Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
Serving Clovis, Portales and the Surrounding Communities
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Donald Trump kept telling us he’d be a threat to democracy if re-elected president. Now he’s showing us. Several months ago on his Truth Social website, Trump threatened to “expel” and “cast out” government workers who oppose his radical views, describing them as a “sick political class” that hates the country. The 2024 election, he wrote, “is our final battle.” He is wasting no time acting on his promise. Trump, who has endured his own accusations of sexual harassment and ele...
As a Baby Boomer, I looked on with bemusement; but Dec. 10, 1974 was a cultural milestone for the oldest members of Generation X. That’s when ABC premiered the Rankin/Bass Productions animated Christmas special “The Year Without A Santa Claus” (a.k.a. “Scary Title, Kids, But Tell Mom and Dad That Hasbro and Mattel Are Still Here for You Even in a Worst-Case Scenario”). Showcasing the voice talent of Shirley Booth and Mickey Rooney (“Hey, kids, let’s put on a show – one without that nerve-wracking ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas...
I was working at a place a few years ago when, one day, the manager was yelling, sending someone home to change clothes. “You are dressed totally inappropriately. Go home now and change clothes,” Mr. Manager commanded to the female staff member. I hadn’t heard or seen someone getting sent home like that since junior high school. Yeah, junior high. I don’t know when or why this “middle school” stuff started. I come from a time when kids got sent home for skirts that were too short or hair that was too long. Such things were...
Christmas brings out the best and worst of our way of life. Crass consumerism runs rampant this time of year, as if owning things equates to happiness. If that’s the case, why are there so many miserable rich people? Sure, it’s the season of giving, but it’s also a season for getting. People buy things for their loved ones, and then a little extra for that special something for themselves. You know you do. I do too. Christmas used to be a religious holiday, but if that’s still the case for you, it’s because you’re go...
As I’m writing on the Sunday evening after Thanksgiving, most of us still have a bit of turkey left. No wonder a giblet or two of the news earlier today focused on a warning. Great Thanksgiving memories are worth holding on to, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture cautions that leftover meals shouldn’t be kept too long. At our house today, we still have a bit of turkey left, but we’re well past the “My, what a wonderful bird!” stage and have moved into the “Let’s slap a hunk...
I must admit the blessings I feel gratitude for are embarrassingly mundane this season of Thanksgiving. I mean, I am thankful for weekends, babies, walks in the rain, comfy sofas, random acts of kindness, the fact that I pay so little attention at work, I am permanently exempted from having to sign a non-disclosure agreement… I am thankful that the descendants of Abraham have been blessed to be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore, although they do fall short of the number of a...
Public safety will be on the agenda in the upcoming 60-day legislative session, but Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s attempts to arm twist lawmakers on the issue last year won’t serve her well as she enters the lame-duck portion of her eight years in office. Lujan Grisham is the second consecutive Democratic governor who likely envisioned resigning early for a much loftier position in the federal government. Bill Richardson had been tabbed for commerce secretary in the Obama administration, which would have made him the fir...
You know the old song lyrics “Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am?” I’ve been hearing that on a loop in my inner ear over the past two weeks since Donald Trump pulled off what some have called a surprise landslide but which, after the votes were counted, seems to be more of an anti-Kamala “boy are they blue” wave. In other words, I doubt that America has embraced Trump because he’s received a lower popular vote percentage than almost every prior winne...
Otto von Bismarck, known as the “Iron Chancellor,” is arguably Germany’s greatest statesman and was responsible for transforming a collection of small German states into the German Empire. Bismarck was its first chancellor and served in that position from 1862-1890. He once said, “God has a special providence for fools, drunkards and the United States of America.” If Bismarck could watch the evening news today, he’d be saying, “I told you so.” On Thanksgiving, families all ov...
Once again, I’ve been told, by someone who is very serious, that every human interaction is inherently political. Few approaches to life are more tragic than this one. If you believe every interaction between people involves a political element, you’re doing it wrong. Politics is cheating. It’s what you resort to when you can’t persuade others to cooperate. It’s the method of the mugger, not the person offering products or services. It’s the use of force, coercion, a...
Donald Trump won 46% of the Latino vote, according to some exit polls highlighting the complexity and nuance of this demographic, which pundits too often mischaracterize as monolithic, or worse, an aggrieved minority. Against most expectations, a significant portion of moderate to conservative Latinos turned out for Trump, delivering critical margins in states such as Arizona and Nevada and exposed cracks in the Midwest’s blue wall. What gives? Progressive critics claim racism, misogyny, self-hate and even trauma rooted in 5...
As I was working on my side hustle last week (the events calendar for this newspaper), I couldn’t help but notice now many wonderful music events are on the near horizon. It got me to thinking about our old friend Wayne Crume, who provided a bulk of the live music our family listened to for some memorable years. Wayne was born in Kenna and grew up in eastern New Mexico, but lived away from here from the early 1950s to about 1980 when he and his wife, Carol, came back home t...
“O most gracious God,” wrote the eloquent sufferer, “on this sickbed I feel under your correction, and I taste of humiliation, but let me taste of consolation, too.” John Donne, poet and priest, so wrote in one of his “devotions” in 1623 (which were published in January 1624 as Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions). I may be mistaken about the date, but I believe it was in 2000 when, in an article in Christianity Today, Philip Yancey shared a brief modernized excerpt from Donne...
It doesn’t matter how many terrible wars we’re mired in overseas. It doesn’t matter how many seemingly unsolvable social and political problems we face at home. At this time of year, we Americans have the usual Walmart store of blessings to be thankful for. An extra reason for the entire country to give thanks this week is the fact that the long-dreaded 2024 election is finally in our rearview mirror – and for half of us the outcome was a blessing. Thanksgiving is usually...
President-elect Donald Trump has hit the ground running, alerting the public to the sort of individuals he intends to appoint to his second presidential cabinet. He continues to advertise his colorful selections, rewarding his most ardent supporters, setting the tone for what his administration will attempt to accomplish, and demonstrating little if any concern for what anyone else thinks. Trump’s most controversial picks so far include former Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz to l...
Ah, Thanksgiving, my favorite holiday of them all. As its name implies, it’s a day to give thanks for our many blessings. And for me, it’s family time up in the mountains, in a lodge we rent out every year for a long holiday weekend reunion. This year, we’ll be grieving the loss of a loved one, celebrating the youngest among us, reconnecting as a family and going home exhausted from all the fun. And then there’s politics. I’ve already been warned not to be bringing it up, and I said I’ll try. I’m not a bit happy with Tr...
Somebody once told me if a memory, apropos of nothing, pops up in your head it means the brain cell that was holding it died and the memory is floating around in your head looking for a new cellular home. Sounds plausible to me. I figure that’s where a weird memory, weird words, came floating into my head the other Saturday morning. “Wadat in chew, Wadat in chew. Ishbilly oaten doaten, bobo ske deet in doten Wadat in chew…” These are some of the words to a hand clapping, foot stompin’, call and response song we scouts sa...
Gamblers who sit down at a casino blackjack table know the odds are slightly tilted against them, but expect the game to be fair. Gamblers who bet on horse races can’t have that same expectation. While other sports have been touched by gambling scandals (the Black Sox of 1919 and an NBA referee caught betting on games in 2007), in horse racing gambling scandals are endemic. It was announced this month that a horse trained by Phil D’Amato had tested positive for methamphetamine. Under the old rules, D’Amato would have been sus...
There is a great old movie, a black and white classic called “Advise and Consent.” I make sure to watch it at least once a year, not just because of the incredible cast that includes Charles Laughton, Henry Fonda, Gene Tierney, Walter Pidgeon and Franchot Tone, but because it is incredibly relevant six decades after it debuted in theaters. It’s about the tug and pull of politics in D.C. and a brutally honest examination of how the sausage is made. The title refers to the p...
Deportations only mean less money for Social Security I am writing to take issue with a specific comment attributed to Republican Party Chair Steve Pearce, printed in the Eastern New Mexico News on Nov. 13. In explaining why he believes Democrats’ concerns over losing Social Security is a “scam,” he states, “If Trump is able to secure the border and return people to their homeland, that will cut leakage out of Social Security.” In fact, the opposite is true. Many, if not most, undocumented workers are paid via a paycheck in t...
If you read or follow online blogs or podcasts you realize there are those who are aggregators of news from many sources, such as Real Clear Politics. Some provide in-depth examinations of complex issues, like the Duran. And some are original stories from onsite reporters. I consider interviewers like Tucker Carlson and Joe Rogan to fall into the “in-depth” category. I regularly peruse as many of these sites as I can absorb before I get MEGO (My Eyes Glaze Over). Also, I add n...
Should you try to make the world better or give up because it’s hard? Judging by how those trying to make things better are treated, most people want you to give up. When I say “better,” I mean safer for life, liberty, and property. Those who are too weak or confused to live in the real world, or who benefit from ruling you, would have a different definition. Most of them believe keeping you like a zoo animal is better for them, and they’ll work to make you imagine it’s be...
The 2024 election has set our country on a fresh course, one that embraces traditional American values: freedom, economic responsibility, and effective governance. For New Mexicans, these shifts on the national stage bring renewed hope for policies that support local communities, protect our resources, and prioritize sustainable growth. With new leaders in place, we have a real chance to address key issues that affect our state and secure a more prosperous future. Among the areas where national policies can have an immediate...
It may be the most beloved tree in Portales. It's certainly the most photographed. The majestic ginkgo tree that graces the front lawn of the administration building at Eastern New Mexico University's Portales campus has had a banner autumn. Beautiful in any season, every few years this tree pulls out all the stops and turns its corner of campus into a glowing canvas of gold. This was one of those years. It seems almost wrong to talk about it in past tense, but last weekend's...
I probably hadn’t seen Frank Capra’s “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” before launching my crusade 50 years ago, but the idea “lost causes are the only causes that are worth fighting for” would’ve certainly resonated with me. On Nov. 10, 1974, I opened the Sunday comics section of the Nashville “Tennessean” and discovered that “Dick Tracy” had been unceremoniously canceled mid-story. I was blindsided. The jut-jawed detective had “always” (well, since 1937, anyway) been part of the “Tennessean” Sunday funnies. Call me an obsessed...
