Column writing 2017 by TheSealyNews

PAGE 4 ■ THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2016

YOUR

Right to carry handgun versus right to now allow handguns

The Sealy News is posing the following question to our readers: Super Bowl 50 will feature the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers. • I think the Broncos will win • I think the Panthers will win • I want the Broncos to win but think the Panthers will • I want the Panthers to win but think the Broncos will

Last week’s question was: How are you doing on your New Year's resolutions? • I didn't make any 70.8% • I blew it already 8.3% • I've kept some 16.7% • I've kept them all 4.2% Number of votes: 23 Log on to www.sealynews.com to let your voice be heard. We will bring you the results of this poll and a new question every Thursday.

WHERETOWRITE U.S. Senator Ted Cruz B40B Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 (202) 224-5922 U.S. Senator John Cornyn 517 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 (202) 224-2934 U.S. Representative, Dist. 10 Michael McCaul, 2000 S. Market St., Ste. 303 Brenham, Texas 77833 (979) 830-8497 Texas Governor Greg Abbott P.O. Box 12428 Austin, Texas 78711-2428 (512) 463-2000 State Senator, Dist. 18 Lois Kolkhorst P.O. Box 1867 Brenham, Texas 77834 (979) 251-7888 State Representative, Dist. 13 Leighton Schubert P.O. Box 2910 Austin, TX 78768 (512) 463-0600 Austin County Judge Tim Lapham 1 East Main Bellville, Texas 77418

(979) 865-5911 County Commissioner, Precinct 1 Reese Turner One East Main Street Bellville, Texas 77418 Barn - (979) 865-2126 County Commissioner, Precinct 2 Robert "Bobby" Rinn P.O. Box 275 Industry, TX 78944 Barn - (979) 357-4780 Office- (979) 357-4785 County Commissioner, Precinct 3 Randy Reichardt 166 Jefferson Cat Spring, TX 78933 Barn - (979) 865-5441 County Commissioner, Precinct 4 Douglas King P.O. Box 754 Wallis, TX 77485 Barn - (979) 885-3829 Office - (979) 478-7121 Sealy City Manager Larry Kuciemba 415 Main Street Sealy, Texas 77474 (979) 885-3511 Sealy ISD Superintendent Sheryl Moore 939 Tiger Lane, Sealy, Texas 77474 (979) 885-3516

Serving Sealy and Austin County since 1887 (USPS 487260) Entered at the post office at Sealy, Texas, under the Act of Congress of June 2, 1897. Periodical Rate postage paid at Sealy, TX 77474. ■ READER SERVICES Main number (979) 885-3562 Fax (979) 885-3564 Mailing address: P.O. Box 480, Sealy, Texas 77474 Known office of publication 193 Schmidt Rd., Sealy, Texas 77474 The Sealy News is a weekly publication distributed on Thursdays. ■ STAFF DIRECTORY Publisher, Karen Lopez publisher@sealynews.com Bookkeeper, Sandy Davis billing@sealynews.com Managing Editor, Joe Southern editor@sealynews.com Reporter, Jason B. Hogan reporter@sealynews.com Sports, Mindy Blankemeyer mnblankemeyer@aol.com Advertising, Alex Sanders sales@sealynews.com Circulation, Sandra Weeber ■ DEADLINES The deadline for editorial submissions is Friday at 3 p.m. for the Thursday edition. Retail display deadlines are Friday at noon for the Thursday edition. The deadline for classified word and display ads is 3 p.m. on Friday for the Thursday edition. ■ LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Sealy News publishes letters to the editor on most topics. Send your letters to: Letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 480, Sealy, TX 77474, email to editor@sealynews.com or fax 979-885-3564 by 5 p.m. Friday for the Thursday edition. Letters should be hand

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signed and include the writer’s full address and daytime and evening phone numbers. Letters to the editor should be as brief as possible. We reserve the right to edit all letters. Anonymous letters will not be published. Letters should be 500 words or less. ■ EDITORIAL REQUIREMENTS Lifestyle announcements — weddings, obituaries, anniversaries, engagements, newborns and birthdays — are run as paid announcements. Please call for current rates. Submitted photos may be picked up at The Sealy News after it appears in the newspaper. We are only responsible for photos for 30 days after it runs. All items are subject to editing for style and content. ■ SUBSCRIPTIONS The Sealy News is published weekly on Thursday. Subscriptions in Austin County, are $42 per year; outside Austin County in Texas, $52; outside Texas, $70 per year. Notices of change of address should be mailed to The Sealy News, P.O. Box 480, Sealy, TX 77474-0480. ■ AFFILIATIONS The Sealy News is a member of the National Newspaper Association, the Texas Press Association, the South Texas Press Association, the Texas Gulf Coast Press Association. ■ CONTENTS © 2016 by Sealy Publications Inc. Written consent is waived when permission is gained in advance and full credit is given to The Sealy News for material reprinted or reproduced, in whole or in part, electronically or otherwise. © 2016 Sealy Publications Inc. All Rights Reserved

Should we, as business owners, have the right to tell concealed carry license holders that they cannot carry into our business? Does it violate their rights or ours? I had a small conflict with a man last week over this very question. He came into our office and requested to speak to the person in charge; I’m assuming that was me. His stance and tone told me right off the bat that he was irritated about something. I was OK with that; it’s my job to settle issues. First he wanted to know why I only had the concealed ordinance on my door and not the open carry. I then pointed out we have both ordinances, 30.06 and 30.07, in English and Spanish. When we were ready to purchase our sign I checked with the Sealy Police Department to make sure that it was correct. The man wanted to know what has changed over the last 20 years since we were allowed to conceal carry that we, The Sealy News, felt the need to place the concealed carry ordinance sign now. This is a great question and I didn’t mind answering it, but

before I do let me tell you a little about myself. I was brought up in the country. I started hunting when I was about 6 years old and still hunt today. My rifle choice is a Browning A bolt 30-06 with a Boss system. I also hold my concealed handgun license and have since 2003. My wonderful husband just bought me a new gun for Christmas. It is the new Smith and Wesson 9mm Shield. Yes, I know there are many of men impressed and jealous right now while reading this story. Ladies, just as a side note, if you are looking for a gun, this is the one to get. I love it! But to get back on track, I have nothing against guns. I have everything against people to want to show them off for no reason or just for attention. If you have yours concealed, just as I have, you know that there are places that you cannot carry them. When you take the concealed class you take an oath to abide by the rules and laws. If someone has a sign in their window or door stating that they prefer you not to carry a weapon into their business that is their rule, not yours. Abide by it. The law states that you HAVE to.

KAREN LOPEZ Publisher, The Sealy News

If you come in to try and have them take it down and state that it takes away your right, aren’t you doing the same thing by trying to take away their right of saying “No, we don’t want you to carry here”? No, I’m not a hypocrite. I just don’t want to stop what I am doing and watch you while you are in my place of business because you decided to cowboy up today. So today I am asking Mr. X, whoever you are, please stop trying to persuade businesses to take down their concealed and open carry signs. Assuming you are a concealed gun license carrier I am asking you to abide by the laws of this state and do the right thing; don’t carry where it states not to carry.

FAITHFAMILY&FUN

Broncos are showing Texans potential of what they had JOE SOUTHERN Managing Editor

The Houston Texans have to be looking at the Denver Broncos and thinking about what could have been. Patience and a good quarterback puts Houston, not Denver, in the Super Bowl. As it is, most of the former coaching staff for the Texans and a handful of players are headed to the NFL’s title game garbed Broncos orange and blue. Were the Texans premature in jettisoning Gary Kubiak, Wade Phillips and company? Probably, but it no doubt seemed like the thing to do at the time. Ties between the Broncos and Texans have always been strong. The Texans borrowed heavily from the Broncos when the team entered the league. Over the years there has been a lot of crossover between the two teams from the front office to the field. Kubiak and Phillips have had stints as the head coach of both teams (albeit Phillips was an interim in Houston). Currently there are eight former members of the Texans coaching staff and five former players on their way to Santa Clara, Calif., and Super Bowl 50 against the Carolina Panthers. For years I have often referred to the Texans as Denver South. The Houston Chronicle ran a story Sunday referring to the Broncos as Houston North. No matter how you look at it, the two teams share a great deal of history and personnel. That’s why I think it won’t be a stretch for Texans fans to join me in rooting for the Broncos. Locally, we have Emmanuel Sanders from Bellville catching passes from Peyton Manning for the Broncos. (At the very least you can show gratitude to the team that kept New England from going back again.) Naturally I am a huge Broncos fan. I was born and raised in the suburbs of Denver and my family has had season tickets since the late 1980s (and it goes back to the 1960s if you consider we got them from my ex-wife’s family). I’ve been to more Broncos games than I can count, including having a sideline photo pass when the Broncos played the Texans in the preseason this year. Walking on the field after the game it was like watching a

The Sealy News/JOE SOUTHERN

Gary Kubiak, left, the former Texans and now current Broncos coach, visits with Texans player J.J. Watt after a preseason game last August.

The Sealy News/JOE SOUTHERN

Former Texans Defensive Coordinator Wade Phillips, left, currently with the Denver Broncos, poses with Darryl Morris and Ross Madison after a preseason game. family reunion with all the Texans and Broncos coaches and players hugging, shaking hands and giving well wishes. Now comes two weeks of ecstasy and agony for my inner Bronco. I am thrilled beyond belief to have my beloved team playing in the Super Bowl again. That is tempered, however, by a 2-5 Super Bowl record. The wins are glorious but the losses are equally unbearable. We are facing an imposing opponent in the Carolina Panthers. They’ve only lost one game and it was a throwaway game late in the season to the Falcons. The Panthers are my favorite team in the NFC because I lived in North Carolina when the team was founded and I did some coverage of their launch. I will have to set that aside for the next two weeks as they become a rival and obstacle to another world championship. In all fairness, I should note

that their quarterback, Cam Newton, did lead Blinn College to a junior college national championship in 2009, so there is an understandable reason why some here may want to root for the Panthers. In my humble opinion, the hometown ties with Sanders trumps that – just sayin’. Many are saying that this Super Bowl is Peyton Manning’s swan song. He is the oldest quarterback to lead a team to the Super Bowl and I hope to God he goes out a champion. It’s only fitting for the man who owns so many NFL records. In the meantime, the Houston Texans and the rest of the NFL can only sit back and dream about what might have been and what still can be. Next year Houston hosts Super Bowl 51. No home team has ever hosted the big game, but maybe that will change. I hope so. It would be glorious to see and to celebrate. Until then, go Broncos!

PAGE 4 ■ THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2016

YOUR

FAITHFAMILY&FUN Credit public notices for alerting us to solid waste composting facility

The Sealy News is posing the following question to our readers: Who do you plan to vote for in the race for Austin County Tax Assessor/Collector? • Marcus Pena • Kim Rinn

Last week’s question was: Who do you plan to vote for in the race for Austin County Commissioner, Precinct 1? • Allen Kaminski 45.9% • Mark Lamp 32.9% • Reese Turner 21.2% Number of votes: 84 Log on to www.sealynews.com to let your voice be heard. We will bring you the results of this poll and a new question every Thursday.

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If you have not heard yet, SouthWaste Disposal, LLC, based in Houston wants to build a municipal solid waste composting facility just off Interstate 10 east of Sealy between San Felipe and Brazos Country. Located at the eastern gateway to Austin County, visitors and residents alike will be greeted by the sights and smells of a facility that will process grease trap waste, septic, sewage and sludge, dairy and food including meat and fish, and bulk material like chipped and shredded wood and vegetation, according to a permit application filed with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Public officials area already lining up to oppose the permit and to battle construction of the facility. Many of them had just learned about it last week when approached by The Sealy News for comment. The only reason they or any of us are aware of it today is because of required public notices they had to publish in this newspaper. The only other public notice was placed in the library in Bellville roughly 18 miles away and out of sight. Although most people tend to glaze over or completely ignore public notices in the newspaper, they do serve a very important function. This is proof. Had we not known of the proposal by SouthWaste Disposal and its application to the TCEQ, it could have gone on very quietly and without opposition. Yet newspapers must continuously battle governments to keep publishing these notices. There are continual efforts to try and move the notices online only or to eliminate them altogether. It’s a huge headache each time the state Legislature meets. So far we have been successful, and that is to your benefit. We encourage you to take the time to read these notices and to stand with us in the fight to keep

government open, transparent and honest. And it’s not just the government but big business as well. If you don’t want to see and smell this facility, now is your time to be heard. You can address your comments to: Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Office of the Chief Clerk, MC-105, P.O. Box 13087, Austin, TX 78711-3087, or leave them online (your name and email address will become a part of the public record) at www. tceq.texas.gov/about/comments. html. For the time being, the permit notice advises any displeased residents to request a public meeting to submit comments and concerns, but warns that it is not a contested case hearing. Anyone who believes they may be affected by the facility can request a contested hearing from the commission, which is a legal proceeding similar to a civil trial. And while you’re at it, be sure to remember where you heard about it first and keep it in mind when your government officials and lawmakers make moves to remove public notices from newspapers. You don’t want that to happen.

JOE SOUTHERN Managing Editor

For Houston Texans fans, I can only imagine how it felt to watch their former coach and several other former coaches and players hoist the Lombardi Trophy in triumph – wearing Denver Broncos uniforms. As the undisputed best Broncos fan in the region, I can tell you that it felt great! I had so many fears that this game would go for the Broncos the way five others have gone before, including their last one two years ago against Seattle. Denver has the No. 1 defense in the NFL and as the saying goes, defense wins Super Bowls. Watching Cam Newton strug-

gle with the Carolina Panthers reminded me so much of watching John Elway in his first three Super Bowls. Elway carried the team to the title game on his arm strength alone. He and the Denver faithful learned the hard way that a powerful offense isn’t enough. Peyton Manning has struggled to lead the Denver offense all year. He missed games to injury and just hasn’t been the prolific passer of old. Yet he was good enough to move Denver ahead while the defense kept them from ever falling behind. Manning now has a chance to do what Elway did – walk away a champion. I hope he does. I’d hate to see him struggle through a disastrous season and go out injured or benched. I have to say that this victory isn’t nearly as emotional as the first one in Super Bowl XXXII when the Broncos punched into the win column by beating the Green Bay Packers. There is nothing like getting the monkey of four Super Bowl losses off your back. Still, it feels great and sure beats losing. I also can’t help but feel Newton and the Panthers will return to the big game. Of course, the same thing was said of Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins. I just hope that Newton will mature and learn lessons in integrity and leadership by then. He was a sore loser and made no bones about it. He sets an awful example for children and fans and doesn’t deserve to win if he can’t handle losing. It’s all part of the game we call life.

at his request to the governor regarding an opening on the Texas Board of Professional Engineers. This letter was not an endorsement of Mr. Young for that position, nor was it an endorsement for County Republican Chairman. I communicated to Mr. Young my request that he not use the letter for that purpose. I have known H.W. “Buddy” Koenig for quite some time and I

have known him to be a professional and thoughtful leader. He has a great amount of thoughtful experience in service to his community and to the Republican Party. While I am not making an endorsement in this race and know the voters of Austin County will make the right choice, I owe it to the people of Austin County to set the record straight. Leighton Schubert Representative, District 13

Super Bowl 50

LETTERSTOTHEEDITOR Letter for Young was not endorsement Dear Editor, It is my policy to not make endorsements in House District 13 primary races this year and have not done so in the race for Austin County Republican Chairman. I was surprised to read in a newspaper that Marc Young referred to a letter that I wrote

CAPITALHIGHLIGHTS Supreme Court halts EPA pollution rule Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Feb. 9 heralded the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 order that put on hold a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule requiring power producers to cut back on the release of pollutants emitted mainly from coal-burning operations. In reacting to the order, Paxton and West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, the leaders of a coalition of 29 states and state agencies, declared victory over the rule referred to as the Obama Administration’s “Clean Power Plan” or as the EPA “Carbon Pollution Emission Guidelines for Existing Stationary Sources: Electric Utility Generating Units.” Texas and West Virginia originally challenged the rule on Oct. 23, 2015, the day it was published in the Federal Register. The coalition requested a halt to rule on Jan. 26. Coalition members argue that the Clean Power Plan “fundamentally changes the nation’s energy policy in violation of federal law,” according to Paxton. “The Obama Administration clearly exceeded its authority in imposing this plan, which would cost taxpayers and consumers alike hard-earned money in exchange

for less-reliable service,” Paxton added. However, EPA Director Gina McCarthy said she “remains fully confident in the legal merits of this rule” and that the rule “squarely fits within the Clean Air Act.” In accordance with the Supreme Court order, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has been scheduled to hear oral arguments on the merits of the case on June 2.

Tax revenue to be sent Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar on Feb. 10 announced that his office would send cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose taxing districts $867.1 million in local sales tax allocations for February. The amount, based on sales made in December 2015, is 0.7 percent less than the amount distributed in February 2015. “Energy-centric cities such as Odessa, Midland, Corpus Christi and Houston continued to see decreases in sales tax allocation,” Hegar said, but added that other areas of the state “helped to somewhat offset those losses as cities such as San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth and Dallas saw moderate increases in allocations.”

ED STERLING Texas Press Association

Texas leads in exports Last week the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released a report ranking Texas as the top exporting state in the nation for the 14th consecutive year. Gov. Greg Abbott on Feb. 9 praised the state’s performance and said, “This year I plan to lead more business development missions to bolster our state’s economy and create opportunities for Texas businesses to further compete in the global marketplace.” Abbott pinpointed three facts in the report: - Texas exported more than $251 billion in goods in 2015; - Texas exports alone accounted for more than 16 percent of U.S. goods exported in 2015 and for the third year in a row; and - Texas surpassed California for high-tech exports for the third year in a row.