The Pharr Press (Pharr, Tex.), Vol. 50, No. 13, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 29, 1982 Page: 2 of 16
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Page 2, The Pharr Press, April 29,1982
PRESS
■Viewpoints
Work now begins
With the results of Saturday’s
mayoral run-off election in, the
new Pharr city commission can
begin to start on the work that is
before them. The previous ad-
ministration left the city running
smoothly and headed in a
progressive direction. The suc-
cess of the previous ad-
ministration was based on doing
their homework, on compassion
and on intelligence. But most of
all hard work. The hours spent
studying plans before the
meetings, and the long hours of
the commission meetings added
up to attractive results for the
business and residential com-
munities of Pharr.
The new mayor and com-
mission were elected by the
populace to continue this gover-
nment. They also inherit the
work of the city and the
obligation to prepare themselves
for the task at hand.
Although transitions are
usually confusing, with the
power invested in the city
manager and his staff by the
revised charter of Pharr, the
planning and workings of the
city should continue unaffected.
The city manager and staff is a
professional group that has
managed the city well, and from
all signs, will continue to do so.
Congratulations to the new
Pharr city government. The
duties and responsibilities are
before you; may you carry them
out with honesty and to the best
of you abilities.
Fine job by Pharr Parks &
Recreation Department
The city of Pharr Parks and
Recreation Department should
be recognized for the fine job it
is doing in keeping the baseball
and softball diamonds green and
in neatly manicured condition.
The fields are well taken care of
and the bleachers and fences
are repaired.
The ball parks, although not
adequate in size and parking to
handle all of Pharr’s
recreational needs today, are
something the community can
take pride in. The children and
adults can enjoy the facilities.
Children and adults should also
respect them. Included in this is
impressing on children the need
to maintain the facilities in good
condition. Every year vandalism
occurs to the ball complex and
to the restroom facilities there.
The vandalized property close to
the organized recreation of
baseball and softball, show the
fine line between constructive
time and destructive time. The
parents and adults of the com-
munity must show by example
the difference between con-
structiveness and destruc-
tiveness.
Modem justice system
protects the criminal
On the first of March, a cer-
tain Valley district attorney
made the statement that he
will not prosecute anyone that
must use force to protect him-
self against a criminal.
Besides the comic page, that
was almost the best news of
the entire edition.
Part of the district attorney’s
statement included the remark
“We have lost the streets...”
What he was saying was the
law enforcement agencies can
no longer control crime in the
streets, crimes like robbery,
assault, rape, and murder.
The criminal part of it is not
that there is street crime, nor
that the law enforcement
agencies are under-staffed,
under-trained, and under-
equipped; the crime and the
crying shame is the criminal is
in the streets in the first place.
Our modern justice system
protects the criminal. With
light sentences, lenient parole
and probation policies, and
luxurious prisons with
facilities and services that the
Conrad Hilton would envy,
there is no incentive not to
commit crimes. And crime is
an easy, non-taxable, non-
working way to make quick
cash.
But if the criminals were to
get tarred and feathered, or
beaten severely about the
head and shoulders with an
umbrella wielded by a
hysterical old lady In sneakers
that studied Kung-fu, there is a
good chance that the crimunal
might be afraid to attack the
next little old lady if the first
one did not get punished for
protecting herself. That next
little old lady might really be
dangerous!
Plaudits for the heroic district
attorney that is trying to help
make the streets safe for the
people that pay their taxes so
he can do just that.
Seen ’ROUND THE TOWN
LLOYD GLOVER
Kdii.tr Emeritus
Vietnam book review
Realities and myths of the
Vietnam war are coming to light
regularly, with the latest being
a book entitled “Why We Were
In Vietnam” by Norman
.Podhoretz, the respected editor
of Commentary magazine.
There was much erroneous
reporting and misinformation
spread about the Vietnam war.
Some of these deceptions came
from American leaders but far
more and of a more reprehen-
sible nature came from the
war’s critics, who said it was an
unwinnable war, that America
was immoral, that the South
Vietnamese gov’t was evil and
that we were on the wrong side
in the war. The Diem regime of
South Vietnam was so corrupt
that this further complicated the
American effort, so states
Author Podhoretz. In spite of all
the criticism of the Diem regime,
all conceded it was superior to
what the Vietnamese had.
Another criticism of the war
was that it was unnecessarily
atrocious. But many of those
who covered it did so with such
minuteness and exactness that
the brutal fighting on the other
side was overlooked. Most
historians conceded that Viet-
nam was no worse than Korea
orWWII.
The author has performed a
valuable service in clearing up
some of the deceptive reporting
on this war. One of the most
glaring of all was the inaccurate
reporting on the Tet offensive, in
which America was charged
with bombing of civilian targets.
Now it comes to light that the
reporter responsible used a
North Vietnamese propaganda
pamphlet for his source of in-
formation.
We all need to remember that
this war which cost 50,000
American lives went thru three
presidents-John F. Kennedy who
described it the “proving ground
for democracy in Asia”, Lyndon
Johnson and then Richard
Nixon. Johnson escalated the
war, which was at the peak
when Nixon took office. Nixon
continued at its high level for a
while and then gradually wound
it down.
The post war events in South
Vietnam have made the critics
of the war look ridiculous. North
Vietnam has taken over South
Vietnam completely with ab-
solute rule, with not a single
member of the 134 member
Vietnamese Communist party
from the old South Vietnamese
National Liberation Front. Many
notable writers like Mary Mc-
Carthy, Frances Fitzgerald and
Susan Sontag wrote great
tributes on the morality of the
Hanoi gov’t. And now look at
what they have wrought.
Refugees and boat people
fleeing by the hundreds of
thousands from Southeast Asia.
Tno Tang, minister of justice of
the NFL, after fleeiing in 1979
said: “Never has any previous
regime brought such masses of
people to such desperation. Not
the military dicators, not the
Colonialists, not even the
Chinese overlords.” Mr.
Podhoretz writes: Such writers
should have known enough
about the history of communism
to know better and they should
now be ashamed of their naivete
and of the contribution they
made to the victory of forces
they had a moral duty to op-
pose.”
This book will not be the last
word about Vietnam by a long
shot, but it opens the way for a
more sensible analysis of the en-
tire debacle.
Robert Elegant, writing in En-
counter, offered the conclusion
that the U.S. and South Vietnam
more or less won the war on the
ground but that misreporting by
the press turned this into a
defeat on the home front.
{This book was published by
Simon & Schuster and cost
$14.50. We hope Pharr
Memorial Library will have it
soon, many should read this in
its entirety.)
We have been mentioning
items of historical interest in
this column from time to time.
Here we go again. The current
issue of True West (June) has the
second article by John R. Peavey
about the early years here in the
Rio Grande Valley. This article
tells of the bandit raids of 1915
with three of the more famous
incidents reported in detail.
These were the Aug. 7, 1915 at-
tack on the NOrias Ranch north
of Raymondville, the October 17,
1915 wreck of the St. Louis
Brownsville and Mexico
Railroad passenger train a few
miles north of Brownsville and
the Ojo de Agua Ranch battle
south of Mission. All of these
were included in Mr. Peavey’s
book which was published
several years ago but is no
longer available. There are
many other raids mentioned, in-
cluding the attack on the
McAllen ranch headquarters.
Mr. Peavey was among the first
officers to arrive at the train
wreck. He and three deputy
sheriffs trailed the raiders as
far as the river. All interesting
and exciting reading and is
recommended for those in-
terested in early Valley history.
This column will be missing
from this newspaper for a short
time as Mabel and I will be on a
trip. Meanwhile, the Lord
willing and the creeks don’t rise,
we’ll see you here again and tell
you about the trip.
As I see it ™ESNELS0N
Baseball misfits
It is little-league baseball
season. Young boys take the
field with gloves as big they are
and chase grounders hit by a
boy swinging a bat as tall or
taller than he is.
The fans sit in the stands, mon
and dad, sister and brother,
grandpa and grandma, and
cheer the players on.
By the time the players reach
the highest-age division, a lot of
wins, a lot of losses, a lot of
mistakes and a lot of glory have
gone into the players career to
take him that far.
There are many reasons how
and why a boy begins to play
baseball from the beginning, but
for the most part it must begin
with the urging of the parents.
Some dads want their sons to
be as good as they were. Others
want their sons to do what they
never had an opportunity to do.
Other dads want their sons to
excel where they never could.
Many mothers wish to see their
sons excel. Many mothers are
the most dominant force in
pushing their son to win, to hit
the home run and to be better
than anyone else.
Many mothers and fathers
suggest to their son he play ball,
just so the youth and the family
can have an enjoyable time.
Players are somehow drafted
or divided up each spring and
teams are formed. Each city
goes about it a little differently,
but I suspect the general out-
come is the same; Somehow, the
seasoned coaches and managers
get the players they know play
well, and one'or two teams gets
the leftovers.
The leftovers usually include a
sleeper or two, perhaps a new
face that wasn’t known, and
also includes the too short or too
fat kids, or too slow or too clum-
sy kids, to have been choosen by
the seasoned coaches.
The season for the misfit teams
can be either a disaster or a lot
of fun, depending on how the
coach and the players view it.
I ended up on such a team one
of my baseball years. I don’t
know why, I recall it was
because I was a new face, but i
may be forgetting some parts as
time passes.
I do remember it was a lot of
fun.
Foremost, for any boy caught in
the same position, being on a
losing team doesn’t mean you
don’t get a coke or an ice cream
cone just as big after the game.
In fact, I think we were the best
taken care of in that respect of
all the teams in the league.
Second, mom and dad and the
family, don’t cheer any less
because you’re in the middle of a
six-game losing streak. They still
cheer the same, or perhaps even
harder.
And very few teams will go the
whole season without at least
one victory. The championship
team players think the game that
cinches the title is sweet,
they’ve never experienced
anything like the first {and sure
to be the only) victory of the
season for a team that has lost
its first six games.
. As you watch the opposing
team congratulate player after
player for home runs and triples
and scores, you observe they
become very accustomed to the
glory. When you finally hit an
inside the park home run, aided
by three or four errors, your
whole team will be on you,
pounding you on the back, and
your fans will be wild. That is
real emotion.
When you’ve been playing
defense for 30 minutes while the
opposing team racks up 15 runs
in one inning, and the third out
finally comes, you feel as much,
relief as the player on the team
who watches the third and final
out that seals a 6-5 victory in the
final inning.
Also, a player has a good chan-
ce of becoming an All-Star with
just a touch of talent, because
usually at least one player will
be choosen from each team. If
you were playing on that 10-0
team, you would be just another
face in the crowd. With your
team of misfits, you have a
chance to become their star.
Traducciones
El nuevo
gobierno de
la ciudad
Con los resultados de las elec-
ciones del “runoff” que se
llevaron a cabo el sabado, la
nueva comision de la ciudad de
Pharr puede empezar a trabajar
con la obra que esta delante de
ellos. La administracion previa
dejo la ciudad administrada de
una manera normal y hacia una
direccion progresiva. El exito de
la previa administracion estaba
basada en hacer su tarea con
compasion e inteligencia. Las
horas que se emplearon para
estudiar los planes antes de las
reuniones y las largas horas
empleadas en las juntas de la
comision sirvio para traer
atractivos resultados en la
comunidad residencial y de
comercio de Pharr. El nuevo
mayor y comision fueron
elegidos por el pueblo para con-
tinuar este gobierno. Tambien
heredan el trabajo de la ciudad
y la obligacion de prepararse
para la tarea que tienen en la
mano. Aunque las transiciones
son usualmente confusas, con el
poder en manos del gerente de
la ciudad y sus colaboradores,
de acuerdo con las nuevas en-
miendas de la constitucion, el
trabajo de la ciudad continuara
igual. El gerente de la ciudad y
sus colaboradores son gente
profesional que ha dirigido la
ciudad muy bien, todo indica
que asi han de continuar.
Felicitaciones al nuevo gobier-
no de la ciudad de Pharr, las
obligaciones y respon-
sabdidades esta ante ustedes,
deben llevarla con honestidad y
deben poner lo mejor de su
habilidad.
Los Campos
de Baseball
El departamento de parques y
recreaciones de la ciudad de
Pharr debe ser reconocido por el
buen trabajo queestan haciendo
en mantener los campos de sof-
tball y baseball muy bien
regados y ciudados. Los campos
estan verdes y las bancas y cer-
cas estan reparadas. Los
parques de estos deportes,
aunque no son del tomano
adecuado y carecen de un
estacionamiento suficiente para
acomodar a todos los que
disfrutan de esta actividad de
recreo, la comunidad debe sen-
tirse orgullosa por tener estos
campos muy bien cuidados. Los
ninos y los adultos son los que
disfrutan estas facilidades, a la
vez, ellos son los que deben
respetar y cuidar los mismos. Se
debe inculcar a la ninez a que
estos cuiden y mantengan los
campos y facilidades en buena
condicion. Cada ano hay actos
de vandalismo en el campo y en
los cuartos de bano. La
propiedad que es vandelizada y
la recreacion organizada de sof-
tball y baseball, indica una linea
entre el tiempo constructive y
destructive. Los padres y los
adultos de la comunidad deben
mostrar con su ejemplo la
diferencia que hay entre los
constructive y lo destructive.
El sistema
de justicia
En los primeros dies del mes
pasado cierto juez de distrito del
Valle dijo que no enjuiciara a
nadie que uso del la fuerza para
defenderse de un criminal.
Ademas de la seccion comica,
esto fue tal vez lo mejor de las
noticias en esa edicion. Parte de
lo que dijo el juez fue “nosotros
hemos perdido nuestras calles”
Lo que el dio a entender es que
las agencias de la ley no pueden
controlar el crimen en las calles,
crimenes como robo, asaltos,
violaciones y asesinatos. La par-
te criminal no es que haya
crimenes en la calle o que las
agencias encargadas de con-
trolar no tengan el personal
suficiente, o no esten en-
trenados y equipados, el crimen
es que los criminales esten en
las calles. Nuestro sistema
moderno de justicia proteje al
criminal. Se dan sentencias
leves, libertad controlada y se
les provee facilidades y ser-
vices que serian envidia del
notelero Conrad Hilton, no hay
incentivos para no cometer
crimenes. El crimen es una
manera facil de obtener ganan-
cias jugosas sin necesidad de
pagar impuestos o trabajar.
Pero si los criminales fueran
proven dos castigados de una
manera severa, o quiza
castigados con un paraguas en
la cabeza a manos de una an-
ciana con zapatos de tenis y con
conocimientos de Kung-fu, solo
asi un criminal tendra miedo
atacar a una anciana, siempre y
cuando la primera no sea
castigada por protejerse a si
misma. Este heroico juez esta
tratando que la calles seen lim-
pias del crimen para la gente
que page sus impuestos y para
que el juez haga su trabajo.
The Pharr Press
P.O.Box 710 203 South Cage
The PRESS accepts letters to the Editor as long as
name and address is given.
Pictures and stories from the community are accep-
ted for publication without charge:
however the editor has the right to choose what
stories and pictures are published.
News tips are welcome: Call 787-2291
The PRESS is dedicated to being a community
newspaper that provides local,
indepth coverage of news pertaining to the Pharr.
San Juan and Alamo communities.
Published each Thursday morning in the city of
Pharr. Hidalgo County, in the Lower Rio Grande
Valley of Texas
Subscription .-.es: $7.50 per year in Hidalgo County
and $11-00 per
year outside of county.
FRANKGRAHAM
Advertising Manager
CHARLES L. NELSON
Editor
JUAN CARLOS MORALES
Translator
YOLANDA MARTINEZ
Production Manager
J
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Nelson, Charles. The Pharr Press (Pharr, Tex.), Vol. 50, No. 13, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 29, 1982, newspaper, April 29, 1982; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth866994/m1/2/?q=%22%22~1: accessed August 15, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Pharr Memorial Library.