Refuse the Juice

The Shapleigh Deal

This as basic as I can make it.

1.  Shapleigh is out.

2.  Shapleigh is probably running for something statewide - AG, Railroad Commissioner - who knows, I wasn't at the press conference.  The bottom line is that he's gone as far as he can go representing El Paso without going backwards.

3.  Shapleigh is a very smart dude.  He knew that if he got up, Norma Chavez would sit down.  That's why Jose Rodriguez is holding a press conference today to announce his run for Shapleigh's seat.  The idea here is to back Chavez out of the race.

4.  Let's sleep on it.  I'm not sure what the republicans are going to do.  I know that if Norma gets in the race, I'm in.  We can't afford to have her win a primary where the moderate democrats who would vote for Rodriguez end up voting in the republican primary which would give the win to Norma.  I would be there to stop her and believe me, I can stop her.  She won't get the votes anywhere but the valley and her challenger will have millions to spend.

So, there you have it.

Also, look for Mayor Cook to make some kind of move.

Thoughts on Reading - non-Political

I'm a pretty avid reader.  I prefer it to anything that my be interrupted by commercials.

For the first time in my entire life I started and finished a book in one night.  I picked up "the Road" by Cormac McCarthy and read it straight through in three hours.  It's around 283 pages and I can tell you that I've never read more than 50 pages of a book in a night and maybe 100 or so on a long day of flying.

I don't read a lot of fiction at all.  It gives a person too big of a window to participate in a world that doesn't actually exist.  I day dream enough already.  I don't need any help.

In order to maximize my coverage of different subjects I read several different books at a time.  This isn't some kind of bragging point, but a point of practicality and helps with my own struggles of coupling my amount of free time with the correct amount of stimulus.

The key to reading several books at once is the layout of each book.  That's probably not the exact word I'm looking for (layout), but it will do.

Your day, like mine is sectioned off into parts.  Some parts are crammed full of work or other activity that does not allow you to have your nose in a book, while other parts of your day afford small, medium and large amounts of time where reading can be accomplished.

For those times of the day where I only have a few minutes to read, I have a book that corresponds with that constraint.  If I'm in the bathroom (we can talk about it, everybody does it), I know that I have a short amount of time.  Therefore I pick a book that has quick excerpts of facts or figures.  For instance, I'm reading a book right now that is just thousands upon thousands of quotes.  I wouldn't want to try and start a chapter in a novel or biography in that short amount of time, so I found something that worked with that time constraint.

I always have a book of short stories or short compositions for the times that I have between twenty minutes and forty minutes to read.  This allows me to start and finish something with relatively more meat in it at each sitting.  In order to enjoy reading, you have to start and finish ever so often in order to keep your interest.  For instance, when I was re-reading "Atlas Shrugged," a book of well over a half-million words, it was necessary to have something on the side to read that would give me the satisfaction of starting and finishing.  If you are having trouble reading novels and you think it's because they are too long, be counterintuitive and get a book of short stories to read concurrently and you just might find yourself more interested in the novel.

Of course, big books with long chapters are best read when you can find a stopping place between chapters and not right in the middle of them.  Stopping in the middle of a chapter is a big no-no and here's why. 

Most good writers make sure that their stories work in the shape of a cowboy hat.  It's the bell curve of story telling.  They take you on a ride up to the top and bring you back down to about where you started.  They do this each chapter and if you stop in the middle and come back later you're always forced to go back and catch up to where you were.  If you finish a complete chapter at each sitting, you would only at most have to read the last paragraph of the previous chapter to catch up.  It's important that you read books intended to be read in sections, in sections. 

The bottom line of my advice here is that in order to maximize your reading, it's important to match the size of your passages to the amount of time you have.  Doing that will allow you a wider a range of reading in a much shorter time.

Now go pick up a book and stop wasting your time on blogs!

A Little Advice for Municipal Employees

Most every office that is paid for by taxpayers is accessible by those taxpayers.  We can pretty much figure out a way, or a reason, to be in or around your office at some point. 

With that in mind, please be concerned about your work area.  Not just cleanliness and organization count.  Here are some general tips for you and even other people who work in private offices.

1.  If you have more than five pictures of anyone or anything at your desk, you're suspect.  People like me assume you spend more time putting up pictures of your friends, family and movies stars than you do working.  We also know that you probably spend hours each day explaining the significance of each picture.  Remember, your desk is not a memorial, it's a place where work happens - not reminiscing.

2.  Seasonal decorations are another sign to outsiders that employees are screwing around hanging ghosts and witches for Halloween and not getting their work done.  Work is scary enough, we don't need paper mache witches to drive home the point.  Again, your desk area is for working - not celebrating fall.

3.  Colored pens are a big no-no unless you are in a job that requires you to edit copy with red ink.  The only colors of ink that a business person should be dealing in are blue, black and red.  Any other color gives visitors like me the impression that your are pretending to be a 35 year-old sorority girl while at work.  At no point is the color pink an appropriate color ink to conduct the business in.  It is extremely unprofessional to have someone sign their name on any document in lilac.  You're an adult, coloring is for kids. 

4.  Music is a wonderful addition to any work environment.  It has been proven to stimulate the subconscious part of the brain so that the conscious part can get work done.  However, "gangsta rap" and off-color morning shows tend to be distracting and distasteful.  That goes for whiny country music as well. You're at work - you're not being paid to be entertained.

I hope this advice can be taken to heart.

All Around Town - The Basic Salad

I love days when I get to mention Norma Chavez.  Her people go ape-shit and check the site literally every few minutes.  My analyzer starts flagging people to tell me that the person is incessantly hitting  "refresh."  I have to laugh when I see where the IP address is coming from. 

Poor, poor Norma.  Her hired gun hasn't been heard from in days and Strelzin's eight listeners just can't keep her ego fed. 

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Speaking of Norma.  What the hell was Commissioner Gandara doing having lunch with her and Carlos Aguilar?  I guess Gandara needs to explain how he could swallow food with a slimy jerk like Aguilar sitting across from him.  Hanging with Norma is bad enough for his image, he doesn't need Aguilar completely ruining it.

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Speaking of Aguilar.  Would any of you like to put the pieces together of how he and an anglo buddy worked Haggerty over in order to renew two lobbying contracts that aren't doing us much good.  Looks like Haggerty's post fundraising meal could be called a "quid pro quo" if you knew all the facts.  Too bad the local news outlets here are too busy covering God know what to read a freaking county commissioner's agenda and compare it to dates and attendees of fundraisers.

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As for the newspaper story on Strelzin's trash talking while Montelongo was on... Give me a break.  Before you start turning Montelongo into a martyr, you need to know that when she was first elected she went after a former employer who had a contract with the district.  Her little stunt caused several sub-contractors to not get paid and led to them going out of business.  Her little hissy fit literally screwed innocent, hardworking business people to the point that they had to fold.  So don't go carrying that idiot on your shoulders.

As for the argument as a whole... Who cares other than CONGRESSMAN REYES' SISTER IS BACKDOOR DEALING SIX FIGURE CONTRACTS TO FRIENDS!!!!!

Please re-elect Reyes so his family can continue to screw us.  We now know that Reyes is interfering in the corruption investigation on behalf of Cobos and others.  How much farther will he go once his family is caught up in it?

Let's Makes Something Clear to the Morons

Here's a comment by Norma herself or her friend -

David, your jelousy of Norma blurs your judgement. Just this session: *$30 million for developing worker\'s skills *Passed HB 2169 which will bring more jobs to el paso *Passed HB 2531 which stops the guv misusing funds that target job creation *HB 1725 which givs more money to el paso schools affected by BRAC PLUS: Moves toward a law school in El Paso, reform of Thomason hospital and the guts to say the ethics bill wont change anything and might make things worse. What did you do this session? Oh that\'s right, you kept a journal and worked for daddy. Well done.

1. I'm not jealous of someone who took 100 years to graduate from college and then took taxpayer money to accomplish that feat.  Neither am I jealous of the person who is the butt of every joke in Austin.  Just a couple a weeks ago I was in Austin for a wedding and during dinner the guests, knowing I'm from El Paso, told their favorite "Norma is a freak" story.  Every single one of them was very embarrassing for our city, but very funny.

2.  Passing bullshit bills in the house and then having them not go anywhere is not an accomplishment.  Anyone can get a bill out of the house.  Otherwise, show me where the money is.  Show me the receipt for money when it arrived in El Paso.  You can't.  And you know where that money would have gone if had been given to us?  Cafe Mayapan!  Which was proven to be a waste of taxpayer money and not a program that puts anybody to work outside the program.  Showing up with a shovel doesn't mean you did any digging.

3.  A resolution does not mean El Paso is moving toward a law school - at least at UTEP, that is.  Texas Tech may do it on their own, but that's a huge maybe.  UTEP officials do not have any current interest in creating a law school.  We have plenty of lawyers - bio-research and nursing are the frontiers they see as our future.  Get your facts straight, please.

4.  She fought the ethics reform because her cousin is the Sheriff's union guy and he told her to do so.  She also wanted to send a message to Veronica Escobar and Marisa Marquez.  In time, she was approached by the Luther Jones clan and told to oppose the move so they could continue and try to screw El Pasoans.  Judge Cobos and friends love the light touch offered by the old ethics rules.  Her opposition to the ethics bill is a sure sign of her lack of ethics.  Take for example the nice party lobbyist threw for her and her failure to report what each person spent and who they represented.  She has no ethics, therefore does not like any rules that would get in her trouble.  Only the people who have had trouble being honest hated the bill - Barbara Perez being a prime example.

5.  I did keep a journal.  You read it every day.  I do work for Daddy and it's been a great year even though the economy has hurt us a little.  You forgot to mention that I also took out my old garden and started plans for my new one.  I also hung new doors upstairs and ran new cable on the outside of the house.  Oh yeah, I almost forgot - I EXPOSED NORMA FOR WHAT SHE IS - A SELF-RIGHTEOUS CRAZY PERSON WHO ONLY CARES ABOUT HERSELF AND HER BOTTOM LINE.

Let's Not Spout Off About Your Record, Ms. Chavez

I listened to a lot of KHRO yesterday.  I had to listen to Strelzin's show because the City Manager was on and I'm always interested in what she has to say.  Sadly I had to listen to Strelzin interview himself for the majority of the broadcast.

When the interview of Strelzin by Strelzin was over and the city manager left, Norma Chavez sat down to use the free airtime given to her by KHRO so that she could campaign for herself.  She started talking about her record and I thought for sure she was talking about how many fights she has won.  Apparently she wasn't talking about that.  She actually thinks she has accomplished something!

What a Liar.

No gambling yet.

No third building for Texas Tech Medical School.

MHMR is going under because she couldn't get them funding.

Her district still suffers from high unemployment.

I could go on forever.  The only thing she did accomplish was getting her college degree using taxpayer money to do so and forcing lobbyist to throw her a huge party and refusing to report who bought her influence at what price.

She's a real success, alright.

She was also talking about drugs yesterday... This woman has no business lecturing people on drug use.  I think many people know why.  She pretends nobody remembers anything about her past.

KHRO - Stop on By and Get Free Political Advertising!

I was on my way downtown when the text messages started rolling in.  Barbara Perez announced she would be leaving her radio show on Friday because she's planning on running for Justice of the Peace in her precinct.  Awesome! Here's why.

1.  She has to resign from the Thomason board.  She might even have to do it immediately.  This keeps her from trying to profit from shaking down vendors etc. that want to do business with Thomason.  You may remember her Big League Dreams fiasco where she claimed ignorance of the law and thought it was a good enough excuse.

2.  She's off of the air.  That means she can't poison her four listener's minds any more.  I'm sure the airhead grandma routine was getting old with the staff there at KHRO anyhow.

3.  The JP position pays very well.  She won't be tempted to break the rules in that position.  It's also a rather innocuous spot as far as public policy goes.  She will never show up for court and always be sick and get more than $70,000 to do pretty much nothing.  I can't think of a better job for her.  That's if she wins.  I don't know much about her little precinct and if they buy the airhead grandma routine she puts on.  The last time she ran for office, she was spanked by Napoleon Cobos, and that's not something that gives you a lot of confidence for your next election.

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When I got back in the truck I heard her say that Larry Medina was stopping in.  The ensuing exchange was very odd.  Scary Larry was apparently driving around El Paso with the owner of "Ben's Tacos" and just happened by the station. 

Of course, an impromptu in kind donation was made by the station when Larry was invited to come politic for himself on the air.  Apparently they really don't seem to care about campaign finance laws, FCC rules or whether or not they get their ass in a sling for doing exactly what Strelzin did years ago to get his ass in a sling. 

The drop by visits by announced candidates is a huge no-no for radio stations.  I'm sure when Candelaria hears about it, he's going to crack some skulls.  It seems as if Freyermuth is the only person on that station who knows, and follows, the rules.  But hey, he's conservative and that's just something conservatives do - follow the rules.

While Scary Larry and the owner of Ben's Tacos wrestled themselves down into a chair, Barbara had some technical malfunction that her pea sized brain invented and nearly caused her head to explode.  It was the best example of shitty local talk radio that someone could broadcast without doing it on purpose. Kudos to KHRO.

Larry rambled on about nonsense until he and Barbara started talking about "the haters."  Apparently Scary Larry thinks he's a hip-hop artist now.  He's using a word that does appear in a dictionary, but not in one that you would find in a classroom.  "Hater" is listed in the urban dictionary. 

Larry, who wants to by our county judge, speaks in an underground slang language popular with people who speak of "pimps, bitches and hos."  How proud we are of little Scary Larry.  Nothing says move your corporation to El Paso like a jive talking county judge. 

The good thing about their admission that they read the blog is that I got three new hits as they were talking.  Yet another three people who came here to read about how ridiculous those two are.

I think Larry is little miffed that nobody cared about his announcement.  He had to barge into a radio station and demand free air time to promote himself today, because nobody cared yesterday.  Poor Scary Larry...

Oh yeah - if you were listening to KHRO and felt like they were possibly breaking the law, file a complaint at this address http://esupport.fcc.gov/complaints.htm.  This means you, Mr. Sergio Coronado.

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Coming up later....

Commissioner Gandara had an interesting couple of guests for lunch the other day.  Who were they and what does it mean? 

Dan Haggerty news - you know it's going to be good.

Larry Larry Quite Contrary

Let me paint a picture with words for you.  Give me a moment of your day to describe Larry Medina's announcement yesterday that he's running for County Judge.

So there I am surrounded by 42,000 screaming El Pasoans on the floor of the Sun Bowl with people stretched all the way to the top of the bleachers on both sides of the field.  It feels more like a Rolling Stones Concert than a political rally.

People waited hours to get in and once they got in they were electrified with the anticipation of seeing Larry take the stage.  The sound of 42,000 strong participating in a slow chant saying "LLLLLAAAAARRRRYYYYYY" gave even the most hardened political observer like myself goose bumps.  Even those who didn't believe were starting to get the feeling that this guy is a rockstar and there's no stopping him.

When Larry was introduced by a trio of stars (George Clooney, Alec Baldwin and Susan Sarandon) the crowd once again went into a frenzy of screams and applause.  When Larry's huge outline appeared in shadow form behind a 50 foot white curtain draped across the back of the entire stage you could hear the crowd nearly lose its collective breath.  The image of larger than life Larry Medina created by the lighting trick was a symbol of just how big Larry Medina really is in this community.

It was pandemonium as the curtain dropped and he strolled toward the lone microphone at center stage.  He had hugs for George, Alec and Susan and waved confidently at the crowd of 42,000 strong. 

I was getting caught up in the magic to say the least. I found myself losing my neutrality and being sucked into this moment that felt like I was witnessing the second coming.  I was succumbing to "Larry fever" as the lady next to me called it.

As he hushed the crowd you could start to hear the chopping of the rotor blades of the helicopters above.  All the spot lights gathered on Larry in anticipation of his first words.

"I accept your proposal El Paso!"  he started, "I will be your next County Judge!"

The crowd went nuts.  That's all he had to say.  The festival-like electricity guided the crowd back into a chorus of "LLLLLAAARRRYYYYY."

As he retreated from the stage to a car filled with celebrities a camera crew followed him.  The crowd was treated to an almost paparazzi like chase featured on a huge jumbo tron above the stage.  Larry winked at the camera and said, "thank you my friends." 

The last images the crowd saw were of an impressive motorcade of armored suburbans, police cars and low flying helicopters with armed men hanging from the skids. 

I really don't think the term "rockstar" can really describe Larry.  He's the Messiah, or at least close to it.   There will never be another announcement of an intent to run for office like that again.  Nobody has that mojo that Larry carries with him to all of his appearances.  Truly breathtaking.

Okay... So I made all that up.

The 10 time Conquistador award winner got a side-bar, two sentence mention in the El Paso Times.  Every other news outlet in the region felt compelled to ignore the ethically challenged failure of a person and politician's announcement.  Even the paper capped his announcement off by mentioning that he lost his last election to Mensa member, Luis Sarinana.  And by "Mensa member," I mean a guy who doesn't have a high enough IQ to be executed in Texas if you know what I mean.

Way to go Larry.  You really kicked this campaign off with a bang.  The community is so jazzed about your announcement that they just went on with their day like it never happened.

Good luck, Larry - you're going to need it.

Quintana

Representative Quintana didn't get her way with the higher court and now it looks like the political machine will move in to finish her off.

It's odd how her alleged indiscretion is such a big deal and must be seen through to the harshest of punishments and public embarrassment, while those accused of political corruption are slowly pursued and handled with kid gloves.

I think there's a double standard here.  If Quintana did  what they say she did, it was wrong.  However, it does not rise to the level of the widespread fraud and corruption prevalent throughout this community.  Why they are not pursuing the obvious suspects in this town with such vigor is beyond me.

I know one case is federal and the other local, but it doesn't change the fact that the intensity of both the media and local progressives shown toward Quintana is not equal.  We have elected officials steering millions of our tax dollars to their friends and it's only worth noting by the powers that be, but god forbid Rachel Quintana, who beat their golden boy Jimmy Suerken, forge a signature for a cheaper ticket on Southwest Airlines - THE HAMMERS OF JUSTICE MUST SMASH HER!

Where is the witch hunt for the machine that continues to engage in illegal acts pertaining to contract procurement in the various local municipal entities that are still cheating the system today?  We want to fry Rachel while people like Emma Acosta roam free?   Our city council even promoted Emma Acosta!!!  Acosta helped more people screw the city than can be named off hand.  People did federal time under Acosta's watch and we don't seem to care.

As I see it, Rachel is the only alleged criminal that ISN'T STEALING FROM US!

There are so many people in this town who propped up the likes of Coach Cordova, Sal Mena, Miguel Teran and Anthony Cobos.  Those people need to be receiving the same amount of hate that we have reserved for Quintana.

Never mind - go back to whatever it was you were doing and save your righteous indignation for the next political foe who jaywalks.  We'll have a public execution for them, which will be twice as expensive as it should be because our crooked politicians will award it to the person with the best bribe.