass. The Hawks were only five points away from Eagle Pass’s third-place finish. “The team ran well,” Zapata coach Luis Escamilla said. “Everyone improved their times and is heading in the right direction. “Being the third best Rio Grande Valley school, including the 5As, has given us the confidence to run against any team.” Luis Garza, who placed in the top 10 with his 10th place overall finish, led the Hawks. Garza blazed the course with a 16:40 to stay on pace. Garza’s feat was followed by Carlos Rodriguez’s 12th place finish. Rodriguez was clocked at 16:44. The rest of the team finished in the following order: Rafael Benavides (23rd-17:03), Sam Camacho (56th-17:45), Juan Rangel (59th-17:51), Tony Mendoza (66th-18:02) and Jose Garcia (69th-18:06). “Our top three ran an aggressive race. They set the tone for the team. It’s a sweet and sour feeling finishing fourth, especially by five points,” Escamilla said. “Overall, I’m very pleased with their performances. “We’re going in with the highest expectations. Winning the 3A division is our
Courtesy Photo
Bianca Ponce and the Zapata Lady Hawks are at the Falfurrias meet this morning.
goal.” The Hawks will take a week off before they head to the UTSA Invitational on
Sept. 17, where the entire region runs (1A-5A) to get a glimpse of the regional picture.
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
THE ZAPATA TIMES 3B
HINTS BY | HELOISE Dear Heloise: Since I come into the office early, I am often asked to put away the dishes. The other day, I was asked to PUT AWAY THE GLASSES, turned all one way with the rims up. Our glasses are coneshaped, and I had been alternating them to create better storage. I have heard pros and cons on how to store glasses. However, there have been complaints, so I thought I would ask your advice on which way the glasses should be placed in the cabinet. — A Reader, via email Everyone has an opinion! There are generally two types of glassware — those with stems and those without. The biggest factors to consider are what type of glassware, how often you use it (every day or once in a while), and how delicate it is. For everyday drinking glasses like you are talking about, alternating them, one up and one down, especially if shaped like a “cone,” will save space. Some folks don’t like putting the “drinking” part down because they don’t like it touching the surface of the cabinet. Others don’t like the drinking part up because of dust or other factors. For wine and champagne glasses with stems, or ones that are very old or delicate, again, it’s your call. Some say NOT to store them with the open end down because it might chip; others say rim up is NOT safe because it’s possible to knock them together and cause a chip. In your case, I’d ask management which way it wants the glassware stored. Readers? What’s your take? — Heloise
PET PAL Dear Readers: Polly B. in Waterville, Maine, sent a picture of her four beautiful, elderly shelter cats, named Autumn, Wally, Holly and Albert. She says that they are all different, but they are all special. To see this clowder (group) of cats, go to www.Heloise.com and
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HELOISE
click on “Pets.” — Heloise
VINTAGE SUITCASES Greetings, Heloise: I have found a great use for the older-model hard-shell suitcases without wheels that not too many of us like to use for transportation anymore: They make excellent storage totes! Use them to store winter/summer clothing, blankets or for anything. Put a sachet in, and your items will be fresh when needed (and it keeps them out of landfills). — Deanne Autry, Alta Vista, Kan.
EASY LEASH Dear Heloise: I dog-sit for my neighbor a couple of times a year. They have an enormous black Lab, who is sweet but doesn’t walk very well on a leash. I have solved the problem by taking a nylon dog leash and looping it around the dog’s neck. It doesn’t hurt her, and she doesn’t pull at all now! — Karen in Texas
WASHING-MACHINE ODOR Dear Heloise: You printed remedies to combat “washing-machine odor” — here’s mine: Leave the lid/ door to the machine open for a few hours after the last load. It will dry and air out naturally. — Roberta M., via email Send a money-saving or timesaving hint to Heloise, P.O. Box 795000, San Antonio, TX 78279-5000, or you can fax it to 1-210-HELOISE or email it to Heloise@Heloise.com. I can’t answer your letter personally but will use the best hints received in my column. Photo caption: Polly B. of Waterville, Maine, sent in these photos of her four shelter cats. They are all different, but they are all special.
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Sports
4B THE ZAPATA TIMES
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2011
Economy welcomes back NFL By ELLEN GIBSON AND PAUL WISEMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — When the NFL and players struck a deal to end the league’s lockout, they didn’t just save the football season that begins its first full day of games on Sunday. They saved the most profitable sport in America, the most popular show on TV and billions of dollars that would have disappeared from the economy. During the regular season, the National Football League itself expects to take in about $9.5 billion. The league estimates that sponsorship revenue alone, which is included in that figure, will be up 15 percent from last year. But the impact of the 10-year labor agreement the league reached in July to end a fourmouth lockout reaches far beyond the NFL’s big corporate sponsors, billionaire owners and millionaire players. The league supports about 110,000 jobs in NFL cities— not just tailbacks and punters but hotel workers and sports-bar owners. Overall, the games add about $5 billion to the broader economy in NFL cities, according to an analysis prepared for the NFL Players Association by Edgeworth Economics. Here’s a look at some of the economic ripples: AN NFL CITY ON GAME DAY: ‘INSANE’ Downtown Cleveland is hopping on weekends when the Browns play at home. Fans of the home team — and of the visitors, especially when the rival Pittsburgh Steelers are in town — start packing hotels Saturday night. And the partying spills over into city’s historic Warehouse District and bars near the stadium. “Game days are insane,” says Alice Burns, assistant manager and bartender at Bob Golic’s Sports Bar & Grille, owned by a former Browns star. “Last season, we opened at 7 a.m. and were completely packed by 9 or 10.” Business at John Q’s Steakhouse multiplies by five on Browns’ game days, says owner Rick Cassara. “It means everything to us,” he says. “Everybody downtown does well on a Browns Sunday.” When the Browns are
Photo by Mike Roemer | AP
In this Sept. 8, file photo, Kid Rock performs during a kickoff concert before an NFL game between the Green Bay Packers and the New Orleans Saints, in Green Bay, Wis. Football is the most profitable sport in America and the most popular show on TV. Sponsorship revenue is expected to rise 15 percent this year, to total about $9.5 billion, said NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy. playing, he doubles his staff, putting an extra 12 to 15 servers, bartenders and cooks to work. Positively Cleveland, which promotes tourism to the city, estimated four years ago that every Browns game brought $7.9 million in business to Cleveland — $63 million a year. “No matter how the Browns are doing,” says Tamera Brown, the group’s vice president of marketing, “they still sell out.” The Browns’ appeal and economic clout extend far beyond Ohio’s borders. Every game day, around 100 Browns fans descend on the Box Seat sports bar in Hermitage, Tenn., outside Nashville. “I usually bring my wife and two kids, and we spend around $20 to $30 on food,” says Kristopher Martel, 26, a software develop-
er in Murfreesboro, Tenn. AT METLIFE STADIUM: CONCESSION WORKERS BACK IN BUSINESS At Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. — the home of the Jets and the Giants that formerly the New Meadowlands Stadium — 80 employees at the complex are full-time and guaranteed a paycheck. The rest are event employees who had feared that, without football, they’d be out of work. Tallying up parking attendants, security guards, ushers, ticket takers, janitors, merchandise sellers and concession workers, the stadium employs about 4,000 people on any given NFL Sunday, says Mark Lamping, the stadium’s CEO. Without football games in the fall and winter, those people don’t work, Lamping says.
Concessions at the stadium are managed by a company called Delaware North, which has been stuffing NFL fans full of hot dogs and beer for more than 45 years and has weathered player strikes. Delaware North also does concessions for the Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns, Carolina Panthers and St. Louis Rams. The company’s payroll for staffing the six stadiums is $24 million. Then there are the food, plate and cup suppliers who count on Delaware North’s orders to stay in business. “Everyone was on pins and needles,” says Rick Abramson, president of Delaware North’s Sportservice unit, who started his career as a vendor at Milwaukee County Stadium 40 years ago. “A missed season would be a problem for a lot of people be-
cause they’re counting on that money to make ends meet.” While Jets wide receiver Santonio Holmes was angling for a contract that reportedly will guarantee him $50 million over five years, veteran beer vendors were hoping they wouldn’t lose the supplemental income they count on six months out of the year. They take home about $150 per game, plus tips and commission. Overall, Delaware North takes in about $100 million per year from food and drink sales at NFL events. The company also employs about 30,000 seasonal workers. “It’s a great thing that they were able to resolve it,” says Delaware North owner Jerry Jacobs Jr. of the players’ agreement. “There was so much at stake.”