Sweetwater Reporter (Sweetwater, Tex.), Vol. 113, No. 163, Ed. 1 Monday, May 23, 2011 Page: 4 of 12
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Viewpoints
Page 4 ■ Monday, May 23, 2011
Sweetwater Reporter
DEDICATED TO PROUDLYDEUVERIN® LOCAL NEWS SI NTH 1881
T—\ Sweetwatei A
Reporter
1EMBER
| * 1 2010
P.O. Box 750/112 W. Third
TEXAS PRESS
Sweetwater, Texas 79556
ASSOCIATION
325/236-6677
Fax: 325/235-4967
Website:
www.sweetwaterreporter.com
E-mail addresses:
publisher@sweetwaterreporter.com
business@sweetwaterreporter.com
advertising@sweetwaterreporter.com
editor@sweetyvaterreporter.com
composing@sweetwaterreporter.com
EDITORIAL POLICY
The editorial section of the newspaper is a forum for
expression of a variety of viewpoints. All articles except
those labeled "Editorials" reflect the opinions of the writ-
ers and not those of the Sweetwater Reporter.
Abbott
GUEST COLUMN
Protecting
Texas Seniors
Fraud against seniors is more widespread than most
Texans realize. Well-informed seniors and their family
members can help prevent the greatest generation from
falling victim to fraudulent schemes - including a famil-
iar counterfeit check scam that has re-emerged in recent
weeks.
Law enforcement officials recently notified the Attorney
General's Office that the so-called '-Reader's Digest
Sweepstakes" scam has reappeared around the state. Some
Texans - usually senior citizens - may have received letters
claiming the recipient won $1 million in a sweepstakes. The
letter claims its "Prize Award Department"
drew the recipient's "ticket number" from a
pool of thousands.
To appear legitimate, the letter fraudu-
lently uses the Reader's Digest business
logo and the Better Business Bureau's
accredited business seal - which falsely
implies BBB accreditation.
Enclosed with the letter is a counterfeit
check for several thousand dollars. Letter
H recipients are told to call a toll-free (800)
III 6y number for further instructions. As is com-
mon in these types of scams, recipients who
call the number are instructed to wire an
up front payment to cover taxes or other
administrative fees before the remainder of
their "winnings" can be issued.
The scammers know that the up front payment amount
sounds trifling compared to the $1 million in prize money
the victim thinks he or she has won. The victim often think
it is worth paying the up front fee because the prize money
far exceeds the alleged taxes and administrative costs.
But the prize money will never appear. Victims will sim-
ply lose whatever money they wire to the scammers, which
can have a devastating effect. In many cases, victims borrow
or deplete their savings to come up with the money they are
supposed to send in advance. It is a cruel blow when they
realize they have lost that money to a con artist.
Counterfeit check schemes like the "Reader's Digest
Sweepstakes" scam typically manifest themselves as an
unsolicited offer for a prize or a job that seems too good to
be true. In this case, Texas seniors should remember that
the BBB has nothing to do with the Reader's Digest sweep-
stakes - and the publication itself does not require winners
to wire money anywhere.
All Texans should be skeptical about unsolicited financial
offers - or risk losing their life savings to a thief.
Points to Remember
AVOID FRAUDULENT CHECK-CASHING SCHEMES
Common variations used in check-cashing schemes:
• Promising victims they won millions in a sweepstakes
or foreign lottery
• Pleading with victims to serve as a conduit for a financial
transaction
• Offering victims an inheritance
• Surprising victims with mystery or secret shopper
opportunities
• Surprising charities with generous, unexpected dona-
tions
• Sending online sellers a larger amount than the agreed
price
• Asking potential employees to cover travel and training
expenses up front
For more information on senior issues or to report a com-
plaint, contact the Attorney General's Office at (800) 252-
8011 or visit online at www.texasattomeygeneral.gov.
Letter to the Editor Policy
The Sweetwater Reporter welcomes Letters to the
Editor for possible publication in the newspaper. A let-
ter must be original, signed by the writer and bear the
address and phone number of the writer. Only the name
and the city will be published with the letter, but the
phone number and address are necessary for verification
or clarification of content.
The Sweetwater Reporter reserves the right to edit all
letters. If deemed derogatory, libelous, unclear or for
other reasons determined by the newspaper to be unwise
to print, it will not be used.
It is the feeling of the newspaper that an unsigned letter
has little meaning, and thus it will not publish anonymous
letters to the editor.
During elections, the Sweetwater Reporter will accept
Letters to the Editor discussing the issues or offering
endorsements. However, the deadline for letters during
elections will be two weeks prior to election day.
The publishing of Letters to the Editor are offered by
the newspaper to the community for expression of per-
sonal views on matters of concern. Residents are encour-
aged to use the column in a constructive manner, sharing
their views on subjects of interest with the newspaper's
readers.
THE IDLE AMERICAN
Living in the moment
Most folks flunk daily
opportunities to live "in
the moment." Maybe that's
why coaches get raspy
throats pleading with
their charges to focus—not
"rat" like a mouse but "rat
now."
We are more prone-
athletes and others-
-to dredge up gold-
en moments from
bygone years, or to
dream about such
euphoria anticipat-
ed well up the road.
Sometimes,
though, we are
buoyed by folks who
handle the pres-
ent deftly, always
gleaning the joy
hidden in the clut-
ter of the scary
"here and now."
One such man—to
celebrate his 70th birthday
come June 15—has stud-
ied life from many angles,
finding reasons to smile,
chuckle or even laugh out
loud when others might
frown, cry or scream and
run sideways.
Maybe it was the grow-
ing-up years on a hard-
scrabble ranch in a com-
munity called Calf Creek
in the Texas Hill Country,
or corralling teenagers
during a 33-year career of
teaching and coaching, or
responding to the steady
hand of a teacher/wife for
50 years.
Whatever, Dan Gandy
has always managed to
smile no matter what—
even when fourth down
tries failed by inches,
when he aimed poorly and
failed to fell the biggest
buck ever, or when his
best efforts to rescue kids
in classrooms or on foot-
ball fields fell short.
The affable Gandy grew
up on the spread owned
by his family since 1903.
Living "in the moment"
during early years meant
baling hay, pulling cotton,
milking cows and assorted
other "rough and rural"
chores. The creek was
his swimming hole, and
gloveless fisticuffs with his
brother called for Band-
Aids bought by the case.
He claims to have been
14 years old before learn-
ing his first name wasn't
"Gitwood," and he cred-
GUEST COLUMN
" ■
its the work ethic instilled
during his youth as the
basis for his "can do" atti-
tude.
Gandy, a high school
and college football star,
won more than his share
of football games, both as
a player and as a coach. He
signed off as coach
in 1995 before
entering his second
career: farm and
ranch real estate.
He's still going
strong.
His wife, Bette,
knows her hubby
will never willingly
retire. "He's having
too good a time,"
she believes.
At various
coaching stops,
Gandy picked up
additional cre-
dentials, including both
principal and superinten-
dent certification. The one
he's used for 15 years, real
estate certification, was
issued more than 30 years
ago.
He's put it to use in
farm/ranch real estate
around San Angelo.
Gandy is amazed that
deer hunting, a sport dur-
ing his youth that put meat
on the table, has become
big business.
He chuckles about deer
hunters. "They find leases,
eagerly build deer blinds,
get their kill each sea-
br. b on
Newbwv
son and brag about their
trophies. They measure
racks, take pictures with
their deer and dream of
the day when they can own
their own ranches."
Those who achieve
ownership of such prop-
erty often become "deer
defenders" instead of deer
hunters.
"I think this is partly
due to watching them on
a daily basis," he claims.
"Deer can become 'part of
the family,' like a dog, cat
or pony.'*
He describes, in detail,
how vaunted hunters
sometimes become protec-
tors of the prey practically
overnight.
It starts so innocently,
this "cuddling up" to the
herd. First, owners notice
the deer grazing ever
closer to the house. Soon,
®Mr." or "Mrs."--more
likely both—put out deer
treats, and the animals
come even closer.
Usually, naming conies
next. Names of Santa's
sleigh-pullers dominate,
but" B ambi" and" Rudolph"
are popular, too.
Sheer "gushiness" pre-
vails when fawns appear.
Proud grandparents can't
wait for their grandchil-
dren to come see new
additions to the here
These moments, you
see, are golden, too—but
maybe not in ways first
envisioned. Such owners
have new "leases on life,"
but are no longer inter-
ested in leasing to hunt-
ers. Some of 'em wake in
the middle of the night,
determined to remove
prize antlers from above
the fireplace. They don't
want to scare deer peering
through the window.
Gandy smiles, as does his
wife. After all, they have it
all, including a son, Kyle,
who is in his 26th year of
coaching, and a daughter,
Deidre, who spent several
years in coaching. One of
the Gandy's seven grand-
children attended college
on a rowing scholarship.
"Imagine that," he said.
"Here's a girl who never
baited a hook or ran a
trotline but gets a schol-
arship because she could
make a boat go fast." He
wishes he'd considered
coaching the sport—"the
only one where you win
sitting down going back-
wards,"
Such seating and direc-
tion aren't interesting to
a guy who keeps moving
forward, as well as out-
ward and upward! Happy
70th, Dan.
Dr. Newbury is a speak-
er in the Metroplex. Send
email to: newbury(§
speakerdoc.com . Phone:
817-447-3872. Web site:
www.speakerdoc.com.
, Albatross'
t sweet
•■Albatross*
A
4
V*
f
HQUSm
MARKED
SLUMP
w
Obama s abandonment of Israel
President Obama's major
speech on the Middle East
Thursday will come back to
haunt him. He said nothing
that will have any impact
in deterring Syrian gov-
ernment violence against
pro-democracy protestors,
but the president did make
pronouncements
that threaten
another state in
the Middle East:
Israel, America's
strongest ally in
the region.
In his speech
Thursday, the
president paid lip
service to Israeli
security but laid
down danger-
ous markers for
restarting peace
negotiations
between Israelis
and Palestinians.
With this speech,
Obama became the first
American president to
require that Israel accept
its pre-1967 borders as a
starting point to negotia-
tions with the Palestinians.
This is a dramatic depar-
ture from U.S. policy, which
recognized that agreed-to
final borders woul< be the
end product of negotia-
tions between the parties,
not a precondition to start-
ing talks. In essence, what
Obama has called for is
unilateral concessions from
Israel without a single con-
crete concession from the
Palestinians.
What makes this even
more dangerous is that a
terrorist group dedicat-
ed to the destruction of
Israel — Hamas — governs
Palestinians in Gaza. On the
West Bank, the Palestinian
Authority is in the hands
of a Hamas-Fatah coali-
tion, with the two groups
having agreed to put aside
linda
Chavez
their differences in order
to demand recognition of
a Palestine state by the
United Nations this fall. If
that happens, there will be
no such thing as what the
president termed "a secure
Israel."
Israeli Prime Minister
B e n j a m i n
Netanyahu was
quick to respond,
calling Israel's
pre-1967 borders
"indefensible."
History proves
he's right. In
1967, Israel was
on the eve of an
all-out assault by
its Arab neigh-
bors when it took
out the Egyptian
and Syrian air
forces. Within six
days, Israel had
defeated Egypt,
Syria, Jordan, and
Lebanon and gained sig-
nificant territory, including
the Arab-controlled parts of
Jerusalem.
Nonetheless, Israel was
attacked again a few years
later. In 1973, Egypt and
Syria launched an offen-
sive on the holiest day in
the Jewish calendar, Yom
Kippur. Again, Israel was
successful 1 defeating both
countries and gained more
territory in the process.
Even though Israel was
twice the victor, both wars
were the result of Arab
aggression. Yet Israel has
proven its willingness to
return territory gained in
war. Israel returned the
Sinai to Egypt after nego-
tiating a peace settlement
with Egyptian President
Anwar Sadat.
Israel has been the one
country in the area will-
ing from the start to nego-
tiate away land in return
for recognition of its right
to exist and a promise of
peaceful coexistence from
its neighbors. But instead
of encouraging that prec-
edent, Obama wants unilat-
eral territorial concessions
from Israel in return for
empty promises.
The good news is that
the Obama plan will go
nowhere. There is no chance
that Congress will support
the administration's heavy-
handed pressure on Israel.
And the Israelis will never
agree to such conditions
as a prerequisite to peace
negotiations.
And Obama has hurt him-
self domestically as well.
Jewish donors and voters
were an important part of
Obama's winning coalition
in 2008. But many in the
pro-Israel community are
deeply disturbed at what
they see as the president's
lukewarm support for Israel
and will not likely give him
the same level of support
in 2012.
On Sunday, the presi-
dent is set to address the
American Israel Public
Affairs Committee (AIPAC),
one of the most influen-
tial lobbying groups in the
country. I expect he'll say
all the right things about
how important an ally
Israel is to the United States
and that our two countries
share common values and
principles. The audience
will applaud politely — and
some die-hard Democrats
in the group may even tell
themselves that Obama is a
good friend to Israel.
But the president can't
have it both ways. He can't
give a speech Thursday that
makes dangerous demands
on Israel and pretend a few
days later that his words
have not damaged the
important U.S.-Israeli rela-
tionship.
Obama has abandoned
Israel. Now its time that
Israel's supporters in the
U.S. abandon him.
Linda Chavez is the
author of "An Unlikely
Conservative: The
Transformation of an
Ex-LiberalTo find out
more about Linda Chavez,
visit the Creators Syndicate
web page at www.creators,
com.
The swi rrwMt r reporter
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Editorial:
As a matter of policy, the
Sweetwater Reporter will
publish corrections of errors
in fact that have been print-
ed in the newspaper.
The corrections will be
made as soon as possible
after the error has been
brought to the attention of
the newspaper's editor at
236-6677.
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Sweetwater Reporter (Sweetwater, Tex.), Vol. 113, No. 163, Ed. 1 Monday, May 23, 2011, newspaper, May 23, 2011; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth229470/m1/4/?rotate=180: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Sweetwater/Nolan County City-County Library.