WEDNESDAYFEBRUARY 18, 2015

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Zapata County Judge JoeRathmell said that from2007-08, Zapata County’smineral value was at about$2 billion from its naturalgas production and some oilproduction.

Now, the county’s mineralvalues are at a little morethan $500 million, he said.

Rathmell said the price of

natural gas has been de-pressed for several yearsnow, and it has had a dra-matic effect on drilling inthe county.

“Production is depleted,”Rathmell said. “(Old wells)don’t produce as much asone that is recently drilled.A new well will produce at ahigher rate than an olderwell.

“If you want to keep acertain amount of produc-

tion, you try to drill morewells to keep up the produc-tion. Because of the pricebeing so low for it, compa-nies just aren’t drilling fornew wells.”

Rathmell said thoughsome Zapata County resi-dents in the oil and gas in-dustry have found jobs atnearby sites like Eagle FordShale, the county did nothave such a fruitful come-back.

The county judge saidthey’ve had to reduce theircounty workforce over theyears by nearly 20 percent— almost 70 positions — tomake up for its lower oiland gas values.

Rathmell said the countyhas also been trying to “domore with less” when itcomes to county services.

“We’ve basically eliminat-

ZAPATA COUNTY

Low mineral valueLocal government forced to ‘do more with less’

By KENDRA ABLAZATHE ZAPATA TIMES

See VALUE PAGE 9A

After two decades of political posturing, across-border trucking program will soon beready to roll, opening up an avenue to ex-pand trade between Texas and Mexico.

The U.S.-Mexico cross-border truckingprogram allows Mexican trucking compa-nies to apply for permission to travel withtheir U.S.-bound goods beyond the current20- to 25-mile limit past the border. Current-ly, most trucks haul goods to the border,where the products are warehoused and re-loaded by American carriers for shipment totheir final destinations.

But trade and union groups in the U.S.say a recent pilot program that tested thepolicy — a component of the North Ameri-can Free Trade Agreement — did not com-pile enough reliable data and that Americandrivers could be at risk as a result.

Designed to make international trademore efficient, the program has been in lim-bo amid several bitter exchanges betweenU.S. and Mexican officials over the last twodecades. After a pilot program initiated in2007 by former President George W. Bushwas defunded by the U.S. Congress twoyears later, the Mexican government retal-iated and imposed tariffs on about $2 billionworth of American goods. That applied tonearly $200 million of Texas-produced goodsin 2009, according to the office of the state’sformer agriculture commissioner, Todd Sta-ples.

After a second, three-year pilot programwas completed in October, the Federal MotorCarrier Safety Administration announced inJanuary that Mexican carriers are on trackto enroll in the program if they meet vari-ous safety and training standards.

The program could add to an alreadybooming trade relationship between Texasand Mexico.

Mexico is the state’s largest trading part-ner and the country’s third, behind Canadaand China, according to WorldCity, a Flor-ida-based trade-tracking company. The Lare-do and El Paso customs districts are thebusiest ports on the border, with $269 billionand $86.4 billion in two-way trade, respec-

US-MEXICO

See TRUCKING PAGE 9A

A truck crosses the border between Mexico and theUnited States in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, Oct. 21, 2011.

Photo by Hans-Maximo Musielik | AP file

Truckingprogram

progressesMexican companies will beable to travel further inland

By JULIÁN AGUILARTEXAS TRIBUNE

WASHINGTON — The Oba-ma administration put its newdeportation-relief program onhold Tuesday on the eve of itslaunch, complying reluctantlywith a federal judge’s orderthat roiled immigrant commu-nities nationwide and seemedto harden an already-tensestalemate on Capitol Hill.

President Barack Obamapromised an appeal and pre-

dicted he’d prevail. But fortens of thousands of immi-grants in line to begin apply-ing today for work permitsand deportation stays underhis directives, their planswere canceled, at least tempo-rarily.

Talking to reporters in theOval Office, Obama said hedisagreed with the ruling byU.S. District Judge AndrewHanen of Texas that the ad-ministration had exceeded itsauthority. But he said that, for

now, he must abide by it. “We’re not going to disre-

gard this federal court rul-ing,” Obama said, but he add-ed that administration offi-cials would continue toprepare to roll out the pro-gram. “I think the law is onour side and history is on ourside,” he said.

On Capitol Hill, the Home-land Security Departmentstood 10 days away from los-ing funding, but Hanen’s rul-ing made a compromise on

that dispute look more distantthan ever. Republicans areblocking funding for the agen-cy unless Democrats agree tocancel Obama’s immigrationorders, and they seized on theruling as validation for theirposition.

Yet Senate Democrats, whohave been blocking a House-passed bill that would fundthe department but also undoObama’s actions, said the rul-

IMMIGRATION

PROGRAM ON HOLD

Mercedes Herrera and others chant during an event on DACA and DAPA Immigration Relief at the Houston International Trade Center, Tuesday. TheWhite House promised an appeal after a federal judge in Texas temporarily blocked President Barack Obama’s executive action on immigration.

Photo by Melissa Phillip/Houston Chronicle | AP

Texas federal judge blocks Obama’s executive actionBy ERICA WERNER AND JIM KUHNHENN

ASSOCIATED PRESS

See IMMIGRATION PAGE 5A

The death toll from a colli-sion between a passenger busand freight train near the Ca-maron customs station outsideof Anáhuac, Mexico on Fridaynight has risen to 20, accordingto Civil Protection and Fire au-thorities in Nuevo Laredo andAnáhuac.

While no official report onthe incident has yet been re-leased, authorities believe thebus driver tried beating thetrain at a railroad crossing.

The resulting collision leftthe bus nearly destroyed.

Sixteen people died at thescene — nine men, five women

and two children. Four otherpeople died Friday night inNuevo Laredo hospitals.

Victims who died in Solidar-idad General Hospital wereJuanita Luna, 67, and an un-named woman between 25 and30 years old. Social SecurityHospital Number 11 recordedthe death of Carlos FernandoRico Cabriales, 39, while EmilyMarlene Perez Rangel, 6, died atSan Jose Hospital.

Transportes Frontera bus4146 left Nuevo Laredo for Nue-va Rosita, Coahuila, at 4 p.m.Friday.

The bus left Nuevo Laredowith 28 people. During the tripthe bus made several stops to

pick up passengers, which to-taled 51 at the time of the acci-dent.

The impact with the trainsplit the bus into two parts. Be-sides the 20 who died, 22 otherswere left injured. Some of theinjuries were classified as seri-ous.

Nuevo Leon state authoritiesidentified the driver as JesusCarlos Fernandez Rico, whosewhereabouts are unknown.State attorney general’s officialsconfirmed neither the drivernor anybody connected to theaccident are jailed in Nuevo La-redo.

ANÁHUAC, MEXICO

A passenger carries his child to safety after the bus they were traveling incrashed into a train Friday.

Courtesy photo

See CRASH PAGE 5A

20 dead in bus, train crashTHE ZAPATA TIMES

PAGE 2A Zin brief WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015

Wednesday, Feb. 18

Free heart health educationclass. 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at FirstUnited Methodist Church, 1220McClelland. All materials are in Eng-lish. Topics to be discussed: BloodPressure 101, Cholesterol 101, Die-tary Approaches to Stop Hyperten-sion, Weight Management and Physi-cal Activity, Heart-Healthy Cookingand Fast Food Survival for HeartHealth. Contact Patricia at 722-1674.

Saturday, Feb. 21

TAMIU Lamar Bruni VergaraScience Center Planetarium. Earth,Moon and Sun, 2 p.m. New Hori-zons, 3 p.m. Saturn: Jewel of theHeavens, 4 p.m. Led Zeppelin, 5p.m. Admission is $4 for childrenand $5 for adults. Admission is $4for TAMIU students, faculty andstaff. Call 956-236-DOME (3663).

Tuesday, Feb. 24

TAMIU Lamar Bruni VergaraScience Center Planetarium. Saturn:Jewel of the Heavens, 5 p.m. BlackHoles, 6 p.m. Admission is $4 forchildren and $5 for adults. Admis-sion is $4 for TAMIU students, facul-ty and staff. Call 956-236-DOME(3663).

Wednesday, Feb. 25

Free heart health educationclass. 12:30 p.m. to 2 p.m. at FirstUnited Methodist Church, 1220McClelland. All materials are in Eng-lish. Topics to be discussed: BloodPressure 101, Cholesterol 101, Die-tary Approaches to Stop Hyperten-sion, Weight Management and Physi-cal Activity, Heart-Healthy Cookingand Fast Food Survival for HeartHealth. Contact Patricia at 722-1674.

Thursday, Feb. 26

Spanish Book Club from 6 to8 p.m. at Laredo Public Library onCalton Road. Call Sylvia Reash at763-1810.

Villa San Agustin de LaredoGenealogical Society will meet from3-5 p.m., at the Center for the Artsin downtown. A $2 donation fornon-members is requested. Call San-juanita Martinez-Hunter at 722-3497.

Friday, Feb. 27

TAMIU Lamar Bruni VergaraScience Center Planetarium. LedZeppelin, 6 p.m. Live Star Presenta-tion (observing will occur after showif weather permits), 7 p.m. Admis-sion is $4 for children and $5 foradults. Admission is $4 for TAMIUstudents, faculty and staff. Call 956-236-DOME (3663).

Saturday, Feb. 28

TAMIU Lamar Bruni VergaraScience Center Planetarium. Earth,Moon and Sun, 2 p.m. New Hori-zons, 3 p.m. Saturn: Jewel of theHeavens, 4 p.m. Led Zeppelin, 5p.m. Admission is $4 for childrenand $5 for adults. Admission is $4for TAMIU students, faculty andstaff. Call 956-236-DOME (3663).

Saturday, March 7

Texican CattleWomen’s Steak-a-Rama. In Memory of Mary Kay &Gene Walker. Steak dinner with allthe trimmings. 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. La-redo International Fair & Expositionon Hwy. 59. Donation: $7. Get tick-ets from any CattleWoman member,the LIFE Office (Hwy 59), GuerraCommunications (6402 N BartlettAve at Jacaman Rd.) or PrimpedStyle Bar (7718 McPherson).

(Submit calendar items atlmtonline.com/calendar/sub-mit or by emailing edito-rial@lmtonline.com with theevent’s name, date and time,location and purpose and con-tact information for a repre-sentative. Items will run asspace is available.)

CALENDARASSOCIATED PRESS

Today is Ash Wednesday,Feb. 18, the 49th day of 2015.There are 316 days left in theyear.

Today’s Highlight in His-tory:

On Feb. 18, 1885, MarkTwain’s “Adventures of Huck-leberry Finn” was publishedin the U.S. for the first time(after already being publishedin Britain and Canada).

On this date:In 1546, Martin Luther, lead-

er of the Protestant Reforma-tion in Germany, died in Eisle-ben.

In 1861, Jefferson Davis wassworn in as provisional presi-dent of the Confederate Statesof America in Montgomery,Alabama.

In 1913, Mexican PresidentFrancisco I. Madero and VicePresident Jose Maria PiñoSuarez were arrested during amilitary coup (both were shotto death on Feb. 22).

In 1930, photographic evi-dence of Pluto (now designat-ed a “dwarf planet”) was dis-covered by Clyde W. Tom-baugh at Lowell Observatoryin Flagstaff, Arizona.

In 1953, “Bwana Devil,” themovie that heralded the 3D fadof the 1950s, had its New Yorkopening.

In 1970, the “Chicago Sev-en” defendants were found notguilty of conspiring to inciteriots at the 1968 Democraticnational convention; five wereconvicted of violating the Anti-Riot Act of 1968 (those convic-tions were later reversed).

In 1984, Italy and the Vati-can signed an accord underwhich Roman Catholicismceased to be the state religionof Italy.

In 1995, the NAACP re-placed veteran chairman Wil-liam Gibson with Myrlie Ev-ers-Williams, the widow ofslain civil rights leader Med-gar Evers.

Ten years ago: Explosionstore through Baghdad and anearby city on the eve of Shi-ite Muslims’ holiest day, kill-ing three dozen people.

Five years ago: In Austin,Texas, software engineer A.Joseph Stack III crashed hissingle-engine plane into abuilding containing IRS offic-es, killing one person besideshimself.

One year ago: Defiant pro-testers shouted “Glory to Uk-raine!” as burning tents lit upthe night sky after thousandsof riot police moved againstthe sprawling protest camp inthe center of Kiev

Today’s Birthdays: ActorGeorge Kennedy is 90. FormerSen. John Warner, R-Va., is 88.Author Toni Morrison is 84.Singer Yoko Ono is 82. SingerIrma Thomas is 74. ActressJess Walton (TV: “The Youngand the Restless”) is 69. SingerDennis DeYoung is 68. ActressCybill Shepherd is 65. SingerRandy Crawford is 63. ActorJohn Travolta is 61. ActorJohn Pankow is 60. Gameshow host Vanna White is 58.Actress Jayne Atkinson is 56.Actor Matt Dillon is 51. Rap-per Dr. Dre is 50. Actress Mol-ly Ringwald is 47. Actress Sa-rah Brown is 40. Actor Ike Ba-rinholtz is 38. Actor KristofferPolaha is 38. Singer-musicianSean Watkins (Nickel Creek)is 38. Actor Tyrone Burton is36. Rock-singer musician Regi-na Spektor is 35. Opera singerIsabel Leonard is 33. Rootsrock musician Zac Cockrell(Alabama Shakes) is 27.

Thought for Today: “Tem-perament is temper that is tooold to spank.” — CharlotteGreenwood, American actress-comedian (1893-1978).

TODAY IN HISTORY

AUSTIN — While savoring a major courtvictory from his old job, Republican Gov.Greg Abbott on Tuesday gave marching or-ders at his new one in a State of the State ad-dress that abandoned the fiery flair and de-fiant rhetoric on social issues that his prede-cessor had.

Rather than use his biggest platform yet toreaffirm opposition to same-sex marriage orabortion, Abbott mostly stuck to the meatand potatoes of governance. He declaredmore highway funding and a limited expan-sion of pre-kindergarten among five priori-ties for the Legislature to immediately tack-le.

Ethics reforms also made the cut, and Ab-bott took a fresh swipe at transparency is-sues within former Gov. Rick Perry’s flag-

ship economic development program, theTexas Enterprise Fund, which has doled outnearly a half-billion in taxpayer dollars toprivate companies.

The tempered tone and content of thespeech starkly contrasted to bombastic Stateof the State addresses under Perry, who inthe run-up to his failed 2012 White House bidmade divisive issues such as voter ID and so-nograms for women getting abortions hislegislative priorities.

Perry, who is now preparing for anotherpossible presidential run in 2016, was notmentioned by Abbott.

One of Perry’s final major acts as gover-nor was deploying National Guard troops tothe Texas-Mexico border — and Abbott con-firmed to a packed House chamber that themission will not end in March as previouslyplanned.

AROUND TEXAS

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott arrives to the House Chamber to deliver his State of the State address to a joint session of theHouse and Senate, Tuesday in Austin. Abbott told lawmakers that roads, education and border security are the biggest is-sues facing Texans.

Photo by Eric Gay | AP

Abbott’s State of StateBy PAUL J. WEBERASSOCIATED PRESS

Judge in ‘Sniper’ deniesrequest for mistrial

STEPHENVILLE — A judgehas denied a defense request fora mistrial in the case of a formerMarine accused of killing “Amer-ican Sniper” author Chris Kyleand Kyle’s friend.

The request came Tuesday inthe trial of Eddie Ray Routh afterprosecutors said they mistakenlysuggested glass vials presentedearlier belonged to Routh. Prose-cutor Alan Nash said “inartful”questioning likely made jurorsbelieve the vials stored in boxesof evidence seized from Routh’shouse belonged to him.

Power back on at UTAustin campus

AUSTIN — Power has been re-stored to the University of Texasat Austin following a 90-minutecampus-wide outage that did notinterrupt classes. A UT spokes-man said Tuesday’s outage wasthe first time in 10 years that theentire campus lost electricity.

Crews rescue man stuckin pit with concrete mixSAN ANTONIO — San Anto-

nio firefighters and rescue teamshave pulled a construction work-er from a trench partially filledwith concrete.

A fire department official saysthe man was filling trencheswith the cement mix late Mon-day when a metal retaining wallbroke, flooding the pit that wasabout 20 feet below street level.He was trapped in the trench forat least an hour and a half.

Dallas hospital posts livetweets of heart transplant

DALLAS — A Dallas hospitalhas live-tweeted a heart trans-plant operation, offering Internetusers a front row seat. A medicalteam traded in a scalpel for asmartphone Monday to postTwitter updates of the surgerythat occurred at Baylor Universi-ty Medical Center at Dallas. Thepatient agreed to let the hospitalreport on the surgery.

Woman to lead A&M corpsfor first time in its history

COLLEGE STATION — TexasA&M University has announcedthe Corps of Cadets will be ledby a woman for the first time inthe university’s 139-year history.

The university said Mondaythat junior Alyssa Marie Mi-chalke of the Fayette Countytown of Schulenburg will assumecommand of more than 2,400 ca-dets in the spring. Michalke cur-rently is corps sergeant major,the highest rank for a cadet whois not a senior. She’s the firstwoman to hold that rank.

Traffic stop yields $700Khidden in tire, 2 arrestsWESLACO — A South Texas

traffic stop has led to the discov-ery of nearly $700,000 hidden in atire and two arrests. The driver,Reyes R. Hernandez III of Hum-ble, was being held Tuesday oncharges of money launderingand unlawful carrying of a weap-on. — Compiled from AP reports

Oil train derails andexplodes in W.Va.

MOUNT CARBON, W.Va. —Fires were still burning morethan a day after an oil train car-rying more than 3 million gal-lons of crude derailed in a snow-storm, shooting fireballs into thesky and leaking oil into a WestVirginia waterway.

Hundreds of families wereevacuated and two water treat-ment plants were temporarilyshut down after 19 of the tankercars left the tracks and caughtfire, burning a nearby housedown to its foundation.

One person was treated forsmoke inhalation, but no otherinjuries were reported, accord-ing to the train company, CSX.

More measles cases tiedto Disneyland, day careNEW YORK — The number of

U.S. measles cases this year hasrisen to 141, with most of the

new illnesses tied to outbreaks atDisneyland in California and anIllinois day care center.

Twenty new cases were addedTuesday to the tally by the Cen-ters for Disease Control and Pre-vention: 10 in California fromthe Disneyland outbreak, 8 from

the suburban Chicago outbreakat a day care center, and two un-related cases in Nevada.

Most of the people who havegotten measles this year werenot vaccinated, the CDC hassaid.

— Compiled from AP reports

AROUND THE NATION

Fire burns at the scene of a train derailment, near Mount Carbon, W.Va. Firesburned for nearly nine hours after the train carrying more than 100 tankers ofcrude oil derailed in a snowstorm.

Photo by Bob Aaron/WCHS-TV | AP

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The Zapata Times is distributed on Saturdays to 4,000households in Zapata County. For subscribers of the LaredoMorning Times and for those who buy the Laredo MorningTimes at newsstands, the Zapata Times is inserted.

The Zapata Times is free.The Zapata Times is published by the Laredo Morning

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CONTACT US

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015 State THE ZAPATA TIMES 3A

Zapata’s annual CountyFair Parade will takeplace Saturday, March 14.

The Zapata CountyChamber of Commercewould like to invite allbusinesses, churches,clubs, schools, organiza-tions and elected officialsto participate in the pa-rade.

Trophies will be award-ed to:

Best in ShowTop Equestrian EntryTop Law Enforcement

EntryTop School EntryTop Musical EntryTop Military/Veteran

EntryTop Dance Team/Stu-

dio EntryTop Cheer EntryTop Business EntryTop Club/Organiza-

tion EntryTop Community Spir-

it Award

Parade lineup will befrom 7 to 8:30 a.m. on U.S.Hwy 83 and 3rd Avenue,next to Pepe’s Car Wash.All entries must be in lineno later than 8:30 a.m.

The parade will startpromptly at 9 a.m. andproceed on 3rd Avenue,heading north on U.S.Hwy 83 and taking a lefton 23rd Street to the Zapa-ta County Fairgrounds.

Trophies will be issuedand awarded at the ZapataCounty Fairgrounds at1:30 p.m.

Entry forms may bedownloaded from zapata-countyfair.com. To submita form, email cbalde-ras@zapatachamber.com,deliver to Zapata CountyChamber of Commerce,Attention: Celia Balderas,601 N. U.S. Hwy 83, Zapa-ta, TX 78076. Forms mayalso be faxed to 956-765-5434.

For more information,call 956-765-4871 ext. 12.

The Zapata County Fair Parade will take place March 14. Regis-tration is now open to participators.

Courtesy image

Zapata CountyFair Parade

SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

AUSTIN — Faith lead-ers rallied for marriageequality Tuesday at theTexas Capitol, seeking toconvince lawmakers thatexpanding rights to gay, bi-sexual and transgendercouples won’t compromisetheir religious beliefs.

“We demand equality!”chanted attendees, many ofwhom wore colorful litur-gical vestments and heldsigns stating they wereMethodist, Jewish, Unitar-ian, Baptist and Presbyter-ian. About 150 people trav-eled to the Capitol for therally, sponsored by the ad-vocacy group the TexasFreedom Network.

Minister Leslie Jacksonof the Houston UnitedChurch of Christ said thatequality is “God in ac-tion,” adding that “LGBTequality is not a distantcousin to faith, it is itsprogeny.”

Rev. Eric Folkerth, fromNorthaven United Metho-dist Church in Dallas,praised his city’s non-dis-crimination ordinance,adding that equality atwork is also important.The Dallas statute that pro-tects lesbian, gay, bisexualand transgender peoplefrom discrimination in em-ployment and housing hasbeen in place since 2002; asimilar ban in Houston iscaught up in a legal battle.

“Less government in-volvement in our lives leav-es us free to love who welove,” said Claire Bow, atransgender woman fromAustin. “The real trick isgetting legislators to seethe effects of the thingsthey put into law.”

Following the rally, at-tendees filtered into theCapitol to meet with law-makers on a variety ofbills. Several, filed by Dem-ocrats, would supportequality by barring dis-crimination based on sex-ual orientation and gender

identity in realms like pub-lic schools and insurancepolicies. Dallas Rep. EricJohnson proposed a mea-sure that would give theTexas Workforce Commis-sion the power to investi-gate claims of workplacediscrimination based onsexual orientation or gen-der identity.

But through other pro-posals, Republicans haveshown that equality for les-bian, gay, bisexual andtransgender Texans maybe untenable for now.

Magnolia Republican

Rep. Cecil Bell’s bill, calledthe “Preservation of Sover-eignty and Marriage Act,”has the support of 41 Re-publican House members.It would ban the use of tax-payer money to licensesame-sex marriages andban government employeesfrom recognizing, grantingor enforcing same-sex mar-riage licenses.

The constitutionality ofTexas’ ban on same-sexmarriage is currently be-fore the U.S. 5th CircuitCourt of Appeals in NewOrleans.

Marriage equality eyedBy EVA RUTH MORAVEC

ASSOCIATED PRESS

A man wearing a rainbow-colored tie and Equality Texas flag joins faith leaders and congregationmembers of various churches from around the state rally on the steps of the Texas Capitol Tueday.

Photo by Eric Gay | AP

GARLAND — A monthafter hundreds of peopleprotested outside a Mus-lim conference in subur-ban Dallas, a group criti-cal of Islam has planned acartoon contest of theProphet Muhammad inthe same building.

The American Freedom

Defense Initiative willhold a “Muhammad ArtExhibit and Contest” onMay 3 in Garland, Texas,with a $10,000 prize for thebest cartoon, The DallasMorning News reportedTuesday. Many Muslimsbelieve all images of theprophet are blasphemous.

The same building inGarland was where hun-

dreds of people held anti-Islam signs — including“Go home & take Obamawith you” — and jeeredattendees walking into ananti-terrorism conferencesponsored by a Muslimgroup.

Pamela Geller, a co-founder of the defense ini-tiative and an outspokencritic of Islam, called at-

tention to that meetingand attended the protests.In announcing the car-toon contest this week,Geller cited the deadlyJanuary attack by Muslimterrorists on French satir-ical newspaper CharlieHebdo, which was repeat-edly threatened for its car-icatures of the Muslimprophet.

Muhammad cartoon event setASSOCIATED PRESS

PAGE 4A Zopinion WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR SEND YOUR SIGNED LETTER TO EDITORIAL@LMTONLINE.COM

David J. Morris re-turned from Iraq with acase of post-traumaticstress disorder. The for-mer Marine turned warcorrespondent wasplagued by nightmares.His imagination ca-reened out of control;he envisioned fireballserupting while on tripsto the mall. His emo-tions could go numb,but his awareness washypervigilant. Imagesand smells from thewar were tattooed eter-nally fresh on hisbrain, and he circledback to them remorse-lessly.

"Trauma destroys thefabric of time," Morriswrites in his book, "TheEvil Hours." "In normaltime you move fromone moment to thenext, sunrise to sunset,birth to death. Aftertrauma, you may movein circles, find yourselfbeing sucked back-wards into an eddy orbouncing like a rubberball from now to thento back again. … In thetraumatic universe thebasic laws of matter aresuspended: ceiling fanscan be helicopters, carexhaust can be mustardgas."

Morris’ book is sogood because it relieson literature, historyand psychology to com-municate the reality ofPTSD, both to thosewho live with it andthose who never have.But this book is alsoimportant because it’spart of a broader re-evaluation of trauma.

Most discussionabout PTSD thus farhas been about fear andthe conquering of fear.But, over the past fewyears, more people havecome to understandPTSD is also about ex-ile — moral exile.

We don’t think aboutit much, but in civilianlife we live enmeshedin a fabric of moralpractices and evalua-tions. We try to practicekindness and to causeno pain.

People who havebeen to war have leftthis universe behind.That’s because war —no matter how justifiedor unjustified, noble orignoble — is always acrime. It involves acci-dental killings, capri-cious death for one butnot another, tainted sit-uations where everychoice is murderouslywrong.

Many veterans feelguilty because theylived while others died.Some feel ashamed be-cause they didn’t bringall their men home andwonder what they couldhave done differently tosave them. When theyget home they wonderif there’s somethingwrong with them be-cause they find war re-pugnant but also thrill-ing. They hate it andmiss it.

Many of their self-judgments go to ex-tremes. A comrade diedbecause he stepped onan improvised explo-sive device and hiscommander feels unre-lenting guilt because hedidn’t go down a differ-ent street. Insurgentsused women and chil-dren as shields, and sol-diers and Marines feela totalistic black stain

on themselves because ofan innocent child’s face,killed in the firefight.The self-condemnationcan be crippling.

The victims of PTSDoften feel morally taintedby their experiences, un-able to recover confi-dence in their own good-ness, trapped in a sort ofspiritual solitary con-finement, looking backat the rest of the worldfrom beyond the barrierof what happened. Theyfind themselves unableto communicate theircondition to those whoremained at home, re-senting civilians fortheir blind innocence.

People generally don’tsuffer high rates of PTSDafter natural disasters.Instead, people sufferfrom PTSD after moralatrocities. Soldierswho’ve endured the de-praved world of combatexperience their ownsymptoms. Trauma is anexpulsive cataclysm ofthe soul.

We now have a grow-ing number of books andinstitutions grapplingwith this reality, includ-ing Phil Klay’s novel "Re-deployment," which wonthe National BookAward; Nancy Sherman’sforthcoming "Afterwar:Healing the MoralWounds of Our Soldiers";and therapy programslike the one on moral in-jury found at the SanDiego Naval MedicalCenter. These writersand therapists suggestthat there has to be amoral reckoning, a dis-cernment process thatdoesn’t whitewash whathappened but does leadto merciful judgmentsabout how much guiltshould be borne; settledand measured conclu-sions about how respon-sibility for terriblethings should be appor-tioned.

Sherman, who is aphilosopher at George-town University, empha-sizes that most of thework will have to bedone at the micro level— through individualconversations betweenveterans and civiliansthat go beyond the cheapgrace of "thank you foryour service." The con-versations have to dealwith the individual factsof each case. The goal isto get veterans to adoptthe stance of a friendlyobserver, to make clearhow limited choices arewhen one is caught in arandom, tragic situation,to arrive at catharsis andself-forgiveness aboutwhat was actually blame-worthy and what wasn’t.

The civilian enters in-to the world the veteranactually inhabited dur-ing those awful crowdedhours and expands hisown moral awareness.The veteran feels trust-ed, respected and under-stood — re-integrated in-to the fabric of his or herhomeland.

We live in a culturethat emphasizes therapy,but trauma often has tobe overcome morally,through rigorous philo-sophical autobiography,nuanced judgment, caseby case.

COLUMN

Writers canconvey themoral exile

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY

CLASSIC DOONESBURY | GARRY TRUDEAU

Admission to an elitepublic university like theUniversity of Texas at Aus-tin is expected to be com-petitive. Just ask the 60 per-cent of applicants who wereturned away from spots inlast year’s freshman class.But the admissions processis also supposed to be fair,an expectation turned onits head by recent revela-tions that the school’s presi-dent repeatedly overruledthe judgment of admissionsprofessionals to enroll cer-tain students.

That these students hadpolitical and social connec-tions may not be a surprise,but such influence-peddling— and the unseemly effortto conceal it — should comeas an embarrassment to theuniversity system. That its

officials are so lackadaisicalin response is almost asalarming as the originalsin.

An independent investi-gation into admissionspractices at Texas’s flagshipuniversity, including thelaw school and graduatebusiness school, found thatPresident William PowersJr. used his influence to ad-mit "must-have" applicants,typically those recommend-ed by state lawmakers, uni-versity donors, alumni andeven members of the boardof regents. From 2009 to2014, according to the re-port commissioned by theUniversity of Texas chan-cellor, undergraduate appli-cants with connectionsflagged by university offi-cials were admitted 72 per-cent of the time, comparedwith the overall admission

rate of 40 percent. The re-port determined that asmall number, about 12 ayear, had subpar academicrecords, that no applicanthad been admitted as resultof an explicit quid pro quoand that the practice didnot violate the law.

That’s hardly the vindi-cation claimed by Powers,who, responding Thursdayto the report’s release, saidhe acted in the "best inter-est" of the university. Whythen, as the report detailed,were there efforts to mini-mize any paper trail of theprocess, and why did Pow-ers mislead an earlier inter-nal inquiry?

Powers is set to leave of-fice in June; no doubt that’sone reason University ofTexas Chancellor WilliamMcRaven opted not to takeany disciplinary action. But

more than Powers’s depar-ture will be needed in cor-recting long-embedded prac-tices of influence-wieldingin a state where politiciansconsider it an art form. Forstarters, the public has aright to know which law-makers and other powerfulpeople acted on behalf of fa-vored applicants; some ofthem, the report said,threatened the university’sfunding.

McRaven has promisedto convene a committee tolook at the report’s recom-mendations for reform. Itwould be in the interest ofthe president as well as theuniversity to remove himfrom the admissions pro-cess altogether. But if thepresident is to continue tooversee it, rules need to bein place that ensure fair-ness and transparency.

EDITORIAL

Cutting in line to get into UTTHE WASHINGTON POST

I wasn’t surprised toread that RadioShack filedfor bankruptcy this monthand was planning to sell orshut down all of its 4,000stores. It is no secret thatInternet-based retailers, es-pecially Amazon, have dis-rupted many brick-and-mortar stores. But theyhave had a particularlydevastating impact on elec-tronics retailers, many of

whom have struggled toadapt to the very techno-logical age that they helpedusher in. In the ’70s, for ex-ample, RadioShack intro-duced the TRS-80, one ofthe earliest personal com-puters for the mass market.

RadioShack is hardlyalone. In 2009, Circuit Citywent out of business. Andthe once popular New Yorkretailer J&R Music andComputer World closed lastyear. A big problem forphysical stores is that they

cannot match the inventoryavailable online. Radio-Shack’s corporate manage-ment has been trying toturn the chain away fromelectronic accessories sothe stores could make roomfor hipper inventory likeiPhones and Beats head-phones. While one couldquestion the wisdom ofselling products widelyavailable elsewhere, I can’treally fault RadioShack ex-ecutives for trying to at-tract new customers.

I’m not nostalgic for theold days when shopping forelectronics meant dealingwith the hassle of drivingto a mall, finding parkingand studying inserts in theweekend newspaper fordeals. Still, there was a cer-tain excitement about haul-ing a stereo or computerhome. Receiving a browncardboard box with theAmazon smile logo embla-zoned on it is more effi-cient but feels just a littleless satisfying.

COLUMN

Goodbye to electronics storesBy VIKAS BAJAJNEW YORK TIMES

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015 THE ZAPATA TIMES 5A

ing from Hanen did nothingto budge them.

“Democrats remain unit-ed in our belief that fundingfor the Department ofHomeland Security shouldnot be used as a ransom byRepublicans, period,” saidChuck Schumer of NewYork.

The agency’s $40 billionbudget runs out Feb. 27, andwith Congress now on re-cess lawmakers will haveonly a few days to reach anagreement once they returnto Washington next week.One possibility is a short-term extension of currentfunding levels, but HouseSpeaker John Boehner saidover the weekend that theHouse had done its job andhe would “certainly” let ashutdown occur if the Sen-ate didn’t act.

If the political impasseseemed severe, so were theimplications for millions ofimmigrants in the countryillegally who have cheeredObama’s executive direc-tives in the face of congres-

sional inaction.“We feel powerless but

not defeated, sure that itwill all work out,” 46-year-old Claudia Ramon, a nativeof Colombia, said at a rallyin Houston, one of dozensnationwide where immi-grants and their advocatesvowed to continue withpreparations under Oba-ma’s programs.

Obama’s directives wouldmake more than 4 millionimmigrants in the UnitedStates illegally eligible forthree-year deportation staysand work permits. Mostlythose are people who havebeen in the country formore than five years andhave children who are U.S.citizens or legal permanentresidents. Applications forthe first phase were to be-gin today, when as many as300,000 immigrants broughtillegally to the country aschildren could begin apply-ing for an expansion of Oba-ma’s 2012 program aimed atthe younger immigrantsknown as Dreamers.

Yet there was also palpa-ble anxiety, with their ap-parent White House gainsunder attack on Capitol Hilland in the courts. Advocatespledged to redouble their ef-forts to sign up as manypeople as possible.

“It’s extremely importantfor the community to under-stand from a legal perspec-tive it is on solid legal foot-ing and actually the largernumbers of people whocome forward to apply, themore likely we can protectthe expansion,” said Marie-lena Hincapie, executive di-rector of the National Immi-gration Law Center.

Hanen’s ruling late Mon-day night, in a case broughtby 26 states led by Texas,said that Obama and hisHomeland Security Depart-ment lacked the authorityto take the actions they did.

“No statute gives the DHSthe discretion it is trying toexercise here,” wrote Ha-nen, and he issued a stayblocking the actions fromtaking effect.

IMMIGRATION Continued from Page 1A

Civil Protection andFire officials in NuevoLaredo released thenames of 16 people hospi-talized in the city.

Hospitalized at Solidar-idad General Hospitalare Kendy Yamali Si-fuentes Sánchez, 3, Sand-ra Janeth Sifuentes Sán-chez, 18, Martha de An-da, 62, Héctor CruzRodríguez, 50, BeatrizValadez Hernández, 56,Lilia Verónica Sifuentes,29, Eloísa Pérez Flores,43, Jesús (no last name),5, Ofelia Martínez Sán-chez, 48, Lucila Villanue-va Madrigal, 59, andMaricela Gutiérrez Alba,35.

Hospitalized at Special-ty Hospital are NéstorCervantes, 10, Lesli Her-nández, 16 months, RuthIrasema Cervantes, 3, Ya-resi Cervantes, 19, andLidia Carolina Solís, 20.

(Reported by a TZTcorrespondent. Translat-ed by Mark Webber of theTimes staff.)

CRASH Continued from Page 1A

Top: The freight train that collided with the Transportes Fronterabus is shown Friday night. Bottom: The remains of the bus.

Courtesy photos

WBCAEl jueves se realizará el

Desfile Juvenil Bajo las Estre-llas de IBC, a partir de las 6p.m., al sur de Avenida SanBernardo de Laredo. Asientogeneral gratis. Asiento enbancas, 3 dólares (en la puer-ta).

El Fiesta Cocktail deCaballeros se realizará el vier-nes a partir de las 6 p.m. enel Salón de Baile del CentroCívico de LISD. Evento tienecosto.

El viernes dará inicio elFestival Jalapeño de 6 p.m. a12 a.m. en El Metro Park &Ride (Thomas & Hillside). Elsábado continuará el festival.Se presentará La Leyenda.Costo: 20 dólares. Otros pre-cios especiales disponiblespara el concierto.

El Desfile y Baile Colo-nias de la Sociedad de Mar-tha Washington, se realizaráel viernes a las 8 p.m. en elAuditorio y Salón de Baile delCentro Cívico ed LISD. Mezza-nine alto, 35 dólares; mezza-nine bajo, 40 dólares; orques-ta, 45 dólares; y, espectáculo,85 dólares.

La Ceremonia delAbrazo en el Puente Interna-cional Juárez Lincoln, estáprogramada para el sábado alas 7:30 a.m. Asimismo, elDefile Anheuser-Busch Was-hington’s Birthday, comenzaráa las 9 a.m. en avenida SanBernardo de Laredo. Asientosen bancas tienen costo de 5dólares en la puerta.

Último fin de semanadel Carnaval del 12 al 23 defebrero. sábado-domingo,puertas abren a mediodía. Es-tacionamiento de LaredoEnergy Arena. Costo: 2 dóla-res entrada. Hoy McMonday,de 12 p.m. a 6 p.m.

DÍA DE APRECIACIÓNEl jueves 19 de febrero

se relizará el Winter Texan &Senior Citizen AppreciationDay, de 12 p.m. a 5 p.m. enel Centro Comunitario delCondado de Zapata.

AVISO DE TRÁFICOContinúa el proyecto

de ampliación sobre US 83 ylas líneas que dividen el Con-dado de Webb y Zapata. Esteproyecto utilizará un controlde tráfico para construir lastransiciones de carreteras enlas líneas divisoras del Conda-do de Webb/Zapata para loscarriles del norte y sur, por loque se pide a los conductoresa poner atención y obedecerlas señales de tráfico paraevitar accidentes. Los trabajoscontinuarán hasta el 6 demarzo.

PATROCINIOLa Cámara de Comer-

cio de Zapata invita a la co-munidad a participar en elWinter Texan & Senior CitizenAppreciation Day, que se cele-brará el 19 de febrero en elCentro Comunitario del Con-dado de Zapata.

Durante el evento se reco-nocerá y mostrará la gratitudde la comunidad para losadultos mayores que contri-buyeron con la comunidad.

Si desea puede participarcomo patrocinadores: Platino,2.000 dólares; Oro, 1.000 dó-lares; Plata, 500 dólares;Bronce, 300 dólares. El dinerorecaudado será destinado a lacompra de comida, refrescos,entretenimiento, premios y re-galos para el evento.

En 2013, el evento ayudóa más de 400 adultos mayo-res participantes.

Para más información pue-de llamar al (956) 765-4871.

JUNTA DE COMISIONADOSEl lunes 23 de febrero,

los Comisionados de la Cortedel Condado de Zapata reali-zarán su junta quincenal en laSala de la Corte del Condadode Zapata, a partir de las 9a.m. a 12 p.m.

Para mayores informes lla-me a Roxy Elizondo al (956)765 9920.

Ribereñaen Breve

Un juez federal en Texas conge-ló el lunes las acciones ejecutivasdel presidente Barack Obama so-bre inmigración, y así le otorgótiempo a una coalición de 26 esta-dos para seguir adelante con unademanda que tiene como objetivosu suspensión definitiva.

La decisión del juez federal dedistrito Andrew Hanen interrum-pe la implementación de las medi-das de Obama, que tienen por finproteger de la deportación a unoscinco millones de personas que vi-ven sin autorización legal en Es-tados Unidos.

Hanen escribió un memorandoque acompaña su fallo que la de-manda debe seguir adelante y quesin una orden preliminar los esta-dos “sufrirían daño irreparableen este caso”.

“Es imposible devolver el genioa la lámpara”, escribió, añadien-do que concuerda con el argumen-

to de los demandantes de que le-galizar el estatus de millones depersonas es una acción “virtual-mente irreversible”.

La Casa Blanca defendió su po-lítica en un comunicado emitido aprimera hora del martes diciendoque las órdenes ejecutivas presen-tadas en noviembre estaban den-tro de la autoridad legal del presi-dente y que la Corte Suprema y elCongreso han dicho que los fun-cionarios federales pueden esta-blecer prioridades para el cumpli-miento de leyes migratorias.

“La decisión del tribunal dedistrito evita erróneamente queentren en vigor esas políticas le-gales y de sentido común y el De-partamento de Justicia ha indica-do que apelará esa decisión”, dijoel comunicado. El recurso seráatendido por el Tribunal de Ape-laciones del 5to Circuito de Esta-dos Unidos en Nueva Orleans.

La primera de las medidas deObama —ampliar un programaque protege a jóvenes inmigran-

tes de la deportación si llegaronal país de forma ilegal cuandoeran niños— entrará en vigor elmiércoles. La mayor parte de laorden presidencial, que amplíaesa protección a padres de ciuda-danos estadounidenses y residen-tes permanentes que lleven variosaños en el país no comenzará aaplicarse sino hasta el 19 de mayo.

Joaquín Guerra, director políti-co de Texas Organization Projectcalificó el fallo de "revés tempo-ral".

"Seguiremos preparando a losinmigrantes para prepararlos pa-ra solicitar la ayuda administrati-va", dijo en un comunicado.

La coalición de los estados, li-derada por Texas y formada en sumayoría por los estados conserva-dores del sur y del medio oeste,alega que Obama violó la "TakeCare Clause" de la Constituciónde Estados Unidos que, sostienen,limita el ámbito de acción de lospoderes presidenciales. Tambiéndicen que la iniciativa de la Casa

Blanca obligará a aumentar la in-versión en seguridad, atención sa-nitaria y educación.

En su petición al juez, la coali-ción dijo que era necesario parali-zar la norma porque sería "difícilo imposible deshacer las ilegali-dades del presidente después deque los acusados empiecen a veraceptadas sus solicitudes de apla-zamiento de acciones".

El fiscal general de Texas, KenPaxton, calificó la decisión de"victoria para el Estado de Dere-cho en América" en un comunica-do el lunes por la noche. El gober-nador de Texas, Greg Abbott,quien como antecesor de Paxtonpromovió la demanda, dijo que elfallo de Hansen "frena adecuada-mente la extralimitación del pre-sidente".

Los republicanos en el Congre-so han prometido que bloquearánlas acciones de Obama en estecampo recortando el gasto del De-partamento de Seguridad Nacio-nal para el programa.

INMIGRACIÓN

Congela accionesPOR JUAN A. LOZANO

ASSOCIATED PRESS

PÁGINA 6A Zfrontera MIÉRCOLES 18 DE FEBRERO DE 2015

La temporada de caza del venadocola blanca está por concluir, por loque autoridades tamaulipecas han co-menzado a evaluar y emitir el impactoeconómico que tuvo la época 2014-2015.

La venta de cintillos de esta tempo-rada fue de alrededor de 3.695, señalaun comunicado de prensa.

“Se notó un incremento en los cinti-llos vendidos a los socios a compara-ción del año pasado, esto quiere decirque los cazadores se sienten con con-fianza de venir a Tamaulipas”, dijoGabriel Serna Aguilar, presidente dela Asociación de Ganaderos Diversifi-cados (Angadi). “Llegan de Coahuila,Nuevo León y gran parte de Texas yesto refleja el impulso que se le ha da-do a la promoción de este segmentoturístico.”

Los ranchos cinegéticos estuvieronllenos de deportistas acompañadospor sus familias, por lo que sus viajesgeneran gastos como el combustible,alimento y hospedaje que se quedanen el estado y benefician a la econo-mía de la región, señala el comunica-do.

“Existe una constante comunica-ción entre la Asociación y el Gobiernodel Estado con el objetivo de atraermás personas al Tamaulipas”, dijoSerna. “Los dueños de ranchos cinegé-ticos tienen comentarios muy positi-vos y buena actitud. En Angadi se lesdan conferencias y cursos que sirvenpara mejorar la calidez de los servi-cios”.

La temporada del venado cola blan-ca termina el 22 de febrero. Actual-mente siguen las temporadas de lasaves: gansos, grulla gris, patos y cerce-tas, paloma morada, agachona, codor-niz cotul común y codorniz escamosa;de mamíferos: mapache, jabalí de co-llar y jabalí europeo.

TAMAULIPAS

Anunciancifras trastemporada

TIEMPO DE ZAPATA

Un carruaje se deja ver en el pai-saje que lleva a Monterrey, NuevoLeón, a bordo de él viaja MargaritaMaza de Juárez.

ContextoMéxico vive aciagos momentos.

Napoleón III estaba resuelto a impo-ner el imperio de Maximiliano deHabsburgo. Vencidos durante laguerra de Reforma, los conservado-res continúan con su labor.

Francia dio por hecho la facili-dad de la conquista, sin embargo,Ignacio Zaragoza sostiene en Pueblauna exitosa defensa. Al morder lospolvos de la derrota, el oponente re-cibe tremendos refuerzos, por loque logran ocupan la Ciudad de Mé-

xico y salen tras el presidente Beni-to Juárez.

Lejos de intimidarse, Juárez leshace frente: “La autoridad es un de-pósito que la Nación me ha confiado(…) para su honor (…) y no lo pon-dré jamás a discreción del extranje-ro, antes bien sostendré la guerrahasta obligarle a reconocer la justi-cia de nuestra causa”, sostuvo.

Situación familiarEn la capital de Nuevo León se

reúne la familia Juárez Maza. Du-rante ésta época ocurren dos gran-des acontecimientos para la familia:el 13 de junio nace el último hijo delpresidente. Mientras que el 12 de ju-lio nace su primer nieto. Avanza elverano de 1864.

Sin embargo, Juárez debe recon-centrarse en otros asuntos bastante

serios, mientras encabeza memora-ble resistencia. No obstante, le pisanlos talones hordas imperialistas apo-deradas de gran parte del territoriomexicano. Al noreste se pelea porun refugio del Gobierno legítimo.

Juárez encara numerosos proble-mas en filas republicanas. QuizásTamaulipas le provocó constantesinquietudes. Sin embargo, prevaleceecuánime y mantiene su presiden-cia errante.

Malas noticiasMaza, abandona Nuevo León, el

27 de julio de 1864, al lado de sus hi-jas e hijos. José, “El Negrito”, rondalos 12 meses de edad y Antonio, na-cido pocas semanas atrás en Saltillo,México. Tropas del general JesúsGonzález Ortega los escoltan.

Se dirigen a Matamoros, México,

donde cruzan el Río Bravo y desem-barcan en Brazos de Santiago, Te-xas. Tras ello el puerto tamaulipecocae en manos francesas. Se refugianen Nueva York.

Siguen días amargos. A Juárez sele informa que su hijo José, murióde una grave enfermedad; Antoniomuere después.

“No me extiendo porque bajo laimpresión del profundísimo pesarque destroza mi corazón por lamuerte del hijo a quien más amaba,apenas he podido trazar las líneasque anteceden”, escribe Juárez el 26de enero de 1865 en carta oficial aMatías Romero, secretario de Ha-cienda.

Tras las noticias, Juárez restauróla República y consolidó la indepen-dencia de México.

(Publicado con permiso del autorconforme aparece en La Razón, Tam-pico, México)

COLUMNA

Actitud de Juárez ante invasión francesaPOR RAUL SINENCIO

ESPECIAL PARA TIEMPO DE ZAPATA

La semana pasada, líde-res tejanos se reunieroncon el Gobernador deTamaulipas con la fina-

lidad de incrementar el inter-cambio en la economía fronteri-za entre los estados vecinos, enCiudad Victoria, México, dierona conocer autoridades tamauli-pecas.

El Alcalde de Laredo, Pete Sa-enz y el Juez del Condado deWebb, Tano Tijerina, se reunie-ron con el Gobernador EgidioTorre Cantú, después de que lasautoridades tejanas pusieran enmanifiesto el relanzamiento delas relaciones binacionales con

los tamaulipecos.Los mandatarios de Texas in-

vitaron a Torre Cantú a Laredopara desarrollar una agenda encomún entre Laredo y Tamauli-pas, con la finalidad de impulsarproyectos de infraestructura quepuedan seguir consolidando elsector logístico, señala un comu-nicado de prensa.

“La reunión fue para estable-cer una colaboración y fortale-cer los vínculos entre el Conda-do de Webb, la Ciudad de Laredoy el Estado de Tamaulipas”, dijoTijerina. “Esta es una nuevaalianza para el futuro que de-muestra la voluntad de ambospara trabajar juntos, como unsolo cuerpo para el progreso

económico de las dos naciones”.La cercanía con Texas plantea

para Tamaulipas ventajas parael intercambio del comercio in-ternacional al compartir 17 cru-ces fronterizos, lo que favoreceel movimiento comercial carre-tero en un 39 por ciento y un 53por ciento en la ruta ferroviariahacia Estados Unidos, añade elcomunicado.

“Los empresarios del Consor-cio de Eagle Ford Shale estánmuy interesados en participarde la apertura de la ReformaEnergética y particularmente devenir a Tamaulipas”, señaló Jo-sé María Leal Gutiérrez, titularde la Agencia Estatal de Ener-gía.

RELACIONES INTERNACIONALES

REUNIÓN DE LÍDERES

Líderes de Texas se reunieron con Egidio Torre Cantú, Gobernador de Tamaulipas con el fin de fomentar las relaciones bi-laterales entre Texas y Tamps. De izquierda a derecha, Torre Cantú, Tano Tijerina, juez del Condado de Webb y PeteSáenz, Alcalde de Laredo.

Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Nuevo Laredo

Fomentan intercambio internacionalTIEMPO DE ZAPATA

Sports&OutdoorsWEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015 ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM

INDIANAPOLIS — The DallasCowboys are still trying to comeup with the perfect pitch to DezBryant.

With free agency looming and aMarch 2 deadline to use theirfranchise tag, the Cowboys arestill debating whether to put thetag on Bryant, their top receiver,even as they try to work out along-term deal. They still hope tokeep running back DeMarco Mur-ray, and they’re hoping to findenough cap room to do both.

“We’re usually able to accom-plish what we need to accomplishand the question just becomesstrategy,” Cowboys executive vicepresident Stephen Jones told asmall group of reporters Tuesday.“Do you want to push money outin order to have money now?We’ll just have to make good,sound decisions.”

Dallas’ most pressing decisioninvolves Bryant, who can becomean unrestricted free agent in threeweeks. Last season, the 26-year-oldreceiver had 88 catches, 1,320yards and a league-high 16 TD re-ceptions.

The presumption has been thatif the NFC East champs can’twork out a long-term deal withBryant, they will use the one-yeartag. In that case, Bryant wouldlikely get $12 to $13 million — ahefty price tag for a team that istrying to fit a high-priced quarter-

back, a top receiver and the NFL’sleading rusher under a salary capprojected to come in at about $140million.

Stephen Jones said the Cow-boys have been talking to Bryant’sagent, Tom Condon. They plan tomeet in Indianapolis during thisweek’s NFL’s annual scoutingcombine.

If the sides can work out amore cap-friendly deal, the Cow-boys could finally hit the trifecta— keeping Bryant, Murray andTony Romo together for severalmore seasons.

But Bryant is already startingto show signs of frustration.

“I wish They felt the same waybut it’s cool,” Bryant posted Tues-day on Twitter, responding to afan who wrote he loved the wayBryant was dedicated to the Cow-boys.

Either way, Dallas is committedto keeping Bryant. And if theCowboys do use the tag, Jonessaid he expects Bryant “will be apro and he’ll play.”

“If we don’t get a deal, it just

shows how much we’re committedto him,” Jones said. “We don’twant to expose him.”

The other decisions may haveto wait.

Murray, too, can become an un-restricted free agent and the Cow-boys are scrambling to do theirhomework before making a deci-sion.

“Everything comes into play.What backs historically do. Howmany backs go on and play wellafter they’re 27? Which ones con-

sistently do it from start to fin-ish?” Jones said. “Those are thethings you have to weigh.”

The other option would be free-ing up cap space by redoing othercontracts, such as Romo’s big deal,or cutting high-priced veterans.

“I’m not going to get into anydetail like that right now,” Jonessaid before acknowledging that hebelieves Romo still has a lot offootball left in him. “We knowwhat our options are and we’rejust, as we move forward, we’ll getmore definitive as to who we’regoing to be working with andwe’ll make those decisions.”

Notes: Dallas announced Tues-day that it had signed offensivelinemen Ronald Leary and Dar-rion Weems. Both were exclusivefree agents. ... Jones said he be-lieves the Cowboys will come inwith the requisite four-year aver-age toward the salary cap and willavoid being penalized for under-spending. ... Jones also is on thecompetition committee, which hada preliminary meeting Tuesday,but like others in the room de-clined to say what had been dis-cussed. One thing he said had notcome up yet was the definition ofa catch. The Cowboys’ seasoncame to an end last month whenBryant appeared to catch a passfrom Romo. The ball came loosewhen he hit the ground and theplay was reversed to an incomple-tion following a replay challenge.

NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: DALLAS COWBOYS

Cowboys may tag BryantDallas weighing whether to use franchise tag on star wide receiver

By MICHAEL MAROTASSOCIATED PRESS

Dallas wide receiver Dez Bryant may receive the team’s franchise tag, keeping him as a member of the Cowboys next seasonfor around $12-13 million.

File photo by Nam Y. Huh | AP

8A THE ZAPATA TIMES International WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015

MEXICO CITY —Slammed by a 70 percent in-crease in illegal pipelinetaps in one year, Mexico’sstate oil company an-nounced Tuesday that itwill no longer ship finished,usable gasoline or dieselthrough its network ofducts.

Analysts said it was astriking admission of Mexi-co’s inability to stop the fuelthefts, in which thieves drillinto pipelines operated byPetroleos Mexicanos morethan 10 times each day, onaverage.

“This is a big admissionof the vulnerability of Pe-mex,” said George Baker,publisher of the Houston-based newsletter MexicoEnergy Intelligence.

Petroleos Mexicanos,known as Pemex, said thenumber of illegal taps roseto 3,674 in 2014, up 70 per-cent from 2013 and 137 per-cent over 2012 figures. Themarket for illegal gasolineand diesel, in which drugcartels have been implicat-ed, has more than doubledin the last two years.

Pemex lost an estimated$1.15 billion in fuel thefts inthe first nine months of2014, according to the latestfigure available.

Because the country iscrisscrossed by tens of thou-sands of miles of pipelines,neither Pemex nor securityforces can guard them all.Thieves, often highly orga-nized gangs linked to drugcartels, pump the fuel from

dangerous pipeline taps intotanker trucks, and sell it toindustrial users or some-times even seek to sell itthrough legitimate Pemex-franchised gas stations.

Pemex’s move will makeit risky to buy stolen fuel.While the company didn’tspecify what steps in the re-fining process will be leftunfinished, it said fuelsmoved through its pipelineswill not be “usable in vehi-cles and industrial plants.”

“Customers should makesure that the fuel they buyhas been delivered from Pe-mex terminals, and not buygasoline or diesel from any-one other than gas stationsor authorized dealers, giventhat ... it could damage mo-tors,” the company said.

It appears Pemex will dobasic processing beforeshipping oil to tank farmsand distributional terminalsit operates. Employees therewould then have to add ad-ditives that regulate thecombustion process beforethe fuels could be used.

“The only thing you

could do additionally to thegasoline is to put additivesin it” at the tank farms,“but that is a very delicateprocess,” said industry con-sultant Guillermo Suarez, achemical engineer.

He predicted the changewill lead to quality prob-lems, because “the distribu-tion or storage centers don’thave the technological ca-pacity to do this.”

Some doubt the measurewill stop the gangs.

“If you can just add anaspirin at the end of theprocess, the narcos can dothat, too,” Baker said.

The analysts noted thatPemex has acknowledgedthat some of its own work-ers are involved in thethefts.

“When the process of fin-ishing the gasoline is trans-ferred to the terminals, ob-viously the people who aredoing this (stealing fuel)will find out, because theyare inside,” Suarez said.“So, very simply, they’llsteal additives and maketheir own mixture.”

Mexico won’t use pipelinesBy MARK STEVENSON

ASSOCIATED PRESS

In this Sept. 7, 2014 file photo, new pipelines to carry gas from Tex-as to Mexico are laid underground near General Bravo, Mexico.

Photo by Eduardo Verdugo | AP file

UNITED NATIONS —The United Nations envoyto Syria said Tuesday hehas received a commitmentfrom the Syrian govern-ment to suspend airstrikeson the city of Aleppo for sixweeks to allow a proposedU.N. plan to “freeze” hostil-ities in the country’s largestcity to be tested.

Staffan de Mistura wasbriefing the Security Coun-cil in closed session on hislatest efforts to find a solu-tion to the grinding civilwar. There was no indica-tion of when the suspensionof airstrikes would begin,but the envoy said he willreturn to Syria “as soon aspossible” to assess whetherthe government’s commit-ment is possible and to an-nounce a start date.

He called the new devel-opment a glimmer of hope.And he continued to empha-size a political solution tothe nearly four-year conflict.

But questions remain. DeMistura now has to get theopposition’s support for theplan. And Syria’s ambassa-dor to the U.N. refused tocomment after the councilmeeting.

“Let’s be frank. I have noillusions,” de Mistura toldreporters. “Based on pastexperiences, it is a difficultissue to achieve.”

This was de Mistura’s

first council briefing sincehe explained his freeze planin October, and councilmembers wanted to knowwhat kind of support, if any,it received from PresidentBashar Assad in his meet-ing with de Mistura earlierthis month.

Aleppo is divided into arebel-controlled west andgovernment-held east. DeMistura wants to see a U.N.-monitored “freeze zone”that will calm violencethere, allow more humani-tarian aid access and act asthe first step toward awider solution to the con-flict. “Our hope is that Alep-po could be a signal of good-will, a confidence-buildingmeasure which could andcan facilitate the re-startingof a political process with aclear political horizon,” hesaid last month in Geneva.

But Aleppo-based opposi-tion activists have ex-pressed fears the govern-ment would exploit a truceto gather its forces to fightelsewhere, and they havequestioned how a cease-firecould work with IslamicState fighters in the area.And the Nusra Front, theal-Qaida affiliate in Syria,recently dismissed de Mis-tura’s proposal as a conspir-acy that would allow Syriangovernment forces to re-group for more assaults.

Local truces have largelysucceeded in several areasnear Damascus and the cen-

tral city of Homs, but thedeals were seen as heavilylopsided in favor of the gov-ernment, and the U.S. StateDepartment has describedthem as closer to “surren-der arrangements.”

The U.N. estimates theconflict has killed 220,000people. Millions have fled toneighboring countries.

De Mistura is the third ina series of U.N. envoystasked with trying to findan end to the conflict. Hewas named to his post inJuly, not long after the Is-lamic State group launchedan onslaught in Syria’snorth and east.

He told council membersTuesday that the IslamicState group has made no in-roads in the western part ofSyria and that no side inthe conflict has made strate-gic gains since his lastbriefing, diplomats said. Healso warned that Syria re-mains fertile ground forradical armed groups.

Syria to suspend airstrikes in largest city

By CARA ANNAASSOCIATED PRESS

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015 THE ZAPATA TIMES 9A

Trinidad Cuellar, 92,passed away peacefully onSaturday, February 14, 2015in Austin, Texas surround-ed by his family.

Mr. Cuellar was preced-ed in death by his parents,Jose Maria and Elvira Gu-tierrez Cuellar, his brother,Lauro Armando Cuellar,and his niece, Flora Cuel-lar Gonzalez.

Mr. Cuellar is survivedby his wife of 64 years, Eu-genia M. Cuellar, of Zapata,Texas; his son, Gregory L.Cuellar (Carla Valdez); andhis daughter, Cynthia Y.Myers, of Austin Texas. Heis also survived by hisgrandchildren, Andrew J.Van Winkle (Tana Brown)of Austin; Valerie and Ni-cole Cuellar of San Anto-nio; Justin Valdez of SanAntonio; Austin T. Cuellarof Austin; and Hannah E.Myers of Austin; great-grandchildren, Tyler A.Van Winkle, Ellen O. VanWinkle, and Isabella Y. VanWinkle of Austin, and Ja-cob R. Rodriguez of SanAntonio, and by numerousfamily members andfriends.

Trinidad “Trini” wasborn to Jose Maria and El-vira Gutierrez Cuellar, onJune 11, 1922, in Zapata,Texas. He enlisted in theArmy Air Corps at Ft. SamHouston in San Antonio,Texas on January 18, 1943as a member of the 305thAirdrome Squadron duringWWII. He was a decoratedsoldier who fought in NewGuinea Southern Philip-pines, Theater Campaign,Asiatic Pacific Campaign,Philippine Liberation, andreceived the Good ConductMedal and Victory Ribbon,and three Overseas ServiceBars. He served honorablyuntil January 5, 1946.

He later worked for theDepartment of the Agricul-ture where he was assignedto work in various areasthroughout Mexico from1948 to 1954. It was therethat he met the love of hislife, Maria Eugenia Machu-ca, while visiting friends inQueretaro, Mexico. They

were married shortly afterin 1952 in Queretaro. Theylater returned to the Unit-ed States where they resid-ed in San Antonio for 31years and raised their twochildren.

In San Antonio, he hadan outstanding career as ashort haul truck driver forSouthwestern Motor Trans-port Company. He washighly respected by his em-ployer, coworkers, and thecustomers he served, forhis honesty, integrity, andcommitment to his work.He had a perfect driving re-cord for the entire 30 yearsup to his retirement.

After retiring, he return-ed to his hometown of Za-pata, where he was a verywell-respected and belovedmember of the community.He will be remembered byall who knew him as anhonest, hard-working man.Ann, a dear family friend,often described Trini as a“man’s man,” and “the bestman she ever knew,” a feel-ing shared by the peoplewhose lives he touched.Known for his Stetson hat,from Zapata to New YorkCity, Mr. Cuellar was aproud man and a true Tex-an and American. He wasan incredible story-teller,his ability to remember de-tails dating back to the warand beyond were amazing.Trinidad loved his wife andfamily, he was a devoted

and loving husband to Eu-genia, who he affectionate-ly called “Prieta.” She wasthe absolute love of his lifeduring their 64 years ofmarriage. As a father,grandfather, and great-grandfather, he was thegreatest role model, a manof few words, but when hespoke you listened andlearned. He made tremen-dous sacrifices for all hisfamily so that they couldlead a better life. He leavesan empty space in ourworld, shoes that can neverbe filled. We will miss himevery second of every day,and remember him withrespect, love, and admira-tion. He was a “hero” to allof us, the “wind beneathour wings.”

The family wishes tothank the dedicated andcompassionate ICU staff atSt. David’s South AustinMedical Center, especiallyhis nurse, Charles Swen-son, who demonstrated ex-tra tenderness and careduring a difficult moment.Special thanks to Dr. VinhNguyen, his cardiologist ofnine years, Dr. Sireesha Go-gineni, and Dr. Daniel Shih.And finally, we would liketo thank Gypsy Ramsey,Consuelo Villarreal, andMary Jane Bonoan, fortheir love and support inassisting our family.

On Thursday, February19, 2015 we will open at 6:30p.m. and a rosary will beheld at 7 p.m. at Rose Gar-den Funeral Home. Masswill be held on Friday, Feb-ruary 20, 2015 at 2 p.m. atOur Lady of Lourdes Cath-olic Church, 1609 Glenn St.,Zapata, Texas.

Burial services will fol-low at the Zapata CountyCemetery, including fullMilitary Honors by theAmerican Legion Post 486Color Guard. A receptionwill be held by the familyafterwards.

Funeral arrangementsare under the direction ofRose Garden FuneralHome, Daniel A. Gonzalez,funeral director, 2102 N.U.S. Hwy 83 Zapata, Texas.

TRINIDAD CUELLAR

June 11, 1922 – Feb. 14, 2015ed all capital spendingimprovements, no pro-jects coming on board,aside from those fundedby loans and grants, assoon as values started go-ing down, maybe morethan five years” he said.

Rathmell said ZapataCounty is looking intothe possibility of hostingwind turbines to increaseits value and providejobs.

The county will alsoimplement a voter-ap-proved local 2-percentsales tax on top of thestate sales tax on April 1which he said could off-set its depleted mineralvalues.

Webb County couldlose up to $12 million ifoil and gas prices remainlow through the rest ofthe year.

And, unfortunately,prices are likely to re-main low due to an over-supply of oil and gas.

These two commoditiesmake up nearly 30 per-cent of the county’s $22billion-plus market value.That portion, valued at$6 billion last year, trans-lates to about $23.5 mil-lion Webb County ismaking in taxable value.

Martin Villarreal, chiefappraiser for the WebbCounty Appraisal Dis-trict said during his pre-sentation on county ap-praisal trends at a Feb. 9Commissioners Courtmeeting that he is con-cerned with the potentialsnowball effect of theselowered prices.

Oil prices dropped byabout half their valuelast June from more than$100 a barrel to morethan $50 a barrel, Villar-real said.

Meanwhile, gas priceshave slumped from $4.50per MCF (or 1,000 cubicfeet, gas’s standard unitof production) to $2.55MCF, he said.

Though there was acountywide uptick in oilproduction in 2014, Vil-larreal expects the lowerprices for oil and gas

could offset the increaseof mineral value due tothe upsurge in oil pro-duction.

He said that when oiland gas prices go down,typically companies startcutting back becausethey want to protecttheir profit margins.

“Companies are find-ing themselves in a situa-tion where they can’t op-erate at these prices,”Villarreal said.

When oil and gas com-panies scale back, itcould hinder production.

This cycle could fur-ther negatively impactthe county’s mineral ap-praised values, which in-cludes oil and gas values.

For example, lastyear’s lower prices couldcause the county’s miner-al appraised values,which include oil andgas values, to fall by asmuch as 20 percent thisyear, he said.

Falling oil prices meanits portion of revenue go-ing to the state this yearis expected to dip as well.

The state’s severancetax ensures a portion ofmoney from oil and gasproduction goes to thestate’s Rainy Day Fund, astate emergency accountthat voters in recent elec-tions have approved tap-ping a portion of for roadand water projects. Theseverance taxes are paidwhen hydrocarbons are“severed” from the

ground.“I hope … you’re all

proactive and at thesame time prepared incase we do see the samesituation that ZapataCounty, Jim Hogg Countyand other counties notalong Eagle Ford Shalethat have lost significantmineral value,” Villar-real said to commission-ers at the meeting.

Calls made to JimHogg County Chief Ap-praiser Jorge Arellanowere not returned imme-diately.

Webb County Precinct3 Commissioner JohnGalo said at the Feb. 9meeting that oil compa-nies cutting back on em-ployees and resourcescould also negatively im-pact sales tax and hoteland motel revenues.

“The bottom line is wehave to tighten up ourbills,” said Webb CountyJudge Tano Tijerina atthe meeting.

Villarreal said thatmineral appraisals arenot fully developed be-cause prices, production,expenses and ownershipdata are not yet availablefor numerous wells. Hisoffice will present anoth-er mineral appraisal up-date by late April thatwill have a more accu-rate preliminary mineralvalue, he said.

(Kendra Ablaza can bereached at 728-2538 or ka-blaza@lmtonline.com)

VALUE Continued from Page 1A

Last year’s lower prices couldcause (Webb County’s) mineralappraised values, which includeoil and gas values, to fall by asmuch as 20 percent this year.Falling oil prices mean itsportion of revenue going to thestate this year is expected to dipas well.

tively, passing throughthose ports in 2014.

“Right now you have theopportunity for thesetrucks to go across theborder faster. You havetrade increasing becausethe economies are grow-ing and energy costs aredown,” said Shannon K.O’Neil, a senior fellow forLatin America studies atthe Council on Foreign Re-lations, a nonpartisanthink tank. “So it’s an at-tractive area” for busi-nesses.

O’Neil said she didn’tanticipate a majority ofMexican trucking compa-nies applying for the pro-

gram immediately be-cause they have been us-ing the current system —and its limited U.S. travel— for decades. The newprogram will also only ap-ply to companies that canafford upgrades to theirfleet, including electronictracking devices. Carrierswill also be subjected topre-authorization audits,which include drug and al-cohol testing, English pro-ficiency and vehicle in-spections.

Union groups, on theother hand, aren’t happy.

Fred McLuckie, the di-rector of the InternationalBrotherhood of Teamsters

Department of FederalLegislation and Regula-tion, said the pilot pro-gram left out vital infor-mation. Specifically,McLuckie said, the Feder-al Motor Carrier SafetyAdministration report in-cluded mainly data fromtruckers who traveled in-side the current limits.

“I don’t know how youtest the safety of long-haultrucking if they’re not go-ing any further than thecurrently permitted com-mercial zones,” he said.

A report on the pilotprogram by the Congres-sional Research Serviceacknowledged that the

sample was relativelysmall.

Through December 2013,only 14 Mexico-based car-riers with operating capa-bilities were in the pilotprogram, five of which on-ly had provisional operat-ing authority, according tothe report. And trucksfrom only two Mexicancompanies were used forthe majority of the cross-ings.

“The 14 approved carri-ers have used about 45trucks to make nearly10,000 border crossingssince October 2011,” thereport said. “To put thisnumber in context, on av-

erage about 14,000 truckscross the border fromMexico each day.”

McLuckie added thatthe U.S. Department ofTransportation’s report onthe pilot program usedsupplemental data fromother carriers that didn’tparticipate in the pro-gram.

“The DOT said that theyhad these other groups ofcarriers, enterprise carri-ers and certificate carrierswhose data they were us-ing to ’complement the da-ta’ that they obtained withthe small number of carri-ers,” he said. “That’s notstatutorily permitted un-

der the laws governing apilot program.”

McLuckie said that ingeneral, he wasn’t opposedto Mexican truckers trav-eling more in the U.S. Butthe incomplete data meansthat American drivers willbe on roadways with driv-ers who do not meet safetystandards. That puts thesafety of drivers in jeopar-dy, he said.

But O’Neil said that theprogram clearly sets inplace requirements thatferret out unreliable carri-ers.

“It’s a pretty high bar interms of standard andsafety,” she said.

TRUCKING Continued from Page 1A

10A THE ZAPATA TIMES WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2015