Port Aransas South Jetty (Port Aransas, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 36, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 4, 1997 Page: 2 of 16
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P&gC 2 Thursday, September 4, 1997
Port Aransad South Jetty
Murray and Mary Judson
Publishers
Mary Judson
EcHtor
Opinion
Member
South Texas Press Association
Texas Gulf Coast Press Association
Texas Press Association
National Newspaper Association
Donald Kaul
(') l rihune Media Services
How to stop teens
from driving us crazy
[Editor’s Note: Donald Kaul is on vacation. The
following is a vintage Kaul column with an updated
lead. |
It seems that there's a movement afoot to make it more
difficult tor teenagers to drive A number of slates are
issuing "restricted” licenses for very young drivers, requir
mg that they be accompanied by an adult or obey a driving
curlew (ieorgiaeven limits the
number ol passengers a teen
driver can have in his or her
car
I’m all for it Anything soo
ety can do to keep teenagers
from driving by themselves oi
in gioups is all to the good And
I’m not just saying that he
cause I'm an old crock
I have come to believe that
the only way a young driver
can get through the first few
years behind the wheel without
having a serious accident is
through blind luck I speak
from experience
I was lb when I got my learner’s permit and presented
it to my lather not without some apprehension He was
a line man but limitless patience was not among his virtues
He did not suiter tools gladlv let alone teenage boys He
studied the permit and nodded his head slowly, as il m
resignation
"We ll go over to the Rouge Pools parking lot early
Sunday morning." he said " There shouldn't be anybody
around then
Nor was there when we got to the huge parking lot that
Sunday and I got behind the wheel of our aging 1941
Pontiac I nst came the lecture on the workings of the
internal combustion engine (my lather was a tool and die
maker), then instructions on how to put the key in the
ignition Unbelievably, within an hour and a half I was
actually driving, that is to say, I could stari the car, put it in
gear and let the clutch out slowly enough thai I achieved
forward motion wiihoul stalling out I was driving I was
steeimg I tell triumphant
I hen we started to practice braking My lather said
You drive along and when I say slop you stop
Yessir I replied and I drove along
Slop, my lather said and I came to a gentle, gliding
hall proud of mysell
I hat wasn’t last enough, he said "I>o n again
I did it again, and again, and again Never Iasi enough
Mv tool would not do ihe bidding of my brain Each time
he said stop. I would coast to a stop My lather, his thin
reserv e ol tolerance gone, moved to the edge ol his seat and
shook his linger in my lace
I ook he said When I sav snip, I wan! you to stop,
dammit Is that cleat'’"
’Yessir. I said
I hen do il' '
I started up again, my sweating hands white on the
steering wheel I got up pretty good head ol steam
"Slop1 my lather yelled, as though he’d jusi spotted an
infant in the road
I nailed u I lumped on ihat brake pedal and pushed down
w ith everything I had I he wheels locked and the cat went
into a skid \1y father was thrown from his perch into the
windshield, striking his head with the sound of a water
melon being Ini by a baseball bat The sight of my father
bouncing off the windshield so startled me that I took my
foot oil the brake, at which [Kuril the car lurched forward
again, sending my father hurtling back to his seat Pan
ic ked now I slammed on Ihe brakes again, and again my
lather (lew head lirsi into the windshield with a thunk
I he car stopped this time, stalled out My father sat
ihere looking slightly ridiculous with his hat battered and
askew I (ought back a wild, suicidal impulse to laugh We
sat there lor perhaps 20 seconds, in perfect silence
finally I said, I don’t think I want to have any more-
lessons today,I)ad
He nodded "Yes I think that’s enough lor today
li was a harsh experience, bul a valuable one I didn't
have an accident that year Of course, I didn’t drive the ear
either
Very often, abstinence is a gcKnl substitute lor blind
Inc k Especially when vou’re a teenager
Jf you would like to respond to one of lion K,iul \
< o/umns, vou< <trie mail him at otcoffeeQaol cvmor write
to him i Vo I rthune Media Services, 4 f S S Michigan Ave ,
■Suiic 14(H) ( Imago, II V>Of>ll
♦
emfl
I GUESS
THEY'RE
TRYING TO
ATTRACT
HEALTH-
CONSCIOUS
SMOKERS.
a.
I
3s.
t\
Paparazzi feeds hungry public
Spinoh
M ary
H INK 1.1
Jl II )S( )N
hi HI OK
I he death of Princess I liana is with
out a doubt one of ihe most devastat-
ing tragedies to strike m ibis century
Much is being w mien about her hie
and her death, but one ol the worst
pieces was one in w Inch she’ w as com
pared to I I\ is Presley, Muddy llollv
and Selena, among others in ihe enter
tammenl world
Princess Diana vvas not entertain
merit She was a serious young woman
with prilie iples and causes who, at 19
when she married the hen to the P.n
glish throne, was stripped of her pri
vacy and left to cope on her own, A
mote appropnale comparison would
be lo (irace Kells, a woman who first
knew fame as an American actress, (hen became a part of
the Monaco royal family and mgned .is a ladv supreme
The press the paparazzi is being given ai least part
of the blame for Print ess I )iana s death The press and ihe
paparazzi need to be distinguished because they are not the
same T he legitimate press is not the tabloids t lumung that
a woman has given birth to a two headed cow , or publish
mg fuzzy photos of famous people doing private things
I hat. my friends, is the paparazzi I he legitimate press,
while not without laults, is looking tor truth m stones and
photos, not innuendos and illusions
I he sad part is that it s the work of (he papaiazzi ifiat ihe
public craves Whv else would the paparazzi mostly free
lance photographers risk their lives and then dignity
traveling around the woild chasing the supei stars'1 Some
body pays them lo do n hoi a use I her e is a mar ket for it
New spapers and magazines cannot survive unless people
buy and read their products, and the covers of those
products impact sales in a very big way I can promise you
that it. on the front page of the South Jetty, we published a
detailed story about the city’s budget and a photo dlustrat
mg the city’s expenditures, that issue will not sell the way
one featuring a big blue marlin arid a story about a fishing
tournament will We re a newspaper, but we have to stay in
business to bring you the legitimate news The top half ol
the front page is designed to draw attention to the newspa-
|XT I hat’s true lor the South Jetty and every other newspa-
per in the country No apologies Packaging sells products,
and newspapers are products
In the same vein, a television documentary about fraud
m the Texas lottery will get half (or less) the audience that
a Barbara Walters interview with Tom Cruise will.
Years ago. in another life at another newspaper, the city
v ouik il was slinging mud right and left, week after week
W e covered it, not because it was sensational, but because
it was legitimate news People complained about our
coverage, and paper sales were at an all time high. They
loved il, and they loved lo hate it Hey. what can I say’’
W e re animals
Ihe public has been on a feeding frenzy, starving for
nitty-gritty details about stars of the stage, screen and
international jet sei The paparazzi has attempted to satiate
the hunger Now that hunger and the drive to feed it have
contribute*!, probably in some small way, to a great trag
edv
li won't do lo |ust blame ihe paparazzi f or whatever part
the papara/zi played in the death of Princess Diana, we
have ourselves to blame tor sending them on the mission
Tuchman, Hamilton
required reading
Tolerant curmudgeon - “When the press is free and
every man able to read, all is safe ” Thomas Jefferson
CASTING ASIDE distaste and contempt for the fellow
who bunks in the White House, I find myself obliged to
confess along with colleagues of national press renown
that his popularity rating among his countrymen is high on
the chart, 68%, no
matter how in-
comprehensible
to me Out of step
as usual
THIS MORN
ING, following
ihe CSPAN
school bus on de
Tocqueville’s
journey across
America in 1831,
I found the editor
of the Quebec
French language
newspaper in that city aboard discussing freedom of the
press in Canada, which contrary to some ( SPAN callers is
quite on a par with that enjoyed here
Others following the journey must be aware that (here is
available to school teachers at no cost an educational book
for classroom use on the Frenchman's trip liven as my
better known colleagues of the press, I have no notion as to
the numbers of educators taking advantage of the offer
Meanwhile I have made at leasi two efforts to acquaint
public school educators with the program, and discovered
the name de Tocqueville to be unknown So then, I can
think of nothing that might enhance my regard for our
public sch(Kil systems except to discover a classroom
teacher who is making use of the offers from the telly
station
Tidemarks
C M. Henkel Jr.
Letters to the editor
Cactus Pryor
We devour our gods
Newspapers must have been in a dclimma choosing the
proper headline to tell of the death of Princess Diana What
do you proclaim Princess assassinated by cameras? Prin
cess killed by drunk driver9 Princess killed by consumers
of tabloids9 Princess killed escap
ing the Royal Family9 Actually all
of those leads would have been
appropriate Certainly the paparazzi
vultures were a factor in her death
Likewise the followers of )unk
journalism, the tabloids Had the
driver of the Mercedes not been
drunk And, alas, the Royal Earn
ily was involved Add a postsc ript
Princess Diana had some responsi
bility for her own life
The press has exceeded its free
dom Not just tabloids, hut all media Nothing is private
We're all potential targets of ambush newsmen Dxik out
the fronf window and see a CBS 60 Minute truck outside
If you're smart, lock your door
Drunken driving is an international problem Fear it
more than cancer.
The Royal Family is a cold mackerel Proper is more
important than humane. Tradition transcends human kind-
ness. Pray that Diana’s two boys have access to real people
like their mother...not just figure heads
And Princess Di...how do you find a haven from the
crush of ihe Crowd? She found the answer, the hard way
' We the people devour our Gods. The United States and
Hoss Cartwright of Bonanza fame, why he moved to
Switzerland. He said, “Because they still respect privacy
there. In America J could not take my boys to a bail
or go out to dine because of fans wanting auto-
Fun with words
Funny how we re often unauaic flow our own actions
mimic those ot others we see as different from ourselves
I enjoyed your humorous column about the strange wavs
foreigners often use out language, bul I especially eii|ovecl
the heading ot your artic le entitled Slate law s gel serious
about kids smoking and drinking on Monday
Naturally, your readers had to read the article il toi no
other reason than to discover whether the slate laws also
applied from Tuesday through Sunday
Here’s to humor and a reminder dial we're not so verv
different as we sometimes dunk we are
Anne f oster
f’ort Aransas
Advice to W inter Texans
Realizing that there arc numerous Winter I exans sitting
up north and counting the day s and pennies until n is lime
to migrate south again to those pleasant sandy beaches I
felt that it w as my civic dutv to offer some financ nil ach ice
to my fellow elderly friends so tins winter they c an stav in
Port Aransas a little longer, eal more shrimp and drink
more wine
Need extra cash lor your winter months?Then sell your
children “Inheritance Insurance" Tor only $ I (X) per month
each they can he insured against “unintentional over
sights" in your will This concept will guarantee you
additional spending money during your twilight years on
the island and at the same lime protect your children
against being left out of your will This, ladies and gentle
men. is another idea who’s time has come
William Tempelmeyer
Marshalltown, Iowa
Change inevitable
After reading the artic le in the Corpus Christi ( alter
limes Aug 10 issue, about Port Aransas. I was having a
hard time trying to understandrhe negative opinions about
the growth in our town
Maybe these opinions arc from people who don’t under
stand the benefits that evolution can bring Since I can
remember when I was a child, my life has been full of
c hange it is the will of God
Having seen aggressive growth on a large scale, and
looking at the big picture, Port Aransas is growing only at
a moderate rate, and what is happening is good and very
healthy I feel that it's more of a blessing to keep things
moving forward instead of trying or wanting what is
impossible and that is life without change
All coastal areas are being brought up by investors
everywhere, not |ust Port Aransas We should react to that
with planning and developing in a positive way that
benefits us all Concentrate on convenience, availability,
safety, appearance and hospitality, and this town will
continue to grow at a healthy pace for all to en|oy
Now is giKid timing for strengthening our infastructure
and do n aggressively
We need to rebuild all roads to the beach and use Ave
(i as a pattern with some minor improvements (curbs and
sidewalks are a must, and a safety factor ) A stop light at
Alister and Beach intersection for the higher volume
months, new houses and apartments for middle income
who employers need to staff their businesses. And so on
As long as our city leaders continue to allow our growth
to he developed without prejudice; and promote positive
enforcement, we can all have a town we can be proud to be
a part of now and tomorrow
Port Aransas does deserve to be viewed as a town on the
rise with some people doing good |obs to bring forth the
great things happening to our community
I H Danglade
Port Aransas
Letters to the Editor
Letters should be limited to approximately 300 words and
contain valid signatures, mailing addresses, as well as day and
evening telephone numbers where the writers may be reached
Names of persons writing letters will not be withheld from
publication Mass produced form letters will not be published
Only one teller per person will be published in a 30-day period
Letters of thanks should be submitted with payment to the
Classified Advertising Department
Mail letters to
Lettersto the Editor,, P O Box 1116, Port Aransas, TX 7837
limelight matt pay the price
we have kxt
HTBMPhnd
ISK&
t’lKrii1
Nature posters, Nautical charts
Birding and shelling books
See our selection at the
Port: Aransaa
141 W. Cottar
9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Monday - Friday
^ , y ' I 'm
749-5131
X,
r
hi ‘j
icti
NEVER HAVING possessed a firearm, confession is m
order I once owned a B B gun which I used m an attempt
to exterminate an elderly farmer who I knew to have
poisoned my pet Collie Later an angrv bee stung the man
and an unrepentant and tearful l()-year old in the lap of a
kindly police chief each pled guilty
Were I today to own a more deadly weapon I might find
it difficult to avoid temptation to invade Washington and
threaten every elected official from the top down W ithout
intent to kill I’d exert a promise from each to read specific
books the biography of Edgar Snow by John Maxwell
Hamilton, the other “Stilwell and the American Expert
ence in China I9II 45" by Barbara Tuchman
So low is iny regard for those who make the rules from
foggy Bottom that despite the likelihiMRl of today's major
itv being holders of college degrees, I find questionable the
possibility that more than a small few among them would
dare try to comprehend either b<Kik Less likely still that
any would Ik1 so open minded as to leam much For all
that, those elected to Washington in the decade before
WWII were an even sorrier lot, allowing sale of arms, scrap
metal, oil and gas to Japan through IGTD
Tuchman's thoughtf ul and wonderf ully researched ionic
lakes me back to ihe recollection of the average American
sentiments when Pearl Harbor was attacked, a long preva
lent predilection extant among such men as those noted in
the Txxiks on which I have frequently remarked
With that I am taken back to a conversation overheard
on the bridge of the SS Steel Seafarer The year was 19 T4
or ’35. I have and never shall forget either participant, a
Scot and Yangtze River pilot whose name I never heard,
and Capt C W Cunts, master of the ship T he pilot was a
man full of rage and hatred for the Japanese as any I have
ever known, an outrage I was to come to share before the
decade was out, and so well before Pearl Harbor
Scathing and profanely contemptuous of the Japs as the
pilot was, in the overheard conversation with the Yangtze
pilot he became the first man from whom I was to hear the
prediction that war was certain to come, war that would
involve western nations, especially Great Britain and the
United Slates Despite their own dislike and distrust of
Japan. I have no recollection of either Stilwell nor Snow
going so far. not at least with such firm conviction.
Although Stilwell commenced his China involvement
nearly 20 years before Snow’s initial arrival there, it was
Snow who first recognized the perfidy of Chiang Kai
shek, although Stilwell was first to meet the Nationalist
leader, then with a feeling amounting to little more than
indifference except “he's no soldier "On the othei hand he
was not indifferent to the beauty of the American educated
Madame
At this point I am finding it'difficult to refrain from
lengthy reviews of the mentioned b<M>k. mostly the one
which involves Stilwell whom I feel obliged to regard as
one of the truly great Americans of our century, a great
leader possessed of an unusually brilliant mind, not to
mention his being a soldier of indisputable ability, there
something despite even his detractors in the service of the
United States Army. Fortunately, there were other such
honorable men as General George C. Marshall to whom
the words, honor, integrity, loyalty and devotion to duty
were meaningful All things also common to Stilwell, and
which actually had a part in his earning the sobriquet
“Vinegar Joe.”
If Stilwell had enemies and detractors they were those
who sought fame and glory in high places, never GI Joe on
the Burma Road nor his Chinese opposite number
CONFESSING PERSONAL inclination for Tao pan
theist concepts, I would remark the motto of our ambassa
dor to China in the mid !930’s. Nelson Johnson, Wu Wet
Erh Pu Wei, meaning “Through not doing, all things are
done.” Certainly not true of Stilwell.
Another translation of which I am more familiar: “Rule
a big country as you would fry a small fish." Likely more
acceptable to the general. In any event Johnson kept the
Chinese words on the wall of any office he occupied
CM. Henkel Jr. is a retired newspaper publisher living
in Rockport.
The South Jetty (946:020) pays Peri-
odicals POSTAGE AT PORT ARANSAS, TX
POSTMASTER:
Send address changes to:
P.O.Box 1116
Port Aransas 78373
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Judson, Mary. Port Aransas South Jetty (Port Aransas, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 36, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 4, 1997, newspaper, September 4, 1997; Port Aransas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth623348/m1/2/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Ellis Memorial Library.