VOLUME FOUR I S S U E 8 02. 1 9 . 1 5 VOLUME FOUR ISSUE 8 02.19.15 Bob Gray's Phantom $12 Million | Tatum DeLeon Gets His Big Check | Colby on ISIS "I race the bike straight up fair and square" — Lance Armstrong $2,386,462.95 PLUS: 7 DAY NEW BRAUNFELS LIVE MUSIC GUIDE PLUS: 7 DAY NEW BRAUNFELS LIVE MUSIC GUIDE Planes, Lathes and Drawknives The Timber Artistry of Skip Mills Cover Story, Page 6 Planes, Lathes and Drawknives The Timber Artistry of Skip Mills Cover Story, Page 6 Chili CooK-Off Saturday, February 21 Cooking begins at 10am, judging at 3pm. Live music! 1263 Gruene Road • 830.625.1045 omalovesyou.com
Transcript
VOLUME FOURI S S U E 802 .19 .15
VOLUME FOURI S S U E 802 .19 .15
Bob Gray's Phantom $12 Million | Tatum DeLeon Gets His Big Check | Colby on ISIS
"I
race
th
e b
ike
stra
igh
t u
p f
air
and
sq
uar
e" —
Lan
ce A
rmst
rong
$2,3
86,4
62.9
5
P LUS : 7 DAY NEW BRAUNFELS L IVE MUS IC GU IDEP LUS : 7 DAY NEW BRAUNFELS L IVE MUS IC GU IDE
Planes , La the sand Drawkn ive s
The Timber A r t i s t r y o f Sk ip M i l l s Cover S to ry, Page 6
P lanes , La the sand Drawkn ive s
The Timber A r t i s t r y o f Sk ip M i l l s Cover S to ry, Page 6
Chili CooK-O�Saturday, February 21
Cooking begins at 10am, judging at 3pm. Live music!1263 Gruene Road • 830.625.1045
omalovesyou.com
TX C
ITIZ
EN11
11 N
. Wal
nut A
venu
e N
ew B
raun
fels,
TX
7813
083
0.35
8.24
93
All
orig
inal
con
tent
is c
opyr
ight
TX
Citi
zen.
TX
Citi
zen
is pu
blish
ed
ever
y Th
ursd
ay.
One
cop
y (p
er p
erso
n) o
f TX
Citi
zen
is av
aila
ble
free
of c
harg
e, w
ith th
e pr
ior w
ritte
n co
nsen
t of T
X C
itize
n re
quire
d to
rem
ove
mul
tiple
cop
ies
from
dist
ribut
ion
poin
ts.
Mul
tiple
cop
ies
and
back
issu
es a
re a
vaila
ble
at T
X C
itize
n of
fices
for $
2.50
eac
h.
STA
FF /
CO
NTA
CT
Publ
isher
/Ed
itor-i
n-C
hief
Mik
e Re
ynol
ds
Dire
ctor
of D
istrib
utio
n C
hase
Coc
hran
Art
Dire
ctor
Kay
la W
alla
ce
Edito
rial:
new
s@tx
citiz
en.c
omA
dver
tisin
g: s
ales
@tx
citiz
en.c
om
Dist
ribut
ion:
dis
tribu
tion@
txci
tizen
.com
2 AD SALES 830.358.2493
table of contents
8Citizen
SoundcheckThe ONLY guide of i ts kindfor the NB/SM Metroplex!
12
14Sports
Tatum claims handicappingglory and the BIG CHECK!
1st WordPennywise the Dancing
4-B President 3
Cover StorySkip turns wood into ar t.
Have some. 6Unfair Pie ChartWe prove our point using faulty logic and disingenuous methods. I t's the only reportage some people respect.
7
County BeatLet's get ready to only have one vehicle stickerrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!4
Last WordISIS - The gift that keeps on taking.
15
The County ’sMost WantedLook Daddy! Mommy’s in the paper!
Ask a MexicanGustavo of fends intwo languages.
ADVERTISE WITH US830.358.2493
2 AD SALES 830.358.2493
24 Beers on Tap - Full Bar Live Entertainment - Pool Tables
BLACK WHALE PUB367 Main Plaza 830-625-6605
Karaoke Thursday & Sunday
DJs Wednesday • Friday • Saturday
989 Loop 337 • 830.626.2253 • /SweetDreamsNB
118 Common St.830.387.4466
Stop by fora BIG, JUICYBURGER!
SP
UD RANCH
Open Mon-Sat 11 to 8Closed Sundays
1 9 7 S . S e g u i n Av e • 8 3 0 . 6 2 9 . 0 5 4 01 9 7 S . S e g u i n Av e • 8 3 0 . 6 2 9 . 0 5 4 0
Stay warm
with Ludwigs!Stay warm
with Ludwigs!
215 S. Seguin • Downtown NB • 830.620.9188
Join us forLunch!
w w w . o l i v e s i t a l i a n . c o m
Tuesday-Saturday11am - 2pm
/olivesitalianmarket
Single Origin Espresso and BrewsHandcrafted Blends • Whole Bean Coffee
2 AD SALES 830.358.24932 AD SALES 830.358.2493 TXCITIZEN.COM 3
Pennywise; Pound Foolish.First of all, I have to apologize
for misspelling 4-B President
Bob Gray’s name on last
week’s cover. I keep thinking it’s
spelled “Grey”, which of course it
is not. Sorry, Bob. Hey, since we’re talking
about Bob Gray’s name, how’s about some
Bob Gray name trivia?
Did you ever read the book “It” by
Stephen King? As it turns out, and this is
absolutely true, Pennywise the Dancing Clown
first identifies himself as “Mr Bob Gray”. The
idea that our local corporate welfare dealer
and someone whose nickname is Pennywise
created a good fifteen-seconds of mirth
around the office.
Anyway, for a guy whose entire gig is
dependant on shuffling money this way and
that, it seems he’s been playing a bit fast and
loose with the stats. See, a few weeks ago,
the Houston-owned Herald-Zeitung published
Bob’s self-satisfied “State of the 4-B” statement,
as they do whenever 4-B starts taking a
beating from the public, as it is now. Here’s
the fun part:
2015 Statement - “Since 2006, 4B has
invested over $36 million (or greater than
60 percent of our funds) in local quality of
life and public infrastructure projects.” – Bob
Gray, 2/5/15
Just for fun, we decided to
have a look at the statement they
published for him about 15
months back. Hmm. Almost a
cut-and-paste. Almost. Have a
look. See if you can spot the
critical difference between the
two, and what caught our attention:
2013 Statement - “Since 2006, we have
invested more than $34 million throughout New
Braunfels. A majority (more than 70 percent) of
these funds have been for quality-of-life and
infrastructure projects.” – Bob Gray, 11/24/13
In the 2015 piece, he discussed 4-B Quality
of Life expenditures as a percentage of 4-B
expenditures as a whole (over 60%), without
mentioning that whole. In the 2013 statement,
he referenced $34 million as the total of all
4-B disbursements, and expressed Quality of
Life projects as a percentage (70%) of that.
The statements look alike, but are based on
completely different premises.
Let’s break down the numbers as Bob
presented them:
2013 Update: According to Bob, 4-B
spent $23.8 million (70% of $34 million) from
2006 through 2013 on Quality of Life projects
around town.
Continued on page 5.
MIKEREYNOLDS
WITH
WORD1ST
215 S. Seguin • Downtown NB • 830.620.9188
Join us forLunch!
w w w . o l i v e s i t a l i a n . c o m
Tuesday-Saturday11am - 2pm
/olivesitalianmarket
Someone heard me. I spoke of warm weather and c�l brzes, and now it's cold and rainy. Shame on me and my big mouth. It's a g�d thing that delicious wine goes down we� in any
climate. After a�, variety is the spice of life, and Longshot Wine Bar and Tasting
R�m has the right selection of vintage wines to pair perfectly with every bit of our fickle Texas weather and to make sure we kp a healthy amount of variety in our otherwise drab routines. So stop by, and get an experience that is anything but drab at New Braunfels' newest wine bar which so ha�ens to be located in New Braunfels' oldest house. For my money, there is no cozier spot for a fine gla� of wine and a fine conversation to pair it with. - Josh McFarling
HOURS:Mon-�urs: 6-10pm
Fri: 6-11pm Sat: 5-11pmSun: 10am-4pm
(brunch: 10am-2pm)
133 Landa Strt(Across the street from the Landmark)
830.837.5667
We’ll Transform Your Home from this:
To this!
We’ll Transform Your Home from this:
To this!
Remodel and Construction!
Room Additions • New Homes • Total Remodels
"Our remodels don't look like remodels."
Call Jeff Henry at 830.627.2321 or [email protected] • 1111 N. Walnut Ave
Tim Curry as Mr Bob “Pennywise” Gray in the TV Version of “It”
4 AD SALES 830.358.2493
We penetrate 10,000 of these:
52 TIMEs a yearTHEY LIKE WHAT THEY SEE. MAKE SURE THEY SEE YOU.
ADVERTISE HERE 830.358.2493
USE PROMO CODE
TXCFOR UP TO $200IN BONUS CASH!
SIGN UP NOW. FANDUEL.COM
COUNTY BEATCOUNTY BEATWITH NICK ROGERSWITH NICK ROGERS
Two Steps, One Sticker Beginning March 1, there will be great changes the way Texans handle their vehicle inspections and registrations. The new rules come under the State’s Two Steps, One Sticker law.
While vehicle inspections are still required, there will no longer be a sticker for that inspection. Instead, the inspection will be necessary before the driver can renew a vehicle’s registration. The new registration sticker will signal that the vehicle is both inspected and registered.
“Starting March 1, you will only have one sticker,” said Comal County Tax Assessor and Collector Cathy Talcott. “After March 1, the inspections stations will not issue you a sticker, but will just give a receipt.
“Your inspection should go into the TxDMV computer system and we should be able to pull it up on our screens that you did have your inspection done,” she said. “In the worst case scenario, if it didn’t show up in the system, you will have that piece of paper that verifies you did have your inspection done and we will then issue your registration. We will issue you only one sticker that will cover both inspection and registration.”
Previously, the inspection station collected both the inspector’s fee and the state fee. Under the new program, the driver will only pay the inspector’s fee for the inspection, which is $7. The state fees will then be assessed on top of the registration fee. The State’s fees are $7.50 for a one-year inspection and $16.75 for two years.
“When you come in for your registration renewal, it will appear that the price has gone up, but that is only because the State fee has been moved by the Legislature over to the Tax Office,” Talcott said.
Talcott said her office is prepared for people who will be angry because it will appear that the County had raised the registration fees. The higher registration price is not a reflection of higher fees, however, but a Legislature mandate that inspection fees be split.
Those whose inspections fall before their registration date should still get their vehicles inspected on their due date. The receipt given by the inspection station will be proof of that inspection until the driver renews the vehicle’s registration. In 2016, the inspection due date will be the same as the registration date. Drivers
will have to get their inspections done within 90 days before the registration comes due.
If, however, the inspection falls after the registration date, drivers will get a pass until next year.
“If your registration falls in April but your inspection date falls in June, when you come in and get your registration, the State database should show that you currently have an inspection,” said Anissa Correll, the Tax Office’s motor vehicle supervisor. “So you won’t be required to get an inspection this year, but you will be required to get one within 90 days of your next vehicle registration. You’re in a grace period until the next year.”
“The people it affects the most this year are those whose registration and inspection both fall in March,” she said. “They will have to pass their inspection before they get their registration.”
“From March 1, 2015 through February 29, 2016, you may renew your registration if your vehicle has a current, passing inspection,” according to the State’s twostepsonesticker.com website. “However, if your inspection and registration stickers both expire in the same month, your vehicle will need to pass inspection prior to registration renewal.
“Starting March 1, 2016, you will have a convenient 90-day window to complete both your inspection and registration,” the website states. “Remember, your registration is valid through the last day of the registration expiration month.”
Both Calcott and Correll strongly advise that drivers keep their inspection receipts in their vehicles at all times.
“We should be able to see your inspection in the database, much like we can with insurance for the most part, but keep that inspection receipt in your vehicle just in case we need to see it,” Correll said.
Correll noted that one benefit to the new system is that if a driver loses the inspection receipt, they don’t have to just go to the station where they received the inspection to get a replacement.
“If you lose your receipt, you should be able to go to any inspection station and get your receipt replaced,” she said. “But whether they will charge you or not, I’m not sure. But you don’t have to go to your inspection station.”
4 AD SALES 830.358.2493 TXCITIZEN.COM 5
Continued from page 3.
2015 Update: Also according to Bob, 4-B spent OVER $36 million on local Quality of Life projects from 2006 through 2014.
If we’re to take Bob Gray at his word, 4-B has spent over $12.2 million on local Quality of Life projects in 2014 alone.
Now look, we’re not going to call Bob Gray a sloppy bookkeeper or other terrible things like “liar” or “incompetent”. Yet. After all, he provided a list of 4-B Quality of Life projects to back up his claim. Let’s have a look and see if they add up to 2014’s $12 million:
“Fischer Park, Landa Park, Brauntex Theatre, Circle Arts Theatre, Landa Street Bridge Lighting, FM 306 overpasses, the CTTC expansion, Landa Park Golf Course, the new Dog Park, the Downtown Restroom project.” – Bob Gray, 2/5/15
Oh. It seems he didn’t include the numbers that go with those projects. Or the dates. That’s ok, we have resources. Here’s how those projects look with more complete information:
Fischer Park: $5.07 M (2012)
Landa Park: (Up to) $1.5 M (2012)
Brauntex Theatre: $450,000 (2012)
Circle Arts Theatre: $50,000 (2012)
Landa Street Bridge Lighting: $220,000 (2014)
FM 306 overpasses: $3M (2012)
CTTC expansion: $320,000 (2014)
Landa Park Golf Course: $750,000 (2007)
Dog Park: $100,000 (2014)
Downtown Restroom Project: $242,000 (2014) Note: This isn’t an “investment” per se – it’s a loan. Wouldn’t want to waste any corporate welfare monies on something tourists might use.
First of all, this list references projects going back to 2007, totaling $11.7 million. That’s fine, but we’re interested in the $12.2 million he says they spent in 2014. The 2014 projects from that list only add up to $820,000. Which is way less than $12.2 million.
Bob’s defense here will be that while the projects were approved as far back as 2007, that the money wasn’t spent until 2014. We’ll accept that, but that means that the 2013 numbers were off by $11.7 million. He’s
counting the money twice, doubling 4-B’s credit for their generosity.
He’s in charge of millions of dollars of tax money but the simplest math isn’t kept straight. To be fair, it never had to be kept straight in the past, because local media never checked the numbers. We’re laying out the challenge right now: Bob, write up your response and explain this disparity. We’ll print it verbatim. You owe everyone in town an explanation.
So when you, dear reader, hear the above referenced defense on KGNB, or in the HZ, remember to dismiss it immediately. This guy is spinning us. Which is a nice way of saying the really awful things we mean.
Since we’re talking 4-B, we got this letter:“Mr. Reynolds, Thank you for shining a bright light on something that has gotten way out of hand. I’ve never seen a city hand over so much authority and money to an entity not responsible to the voters. This has been going on for years and needs to be brought to a halt.
“You have to hand it to Mr. Meek. The power he has gathered to himself and the minions that do his bidding is extraordinary but not good for New Braunfels. All these awards, banquets, newsletters, radio programs – an orgy of self congratulation. Reminds me of Hollywood and all the many award shows on TV. But how are we doing? I never hear any comparison to San Marcos or even Sequin both of which have landed major, tax paying entities. Gee, they must have really big 4-B boards.”
<Snicker>
\m/
Mike ReynoldsPublisher/Editor-in-Chief
presents the Annual
Chili CooK-O�Saturday, February 21
Cooking begins at 10am, judging at 3pm. Live music!
THE MONTY "GUITAR" TYLER BAND @ 1 THE MIGHTY ORQ @ 6
All-Access Tasting Passes are Just $5!
All proceeds benefit the Keith Pevoto Fight Fund.
1263 Gruene Road • 830.625.1045omalovesyou.com
Sponsered bySponsered by
6 AD SALES 830.358.2493 TXCITIZEN.COM 7
I wish that I possessed woodworking skills.I have many friends who have the ability
to make things with the fibery substance, and they all seem so happy, locked away in their shops sanding, sawing, hammering, clamping and whatnot.
Unfortunately, I am completely inept in such things. If the Greeks had put me in charge of building their sinister gift for the Trojans, it would have come out looking less like a horse and more like a depressingly mutated Thing, the kind of creature that would prompt even the most dedicated pacifist into killing it to put the Thing out of its woeful misery. Chances are, the Trojans would have rejected the nasty-looking present and, after it sadly pulled away, the Thing would have collapsed, killing the Grecians’ best soldiers.
Homer’s “Iliad” would certainly have had a much different ending and the old saying would be, “the Greek’s can’t build anything decent.”
Skip Mills can build things that are decent, so his horse would have been awesome. Skip makes furniture and other woody pieces through his company, Sky Pilot Wood Works.
What I like most about Skip’s pieces, is that the tree is still there. The problem with many things built of wood, is they have been processed to the point that you only recognize the piece as wood because that’s what you were told it was made of.
“I want to express the totality of the tree, preserve the integrity of the tree,” Skip said. “Of course, it has to have some functionality because no one wants a piece that doesn’t do anything.”
Skip keeps the natural grain of the wood, its curvature, its uniqueness. If he has a particular log that he likes, he will make that part of the sculpture. This gives the effect of a tree that has grown into table, a desk or a wine rack. His furniture looks as if it would be used by the Green Man in his deep forest abode.
“I like to stay authentic to wood, which is why I always try to keep its natural curves in there,” he said. “That’s why I don’t like to use stains, either, because I like the flow of the wood itself.”
Because of his dedication to keeping the tree’s presence, Skip’s pieces are entirely unique. He doesn’t like to see any part of the tree go to waste. What comes out his shop is truly artful.
“You get some really weird-looking stuff on the exterior of the wood, stuff with real character, so I want to preserve that,” he said.
Carol Johnson sells Skip’s creations at her downtown store, Johnson Furniture, and is a big believer in what he is accomplishing.
“His pieces are art, but art you can use,” she said. “You are getting something that is completely one of a kind. There will never be another one like it.”
One of his tables for sale at Johnson’s Furniture is a perfect example of Skip’s theory put into praxis. The top of the table is made from the crotch of the tree (go ahead, get it out of your system, Beavis), which is where the trunk of the tree begins to bifurcate. The grain from the crotch is actually a network of grains
that move in several directions. In a sense, you can see the entirety of the tree’s existence in that one table. The uniqueness of the graining and the natural curvature of the tree mean that the table is entirely a piece unto itself.
“(The crotch of the tree) has an unbelievable grain, but it’s all over the place,” Skip said. “So you can’t make a square table with it because you have to let the grain dictate the design.”
After he retired from the Air Force, the former pilot and engineer worked for
Texas A&M, leading a research group that studied alternative energy and water conservation. This desire at preservation is reflected in his furniture.
“Most of my stuff is urban harvested,” he said. “In other words, it’s from trees that fall down in a storm, or are cut down for construction or roadwork. This way, I get to use an existing resource that’s not going to be used for anything else, and use it for something functional. And, people like to know where the tree came from and why it was cut down.”
Skip uses a lot mesquite, an unforgiving and difficult wood to use. But he does so
phenomenally well, turning what he calls “a big weed” into something snazzy yet beautiful.
“Probably the hardest part is when you have an idea, is to get the wood to agree with that idea,” Skip said. “What I am making has to conform to the wood.” He notes that this means that what was supposed to be a table may end up becoming something else.
One of Skip’s biggest fans is Jasper McDonald, who owns Longshot Wine Bar and Tasting Room on Landa Street. Jasper saw a wine rack in Johnson Furniture that Skip had made and said he had to have it. The rack matched the wine shop’s décor so well, Jasper called Skip in to build more.
“I had planned on ordering some wine racks from California, but they wouldn’t have worked here, so I called Skip and told him what I wanted,” Jasper said. “He came in and I sketched what I wanted, and he built it.”
The result is rather amazing. Longshot is in a house that was built in 1842. Skip, the engineer, was able to take into consideration the old building’s quirks and structure, and put together racks that look as if they had always been part of the house. As well, the bar he made for the tasting room is a wonderful piece that also accentuates Skip’s carving ability.
Any buyer can guarantee that anything they buy from Sky Pilot will be made by hand, signed and numbered.
“It’s all handmade and not manufactured,” Johnson said. “We live in such a manufactured world and it’s great that he uses something that was part of nature, and turns into something functional.”
Besides Johnson Furniture and Longshot, you can also see Skip’s work on this website skypilotwoodworks.com. You can call him at 210-887-4197, or email [email protected], should you crave some fine, timber-based art.
Jasper McDonald, Proudly Manning the Longshot Bar
By Nick Rogers
Skip Mills’Timber Art
Every Piece is Signed and NumberedThe Aforementioned Winerack
TXCITIZEN.COM 7
Get a Jumpstart on Spring!Get a Jumpstart on Spring!
It’s time to clean off your roof, spruce up the flowerbeds, mulch, and test your irrigation systems!
Now’s the time to weed, compost and aerate your lawn so you can enjoy
thick green turf this season.
Call us today for a free estimate on maintaining your lawn for the season, or for a one-time cleanup
to get you ready for spring!
83O.6O9.7552Whitley Reddell's Total Landscape Maintenance
1390 McQueeney Rd, New Braunfels830-625-0045 or wateringholesaloon.comLike us on FB Watering Hole Saloon & Dancehall
Est. 1986
Dust off your dancing shoes and head over to NB’s largest dance floor.
Karaoke EveryThursday @ 8:30pm
FREE Country SwingDance LessonsEvery Friday @ 7pm
in February!
DJ Dance EverySaturday @ 9pm
Tues, Feb 24, 8:30-11:30Empty-Handed Vagabonds
9103 FM 1102“San Braunfels” (Hunter, TX)
512.667.7510happycowhuntertx.com
HAPPY COWB A R & G R I L L
ThursdayCow-E-Oke
FridayAnthony Wright Band
SaturdayTrees Marie opens for
Armadillo Road
TuesdayOpen Mic
WednesdayComedy at the Cow
193 W. SAN ANTONIO STWWW.THEPHOENIXSALOON.COM
SATURDAY,FEB 21 at 9PMwith special guests
The Groovehounds
$5 cover at the door
Chamber ofCommerce
RoadMaterials
2014 Funds Dedicated to Road Materials vs Chamber of Commerce
Is there City Hall �nancial data you’d like to see unfairly graphed?Send your suggestions to [email protected].
Every week, we’ll present local government data in a patently unfair format, comparing apples to oranges, as it were, in order to arbitrarily make a point. This week: 2014 taxpayer funds spent on road materials vs those disbursed to the Greater New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce.
If those same numbers were expressed as wurst, Road Materials would get four and two-thirds sausages to every fourteen snapped up by the Chamber of Commerce. Tasty!
be his fan on Facebook, follow him on Twitter @gustavoarellano or follow him
on Instagram @gustavo_arellano!
ASK A MEXICAN!
!
MOST WANTED
$300REWARD
COMAL COUNTY ’S
MEDELLIN, JESSE RODRIGUEZMale • 5’07” • 200 lbsDOB: 01/01/1976CHARGE: Possession of a controlled substance pg 1 under 1 gram and theft of property under $1500 with 2 or more previous convictions
CLOUGH,RONNIE DEANMale • 5’06” • 182 lbsDOB: 12/31/1960CHARGE: Failure to appear for aggravated assault with deadly weapon and bail jumping/ fail to appear felony
GUERRERO,JAIMEMale • 5’07” • 130 lbsDOB: 10/04/1971CHARGE: Failure to appear- driving while intoxicated 3rd or more
HUBBARD, CHRISTOPHER JERRODMale • 6’01” • 230 lbsDOB: 11/20/1977CHARGE: Two counts of possession with intent to deliver
ALEMAN,ARTURO JRMale • 5’05” • 180 lbsDOB: 01/02/1954CHARGE: Motion to revoke probation- driving while intoxicated 3rd or more
MARTINEZ,MANUEL
Male • 5’09” • 198 lbsDOB: 03/09/1973
CHARGE: Failure to appear- driving while
intoxicated 3rd or more
ROGERS,JENNIFER LEE
Female • 5’05” • 110 lbs
DOB: 03/27/1967
CHARGE: Failure to
appear- possession of
a controlled substance
WALLACE,KIMBERLIE
LOFTUSFemale • 5’09” • 155 lbs
DOB: 07/11/1975CHARGE: Failure to
appear- possession of a controlled substance
WOODS,MICHAEL
Male • 6’01” • 180 lbsDOB: 01/26/1965
CHARGE: Possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance
TURNER,AARON LEE
Male • 5’08” • 130 lbsDOB: 07/20/1966
CHARGE: Failure to appear- forgery
financial instrument
The names listed have been released in accordance with the Texas Public Information Act. This is a true and accurate account as of Monday, February 2, 2015 at 10:37 am and may not be current by the time it is read. Do not try to apprehend anyone. These are listings of criminal warrants with the Comal County Sheriff ’s Office and are not indicative of guilt or innocence. Officers are to verify the status of each warrant prior to making an arrest. Any person is innocent of wrongdoing unless proven guilty in a court of law.
FOR INFORMATION LEADING TO THE ARREST OF COMAL COUNTY’S MOST WANTED. Callers will remain anonymous. 830.620.3400 - 24-Hour830.620.3411 - Mon-Fri 8am to 5pm
BAIER,ADAM SAMUELMale • 5’06” • 150 lbsDOB: 12/04/1971CHARGE: Violation of conditions of probation- possession of a controlled substance
TXCITIZEN.COM 13
1456 sq ft. Three Bedroom, Two Bath. Separate Kitchen and Dining Room.
Super Energy Ef�cient. Best Lot in Family-Friendly Comal Farms.Ready for Move-in!
Call for TourChuck Woods: 830-620-7653
SPANKIN’ New Home For Sale!
Stop Renting! Owner Financing Available
Executive Of�ce Space Available!
Starting at $350/mo.includes utilities,
use of reception area& conference rooms!
N. Walnut Ave
Howard St.
Landa St.Wood Rd.
Call or stop by!830-620-7653
1111 N Walnut Ave
GreentreeApartments
Come see us at 5000 Old Hwy 81 in New Braunfels
830-632-5627
1 Bedroom apartment only $670!
That’s right, we pay your utilities!
35
337
337
46
35
35
Old
Hwy 81 Austin >
< San Antonio
New
Braunfels
Bring in this ad & receive a FREE application fee!
14 TX CITIZEN 14 AD SALES 830.358.2493 TXCITIZEN.COM 15
Last WordWith Kelly Colby
After a hard-fought NFL season, Tatum DeLeon of Team Watering Hole finally broke his month-long Linecrushers! tie with Haley Coleman of the Prickly Pear in the
final seconds of the Superbowl, and took home the Big Check worth $500! Our annual handicapping contest starts again in September, and Tatum tells us he's
already ready already. Don't miss your chance to snag the 2015 cash!
USE PROMO CODE
TXCFOR UP TO $200IN BONUS CASH!
SIGN UP NOW.FANDUEL.COM
Former WWE Superstar Jinder Mahal VS King OsoDoors Open at 4:30 • Bell Time 5pm • Adults: $8 • Kids: $5
Autograph SessionFollowing the Show!
Tickets go on sale February 15 at Alpha Crossfit
1153 N. Academy Ave
Brazenly Sponsored by
TXCITIZEN.COM 15
ISIS, again.It seems like a recurring theme for me is how, as a libertarian, I can side with conservatives, and/or Republicans, as opposed to liberals, and/or Democrats. I’ve written several columns on the subject already, but most of them rely on economic freedom issues. Liberals (I suspect you can fill in the and/or bit for yourselves) are much less likely than conservatives to take the correct side in any debate over issues of economic freedom, and without economic freedom, no real freedom is possible. Today, I find myself taking a conservative position for a different reason, though, or perhaps today’s reason is common to all my arguments.
Are liberals stupid? I know this seems harsh, but even as a
libertarian, I find myself wondering if it might be time to do something about ISIS. It’s worth noting that like most libertarians, I’m usually reluctant to involve our military in world affairs. In most cases, I would prefer that military options were reserved for actual wars, and the “war on terror” doesn’t really count in my mind. But I think I’d be willing to make an exception for ISIS.
It was bad enough when ISIS was just kidnapping our journalists and executing them for consumption on the Internet. That alone should be enough to earn you a drone strike in my opinion, but I wouldn’t really do any more than add these people to a list of people I would like to see blown up given the opportunity. (This is exactly the sort of thing I am comfortable with the CIA doing and not telling me about by the way.) Now, though, a geopolitical map showing ISIS’s influence is beginning to look very much like a game of Risk going badly. At some point, this becomes a matter of national security for the United States, but it doesn’t look like liberals are going to recognize that until ISIS is collecting 20 extra armies a turn. That makes me more than a little nervous.
President Obama began by calling ISIS a “J.V. team.” That turns out to have been about as wrong-headed as possible. The “J.V. team” in question proceeded to trounce every obstacle in their way. In the process, ISIS has kidnapped, raped and pillaged their way across Syria and Iraq; expanded their influence around the world; and created a very varsity-like recruiting drive.
Obama could be forgiven for making this mistake; at the outset, ISIS really wasn’t much of a threat. But like many problems, left unattended, they festered and became deadly. At this point, ISIS is positively gangrenous. Obama has compounded his error by not recognizing it and correcting it. He still refuses to link ISIS to extremist Islam, I can only assume, in hopes of preventing a retaliatory backlash against Muslims in this country (something I doubt would happen in any case). In doing so, he gives cover to not only ISIS but Islamic extremists everywhere because he is not forcing the larger Muslim community to address the problem and help with it. And, Obama’s current request to Congress for military action versus ISIS is so utterly insufficient to the task of defeating them that should Congress sign it, it might actually insure that the administration is horribly hamstrung in dealing with the threat. Either Obama is clueless or he’s deluded. I haven’t decided which yet, and I’m not sure it matters.
All the while, ISIS has continued to increase its brutality. Quiet genocide and the occasional Daniel Pearl style execution is no longer enough for ISIS. They upped the ante when they immolated a captured Jordanian pilot. Most recently, ISIS militants based in Libya kidnapped 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians and executed them by beheading en masse.
Like many of their atrocities, ISIS has publicized these executions on the Internet, complete with horrifying audio. Doing so has attracted a tremendous number of followers (there’s apparently a good number of nuts out there), and inspired lone wolf attacks in a number of otherwise unaffected countries. Things are really starting to get out of hand.
The latest response from the administration comes from Marie Harf of the State Department. Harf believes that the underlying problem is unemployment in the Middle East. Afterward, Harf said, “we cannot win this war by killing them [ISIS], we cannot kill our way out of this war.” That is an impressive level of delusion right there. Based on that assessment, I expect that the administration will be calling for “midnight basketball” courts to be built all over the Middle East.
Don’t get me wrong, I realize that I can find more than a few Republicans who haven’t got the spine to fight ISIS. Most of them I wouldn’t call conservative, though, and it’s not hard to
find conservatives like Ben Carson who are willing to completely throw out the rules of war when it comes to ISIS. He suggested as much in a recent interview. I’m relatively certain that ISIS can still be defeated without committing substantial war crimes, but I admire Carson’s pluck, and he can depend on my support if it comes to that.
The administration has been careful to say that ISIS doesn’t represent an “existential” threat. This, I believe, is the source of the problem. Liberals always seem to believe that problems can be traced back to social ills that they can solve with social policy. They couldn’t be more wrong. ISIS is, in fact, an existential threat, or at least they will be if nothing is done. ISIS is building a Middle Eastern caliphate with surprising speed, and ISIS’s brutality is like almost nothing we’ve seen before.
Strangely, Glenn Beck predicted the rise of a far-reaching Middle Eastern caliphate years ago, and he has more recently been comparing ISIS to the Nazis of World War II. He was right about the former, and the latter is looking more correct day by day. Beck’s persona has always been over-the-top, but in a crazy world, it’s quite possible for a crazy man to be right. Beck’s latest assessment is that we are entering the early stages of a third world war. That sounds crazy too, but not as crazy as it did a week ago or a month before that, and I suspect it will sound even less crazy in a month or two more. I sincerely hope that Beck’s winning streak on predictions ends soon.
This is just one more area where I am more likely to agree with conservatives than liberals. It’s one thing to be reluctant to turn to war; that’s a good thing. War should always be a last resort. But at some point one should drop the activism on pacifism and protect oneself. We’ve reached that point and exceeded it with ISIS. These guys have gone out of their way to show that they are indeed a threat. They want us to take them seriously, and they are willing to die for their cause. It’s far past time we do the first and help them out with the second. Protecting oneself from bloodthirsty madmen really shouldn’t be a conservative principle, but it appears to be at the moment, just one more reason why this libertarian finds himself siding with conservatives.
Last WordWith Kelly Colby
You can read more from Kelly Colby at yourfirstshrug.blogspot.com.
367 Main Plaza830-625-6605
Local Brews Belgian Beers
Imports24 Beers on Tap
Full BarLive Entertainment
30+ TVs
100%SMOKE-FREE100%SMOKE-FREE
BEST OF THE
WURST 2014winner!
Best Bloody Mary!
You'reOverpaying
forInsuranceCall Now and Save!
Auto - Home - BusinessBonnie Rickaway - Agent
830-822-2778www.brauntexinsurance.com
$10 Offyour swimsuit purchase!
$10 Offyour swimsuit purchase!
173 S. Seguin St • 830.214.0728
Half-Off One Entreewith purchase of another entree and two drinks.
One coupon per table. Cannot be combined with any other offer. Expires 02/28/15
Huge Play Area for the Kids • Live Music Thursday-SundayHappy Hour Monday-Friday 3:00-6:30pm
830.629.0777 • 1724 Hunter Road, New BraunfelsTEX-MEX COCINA Y CANTINA
BEST OF THE
WURST 2014winner!
Best Signature Cocktail “Dos Rita”(830) 822-6315
comalspringsca.com
A $30 Value. New Patients Only. Cannot Be Combined
BRING IN THIS AD AND YOUR FIRST TREATMENT IS
With Other Offers. Offer Expires February 28, 2015
243 N. Union Ave830-629-2662 Like us on
New and Vintage Vinyland Turntables
Classic Rock – Alternative – PunkReggae - Funk – Soul – Country
B U Y • S E L L • T R A D E
210.421.2344scottpwalkerphotographer.com
P H O T O G R A P H E R
New, 2015 prints debuton Saturday, February 21,
at Oma Gruene's Annual Chili Cook-Off!
New, 2015 prints debuton Saturday, February 21,
at Oma Gruene's Annual Chili Cook-Off!
910 Gruene Rd. #3 830.387.4378
grueneroadpharmacy.com
/GrueneRoadPharmacy
We are proud to offer:Prescription Services, Compounding,
OTC Medication & Durable Medical EquipmentYou pay the same copay and get more value!
"Bringing personalized service back to pharmacy."
46
337
E COMMON S
THANZ RD
GRUENE RD
DLeeEdwardsRealty.com • 1111 N. Walnut Ave. New Braunfels, TX 78130Call our AWARD WINNING TEAM! 830.620.7653
