NEWSBRIEFS

If you think you haven’t much to bethankful for, why not be thankful forsome of the things you don’t have?

— Quips &Quotes

SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLOVOL. 31, No. 48 NOVEMBER 25, 2004

nineteenseventythree

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Early presstimeThe West Texas County Courier went topress early this week with an abbreviatedissue due to the Thanksgiving holiday. Wewill return to our regular schedule nextweek.

Early releaseMore than 34,000 Socorro ISD studentswill be released early from classes Nov.24 for the Thanksgiving holiday, and willreturn to regular school hours Nov. 29.According to SISD’s Transportation De-partment, early release begins at 11:30a.m. for regular elementary and regularmiddle school campuses. Combo schoolsserving elementary and middle schoolgrades and Socorro’s high schools will re-lease students at 12:15 p.m. Early releasetimes are scheduled to allow timely pickupof students from the schools by schoolbuses. For more information, contact yourchild’s school.

In other news� Paso del Norte School’s Girls’ Choir isscheduled to sing for Del Sol MedicalCenter’s Christmas Tree Lighting cer-emony Dec. 2. About 40 middle schoolstudents will sing favorite holiday tunes.The choir’s performance, led by choir di-rector Monica Gutierrez, is scheduled for5 p.m. to 5:20 p.m. in the hospital’s mainfoyer located at 10301 Gateway BoulevardWest.

� The El Paso County Library in Fabensinvites the community with stay-at-homechildren to participate in the Story HourProgram, every Tuesday and Thursdayfrom 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. The activitiespresented are designed to foster a healthychild, develop a positive self-image andinstill a love of learning. For informationcall 764-3635.

� Jane A. Hambric school is collectingnonperishable canned goods through Nov.30 for distribution to needy families dur-ing the holiday season. For donation in-formation contact Sandra Cervantes at937-4600.

� The 9th Annual Americas High SchoolChristmas Fair will be on Saturday, Dec.4, 2004 from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. All 104vendors will be located in the Blazer Gymselling arts and crafts, clothing, toys, jew-elry, gift baskets and more. Entertainmentwill be provided by 35 groups from allover El Paso area. The public is invited,admission is free. Information: 937-2832.

� The City of Socorro and the FiestaMercado Shopping Center will host theSecond Annual Christmas Tree LightingCeremony on Nov. 26. Socorro and theentire Lower Valley community is invitedto attend and children will receive specialgift surprises. Entertainment will be pro-vided by multiple area schools. For infor-mation contact Margie Perez at 859-6424.

HORIZON CITY — Arson “Art”Woodrow Borst, 75, a longtime resident andavid community servant of Horizon City,died Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2004.

He was preceded in death by his son,Steve. He is survived by his wife, Jackie;daughter-in-law Paula Borst and two grand-children, Marlena and Stephanie.

He was born on July 6, 1929 in BaldKnob, Arkansas. He retired from U.S.Army after a 25-year distinguished mili-tary career, serving last with the 3rd Ar-mored Division holding the rank of Lt.Colonel. He moved to the Horizon com-munity in 1973, the beginning of manyyears of public service.

He served as councilman on the Hori-zon City town council for two terms, wasa member and past president of the Hori-zon City Kiwanis Club, and served as of-ficer and member of VFW Post #598, the

Art Borst, longtimecommunity servant, dies

Art Borst in an official military photo fromcirca 1972.

Courier Staff Reports

SOCORRO — As audience members en-tered Socorro City Hall on Thursday, Nov. 18,for the council meeting, they found notices hadbeen placed in the chairs which appeared toserve as a warning to anyone who might con-sider speaking out of turn.

The letter-sized sheet of paper containedan explanation of Penal Code Sec 42.05which defines what constitutes disruption ofa meeting and the consequences for anyonedoing so.

Prior to opening the meeting, newly electedMayor Guillermo Gandara, Jr. informed theaudience of the consequences for disrupting themeeting, and asked Police Chief CharlesMansion to escort anyone who did so out ofthe room.

The newly seated council proceeded to make

By Arleen BeardSpecial to the Courier

New Socorro council makes some sweeping changes in first meeting

EAST EL PASO COUNTY — Health careis closer to home and is now on wheels in theSocorro School District, thanks to the new CareMobile Unit dedicated Nov. 17.

“Improving lives is why we are in the edu-cation business,” said SISD Superintendent Dr.Robert J. Durón. “Healthy children are betterequipped to learn. We are grateful to have the

Ronald McDonald Care Mobile Unit in ourschool district.”

Durón was among the speakers at a dedica-tion ceremony at Sierra Vista ElementarySchool — one of five campuses in the district,which will house the unit. The ribbon cuttingfeatured the Clarke Middle School Band andcheerleaders as well as officials from Texas TechMedical School, the Children’s Miracle Networkand even an appearance by Ronald McDonald.

Dr. Gilbert Handal, chairman of the Depart-ment of Pediatrics for Texas Tech, spearheadedthe effort to obtain a Care Mobile for El Paso.“This is phenomenal. The Care Mobile’s con-cept is an extension of the Montwood WellnessCenter. There are many people that don’t haveaccess to care. So if we go where the childrenare, the Care Mobile will become theirmedical home.”

El Paso’s Care Mobile is one of 20 such vans

CLOWN WITH A SERIOUS SIDE — Socorro ISD Superintendent Dr.Robert J. Durón greets Ronald McDonald during ceremonies forthe new Ronald McDonald Care Mobile November 17.

Care van dedicated in SISDin cities across the United States. The CareMobile is a 40-foot-long, eight-foot-wide cus-tom-built body mated to a Mack truck chassis.It houses two examination rooms, a lab, a re-ception area and storage for medical records.The Texas Tech School of Medicine will pro-vide a rotating staff of pediatricians, pediatricnurses, dentists and dental hygienists. Texas

Tech, the Children’sMiracle Network andRonald McDonaldHouse Charities andthe Socorro schoolsare partners in theproject in which thecenterpiece is the$300,000 vehicle.

The Care Mobilenow visits fiveSocorro schools eachweek to provide medi-cal care to both in-sured and uninsuredchildren. Services arecovered by Medicaid,CHIP and most com-mercial insuranceplans. After about amonth in service, ithas served more than30 children.

The Care MobileUnit is available 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at the fol-lowing locations:

• Mondays - Horizon Heights ElementarySchool, 13601 Ryderwood Drive in Horizon City

• Tuesdays - Sierra Vista Elementary School,1501 Bob Hope Drive

• Wednesdays - Lujan-Chavez ElementarySchool, 2200 Sun Country Drive

• Thursdays - Elfida P. Chavez ElementarySchool, 11720 Pebble Hills Drive

• Fridays - Ernesto Serna School, 11471Alameda Avenue

Ronald McDonald posed for photos with stu-dents and employees at the dedication cer-emony. And while the mood was light hearted,Ronald’s message was sincere. “Wellness islike the fire department. You don’t want thefire department to be so busy putting out firesthat they don’t have time for fire prevention.That’s what this is all about.”

several key changes, including moving InterimCity Manager Reyes Fierro back to his previ-ous position of Director of Planning and Zon-ing and the Interim Director of Planning andZoning, Mario Modesto, back to Supervisor ofPlanning and Zoning.

Fierro was to continue as Interim City Man-ager, but only for five days, allowing Counciltime to find an alternate so as not to be in vio-lation of the City Charter. These changes weredue to campaign promises made by the electedofficials to reform the operation of the City ofSocorro.

Another key change made by Council in-volved where City Council meetings are to takeplace. The Rio Vista building was designatedas the new City Hall effective immediately. Therationale for the move was lack of room in thecurrent hall. Mayor Gandara expressed his con-cern about the number of people having tostand in the lobby because the capacity for thecurrent meeting room is only 54 people. A map

See BORST, Page 2

will be placed outside of the old City Hallgiving people directions to the Rio Vistabuilding.

Newly elected City Representative LuisVarela was elected as Mayor Pro-Tem.

City Council also discussed the contract withthe current City Attorney. City RepresentativeGary Gandara expressed his satisfaction on thejob done by City Attorney Chris Borunda.Former City Representative Gloria Rodriguezaddressed City Council and also expressed herappreciation on all the hard work she feltBorunda has done. Borunda’s contract was notterminated, following a vote of 2-3. The twoCity Representatives who voted to terminatethe contract were City Representatives TriniLopez and Jesus Gandara, Jr. Chris Borundawill continue as the City Attorney.

One other item of interest was that of Mu-nicipal Court Judge, with a decision to come

See SOCORRO, Page 3

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIERPage 2 November 25, 2004

SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO

PUBLISHED:Published each Thursday byHomesteader News, Inc. Appreciationto our many contributors. Office openMonday through Thursday.

COPYRIGHT:Entire contents © 2004 HomesteaderNews, Inc. Individual authors retain allrights. Pictures, drawings and writtenmaterial appearing in the West TexasCounty Courier may not be used orreproduced without written permissionof Homesteader News, Inc.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR:Letter must not be more than 250words in length. They should bedated, must be signed and have anaddress and daytime phone number.Only the name and city will be printedwith the letter. The Courier reservesthe right not to print letters to theeditor or other submitted materials itconsiders inappropriate.

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ADDRESS:14200 AshfordHorizon City, TX 79928

Phone: 852-3235Fax: 852-0123

E-mail: wtxcc@wtccourier.comWebsite: wtccourier.com

PublisherRick Shrum

Business ManagerFrancis D. Shrum

ContributorsDon WoodyardSteve EscajedaArleen Beard

�

Member Texas CommunityNewspaper Association News, Inc.

HomesteaderEst. 1973

nineteenseventythree

two th o u s a n d four

31YEARS

One perspectiveBy Francis Shrum

We thinkwe’re prettysmart.

Just askany of the multitude of opinionatorsthat take to the airwaves daily. Theyhave knowledge, so-called, on anygiven subject and can give you a longlaundry list of the facts, equally so-called, to support their conclusions.The one thing they all know for sureis that the guy with a differing opin-ion is dead wrong.

For them it is all a game. It’s theircareer, spending their time runningoff their mouths and expounding onweighty matters, perfectly comfort-able in the knowledge that no majordecision is going to made based ontheir blather, no policy instituted, lifelost, or verdict rendered.

Or is it?How many of us are living our

lives, making our decisions, spend-ing our resources and raising our kidsbased on opinions and ideas that haveno more substance than hot air?

When I was a young adult, I was alot smarter than I am now. I used to

know a lot, I was real wise. They sayyou know all about child-rearing un-til you have one of your own. Life islike that. You think you know allabout handling the curve balls lifecan throw until one lands in your lapand you realize exactly how muchyou don’t know.

It can really shake your founda-tions when you find yourself in for-eign territory — a problem child, amajor illness, the death of someoneclose to you, a significant financialsetback — and suddenly you find allthe rules have changed.

I got started reading kids’ booksseveral years ago. Not the “see Spotrun” versions, but those for kidsabout 11 or 12 years old, where theaverage human mind starts thinkingabout something besides what’s fordinner and when we are going to getthere, but before it hits teenage. Writ-ing a book for readers that age re-quires a distinct talent — they havean unerring ability to sniff out balo-ney and they’ll reject anything thatsmells funny.

I ran across this little book recently

about a kid growing up on a sheepranch in Northern New Mexico en-titled …And Now Miguel. He wantsto be big and strong and importantlike the older men in his family andgo with the herd to summer pasturein the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

So he asks a favor of his patronsaint, San Ysidro, that he should ar-range this. And it happens, but thereason it does is because his olderbrother gets drafted into the militaryand must go away for several years.Miguel can now take his place. Onlyhe finds he’d rather have his brotherat home and regrets making his wishknown to higher powers.

Written in a captivatingly simpletext, the book explores how the boycomes to the point that he accepts theconsequences of his decisions, takesresponsibility when due, and learnsto simply roll with the flow of lifewhen it comes to things over whichhe has no control.

It is those parts of life which sim-ply happen that we humans have themost problem with. We want to be inthe driver’s seat at all times, direct-ing our own lives, unwilling to ac-knowledge that it is simply the na-ture of human existence to be at thewhim of forces outside our control.

And when we can’t control it, thenwe’re going to explain it — and de-fine it, and describe it, and beat thedetails down until it fits our own im-

age, one we created, no matter howfaulty it might be. Some of us explainthese variable forces with science,others with religion, and within thesecategories are endless chapters andsubchapters, sects and sub-sects. Butwe’ve all got an explanation, don’twe?

I envied Miguel Chavez, the boyin the book, for his lifestyle. He livedclose to the earth, in an agriculturalenvironment, with plenty of familymembers and common sense ideas tohelp him through. In the end he con-cludes that a successful man practicesa combination of hardwork, makingresponsible choices, and looking af-ter the needs of the whole before

Know it all

seeking his own personal desire —and leaving the big things like wars,floods and when a boy gets to go tothe mountains to the wisdom and dis-cretion of a community of over-worked saints.

Acceptance is a big pill for humanbeings — especially Americans — toswallow. Acceptance that we, as arm-chair quarterbacks, are woefully un-der qualified to make the big deci-sions and pass judgment on thosewho do. Acceptance that we will bedoing our best if we can live our in-dividual lives with peace, honor andhumility.

In essence, we need to know thatwe will never know it all.

San Eli NJROTC to stand for inspection early next month

American Legion, theLions Club and Opti-mist Club as well. Hewas also active asboard member andpresident of the Hori-zon Communities Im-provement Association(HCIA).

Viewing and visita-tion will be 10 a.m. onWednesday, Nov. 24, atMartin Funeral Home,

Borst, in a 2001photo.

BorstFrom Page 1______________________

By Phillip CortezSpecial to the Courier

EAST EL PASO COUNTY — TheSan Elizario High School NJROTClooks to add to its impressive resumeon Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2004 duringits Annual Military Inspection, whichbegins at 8:00 a.m. in the school’sauxiliary gym.

“For some of these young men andwomen this will be the first time

someone has looked at them and in-spected them on appearance,” saidCol. Roy Gray (USM ret.), who is incharge of the NJROTC program inSan Elizario. “They’ll be looked atfrom their high and tight haircuts totheir spit-shined shoes.”

San Elizario cadets have fared ex-tremely well the past two years, ac-cording to Gray, including an out-standing evaluation last year fromMajor General John McCarthy. Thisyear, Commander Mike Hale will

UPPER VALLEY — Canutillo In-dependent School District haspartnered with the Big Brothers BigSisters (BBBS) of El Paso to bringthe program into the Canutillo com-munity for the benefit of students.

BBBS’s purpose is to provide suc-cessful mentoring relationships forchildren, ages 6 to 17, who need andwant them. A strong mentoring programcontributes to brighter futures, betterschools, and stronger communities. Its

1460 George Dieter. A memorialservice will follow at the samelocation at 11:30 a.m. Intern-ment is scheduled for 1 p.m. at

the Fort Bliss NationalCemetery.

A reception forfriends and family isalso scheduled for 4p.m. on the same dateat the Oz Glaze SeniorCenter, located on13969 Veny Webb inHorizon City.

Donations may bemade to the local VFWin his memory.

lead the inspection. Approximately106 cadets will be inspected.

Officers in the program will givetheir speeches to the Commander andanswer questions about the programand discuss their motivations for be-ing in the program.

The public is invited to attend theinspection, as the drill team will per-form for the Commander at approxi-mately 10:00 a.m.

For more information, contact SanElizario High School at 872-3970.

By Laura CadeSpecial to the Courier

By Kim GuzmanSpecial to the Courier

Canutillo ISD Initiates Big Brothers Big Sisters Programmission is to help children reach theirpotential through professionally sup-ported, one-to-one relationships.

The new Canutillo program ismade possible through the MentoringProgram Grant from the U.S. Depart-ment of Education. Plans are to col-laborate with teachers, parents, men-tors, and other school personnel tobenefit Canutillo youth. Volunteersthroughout the El Paso area are in-vited to participate in Canutillo’s BigBrothers Big Sisters Program.

Big Brothers Big Sisters volunteersprovide Littles with one-on-one at-tention in their schools, typically

once a week during the academicyear. As their friendships evolve, vol-unteers and children discover ways tomake school and learning fun.

“National research shows thatLittles are more likely to show posi-tive behaviors in school and at home.Our matches are effective becauseprofessional staff ensure that the re-lationships are safe and rewarding foreveryone involved,” said RosarioOlivera, CISD district coordinator forthe program.

For more information contactBBBS of El Paso, at 544-4203, orOlivera, at 877-7583.

The counselors in Clint ISD aretaking an active part in the “Counse-lor Connection”, a unique collabora-tion between counselors from areaschool districts, local agencies, Re-gion 19 and UTEP.

The goal of the collaboration is tocombine resources to benefit allcounselors by coordinating and plan-ning seminars and training. The col-laboration also prepares experiencedcounselors to help those who are new

Clint ISD counselors take part in the “Counselor Connection”to the profession. In early Novem-ber, at the 2004 Texas Counseling As-sociation Conference in Ft. Worth themembers presented a seminar on thecreation and implementation of thisunique collaboration. Clint ISD’sDirector of Special Projects, BessieLeroy, was among those who pre-sented.

The members of theConnection arealso coordinating the 2005 TexasCounseling Association Conferencehere in El Paso Nov. 2-5, 2005. Over1400 counselors from the region areexpected to visit the sun city for thisevent. Leroy is serving as the con-

ference director of the Social Ser-vices Committee which hosted a2005 conference “Kick Off” in Ft.Worth on Nov. 5 with a “MananitasBreakfast” complete with mariachis.Clint ISD counselors Rosa Salcido,Juanita Gandara, Helen Rojas, andSocorro ISD Counselor Hilda Lopezare working with Leroy. The commit-tee also set up a conference promo-tion booth at the conference exhibithall with help from the El Paso Con-vention and Visitors Bureau, deco-rated with the flare of the El Pasoborder region and offering informa-tion about the community.

November 25, 2004 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER Page 3

By Steve EscajedaSpecial to the Courier

Amistad Loan CompanyCelebrate The Holidays!

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Public NoticeSan Elizario Independent School District

2004-2005 School Meal PolicyThe San Elizario Independent School District serves break-fast and lunch every school day. All children in the dis-trict will receive a reimbursable meal at no charge throughthe academic year of 2004-2005. All children will receivea free breakfast and free lunch regardless of income. Inthe operation of the child-feeding program, no child willbe discriminated against because of race, color, religion,gender, disability, age or national origin.

Noticia PublicaPoliza de Comida del Año

2004-2005 del Distrito EscolarIndependiente de San Elizario

El Distrito Escolar Independiente de San Elizario serviradesayuno y almuerzo cada dia escolar. Todo los niños recibirancomida sin cobro durante el año escolar 2004-2005. Todoslos niños recibiran un desayuno y un almuerzo gratis sinimportar sus ingresos. En la operacion del programa decomidas para niños, ningun niño sera discriminado por suraza, color, religion, genero, incapacidad, edad oorigennacional.

In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department of Agriculturepolicy, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basisof race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability. To file a com-plaint of discrimination, write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights,Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW,Washington D.C. 20250-9410 or call 202/720-5964 (voice and TDD).USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

El Departamento de Agricultura de los EE.UU. (“USDA”) prohibe ladiscriminación en todos sus programas y actividades en base a laraza, color de la piel, país de origen, género, edad o discapacidad.Para presentar una queja de discriminación, escriba a USDA, Di-rector, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 1400Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 o llameal (202) 720-5964 (voz y para sordos). “USDA” es un proveedor yempleador que ofrece igualdad de oportunidades.

For information about your rights or grievance proceduresplease contact Raul Jacquez, Food Service Coordinator, at (915)872-3980.WTCC: 11/25/04

Classified Ads

LEGAL

SOCORROINDEPENDENT

SCHOOLDISTRICT

Invitation to Bid/Respond:

Sealed bids/pro-posals/CSP to fur-nish the District withthe following prod-ucts and/or ser-vices will be ac-cepted at the fol-lowing times:

THURSDAY,DECEMBER 16,

2004

10 GIGABITBLADES FORCISCO 6509CSP NO.199-

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Proposals will bereceived at Busi-ness ServicesDept., 12300Eastlake Drive, ElPaso, Texas 79928until the specifiedtimes. Detailedspecifications areavailable from theabove office be-tween 8 a.m. and 4p.m. Mondaysthrough Fridays.WTCC-11/25/04________________________

PUBLICNOTICE

As per Article V,Sec. 5.05(a), allowners andlienholders haveten (10) days fromthis date to reclaim

their vehicles atS o u t h w e s tWrecker, 1401Darrington Rd.,855-1900, 851-2091-fax, or it willbe sold at publicauction for charges:VIN -WVWCB5I55LKO2O462,1990 VolkswagonCabriolet, 2-door,blue, Texas platesN42 HLVWTCC-11/25/04________________________

HELPWANTED

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To: To whom it mayconcernFrom: AntonioAraujo, ExecutiveDirectorSubject: Job an-nouncement, Self-Help Program con-struction supervisorDate: Nov. 19, 2004

O r g a n i z a c i o nProgresiva de SanElizario (OPSE)seeks applicationsfor full-time CON-STRUCTION SU-PERVISOR tooversee self-helpconstruction pro-gram.

OPSE is a nonprofit

community-basedorganization thatworks to improvehousing conditionsin San Elizario.Through our self-help housing pro-gram, families buildtheir own homesunder the supervi-sion of an experi-enced constructionsupervisor.

JobResponsibilities• Train participationfamilies in construc-tion• Oversee all self-help construction• Oversee bid pro-cess for materialand equipment pur-chase• Oversee all workwith subcontractors• Order materialsand oversee inven-tory• Develop construc-tion timetable andensure that con-struction is onschedule

Qualifications• Solid constructionexperience• Ability to functionindependently• Ability to work aspart of a team• Well-organized,dependable, andable to follow-through• Willing to travel,both in the El Pasoarea and out oftown• Able to work eve-nings and week-ends

• Comfortablespeaking Englishand Spanish• Committed to themission of OPSEand the self-helpprogram

Salary is nego-tiable, dependingon qualifications.OPSE is an equalopportunity/affirma-tive action em-ployer.For more informa-tion, please call915-851-0000.WTCC-11/25/04________________________

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BARGAINS

FIREWOOD: pe-can, cut in two-footlengths, $200/cord.851-3422 or cell

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RENTALS

F a i r w a yTownhouse, Hori-zon City, view 18thhole, EmeraldSprings. Two bed-room, two bath,available. 755-1730, 494-3054.________________________

TRAVEL

NINE-DAY educa-tional tour for teach-ers, students over21, family andfriends, to Merida,Mexico, theYucatan Peninsula,and the Mayan cityof Chichen Itza,Cancun and othercities. For more in-formation pleasecall 764-3433.________________________

SELF-HELP

Persons who havea problem with al-cohol are offered afree source of helplocally. AlcoholicsAnonymous - call562-4081 for infor-mation.

Tiene problemascon el alcohol? Hayuna solucíon.Informacion: 838-6264.________________________

SERVICES

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It’s funny how quickly your per-ception of the world can change.

Last Friday I was driving homeafter having just broadcast the Riv-erside Rangers’ 35-20 playoff victoryover Canyon Randall on the radio. Ifelt so good about these El Paso highschool athletes who had just ad-vanced to the round of 16 at TexasStadium.

An hour later that optimism camecashing down in utter disgust as Iwitnessed the replay of the DetroitPistons-Indiana Pacers basketbrawlgame on every channel.

The ideals of innocence, hard workand family were quickly replaced bythose of greed, disrespect and violence.

Was anybody really surprisedabout last week’s brawl? The onlything I was surprised about was thatit took this long to happen.

Undoubtedly, you’ve seen the pic-tures of the horrific brawl. In fact, I’msure you’ve seen the images over andover and over again. The disappoint-ing images of beer flying andpunches thrown and chairs hurledand people trampled and childrencrying were quite difficult to take.

We’ve been talking about the

NBA brawl no surprisechanging face of the NBA for sometime now. How the league is turninginto a childish battle for “street cred.”

The league has gone from the graceof Bird, Magic and Jordan to theleague of the gun-happy Jayson Wil-liams, the woman-hungry KobeBryant, the coach-choking LatrellSprewell.

It’s so bad now that along withscoring average, assists and re-bounds, NBA players battle eachother for additional stats like drugarrests, wife and girlfriend beatingsand DUIs.

Anyway, four players were singledout for last week’s mini-riot: Detroit’sBen Wallace and Indiana’s RonArtest, Stephen Jackson andJermaine O’Neal.

Some in the media have actuallymade the argument that all Artest wasdoing was defending himself whenhe went into the crowd to attack a fan.

No, sorry, not even close. Let’stake an intelligent look at what re-ally happened.

First of all, Artest fouled Detroit’sBen Wallace fairly hard on a dunkattempt in the last minute of thegame. Clearly, Wallace overreactedby going right at Artest and almosttaking his head off, pushing him backabout 10 feet.

Then Artest, who is a notorious hot

head, made a rational decision not todefend himself against the muchlarger Wallace. But as soon as he washit by an empty plastic glass, Artestwas brave enough to run into thestands to take on a much smaller fan.And to make matters worse, he wentafter the wrong fan.

So to say that Artest just snappedor was defending himself is ridiculous.

Let’s break this down. About“snapping,” Artest knew enough tostay away from Wallace so he obvi-ously was in control of his faculties.

And as far as “defending himself,”who do you think posed the greaterthreat to Artest, the little fan with theplastic cup or the 6-9, 240-poundmuscle-bound monster that tried todecapitate him?

Before NBA commissioner DavidStern made his ruling against theplayers involved, I honestly couldn’tthink of a punishment that was ap-propriate without including jail time.

But I have to commend Stern forthe fines he levied on these basket-ball playing morons.

Artest will miss the rest of the sea-son. Now he’ll have all the time hewanted to make that rap album.

Jackson will be suspended for 30days without pay and O’Neal willmiss the next 25 games.

And what a surprise — the NBAplayers association is planning toappeal. It’s funny, this organizationalways talks about what’s best for the

players — but all this organizationdoes is make it more difficult to pros-ecute players for their stupid behav-ior thus keeping the league from de-terring other players from doing thesame thing.

You can’t allow this kind of stuffto continue to happen. The UnitedStates tends to wait until a catastropheoccurs before doing something mean-

ingful about a dangerous situation.An ugly fight occurred but it could

have been much worse. Nobody wasbadly injured, but imagine whatcould have happened.

Stern had to be tough. He had tosend a message to the entire leagueon this one. And he did.

Next, let’s hope the police are asbold as David Stern.

SocorroFrom Page 1______________________

up with recommendations for that

office within 30 days. Councilvoted to seek Requests for Quali-fications (RFQs) in order to find aqualified replacement.

A special presentation was madeto Mrs. Sam Brewster, wife of the late

City Representative Sam Brewsterwho died in office earlier this year.Mrs. Brewster was presented with aplaque containing Mr. Brewster’sname tag, in recognition of his ser-vice to the City of Socorro.

WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIERPage 4 November 25, 2004

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WEDNESDAY

Sunshine andsome clouds.

54°� �

WED. NIGHT

A moonlit sky andchilly.

THURSDAY

A good deal ofsunshine.

59°� 38°�

FRIDAY

Mild with sunshineand patchy clouds.

64°� 42°�

SATURDAY

Mostly cloudy witha possible shower.

66°� 40°�

SUNDAY

Rather cloudy witha few showers

possible.

56°� 34°�

MONDAY

Clouds and somesunshine.

56°� 33°�

TUESDAY

A mixture of cloudsand sunshine.

58°� 32°�

WEATHER AccuWeather.com

SEVEN-DAY FORECAST FOR EL PASO

TEXAS WEATHER TRAVELERS CITIESUV INDEX

REAL FEEL TEMP®

AGRICULTURE

Statistics for noon.

Wednesday ........ 4 ....................LowThursday ............ 5 ............ModerateFriday ................ 5 ............ModerateSaturday ............ 3 ....................LowSunday .............. 3 ....................LowMonday .............. 4 ....................LowTuesday .............. 4 ....................Low

The higher the UV Index, the greaterthe need for eye and skin protection.

Albuquerque 43/28/pc 49/31/pc 53/32/pc 49/29/pc 44/25/cAtlanta 66/44/t 55/38/pc 57/40/s 59/45/pc 63/42/shAtlantic City 60/48/r 54/28/r 46/30/pc 50/36/pc 50/34/cAustin/San Antonio 60/36/pc 63/39/s 69/47/s 72/53/pc 68/42/cBaltimore 60/47/r 59/33/r 48/31/pc 50/34/pc 49/33/cBoston 52/50/r 54/38/r 44/32/pc 44/36/c 46/34/rChicago 38/26/sn 36/24/pc 38/28/sn 42/28/pc 37/24/snDallas/Ft. Worth 53/36/pc 58/42/s 66/47/s 62/45/pc 58/38/cDenver 38/21/pc 50/30/pc 47/21/c 34/17/sn 38/13/sfFlagstaff 44/18/s 48/20/s 46/22/pc 47/15/pc 42/15/sHouston 64/40/pc 62/40/s 68/52/s 74/56/sh 74/50/tKansas City 39/23/sn 43/31/c 48/31/sh 44/26/c 41/23/iLas Vegas 62/42/s 64/44/s 64/44/s 60/42/pc 56/40/pcMiami 84/71/pc 83/68/t 78/69/pc 81/69/sh 82/68/rMinneapolis 29/11/pc 26/16/pc 30/21/sf 34/22/c 33/15/cNew Orleans 77/48/t 62/42/s 67/53/s 72/56/pc 71/50/rNew York City 56/50/r 55/38/r 46/36/pc 48/40/c 50/38/rPhiladelphia 60/49/r 59/36/r 47/33/pc 50/36/pc 50/37/rPhoenix 65/46/s 70/48/s 72/50/s 69/47/pc 62/42/cPortland 52/44/r 52/40/r 46/38/sh 46/38/c 47/38/pcSan Francisco 60/48/s 61/50/pc 61/47/sh 61/45/pc 60/43/sSeattle 50/44/r 50/40/pc 46/38/sh 48/38/c 46/37/cTucson 61/37/s 65/40/s 71/44/s 67/40/pc 61/37/pcWashington, DC 61/49/r 60/35/r 46/35/pc 51/39/pc 49/38/c

City Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/W Hi/Lo/WWed. Thur. Fri. Sat. Sun.

Sunshine will mix with some clouds on Wednesday with winds west-northwest at 6-12 mph. Thanksgiving Day will feature dry weath-er under plenty of sun with temperatures returning to seasonable values. Winds will generally be west at 6-12 mph. Rain-free condi-tions will persist until Saturday. Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms,

r-rain, sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.

Wednesday ................................ 46°Thursday .................................... 49°Friday .......................................... 56°Saturday ...................................... 53°Sunday ........................................ 49°Monday ........................................ 47°Tuesday ...................................... 53°

The exclusive AccuWeather composite index ofeffective temperature based on eight weatherfactors.

Shown isWednesday’s weather.Temperatures areWednesday’s highsand Wednesdaynight’s lows.

All forecasts and maps provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2004

Anthony 53 33

Canutillo 53 33

Fabens 53 34

Clint 53 34

E. Montana 54 32

Socorro 53 31

Horizon 55 33

San Elizario 52 30

Tornillo 53 34

Vinton 53 33El Paso54/32

Santa Fe41/20

Albuquerque43/28

Alamogordo51/26

Las Cruces52/31

Deming53/27 Carlsbad

54/32

Amarillo45/29

Lubbock49/32

Alpine52/31

Odessa53/36

Lajitas64/39

Ruidoso42/27

Cloudcroft39/20

CiudadJuárez54/34

32°

Mexico

Dear Editor:The alliance of Germany, France,

Russia and Arab countries want Iraqto pay back money that Sadaam andhis thugs borrowed to pay for weap-ons guns, bombs and rockets that arekilling both American servicemenand Iraqi citizens.

Why is the U.S. getting involvedin this deal? If this alliance wantsthese terrorists to repay the money,they should send troops to fight them.

The alliance wants money but do notwant any of their citizens to fight.They want the U.S. to renegotiate theterms of loans given to terrorists. TheAmericans and the freedom fightersof Iraq should not pay for the terror-ists’ weapons.

Why should the U.S. get involved?We should tell the alliance to find theterrorists to send them the bill. Theyshould also pay back the money sto-len in the Oil for Food program. Let

Write stuff these international money-grabberstake a loss (for selling) anything toterrorists, and charge them for dam-ages done with these weapons.

Mark ConnollyHorizon City

Dear Editor:I am writing this letter in an effort

to unify our wonderful nation. I firstwrote the newspaper stating that thiselection would be a defining momentin our history. And the Americanpeople came through loud and clear

that they wanted to participate in theoutcome. Never have so many peoplevoted, for both parties.

The United States of America is themost compassionate, helpful nationin the world. What other nation hasbeen there for so many distressedplaces? America was there for Eu-rope in the first and second worldwars. America was there to breakdown the Berlin Wall and end thecold war. America has helped somany others. And now we must allpull together to get back to being sup-portive of each other. Together we

can achieve such great things, butdivided we will surely fall.

It is our responsibility as citizensof America and the world to do allwe can to insure that we come to-gether. I feel that President Bush isthe man who can bring us together,but it will take a concerted effort onour part to continue to pray and en-courage others to do this also. Let’sall work together to make Americathe Land of the Free and the Homeof the Brave.

Meredith KelleyEl Paso