WEDNESDAYDECEMBER 31, 2014

FREE

DELIVERED EVERY SATURDAY

A HEARST PUBLICATION ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM

TO 4,000 HOMES

LIONS’ SUH WINS APPEALALL-PRO DEFENSIVE TACKLE TO FACE COWBOYS IN POSTSEASON, 7A

With 2015 approaching, U.S. Customsand Border Protection will record morethan 486,000 apprehensions throughoutfiscal year 2014; about 9 percent of thoseapprehensions were recorded by LaredoSector Border Patrol.

Records show 44,049 apprehensionswere made by Laredo Sector Border Pa-trol between Oct. 1, 2013, and Sept. 30,2014. The sector encompasses eight sta-tions including Laredo North, LaredoSouth, Zapata, Hebbronville, Cotulla,Freer, Dallas and San Antonio, accordingto the agency’s website.

Nationally, apprehensions were up byabout 15 percent from last fiscal year.

According to a press release from CBP,420,789 apprehensions were recorded in2013.

An additional 65,211 apprehensionswere made nationally this fiscal year.These additional apprehensions couldhave been a result of what is now being

BORDER PATROL

Border Patrol Enforcement DataLaredo Sector (2014)

Note: Fiscal Year 2014 runs from Oct. 1, 2013 - Sept. 30, 2014 | Source: Department of Homeland Security

ILLEGAL DRUGS SEIZED (IN POUNDS)MarijuanaCocaineHeroinMethamphetamineTOTAL

ApprehensionsStaffingRescuesDeaths

123,383237

4458

123,722

44, 0491,785

45649

LaredoSector

has busyborder

Apprehensions up by 15percent from last year

By GABRIELA A. TREVIÑOTHE ZAPATA TIMES

See BORDER PAGE 11A

AUSTIN — Texas Gov. RickPerry would like to run forpresident in 2016 as a provenjob-creator who modeled Tex-as’ strong economy in hisown political gunslinger im-age and says he can do thesame for the rest of the coun-try.

To do it, he’ll have to con-vince voters to forget about“Oops.”

It’s the moment when Per-ry, in the midst of a 2011 pres-idential debate, was unable torecall the third of three feder-al agencies he’d promised toshutter, finally muttering“oops.” Asked about it in arecent interview with TheAssociated Press, Perry said,“That’s like going back andasking a football player who

RICK PERRY

PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFULGov. wants

to movepast 2011

In this photo taken Dec. 9, Texas Gov. Rick Perry answers questions during an interview at the historic Texas Gover-nor’s Mansion in Austin. Texas Gov. Rick Perry would like to run for president in 2016 as a proven job-creator.

Photo by Eric Gay | AP

See PERRY PAGE 11A

By WILL WEISSERTASSOCIATED PRESS

MORELIA, Mexico — Theleaders of two rural vigilantegroups and 35 of their membershave surrendered to authoritiesfollowing a clash that left 11dead in the western state of Mi-choacan, a federal official saidTuesday.

Luis Antonio Torres, better

known as “Simon the American”because he grew up in the U.S.,and nine of his followers surren-dered on Tuesday, three days af-ter his rival, Hipolito Mora,turned himself in. Mora’s sonhad been among the peoplekilled in a Dec. 16 shootout be-tween the two groups at a road-block near La Ruana, a remotemountain town about 160 miles(300 kms) west of Morelia, the

state capital.Federal security commission-

er in Michoacan, Alfredo Castil-lo, said 37 people were in custo-dy and authorities had identifiedanother 19 who they hopedwould also surrender.

What sparked the shootoutwas unclear, with each sideblaming the other. Castillo said

MICHOACAN, MEXICO

The leader of a local self-defense group, Hipolito Mora, right, stands armed at theentrance of the town of La Ruana, in the state of Guerrero, Mexico.

Photo by Gustavo Aguado | AP

Vigilante group membersturn themselves in

By GUSTAVO RUIZASSOCIATED PRESS

See MEXICO PAGE 11A

After two former volunteerfirefighters in El Cenizo setabandoned homes on fire earli-er this month, El Cenizo MayorRaul Reyes is followingthrough with his plan to shakeup the department due to whathe calls a lack of leadership.

The El Cenizo City Counciltoday will listen to complaints

and discussin an execu-tive session,or in pri-vate, the ElCenizo vol-unteer firedepartmentand a per-formanceevaluationof El CenizoFire Chief Juan Alejandro.

Morethan a weekago, Reyesasked forthe resigna-tion of Ale-jandro, butthe chiefhas not sub-mitted hisresignation.

Reyessaid then that he planned to

place an agenda item at thenext council meeting to termi-nate the chief and appoint aninterim.

Alejandro could not bereached for comment.

According to a criminalcomplaint obtained by the La-redo Morning Times on Dec.17, the two former volunteerfirefighters set the abandoned

WEBB COUNTY

Leadership woesEl Cenizo mayor wants new fire department leader

By KENDRA ABLAZATHE ZAPATA TIMES

JONESFIGUEROA-OSORIO

See MAYOR PAGE 11A

PAGE 2A Zin brief WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014

WEDNESDAY, DEC. 31

Epoca de Oro New Year’s Schol-arship Dance. Table reservations andtickets on sale at Rolis. Call Rosa at337- 7178, Sid at 740-3572 or Danielat 290-7341 for more information.

Elysian Social Club New Year’sScholarship Dance. Mirage ReceptionHall. Call Consuelo Ramirez 286-4253for reservations and additional infor-mation.

THURSDAY, JAN. 1

First Day Hikes at Lake CasaBlanca International State Park. From9 a.m. to 11 a.m., the Mesquite BendNature Hike, about 1.75 miles. From11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., White-tail LoopFossils Hike, about 1.25 miles. From1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., Junior RangerHike, about 1 mile. From 3 p.m. to 5p.m., Roadrunner Trail, about 2.25miles.Meet at the Boat Ramp Rest-rooms for all hikes. Contact Holly Re-inhard at holly.reinhard@tpwd.tex-as.gov or 725-3826.

SATURDAY, JAN. 3

Laredo Northside Market Asso-ciation’s Market Day. From 9 a.m. to 1p.m. at North Central Park. The daywill feature free rides on the LaredoParks and Leisure Department kiddietrain. For more information, visit face-book.com/laredonorthsidemarket.

TUESDAY, JAN. 6

WWE Smackdown at 6:45 p.m.at the Laredo Energy Arena, 6700Arena Blvd. Tickets available at ticket-master.com, the LEA box office and byphone at 1-800-745-3000.

Alzheimer’s support group. 7p.m. Meeting room 2, building B ofthe Laredo Medical Center. The sup-port group is for family members andcaregivers taking care of someonewho has Alzheimer’s. Call 956-693-9991.

SATURDAY, JAN. 10

Professional Bull Riders at 7p.m. at the Laredo Energy Arena,6700 Arena Blvd.

SUNDAY, JAN. 11

Professional Bull Riders at 2p.m. at the Laredo Energy Arena,6700 Arena Blvd.

SATURDAY, JAN. 24

STCE’s Comic Con at TAMIUStudent Center from 10 a.m. to 7p.m.

The 20th Annual Crime Stop-pers Menudo Bowl at the LIFE Fair-grounds on Highway 59. Gates open11 a.m. Fifty-eight teams are enteredin the Menudo Cooking contest. Forinformation call 724-1876.

SUNDAY, JAN. 25

STCE’s Comic Con at TAMIUStudent Center from 10 a.m. to 5p.m.

MONDAY, JAN. 26

Chess Club. From 4 p.m. to 6p.m. LBV- Inner City Branch Library at202 W. Plum St. next to the InnerCity Pool. Contact John Hong atjohn@laredolibrary.org., or laredoli-brary.org/innercityevents.html or 795-2400 x2521.

THURSDAY, JAN. 29

Spanish Book Club from 6-8 atthe Laredo Public Library, CaltonRoad. Contact Sylvia Reash at 763-1810.

SATURDAY, FEB. 7

2nd Annual Krizia Lauren KeiserMemorial 5K Run/Walk & Kids Run atUni-Trade Stadium, 6320 Sinatra Pkwy.

(Submit calendar items atlmtonline.com/calendar/sub-mit or by emailing edito-rial@lmtonline.com with theevent’s name, date and time, lo-cation and purpose and contactinformation for a representa-tive. Items will run as space isavailable.)

CALENDARASSOCIATED PRESS

Today is Wednesday, Dec. 31,the 365th and final day of 2014.

Today’s Highlight in His-tory:

On Dec. 31, 1904, New York’sTimes Square saw its firstNew Year’s Eve celebration,with an estimated 200,000 peo-ple in attendance.

On this date:In 1879, Thomas Edison first

publicly demonstrated hiselectric incandescent light inMenlo Park, New Jersey.

In 1909, the ManhattanBridge, spanning the East Riv-er between Manhattan andBrooklyn, was officiallyopened to vehicular traffic.

In 1946, President Harry S.Truman officially proclaimedthe end of hostilities in WorldWar II.

In 1951, the Marshall Planexpired after distributingmore than $12 billion in for-eign aid.

In 1972, Major League base-ball player Roberto Clemente,38, was killed when a planehe’d chartered and was travel-ing on to bring relief suppliesto earthquake-devastated Nica-ragua crashed shortly aftertakeoff from Puerto Rico.

In 1974, private U.S. citizenswere allowed to buy and owngold for the first time in morethan 40 years.

In 1985, singer Rick Nelson,45, and six other people werekilled when fire broke outaboard a DC-3 that was takingthe group to a New Year’s Eveperformance in Dallas.

In 1986, 97 people werekilled when fire broke out inthe Dupont Plaza Hotel in SanJuan, Puerto Rico. (Three ho-tel workers later pleadedguilty in connection with theblaze.)

In 1999, Russian PresidentBoris Yeltsin announced hisresignation (he was succeededby Vladimir Putin).

Ten years ago: PresidentGeorge W. Bush pledged $350million to help tsunami vic-tims, and didn’t rule out send-ing even more U.S. aid to helppeople recover from what hecalled an “epic disaster.”

Five years ago: A lonegunman dressed in blackkilled five people in Espoo,Finland, four of them at acrowded shopping mall, beforereturning home and takinghis own life.

One year ago: Only hoursbefore the law was to take ef-fect, Supreme Court JusticeSonia Sotomayor, acting on arequest from an organizationof Catholic nuns in Denver,blocked implementation ofpart of President Barack Oba-ma’s health care law thatwould have forced some reli-gion-affiliated organizations toprovide health insurance foremployees that included birthcontrol.

Today’s Birthdays: TVproducer George Schlatter is85. Actor Sir Anthony Hop-kins is 77. Actor Sir Ben King-sley is 71. Fashion designerDiane von Furstenberg is 68.Actor Tim Matheson is 67. Popsinger Burton Cummings is67. Actress Bebe Neuwirth is56. Actor Val Kilmer is 55. Ac-tress Gong Li is 49. Author Ni-cholas Sparks is 49. ActorLance Reddick is 45. Pop sing-er Joe McIntyre is 42. RapperPSY (Park Jae-sang) is 37.Rock musician Bob Bryar is35. Actor/singer Erich Bergen(Film/stage: “Jersey Boys”) is29. Olympic gold medal gym-nast Gabby Douglas is 19.

Thought for Today:“Though the past haunt me asa spirit, I do not ask to forget.”— Felicia Dorothea BrowneHemans, English poet (1793-1835).

TODAY IN HISTORY

KAUFMAN — A North Texas womanpleaded guilty Tuesday to murder and wassentenced to 40 years in prison after earliertestifying that she helped her husband gundown a district attorney, his wife and a topassistant in a revenge plot.

Kim Williams appeared in court twoweeks after her husband, Eric Williams, wassentenced to death for one of the three kill-ings.

She testified during Eric Williams’ sen-tencing hearing that she was a “willing par-ticipant,” driving the getaway car after theJanuary 2013 shooting of prosecutor MarkHasse and helping hide weapons after theMarch 2013 shootings of Kaufman CountyDistrict Attorney Mike McLelland and hiswife, Cynthia.

Investigators have said the couple soughtto avenge Eric Williams’ 2012 prosecution forstealing county-owned equipment. He was ajustice of the peace at the time and the con-viction cost him his job and law license.

At her brief court appearance Tuesday,Kim Williams was sentenced immediately af-ter pleading guilty to first-degree murder.She also gave up her right to appeal. Shepleaded guilty in the death of Hasse. Herhusband, from whom she’s now estranged,was convicted Dec. 4 of killing CynthiaMcLelland.

Nathan Foreman, Cynthia McLelland’sson, thanked Kim Williams in court for testi-fying and providing prosecutors with infor-mation.

“I’m not sure closure is the right word, butit was riveting listening to your testimony,”he told her.

AROUND TEXAS

Kim Williams, the estranged wife of Eric Williams, testifies during the punishment phase of Eric Williams’ capital murdertrial at the Rockwall County Courthouse in Rockwall, Texas. Williams pleaded guilty Tuesday to murder and was sentenced to40 years in prison after earlier testifying that she helped her husband gun down a district attorney in a revenge plot.

Photo by Vernon Bryant/The Dallas Morning News | AP

Killer’s wife pleads guiltyASSOCIATED PRESS

Missing Houston toddlerfound safe in ArkansasHOUSTON — Houston police

say a missing child whose moth-er was found dead has beenfound safe in Arkansas wherehis father has been discovereddead of an apparent self-inflictedgunshot wound. A Texas-wideAmber Alert had been issued for14-month-old Tyemetheus Packafter his mother, Angel Jackson,was found dead earlier Tuesdayin Houston. The 26-year-old wom-an last was seen Christmas Eveand had texted a message thatshe’d been shot.

Federal inspectorspenalize 2 hospitals

EL PASO — Two West Texashospitals will have funding with-held after being penalized by fed-eral inspectors for having pa-tients who developed healthproblems while hospitalized. Pa-tients at both facilities developedconditions such as infections.

1 strangled in homewhere 4 bodies found

CROWLEY — Authorities in-vestigating the deaths of fourpeople whose bodies were foundin a North Texas home say onehad been shot repeatedly in thehead while another was stran-gled.

The Tarrant County medicalexaminer’s office said Tuesdaythat 18-year-old Linda Gonzalezwas shot while a 13-year-old girlwas the victim of strangulation.

Davis regrets campaignstance on open carry

AUSTIN — Wendy Davis hassaid she regrets expressing sup-port for the open carry of hand-guns in her failed gubernatorialbid. Davis says the position“wasn’t really in keeping” withher actual view. She supportedlegislation last year to allow col-lege students with concealedhandgun licenses to keep weap-ons in their cars.

Man detained at borderconvicted of murder

HIDALGO — The U.S. BorderPatrol says its agents arrested aMexican man trying to re-enterthe United States after being con-victed of murder. The Border Pa-trol said Monday that the manwas one of seven undocumentedimmigrants arrested near Hidal-go, Mexico. The agency says theman’s murder conviction in Hi-dalgo County was found while hewas being processed.

TV meteorologist releasedfrom hospital

TEMPLE — A Central Texasmeteorologist who was shot ear-lier this month outside his TVstation has been released from ahospital. Patrick Crawford wastreated for three gunshotwounds, one to his abdomen andtwo others from shots thatgrazed him, including one to thehead. He was treated at a Templehospital. — Compiled from APreports

For Obama, reunion is alink to simpler times

HONOLULU — Since return-ing to his childhood home thismonth on vacation, President Ba-rack Obama has spent a goodpart of most days cloistered withthree people whose companyputs him at ease: a trio of palsfrom high school.

The three men are among thefew people still in Obama’s lifewho knew him long before hewas famous. On this visit, Oba-ma has spent more than 22 hourswith the group on the lush golfcourses that dot the island of Oa-hu. When it rained, they wentbowling, instead. And every yearduring Obama’s trip, they gatherfor a beachside barbecue.

Florida pastor shootsarmed former employeeKISSIMMEE, Fla. — Author-

ities say the pastor of a centralFlorida church shot and wound-

ed an employee during a gun-fight after the employee learnedhe was being fired.

Pastor Terry Howell had beenmeeting with maintenance work-er Benjamin Parangan Tuesdayto terminate Parangan’s employ-ment. Witnesses say Parangan

pulled out a handgun and firedmultiple shots at Howell. Hewasn’t hurt but returned firewith his own weapon and hitParangan. Deputies are investi-gating the shooting as a case ofself-defense. — Compiled fromAP reports

AROUND THE NATION

President Barack Obama smiles while golfing with friends Bobby Titcomb, left,and Mike Ramos, on the 18th hole of the Mid Pacific Country Club in Kailua, Ha-waii during the Obama family vacation.

Photo by Jacquelyn Martin | AP

Publisher, William B. Green........................728-2501Account Executive, Dora Martinez ...... (956) 765-5113General Manager, Adriana Devally ...............728-2510Adv. Billing Inquiries ................................. 728-2531Circulation Director ................................. 728-2559MIS Director, Michael Castillo.................... 728-2505Managing Editor, Nick Georgiou ................. 728-2565Sports Editor, Zach Davis ..........................728-2578Spanish Editor, Melva Lavin-Castillo............ 728-2569

SUBSCRIPTIONS/DELIVERY(956) 728-2555

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

Times, a division of The Hearst Corporation, P.O. Box 2129,Laredo, Texas 78044. Phone (956) 728-2500.

The Zapata office is at 1309 N. U.S. Hwy. 83 at 14th Ave-nue, Suite 2, Zapata, TX 78076. Call (956) 765-5113 or e-mailthezapatatimes.net

CONTACT US

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 State THE ZAPATA TIMES 3A

CASTLE HILLS, Texas —More than a dozen people re-mained hospitalized Monday fol-lowing a fire that killed five resi-dents at a senior-living facilitynear San Antonio, a city officialsaid.

City Manager Diane Pfeil saidat least 17 residents were still inthe hospital. Meanwhile, offi-cials hadn’t accounted for about80 residents of the WedgwoodApartments in Castle Hills, butPfeil said authorities believedthose people found refuge withfamily or had left for the holi-days before the Sunday morningfire.

Authorities were calling emer-gency contacts for those resi-dents to confirm their where-abouts.

“It was mass confusion, need-less to say, when the event oc-curred,” Pfeil said.

Firefighters went through the11-story complex and found noother victims, she said.

Two of those killed were iden-tified Monday as Jose Gonzales,

73, and Karen Rae Betz, 74, ac-cording to the Bexar County

Medical Examiner’s Office.Names of the three other people

who died were being withheldpending notification of their rel-

atives.A total of 150 firefighters from

San Antonio and six other firedepartments responded to theblaze, which was reported short-ly after 6 a.m. Sunday. The fireleft some “significant damage,”San Antonio fire spokesmanChristian Bove said Sunday.

The cause of the fire remainsunder investigation, though itappears to have originated onthe third floor. Pfeil said she wasnot sure when the building waslast inspected but said she wouldhave that information soon.

About 350 people live at theapartments, Pfeil said. About 150residents were taken by city bus-es to a local high school, andsome family members waited ata makeshift shelter in the cafete-ria for word of their loved ones.Others residents were taken to ahotel.

Property manager EntradaManagement Services was ar-ranging for the residents’ stays“if they don’t have anywhereelse to go,” Bexar County FireMarshal spokeswoman LauraJesse said Sunday.

17 in hospital after deadly high-rise fireASSOCIATED PRESS

Firefighters and emergency units respond to a fire at the Wedgwood Senior Apartments, Sunday in San Antonio. Five peopledied after a fire broke out at the senior-living apartment building in the San Antonio suburb of Castle Hills, authorities said.

Photo by Marvin Pfeiffer/San Antonio Express-News | AP

U.S. Department of Agri-culture Farm Service Agen-cy (FSA) Administrator ValDolcini offered farmersnew information to updateprogram payment yieldsthat will help them betterselect protections offeredby the Agricultural RiskCoverage (ARC) and PriceLoss Coverage (PLC) pro-grams. The new programs,established by the 2014Farm Bill, are cornerstonesof the commodity farmsafety, offering farmers pro-tection when market forcescause substantial drops incrop prices and revenues.

“The Farm Bill provided

landowners with the optionof updating their farm pro-gram payment yields. Thisis the first time that manyproducers have been able toupdate yields since 1986,”said Dolcini. “We’ve workedwith the Risk ManagementAgency to make availablecertified yield data that pro-ducers can use to better cal-culate how the new safetynet programs can offer thebest protection against mar-ket swings.”

Producers can checkwith their local FSA countyoffice to see if data is avail-able for them. This data be-longs to the producer andonly the producer associat-ed with the crop insurance

records will be providedthis service. Updating yieldhistory or reallocating baseacres can occur until Feb.27, 2015.

FSA also issued a re-minder that from Nov. 17,2014, to March 31, 2015, pro-ducers will make a one-time election of either ARCor PLC for the 2014 through2018 crop years. For moreinformation, producers areencouraged to make an ap-pointment to go into theirlocal FSA county office. Tofind a local FSA county of-fice, visit www.offices.usda-.gov. Additional informa-tion on the new programsis available at www.fsa.us-da.gov/arc-plc.

FSA: Farmers canupdate yield history

SPECIAL TO THE TIMESHOUSTON — Jack Loftis, a former

editor of the Houston Chronicle whoshepherded the newspaper through 15years of changing ownership and tech-nology, has died. Loftis was 80.

The newspaper said Loftis died Mon-day night at a nursing home in subur-ban Bellaire.

A native of Hillsboro in Central Tex-as, Loftis wrote stories for his home-town newspaper while a student atnearby Baylor University, an early startto what became a half-century in thenewspaper business. He joined theChronicle in 1965 as a copy editor androse through the ranks until beingnamed editor in 1986. He retired in 2002.

A year after Loftis became editor,Hearst Corp. purchased the Chroniclefrom the nonprofit Houston Endow-ment. A newspaper long known for its

close relationships withHouston’s top officialsand business elite nowfaced a changing missionas a part of a nationalmedia group.

Loftis distinguishedhimself for “an approachto fairness that really

stood very well for the Chronicle and al-so for Houston during that particulartime,” said Tony Pederson, a formerChronicle executive editor who metLoftis in 1974.

During Loftis’ tenure, the Chronicleinvested heavily in national and inter-national reporting, opening bureausthroughout Texas and Latin America topursue stories of interest to readers inHouston.

He is survived by his wife, Beverly.Funeral arrangements were not imme-diately announced.

Former HoustonChronicle editor dies

ASSOCIATED PRESS

LOFTIS

PAGE 4A Zopinion WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014

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

This year was a non-stop horror show forsome in the politicalclass. Aside from Presi-dent Obama, who presi-ded over his party’s elec-toral debacle at the feder-al and state level, theyear proved to be the un-doing of a long list ofcharacters and move-ments. Here are theworst of the worst of2014:

1. Bob McDonnell wentfrom one of the most re-spected Virginia gover-nors to its most dis-graced. After refusing totake a plea bargain for asingle felony count, hewas convicted on 11counts and faces years inprison. He and now hischildren have taken toblaming the whole thingon his wife, which quali-fies him as the cad of theyear. At multiple junc-tures — before acceptinglavish gifts, before con-tacting state officials onbehalf of a major donor,at the plea bargain stage— he could have avertedthe train wreck. He givesnew meaning to thephrase "when in a hole,quit digging."

2. The Beltway right-wing groups that cheeredthe shutdown found outthat its ideal candidateswere cranks, but worsethan that, losers. Theirwipeouts in Senate andHouse races, followed bythe failure to dislodgethe budget process forthe remainder of the fis-cal year, should convinceall but the hermeticallysealed far right that thecountry does not see theworld the way they do.Talk radio hosts talk, butdo not reflect popularopinion. Political puristsdenigrate squishy moder-ates, but do not sway vot-ers. As many of us sus-pected, the actual Repub-lican Party (not the oneimagined by HeritageAction or the SenateConservatives Fund) isfar more sane, interna-tionalist and open tocompromise than themainstream and conser-vative media would haveyou believe.

3. Rolling Stone lostany patina of respectabil-

ity. MSNBC and CNN lostviewers. David Gregorylost his job. Jill Abram-son lost her job. The NewRepublic lost its staff.Chris Hughes lost liber-als’ most overratedmedia outlet. Politicolost dozens of staffers.Cable TV news lost per-spective on everythingfrom missing airliners tothe Ferguson, Mo., inci-dent. The media figuresconvinced that there wasno GOP wave or thatSen. Rand Paul, R-Ky.,was the leading light ofthe GOP lost track ofreality.

4. Hillary Clinton re-minded everyone thatshe has nothing interest-ing to say, no politicalskills akin to her hus-band’s, no populist vibes,no greater love thanmoney, no shame aboutaccepting fees fromhedge funds one day anddeclaring corporationsdon’t create jobs on an-other, no record of ac-complishment, no abilityto distance herself fromPresident Obama on ma-jor issues (Iran, the waragainst the Islamic Stateand Cuba), no fan club inthe left wing of the party,no rationale for a presi-dential run other thanher gender and longevityon the national stage andno limit to her sense ofentitlement.

5. Liberalism took hitafter hit this year. Demo-crats wiped out acrossthe board. The anti-Kochbrothers and anti-womenmemes bombed. The re-sults of the not-Bush ap-proach to foreign policycaught up with the Oba-ma team. The "jayvee"team gained territoryand influence in the Mid-dle East. Iran is edgingtoward its dream of a nu-clear weapons capability.Vladimir Putin invadedUkraine. Our relationswith Israel hit rock bot-tom. At home, the econo-my recovered despite Re-publican refusal to passanother stimulus. Theliberal welfare state isproving to be unmanage-able. In contrast to con-servatism, which is en-joying a period of intel-lectual creativity,liberalism has become amovement dedicated tothe status quo.

COLUMN

The biggestlosers of the

year inmedia,politics

By JENNIFER RUBINTHE WASHINGTON POST

OTHER VIEWS

The Zapata Timesdoes not publish anony-mous letters.

To be published, let-ters must include thewriter’s first and lastnames as well as aphone number to verifyidentity. The phonenumber IS NOT publish-ed; it is used solely toverify identity and toclarify content, if neces-sary. Identity of the let-ter writer must be veri-fied before publication.

We want to assure

our readers that a letteris written by the personwho signs the letter. TheZapata Times does notallow the use of pseudo-nyms.

Letters are edited forstyle, grammar, lengthand civility. No name-calling or gratuitousabuse is allowed.

Via e-mail, send let-ters to editorial@lmton-line.com or mail them toLetters to the Editor, 111Esperanza Drive, Lare-do, TX 78041.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR POLICY

CLASSIC DOONESBURY | GARRY TRUDEAU

Mayor Bill de Blasio ofNew York has spent weeksexpressing his respect andadmiration for the NewYork Police Departmentwhile calling for unity inthese difficult days, but themessage doesn’t seem to besinking in.

When he spoke at a po-lice graduation ceremony atMadison Square Garden onMonday, some in the crowdbooed and heckled him.This followed the massback-turning by scores of of-ficers when the mayorspoke Saturday at the funer-al of Officer Rafael Ramos;the virtual back-turning theday before by an airplane-towed banner ("Our backshave turned to you"), andthe original spiteful gestureby officers on the night deBlasio visited the hospitalwhere Ramos and his part-ner, Wenjian Liu, lay dead.

De Blasio isn’t going tosay it, but somebody has to:With these acts of passive-aggressive contempt andself-pity, many New York po-lice officers, led by theirunion, are squandering thedepartment’s credibility, de-facing its reputation, shred-ding its hard-earned respect.They have taken the mostgrave and solemn of civicmoments — a funeral of afallen colleague — and hi-jacked it for their own pettylook-at-us gesture. In doingso, they also turned theirbacks on Ramos’ widow andher two young sons, andothers in that grief-struckfamily.

These are disgracefulacts, which will be com-pounded if anyone repeatsthe stunt at Liu’s funeralSunday.

The New York Police De-partment is going through aterrible time, and the assas-sinations of those officers

only underscore the dread-ful dangers that rank-and-file cops face every day. And,in truth, there is somethanklessness to being acop. Officers often feel belea-guered, jerked around by su-pervisors and politicians,obligated to follow rules andpolicies that can be mis-guided, held responsible fortheir mistakes in ways thatthe public is not, exposed tofrequent ridicule and hostil-ity from the people they aresworn to serve. It has al-ways been that way withcops.

But none of those griev-ances can justify the snarl-ing sense of victimhood thatseems to be motivating theanti-de Blasio campaign —the belief that the depart-ment is never wrong, that itnever needs redirection orreform, only reverence. Thisis the view peddled byunion officials like PatrickLynch, the president of the

Patrolmen’s Benevolent As-sociation — that cops are anethically impeccable forcewith their own prioritiesand codes of behavior, ac-countable only to them-selves, and whose reflexivedefiance in the face of validcriticism is somehow nor-mal.

It’s not normal. Not for aprofessional class of highlytrained civil servants, whichNew York’s Finest profess tobe. The police can rightlyexpect, even insist upon, therespect of the public. But re-spect is a finite resource. Itcannot be wasted. Some-times it has to be renewed.

The failures of some cops,the misguided policing tac-tics that feed a sense of op-pression in parts of the city,the offensive provocations ofsome in the police-reformprotest movement and thehorrific killings of two offi-cers have led the city to adangerous point.

EDITORIAL

Police respect, squanderedNEW YORK TIMES

Following the disappear-ance of another plane overSoutheast Asia, 2014 mightwell be remembered as theyear of vanishing aircraft.With advanced communi-cations technologies avail-able, large commercialplanes shouldn’t go mis-sing with little clear infor-mation about their fates.It’s past time for aviationpolicymakers to demandmore from the airlines.

It was three days sinceAirAsia Flight 8501 disap-peared with 162 peopleaboard. Yet experts can on-ly guess at what happened.The last bit of informationcame from the pilot, whoasked permission to as-cend to avoid bad weather.Air traffic controllers de-nied the request. Afterthat, there was silence —no mayday request, noth-

ing.It’s tempting to presume

that a violent thunder-storm brought the planedown. But that’s just oneplausible speculation, be-cause another jetlinerpacked with advanced elec-tronics didn’t have 21st-century communicationsand tracking systems onboard. Malaysia AirlinesFlight 370, which disap-peared in March and stillhasn’t been found, carriedan Inmarsat satellite track-ing system that allowed in-vestigators to do sometracing — work that indi-cated it had turned towardthe open Indian Ocean.But it didn’t provide otherkey details. The AirAsiajet was tracked on radar,but that conveys only somuch information.

Investigators might havean easier time finding thelatest missing plane. For

now, the AirAsia plane ispresumed to have gonedown in relatively shallowwater. And it’s true thatthe number of planes thatdisappear like this is tinycompared with the 100,000or so that take off and landwithout incident every day.

But that doesn’t under-mine the argument that in-vestigators should knowmore now, with informa-tion transmitted directlyfrom the aircraft. The in-terest in better aircraftcommunication and track-ing isn’t just based onheading off speculationand panic, on ending thetorment of loved oneswaiting for solid news oron avoiding the need formassive search-and-rescueoperations — though all ofthose considerations mat-ter. If there are survivors,a timely rescue can savelives.

Since Flight 370 disap-peared, international avia-tion authorities have beenworking on aircraft com-munications and trackingpolicies with more serious-ness — but hardly with ur-gency. An industry panelrecommended some stepsthis month, calling for air-lines to have some track-ing function "within poten-tial areas of operation andrange" that communicatesaircraft location within anautical mile at least ev-ery 15 minutes. The panelalso examined the possibil-ity of restricting pilotsfrom switching off trans-ponders — which appearsto have happened in theFlight 370 case - but con-cluded that this should bea "long-term prospect."Though these standardsare pretty basic, some air-lines have neverthelessbalked.

EDITORIAL

The year of vanishing aircraftTHE WASHINGTON POST

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 International THE ZAPATA TIMES 5A

UNITED NATIONS —The U.N. Security Councilrejected a Palestinian res-olution demanding an endto Israeli occupation with-in three years late Tues-day, a blow to efforts to getthe U.N.’s most powerfulbody to take action to rec-ognize an independentstate of Palestine.

The United States, Is-rael’s closest ally, hadmade clear its oppositionto the draft resolution andwould have used its veto ifnecessary. But it didn’thave to because the reso-lution failed to get theminimum nine “yes”votes required for adop-tion by the 15-membercouncil.

The resolution receivedeight “yes” votes, two“no” votes — one from theUnited States and the oth-er from Australia — andfive abstentions. Untilshortly before the vote,council diplomats had ex-pected the resolution toget nine “yes” votes. ButNigeria, which had beenexpected to vote “yes,” ab-stained.

The defeated resolutionwould have affirmed theurgent need to achieve “ajust, lasting and compre-hensive peaceful solution”to the Palestinian-Israeliconflict within 12 monthsand set a Dec. 31, 2017deadline for Israel’s occu-pation to end.

It also called for an in-dependent state of Pales-tine to be establishedwithin the 1967 Mideastborders — before Israelcaptured the West Bank,Gaza and east Jerusalem— and demanded “a justsolution” to all other out-standing issues.

UNrejects

Palestinesolution

By EDITH M. LEDERERASSOCIATED PRESS

PANGKALAN BUN, Indonesia— Family members of thoseaboard AirAsia Flight 8501 col-lapsed in agony Tuesday as imag-es of debris and a bloated bodyflashed across Indonesian televi-sion screens, proof that the planecrashed into the sea two days ear-lier with 162 people on board.

The jet vanished Sunday half-way through a two-hour flight be-tween Surabaya, Indonesia, andSingapore after encountering se-vere storms. The disappearancetriggered an international huntfor the aircraft by dozens ofplanes, ships and helicopters.

On the third day of searching,the first signs of the airliner — alife jacket and an emergency exitdoor — were found in shallow,aqua-colored waters only about 10miles (16 kilometers) from theplane’s last known coordinates.

Parts of the jetliner’s interior, in-cluding an oxygen tank, werebrought to the nearest town,Pangkalan Bun. Another find in-cluded a bright blue plastic suit-case, completely unscratched.

“I know the plane has crashed,but I cannot believe my brotherand his family are dead,” saidIfan Joko, who lost seven rela-tives, three of them children, asthey traveled to Singapore to ring

in the New Year. “We still praythey are alive.”

First Adm. Sigit Setiayanta,commander of the Naval AviationCenter at Surabaya Air Forcebase, told reporters six corpseswere spotted about 160 kilometers(100 miles) from Central Kaliman-tan province.

Rescue workers descended onropes from a hovering helicopterto retrieve bodies. Efforts werehindered by 2-meter-high (6-foot)waves and strong winds, NationalSearch and Rescue Director SBSupriyadi said.

The first body was later pickedup by a navy ship. Officials saidas many as six others followed,but they disagreed about the ex-act number.

Supriyadi was on the aircraftand saw what appeared to bemore wreckage under the water,which was clear and a relativelyshallow 20 to 30 meters (65 to 100feet).

Wreckage, bodies reveal lost jet’s fateBy DEWI NURCAHYANI AND ROBIN MCDOWELL

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Indonesian Air Force Operational Command Rear Marshall Dwi Putranto shows asuitcase found floating near the site where AirAsia Flight 8501 disappeared.

Photo by Dewi Nurcahyani | AP

6A THE ZAPATA TIMES Nation WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014

ECHO SUMMIT, Calif. —The winter’s first survey ofthe Sierra Nevada snow-pack on Tuesday foundmore snow than last year atthis time, but officials saidmuch more is needed toend the California drought.

The Department of Wa-ter Resources conductedthe survey at an elevationof about 6,800 feet some 90miles east of Sacramento.

Frank Gehrke, chief ofthe California CooperativeSnow Surveys Program,said there were 21.3 inchesof snow on the ground afterrecent heavy storms.

It was more snow thanthis time last year, but thewater content was still farbelow average for the date.

California’s snowpacksupplies about a third ofthe water needed by stateresidents, agriculture andindustry as it melts in thelate spring and summer.

“California needs muchmore rain and snow thanwe’ve experienced over thepast two years to end thedrought in 2015,” said de-partment Director MarkCowin. “The departmentencourages Californians tocontinue their water con-servation practices.”

Gov. Jerry Brown de-clared a drought emergen-cy last Jan. 17.

After three years ofdrought, most storms thatdrenched the state thismonth have been powerfulbut relatively warm, deliv-ering above-average rainfallto most of the state while

providing a modest earlywinter snowpack.

The water content of thesnow measured Tuesdaywas about 33 percent of av-erage.

Statewide, 105 electronicsensors in the Sierra de-tected a water content ofabout 50 percent of the mul-ti-year average for the day.That compares favorablywith last winter’s first sur-vey, when the snowpackwater content statewidewas only 20 percent of nor-mal, which tied with 2012as the driest readings on re-cord.

Tuesday’s readings indi-cate that water content inthe northern mountains is20 percent of the average onApril 1, when it normallypeaks before the springmelt.

The Department of Wa-ter Resources and otheragencies conduct manualsnow surveys around thefirst of the month betweenJanuary and May to checkthe accuracy of real-timeelectronic readings.

More snow is good newsfor those heading to themountains to celebrate thearrival of 2015.

“Skiers have certainlyenjoyed the early seasonsnow storms, and cold tem-peratures have offered idealconditions for snowmak-ing,” said Rachael Woods, aspokeswoman for NorthstarCalifornia Resort. “We’llring in the New Year withfresh snow on the slopes.”

The company operatesthe Heavenly, Northstarand Kirkwood facilities inthe state.

Patty Lang rides a snow disk down one of the runs at the AdventureMountian snow park near Echo Summit, Calif., Tuesday.

Photo by Rich Pedroncelli | AP

Snow won’t endCalif. droughtBy KRISTIN J. BENDER

ASSOCIATED PRESS

NEW YORK — MayorBill de Blasio met private-ly for more than twohours Tuesday with theleaders of the New YorkPolice Department’sunions, aiming to mend arift with rank-and-file offi-cers that has threatened tooverwhelm his youngmayoralty.

While administrationofficials characterized themeeting as the beginningof a process to healwounds opened by pro-tests about police conductand the fatal shooting oftwo officers, union leadersstruck a more cautiousnote, saying that “onlytime will tell” if relationswould improve.

“Our main concern isthe safety of our police of-ficers of every rank on thestreets in the city,” saidPatrick Lynch, head of thePatrolmen’s BenevolentAssociation, which repre-sents rank-and-file offi-cers, after the meeting.

“There were a numberof discussions especiallyabout the safety issuesthat our members face,”Lynch continued, readinga joint statement from allfive unions. “There wasno resolve. And ourthought here today is thatactions speak louder thanwords and time will tell.”

Lynch has been one ofde Blasio’s fiercest critics,saying the mayor had“blood on his hands” afterthe brazen daylight am-bush on two officers intheir patrol car earlierthis month.

A person who wasbriefed on the meeting butnot authorized to speakpublicly on a private gath-ering told The Associated

Press that Lynch repeatedmuch of his recent publicremarks accusing de Bla-sio of aligning himselfwith protesters who havecreated an anti-NYPD at-mosphere that led to theshooting. The union lead-ers charged that de Blasiohad helped create an un-safe environment for po-lice, according to the per-son, who spoke to the APon condition of anonymity.

De Blasio stressed thathe has not been anti-po-lice in his remarks, im-ploring the unions tocheck the transcripts ofhis speeches and inter-views, according to theperson. He also stressedthat the two sides hadcommon ground andshould table their publicdisagreements.

No apology was issuedfrom either side, the per-son said.

Relations between theunions — who are seeking

a new contract — and themayor have been poorfrom the time he took of-fice a year ago. But the an-ger of many officers to-ward de Blasio in recentdays has been striking.

Twice in the last week— including at a funeralfor one of the slain cops —officers have turned theirbacks to the mayor. Andde Blasio received boosand heckles from some inthe crowd Monday at aNYPD graduation ceremo-ny.

At the mayor’s behest,Police Commissioner Wil-liam Bratton invited theunion leaders and othertop NYPD officials to joinhim and de Blasio for themeeting at the new policeacademy in Queens.

De Blasio did not takequestions from reportersbut his press secretarysaid in a statement thatthe meeting “focused onbuilding a productive dia-

logue and identifyingways to move forward to-gether.”

“The mayor and policecommissioner remaincommitted to keepingcrime in New York City athistorically low levels,”Phil Walzak said in thestatement, “supportingthe brave men and womenin uniform who protect usevery day, and findingways to bring police andthe community closer to-gether.”

The two sides pledgedto meet again, though notimeframe was issued.There was no discussionabout whether policewould again turn theirbacks on de Blasio at thesecond officer’s funeralthis Sunday, the personbriefed on the meetingsaid, though the head ofthe NYPD Captains En-dowment Association hasasked his members to ab-stain from the act.

NYC mayor, police union meetBy JONATHAN LEMIRE

ASSOCIATED PRESS

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio speaks during a New York Police Academy graduation ceremony,Monday at Madison Square Garden in New York. Nearly 1000 officers were sworn in.

Photo by John Minchillo | AP

HAYDEN, Idaho — A 2-year-old boy accidentallyshot and killed his motherafter he reached into herpurse at a northern IdahoWal-Mart and her concealedgun fired, authorities saidTuesday.

The 29-year-old womanwas shopping with her sonand three other children,Kootenai County sheriff ’sspokesman Stu Miller toldThe Associated Press. Herfamily had come to the areato visit relatives, he said.

The woman, whose iden-tity was not released, had aconcealed weapons permit.Miller said the young boywas left in a shopping cart,reached into the victim’spurse and grabbed a small-caliber handgun, which dis-charged one time.

Deputies who respondedto the Wal-Mart found herdead, the sheriff ’s officesaid.

“It appears to be a prettytragic accident,” Miller said.

The woman’s husbandwas not in the store whenthe shooting happened at

about 10:20 a.m. Miller saidthe man arrived shortly af-ter the shooting. All the chil-dren were taken to a rela-tive’s house.

The shooting occurred inthe Wal-Mart in Hayden,Idaho, a town about 40 milesnortheast of Spokane, Wash-ington. The store closed andwas not expected to reopenuntil Wednesday morning.

Brooke Buchanan, aspokeswoman for Wal-Mart,said in a statement theshooting was a “very sadand tragic accident.”

“We are working closelywith the local sheriff ’s de-partment while they investi-gate what happened,” Bu-chanan said.

There do not appear to bereliable national statisticsabout the number of acci-dental fatalities involvingchildren handling guns.

In neighboring Washing-ton state, a 3-year-old boywas seriously injured in No-vember when he was acci-dentally shot in the face bya 4-year-old neighbor. Theboy was wounded as thechildren played in a homein Lake Stevens, about 30miles north of Seattle.

People stand inside a Wal-Mart in Hayden, Idaho, Tuesday. A 2-year-old boy accidentally shot and killed his mother at the Wal-Mart.

Photo by Tess Freeman/Coeur d’Alene Press | AP

2-year-old shootsmom accidentally

By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOSASSOCIATED PRESS

DENVER — A father whose fouryoung sons could communicate on-ly in grunts when authorities res-cued them from a filthy Denverapartment was sentenced to fiveyears in prison Tuesday by a judgewho said he hoped it would send amessage to parents that they can’ttreat their children like pets.

Judge J. Eric Elliff said WayneSperling, 67, made outrageous ex-cuses for neglecting the boys to thepoint where they could not recog-nize food and did not learn his les-son after an earlier child-abuseconviction cost him custody ofthree other children.

“The message is, you’ve got totreat your children with dignityand respect,” Elliff said. “They’renot pets. They are not possessions.They are human beings that needto be carefully nurtured. Thatdidn’t happen here.”

Prosecutors said Sperling, hiswife and the boys lived in an apart-ment where nearly every surfacewas covered in cat feces and flies.The children, ages 2 to 6, were mal-nourished when they were foundon October 2013.

Sperling’s wife, Lorinda Bailey,was sentenced to 90 days in jailand five years of probation last

month, and Sperling’s attorney ar-gued he should receive a similarsentence. Prosecutors sought themaximum of seven years in prison.

“They just weren’t equipped tobe parents,” defense attorney Be-tsy Atkinson said.

But Elliff said the case was moretragic because it wasn’t a first forthe family. The couple lost custodyof three other children amid simi-lar allegations in October 2006.The children mostly grunted andpointed to communicate, and offi-cers found a home full of trash androtten food. Bailey and Sperlingpleaded guilty in June 2007 to mis-demeanor child abuse.

“There have been so many fail-ures on so many different levels,”Elliff said. “Now we have sevenchildren who are going to bescarred by these early childhoodconditions.”

In the most recent case, anemergency room doctor suspectedabuse when the youngest was tak-en to the hospital for a cut on hisforehead. The doctor noticed hewas unwashed, reeked of cigarettesmoke and had bruises consistentwith pinching. That led authoritiesto the apartment, where theyfound decomposing animals andabout an inch of solidified cat fecesand urine beneath one of the boy’sbeds.

Sperling, mumbling, told thejudge to do “whatever you feel isright” when given a chance tospeak before he was sentenced.

Prosecutors said it was one oftheir most horrific cases they hadever seen, but Colorado’s childabuse laws kept them from pursu-ing harsher penalties because thechildren didn’t suffer serious phys-ical injuries.

After the boys were rescued andgiven bagged lunches to eat, theyacted as if they hadn’t seen foodbefore, patting the sandwiches andplaying with the apples, DeputyDistrict Attorney Anita Drasansaid. An adult mimed eating an ap-ple to encourage them to eat; theylicked the fruit instead, Drasansaid.

The boys are improving whileliving in foster care, but still strug-gle as a result of the squalor. Theyhave breathing problems and aresensitive to light, requiring themto wear special glasses, Drasansaid.

“They didn’t smile, they didn’tlaugh, and they lived in constantfear and were unable to expressthemselves,” Drasan said. And,reading a statement from their fos-ter mother, she added, “these arefighters and survivors. They willgrow to do great things. But theyhave a long battle before them.”

In this Nov. 15, 2013 file photo, Wayne Sperling, right, leaves court while talking with his public defender, at the Denver Justice Center,in Denver. Sperling faces up to seven years in prison.

Photo by Brennan Linsley | AP file

Man gets 5 years for keeping4 sons in filthy home

By SADIE GURMANASSOCIATED PRESS

Sports&OutdoorsWEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM

NEW YORK — Lionsdefensive tackle Ndamu-kong Suh can play in De-troit’s wild-card game af-ter his one-game NFL sus-pension was reduced to a$70,000 fine.

Hearing officer Ted Cot-trell heard Suh’s expedit-ed appeal Tuesday andruled that Suh can playSunday at Dallas but must

pay the fine.Suh originally was sus-

pended for stepping onPackers quarterback Aa-ron Rodgers’ left leg twicelast Sunday in a loss toGreen Bay for the NFCNorth title. He stepped onRodgers once with eachfoot, which violated un-necessary roughnessrules, according to theleague.

But Cottrell, jointly ap-

pointed by the NFL andthe players’ union, re-scinded the suspension.

The Lions said theywould not comment untilWednesday, when Suh willbe available at their train-ing complex.

One Cowboys defensiveplayer, end Jeremy Min-cey, seemed surprised byCottrell’s decision.

“I didn’t understandthat,” Mincey said.

“You’ve got to play thegame the right way. I’mnot knocking him. I likehis intensity. I love howhard he plays. But therecomes a point whereyou’ve got to think beforeyou react.

“Sometimes it happens.I’ve done plays like whatSuh did, so I’m not mad athim. It happens like thatsometimes. You’re frus-trated, you’re down and

you’re losing and thingslike that.”

Suh has a long list offines and one previoussuspension, for two gamesin 2011 for stepping on theright arm of Packers line-man Evan Dietrich-Smith.Suh has been fined eighttimes in his career, butthis is the first in 2014.

Suh was fined $100,000for an illegal block onVikings center John Sulli-

van in Week 1 of 2013 dur-ing an interception re-turn. That was the largestfine in NFL history for on-field conduct, not count-ing suspensions.

Cottrell’s decisionmeans the Lions will haveone of their key defensivecogs. Suh finished the sea-son with a team-high 8 1/2sacks and helped Detroitrank second overall andfirst in run defense.

NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: DETROIT LIONS

Lions’ Suh wins appeal, to face CowboysASSOCIATED PRESS

JIM HARBAUGH INTRODUCED AS MICHIGAN’S NEXT COACH

Photo by Carlos Osorio | AP

Former 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh will take over the Michigan football program. He made the playoffsthree times in San Francisco after the team missed the postseason in eight consecutive seasons.

FRENTE FRÍOEl frente frío número

23 está afectando la fron-tera sur de Texas y el nor-te de Tamaulipas, con des-censo de temperaturas ypotencial de lluvias pun-tuales en la región fronte-riza.

La masa de aire polarasociada al sistema, origi-nará vientos de hasta 60kilómetros por hora en elterritorio.

Se recomienda a la po-blación tomar las medidasnecesarias para el cuidadode la salud. Abríguese conropa gruesa, en especialniños, enfermos, indigentesy adultos de la terceraedad.

Debido a las posibleslluvias, también se indica ala comunidad extremarprecauciones al conduciren asfalto mojado y en ca-so de vientos fuertes, evi-tar caminar o estacionarsecerca de anuncios especta-culares, árboles o cons-trucciones endebles.

DESTINOS TURÍSTICOSAutoridades tamauli-

pecas invitan a los turistasque buscan acercarse a lanaturaleza, a visitar la Re-serva de la Biosfera delCielo, donde se impartenactividades senderismo,rappel, kayak, 4×4, foto-grafía, ciclismo, tirolesa,campismo, observación deaves, entre muchas más,en las que se aprecian lasbellezas y riquezas de Ta-maulipas.

El turismo de El Cielose ha convertido en unavía de sustento para lospobladores de la zona.

El Cielo alberga caver-nas donde habitan varie-dad de especies endémicasde la región, gran cantidadfauna, cohabitan 430 tiposde aves residentes y mi-gratorias, también es ho-gar de 85 variedades deanfibios y reptiles

Lugares como la Piedradel Elefante, la Campana,la Bocatoma, La Florida,son lugares que identificanel lugar.

El Gobierno de Ta-maulipas invita a visitarsus Pueblos Mágicos, comouna opción para visitar du-rante la temporada inver-nal

Los Pueblos Mágicos deMéxico se han convertidoen un destino turístico pa-ra nacionales y extranjerosque gustan de disfrutar lastradiciones, gastronomía,artesanías, la arquitecturay todo lo que envuelve lacultura mexicana, ademásde ser una oferta basadaen la historia y actividadespropias del lugar, así comode la aventura y deporteextremo en escenarios na-turales.

Los Pueblos Mágicos deTamaulipas son Tula y Mier,México.

INFRAESTRUCTURA VIALCon la finalidad de

impulsan y fortalecen eldesarrollo económico y so-cial de sus habitantes, sehan entregado 860 millo-nes de pesos al municipiode Reynosa, México,

Entre las obras másdestacadas que se hanrealizado en Reynosa estáel Distribuidor vial “La La-guna”, así como, el viaduc-to y la modernización de lacarretera Reynosa – RioBravo, dijo Manuel Rodrí-guez Morales, titular de laSecretaría de Obras Públi-cas en el Estado de Ta-maulipas.

Asimismo, Rodríguezdestacó que estas obras enconjunto permitirán agilizarel tránsito vehicular y ha-cer más seguro los trasla-dos en los cruces donde seconcentra el mayor tráfico.

— Con información de tamaulipas.gob.mx

Ribereñaen Breve

El 2014 representó un añode crecimiento en el ra-mo industrial para el Es-tado de Tamaulipas, des-

pués de que se abrieran 17 empre-sas a través de la regiónfronteriza, anunciaron autorida-des tamaulipecas esta semana.

Un total de 16 empresas, conuna inversión de 411.600.000 millo-nes de dólares, generaron alrede-dor de 9.152 empleos directos, se-ñaló Mónica González García, Se-cretaria de Desarrollo Económicoy Turismo para el Estado. Ocho delas 16 empresas, corresponden aexpansiones, mientras que ochoson empresas de nueva creación.

“Este año empezaron sus opera-ciones empresarios nacionales einternacionales, de los cuales 9

fueron de Estados Unidos, 2 de Co-rea del Sur, 1 de Corea del Norte y2 nacionales”, dijo González. “Es-tamos orgullosos porque en Ta-maulipas tenemos una cartera deinversión variada, somos una enti-dad privilegiada por su conectivi-dad y su mano de obra de alta ca-lidad”.

El municipio de Reynosa, Méxi-co, es ahora sede de 7 nuevas em-presas; Matamoros alberga a 4;Nuevo Laredo, México, vio laapertura de tres nuevas compa-ñías; y Altamira, México, ahoracuenta con dos nuevas empresas.

Entre los principales beneficiosque se han presentado están: ma-yor empleo, variedad de puestoslaborales que permitan el desarro-llo profesional y las oportunidadesde proveeduría y comercio alrede-dor de dichos establecimientos.

TAMAULIPAS

Crece industria

El estado de Tamaulipas vio la apertura de 16 nuevas empresas en diferentes regiones del Estado durante el año 2014. La mayoría de las nuevas compañías abrieron suspuertas en ciudades fronterizas.

Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Tamaulipas

Durante el año 2014, el Estado de Tamaulipas registró la apertura de 16 empresas, endiferentes ciudades del Estado.

Foto de cortesía | Gobierno de Tamaulipas

En 2014 se registró aperturade 16 compañías

TIEMPO DE ZAPATA

PÁGINA 8A Zfrontera MIÉRCOLES 31 DE DICIEMBRE DE 2014

Debido a las celebraciones porel fin de año, autoridades del De-partamento de Transporte de Te-xas (TxDOT, por sus siglas en in-glés) recuerdan a la poblaciónconducir con responsabilidad,además, señalaron que habrá ope-rativos para prevenir los acciden-tes y disuadir a los conductoresen estado de ebriedad de condu-cir.

La Campaña Anual contraConducir Intoxicado de TxDOTcomenzó el 1 de diciembre y con-tinuará hasta el primer día delAño Nuevo. Esta campaña tienecomo objetivo promover la impor-tancia de planear un transporte

sobrio. La campaña coincide conel aumento de patrullaje de lasfuerzas policiales que busca redu-cir el número de accidentes enTexas causados por conducir into-xicado durante estas fiestas.

“Históricamente, la fiesta deAño Nuevo ha sido una época pe-ligrosa en nuestras calles”, dijo elDirector Ejecutivo de TxDOT, Lt.Gen. Joe Weber, USMC. “Los resi-dentes de Texas deben planear suTransporte Sobrio o prepararsepara sufrir las consecuencias.Conducir en estado de ebriedadserá algo que no toleraremos”.

Los conductores arrestados porconducir en estado de ebriedad(DWI) pueden ser encarcelados yenfrentar costos por tribunales y

multas de hasta 17.000 dólares. En Texas, el límite legal para

estar intoxicado es de .08 de con-centración de alcohol en la sangreo en el aliento (BAC por sus siglasen inglés).

Durante la temporada de fies-tas del año pasado, de entre las 6p.m. del 31 de diciembre y las 12a.m. del 1 de enero, se registraron218 accidentes por manejar en es-tado de ebriedad en Texas, dandocomo resultado 10 muertes y 76lesionados. Estos accidentes detránsito fatales a consecuencia delmanejo bajo la influencia de alco-hol representan un aumento del25 por ciento, comparados con latemporada de fiestas en el mismoperíodo del Año Nuevo anterior.

TEXAS

Recuerdan a conductoresno conducir intoxicados

ESPECIAL PARA TIEMPO DE ZAPATA

Los residentes ganaderos y agríco-las de la región tendrán mayor accesoa información relacionada con el ren-dimiento de pago de los programas alos que estén suscritos, y con ello reali-zar una mejor selección de proteccio-nes ofrecidas por los programas de Co-bertura de Riesgos Agrícolas (ARC,por sus siglas en inglés) y Coberturade Pérdida de Precios (PLC, por sus si-glas en inglés), del Departamento deAgricultura y Agencia de ServiciosAgrícolas (FSA, por sus siglas en in-glés), anunció el departamento esta se-mana.

Los nuevos programas, establecidospor la Ley Agrícola de 2014, son esen-ciales en la seguridad en las fincas delos productos básicos, que ofrecen pro-tección a los agricultores cuando lasfuerzas del mercado provocan caídassustanciales en los precios de los culti-vos y los ingresos, señala un comuni-cado de prensa.

Los productores deberán acudir asu oficina local de FSA y comprobarlos datos disponibles para ellos. Estosdatos serán proporcionados al produc-tor que está asociado con los registrosde seguro de las cosechas del servicio.

Las actualizaciones del historial derendimiento pueden presentarse hastael 27 de febrero de 2015.

FSA también emitió un recordato-rio de que a partir del 17 de noviembrede 2014, y hasta el 31 de marzo de 2015,los productores deberán elegir uno delos programas ARC o PLC para el2014.

Para obtener más información, serecomienda a los productores haceruna cita en su oficina de FSA. Para en-contrar una oficina local en su conda-do puede visitar www.offices.usda.gov.

Información adicional sobre losnuevos programas está disponible enwww.fsa.usda.gov/arc-plc.

FSA

Extiendenacceso a

informaciónTIEMPO DE ZAPATA

NUEVA YORK — Los entrecuatro y cinco millones de inmi-grantes sin autorización que sebeneficiarían de las acciones ejec-utivas anunciadas el 20 de no-viembre por el presidente BarackObama tienen ante sí una granoportunidad, aunque tambiénmuchas dudas, preguntas y suspi-cacias.

A continuación algunos de losobstáculos que enfrentan:

Los 465 dólares que se debenpagar por solicitud. Hay quienesno tienen ese dinero. Esta tarifase aplica por persona, no por fam-ilia.

Temor a repercusiones mi-gratorias. Si no se acepta la solic-itud de alguien, esa persona po-dría ser deportada.

Temporalidad de las medi-das, que sólo estarán vigentes du-rante tres años. Después podríanser renovadas o no por otro go-bierno si no hay una reforma per-manente a las leyes de inmigra-ción.

Falta de información y de-sinformación entre la comunidadinmigrante

Imposibilidad de recopilardocumentos que demuestren pre-sencia continua en el país du-rante cinco años.

Temor a reportar nombresde parientes que están en el país

ilegalmente y no pueden acogerseal programa de suspensión de de-portaciones.

Falta de acceso en zonas ru-rales a centros comunitarios o deayuda a inmigrantes para po-derse informar sobre las medidas.

Temor a las consecuenciasde cualquier arresto, aunque seapor un delito leve. En teoría ar-restos por delitos leves no debe-rían ser sinónimo de deportación,pero en la práctica se han regis-trado deportaciones tras arrestospor infracciones menores.

Para los jóvenes, el no podermatricularse en una escuela por-que se trabaja. Tener un título esrequisito para programa de sus-pensión de deportaciones jóvenes.

INMIGRACIÓN

Hay obstáculos en planPOR CLAUDIA TORRRENS

ASSOCIATED PRESS

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 Year in Review THE ZAPATA TIMES 9A

Twenty-thousand feet downthe answers may be waiting,hidden in some underwater can-yon far off Australia’s coast. Butmore than nine months aftersearchers began scouring theseas for a Malaysia Airlines jet-liner that vanished with 239 peo-ple aboard, the catastrophe de-fies resolution.

In that way, the long, fruitlesshunt for clues to Flight 370’s fateset the tone for many of theheadlines that defined 2014. Itwas a year upended by calamityand conflict, disease and divi-sion that often left the publicand its leaders grasping for an-swers.

From Ukraine to the MiddleEast, from the Ebola threat tothe tensions exposed by policekillings in Ferguson, Missouri,and elsewhere, many of the topnews stories fed into a growingsense of frustration.

Confronting the questionsraised by the headlines broughtlittle peace of mind. Instead, oneevent after another exploded, de-manding attention but often re-warding it with weariness andlingering unease. Unlike 2013,when much of the news cen-tered on Washington’s politicaldysfunction, many of this year’sbiggest stories were rooted infar-flung locales, but their im-pact kept rippling.

That was certainly the casewith the conflict over Ukraine,stretching back to President Vic-tor Yanukovych’s ouster in Feb-ruary. When Russia filled thevacuum by grabbing the Cri-mean peninsula and workingwith militants bent on takingmore territory from the west-ern-leaning government, it setoff a standoff reminiscent of theCold War.

Militants are blamed fordowning a second Malaysian jetas it flew over Ukrainian air-space in July, killing all 298aboard, the largest number ofthem Dutch. U.S.-led sanctionshave begun tightening a vise onthe Russian economy. Monthslater, both sides are locked in astare-down that can hardly becalled a peace.

In less harried times, evenmany of the biggest news eventscapture the public’s attentionfor just a few days, or perhapsweeks, before slipping from

view. But in 2014, Ukraine kept alasting place in the headlinesand was hardly an exception.

Consider that the Ebola crisisbegan with a case in Guinea lastDecember. By March, the WorldHealth Organization was track-ing the outbreak and working tomarshal a response. But a yearafter the outbreak began, thereis no end to fears of a diseasethat has already killed at least6,000 people.

Nearly all of those deathscame in three west Africancountries. But when a Liberianman with the disease died at aDallas hospital this fall, followedby a handful of other U.S. cases,it set off a panic and doubtsabout whether the health sys-tem was ready. As the yearneared an end, the WHO ques-tioned reports of progress incontaining the disease in Africabased on data it says is filledwith inconsistencies.

The Malaysia Airlines disas-ter, too, captivated the worldlong after the plane disappearedshortly after takeoff in the earlyhours of March 8. Eventually,aircraft, ships and searchersfrom 26 countries were assem-bled to look for the wreckage. InOctober, a contractor dispatchedships with high-tech sonar toscan 23,000 square miles of Indi-

an Ocean floor. But the job couldtake until at least next May, offi-cials say, and no wreckage hasever been found.

“The sense of helplessness,the feeling of powerlessness, andthe pain have not eased but onlyworsened as times goes by,” saidLiu Weijie, whose wife wasaboard the flight. He was speak-ing after 100 days passed with-out any sign of the jet.

Meanwhile, violence in theMiddle East once again tookcommand of the headlines,sometimes in ways that shockedeven a public numbed by the re-gion’s tense history.

The worst violence broke outin Libya since dictator Moam-mar Gadhafi was overthrown,after the Islamists in control ofthe national congress ignored ageneral’s February order to dis-solve the chamber. With militiasin control of Tripoli, the yearended with the country split bytwo governments, two parlia-ments, and hundreds of thou-sands of people displaced.

In Gaza, the June kidnappingof three Israeli teens by Hamasoperatives brought a crackdownby Israeli forces, retaliatoryrocket attacks and a 50-day warthat killed more than 2,100 Pal-estinians and 72 Israelis. But itended with no hint of a route to-

ward resolution.After nearly four years of civ-

il war in Syria, the U.S. and oth-er countries appeared stuck in acircular debate about whetherand how to intercede. But theradical Islamic State group’srapid expansion, capped by mil-itants’ videotaped beheadings ofWestern hostages, jarred an ex-panding coalition to launch acampaign of more 1,000 bombingattacks on IS strongholds in Iraqand Syria. As the year ends,though, leaders cautioned thattheir vows to destroy the insur-gency could take years to fulfill.

“We recognize that hard workremains to be done,” U.S. Secre-tary of State John Kerry said.

Even as the war on IslamicState began, Americans turnedtheir attention to suburban St.Louis, where in August a whitepolice officer fatally shot black18-year-old Michael Brown, afterstopping him and a friend forwalking in the middle of thestreet. Exactly what happenedwas clouded by conflicting wit-ness accounts. Brown’s death,and a grand jury’s decision notto charge the officer, prompted afuror over law enforcement’streatment of young, black men.Other police killings in NewYork, Cleveland and elsewherejust fed the public’s frustration.

If any news event offered thechance for resolution, it was theNovember elections that pre-sented fed-up voters with ameans for shaking up the statusquo.

That’s just what they did,handing Republicans control ofthe Senate they sought to battlePresident Barack Obama andboosting the party’s strength ina number of statehouses.

But there’s been little signthat will break gridlock inWashington, where Obama’s re-cent decisions — particularly anexecutive order curbing deporta-tions — have stirred intenseGOP enmity. With the electionover, public disenchantment hasremained in place, with pollsshowing that two of every threeAmericans believe the countryis headed in the wrong direc-tion, despite continued improve-ment in the economy.

Clearly, not all of the newsstories of the past year lackedresolution. There were winnersand losers at the Winter Olym-pics and the World Cup — whichspotlighted athletic excellence,along with Russia’s outsizedspending and Brazil’s politicaldiscontent. The number of statesallowing same-sex marriagedoubled this year, reflectingshifting attitudes and politics.

In South Korea, parents griev-ing over the April ferry sinkingthat killed 300, most of themhigh school students, saw thecaptain sentenced to 36 years inprison, fixing some measure ofresponsibility, but without clo-sure.

But those headlines could notdistract from the larger narra-tive of a country and worldfaced by daunting challengesand few answers within reach.That was clear in late October,when Peter Foley, an Australiancoordinating the hunt for thevanished Malaysia Airlines jet,faced questions about its direc-tion.

“We are in for the long haul,”Foley said.

He was referring only to thesearchers and their role in try-ing to bring resolution to a sin-gular conundrum. But he couldjust as well have been speakingabout the challenges raised byany one of numerous newsevents in 2014, a year when mak-ing sense of the headlines re-quired patience, but did little toreward it.

News in 2014 left public without answersBy ADAM GELLER

ASSOCIATED PRESS

In this Sept. 30 file photo, nine-year-old Nowa Paye is taken to an ambulance after showing signs of the Ebola infection inthe village of Freeman Reserve, about 30 miles north of Monrovia, Liberia.

Photo by Jerome Delay | AP file

1. “Boyhood” — This movie justpulsates with the feeling that it’ssomething utterly unique — some-thing rare and exciting. It’s not justthat director Richard Linklater man-aged to shoot it over 12 years, creat-ing an astonishingly fluid view of aboy’s life; It’s how the film makes usFEEL. By the end, we know Mason(the sensitive Ellar Coltrane) so well,it feels wrong to leave him. Shouldn’the be coming home with us?

2. “Birdman” — Absolutely brac-ing in its verve and inventiveness,Alejandro G. Inarritu’s meditation onfame, relevance and self-worth is amarvel. Michael Keaton is raw andvulnerable as an aging actor trying toexorcise his superhero past; EdwardNorton is superb as a charismaticjerk. The cherry on top: EmmanuelLubezki’s stunningly seamless cam-era work.

3. “Selma” — Talk about a moviethat comes just when the countryneeds it. A beautifully restrained per-formance by David Oyelowo as Mar-tin Luther King, Jr. anchors this stir-ring account of events surroundingthe famous march from Selma, Ala-bama to Montgomery. Director AvaDuVernay is equally adept at depict-ing intimate moments — like a testyOval Office exchange between LBJand George Wallace — as she is con-veying the sweep of a historic move-ment.

4. “Ida” — Pawel Pawlikowski’sfilm is pure, austere, and powerful —exactly how one might describe itsyoung star, Agata Trzebuchowska,who plays an orphaned novice aboutto take her vows when she learns shehas an aunt, her only living relative.Ida’s subsequent journey, in whichshe explores Poland’s dark wartimepast to discover both who she is andwho she wants to be, is mesmerizing.

5. “Mr. Turner” — Timothy Spallstudied painting, drawing, evenGreek and Roman architecture — allto play the great landscape painterJ.M.W. Turner. And it shows: Thewonderfully gruff Spall doesn’t seemto act in this movie as much as in-habit it, messily and fully. MikeLeigh’s gorgeously detailed biopicdoesn’t fall into typical formula —

and the visuals do Turner proud. 6. “The Grand Budapest Hotel” —

Wes Anderson, we surrender — toyour whimsy and singular imagina-tion. This movie is a visual delight;it’s also a madcap caper and, a layerdeeper, a more serious look at a dy-ing way of life in Europe. Mostly, it’sa perfect vehicle for Ralph Fiennes,as a wonderfully pompous concierge,to display his lesser-known comicskills.

7. “Whiplash” — None of us wouldever want to be in a classroom withthe abusively demanding jazz instruc-tor played by J.K. Simmons — it’shard enough to be in the movie thea-ter. But boy, Simmons grabs the roleby the throat, thrillingly. Miles Telleris excellent, too, as the driven studentwho accepts this abuse, all to be ajazz drummer.

8. “The Theory of Everything,”“The Imitation Game” — Both arebiopics that feel somewhat formulaic,but both feature lead performancesthat must be seen. Eddie Redmayneis remarkably effective as StephenHawking, eventually using only hiseyes and a crooked smile to expresswhat’s inside a blazing mind. Bene-dict Cumberbatch’s nervous energyis perfect for the role of Alan Turing,the mathematician who cracked theGermans’ Enigma code.

9. “Foxcatcher” — Grim and unre-lenting but expertly rendered, thisreal-life tale of the Olympic wrestlingSchultz brothers and benefactor JohnDuPont is worth seeing both for theshocking story and the acting. SteveCarell makes a striking physicaltransformation, but it’s his reedyvoice that’ll really creep you out.Mark Ruffalo, the more nurturingbrother, and Channing Tatum, themore troubled, are just as compelling.

10. “Still Alice,” “Get on Up” —Two more films to mention becauseof stellar central performances: As anearly-onset Alzheimer’s patient, Ju-lianne Moore is sensitive, warm,heartbreaking — and deserves all theawards buzz she’s getting. In “Get OnUp,” Chadwick Boseman is truly gal-vanizing as James Brown — and de-serves way more buzz than HE’S get-ting.

Honorable mentions: “Only LoversLeft Alive,” “Locke,” “Interstellar,”“American Sniper,” “Into the Woods.”

‘Boyhood’ AP’sfavorite film of 2014

By JOCELYN NOVECKASSOCIATED PRESS

Have you picked a side yet?If not, you’d better think fast,because the battle lines arebeing drawn and they cutright down the dinner table.

For if there was any themeto the food world in 2014, itwas the prevalence of polariz-ing issues. Whether we weretussling over genetically mod-ified organisms, or debatinghow healthy is too healthy forschool lunches, or scoldingone another for our glutenchoices, this year our collec-tive culinary consciousnessseemed mired in disputes.

So here’s a roundup ofsome of the more contentiousitems on this year’s menu offood news:

To Gluten Or Not ToGluten

Oh, that pesky grain pro-tein. For several years nowgluten has been the “new fat,”that demonized ingredient-of-the-moment that countlessAmericans obsess over. Andlike so many dietary fads be-fore it, the anti-gluten move-ment has heralded a tidalwave of products and prom-ises.

But this is no ordinarySnackwell’s situation. Gluten— which can pop up unex-pectedly across the food chain— really can make people di-agnosed with celiac and otherdigestive disorders exceeding-ly ill. Except that those folksalone — by some measuresabout 3 million — can’t ac-count for the growth of thegluten-free market into a mul-ti-billion-dollar industry.

And there’s our dispute.Experts increasingly — andwith greater volume — ques-tion the value of going gluten-free without a diagnosis, yetplenty of people staunchlystand by anecdotal healthbenefits. And so we have aglut of gluten-free products,from doughnuts to dog food.Now even Fido can pick aside.

At least we can now agree

on what gluten-free means.As of August, the term is reg-ulated, meaning manufactur-ers no longer can slap it wil-ly-nilly on packages.

GMO, Yes Or No?Like it or not, genetically

modified foods are on the me-nu. So this year, the debatecentered on how much weshould know about that.

Advocates of GMOs —mostly business interests be-hind the industry — say thefoods not only are safe but arekey to managing the world’sincreasingly complex agricul-tural needs. Critics say wedon’t yet know enough aboutthe foods to make that leap.But seeming to accept thatthe foods are here to stay, late-ly they have focused their ef-forts on legislation that wouldrequire labeling for foods con-taining GMO ingredients.

That set the stage for big-spending battles to win overvoters. In May, Vermont be-came the first state to requirethe labels, but that’s on holdpending legal challenges. Bal-lot measures that would haverequired labeling in Califor-nia and Washington alreadyhad been defeated, and a simi-lar measure in Oregon failedthis year.

Chefs like Tom Colicchioand Jose Andres lobbied onbehalf of labeling, while somecompanies tried to get out in

front of the issue. In January,General Mills announced thatits Original Cheerios wouldno longer contain GMO ingre-dients, but that’s a rarity. Andrather than allow the food in-dustry to face a patchwork ofstate laws, next year Congressis likely to take up the issue.

Lunch-Line ShowdownIt’s Michelle Obama vs.

Congress in a weighty battle.To help address childhood

obesity, the first lady made ither mission to help pushthrough tougher nutritionstandards for food served inschools. The changes — in-cluding prioritizing produceand whole grains — havebeen phased in since 2012.But it’s been a struggle.

Some schools asked to optout, saying the healthierfoods were too costly, too diffi-cult to prepare and unpopularwith kids. The first lady thissummer said she’d fight “tothe bitter end” to keep stan-dards high. The opt-out re-quest didn’t fly, but thismonth Congress did green-light easing off the require-ments on whole grains, aswell as delaying tougher stan-dards on sodium.

And the waistline war willwage on. Child nutrition andschool lunches will come be-fore Congress again next year,and the standards are almostcertain to be reconsidered.

A divisive year for foodBy J.M. HIRSCH

ASSOCIATED PRESS

In this Dec. 4 file photo, a customer, left, stands at the counter as a groupof protesters demonstrate inside a McDonald’s restaurant in Jackson, Miss.

Photo by Joe Ellis | AP file

PAGE 10A Zentertainment WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014

Just for fun, let’s try topicture the year in pop cul-ture, all in one image.

We might begin with asinger oddly named AdeleDazeem, belting “Let It Go”from Disney’s “Frozen.”Suddenly a friend wouldpour a bucket of ice waterover her head. Adele wouldimmediately tweet the mo-ment on her new iPhone 6,hashtag (hash)icebucketch-allenge, while Ellen wouldpop out and take a groupselfie that would (hash)BreaktheInternet.

Now let’s get more seri-ous. It’s always a challengeto capture a year in pop cul-ture, but we try nonetheless.Herewith, our annual, high-ly selective trip down mem-ory lane:

PHARRELL WILLIAMShas lots of reason to be hap-py in January. After a huge2013, the producer-rapper-singer gets an Oscar nomi-nation for “Happy” on the“Despicable Me 2” sound-track. A week later, he winsfour Grammys, including al-bum and record of the yearfor producing the funk-elec-tronic anthem “Get Lucky.”Happy, Lucky ... the guy cer-tainly picks apt song titles.

The ground shifts in thelate-night TV landscape:JIMMY FALLON takes overfor JAY LENO and immedi-ately establishes himself asthe new king, with a young-er, fresher vibe perfect fornext-day YouTube viewingof bits like celebrity lip-syn-cing duels. Kicking off aneventful year in the techworld, FACEBOOK pays amassive $19 billion forWHATSAPP, the popularmobile messaging servicefavored by teenagers andyoung adults — who seeFacebook as something bet-ter suited to their parents.At New York Fashion Week,emerging star LUPITAN’YONGO makes a front-row splash at Calvin Klein.

It’s OSCAR time, and thisyear’s show — the most-watched in a decade —gives us a slew of pop cul-ture moments. IntroducingIDINA MENZEL, JOHNTRAVOLTA mangles hername in epic fashion, creat-ing a new star: “the one andonly ADELE DAZEEM.” Ev-er the Broadway trouper,Menzel doesn’t miss a beatas she sings the girl-poweranthem “Let It Go.” N’YON-GO completes her rapid as-cent to superstardom with asupporting-actress trophyfor “12 Years a Slave,” alsothe year’s best picture. Andspeaking of superstars, EL-LEN DEGENERES takesthat famous selfie with agaggle of ‘em, causing Twit-

ter to crash for 20 minutesand beating the previouschampion for retweets, aphoto of BARACK and MI-CHELLE OBAMA. Time fora new phrase in Hollywood-speak: “CONSCIOUS UN-COUPLING,” the term usedby GWYNETH PALTROWto describe her enlightenedsplit from CHRIS MARTIN.Oh, and OBAMA pitches hishealth plan to young peoplevia an unusual platform:Zach Galifianakis’ comicWeb series “Between TwoFerns.” Some conservativecommentators call it undig-nified.

Yet more epic shifts inlate-night: DAVID LETTER-MAN announces he’ll retirein 2015. His replacement isComedy Central star STE-PHEN COLBERT, adored bythe younger demographic.LETTERMAN quips: “I hap-pen to know they wantedanother guy with glasses.”And now, we know you weregetting antsy for KIMYEnews, so here it is: KIMKARDASHIAN and soon-to-be hubby KANYE WESTmake the prestigious coverof VOGUE, sparking exist-ential angst among somefashionistas. Kardashiantweets that it’s “a dreamcome true!!!”

But the real dream comeswhen KIMYE ties the knotat a Renaissance fortress inFlorence, Italy, following lav-ish pre-wedding festivitiesin France. ANGELINA JO-LIE makes a splash as “Ma-leficent,” giving us a newtake on the Disney charac-ter that’s now more super-

heroine than villainess. Alsomaking a splash: LAVERNECOX, the openly transgen-der actress on “Orange isthe New Black,” featured onthe cover of Time magazine.

Let’s turn to sports: It’sWORLD CUP time, and whosays America doesn’t lovesoccer? People are glued totheir TVs, iPads, phonesand other devices for theU.S. games, and a hero isborn: TIM HOWARD, theU.S. goalie, who even in a 2-1defeat to Belgium makes arecord-setting 16 saves. Hebecomes a social media dar-ling — on Wikipedia, hebriefly becomes the Secreta-ry of Defense, edging outChuck Hagel. And he in-spires an Internet memenaming all the “Things TimHoward Could Save.” (Ex-ample: The dinosaurs fromextinction.)

A collective “Awwwwww”

ricochets ‘round the worldas Britain’s mediagenic roy-al couple, WILLIAM andKATE, release photos of theequally mediagenic PRINCEGEORGE, upon his firstbirthday. Turns out his fash-ion choices — lots of blues,and bib overalls — prove as

influential as his mom’s.COX, meanwhile, is nomi-nated for an Emmy — thefirst nomination for anopenly transgender person.It’s also time for the campy“SHARKNADO 2.” A sharkin the New York subway?No big deal. Manhattaniteshave seen rats that big.

Whoever would havethought a lowly bucket ofice would become a pop cul-ture phenom? Celebs andregular folks alike take onthe ALS Ice Bucket Chal-lenge, generating many mil-lions of dollars to fight thedisease. Epic screams areheard, but the most enter-tainingly blood-curdlingcomes from OPRAH WIN-FREY. And what would Au-gust be without a wedding?BRANGELINA finally tiesthe knot, at a small ceremo-ny on their French estate. Avery sad note to the month:The death of ROBIN WIL-LIAMS, whose manic ener-gy graced screens big and

small, leaves a gaping holein the cultural landscape.

Back to weddings — andin this year of celebrityknot-tying, nothing is biggerthan the lavish Venice fes-tivities surrounding thenuptials of the bachelor whosaid he’d never marryagain, GEORGE CLOONEY,and British human rightslawyer AMAL ALAMUD-DIN. Think traffic jams ofpaparazzi on gondolas. Thisisn’t even the only Holly-wood celebrity wedding inItaly this month — NEILPATRICK HARRIS, nextyear’s Oscar host, marriespartner DAVID BURTKA.Big tech news: The newiPhone 6 arrives, with itslarger screen and inevitableprestige factor. APPLE alsounveils its smartwatch,bringing the features of aniPhone to one’s arm, andMicrosoft spends $2.5 billionfor the company that creat-ed the hit game “Mine-craft.”

Ice buckets, Oscars: A year in pop cultureBy JOCELYN NOVECK

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Prince William and Kate Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Georgeduring a visit to the Sensational Butterflies exhibition in London.

Photo by John Stillwell | AP file

WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014 THE ZAPATA TIMES 11A

dropped a pass to win the SuperBowl, ‘Did that bother you?’ "

As he looks at running a sec-ond time for president, Perry,64, is banking on his record asgovernor of Texas to move past“oops.” It’s a strategy thatdidn’t connect in the last cam-paign, when the governor’s jobsrecord was drowned out by thatmoment and other gaffes, saidRay Sullivan, a former Perrychief of staff and spokesman forhis 2012 campaign.

“Our own errors on the cam-paign trail led to a shortenedcampaign,” Sullivan said. “Sothe message got overshadowed.”

Should he run again, Perrywill have two more years of histime as Texas governor to try tomake the case anew.

His state has generated morethan a third of the nation’s newprivate-sector jobs since 2001.While critics say about 6 per-cent of the state’s hourly wageearners in 2013 got minimumwage or less, fifth highest in thenation, Perry counters that thisfigure has fallen three straightyears since 2010, when Texas’rate peaked at a national high

9.5 percent.Perry credits the gangbusters

state economy to low taxes, re-strained regulation and caps oncivil litigation damage awards,as well as improving highschool graduation rates. He alsooversees two funds offering eco-nomic incentives to lure top em-ployers to Texas and repeatedlyvisited states with Democraticgovernors to poach jobs.

“You’re the chief yell leader,cheerleader,” said Perry, whowas elected yell leader, a covet-ed campus spirit squad post,while a student at Texas A&MUniversity.

When Waste Connections,Inc., was looking to relocate itsheadquarters from east of Sac-ramento in 2011, CEO RonaldMittelstaedt received calls fromboth Perry and fellow Republi-can Gov. Brian Sandoval of Ne-vada.

“Governor Perry, he is a verydown-to-earth, easy to talk toman,” said Mittelstaedt, whosecompany eventually movedabout 100 employees to subur-ban Houston.

John W. Harrington was laid

up after back surgery in 2013when he heard frequent recruit-ment radio ads featuring Perry.He soon transplanted his gunshop from California, to Shiner,Texas, a town otherwise famousfor its brewery.

“Rick and guns, that’s kind ofthe epitome of what Texas is allabout,” said Harrington, whoheld a ribbon-cutting barbequewith Perry.

Perry’s penchant for guns —he once famously shot a coyotewhile jogging in a rural cornerof Austin in 2010 — helped so-lidify his image as a cowboygovernor long before “oops,”and the personal role he playsin administering the incentivefunds and recruiting jobs so ag-gressively for Texas have en-sured much of the same senti-ment has rubbed off on thestate’s economy.

The incentive funds the gov-ernor oversees, though, havebeen savaged by state auditors.They found that The Texas En-terprise Fund, offering deal-closing money to top businessand employers, had awarded$222 million to 11 firms and uni-

versities that either didn’t applyfor the funding or weren’t re-quired to directly create jobs.

And Perry’s Texas EmergingTechnology Fund is supposed tobolster high-tech startups, butsome firms haven’t filed tax re-ports or made questionable jobclaims.

Both also have given moneyto firms linked to Perry donors,drawing “crony capitalism”complaints from conservativeactivists. But Perry dismissedthat: “I consider myself to be ve-ry much an adherent to most ofthe tea party’s philosophical po-sitions.”

Meanwhile, Texas leads thenation with about a quarter ofresidents lacking health insur-ance, and had the country’shighest annual total of work-place fatalities nine times dur-ing Perry’s tenure.

“The bragging that he has en-gaged in about the Texas mira-cle is going to come under verystrict scrutiny and I think peo-ple are going to see it’s not whathe claims it to be,” said GilbertoHinojosa, chairman of the Tex-as Democratic Party.

Beyond the questions relatedto how much credit Perry de-serves for the Texas economy,and about “oops,” he will alsobe forced to contend with wor-ries about his felony indict-ment.

The left-leaning governmentwatchdog group Texans for Pub-lic Justice filed a complaint in2013 when Perry publicly threat-ened — then made good on — aveto of state funding for publiccorruption prosecutors, follow-ing the Democratic head of theunit’s drunken driving convic-tion. In August, an Austingrand jury indicted the gover-nor for abuse of official capacityand coercion of a public ser-vant.

Perry insists most Americansbelieve he did nothing wrongand that the case won’t affectany possible presidential aspi-rations. He concedes that“oops” might, but is hoping vot-ers see it as a test of character.

“It’s easier to judge someoneby how they get up from a fail-ure when they’ve been knockeddown,” Perry said. “Being test-ed is a good thing.”

PERRY Continued from Page 1A

it stemmed from “animosi-ty and conflicts betweenself-defense groups.”

The vigilante groupsemerged in 2013, as farm-ers and ranchers took upshotguns and hunting riflesto push back against orga-nized gangs exerting con-trol in the region, specifi-cally the Knights Templarcartel.

In May, some members ofthe vigilante groups agreedto become part of an offi-cial rural police force thatreceived guns, uniformsand pay from the govern-ment.

Since the shootout, Mex-ican military and federalpolice have assumed secu-rity responsibilities in sev-eral municipalities, replac-ing the rural police.

The detention of Moramarks his second arrest. InMarch, he was held on sus-picion of murder, but laterreleased without facingcharges.

MEXICOContinued from Page 1A

homes on fire becauseMayor Raul Reyes did notprovide them with newequipment and diesel fuelfor fire trucks. They areidentified as Pablo ErnestoFigueroa-Osorio, 18, andJeremy Aaron Jones, 27.

Reyes denied those alle-gations, and labeled the ac-tions as “childish.”

On Dec. 10, the Sheriff ’sOffice also received infor-mation indicating that vol-unteers of the El CenizoVolunteer Fire Depart-ment were planning andstarting multiple fires atabandoned homes.

An affidavit further de-tails other fires the volun-teers allegedly started. Intotal, there were five inci-dents recorded in the com-plaint.

The Council’s possibleaction today includes con-tinuation of employment,reassignment, modifica-tion of duties, disciplinaryaction, dismissal or otheractions. The Council mayalso appoint an interim orpermanent departmenthead.

(Staff writer César G.Rodriguez contributed tothis report.)

MAYOR Continued from Page 1A

called the “2014 Americanimmigration crisis,” whena surge of mostly CentralAmerican immigrantscrossed the Rio Grande andsurrendered themselves toBorder Patrol.

Border Patrol sectorsalong the Texas border, spe-cifically the Laredo Sectorand Rio Grande Valley, be-came overwhelmed withthe amount of people com-ing into the U.S. during thesummer months.

This international phe-nomenon led to increasedrelief efforts for unaccom-panied minors arriving at

the border.A total of 3,800 unaccom-

panied juveniles and 2,096accompanied juveniles ar-rived in the United Statesthrough the Laredo Sector.

About 13 percent of theLaredo Sector’s overall ap-prehensions were peopleunder the age of 17 in fiscalyear 2014.

According to the overallsector profiles on the CBPwebsite, about 40 percent ofthe fiscal year’s apprehen-sions were classified as“Other than Mexican.”

In the Laredo Sector,17,509 OTM apprehensions

were made throughout theyear.

The Rio Grande ValleySector recorded 192,925OTM apprehensions thisfiscal year.

A total of 123,722 poundsof illegal drugs were seizedat different Laredo Sectorstations.

Marijuana, overwhelm-ingly, accounted for most ofthe drug seizures — 99.7percent of the illegal drugsseized was marijuana.

Other drugs seized in-cluded 237 pounds of co-caine, 44 pounds of heroineand 58 pounds of metham-

phetamine.Throughout the South-

west border, agents seized1,920,411 pounds of mari-juana. More marijuana wasseized at the Laredo Sectorstations than at the El Pa-so, Big Bend, Del Rio, ElCentro, San Diego and Yu-ma Sector stations. The RioGrande Valley and TucsonSector stations were thetwo other areas that seizedmore marijuana than Lare-do.

(Gabriela A. Treviñomay be reached at 956-728-2579 or gtrevino@lmton-line.com)

BORDER Continued from Page 1A

The Obama administrationopened the door for expanded oilexports by saying a lightly pro-cessed form of crude known ascondensate can be sold outside theU.S. without government approv-al.

The publication of guidelinestoday on the website of the Com-merce Department’s Bureau of In-dustry and Security is the firstpublic explanation of steps compa-nies can take to avoid violating ex-port laws, and may lead to moreU.S.-produced oil being sent over-seas.

The announcement thoughdoesn’t end the ban on most crudeexports, which Congress adoptedin 1975 in response to the Arab oilembargo.

“It’s a long way from here to afull repeal of the export ban, andthey went out of their way to stip-ulate that this is not, in their view,crude oil,” Jeff Navin, a formerdeputy chief of staff at the EnergyDepartment, said in an e-mail.

“But it does show how they’rethinking about exporting at leastsome of our light products.”

Oil producers have been testinga four-decade-old prohibition onoil exports as domestic productionhas surged on the technologicaladvances that have opened upshale rock formations to develop-ment in Texas, North Dakota andelsewhere.

The department earlier thisyear signaled a new way to exportoil by approving permits for Pio-neer Natural Resources Co. andEnterprise Products Partners LPto sell condensate, a type of lightoil, overseas after it had been pro-cessed in a distillation tower.

Floodgates’ OpenedThe guidelines could “open the

floodgates to substantial increasesin exports,” Citigroup Inc. said ina research note. Total U.S. produc-tion of light and ultra-light crudeoil now exceeds 3.81 million bar-rels a day, and exports could reach1 million barrels daily by the end

of 2015, Citi Research said.Eric Hirschhorn, under secreta-

ry of Commerce for industry andsecurity, said in a statement theguidelines clarify how the depart-ment will implement export rulesand follow a “review of technologi-cal and policy issues.”

In addition to approving appli-cations, the government also al-lows companies to “self-certify,”that is, to export their productswithout seeking the permission ifthey think the law allows for theexchange.

Billiton PlansBHP Billiton Ltd. will sell oil

from Texas to foreign buyers with-out first getting the approval ofthe Commerce Department to doso, according to a person familiarwith the company’s plans.

Navin, who is a partner atBoundary Stone Partners, a Wash-ington-based consulting firm, saidsome companies may now be re-luctant to self certify because vio-lations of export laws carry crimi-

nal penalties. The guidelines re-leased today could ease thosefears, he said.

The American Petroleum Insti-tute, which represents companiesincluding Exxon Mobil Corp., saidthe guidelines were helpful butthat the broader restrictions thatremain in place “limit our growthas an energy superpower.”

The guidelines released today,as answers to FAQs or frequentlyasked questions, say that conden-sate can be exported if it is runthrough a distillation tower, whichseparates the hydrocarbons thatmake up the oil.

The process must materiallytransform the oil, by “using heatto induce evaporation and conden-sation, into liquid streams thatare chemically distinct from thecrude oil input,” according to theFAQ.

The oil’s gravity, or its density,also must be changed by the pro-cess, according to the departmentposting.

Processed products like gaso-line and diesel fuel can already beexported under U.S. laws.

Crude exports clarified in guidelinesBy JIM SNYDER AND BRIAN WINGFIELD

BLOOMBERG NEWS

12A THE ZAPATA TIMES WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2014