SERVING ANTHONY, VINTON, CANUTILLO, EAST MONTANA, HORIZON, SOCORRO, CLINT, FABENS, SAN ELIZARIO AND TORNILLO MARCH 29, 2007VOL. 34, No. 13

NEWSBRIEFS

See BRIEFS, Page 4

For every minute you’re mad, you losesixty seconds of happiness.

— Quips & Quotes

1973

2007YEARS34

Butler moves onThe Anthony Independent School District(AISD) Board of Trustees has formally ac-cepted the resignation of Vern Butler, Su-

perintendent. He hasbeen the AISD Su-perintendent for thepast 3 years. Butler’scareer in educationhas spanned 36 years,all in El Paso County.He plans to relocateto the Fort Worth areain Crowley, Texas tobe closer to family.Butler commented,“I have greatly en-

joyed my years in education and I havenot given up on the idea of continuing towork in some capacity in the field of edu-cation. I am keeping my options open.”The Anthony Board of Trustees has ap-proved using the services of Region 19Educational Service Center to conduct thesearch for a new superintendent.

Sanchez signingAuthor and journalist Ray Sanchez willbe signing copies of his newest book,Latina Mistress, at the Main Library, 501N. Oregon, on Sunday, April 1 at 2 p.m.Sanchez is perhaps best known for themany years of sports writing that he didfor the El Paso Times and Herald Post.He has written six books on sports and haswritten for numerous national publica-tions. He is also a charter member of theEl Paso Sports Hall of Fame and a con-sultant on the movie Glory Road. His lat-est work, which is a departure from sports,takes a sobering look at the lives of twoundocumented immigrant women and thelives, loves and conflicts they experiencein their journey to El Paso. The novel isbased on the first hand accounts of womenfrom the El Paso area that the author hasinterviewed. Their stories date back to thestart of the 1900s. These fascinating ac-counts become a composite of the lives ofthe two protagonists in the book. For moreinformation call 543-5468.

CORRECTION:The original news release for the FirstThanksgiving Conference in San Elizariohosted by the San Elizario Genealogy So-ciety gave the wrong date for the confer-ence. The correct date is April 28.

In other news:� The Don’t Mess with Texas Trash-Offis part of the partnership between KeepTexas Beautiful and the Texas Departmentof Transportation. Every year, for one day,in the month of April, thousands of vol-unteers help Keep Texas Beautiful. It isthe single largest one day cleanup eventin the state. On April 14 from 9 a.m. to 2p.m. the Village of Vinton will be hosting

Vern Butler

FABENS — Providing community waterin Fabens has become a touchy subject sinceseveral customers contacted the media overbilling policies in the El Paso County WaterControl and Improvement District #4(EPCWCID#4).

The EPCWCID#4 is a political subdivi-sion created for the sole purpose of manag-ing water and wastewater services in the un-incorporated community of Fabens. Whilethey are a taxing entity, the district currentlydoes not assess any property taxes.

Within the last few weeks complaints havesurfaced over termination of water servicedue to nonpayment of bills.

In an effort to bring the water district intostricter financial compliance, the board ofdirectors set a firm policy of zero tolerancefor late payments beginning January, 2007.People in violation simply have their waterturned off. To regain service the account mustbe brought current and a $30 reconnectionfee must be paid.

Lala Garcia, the district’s office manager,said the fee covers only the average time ittakes to both shut off and turn back on acustomer’s service.

Garcia said the district passed the newpolicy at a Nov. 14, 2006 meeting. Everycustomer in the district received written no-tification of the policy — in English andSpanish — and a calendar showing the dueand cutoff dates for 2007 with their Decem-ber 2006 bill.

Garcia said the district’s billing is mailedout on the last day of the month for themonth’s usage. The bill is due by 4:30 p.m.20 days later, on the 20th of the followingmonth. For example, on Jan. 31, 2007 thedistrict mailed out 2,176 bills for water usedin January 2007. The bills were due Feb. 20,2007. Any customers that did not pay hadtheir water turned off on Feb. 21, 2007.

During that billing cycle 2,028 customerspaid on time while 148 missed the deadlineand had their water turned off. EPCWCID#4may be the last water district in the countyto go to the monthly standard.

While district bills have always been con-sidered due upon receipt, the prior policy en-acted in April of 2004 allowed people to beas much as three months delinquent beforetheir water was turned off. This may bewhere some of the current contention overdisconnects comes from.

In 2000, the district policy was to take adeposit of $150 per new customer. If the cli-ent was not late-paying and the account wascurrent after one year, the money was re-turned, according to Garcia.

However, this policy was subject to abuseafter the deposit had been returned. Custom-ers could run up a three-month debt and thenmove without paying. As a result, the dis-trict wrote off approximately $10,000 in baddebt for the four years 2000-2003.

Garcia said by enacting and enforcing the

Fabens water districtlooks to improvecollection percentage

Policy rankles some customers

Courier Staff Reports

See WATER, Page 3

SAN ELIZARIO — Members of the SanElizario High School Band are not only skill-ful musicians, they are also solid competitors.After rehearsing regularly for months and re-fining their musical selections to the best oftheir ability, 12 San Elizario High School stu-dents qualified for state competition by earn-ing a score of 1 or a superior rating at the Re-gional UIL Band Solo and Ensemble Contestheld at Americas High School on Feb. 24.

All the students have been diligently prac-ticing and polishing their selections since atleast November, according to Sharon Hittle,San Elizario High School Band Director. Al-though the students had the opportunity to prac-tice their competitive pieces in class, the ma-jority also had to devote time before and after-school to perfect the numbers they had chosento perform for competition.

The musicians that advanced to the state

San Elizario High bandmembers qualify for state

competition will travel to Austin over the Me-morial Day weekend to perform their materialone last time before different judges at theTexas State Solo and Ensemble Contest. “Thecompetition at the state level will be a lot harderbecause the judges are more difficult and theyare competing against everybody from aroundthe state,” Carl Ortega, Assistant Band Direc-tor, said.

He added that performing out of town in thestate’s final competition is an experience forthe students they should embrace. “Once theyhave competed locally they can move on tohear the best from all over Texas. It’s just agreat experience for them,” Ortega added.

There are approximately 80 students partici-pating in the band program at San Elizario HighSchool including flags. The twelve studentsthat will compete in Austin from May 25-28are: Edgar Beltran, Jose Collazo, Iris Carrasco,Mireya Arredondo, Erika Aguirre, ElizabethMorales, Amelia Peralta, Ashley Carrillo, AnaliMartinez, Bernie Torres, Frankie Carrasco, andKristina Delatorre.

Special to the CourierBy Cynthia P. Marentes

— Photo courtesy San Elizario ISD

ON A ROLL — Marching to state after Regional UIL competitions are these San Elizarioband members. Shown from left on the back row are Iris Carrasco, Jose Collazo, EdgarBeltran, and Bernie Torres. Front row, from left, is Mireya Arredondo, Ashley Carrillo,Frankie Carrasco, Elizabeth Morales, Anali Martinez, Erika Aguirre.

EL PASO COUNTY — Linda East officiallybecame the 72nd president of the Sun Bowl As-sociation last week during theorganization’s Celebration 2007 at theCamino Real Hotel. East takes overfor departing president John Folmer.

The event featured the collegefootball analyst Charles Davis as thekeynote speaker. Davis played in the1984 Sun Bowl for Tennessee andis currently the lead analyst for theFox Network’s coverage of the BowlChampionship Series.

East, who was a duchess in the1973 Sun Court, is one of only fourwomen to hold the title of president in Asso-ciation history.

East joined the Sun Bowl Association boardof directors in 1998 and served as theAssociation’s vice president of marketing from2000-04. She headed the development andimplementation of a ticket sales campaign thatled to a sellout at the Vitalis Sun Bowl in 2004.

Inducted into the Sun Bowl Ring of Honor in2005, East has held several positions at the Sun

Linda East named president of Sun Bowl Association

Linda East

Bowl Association, including secretary, vice presi-dent, executive vice president and president elect.

She has also been a member of thefootball committee for the two years.

East’s efforts as a volunteer led toher earning the inaugural Gary DelPalacio President’s Award in 2001.

An El Paso native and graduate ofBurges High School, East graduatedfrom the University of Texas at ElPaso with a Bachelor of Arts degreein journalism and a Master of Artsdegree in communications. She isthe owner of East Communicationsand prior to that, she worked for 10

years at Del Sol Medical Center and 18 yearswith the Socorro Independent School District.

An active member in the community, Easthas served on several boards including theRotary Club of El Paso, Better Business Bu-reau, El Paso ProMusica, United Way, RonaldMcDonald House, the YMCA and the YWCA.

She is married to Roger East and has twosons, Bryan, Adam. Her daughter, Jessika, wasa 2001 Sun Princess.

Page 2 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER March 29, 2007

Reyes Reports By U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes

One perspectiveBy Francis Shrum

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PublisherRick Shrum

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ContributorsDon WoodyardSteve Escajeda

Arleen Beard • Jan Engels

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

1973

2007

YEARS34

On Mon-day, March27, the gover-nor of Texassigned his

first bill into law for the 2007 Texaslegislative session. It was SB 378, a“castle doctrine” law which removesthe penalty for self-defense, up to andincluding deadly force, in the eventthat someone intrudes with supposedcriminal intent into your home, oc-cupied vehicle, place of business oremployment.

The bill was heavily backed by theNational Rifle Association, and thegroup heralded the law for doingaway with “duty to retreat” laws,which stated that someone may notuse deadly force if a reasonable per-son in the same situation would haveretreated.

In doing so, it protects people frombeing sued by the criminals or rela-tives of criminals they injure or killand from criminal prosecution.

According to the Dallas MorningNews, about 14 states — includingAlabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Okla-homa and Michigan — have passed“enter at your own risk” laws sinceFlorida became the first state to doso in 2006.

So-called “castle doctrine” lawsare a derivative of English commonlaw and, generally, people who haveacted within the spirit of these lawsare not prosecuted. However, Sen.Jeff Wentworth, sponsor of Texas’bill, said specifics are not on theTexas books.

“I’ve run into no opposition (to thebill),” Sen. Wentworth told the DMN.“Half of the people are surprised tofind we don’t already have that right.I think it will decrease the incentivesome people have now to break intosome people’s houses.”

The cartoon in the El Paso Timesthe day after the law passed showed

Laws of the hearta grandmother with her white hair a-flutter, in granny shoes and dress,blazing away with her pistol from herfront porch. On the ground beside heris a bag of garbage. In the back-ground, a family member calls out:“I’m sure you like the new law,Gran’ma, but must you squeeze offa few warning rounds every time youtake out the trash?”

While the idea of a granny shoot-ing into the bushes is a little funny,the reality is far from it. The takingof a human life — any human life —isn’t funny.

Bottom line, there are simply someissues that can never truly be regu-lated by law. They are issues that canonly be governed by laws of theheart.

I watched a western movie once inwhich a veteran lawman was hot onthe trail of a convicted murderer. Hehappened to be accompanied by acity dude. Upon spotting his manfrom a distance with his back ex-posed, he simply drew and shot theman down.

Aghast, the dude cried, “Why didyou shoot him in the back?”

The lawman replied, “His backwas to me.”

There are times and places wherethe rules of “civilization” are of littleuse — men are sent to do dirty jobswhich include making on-the-spot,life-and-death decisions. Soldiers, po-lice officers, and all those who standbetween America and anarchy arecalled to make horrendous judgmentsin situations where the scrutiny of so-called justice will never intrude.

However, each man must face him-self, and I can promise you that no manof conscience ever took a life for whichhe did not pay a personal penalty.

That is why the life and deathchoices allowed by this law should

See HEART, Page 3

Last week,the House ofRepresenta-

tives passed H.R. 1591, the U.S.Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Health,and Iraq Accountability Act, whichprovides emergency funding for thewars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I votedin favor of this bill, and provided thefollowing statement upon this vote inthe House:

“This week we lost another foursoldiers from Fort Bliss to an IED at-tack in Iraq. That makes a total of 35troops from El Paso who went to Iraqand didn’t come home.

“Remember, 35 is not just a num-ber. It’s not an abstract concept.Thirty-five is the number of familiessuffering — aunts and uncles, grand-parents, mothers and fathers, broth-ers and sisters, children. There arefriends, classmates, teachers,coaches, fellow soldiers, colleagues,and so many others who are con-nected to the lives of our lost heroes.

“The cost of this war has been too

The vote did not comewithout a statement

high not just in terms of lives lost andwarriors wounded. We have pouredtaxpayers’ money into Iraq. We havespent $500 billion — half a trillion!— dollars to that country. And as wehave increased our investment inIraq, we have less and less to showfor it. Rather than progress, our bil-lions of dollars have produced civilwar.

“Madame Speaker, when it comesto the Iraq War, my colleagues knowtwo things about me. One, I opposedthis war from the beginning. It was amistake. Two, since the Iraq War be-gan, I have been committed to ourtroops and to supporting the best pos-sible outcome.

“As a Vietnam veteran I knowwhat combat is about. I have visitedIraq seven times. I have been to Af-ghanistan many times. I know whatour troops require. I have worked outof the spotlight behind the closeddoors of the Intelligence Committeeand in the Armed Services Commit-tee. My focus has been providing our

soldiers with the tools they need tocomplete their mission and returnhome safely — body and vehicle ar-mor, IED jammers, and timely, ac-curate intelligence.

“And I’m proud of that work. I’msaddened that our troops didn’t havethe protection they needed right offthe bat, and I’m ashamed we went towar with bad intelligence, but I’mproud of the work we’ve done incommittee to set things right whenwe could.

“But today we send a strong mes-sage, that it is long overdue for theIraqis to stand up for their country,for the Iraqis to assume responsibil-ity for their security and for theirpolitical decisions.

“If Iraq is to become a democracy— and we’re willing to stay and helpthem with training, other supportfunctions — after four years it’s timethat they accept responsibility fortheir own future. And that’s what this

See VOTE, Page 3

March 29, 2007 Page 3WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER

be treated with extreme caution —the way we hope that each citizenbehaves when he or she decides toown or carry a firearm.

True, it is now allowable for aTexan to exercise deadly force as afirst resort in defense of home andhearth without fear that he or she willbe second-guessed by a court of law.

My question is, are we sure wewant to?

I grew up in a house full of guns. Iunderstood what they were for andthere was not a moment that I heldone in my hand or sat next to one thatI was not deeply aware of its powerand the potential for destruction. Gunsare tools, designed for the express pur-pose of killing a living creature. Assuch, they contain the power to wreckhavoc that may not be intended.

I had a good friend that lived on

the Mescalero Indian Reservation.She had two brothers who loved to gohunting together. One day they gotseparated in the forest and one of themwound up in a place the other did notexpect. He shot and killed him.

The annals of news reporting arereplete with terrible, heart-breakingstories about people who killedfriends, family members or innocentstrangers by mistake. Like harmfulwords, once a bullet is let fly there isno calling it back.

Well do I understand that there isa criminal element in every segmentof society. But I also believe that notevery person who enters a dwellingunannounced is a evil persona hell-bent on death and destruction to thosewho lie within. The consequence ofshooting first and asking questionslater may be more horrific than werealize.

Violating the laws of the heartcarries a high price indeed — es-pecially since it is our hearts thatwill have to pay it.

HeartFrom Page 2______________________

legislation is about. “More importantly, this bill

takes care of our troops. It bringsthem home. And once our troopsare home, this bill commits ourgovernment to caring for our troopsand veterans in a fashion that re-flects the sacrifices they have madefor our country.

“Madame Speaker, I’ve been lis-tening to the arguments of my col-

leagues on the other side. One thingI’m struck by is how similar the ar-guments I’m hearing today are towhat they’ve been saying for the pastfour years. Every step of the way, mycolleagues on the other side havebeen wrong on our policy in Iraq. Yetthey pony up the same rhetoric, thesame rationale for the same policiesthat have gotten us nowhere but intothe middle of a civil war.

“For four long years, our troopshave made immeasurable sacrificesin Iraq, and now it is time for the Ira-qis to step up and take responsibilityfor their own security.”

VoteFrom Page 2______________________

new policy the district is simply be-ing a good manager of its re-sources. She said as growth con-tinues and new needs arise thedistrict’s finances and books mustbe in good order. To be consideredfor financial help the district’s col-lection rates need to be 95 percentor better. She also said that any po-litical subdivision that does not runits business properly is subject tohaving the state step in and takeover.

Martin Madrid, district field engi-neer, said that over the last six yearsmajor projects in the district haveincluded:

• Resurfacing three water tanks($56,000);

• Replacing 5.68 miles of one- andtwo-inch lines to new six-inch waterlines (figure not available); and

• Installing a new one-mile long16-inch sewer line to take pressureoff existing gravity fed lines ($1.4million).

The next big concern forEPCWCID#4 is a new wastewatertreatment facility.

All of the projects have been paidfor by district revenues plus one loanfor the 16-inch sewer line.

The average EPCWCID#4 bill is$40 to $50 a month. The minimumbill is $34.14. Currently, the cost toobtain new service at a metered lo-cation is $295 — $150 for the de-posit and $145 for water/sewer ac-cess and the application process.

WaterFrom Page 1______________________

www.wtccourier.com

View from here By Michael Quinn Sullivan

For the sake of taxpayers, Texas’conservative lawmakers must vote tobust the state’s spending cap. That’s theonly way Texans can be assured of re-ceiving meaningful property tax relief.

Confused? You should be.The current spending limit, which

was called the Texas Tax Relief Act,has not actually limited spending.Ironically, the only thing it has lim-ited has been property tax relief lastspring; more about that in a moment.

Adopted in 1978, the cap theoreti-cally restricts the growth of govern-ment to growth in the state’seconomy. But it doesn’t. Since its in-ception, state government has grown500 percent, while the state’s grossproduct has increased 366 percent.

The amendment left it to lawmak-ers to determine the definition ofgrowth in the economy. Legislatorsopted to define it, very peculiarly, asgrowth in personal income.

Personal income is a very vagueconcept; that makes the “limit” badfor taxpayers, but good for tax spend-ers. For example, the current budget,adopted two years ago, grew 18.7

Tax relief, by any name, should be pursuedpercent over the budget adopted in2003. Did your take-home pay go up18.7 percent? Very doubtful.

The current spending cap also lobsoff from consideration large portionsof true spending. Yet, of course, prop-erty tax relief is counted as part ofthe spending cap.

In the crazy world of state consti-tutional language, it does make senseto consider property tax relief asspending. Here’s why.

Property taxes are collected lo-cally, by local government entities.So for legislators to “cut” your prop-erty taxes, what they essentially dois give money to the school districts(or other taxing entities) with the con-dition that upon cashing thelegislature’s check, the taxing entitywill lower your property tax rates.

So while the state had a record bud-get surplus last spring, lawmakers inthe special session felt constrained —by the spending limit — from usingmost of it for property tax relief.

That was then, this is now. The sur-plus has grown even larger, and thelittle tax relief offered last year wasn’t

enough to be felt by most Texans.It is imperative for lawmakers now

to bust a meaningless spending capfor the purpose of providing mean-ingful property tax relief.

Permissible, but with one impor-tant caveat: The tax relief must be-gin on the low side of the cap, andthen continue beyond it.

Tax relief, by any name, shouldbegin well before, and continue past,the cap.

What isn’t allowable, for thoseclaiming the mantle of fiscal respon-sibility, is to spend every penny upto the cap on new, expanded or ex-tended government programs, andthen “bust” it for tax relief.

It is mildly reassuring some legis-lators are worried about the idea ofbusting the cap; they have clearlyunderstood that voters are fed up withfiscal irresponsibility. But those samevoters will be very worried aboutfretting legislators who stand in theway of property tax relief.

Indeed, their opposition not only

See RELIEF, Page 5

Page 4 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER March 29, 2007

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its first ever Trash-Off. Volunteersfrom the community of Vintonand surrounding areas will becontributing to the clean-up ef-forts. Help us teach Texans aboutthe importance of keeping ourstate beautiful. Contact IvanaRenteria or Ruby Rodriguez at(915) 886-5104 to find out howto participate. For more informa-tion on the Don’t Mess with TexasTrash-Off, visit the web atwww.ktb.org.

� Socorro ISD is one of 50school districts nationwide andthe only one in Texas to receivean ID system from the Depart-ment of Justice. The Raptor Visi-tor ID Check In System providesan ID swiping system thatsearches national databases forsex offenders and others thatshould not allowed near theschools. The system will readdriver licenses, recognized stateIDs, green cards and active mili-tary ID cards.

� Kids can listen to a Zoo volun-teer read stories about animals andsee a real animal up close, rightthere in the bookstore when the ElPaso Zoo volunteer readers visitthe Westside location of the Barnes& Noble, 705 Sunland Park, everymonth on the second Saturday at10 a.m. From tails — pun intended— of daring zebras to tricky tigersto lovely lions, these stories aresure to excite and intrigue yourlittle ones. For more informationor to volunteer at the Zoo call: 351-5340. Volunteers must be 18 orolder.

� Scleroderma is a group of dis-eases that involve the abnormaland often painful growth of con-nective tissue (tendons and carti-lage) under the skin and aroundinternal organs. Although sclero-derma is more common in women,this chronic disorder also occurs inmen and children and affectspeople of all races and ethnicgroups. Learn more, including thedifferent types, symptoms, diagno-sis, and treatments, with Handouton Health: Scleroderma from theNational Institute of Arthritis andMusculoskeletal and Skin Dis-

eases. For your free copy, sendyour name and address to the Fed-eral Citizen Information Center,Dept. 604P, Pueblo, CO 81009.Or call toll-free 1 (888) 878-3256,and ask for Item 604P. And visitwww.pueblo.gsa.gov to read orprint this and hundreds of otherFCIC publications for free.

� From Aesop’s Fables to TheGreat Gatsby, themes of friend-ship, happiness, and self-discov-ery are present in many of ourmost-beloved books. That’s whythe National Endowment for theHumanities has put together the“Pursuit of Happiness” poster.This poster of the Endowment’sWe the People Bookshelf lists 15classic books all related to the“Pursuit of Happiness” theme.Divided into four grade groups,it has books for children of allages. For your free copy, sendyour name and address to the Fed-eral Citizen Information Center,Dept. 506P, Pueblo, CO 81009.Or call toll-free 1 (888) 878-3256,and ask for Item 506P. And visitwww.pueblo.gsa.gov to read orprint this and hundreds of otherFCIC publications for free.

BriefsFrom Page 1______________________

ANTHONY — Last August theUpper Valley dealt with an enemy itcould see — devastating floodswhich ravaged Vinton, Canutillo andAnthony.

The danger was real, potent andclearly identified.

On Wednesday, April 25, Anthonywill learn, through staged scenario,to cope with a virtually unseen butdeadly biological enemy, one thatmay look like an innocent white pow-der in an envelope or easily dispensedin aerosol containers.

The danger is spelled out in “SurviveBio-Terrorism: A Basic Handbook.”The publication begins chillingly.

“Bio-terrorism, once the stuff of sci-ence fiction, is now the stuff ofeveryone’s nightmares. Recent anthraxcases may just be the beginning. Thereare a number of biological agents outthere — everything from ricin toxinto smallpox — that can kill.

“Some of these agents are easy tocreate, easy to transport and easy tospread …”

Enter the Anthony IndependentSchool District and the El Paso City-County Health and EnvironmentalDistrict. The two entities are work-ing together to heed both the Bibli-cal entreaty as well as the bio-terror-ist warnings in the handbook.

Rosalinda Garcia, SNS (StrategicNational Stockpile) planner with theEl Paso City-County Health and En-vironmental District, is coordinating

and working with John Carrillo,AISD’s director of technology andcommunication. He is also volunteercoordinator.

Community presentations havebeen made and volunteer trainingconducted in preparation for the April25 mock exercise scheduled from 8to 11 a.m. in the gym of the AnthonyMiddle School. The drill focuses onvolunteers quickly setting up andoperating a self-sufficient, functionalPOD, a Point of Dispensing criticalmedicines and other support based onthe specific nature of the emergency.All medicines are free.

“Things have been going fine,”Carrillo says. The first training washeld last week. He says approxi-mately 30 people have been trainedto operate the PODs so far, but manymore are needed. Twenty-seven areneeded for each of two shifts. “Thebig thing is getting volunteers. We

Upper Valley school district plans drill to prepare for bio-terrorismBy Don WoodyardCourier Staff Writer

need people from all walks of life.“It falls on the community to sup-

port it; it depends on the communityto make it successful,” he points out.

According to a pamphlet, the Divi-sion of Strategic National Stockpilecomes under the Centers for DiseaseControl and Prevention and is a na-tional repository of antibiotics, chemi-cal antidotes, antitoxins, vaccines andother life-saving medicines.”

These medications are stored in 12strategically located warehousesaround the country in “12-Hour PushPackages.” This means they can beflown to threat areas within a 12-hourperiod.

“It’s good to have these things inplace,” says AISD superintendentVern Butler. He feels it’s importantfor the school district to work to-gether with the community in prepa-ration for such an emergency. “Weneed to be prepared.”

Carrillo notes El Paso is especiallyvulnerable to bi-terrorist threat. “(Thethreat) is very real. Disease recognizesno border. It is very easy to transmitdisease from one country to another.”

As a certified SNS planner, Garciaworks with state and local agenciesto coordinate efforts in responding toa possible threat. She said long-rangeplans call for 20 PODs at El Paso areahigh schools.

The Anthony exercise is not thefirst in the El Paso area. One was heldMarch 8, 2006 at Mountain ViewHigh School in the Clint IndependentSchool District.

“We learned a lot,” says LauraCade, community relations coordina-tor for the Clint ISD. “The agenciesworked together. It was a great ex-perience.”

For more information about thePOD drill, call Carrillo at 886-6539or Garcia at 532-3406.

Ever make a mistake on your taxreturn? If so, you’re not alone.

Mistakes can cost you money —taxpayers often miss deductions ortax credits. They can also draw un-wanted attention to your return fromthe Internal Revenue Service (IRS)and could result in penalty fees. TheNational Society of Accountants(NSA) identified these “Top TenMistakes” that taxpayers make:

1. Using the wrong column in thetax table. For each level of income,tax rates listed in the tax table areusually different for taxpayers whoare single, married filing jointly,married filing separately, and headsof households. It can be easy to pulla number from the wrong column.

2. Not claiming the right numberof exemptions. Children count asexemptions up to age 23 — makesure they are claimed on the return

Top ten mistakes taxpayers make on returnsas exemptions with the current ex-emption amount, which often in-creases year-to-year.

3. Not adding state income tax re-funds as taxable income. It’s easy toforget the state tax return refund yougot last year. Remember that thiscounts as taxable income on your fed-eral return if you itemized last year.

4. Not being aware of tax credits.The federal government offers manytax credits, including earned income,energy, education, fuel, elderly, childcare, child tax, and foreign tax cred-its. Many states offer renters’ cred-its. Take advantage of these if theyapply to you.

5. Not calculating and comparingthe Alternative Minimum Tax. Everytaxpayer must calculate this alterna-tive tax to see if it applies to their situ-ation. Failure to do so could result inadditional taxes and penalties.

6. Not claiming a refund of excessFICA (Social Security) tax. If youchanged employers in 2006 andearned more than $94,200 (the 2006

income limit that applies to FICA tax)the employers together may havewithheld more FICA than you owe.Make sure you calculate this andclaim a refund if appropriate.

7. Not attaching W-2 forms andother forms. This common mistakeis easy to make, so double check tomake sure they are included.

8. Not entering Social Securitynumbers on all tax documents. Inaddition to the main return, docu-ments such as Schedule A and othertax schedules should all have com-plete information, including SocialSecurity numbers.

9. Not signing the return. After allthe calculations, don’t forget thisimportant step!

10. Not enclosing the check for anypayment owed. Yes, you must writea check if you owe money. Don’t for-get to include it!______________________________________________________NSA represents accountants who spe-cialize in serving individuals andsmall-to-mid-size businesses.

Special to the CourierBy Al Rickard

March 29, 2007 Page 5WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER

recruitment of potential players. “Alot of people have supported our teambuilding effort,” Coach Miller said.

This is the second year in a row thatthe team has made it to the bi-districtplayoffs. Coach Miller, however, hashis eyes on another bigger goal — hav-ing more girls go on to play collegiatesoccer. Last year, former Lady EagleSusana Chavarria made history bybecoming the first student from SanElizario High School to sign on to playsoccer at Howard Payne University.This year’s team includes two seniorco-captains Angie Ramirez and Crys-tal Martinez whom Coach Miller be-lieves have the ability to play at thecollegiate level.

“A winning team is a reflection of

the attitude of the school and the dis-trict as a whole, everything from theeducational side to the athletic side.Good news is like bad news — it’scontagious but it gets people excitedabout things,” Coach Miller said. TheLady Eagles’ triumph in soccer bi-district playoffs against the more ex-perienced team from Jefferson is abit of good news that will no doubtspread quickly in San Elizario ISD.

EaglesFrom Page 6______________________

UPPER VALLEY — SylviaGonzalez has been named princi-pal of the new elemen-tary school that is nowunder construction in theCanutillo IndependentSchool District.Gonzalez is currentlyprincipal of DeannaDavenport ElementarySchool.

Gonzalez brings toher new position over 30years of experience inthe education field. Shewas the assistant principal at Dav-enport Elementary School for fouryears before becoming its princi-pal in 1994. She joined CISD in1990 as a Bilingual Education Re-source Specialist. Prior to that, shewas a teacher with Gadsden ISDfor 12 years.

“It is an exciting challenge forme. I am looking forward to creat-ing a new school environmentwhere all students will have the op-portunity to reach their highest po-tential,” said Gonzalez.

The new elementary school,which was recently named by the

CISD School Board in honor ofGonzalo and Sofia Garcia, isscheduled to open next January.The new school is located near theintersection of Borderland Roadand Westside Drive.

“Sylvia has all of thequalities that are neces-sary to open a new cam-pus. She is a leader, veryknowledgeable in cur-riculum development,and is familiar with theDistrict resources avail-able to her,” said Dr.Pam Padilla, CISD su-perintendent.

Search for a new prin-cipal at Davenport ES is

underway. Gonzalez said that sheleaves behind a strong team of edu-cators who will be able to continueto provide a high quality educa-tional program at the Westwayneighborhood campus.

Gonzalez will begin her new jobin May with staffing and budget-ing duties. The new school willopen with a full staff includingteachers and support personnel inAugust at Damian ElementarySchool campus. In January 2008,administrators, teachers, supportstaff and students will move as afamily to the new campus.

Gonzalez to lead Canutillo’snewest elementary school

By Alfredo VasquezSpecial to the Courier

Sylvia Gonzalez

To AdvertiseCall 852-3235

denies immediate tax relief, but en-sures higher taxes in the future. Makeno mistake about it; if the cap is notbusted for the sake of the taxpayer,lawmakers will find creative ways tospend those surplus revenues outsidethe cap and thus grow the size of gov-ernment (and our tax burden) foryears to come.

Fiscal conservatives committed to

tax relief must encourage lawmakersto bust the spending cap. Granted,busting the cap may not feel good, butour state’s economy — and our taxpay-ers — will greatly appreciate the signifi-cant property tax relief that results.

Make no mistake: the state’sspending cap is already broken. Bust-ing it for tax relief is good policy forTexas’ taxpayers.____________________________________________________Michael Quinn Sullivan is presidentof Texans for Fiscal Responsibility,a non-profit organization based inAustin (www.EmpowerTexans.com).

ReliefFrom Page 3______________________

EAST EL PASO COUNTY —From Washington D.C. to Albuquer-que to San Antonio and back to Al-buquerque, Americas High Schoolstudent Gabriel Mendoza is having abusy spring. The senior recently re-turned home from the Intel ScienceTalent Search held in Washingtonwhere he met with national leadersand legislators such as Vice PresidentDick Cheney, and U.S. Representa-tive Silvestre Reyes.

Mendoza’s project on the effectsand dynamics of the transovarialtransmission of West Nile Virus(from female parent to offspring)earned him a spot among 40 stu-dents nationwide in what is consid-ered America’s oldest and mostprestigious high school sciencecompetition.

The project, which he started withhis sister Priscilla, also impresseddirectors with the National ScienceFoundation and the National Insti-tutes of Health. Both siblings havebeen asked to apply for summer in-ternships within the organizations forthe mosquito research they started atAmericas High School and whichPriscilla is continuing at Notre Dame.

The Intel Science Search finalistsmet at the Science Talent Institute inWashington, D.C., March 9-14 wherethey interacted with top scientists andparticipated in rigorous judging ses-sions. Gabriel was one of two Texasfinalists in the competition and re-ceived a $6,000 scholarship, an IntelCentrino TM mobile technology-based notebook computer and $1,000for his school.

Mendoza is not unpacking his suit-case yet. He is heading to the Re-

Americas senior among 40 top science students in the nation

— Photo courtesy Socorro ISD

MAKING THE ROUNDS — Congressman Silvestre Reyes met with andcongratulated Gabriel Mendoza. Mendoza received a $6,000 scholar-ship, an Intel Centrino TM mobile technology-based notebook com-puter and $1,000 for his school based on his science project in theIntel Science Search competition.

By Irma FloresSpecial to the Courier

gional Junior Science and Humani-ties Symposium being held in Albu-querque before returning to school onMarch 26.

In April, the Americas senior willbe at the Texas International Scienceand Engineering Fair (ISEF) beingheld in San Antonio and at the ISEFin Albuquerque in May where he willbe presenting his project which wonhim the Gold Sweepstakes Award inthe Physical Science Category at theSun Country Regional Science Fair.

“I conducted a different researchproject for the ISEF fairs,” saysMendoza. “This project involves cre-ating efficient quantum algorithms to

solve classically unsolvable mathproblems.”

Gabriel plans to attend MIT or CalTech for quantum computing andhopes to contribute to the next com-puter revolution.

“This summer I will be preparingfor college at MIT, Stanford, orCaltech if I get accepted,” saysMendoza who is also a NationalMerit Scholarship finalist. “In collegeI hope to double major in physics andcomputer science, so I can studyquantum computing and quantumphysics in graduate school. Eventu-ally, I hope to help engineer the com-puters of the future.”

Page 6 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER March 29, 2007

Classified Ads

By Steve EscajedaSpecial to the Courier

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STOP HEREFOR $5 AD.( )

Please print.Send form andpayment (no cash) to:

West Texas County Courier15344 Werling Ct.

Horizon City, TX 79928

Deadline: Mondays

Contact Information:

Name: ________________________

Phone: ________________________

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

1973

2007

YEARS34LEGAL

SOCORROINDEPENDENT

SCHOOLDISTRICT

Invitation toBid/Respond:

Sealed bids/pro-posals/CSP/RFP tofurnish the Districtwith the followingproducts and/orservices will be ac-cepted at the fol-lowing times:

TUESDAY,APRIL 10, 2007

AUTOMOTIVEPARTS - OEM

Part IICSP NO.

199-0410-7061ACCEPTED

UNTIL1:00 P.M.

MINI BLINDSCSP NO.

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ELECTRICALPARTS ANDSUPPLIESCSP NO.

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2:00 P.M.

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 Fridaysand on the SocorroISD website:www.sisd.net.WTCC-03/29/07________________________

Border FairHousing &Economic

Justice Center

Invitationfor Bids

The Border FairHousing & Eco-nomic Justice Cen-ter (BFHC) is a re-cipient of a TDHCAContract for DeedConversion withRehab grant con-tract number1000561. TheBFHC will receivesealed bids for resi-

dential rehabilita-tion for seven (7)residences until4:00 p.m. (localtime) on the April17, 2007 at theBFHC, 1444 Mon-tana Ave., Ste 100,El Paso, Texas79902. Bid packetsare available at theBFHC startingMarch 30, 2007from 9:00 a.m. to5:00 p.m. Mondaythrough Friday. Bid-ders will be re-quired to leave a$25.00 refundabledeposit. All submit-tals must be sealedand received by4:00 p.m. April 17,2007. Submittedenvelopes must bemarked “CON-TRACT FORDEED/ REHABBid” on the lowerleft hand side of theenvelope.

A pre-bid confer-ence is scheduledon April 3, 2007 at2:00 p.m. at 1444Montana Ave., Ste100, El Paso, Texas79902. Bids will beopened on April 3,2007 at 3:30 p.m. at1444 MontanaAve., Ste 100, ElPaso, Texas 79902.

The Contractormust ensure thatemployees and ap-plicants for employare not discrimi-nated against be-cause of their race,color, religion, sex,or national origin.The Border FairHousing & Eco-nomic Justice Cen-ter reserves theright to reject any orall Bids or to waiveany informalities inthe bidding. BorderFair Housing &Economic JusticeCenter is an Affir-mative Action/Equal OpportunityEmployer.

Anibal OlagueExecutive Director

WTCC: 03-29-07______________________________

HELPWANTED

Part-time bartenderneeded at the Hori-zon City AmericanLegion. Call 852-4823 after 3 p.m.3/29________________________

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

Tiene problemascon el alcohol? Hay

una solucíon. Info:838-6264.________________________

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Steady job for mature, older person.From 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. with overtime.Very good pay and very good work-ing conditions. Must live in lower val-ley or Horizon. Ideal candidate willbe bilingual and will be able to ride ahorse. Our last security guard waswith us for over 12 years, when heretired. Must pass thorough back-ground check. We can furnish atrailer home for right person. Fax re-sume to 764-4168 or call Jose Vegaat Indian Cliffs Ranch, 544-3200.

What the heck is going on with Kobe Bryant?The Los Angels Lakers star has lifted his gamea bit lately in an attempt to either help his teamwin games, or help lift his personal status.

Kobe, who tends to look at the game as apersonal reflection on himself, has ditched his“I’m going to be more of a team player” atti-tude with his more comfortable “I’m the starand what are you going to do about it?” styleof play.

Bryant scored 225 points in a four-game spanlast week, to join Wilt Chamberlain as the onlytwo players in NBA history to score at least 50points in four straight games.

But Kobe’s feat, though quite impressive,loses its luster when put under the microscope.

Let’s take a look at the teams the Lakersfaced during Kobe’s scoring explosion. First,Kobe scored 65 on the Portland Trailblazers,who were 26-40. Then he followed with 50against the 29-39 Minnesota T-Wolves and thenput 60 on the Memphis Grizzlies and their pa-thetic 17-52 record.

Kobe’s ‘performances’ come against struggling teamsThe best team the Lakers have faced is New

Orleans. Kobe scored 50 on the 31-38 Hornets.That means Kobe has done his damage

against four teams with a combined 103-169record.

How long can Kobe keep this going? Weshould ask his teammates, who are beginningto spend more and more of their time standingand watching Bryant play his one-on-fivegame.

In the four games, all very close wins againstinferior teams, Kobe has taken 140 shots. Thataverages out to a whopping 35 a game. In thatsame span, Los Angeles’ second leadingshooter has fired up almost 100 less attempts(Lamar Odom 47 shots).

Kobe was taking nearly 43 percent of histeam’s shots during the streak. That might workagainst teams with little talent, but once theLakers play teams with winning records they’llsuffer greatly.

The Suns, Pistons, Spurs, Mavericks, Rock-ets, Cavaliers, Jazz and Heat will clamp downon Kobe, and the rest of the team will be un-able to respond because they haven’t had muchpractice shooting lately.

So enjoy the limelight Kobe. Like always,

your achievements will get you onSportsCenter, but will do very little to help yourteam win.

Final Four FiascoFor the first time in my memory the NCAA

Tournament has gone exactly the way the ex-perts said it should, and I’m not enjoying itmuch.

Oh, I guess it was fun watching UCLA takeon Kansas and watching North Carolina meetGeorgetown was intriguing, and seeing OhioState and Memphis was good, but I must ad-mit that I was missing Cinderella.

No, not the Disney chick with the missingshoe, but the double-digit seeded team fromwherever USA, that defied the odds by upset-ting one of the big boys.

There was no Cinderella at this year’s tour-nament. Remember how much fun it was lastyear when everybody was talking about GeorgeMason and whether they could win it all?

Something is missing this year. The passionis missing. All the team’s that were supposedto win — have. Where’s the fun in that?

Where are the Gonzaga’s and the Princeton’sand the George Mason’s?

Every great movie needs a villain and anunderdog. We don’t want to watch two goodguys go at one another, we don’t want to watchtwo bad guys go to war. We want good versusevil, big versus small, rich versus poor.

It’s the kind of battle we can all relate to —and it’s missing this season.

La Russa on the rocksWith the Major League Baseball season less

than a week away, every team would like toget the year off on the right foot, especially thedefending World Series champions.

But that’s not exactly what is happening withthe defending champion St. Louis Cardinals,at least not for their manager.

Tony La Russa was arrested last week fordriving drunk after police found him asleep inhis vehicle at a stop light.

Boy, I’ve heard of falling sleeping in frontof the TV on the couch, but in your SUV at astop light? Exactly how drunk was this guy?

As it turns out, La Russa was very lucky.His SUV was in drive, but his foot was on thebrake while he was sound asleep.

C’mon, Tony, it’s been five months since you wonthe World Series. It’s time to stop celebrating!

SAN ELIZARIO — The San

Lady Eagles triumph in bi-district playoffs

— Photo courtesy San Elizario ISD

PLAYING BIG — The Lady Eagles huddle up with their hard won trophy.

Elizario varsity girls soccer teamfaced a strong opponent and bitinggusts of wind on a cold Friday nightat Jefferson High School but theystill managed to walk off the fieldwith a trophy in their hands and achance to move on to the next levelof competition.

On March 23, as spectators in thestands and sidelines hunkered downfrom the sudden onslaught of chillyweather, the Lady Eagles remainedsteadfast and focused on the game.It was that perseverance — instilledby their coach, George Miller — thatcarried them to a 1-0 victory overJefferson with a goal scored late inthe second half by sophomore AliciaMartinez.

The girls’ team earned their placein the bi-district game after a solid

Special to the CourierBy Cynthia P. Marentes

season of soccer playing under thedirection of Coach Miller. After tak-ing over the San Elizario High Schoolgirls’ soccer program in 2001, CoachMiller has worked tirelessly at build-ing a tradition of consistency, disci-pline, and competitiveness. With theassistance of junior varsity coachJesus Gamez, Coach Miller has de-veloped and trained the smallest teamin District 2-4A into a group of re-spectable and proficient athletes.

It has taken coach Miller years ofeffort to make soccer take root in SanElizario, a task that could not havebeen possible without the support ofthe community. He relies on the workof club coaches and the middle schoolto begin laying the groundwork for the

See EAGLES, Page 5

March 29, 2007 Page 7WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER

King Super Crossword

ComixOUT ON A LIMB By Gary Kopervas

AMBER WAVES By Dave T. Phipps

THE SPATS By Jeff Pickering

R.F.D. By Mike Marland

By Don FloodActually, I’m not talking a se-

cret. I’m talking “The Secret.”“The Secret,” a book by Rhonda

Byrne that has become a publish-ing phenomenon, details the Lawof Attraction.

Here’s the explanation, for thescientifically minded out there.

“When you think of the thingsyou want, and you focus on themwith all your intention, then theLaw of Attraction will give you ex-actly what you want, every time.”

(Note to guys checking out thecover of the Sports Illustratedswimsuit issue: I’m not sure whyBeyoncé isn’t with you just now— but don’t give up!)

That’s it. A DVD, which you canalso buy, dramatizes how it works.A woman admires a necklace. Sud-denly, it’s hers.

A boy imagines a bike. Sud-denly, he has one. It’s that simple.Ask. Believe. Receive. And notjust dumb things like Peace ofMind, but real live stuff. You don’teven have to go online.

Here’s how the book says tobegin:

“Starting with something small,like a cup of coffee or parkingspaces, is an easy way to experiencethe Law of Attraction in action.”

I don’t know why she says“small.” These are HUGE.

If I could just imagine and comeup with a double latte, I think thatwould be really cool — plus ev-erybody would want to be myfriend.

(“Hey, Don, how about a decafwith extra cream?” “Coming rightup, old pal!”)

I admit, my first thought was,that’s the dumbest thing I everheard. By simply visualizing anempty parking spot, for example,your brain is somehow sending out

a signal to all those who are cur-rently parked and causing one ofthem to leave.

And here’s the tricky part. Thetiming must be such that this won-derful parking spot — which youvisualized yourself — will not betaken by another person, who forall you know could be visualizingsomebody naked.

But I’ve come to embrace TheSecret. It works — even when itdoesn’t.

Here’s how. I hate searching forparking spaces. In a city, I prefergoing to a parking garage and pay-ing rates equal to college tuitionrather than driving around aim-lessly looking for a spot that Iknow has not existed since the Ageof the Dinosaurs.

But The Secret solves my prob-lem. Since I’m driving and mustfocus all my brainpower on notgetting lost, it’s up to my wife tovisualize the empty parking space.

This is a simple, logical divisionof labor and a win-win situation forme. If Helen’s brain waves are suf-ficient to procure a parking spotright in front of where we’re go-ing, more power to her.

If not — and we’re late — thenit’s her fault. I wish I had knownabout The Secret years ago.

Here’s another advantage. I usedto think that to write an amusingcolumn, I had to be funny.

No, you have to imagine me be-ing amusing. If you just troubleyourself to imagine a funny col-umn, you’ll get one. If not, that’syour problem.

So, by all means, go buy thebook now.

Well, come to think of it, justimagine wanting the book. Itshould arrive shortly.______________________________________________________(c) 2007 King Features Synd., Inc.

Do you want to know a secret?

GREAT SCOTTS!ACROSS

1 Piglet’s papa 5 It’s up your sleeve 8 Waugh’s “TheLoved _” 11 Vapor 14 _ check 18 Eban of Israel 19 Geometric figure 21 Hibiscus garland 22 Commedia dell’_ 23 Scott Hamilton’srival 25 Chemical ending 26 Obtains 27 New Hampshirecampus 28 _ ex machina 29 Jury members 31 “Ready! _! Go!” 32 Ordered 34 Gilpin of “Frasier” 37 21st President 39 Chews thescenery 41 Annual award 42 Bewitchinglocation 43 Dealt with adragon 44 _ -Japanese War 46 Harvest 48 Hurler Hershiser 50 Rock’s _ Supply 51 Scott Wolf series 55 With 89 Across,“Batman” star

57 Al of “Insomnia” 60 Bond rating 61 High-flying agcy. 63 Claire or Balin 64 Component 65 Nab a gnat 68 Adjusted an ascot 69 Mil. base 70 Show indifference 72 Scott Baio co-star 75 Column style 77 Flicka’s food 78 Lohengrin’s love 80 Actress Mia 81 Reject 82 Periodontists’ org. 83 Wander 84 With 120 Down,Bowzer’s group 86 Uproar 89 See 55 Across 91 Scott Glenn film 96 Liechtenstein’scont. 97 Command at acorner 99 Iridescent stone100 Atmosphere101 Hotels102 Shortstop PeeWee105 Vatican virtue107 99 and 007109 “The Producers”star110 _ vera111 “Fantasia” frames112 Prohibit

113 On _ (doing great)115 Vittle statistics?118 “April Love” singer122 Riyadh resident124 By means of125 Scott Joplincomposition128 Hint129 Sixth sense130 Varnish131 Pavlova or Paquin132 Table d’_133 Dem.’s opponent134 Predatory fish135 Theater sign136 “_ my lips!”

DOWN 1 Conifer covering 2 Bassoon relative 3 Singer Lane 4 Heavenly sight 5 4 Down’s shape 6 Zimbabwe,formerly 7 Grimace 8 San Luis _, CA 9 TV’s “The Flying_” 10 Slalom curve 11 Merriment 12 Vergil’s vagabond 13 _ Leone 14 Give in to gravity 15 Scott Turow novel 16 Furry fisherman 17 Try out 20 East Lansing coll.

24 Tidy 29 Damascus dish 30 Normandy site 33 Tyrant 35 Spanish river 36 Shorten a sail 38 Olympic first lady 39 Director Kazan 40 Scott Carpenter’sprofession 41 “… say _ do” 43 Fool 45 New Deal agcy. 47 1492 vessel 49 Hawaiian island 52 Applauds a bore? 53 Self-smitten 54 Language suffix 56 Not fem. 58 Shiba _ (Japanesedog) 59 Neighbor of Mali 62 “Farewell!” 66 “I _ Rock” (’66 hit) 67 Museum piece 70 Clarinetist Artie 71 Hot spot? 72 “Comic Dictionary”author 73 Dack of “Dallas” 74 New Jersey city 76 Baseball’s “MasterMelvin” 79 Bud’s buddy 81 Sail with Sinbad 85 _ Simbel 87 Kennel features 88 Cen. segments

90 Stocking stuffers? 92 Horrify 93 Brad, for one 94 Role for Liz 95 Prophetic 98 Wilson of “LaFemme Nikita”101 To such an extent103 Restaurantemployee104 Plaza Hotel kid106 Tone down108 Isle near Corsica109 Mrs. Phil Donahue112 Baroquecomposer114 Certain Finn116 Pipe connection117 “I RememberMama” character119 Sarah _ Jewett120 See 84 Across121 “My word!”123 Hum bug?125 Flavor enhancer:Abbr.126 “Gotcha!”127 System starter

Answer Page 5

Page 8 WEST TEXAS COUNTY COURIER March 29, 2007

Social Security Q&A By Ray Vigil

Social Security has introduced anew home page design — atwww.socialsecurity.gov — and it iseven easier to use than its highly-ac-claimed predecessor.

Because more and more people aredoing business on the Internet, So-

cial Security is committed to mak-ing it easy for you to conduct yourSocial Security business online. Theredesigned home page will help youfind what you are looking for fasterand more efficiently.

Some of the more noticeable

changes to the new home page in-clude:

• easier access to Frequently AskedQuestions, one of our most popularfeatures;

• more drop-down menus insteadof long lists of links;

• a search box located directly onthe home page;

• a more visible login button forpeople who already receive benefitsand have a password; and

• a quick reference list of links toour most popular online services.

Our mos t f requent ly usedonline services include applying

for benefits online, replacing alost, stolen or damaged Medicarecard, requesting a proof of SocialSecurity income letter, changingyour address or phone number,and finding the nearest SocialSecurity office.

Another popular feature is our listof Frequently Asked Questions. Thisservice alone gets 27 million visitorseach year. The questions and answersare easy to find and can be searchedby specific subject matter.

In 2006, more than 50 millionpeople visited the Social Securitywebs i te — ht tp : / /

www.socialsecurity.gov. In 2007,we expect that number to grow,and visitors to the site will findit easier to navigate and moreresponsive to their searches forspecific subjects.______________________________________________________For more information on the articleabove, visit our website atwww.socialsecurity.gov or call us at1-800-772-1213. If you have anyquestions that you would like to haveanswered, please mail them to theSocial Security Office, 11111 Gate-way West, Attn: Ray Vigil, El Paso,Texas 79935.

Social Security receivesnew look on the internet

OUR APOLOGIES!Regular readers of the Courier are used to seeing the next week’s weather on this page alongwith a sponsoring ad. This week, without notice to the Courier and other papers around thecountry, the two parties that provide the copy for this space terminated their relationship.

A representative for AccuWeather®, the company that provides the weather graphics, said thatthe notification duties belonged to the company placing the ads accompanying their graphics.

They declined to provide any gap coverage despite the lack of notification to newspapers.

GWA, a national advertising company responsible for the weather page contract, could not bereached last evening. They were supposed to provide a minimum of 90 days notice if there were

changes or problems with the content provided to the Courier.

The Courier will replace both suppliers as soon as reliable providers can be found. Any businessthat would like to sponsor the Courier’s weather page should call 852-3235. This page is only

available for long-term advertisers.

Again, our apologies to our readers.

Physicians have new advice for patients:Protect yourself against unexpected bills formedical care in spite of having health insur-ance.

Too often a patient receives medical care ina hospital covered by his or her health insur-

Protect yourself from surprise medical bills, advise physiciansance plan but is later shocked to receive anadditional bill for care.

Patients who receive medical care in a hos-pital often discover many of the physician spe-cialists who work in hospitals, such as emer-gency medicine physicians, anesthesiologists,or pathologists, are not included in their healthplan. Unfortunately, most patients do not findout until they receive a bill.

“They’re appalled,” said Michael Speer, MD,member of the Texas Medical Association(TMA) Board of Trustees. “Quite properly; Iwould be appalled, too. How many people canyou think of who can just reach in their pocketand pay thousands of dollars?”

How can this happen?Employers and patients pay health insurance

premiums expecting a large list of all types ofphysician specialties to be accessible to carefor them. This list is called an “adequate net-work” and should consist of primary care phy-sicians, surgical and medical specialists, hos-pitals, and hospital-based physicians such asradiologists, pathologists, and emergency roomphysicians. When health plans do not provideadequate networks, patients are stuck with ex-pensive insurance premiums and unexpectedmedical expenses if they receive care from aphysician who is not a member of the network.

Hospitals and physicians each must decidewhether to join a health plan’s network. Justbecause a hospital is included in a patient’shealth plan does not mean every physicianworking in the hospital is in the network. Un-fortunately, most people are under the mistaken

impression that if a hospital is covered by theirhealth insurance, so are the physicians.

For example, a woman having a baby entersa hospital covered by her health plan. In thecourse of her hospital stay, her obstetrician-gynecologist treats her, and depending uponthe delivery, she might receive anesthesia froman anesthesiologist, a blood test examined bya pathologist, and an x-ray analysis by a radi-ologist, all of whom may or may not be in herhealth plan network.

“Those patients who are in the hospital of-ten don’t feel well. They expect to be caredfor, and they expect they’ve paid their moneyto provide that insurance coverage so that theydon’t have a lot of out-of-pocket expenses,”reasoned Dr. Speer.

What can patients do?Dr. Speer suggests patients educate them-

selves ahead of time. “They need to ask ques-tions of their health insurer and theiremployer’s human resource department. Learnwhat the patient will and will not be respon-sible for,” Dr. Speer advised. “Is there a highdeductible? Does it cover the physicians withinthe hospital? Does it cover accidents? Does itcover newborn care?”

TMA physicians suggest patients do thehomework now so they can make informeddecisions in the event of an unexpected emer-gency.

Dr. Speer, a Houston neonatologist, seesmany tiny patients transferred to the hospitalwhere he works. He cares for premature new-born babies who need intensive care. If the

hospital has space for the patient, it must ac-cept the baby without prior discussion of pay-ment. Fragile babies born as many as 12 weeksearly often require a 10- to 12-week hospitalstay. Often several weeks into the baby’s stay,the insurer announces the hospital is outsideof the plan’s network and demands action.

“The insurer wants that baby transferred assoon as possible to an in-network hospital,” Dr.Speer said. “The insurer will put pressure onthe family, saying, ‘You now are responsiblefor all the costs if the baby stays in this out-of-network hospital.’” In addition to being jarringto the parents, the situation can be more diffi-cult if the baby is not healthy enough for trans-fer.

“That is a bit of a shock for the parents,”described Dr. Speer. “They paid for insurance,they thought their baby was covered, but theymay be responsible for all of the costs of thatbaby’s care from that point forward.”

Physicians would like insurers to informpatients about which hospitals and physiciansare in or out of the network of coverage. Mean-while, they advise patients to be diligent inasking questions.

“They should hold their insurer’s feet to thefire,” said Dr. Speer. He adds that TMA is work-ing with legislators to require health insurersto disclose accurate, current, and honest infor-mation to employers and employees on healthplan networks, as well as copays anddeductibles. TMA believes patients must havethat information available when they need it,at the time of medical services.

Special to the CourierBy Brent Annear