Daily Archives: July 17, 2007

Letters To The Editor


Editor:


Congress is considering the misnamed “Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act,” H.R. 980, which would use the power of the federal government to impose unionism and collective bargaining on state and local public safety – police, fire and rescue – departments in states, like Texas, that have not granted public sector unions monopoly bargaining privileges.


H.R. 980 already has 278 cosponsors including about 60 Republicans. Most, but certainly not all, of the cosponsors are from states that would probably be exempt from the bills provisions because their state legislatures have enacted comparable laws.


Cosponsors from Texas include Charles A. Gonzalez (TX-20), Gene Green (TX-29), Ruben Hinojosa (TX-15), Sheila Jackson-Lee (TX-18), Eddie Bernice Johnson (TX-30), Solomon Ortiz (TX-27), Ted Poe (TX-2), Silvestre Reyes (TX-16) and Ciro D. Rodriguez (TX-23).


Hearings were held on this bill in a House Subcommittee on June 5, 2007. It was approved by a vote of 42 to 1.


This legislation is an unwarranted intrusion by the federal government in an area that has been historically and properly the prerogative of the states. As such, it is of very dubious constitutionality.


H.R. 980 is an unfunded mandate of enormous proportions and is nothing short of blackmail. It

Rainstorms’ Aftermath — Water, Water Everywhere Raises Risk Of Livestock Disease, Human Mosquito Bites

Water, Water Everywhere Raises Risk Of Livestock Disease, Human Mosquito Bites


AUSTIN Rushing water, stagnant ponds, or even the dry stages after wet periods can lead to outbreaks of livestock disease. Mosquitoes and biting flies, capable of carrying and transmitting diseases, thrive in the damp weather, and naturally-occurring anthrax can take a toll on livestock and wildlife when pastures dry after prolonged wet periods.


Horse owners should take precautions against mosquito-transmitted diseases by having their animals vaccinated against West Nile Virus (WNV) and the reportable diseases Eastern and Western Equine Encephalitis (EEE and WEE). “If you wait until cases of ‘sleeping sickness ‘occur in your area, you may have waited too long to vaccinate,” said Dr. Bob Hillman, Texas’ state veterinarian and head of the Texas Animal Health Commission (TAHC), the state’s livestock and poultry health regulatory agency.


“You need time for the vaccine to do its job, which is to build the animal’s immunity to a particular disease,” he said. “Vaccine can provide the best disease protection possible, but it’s also crucial to keep up with booster shots, as recommended by the vaccine manufacturer or your private veterinary practitioner. In 2006, 111 horses were confirmed to have West Nile Virus in Texas. So far this year, the disease has been confirmed in one horse, located in Willacy County.”


Three cases of Potomac Horse Fever, which is not a regulatory disease, have been confirmed in Kerr County by the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory. Potomac Horse Fever, first detected in Maryland in l979, is not typically found in Texas. Clinical cases usually are found near rivers, streams, ponds or canals. The infection involves tiny flukes that are parasites of water snails. The flukes hatch their offspring into the water, and these are then picked up by aquatic insects that molt into flying insects, including caddis flies and mayflies. Horses can become exposed to Potomac Horse Fever when they eat or drink anything contaminated with the insects.


Kerr County equine veterinarians are urging all owners to call their practitioner if equine animals exhibit signs of Potomac Horse Fever, which can include a reluctance to eat, fever, diarrhea, colic or inflammation around the hoof. Treatment includes antibiotics and supportive care.


Biting flies can mechanically transmit equine infectious anemia (EIA), sometimes called “swamp fever.” This incurable disease, for which no approved vaccine exists in the U.S., is a regulatory disease. TAHC regulations require horses and other equine animals to have a negative test for EIA within the previous 12 months before entering the state, or going to events, assemblies, trail rides, undergoing change of ownership or entering a breeding farm. The most commonly known test for EIA is the “Coggins” blood test. The incidence of EIA has dropped dramatically since l997, when 750 equine animals in Texas were found to be infected. Since January 2007, only 29 infected animals have been detected.


“EIA-infected horses can develop severe anemia, fever and swelling. In severe cases, EIA can kill the animals, but many times, the infected animal has few signs of disease,” noted Dr. Hillman. “Prevent EIA transmission by avoiding blood-to-blood contact between infected and ‘clean’ equine animals. Disinfect medical instruments and tack, and control flies. Biting flies carry blood from one animal to the next on their mouthparts, and they play a key role in the mechanical transmission of EIA.”


Infected equine must be maintained

Media Bore Defined


Media Bore Defined


John Nichols is a tool.


Why?


Because the Washington correspondent for The Nation magazine thinks the world of Cindy Sheehan.


Actually, he doesn

The Further Adventures Of Bush In Wonderland: More Media Brainwashing?


The Further Adventures Of Bush In Wonderland


More Media Brainwashing?


President Bush is busy today (7/12/07) giving his spin to news media of the progress made in Iraq. Bush

Flooding


Flooding


While we were away on our vacation, we were worried about lack of rain here on the ranch. We had arranged for someone to feed the animals and check on the cattle, but watering the garden and my flowers and other plants seemed just way too much to ask. We had hoped it might rain maybe half an inch during our 10-day absence, just to keep things alive.


Imagine our surprise when we returned to find there had been eight inches of rain (half the rainfall we received the entire last year). Not only were things NOT brown and dry, but there was a jungle where our garden previously stood. My flowers were thriving, even those things I had been given by a friend just before we departed. I had hurriedly planted them the night before we left, putting the last one in the ground as I lost the light. No way I expected most of those things to make it. Everyone knows new plants require a lot of water to become established.


For the first three days after our return, Zack mowed. As soon as he managed to do a little, the rain would begin and send him inside. The sun would come out, and if he could, he

The Next Chapter: Fixing Republican-Caused Problems


The Next Chapter: Fixing Republican-Caused Problems


On July 3rd I went and heard Senator Hillary Clinton at the Iowa Memorial Union in Iowa City and since that time I have sort of been ashamed of myself. What she said and how she said it reminded me why I am a member of the party of Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Jimmy Carter and, Bill Clinton, and not that of Richard Nixon, Ronald Regan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush.


So why do I feel a twinge of shame? The most remarkable people in my life have been women; so why haven

Your Space Adventure Awaits! And Mine Will Just Have To Keep Waiting


Your Space Adventure Awaits!
And Mine Will Just Have To Keep Waiting


So you want to be an astronaut?


OK, neither do I. But suppose we did. And let

Army Takes Camels Out For A Test Drive


Army Takes Camels Out For A Test Drive


A caravan of 24 heavily loaded camels left Fort Davis on July 11, 1859, for a make-it-or-break-it field test in the Big Bend.


The U.S. Army noticed as early as the 1830s that the climates of the camel

Drowning Government In The Bathtub – Part One: Who Killed Off The National Guard?


Drowning Government In The Bathtub
Part One: Who Killed Off The National Guard?


“My goal is to cut government in half…to get it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.”

Hash Brown Potatoes And The Civil War


Hash Brown Potatoes And The Civil War


When it comes to eating places I

Look Me In The Eye When You Say That!


La Vie en Rose


Lucky In Love?


Lucky In Love?


A recent Saturday

The Ghost Of Freedom


The Ghost Of Freedom


The decade of the corpse began with the new century.


There have been casualties of innocence, casualties of war, casualties of mankind, casualties of greed, and casualties of law.


The list extends itself around the globe like a string of firecrackers.


The most devastating casualty has been true freedom in America.


Sure, we still have a smattering of choice, but the writing is on the wall.


Americans have agreed to forfeit freedom in place of false security

Crawford Resident Attends Historic Joint Baptist Assembly In D.C.


WASHINGTON, D.C.

May To Chair March Of Dimes Board Of Trustees

WHITE PLAINS, New York

Federal PLUS Loans Offer Parents Another Option For Paying For College


AUSTIN

Edwards Votes To Improve Student Financial Assistance


WASHINGTON, D.C.

Perry: Save Corn For Cattle Industry


HOUSTON, Texas

Carlos Slim Tops World


MEXICO CITY, Mexico

July 2007
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031