Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
Sorted by date Results 1 - 13 of 13
On Nov. 1, Mesalands Community College Board of Trustees Chairman J. Bronson Moore signed a letter informing college President Mildred Lovato that she'd been fired. The letter was not made public. Five days later, in separate interviews with Quay County Sun Senior Writer Thomas Garcia and Editor David Stevens, Moore insisted Lovato had not been fired. She had been placed on paid administrative leave, Moore said repeatedly. She had not been fired, he said repeatedly. Then why, he was asked, did Mesalands Director of Public Relations Kimberly...
Those supporting taxpayer-funded higher education in New Mexico should take a close look at the Bond C question on the Nov. 6 General Election ballot. Voters statewide will decide whether to allow the state to issue $120 million in general obligation bonds for capital improvements at New Mexico's universities and colleges. The cost breaks down to about $6 a year for the owner of a $100,000 home. But taxes would not increase because this "GO" bond actually replaces a retiring bond by the same amount. Locally, Bond C would funnel almost $11...
If you're ready to play some football, make sure your safety gear fits properly, it's used properly and you pay close attention to the rules related to contact. One of our favorite sports can be dangerous, and it's attracting attention from those who want to protect us from ourselves. Lawmakers have already instituted rules by which we must abide, even in New Mexico. The 2010 state Legislature unanimously passed Senate Bill 1, which requires coaches to sit players who exhibit signs of concussions. Most high school and youth football coaches...
The Olympic Games open Friday with 26 sports, 10,500 athletes representing nearly every country and millions of people watching from all over the world. We're looking forward to inspirational performances every day, but one athlete in particular has already made us swell with pride: our own Amber Campbell. America's top hammer thrower lives in Myrtle Beach, S.C., but she grew up in Tucumcari. Campbell, 31, says Tucumcari sparked her love for athletics when she lived here from 1983 to 1995. "There was always something to do, even if it was only...
Pranksters and spin doctors try to trick news reporters all the time. Newspapers across the country have learned to guard against fake obituaries, altered photos and multiple other efforts to mislead readers, embarrass the paper or simply win a bar bet. Most such successful shenanigans are harmless or at least corrected during the next news cycle. But an effort to fool a Quay County Sun reporter last week raised questions about safety at the Tucumcari municipal swimming pool. The reporter's assignment was to interview a lifeguard. A young man...
This week we celebrate freedom. For some of us that means backyard barbecues, pool parties, watching baseball from the recliner or watching Saturday's fireworks display at Ute Lake. Some also will celebrate our independence with our own fireworks purchased at roadside stands scattered throughout the region. All such celebrations are great; we just urge caution when using fire, especially in the tinderbox conditions we're experiencing again this summer. Our cities, counties and states have issued guidelines for using fireworks, and violation of...
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez has been a loud and proud supporter of government transparency. That's why we're surprised to hear she's been in the middle of recent media reports questioning her actions related to public records. First it was revealed the governor and other high-ranking administration officials discussed state business using email accounts connected to her political action committee, The Associated Press reported. Then, a disgruntled former cabinet secretary claimed the governor's chief of staff, sometime last year, directed...
E astern New Mexico residents are a hearty breed of independent, headstrong people loyal to each other. That trait shows through regardless of politics — most of the time. However, we saw that link tested before Tuesday's primary election. It nearly broke for Republican friends and neighbors. The last two months were especially nasty for the GOP members of Senate District 7 (Curry, Union and Quay counties). The race ended with voters rejecting Republican Gov. Susana Martinez' ham-fisted attempt to tell her east-side followers to select her c...
Now that we've narrowed the field for our next set of elected representatives, let's remind them all what they're supposed to be doing on our behalf: Securing our unalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Three recent news stories suggest they need a good reminding. Somehow we doubt the Founding Fathers would have approved of today's government efforts to imprison Roger Clemens, make chicken pens bigger or outlaw Big Gulps. It's not that we necessarily approve of the baseball pitcher's antics, tiny spaces for critters,...
It was encouraging this week to see that most of New Mexico's Public Regulation Commission disagreed with its chairman, Pat Lyons of Clovis, who wanted to ban a man from attending and speaking to the group. Martin de la Garza often gives rambling, long-winded, accusatory testimony at PRC meetings. He was fired in 2009 for accepting $5,000 from the owner of a water utility the PRC regulates. Rightfully so, the agency rejected de la Garza's hard-to-swallow claim he was merely doing a favor for the owner and not taking a bribe, and that he had...
They say the words, claiming "transparency" and "the public's right to know" are priorities. But too many public officials are conducting public business in private. They call it "executive session," the part of the public meeting when city councilors or county commissioners say some magic words and then sneak off into a private room where they talk about who knows what, which often costs taxpayers money. It happens in Clovis, Portales and just about every other community across New Mexico. In Curry County, commissioners frequently adjourn for...
"Once you learn to read, you will be forever free." — Civil rights champion Frederick Douglass C oaches bring strategy, focus and inspiration to the game. It's hard to imagine a team succeeding without a good coach who can produce a gameplan, identify areas of vulnerability and then fortify them. So a recent effort to add more coaches to New Mexico's public school system is welcome — especially since Gov. Susana Martinez is pushing for more reading coaches in elementary schools. "Learning to read is the key to success, and it can often det...
Horses are majestic animals, loyal companions, hard workers, even great exercise. All true. But none of those points offer a reason to block the opening of a proposed equine slaughterhouse in Roswell. Yes, there is national outrage from animal rights activists, even from New Mexico politicians from both major parties, including Republican Gov. Susana Martinez: "The horse's companionship is a way of life for many people across New Mexico," she declared in a statement reported by thehorse.com, a website devoted to equine health care. "We rely on...