Notes:

Chaparral Tire Recycling Project 1/12/11, approximately 3 hours. Attending were Chairman Rardin and Commissioners Flores and Herrell. According to the documents, Herrell called for the meeting.

In a nutshell, this was an appeal by Oswaldo Galarza of Air-NM.com, http://www.air-nm.com/form05Configuration.xml, for Otero County to participate financially, at least, in a tire recycling project. Also being asked to finance roughly 90% of the project are state and federal agencies, i.e. your tax dollars.

PRESS RELEASE
January 23, 2011
Otero County Tea Party Patriots




Some 45 members of the Otero County Tea Party Patriots, Alamogordo 2nd Amendment Task Force and Oath Keepers participated in the 2nd Annual Combined Rally Saturday to remind Congress that "We Are Watching". The 2-hour rally at the corner of 10th and White Sands was held to focus public attention on state and national legislative response to a variety of important issues, including tax policy, government waste and spending, immigration, constitutional rights and the repeal of "Obamacare".

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Saturday's United Street Rally
to remind lawmakers "We're Watching"


The Second Annual Alamogordo United street rally will be held from noon till 3:00 p.m. Saturday, January 22 at the corner of Tenth and White Sands Avenue. Participants in the rally will include the Otero County Tea Party Patriots, Sons of Liberty, Alamogordo Second Amendment Task Force and Oath Keepers.

Work Session of the Otero County Commission, January 12, 9 am and "informational" meeting the same day called by Commissioner Herrell to gather information on tire recycling operation/ Chaparral which I will report on later as it was very lengthy.

We told you so and made the effort to put protections in place for Otero County residents via an ordinance. We are vindicated by this interview. Some people call it redistribution. I call it theft.

UN IPCC Official Admits 'We Redistribute World's Wealth By Climate Policy'

Read more: http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2010/11/18/un-ipcc-official-we-redistribute-worlds-wealth-climate-policy#ixzz15kAmA6ck

This summer the Otero County Commission passed an ordinance, 10-07 Verifiable Science. http://www.co.otero.nm.us/

The original version was rejected by Commissioner Moore as having too strong language. It was toned down to be acceptable.

Bottom line is that now Otero County has a valuable tool to reject any proposal whose science is not verifiable. Think: designation of Otero Mesa as a National Monument, FEMA County Flood Ordinance (watch Tularosa on this one), continued threats to list Checkerspot Butterfly, recycling "hubs and spokes" initially financed by Stimulus Funds, predator management and just about any other issue before the commissioners.

I bring this to your attention so that you know there is a way to maintain and protect our customs and culture, using our intellectual and natural resources in a beneficial and sustainable manner.

We have the U.S. Constitution, the New Mexico Constitution and now the Verifiable Science Ordinance. When you have or create fire breaks, use them. The alternative is to watch your county smothered under regulations, executive orders, corruption and incompetence.

Besides attending the Commissioners' Canvass of Votes meeting on Monday, I attended the work session and Grazing Advisory Board meetings.

Robyn Holmes, Otero County Clerk heard my two suggestions/requests. One, that mailing labels sold by the county to candidates include a second line "Or Current Resident" to avoid a waste of money and time on the part of candidates and P.O.

Two, that Otero County website on the Clerk's department include the numbers for those voting straight party ticket. This is done in other counties and Ms. Holmes said she thought that information was being posted. She/Ray Backstrom, county manager, agreed to correct this deficiency.

At the work session on Wednesday, the County agreed unanimously to lease 25 acreas adjacent to the prison facility to a solar power generating concern. There will be a public hearing on the creation of an Otero County Environmental Department at the regular meeting on the 30th.

The Grazing Advisory Board was most interesting. Until you witness the interaction between the feds, state, county government and constituents, you just haven't experienced politics. Never let it be said that good politics is not local.

COUNTY COMMISSION DIST 1

L.C. MARSHALL (D) 1,266 27.05%
TOMMIE C. HERRELL (R) 1,969 42.06%
JANET T. WHITE 1,446 30.89%

http://www.co.otero.nm.us/Clerk/ELECRSLT.HTM

I attended the Otero County Commission Canvass of Votes meeting this week. The numbers above may change only a miniscule amount due to some provisional ballots that were counted and the addition of several military absentee ballots.

At the meeting I made two suggestions to the Clerk:

One, that straight ticket votes be published on the Clerk's page as it is in other counties. This was agreed to.

Two, that mailing labels sold by the county to candidates include a second line "Or Current Resident" so that campaign materials end up somewhere instead of being routed back through the post office to the candidate. Robyn Holmes agreed with my suggestion.

I can only be in one place at one time so I ask for your help on Tuesday, November 2.

Otero County Commission, District 1 is composed of 12 precincts and we need people at every precinct from 7 am to closing. We call it "Adopt a Precinct". For details on how you can help the cause, contact me at 575-921-1760. A couple of hours is a good investment in good local government.

At the Regular Otero County Commission meeting last night, the Commission voted to adopt Ordinance 10-06. You may read the ordinance at http://www.co.otero.nm.us/

The proposed new Otero County Organizational Chart was met with much discussion and ultimately sent back to the manager for revisions.

The paving for the parking lot at 1104 White Sands Blvd, "County Annex", former Firestone building, is estimated between $90,000 - $138,000.

The Public Safety Access Point - SO Dispatch needs an additional $150,000 by Chairman Moore's guestimate.

The whole shebang can be viewed at Alamogordo Live and it wasn't pretty. http://www.alamogordolive.net/

Alamogordo Daily News Endorses Janet White 10/16/2010:

"In the race for Otero County Commission District 1, we like independent candidate Janet White over her two challengers, Tommie Herrell and LC Marshall.

White, who has attended every county commission meeting for the last four years, has extensive knowledge of proceedings and takes it upon herself to investigate all possible angles to every issue. She also has shown an interest in representing citizens in Chaparral, who have long been overlooked and crave representation. We believe White can - and will - do that."

The Alamogordo Daily News has endorsed Janet White as its pick for Otero County Commission, Dist.1. We will provide a link when available.

We mailed 4,000 postcards to active voters in the district this week. The postcard tells how to vote for Janet White, Independent.

I continue to go door to door and my map is filling in with yellow highlighter on streets I have covered. I will do this until November 1. (I do not knock on doors on Sundays for obvious reasons.)

Don't forget the Otero County Commission Regular Meeting Thursday, Oct. 21. If you cannot attend, you can watch it live or archived on AlamogordoLive. The new FEMA Flood Map Ordinance will again be the subject of a public hearing as well as other agenda items.

We the people do not have to be just Democrats and Republicans, a commentary by Janet White.

Otero County Budget 2010-2011 At A Glance. This is by function not department.

New Mexico Wildlife Federation (NMWF) held a public meeting at the Tays Center on Saturday evening billed as an Economics Forum. Only one of the panel, Robert Curran, a sportsman, was local. Although NMWF refused to take a position on Otero Mesa becoming a National Monument with the stroke of the presidential pen, NMWF did admit that it supports Wilderness designation for the Organ Mountains.

Since we have pristine grasslands worthy of consideration for National Monument status, how did the grasslands survive under BLM and ranchers' care and now need another level of bureaucracy, the NPS, for protection? This defies even basic common sense.

I could go on and cite a number of facts that could not be rebutted at the meeting, such as nearly 45 years of decline in visitation at White Sands National Monument, something that even ecotourists can not cure.

But, I would rather refer you to a very interesting article by Walter E. Williams entitled "Profit vs. Nonprofit": http://patriotpost.us/opinion/walter-e-williams/2010/09/22/profit-versus-nonprofit/

Also, a favorite tool of mine to find out where organizations get their money is Quidestar where you can read their IRS 990's - always enlightening. http://www2.guidestar.org/

Also, Activest Cash is good for making the connections between large and small nonprofits and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). http://activistcash.com/index_foundations.cfm

We here in Otero County have a much greater interest in preserving Otero Mesa than anyone else. It is our home. All the promises in the world of money and ecotourists falling from the sky will not change the facts. Let's deal with reality.

The Otero Regular Meeting on September 16th was long and a "barn burner". You can view it at AlamogordoLive.net. If you have specific questions, please email me.

The meeting at the Detention Center was very educational. Virginia Blansett and her staff were forthcoming with their concerns and perspectives. All three candiates from District 1 attended. We were "interviewed" for the position of commissioner, as it should be, instead of us telling them "what is best". Every department could do this.

I attended the Boles Acres VFD training meeting. Visited with the Chaparral community Sunday and registered 10 voters. It is very encouraging to see people starting to realize they can make a difference.

"It does not take a majority to prevail ...
but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men."

Samuel Adams

Another Boles VFD meeting 9/9/10: Something I didn't know - calls to the departments are tallied up by the State Fire Marshall/State EMS. State funding to each VFD is based on number of calls received. Dog Canyon services come under umbrella of Boles Acres. Three members of Dog Canyon were in attendance. Asst.Chief Pete Tissley conducted the meeting. Met Chief John Bajar at the Otero Work Session the following morning.

Went to Dog Canyon to deliver a yard sign and ending up placing three. The community, like Boles Acres, is very receptive to the idea of being treated fairly. Apparently, the Corps of Engineers is ready to do a study on the escarpment near Dog Canyon. This came to light at the work session. That is the good news. The bad news, the county will be required to do a "2-foot" survey prior to that and the current estimated cost is $120K - and the "county doesn't have it".

The election on November 2 will include proposed amendments to the New Mexico Constitution. I know how I am voting, do you? Want to have a discussion?

Please read these, it takes less than 30 minutes to educate yourself. Amendment 3 is erroneously named to make you think it restricts felons' voting rights - it does just the opposite and leaves it up to state politicians!

Most of these "sound" good until you read the pros and cons.

"On November 2, 2010, five proposed constitutional amendments will appear on the New
Mexico general election ballot as the result of passage of joint resolutions by the New Mexico Legislature in its 2009 and 2010 regular legislative sessions.


CA 1 (2009) Allow the establishment of a college scholarship program for New
Mexico military war veterans.

CA 2 (2010) Allow county officials to serve three consecutive terms instead of
two.

CA 3 (2010) Modernize language regarding qualified electors by defining
mental incapacity for voting purposes; adopting federal requirements; and restricting felons from voting except when voting rights are restored by statute.

CA 4 (2010) Provide a property tax exemption for property of a veterans'
organization.

CA 5 (2010) Allow for the appointment of certain former members of the
legislature to certain civil offices.

Copy and paste the address below into your browser to read the analyses and arguments for and against the 5 Constitutional Amendments on your ballot November 2:

http://www.nmlegis.gov/lcs/lcsdocs/182482.pdf

JANET WHITE CAMPAIGN YARD SIGNS ARE IN. CALL OR EMAIL TO HAVE THEM DELIVERED. 575-921-1760 - janetwhitedesigns@msn.com

Have a get together at your home! I will provide postcard invitations, an appearance to meet your guests and answer questions. As you know, I don't "speechify", so these will be short, to the point, informal and educational.

On Wednesday last I stopped by the Boles Acres VFD and met with a couple of volunteers who were performing truck checks. Tonight I will be attending their business meeting.

What I learned at my first visit: The Chief is John Badjar and the Asst. Chief is Pete Nissley. Boles Acres #1 is located on Sage Avenue, Boles Acres #2 is located in Dog Canyon. Boles #1 has an ISO of 7 and Boles #2 is rated 9. Between the two locations they have 4 tenders, 3 engines, 2 medic units, 2 brush units, 1 air truck and a 1936 fire engine, way cool! 3/4 of the volunteers have some medical certification and they have between 20-25 members.

I learned that it costs approximately $2345 to fully equip a fire fighter with bunker gear; helmet, Nomex hood, boots, gloves, coat and pants.

They are automatically assisted by Oro Vista VFD and Alamo West.

Ride Along in Chaparral and Oro Grande Volunteer Fire Department Meeting, 8/26/2010:

I met up with Sgt. Tarantino at the Chaparral Substation around 9:30 am. After introductions and a tour of the facility, Sgt. Tarantino went about his regular duties with me in tow.

The substation is basically new and well-planned. The holding cells, layout and work areas are far superior to those at the Sheriff's Office in Alamogordo. Chaparral has an Intoxylizer (IR8000) for measuring alcohol levels which was reported to be a major part of the department's work - that and an exploding population of dogs. Tarantino expressed a need for a fulltime Animal Control Officer.

The substation is now almost fully staffed with two and sometimes three officers on duty. It is my understanding that although this particular day was routine, the evenings and nights are when most activity occurs. Otero and Dona Ana work closely together as the community is half in each county. I was able to meet some of the Dona Ana personnel at their office. It was change of shift time so there was more activity at their location.

What was easily observable is that the Otero side has more subtandard housing and smaller lots with more "converted" mobile homes, lower standard of living. This dynamic was solidified when the town was laid out. Otero has small lots, Dona Ana has large lots and acreages and all the schools.

The locals that I saw interacting with the Sheriff's Office were friendly, appreciative and slowed down when they got the finger shake. Some of the roads have speed limit changes that defy logic simply because they are in one county or the other. Don't see why this can't be resolved easily. Also, I would like to note that the street signs in Chaparral are far superior and more numerous than Boles Acres.

The new Otero Health Clinic is not operating yet. The weeds are so high it is impossible to read the phone number on the sign. "Do as I say, not as I do!"

I arrived just in time to attend Oro Grande VFD meeting. Chief Joe Bailey and Gene Crouch removed two batteries from the pumper as I asked questions.

Chief Bailey was the Chief for Alamogordo which has an ISO of 4. He told me that Oro Grande VFD donated $100k to build the Fire Training Center on the Holloman Highway.

Oro Grande has an ISO rating of 9. They have a pumper, a tanker and a brush truck and 10-12 volunteers. They meet once a month. They can only lower their ISO if there was access to more water. They just had their state inspection and came in "in good shape". They have new bunker gear, the protective suits and equipment, which costs about $5K per unit. What Chief Bailey needs is young people to train and learn this skill.