tx citizen 2.5.15

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

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VOLUME FOUR

I S S U E S IX

02.05.15

VOLUME FOUR

I S S U E S IX

02.05.15

More Fun wi th Chapter 38 0 | S c i ento l ogy Update | Co l by on V ac c i nes

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for P&Z(But they're good enough for us.)

SEASON RESULTS: PAGE 14!

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8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

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table of contents

8Citizen

SoundcheckThe ONLY guide of i ts kindfor the NB/SM Metroplex!

4County BeatLocals gear up for the usualfight over development, citethe requisite impendingenvironmental terrors.

12

14Line Crushers

Our NFL handicappingcontest is back for 2014!

1st WordChapter 380 fal lout, cranky

people complain about therock and rol l music, and

we fina ll y got ou rse lv es aLinecrushers! winner.

3

Due ProcessUpdates on all manner of cases

stalled over at the courthouse. 6MegatorialDark skies at night.Or not.

7

Last Word

On vaccinationsand government.15

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TXCITIZEN.COM 3

Chapter 380 GrabsPublic’s Attention

Last week’s column on City Staff’sproposal to formalize a Chapter

380 program to augment the

role of the 4-B Board generated

quite of bit of interest. This letter

from Lance Frierson was the best of

the bunch that we received. Check it:

It is really time for the people of New

Braunfels to wake up and make their voices

heard. This 380 corporate welfare thing is

absurd along with the 4B board.1. It is corporate welfare plain and

simple period.

2 It is wealth redistribution. Taking taxpayer

money and then giving to the 1%’ers is wealth

redistribution plain and simple.

3. It is actually time for the 4B board to be

done away with. There is no reason to be giving

this organization of elitists 25% of the money from

sales tax rebates (It’s actually 33% - Editor) from

the state back to the city. This is taxpayer money.This is money that is supposed to go towards

lowering the amount of property tax that the city

collects from the people. And now the elitists of

the city want even more through this 380 crap?

4. History, learn from it. Where has the 4B

board money gone?: Scooter Store: how much

money was given to them? Were the people in

charge there ever prosecuted? Are the former

owners held accountable or are they hiding

behind LLC’s, corporate bankruptcy laws andlawyers? Are they living in squalor or are they

living in a mega mansion compound? Legal fees

charged with this fiasco. How much? Did all the

legal fees involved in this fiasco come from 4B

money? Shouldn’t the 4B board pay all these

legal fees instead of the money coming from the

coffers of the city? History, learn from it.

Walmart, Buc-ees, HEB, etc. Come on Man;

you got to be kidding; let’s not forget the new

parking lot for the NB Smokehouse warehouse.5. Free enterprise: 4B and 380 is NOT free

enterprise. It is giving an unfair advantage to

the businesses that get the welfare boost. Think

about it. Can the little guy with the mom and

pop service station and quick stop compete

with places like Buc-ees? Arlan’s came into town

without the benefit of 4B money that HEB got.

Free enterprise can work.

6. IBEX Global and CBE: 4B money went

to both of these corporate welfare companies.IBEX is a media call center company that got

money along with their landlord (San Antonio

corporation) and they just HAD to

have a backup electrical generator

for their building. CBE is a

debt collection company from

Iowa and they along with their

landlord just had to have a

backup electrical generator also

(birds of a feather). So now you have

local corporations (landlords) working

hand in hand with out of state corporations to

get taxpayer funded infrastructure improvements

to their buildings. Yes, it is perfectly legal under

4B guidelines and yes the city legally retains

ownership of the generators but does anyone

really think these generators will ever be sold or

leave these buildings once the current tenants

leave? If you do I have two bridges in town

I would like to sell you. Think about this: Since

infrastructure improvements are allowed under 4B

guidelines, probably the next thing to happen is

for some corporation to build a building with no

plumbing or electrical and then go before the 4B

board and ask for that. Hated to throw that one

out there and give them the idea, but there it is.

7. 4B likes to “cook the numbers”. I along

with another citizen went to the 4B board

special meeting for the CBE fiasco. One

member presented a slide presentation listing

the supposed benefits to the city for the CBE

approval. One was property tax on the building.

In other words approve this and the city gets

property tax from the landlords. It was pointed

out by the other gentleman that property taxes

ARE PAID regardless if the building is rented or

not. Cooking the numbers plain and simple.

8. Transparency of 4B: Try finding out

information from the city’s website about 4B

such as members name and contact information,

detailed information to be presented at 4B

meetings, etc. If it’s there I for one could not find

it prior to the CBE special meeting.

Bottom line people and taxpayers of New

Braunfels: I don’t know what it would take to

get rid of the 4B board, whether just a vote by

council or special election, but it needs to be

done along with the snuffing out of this 380

corporation crap. This is one of the reasons

my wife and I moved out of New Braunfels.

The people of New Braunfels are some of the

greatest people I have had the pleasure to meet

and deserve better. Please do not let the elitists of

the city ruin it for you.

Lance Frierson

Continued on page 5.

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Cranes Mill Water TreatmentPlan Meets OppositionA proposed Comal County subdivision has met

resistance from neighboring residents. Those livingon South Cranes Mill Road are particularly irked

by the water treatment plans for the subdivision.

Those adjoining the proposed

development were notified a couple of

weeks ago of the plant via a letter from the

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

However, the permit for the water treatment

system was filed with TCEQ on November 6.

“Let’s not be politically correct, here,

and call it what it actually is: treated sewagewater,” said Ed Harris, who is spearheading

the protest for the Friends of Dry Comal Creek.

The TCEQ letter to neighbors abutting the

proposed subdivision notified that the Randolph

Todd Company, out of Austin, “has applied

to the Texas Commission on Environmental

Quality for proposed Texas Pollutant Discharge

Elimination System to authorize the discharge

of treated wastewater at a volume not to exceed

a daily average flow of 390,000 gallons per

day. The discharge route is from the plant site

to Dry Comal Creek.”

The Commission also notified residents

that they can view the application at Bulverde

Spring Branch Public Library. Those interested

can also make a copy of the 120-page permit

application from the library, at their own cost.

One of the primary concerns for

Harris and his colleagues is that the treatedwastewater will be pumped over an Edward’s

Aquifer recharge zone.

“They’re pulling a fast one,” he said,

referring to Randolph Todd Co. “The Texas

Commission on Environmental Quality, per

their regulations, has a special Edwards

Aquifer permitting that says what you can and

can’t do over the recharge zone.

“The way they’re skirting this is to build

the treatment plant down Dry Comal Creek,next to my property,” Harris said. “That’s

where they’ll put the pump stations. They

will then pump that treated sewage water up

past the Edwards recharge zone and then

discharge it there because you can’t discharge

directly in a recharge zone. But what goes up

must come down. Therefore, it’s going to come

back through the recharge zone.”

According to Harris, the treatment

process isn’t actually a treatment facility, but a

bigger version of the septic system he uses on

his own property.

“It’s treated sewage water, but it’s not

treated all that well because it’s nothing more

than the same Aerobic system that I use in my

own backyard,” he said. “But (Randolph Todd

Co.) is going to link four of them together and

put a lift gate on one side and, on the other

side, it’s chlorinated.”

Harris said that his Aerobic system, as

well as others in Comal County, treats the

wastewater and displaces it over the property

via sprinklers. “But what they are talking about

doing here is to pump the untreated water

down to the treatment system, then pump

that treated sewage water back up through a4-inch pipe into the creek,” he said.

Another concern for the group is the

potential for flooding. While the creek is dry, it

does not remain so during heavy rains.

“When it rains, I can have class 4 to 5

rapids through my property,” Harris said. “I

have to take my fences up once every year

when we have heavy rains.”

After being dumped into the Dry Comal

Creek, the treated wastewater will run downthe creek and, according to Harris, empty into

the Comal River at the Wurstfest grounds.

Last week, Harris spoke to County

Commissioners with members of Friends of

Dry Comal Creek behind him.

In an email this week to Commissioners,

Harris said that the Friends of Dry Comal Creek

are not against development, per se. “We are

against uncontrolled development (1,500

Homes on 735 acres and Sewage Treatment

Plant) with no environmental oversight because

Comal County, unlike the cities within its

boundaries, does not engage in these matters.”

Harris said he wants Commissioners to

recognize there is a serious problem with

the subdivision and its proposed water

treatment system.

“There is something they can do,” he

said. “They can come out and say, ‘We’renot for this.’ They should step forward and

request that an environmental study be done,”

which Harris noted is not required prior to a

permit application.

However, Comal County Judge Sherman

Krause said Commissioners can’t possibly

comment yet because the County “has not

received any application for a subdivision

(plat), and as of last week, the property has

not even been sold.”The group maintains a Facebook page,

Friends of Dry Comal Creek.

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TXCITIZEN.COM 5

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Continued from page 3.

Truer words than these are rarely spoken,

and bear repeating: “Since infrastructure

improvements are allowed under 4B guidelines,

probably the next thing to happen is for some

corporation to build a building with no plumbing

or electrical and then go before the 4B board

and ask for that.” Mr Frierson is right about what it would

take to dissolve 4-B. Every time 4-B consultant

Michael Meek answers a question about 4-B,

he makes sure to place the responsibility for

the situation on the shoulders of the electorate,

with a reminder that 4-B exists because voters

approved it. Of course, what they approved was

sold to them as a program heavy on road and

drainage work, which got top billing. Here’s the

text from the Houston-Owned Herald-Zeitung

back in 1995. This is the information the public-

at-large was basing their vote on. Look:

“First, the May 1995 special city election

contained provisions setting aside 4B funds for

‘street and drainage projects’ and for ‘land,

buildings, and equipment for library/learning

centers, parks/golf course, public safety, municipal

buildings, convention center, and other related

facilities, including the maintenance and operating

costs of any such projects mentioned above.’”

Why, there’s nothing at all there about

buying stuff for landlords so they can rent their

places out, or handouts to businesses to entice

them to move to New Braunfels, or, in the case

of The Scooter Store, to keep them from making

good on a threat to move to San Marcos.

People in this town are desperate for street

and drainage improvements, and will vote foranyone or anything promising that work that be

done. Which is why the work isn’t done. To fix

the roads would be to kill the goose that lays

the golden justification for tax increases. While

TXDoT is already working on the Business 46

widening project, Walnut Avenue remains

incomplete. Well over a year overdue.

Anyhow, yeah, it will take another election to

repeal 4-B. City Council could do it on their own,but there hasn’t been a public-to-private money

transfer scheme yet created that a politician is

willing to part with - after all, that’s the very basis

of political stroke. So if you want 4-B gone, you’ll

have to get yourself a special election. Haha.

Good luck with that. We laugh again. Haha. 4-B

is laughing too. Everybody’s laughing.

We thought it might be fun to go back and

have a look at all the 4-A and 4-B contractsthe City has entered into over the years, so

we’re preparing an open records request for

just that information. It will be interesting tosee how many of those businesses are still

in town, how many are still in business, and

exactly what they were obligated to do in

return for that sweet, sweet public cash. If

recent 4-B contracts are any indication, the

community at large was dreadfully under-

protected in those deals.

Noise OrdinanceGains TractionHaving failed with their disposable container

ban, our local anti-fun coalition has decided

to move on to another small-business target,

namely live music. While a new noise

ordinance has been bandied about for a

good long time, it took the Pour Haus, which

features its live music in the outdoors andkind of near a residential neighborhood, to

raise public ire. Now, in the case of people

complaining about noise on the rivers, I have

to say, “Hey man, you knew there was a

tourist-happy river there when you moved in.

In fact, it was there before your house was

built. Don’t complain – makes you look silly.”

But in the case of the Pour Haus, well, the

houses were there first. This puts the Haus in adecidedly weaker position to argue from. On

the other hand, many of the nearby homes are

closer to the railroad tracks than the bar, and

while the bar might be loud, it sure as heck

isn’t as loud as a train, and the residents went

ahead and moved in next to the tracks without

a problem. I’d figure they’d be immune

to music given the earth-shaking nature of

locomotives. (For the record, I’ve lived nextto Los Angeles International Airport, railroad

tracks, and bars. Given that choice again,

I’d take the steady drone of LAX over the

incessant bass-thump coming from the Double-

Down Saloon or the sheer terror inspired by

Union Pacific at 3am. Hands down.)

The big problem here is that whatever

solution the City deems appropriate for the

uniquely situated Pour Haus will be applied toall New Braunfels music venues regardless of

location, with an extra four-decibel allowance

for those in commercial zones. (To give you

an idea of what four decibels sounds like, it’s

comparable to a whisper. At six-feet away. In

a library.) In other words, live music may have

to go all-acoustic in order to comply with the

ordinance as written, which will significantly

increase our hipster population (which posesan immediate threat to our fair city, what with

their ironic lumberjack beards and ironic t-shirt

slogans and ironic preferences in beveragesand whatnot). The first vote on this will likely

come next week, and we’ll break the whole

thing down for you in our February 12 issue,

hipster menace notwithstanding.

Linecrushers!Champion DeclaredA rare end-of-season tie, which continued

throughout the NFL playoffs, was finally broken

on Sunday, as our two final players - Haley

Coleman from the Prickly Pear and Tatum

DeLeon from the Watering Hole Saloon - brought

our annual pro football handicapping contest to

a nail-biting conclusion.

These two had been unwittingly duplicating

each other’s picks against the spread for weeks,

so we had to bring out the crazy prop bets for this

one. When it was almost all said and done, the

entire season came down to this single question:

“Should Marshawn Lynch score, will he grab his

crotch?” Haley answered yes, Tatum, no, and

a last-minute, intercepted pass thrown into the

hands of the New England Patriots sealed the

deal on that one.

Tatum DeLeon is our 2015 Linecrushers!

champion, and the winner of $500 cashmoney! Big thanks to everyone who played this

year, and to our league’s sponsor bars, who

were also competing against one another, and

finished in this order:

First Place - The Prickly Pear Lounge

Second Place - The Watering Hole Saloon

Third Place - The Happy Cow

Fourth Place - Buffalo Wings and Rings

Fifth Place - Scores Sports Bar and Grill

Now get some rest. The whole thing starts

again in September.

\m/

Mike Reynolds

Publisher/Editor-in-Chief

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

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Due Process WITH NICK ROGERS

Rathbun vs Scientology The Third Court of Appeals continues

to receive motions from the Church of

Scientology even months after oral argumentswere heard by the Court.

Most recently, the Church of Scientology

International filed a Notice of Supplemental

Authority in attempt to buttress its case that

a harassment lawsuit against it violates the

Church’s First Amendment rights.

The Church filed an Anti-Strategic Lawsuit

Against Public Participation motion in the

lawsuit filed by Monique Rathbun. Rathbun

filed suit in Comal County, arguing that CSIorchestrated a campaign of harassment and

stalking against her. Rathbun’s husband,

Marty Rathbun, was once the second highest-

level official in the Church and began publicly

speaking out against the Church. The couple

moved from their home at Ingleside on the Bay

to Comal County where, Rathbun claims, the

harassment and spying continued.

In response, CSI filed an anti-SLAPP

motion, arguing that Rathbun’s lawsuit violatesthe Church’s First Amendment rights. District

udge Dib Waldrip rejected the Church’s

arguments, leading to the appeal.

The Church’s most recent filing notified the

Court of Appeals of a California appeals court

ruling in favor of the Church on anti-SLAPP

grounds. Texas’ anti-SLAPP law is based upon

the California model.

In the California case, Vance Woodward

sued CSI, demanding a refund for moneyhe spent while a member. As in the Rathbun

case, the Church filed an anti-SLAPP motion,

in which the court agreed, primarily because

Woodward’s offense with the Church was

based upon its religious practices.

“Plaintiff’s causes of action all arise from

Defendants’ religious activities,” the California

appeals court ruled. “The claims all relate to

religious instruction, counseling and related

religious services. And Plaintiff has made awholesale challenge to the principles and

practices underlying Defendants’ religious

doctrine. All of this involves religious speech,

which is protected under the free speech

clause of the First Amendment.”

The Court rejected Woodward’s argument

that the case was simply one of breach of contract.

“The overwhelming content of Plaintiff’s

34 page complaint consists of challenges to

the teachings of the Scientology organization,challenges to Plaintiffs’ standing and

relationship with the Scientology organization,

and challenges to the value of the services

that Plaintiff received from the Scientologyorganization,” the Court wrote, adding that

“Plaintiff’s challenges to Defendants’ religious

principles and practices raise a religious dispute

that is not proper for the courts to decide.”

In her response, Rathbun attorney LeslieHyman noted the Court’s rationale, arguing

that the Woodward decision does not apply in

the Rathbun case.

“Ms. Rathbun’s claims, on the other

hand, relate to stalking and harassment, not

religious instruction, counseling, or services,”the response contends. “To the extent that

she incidentally references COS’s arguablyprotected speech, that speech does not form

the basis of her claims.”

As well, Rathbun noted that the Court’sruling “is the subject of a motion to reconsider”

that had not been heard until just recently with

a final decision still forthcoming. The California

Supreme Court could eventually weigh in on

the matter, thus making a decision based upon

the California appeals court ruling premature.

By law, pretrial motions in the lawsuitcannot proceed until the anti-SLAPP motion

has been decided.

Still No RulingThe lawsuit by three towing companies against

the City of New Braunfels remains in stasis.

The companies sued, arguing that City Council

violated its own rules and standards in an

unfair decision on which companies should becontracted to all local non-consent tows. The

companies also accused the City of violating

the Open Meetings Act.

Favoring the towing companies, Judge

Waldrip ruled that the courts had proper

jurisdiction in the case, which the City appealed.No ruling has yet been released by the

Third Court of Appeals, even though the

appeal was filed almost a year ago.

A new towing plan is currently making itsway through the Council approval process.

Can-Ban Arguments DelayedOral arguments still remain to be set before the

Third Court on the City’s appeal of a judge’sruling in favor of various river outfitters. The

outfitters sued New Braunfels over the disposable

container and cooler size ordinances.

Arguments were tentatively set forFebruary 11, but the outfitters asked that date

be postponed. A new date has yet to be set.

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8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

7/16TXCITIZEN.COM 7

“Turn Out That Light!”anuary 26, 2015, is a day that will live in

infamy in New Braunfels. It’s the day thatCity Council finally said “No” to a ridiculous

recommendation that came from one of its

plethora of committees. The recommendation

that council quashed, which came from the

City’s Planning Commission, was to force

a complete “Dark Sky Initiative” upon the

residents and businesses of NB.

For those who don’t know, the Dark Sky

Initiative is an idea put forth by the International

Dark Sky Association (IDA), a non-profit group

out of Arizona, whose mission is to stop “light

pollution” in the US. They cite light pollution

as causing a number of problems, such as:

disrupting migratory bird patterns, human

sleep deprivation and star washout. Basically,

it’s an organization that tells you to turn out the

lights, to the tune of $3.3 million over the last

five years, and whose President pulls down

over $100,000 per year (source: Guidestar.org). They’ve also successfully lobbied in

Washington to pass legislation that requires

all low-impact lighting to carry a seal of

approval… from the IDA, and only the IDA.

The Dark Sky idea itself isn’t a bad one.

Everyone enjoys a dark backyard. We all

like looking up at the stars. It’s the way the

P&Z wanted to go about it that caused the

backlash. You don’t start a new venture as

an “all or nothing”. You don’t wake up one

day and say, “I’m going to start a delivering

my new product to every person in New

Braunfels, without asking if they want it or

not”. No, that’d be pretty stupid, and would

fail miserably. You’d probably have to move to

Austin or somewhere to hide from the shame.

You start out small, see how you’re received by

the public, check the success and outcomes of

the applications, then build from there.If the Planning Commission had come

to Council with the idea of applying the

Dark Sky Initiative to just the street lamps

and billboards in town, with a time-table to

measure the success and look at business and

residential applications in the future, I believe

the outcome would have been a vote in the

positive. But, with the history of Council simply

rubber-stamping every hair-brained idea that a

committee comes up with, it’s no surprise thatP&Z was playing the odds.

According to the IDA’s website, the

biggest malefactors to the night skies are street

lamps and billboards. The P&Z could have

easily recommended that Council require allbillboard lighting to be downward-facing,

and that all street lamps be fitted with IDA

approved heads and bulbs.

With the billboard quickly becoming a

tool of the past in cities across the nation, I’m

positive that the owners of the ones in town

would have been more than happy to switch

out the lighting if they were told to either make

the change or remove the sign completely.

Heck, we could have probably gotten 4-B topay them to do it. Upward-facing lighting on

signage is approximately 90% “wasted”, or

lost to the night sky, according to the IDA.

It’s All About the Benjamins,Baby As for the street lamps, P&Z and Council really

dropped the ball. The City “owns” NBU. It’s ourelectric company. Yes, they have a board of

directors, but like any other board, they simply

make recommendations to the owner. The final

decision is in the boss’ hands. In a letter to the

P&Z, and subsequently the Council, NBU pretty

much told them there was no way they could

bring all the lamps up to IDA compliance. And

Council took it, hook, line and sinker. NBU

used a bunch of numbers and $2 words to

confuse and distract from the topic.

According to NBU, there are

approximately 3000 street lamps in town. Of

those, 1750 have IDA compliant heads, but

non-compliant sodium vapor bulbs. The cost of

an IDA compliant head with the wrong bulb

is $73. One with the correct bulb is $252.

It would cost NBU $98,550 to bring every

remaining lamp head into compliance with the

non-compliant bulb, and $756,000 to convertall 3000 lamps to 100% compliant heads

and bulbs. NBU acknowledges the fact that

the replacement would pay for itself down the

road, but points out that until all the lamps are

changed (which they claim they can’t affordto do all at once), there would be different

colored lamps in neighborhoods. Gasp!

Side Note: There are seven street lamps

on my street. Three are blue in color, four are

amber. Oh, the humanity!

The biggest load of hooey NBU sold in

their letter involved the antique-style lamps

popping up all around town (Think Walnut and

the San Antonio Street Bridge). The current,

non-compliant lamps run $659 a piece. Tomove to a complaint lamp, the cost would

come in at $1442 each. NBU claims there’s

just no way they can do that. There’s only 50

of these antique lights around town, with the

majority of them being on Walnut.

For the sake of the maths, let’s assume

they’re all on Walnut:The 50 lamps cost $32,950. The compliant

lamps would have cost $72,100. That’s a

difference of $39,150. The Walnut project came

in at $27.8 million. Yeah, that extra 39 grand

would have just been over the top. Probably

would have shut the whole project down.

The real kicker here is that NBU can easi ly

afford to switch out every street lamp in town,

antique or otherwise. And the fact that Council

is essentially letting their employees tell them

what to do is ludicrous. A little over six months

ago, NBU received a jury settlement of $15.6

million in their lawsuit against the LCRA for

overcharges. Council has already allowed

NBU to decide that the money won’t be going

back to its customers (you know, the ones who

paid the overcharges for years). Why not show

some backbone for once and force NBU to use

a measly $828,100 out of $15.6 million tobring all the street lamps up to compliance,

and help darken our skies just a bit?

Road Trippin’If you’re not content with the impressive

amount of stars we can see here in NB, you’regoing to have to leave town to gaze at the

night sky in its unmolested glory. Luckily, we

are fortunate enough to live in an area with

around a half-dozen or more quite dark State

Parks within an hour’s drive from town. A fact

that was met with harsh criticism, accusing me

of “not giving a damn about those of us who

either can’t drive or don’t drive at night”, when

I pointed it out in a chat forum on the topic of Dark Skies being shot down by Council. I was

also informed that “only a star or two can be

seen at night” in New Braunfels. Perhaps a

new eyeglass prescription is in order for my

housebound friend.

What’s funny about that forum, and the

multiple letters-to-the-editor in the Houston-Owned

Herald-Zeitung fully supporting the measures

and chastising Council for its dissenting vote

(and the many subsequent online comments tothose letters), is that at the three public forums

held on the Dark Skies subject, not one single

person from the public showed up to speak on

its behalf. There were several who spoke against

it, but not one in favor. If something is important

to you, how is your representative supposed to

know it if you only speak up after the fact? Be

proactive. It’s amazing what can happen if you

just let your voice be heard.The simple fact is, you either live in the city

and enjoy its amenities and venture out if you

want to experience the country, or you live in the

country to enjoy nature and darkness and go into

the city to utilize its amenities. You can’t have both.

My in-laws live in The Middle of Nowhere,

Minnesota. I never knew there were stars like I

could see out there. You can even see hints of

the Northern Lights some nights. But you know

what you can’t see? A dentist office. Or a Wal-

Mart. Or a mechanic. It ’s almost an hour’s drive

to the nearest city with those amenities. They

choose to live there for the joys of the country.

It’s one or the other. You can never make a city

the country. It’s not going to happen

Until Council decides to step up and

initiate at least the billboard and street lamp

requirements, the Dark Skies Initiative in New

Braunfels is, as P&Z member and KitchenCabinet whipping-boy Matthew Hoyt so

eloquently put it, “DOA. It’s over”.

ME AT RIAL WITH CHASE COCHRAN

New Braunfels’ night sky, according to Jim Alston.

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

8/168 AD SALES 830.358.2493

Thu 2.5

Adobe Verde

Scott Boddicker

6pm

Oma Gruene’s Secret Garten

Jam Night

6pm

Phoenix Saloon

Marcus Morales

5pm

AJ’s Ale House

Rock & Roll Sing Along Piano Bar Show

9pm

Gruene Hall

Poor J Brown

6pm

The Pour Haus

Russell Bisbey

8pm

Riley’s Tavern

Pete Benz

9pm

Fri 2.6

Adobe Verde

Mayeux & Broussard

6:30pm

Black Whale Pub

Slim Bawb

8pm

The Happy Cow

Justin Reimer Band

8pm


JumboFunk!

6:30pm

Phoenix Saloon

Junior Nash

5pmBrother Nothing

9pm

Watering Hole Saloon

TBA

8pm

AJ’s Ale House

Rock & Roll Sing Along Piano Bar Show

9pm

Alpine Haus Restaurant

Off the Grid Polka Band

6pm

Billy’s Ice House

Dean Seltzer

8pm

Gruene Hall

Sean McConnell

w/ Folk Family Revival

8pm, $15

The Pour Haus

Jackson Parten Trio

8:30pm

Riley’s Tavern

Big John Mills

9pm

Vineyard at Gruene

Billy Snipes

7pm

Sat 2.7

Adobe Verde

Bru Erdman

6:30pm

Black Whale PubThe Vagabonds

9pm

The Happy Cow Hadlock Brothers

9pm

Oma Gruene’s Secret GartenThe Jamie Krueger Group

1pm

Smokehouse Guitar Army

6pm

Phoenix SaloonGuadalupe Pirates

9pm

AJ’s Ale HouseRock & Roll Sing Along Piano Bar Show

9pm

Billy’s Ice HouseThe Fearsome Foursome

8pm

Gruene HallBo Phillips

1pm

The Dirty River Boys

w/ Bo Phillips

8pm, $15

Y OUR LI VE M

U SI C GUIDE

NB Farm to Market Mon 2 9GET YOUR

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

9/16TXCITIZEN.COM 9

NB Farm to Market

Daniel Thomas Phipps

9am

The Pour Haus

Whiskey Rodeo

9:30pm

Riley’s Tavern

Zach Walther

9pm

Vineyard at Gruene

Clarence Castillo

7pm

Sun 2.8


Arms Leng th

2pm

Phoenix Saloon

Adam Johnson3pm

True Audio Outland

7pm

Billy’s Ice House

Justin Bravo & the K ind

8pm

Geronimo VFW #8456

Czechaholics

3pm

Gruene Hall

Bret Graham

12:30pm

Mike Zito

4pm

The Pour Haus

The Vagabonds

8pm

Mon 2.9

Billy’s Ice House

Corey Kane

8pm

Gruene Hall

Bret Graham

6pm

The Pour Haus

Paul Eldridge

8pm

Tues 2.10

Watering Hole Saloon

TBA

8:30pm

Gruene Hall

Tres Womack & Friends

6pm

The Pour Haus

Open Mic w/ Jon Magill

8pm

Wed 2.11

Phoenix Saloon

Swing Dance Night

8pm

Billy’s Ice House Aaron Stephens

8pm

Gruene Hall

Tom Gillam & the Kosmic Messengers

6pm

The Pour Haus

TBA

8pm

Vineyard at Gruene

Zack Walther

6pm

SOUNDC HEC K BROUG HT TO Y OU BY :

GET YOURMUSIC ON

Adobe Verde1724 Hunter Rd

830.629.0777

Black Whale Pub367 Main Plaza

830.625.6605

The Happy Cow 9103 FM 1102

512.667.7510

Oma Gruene’s Secret Garten1263 Gruene Rd

830.625.1045

Phoenix Saloon193 W San Antonio St

830.643.1400

Watering Hole Saloon1390 McQueeney Rd

830.625.0045

AJ’s Ale House236 W San Antonio St

Alpine Haus Restaurant251 S Seguin Ave

Billy’s Ice House1193 Loop 337

Gruene Hall1281 Gruene Rd

The Pour Haus343 W San Antonio St

Riley’s Tavern8894 FM 1102

River Road Ice House

1790 Hueco Springs Loop Rd

Vineyard at Gruene1190 Gruene Rd

Vino en Verde2351 Gruene Lake Dr B e s

t

F u l l B a r !

Best Sig natur e Shot“ T he P ur ple G ec k o” !

BESTOF THE

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2014

double winner!

PRICKLY PEAR

LOUNGE

THUR & SAT

The Karaoke King, Johnny V!!

FRIDAYDJKC Rocks the House!!

SUNDAY FEB 8

Closed for new flooring

MONDAY FEB 9


TUESDAY FEB 10


WEDNESDAY FEB 11


THURSDAY

Johnny V, The Karoke King!!

LOOK FOR THE NEW PEAR!

KEEPIN' IT

PRICKLYSINCE

1979

1051 N. IH-35

| Like us!

In The Ramada 830-625-8017

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

10/1610 AD SALES 830.358.2493

Fri 2.6

Cheatham Street Warehouse

Jonny Burke

w/ Drew Fish

9pm

The Continental Club

Club Lineup:

The Blues Specialists, 6:30pm

Chris Watson

w/ Soul Track Mind

10pm, $10

Gallery Lineup:

Robert Kraft Trio, 8:30pm

Mike Flanigin Trio, 10:30pm, $5

Floore’s Country Store

Bart Crow

w/ Dalton Domino

7pm, 18+, $12-$15

Luckenbach Dance HallHayden Whittington

4pm

Sol Patch

7pm

Red Eyed Fly

TBA 8pm, Outside

Sam’s Burger Joint

Terri Hendrix & Lloyd Maines

7pm, $15-$50

Stubb’s BBQ

The Rocketboys

9pm, Inside, $10

Sat 2.7

Cheatham Street Warehouse

Ponty Bone

9pm

The Continental Club

Club Lineup:

Redd Volkaert, 3:30pm

The Derailers

w/ Rosie & the Ramblers

10pm, $10

Gallery Lineup:

Hillary York, 8:30pm

Mike Flanigin Trio, 10:30pm, $5

Floore’s Country Store

Roger Creager

w/ The Statesboro Revue

7pm, $15-$20

Luckenbach Dance Hall

Jimmy Lee Jones1pm

Doug Moreland Trio

7pm

Red Eyed Fly

TBA

9pm, Outside

Sam’s Burger Joint

Monte Montgomery

8pm, $13-$60

Stubb’s BBQ

William Clark Green

w/ John Baumann

9pm, Inside, $12

OUTOF

Special Events Monthly

Private Parties- Catering

Wedding Facilities Available

Never a Cover!

Kid & Pet Friendly!

1263 Gruene Road • 830.625.1045

Call for Hours!

omalovesyou.com

Special Events Monthly

Private Parties- Catering

Wedding Facilities Available

Never a Cover!

Kid & Pet Friendly!

1263 Gruene Road • 830.625.1045

Call for Hours!

omalovesyou.com

FEB 5@ 6 JAM NIGHT

FEB 6@ 6:30 JUMBOFUNK!

FEB 7@ 1 THE JAMIE KRUEGER GROUP

@ 6 THE SMOKEHOUSE GUITAR ARMY

FEB 8@ 2 ARMS LENGTH

FEB 12@ 6 JAM NIGHT

FEB 13@ 6:30 HIPSONIC

Upcoming Events:

BESTOF THE

WURST

2014

double winner! Best Beer Bar

& Best Bartenders

Freiheit Country Store

Karaoke

Friday Nights, 8pm

Happy Cow

Karaoke

Thursdays Nights

Old Ice House

Karaoke

Thursdays, Sundays

DJWednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays

Phoenix Saloon

Karaoke

Thursday Nights

Prickly Pear Lounge

Karaoke

Thursdays, Saturdays

DJ KC

Fridays

The Watering Hole Saloon

Karaoke

Thursdays

DJ

Fridays, Saturdays

diversions

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

11/16TXCITIZEN.COM 11

Don’t let the cold catch you!

830-625-2420 • [email protected] • 1617 BUSINESS 35 S.

GUADA • COMA

$

85 Heating System Inspection Special!

Don’t let the cold catch you!

While I may have moved to New Braunfels only a few short

months ago, I have already taken up some pastimes that my

friends back home describe simply by saying, “That is so New

Braunfels.” Aside from the obvious wkends spent floatingthe river, consuming pitchers of br and sausages by the

dozen at Wurstfest, and enjoying the waail downtown at

Waailfest, those pastimes include frequenting a local wine

bar where you wi often find me swiing a gla of the

award-wiing Tempranio and playing some old country tunes

on my six-string in the corner. It’s this last activity that

has given me the honor of being, “like, so New Braunfels.”

And while I have much to learn about New Braunfels and thepeople that ca this town home, I do know that this

particular wine bar is an especiay gd fit here.

The Longshot vineyard is located in west Texas, but its

tasting rm was opened here because of the local’s love of

wine and the areciation they have for the quality and

craftsmanship that go into it. And if that’s not enough, it

operates out of the oldest house in New Braunfels, giving it

the quaint and cozy charm that the town embodies.Set your sights on a unique experience that can suitably

be described as “totay New Braunfels.” Longshot Wine Bar

wi not mi the mark. I’ most likely be there pouring wine

behind the bar, cking up Sunday brunch, or just enjoying a

gla (or a bole) of wine with my beat-up old guitar singing

some of my favorites. The atmosphere is right, and there is

always a gd time to be had.- Josh McFarling

HOURS:Mon-Thurs: 6pm-10pm

Fri-Sat: 5pm-11pm

Sun: 10am-4pm

(brunch: 10am-2pm)

133 Landa Street

(Across the street from the Landmark)

830.837.5667

W I N E B A R & T A S T I N G R O O M

L O N G S H O T

USE PROMO CODE

TXCFOR UP TO $200

IN BONUS CASH!

SIGN UP NOW.

FANDUEL.COM

ASK A MEXICAN! !

MOST WANTEDCOMAL COUNTY ’S

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

12/1612 AD SALES 830.358.2493

By Gustavo Arellano

Dear Mexican: Do Mexicans sling

racial slurs at each other or casually

refer to each other as “wabs,” similar to

the way blacks call each other “nigger?”

What’s your take on the whole “nigger”

thing anyway?”

Kingfish the Cabrón

Dear Blackfaced Wab: What do I

think of “nigger”? Um, it’s bad? I think you

mean que pienso of “nigga,” which some

etymologists and the Washington Post argue

means something completely different: an

appropriated term when gabachos and

Mexicans use it among each other, a term of

endearment when African-Americans use it to

describe ellos mismos.

There’s no real comparison in Mexican

Spanish, except maybe paisa and its

regional synonyms (wab in Orange County,cheddar in Denver, brazer in Chicago and

so many more—consult the May 13, 2010

edition of this columna for a comprehensive

list of slurs that Mexicans in el Norte use

against each other). But the big difference

is that such jabs use class instead of race;

Mexicans use racial terms to describe family

members (the obsession by tías and parents

to classify their progeny as güero, moreno,

or—my favorite—prieto azabache, “jet

black,” and a term my mami endearingly

used to describe the Mexican’s younger

brother) and strangers.

And while we’re on the subject of

“nigger”, raza: can we finally admit to

America that the term Mexicans use to

deride blacks (mayate) is far nastier than the

N-word because it not only means “beetle”

but also “homosexual”? The more you know

about Mexicans, America…

Dear Mexican: Why do a lot of

Mexicans let their toddlers stay on

the baby bottle longer than most

kiddos? I work at a surgery center

that specializes in children’s dental

surgery and most of the patients are

Mexican kids getting their teeth fixed

from just such scenarios. I’ve also

personally known Mexican mothers

whose childr en’s mouths werecompletely blinged out with dental

work. Any insight o n wh y th e Me xican

bambinos stay on the bottle so long?

Wean ‘Em Off

Dear Gabacho: You’re right about the

problem—multiple studies have documented

the Mexican propensity for their chicos tosuffer from what’s scientifically known as early

childhood caries (ECC) and colloquially known

as baby bottle tooth decay. The disease rots

baby teeth, leading to so many kids making

rapper Riff Raff’s dientes seem as pearly-white

as a Pepsodent model.

UCLA student Sally Chu’s 2006 “Early

Childhood Caries: Risk and Prevention inUnderserved Populations” in the Journal of

Young Investigators, found that “Hispanics

have the highest rate of ECC in both

developed and developing countries with

an average prevalence of 13%-29%,

second only to Native American,” citing the

seminal 2002 paper “Caries-Risk Factors

for Hispanic Children Affected by Early

Childhood Caries.”

All studies cite poverty and lack of

education more than culture, so I guess here

you want me to make a psychosexual joke

about how Mexicans overall are still attached

to their mami’s chichis, leaving us perpetual

infants. Well, you ain’t going to get it, so I’ll

make it up with an insight as equally lame:

Why do Mexicans like to drive lowriders? So

they can cruise and pick strawberries at the

same time… HA!

Ask t he Mexican [email protected],

be his fan on Facebook, follow him on

Twitter @gustavoarellano or follow himon Instagram @gustavo_arellano!

ASK A MEXICAN!!

MOST WANTED

$300REWARD

MEDELLIN, JESSERODRIGUEZ Male • 5’07” • 200 lbsDOB: 01/01/1976CHARGE: Possessionof a controlled

substance pg 1 under1 gram and theft ofproperty under $1500with 2 or moreprevious convictions

CLOUGH,RONNIE DEAN Male • 5’06” • 182 lbsDOB: 12/31/1960CHARGE: Failureto appear for

aggravated assaultwith deadly weaponand bail jumping/ failto appear felony

GUERRERO,

JAIME

Male • 5’07” • 130 lbs

DOB: 10/04/1971

CHARGE: Failure to

appear- driving whileintoxicated 3rd or

more

HUBBARD,

CHRISTOPHER

JERRODMale • 6’01” • 230 lbs

DOB: 11/20/1977

CHARGE: Two counts

of possession with

intent to deliver

ALEMAN,

ARTURO JR Male • 5’05” • 180 lbsDOB: 01/02/1954CHARGE: Motion to

revoke probation-driving whileintoxicated 3rd ormore

MARTINEZ,

MANUEL

Male • 5’09” • 198 lbs

DOB: 03/09/1973

CHARGE:

Failure toappear- driving while

intoxicated 3rd or

more

ROGERS,

JENNIFER LEE

Female • 5’05” • 110 lbs

DOB: 03/27/1967

CHARGE: Failure toappear- possession of

a controlled substance

WALLACE,

KIMBERLIE

LOFTUS Female • 5’09” • 155 lbs

DOB: 07/11/1975

CHARGE: Failure toappear- possession of

a controlled substance

WOODS,

MICHAEL

Male • 6’01” • 180 lbs

DOB: 01/26/1965

CHARGE: Possession

with intent to deliver acontrolled substance

TURNER,

AARON LEE

Male • 5’08” • 130 lbs

DOB: 07/20/1966

CHARGE: Failure to

appear- forgeryfinancial instrument

The names listed have been released in accordance with the Texas Public Information Act. This is a trueand accurate account as of Monday, February 2, 2015 at 10:37 am and may not be current by the time it isread. Do not try to apprehend anyone. These are listings of criminal warrants with the Comal CountySheriff’s Office and are not indicative of guilt or innocence. Officers are to verify the status of each warrantprior 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-Hour

830.620.3411 - Mon-Fri 8am to 5pm

BAIER,

ADAM SAMUELMale • 5’06” • 150 lbsDOB: 12/04/1971CHARGE: Violation

of conditions ofprobation-possession of acontrolled substance

8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

13/16TXCITIZEN.COM 13 VOTING BEGINS FEBRUARY 19

IT’S DANG NEAR TIME AGAIN!

DLeeEdwardsRealty.com • 1111 N. Walnut Ave. New Braunfels, TX 78130

Call our AWARD WINNING TEAM! 830.620.7653

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8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

14/1614 TX CITIZEN14 AD SALES 830.358.2493

X

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TO OUR 2015 CHAMPION

TATUM DELEON!

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TO OUR 2015 CHAMPION

TATUM DELEON!

PRICKLY PEARLOUNGE

Leagues:

First Place: The Prickly Pear – 53%Second Place: The Watering Hole – 52%

Third Place: The Happy Cow – 51%

Fourth Place: Buffalo Wings and Rings – 49%

Fifth Place: Scores - 48%

2 0 14 SE ASO N F I N AL

RE SU LT S!

T h i s ai n’ t no F ant as y l e a g u e !

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8/9/2019 TX Citizen 2.5.15

15/16TXCITIZEN.COM 15

On VaccinationsReally? A Pass? Everything about the

situation screams running play, and you call

for a pass?!

Alright, now that I have that out of my

system, let’s get down to business.

The last couple of weeks have placed

vaccination front and center in the national

conversation. I’ve already been involved

in several conversations over the safety

of vaccines and their possible connection

to autism. The media has been grilling

Republican candidates hoping that one

will show some weakness in support forvaccination (a typically left-wing problem).

The measles outbreak, which appears to

have begun at Disneyland, has even sparked

some discussion of immigration. One thing

that I haven’t seen addressed, though, is

how vaccination can pit government interests

against individual rights, and a careful

examination of this brings up a good number

of questions that need answering.There is no question that it’s in the

government’s interest to have all its citizens

vaccinated. Diseases like smallpox, polio,

and until recently, measles, have been

largely removed from the citizenry, and

this is due primarily to the prevalence of

vaccination for the diseases. It’s easy for

politicians to point to vaccination as a major

good provided to society by government,

which encourages vaccination and provides

much of the organization that makes near-

universal vaccination easier. But, just

because vaccination is a positive for society

and represents a real protection for citizens,

doesn’t mean that government has the

authority to make it mandatory.

I know this sounds surprising, but even

though politicians are fond of saying that the

first job of government is to protect its citizens,it’s just not true. The first job of government

is to protect your rights. In fact, that’s really

their only job. They may do other things to

accomplish this important task, but in the end

it’s all about protecting individual freedoms.

If there were ever a case for a benefit

for society trumping individual liberty,

vaccination would be it. Vaccinations are

not without risks (even deaths), but those

risks are vanishingly small, and the overall

benefits of vaccination are huge. For society,

the cost/benefit analysis is an easy one.

Individuals may feel that they don’t want to

foist any risk on their children, but if almost

everyone doesn’t participate in vaccination,

it doesn’t work as it should. The small riskthat an individual avoids by not vaccinating

is likely returned multiplied many times over

either from the danger of the disease itself or

when others react as they do.

Even so, it’s important to understand

that we do not make vaccination mandatory

in this country, and the reason for this is our

respect for individual liberty and distrust of

government authority. (Many of the argumentsthat I have heard seem to forget this and

assume that there was some time when we

did require all children to be vaccinated.

As far as I know, this has never been the

case.) Regardless of how safe or effective

vaccines are, it is an individual decision

whether to be vaccinated or not. For minors,

that decision is made by the parent. To have

things be otherwise would afford government

a frightening amount of power over us. It

would imply that we are not in charge of our

own bodies, and that government can decide

what we must do with our bodies and why.

Careful readers should be recognizing

an undercurrent of issues that we could just

as easily be taking about but are not. The

author is well aware of this and is hoping

that you will search your ideals for logical

consistency among these issues.

Traditionally, one way that government

has encouraged parents to vaccinate their

children or push them into it has been to

insist that children be vaccinated before

they are permitted to participate in public

schools. This method was successful for many

years, and perhaps it should be carefully

enforced again. One problem with this

from a government perspective is that it alsoencourages people to see the world in a way

that limits government power. For example, it

makes clear that the government can’t force

you to send your child to a government run

school. It also makes clear that you do not

have a “right’ to an education.

An additional question we might ask

about the vaccination issue is just how far

the government can go with blocking theunvaccinated from public accommodations.

Can someone be barred from holding

government office? Can your representative

refuse to see you? What about a White House

tour? Should the unvaccinated be prevented

from entering the military or a public library?

Is there some way for the government for fulfillits functions while protecting both individual

rights and the general welfare? Is there some

logical place to draw a line?

Just as important is the question of private

persons being able to protect themselves. In

this case, Disneyland was ground-zero for

a measles outbreak. Does Disney have the

right to require proof of vaccination before

allow people into their park? How about agrocery store? I can see situations where

customers would want to feel that they were

safe from disease. I can even see situations

where customers might suggest that they

need to be informed by businesses when they

are not. It seems like it might be valuable for

private businesses to find a way to offer this

piece-of-mind to their customers, particularly

in a world where resistance to vaccination

has created a possible problem.

It might also be worth considering what

a person’s individual responsibility is. If it can

be proven that someone infected someone

else because they chose not to vaccinate, is

that personal legally responsible? Should the

people that spread the disease at Disneyland

be sued for damages? Could the case be

made that they are criminally responsible?

We haven’t even touched the idea of

state’s rights. I would think there might need to

be some distinction between what is allowed

at the federal, state and local level too.

I don’t have the answer to any of these

questions, but I hope that this topic holds on

in the media for a while. It has the potential

to spark a useful debate on the nature of

government and the importance of individual

liberty. Too often these issues come upand fade away with little more than sound

bites being generated as a result. But, the

questions we face with vaccination today

can be applied much more broadly, and

taking the time to justify the balance between

individual liberty and collective safety might

allow us to find values that apply universally.

You can read more from Kelly Colby at yourfirstshrug.blogspot.com.

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