Column writing 2015 by TheSealyNews

PAGE 4 ■ THURSDAY, APRIL 9, 2015

YOUR Should humans return to the moon first or go directly to Mars? • Return to the moon for more training and experience, then go to Mars • Go directly to Mars • Don't go to either

Last week’s question was: What do you think should become of the Astrodome? • It should be redeveloped and preserved as an historic landmark 60.3% • Tear it down 36.2% • I don't know 3.4% Number of votes: 57 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 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 Christopher Coffman 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 classifieds@sealynews.com Managing Editor, Joe Southern editor@sealynews.com Reporter, Lance Hagood reporter@sealynews.com Sports, Steven Schroeder spschroeder06@aol.com Advertising, Denise Sherwood sales@sealynews.com Circulation, Sandra Weeber ■ DEADLINES The deadline for editorial submissions is Monday at noon for the Thursday edition. Retail and Classified display deadlines are Friday at noon for the Thursday edition. The deadline for classified word ads is noon on Monday 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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Birds are colorful, rare and beautiful beyond description

The Sealy News is posing the following question to our readers:

U.S. Senator Ted Cruz B40B Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510 (202) 224-5922

OPINIONS SEALY NEWS

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 © 2015 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. © 2015 Sealy Publications Inc. All Rights Reserved

I’ve never gotten rich being a journalist, but sometimes this job pays you in ways that money can never match. March 30 was one of those days. I met wildlife refuge specialist John Magera at oh-darkthirty at the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge to go and photograph some of the magnificent birds. This was the second year that John has escorted me on a photo tour of the refuge. When we met last year, I was pretty naïve about the birds, the prairie and the refuge. I was also very underequipped with my photographic gear. This year, thanks to a zoom lens borrowed from my friend Mack Womack, I was better equipped. We headed out in a van across miles of dirt trails to remote parts of the refuge where John believed the birds would be. It was dawn and the sun wasn’t yet breaking through heavy clouds. Each lek (open area of low vegetation) came up dry. We saw deer, an alligator, numerous other birds but no Attwater’s prairie chickens. After some time we finally came up on one of the birds, but it was a ways off and the lighting was terrible. A short while later we came across a young male strutting along the roadside. We snapped a few shots before he moved on. By this time the veil of clouds parted and some good morning sunlight was engulfing the prairie in a golden glow. Traveling down the road, three of the birds entered our path. A male was lost in exuberance trying to woo two hens. We stopped and took pictures. We crept closer and took more pictures. The hens were wary of us and kept retreating. The male was oblivious to our advances. It was fun watching him inflate his yellow-orange air sacs, raise the earlike pinnae on

JOE SOUTHERN Faith, Family and Fun

his head, spread his wings and tail and rapidly tap his feet on the ground. We could hear his footfalls and his birdsong was mesmerizing. We sat there for several minutes, John and his Canon and me and my Nikon, clicking off dozens of frames as the birds put on a spectacular show. Finally, one of the hens flew off and a couple minutes later the other followed. The male stayed on their tails and our private viewing party came to an end. Little did we know that the main attraction was about to begin. We drove to the main lek, a watering hole with lush, green grass around it, and found at least a half dozen Attwater’s prairie chickens booming – their mating dance – like their lives depended on it. Two of the birds in particular were locked in a territorial dance-off. The postured and danced and went after each other for a long time. Parked just a few short yards from the birds, we had a field day taking pictures. The sights and sounds were surreal. I comment-

ed about the embarrassment of riches we were experiencing. Here we were, surrounded by a significantly large portion of the few surviving wild Attwater’s prairie chickens in the world, watching them boom in a magical display of song and dance that 99 percent of the world’s population will never get to see. The refuge is home to the largest population of the endangered bird and it only has about 100 or so. Come fall when captive bred birds are released the population will swell to around 400. Still, that goes to show how incredibly rare and endangered these birds are. And here we were getting a private show, up close and personal, though as if God had chosen only the two of us out of the billions of humans on the planet to be witness to this rare and fine exhibition. To top it off, he bathed us in golden sunlight and wrapped us in a slight breeze that made the morning perfect. I felt truly blessed and incredibly grateful to John for taking me out and to Mack for loaning me his camera lens. If you wish to view this spectacular sight, come to the Attwater’s Prairie Chicken Festival on April 11-12. Come early, by 7 a.m., if you want to make the most of the opportunity and have your best chance to see this once-in-a-lifetime display. You can also book a tour, but the festival will give you many other things to enjoy on your visit. The refuge is just down FM 3013, about halfway between Sealy and Eagle Lake.

stadium filled with friends and family to cheer them on as they walk around the track. If you have a special survivor in your life, bring a poster to show them how special they are in your life. Posters made by children are always wonderful to look at – their artwork is from the heart! There is no need to cook that day – we will have the concession stand open, and other teams will also be serving food and non-alcoholic beverages to keep you hydrated during the day. Our activities committee has all kinds of games and contests to keep kids of all ages entertained, and there are silent auctions, raffles, photo booth, and other fun things to enjoy. After the sun has set, we will have our luminaria

ceremony at 9 p.m. This is a very emotional part of the event. The track will be lined with hundreds of white bags – these will have names of people who have or have had cancer. Some of the bags have photos of the person named-some are decorated with stickers or hand-drawn pictures. As the lights are turned out in the stadium, the bags will glow from candlelight. There will be a ceremony, perhaps with special music or poems. The stadium will be especially quiet during this time. It is a time to reflect on how cancer has affected your life. Please join us on this very special day. Thanking you in advance for your attendance, Janice Hugo Wied, team captain of Hugo’s Hot Rods

The Sealy News/JOE SOUTHERN

An Attwater's prairie chicken in booming mode.

LETTERSTOTHEEDITOR Join the Relay for Life on May 2 Dear Editor, By the time you read this, it will be less than a month until Relay for Life of Austin County. Our event takes place on Saturday, May 2, at Bellville High School football stadium. We have our opening ceremony at noon, and will be there until 10 p.m. There is no admission fee for attending Relay, but we are collecting canned goods for the local food pantry, if you would like to participate in that. At our opening ceremony, all the cancer survivors will make a special lap around the track by themselves, or with their caregiver. We would love to have the

CAPITALHIGHLIGHTS

House passes $209.8B budget After 17 hours of floor debate and hundreds of amendments considered, the Texas House of Representatives on April 1 passed House Bill 1, a state budget for fiscal years 2016 and 2017 that appropriates $209.8 billion. The vote was 141 in favor to 5 against, with nay votes cast by Reps. David Simpson, R-Longview; Matt Schaefer, R-Tyler; freshman Matt Rinaldi, R-Irving; freshman Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington; and freshman Molly White, R-Belton. The House version of the state budget, a 3.8 percent increase over the current 2014-2015 state budget, draws no funds from the Economic Stabilization (“rainy day”) Fund. Senate concurrence with the HB 1 is necessary for the state budget to be finally adopted. SB 2, the Senate version of 2016-2017 state budget, has been pending in the Senate Finance Committee since March 25. On April 1, on a vote of 148-0, the House also passed HB 2,

supplemental appropriations and funding adjustments for various state agencies. Notably, the legislation, in addition to amounts previously appropriated for 2014- 2015, appropriates some $768 million out of the general revenue fund to the Teacher Retirement System to prevent the impending insolvency of the state agency’s TRSCare health care fund. House Appropriations Committee Chair John Otto, R-Dayton, the primary author of HB 1 and HB 2, stood true to his Feb. 25 House floor announcement, in which he said the House would fully fund health care for retired public school employees and their dependents.

Bills gain Senate approval SB 20 by Senate Finance Chair Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, would amend the rules state agencies must obey in making contracts with private sector vendors. Nelson’s bill would: require the creation of a centralized

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clearinghouse at the Office of Comptroller to keep a record of all contracts signed by state agencies; require state agencies to post active contracts and proposed contracts on their state website; require state agencies to keep documentation relating to a contract for four years after it ends; and require state agency heads to personally sign off on all contracts worth more than $1 million. SB 6 by Sen. Larry Taylor, R-Galveston, would remold the current system used to rate schools in terms ranging from “exemplary” to “unacceptable” and replace it with an “A” through “F” rating system to begin in 2017.

PAGE 4 ■ THURSDAY, JULY 2, 2015

YOUR

OPINIONS

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SEALY NEWS

Brad Meltzer’s big secret

REVEALED! The Sealy News is posing the following question to our readers: How do you feel about last week's Supreme Court ruling on same-sex marriage? • I'm in favor of it • I'm opposed to it • It doesn't affect me either way

Last week’s question was: This week marks the third week of The Sealy News' hurricane preparedness sections. How prepared are you if a hurricane strikes? • Very ready 15% • Mostly ready 30% • I'll get ready when the time comes 55% Number of votes: 19 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 Krisha Langton 415 Main Street Sealy, Texas 77474 (979) 885-3511 Sealy ISD Superintendent Sheryl Moore 939 Tiger Lane, Sealy, Texas 77474 (979) 885-3516

Brad Meltzer has a secret. He has lots of secrets. Secrets are how he makes a living. He recently shared one of his biggest secrets with me. Before I tell you what it is, let me give you some background. Although I haven’t met Brad in person, he first called me several years ago while he was doing research on his book “Heroes for My Son.” He was looking for information about The Lone Ranger and at the time I was the owner of the Lone Ranger Fan Club. Having never heard of him, I popped his name into Google and became an instant fan. Today we are friends. We occasionally chat by email and Facebook and last Friday by phone. Granted, it was set up as a media interview as he is on a nationwide book tour promoting “The President’s Shadow.” It’s the third book in his Culper Ring trilogy. Meltzer is a prolific author with several thrillers, children’s books, non-fiction books, comic books and more to his name. This is in addition to being a television star who is working on his second series for the History Channel. Meltzer is America’s nooks and crannies historian. He has a knack for taking trivial bits of history and combining them with real, secret places in the Capital, White House and national monuments and telling wild, mind-blowing stories that blend fact and fiction and leave you wondering which characters you can trust and believe. He does all of this by using mundane people like archivists and congressional staffers and aides. Using the first-person narrative for his protagonists, Meltzer is able to plant doubts and plot twists in unique ways. The main protagonist in the Culper Ring series is Beecher White who is an archivist at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. Beecher joins the Culper Ring at the end of the first book, “The Inner Circle.” The Culper Ring is a real spy network created by George Washington and used to help him win the Revolutionary War. In Beecher’s world, the ring is a secret society that serves to pro-

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Brad Meltzer tect the presidency (not necessarily the President). Beecher’s exploits continue in “The Fifth Assassin” and again in “The President’s Shadow.” The main antagonist is a would-be presidential assassin named Nico Hadrian. Like the real-life John Hinckley, Nico became a patient in a mental hospital after he was found not guilty by reason of insanity in an attempt to assassinate the President. He is accompanied by the ghost of the first lady, whom he did kill. What makes Meltzer’s books so fascinating is his insider’s knowledge of the workings of the Secret Service and government facilities such as the National Archives and the White House. The degree of detail Meltzer uses makes it seem like he’s spilling national secrets. The truth is, the information he shares comes directly from the Secret Service and former Presidents. “The Secret Service has been helping me for 16 years,” he said. An army of professionals share “secret” details with him. He has forged relationships built on trust. They show him secret rooms and passages and share stories so real and bizarre that they become plot twists in the novels. An agent told Meltzer that the covert details in his books can easily be found by terrorists or any other conspiracy group out there. “That’s their way of saying ‘you’re not that smart, Meltzer,’” he said. He said in 16 years he has

never broken his word or shared privileged information. He does learn the weird stuff by asking, “What’s the craziest moment that nobody knows about?” “Agents are just like anyone else. They get tired of turning on TV or going to the movies and seeing it all wrong,” Meltzer said. He carefully vets information with his sources to make sure everyone is comfortable with it before it goes to print. They always are because Meltzer’s novels are a work of fiction. “A novel is just a lie that masquerades as the truth,” he said. One of the underlying currents of the books is Beecher dealing with the loss of his father, just like Meltzer. “It’s not just Beecher’s journey, it’s very much my journey,” he said. Fatherhood is important to Meltzer. It’s what led him to write “Heroes for My Son,” “Heroes for My Daughter” and his series of “I am …” children’s books based on different historical figures. “I got tired of my own kids looking at reality TV stars and thinking that’s their heroes,” he said. His books about Abraham Lincoln, Jackie Robinson, Helen Keller and others “always tell the stories of them when they’re kids – who they were when they were nobodies.” He said it serves as inspiration. “This is what we’re capable of on our very best days,” he said. On his best days, Meltzer is like Beecher, although “Beecher is far smarter than I am … more dangerous than I am.” And that brings us to Meltzer’s big secret. The books aren’t about Beecher. They’re about a character introduced in an earlier fourth book called “The Book of Fate.” “As for Nico, it’s always been the story,” he said.

CAPITALHIGHLIGHTS

Officials react to decision on federal health care law Pursuant to a 6-3 decision by the United States Supreme Court on June 25, health insurance policies will stay on course for Texans who secured coverage through a federally facilitated exchange under the U.S. Affordable Care Act. The high court, in ruling against the plaintiffs in the case King v. Burwell, upheld the constitutionality of a federal tax credit that pays a portion of the cost of a policy. After the decision was announced, Gov. Greg Abbott said, “The Supreme Court abandoned the Constitution to resuscitate a failing healthcare law. Today’s action underscores why it is now more important than ever to ensure we elect a president who will repeal Obamacare and enact real healthcare reforms.” Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick also reacted, saying, “I am extremely disappointed that the Supreme Court of the United States has once again sided with President Obama’s disastrous healthcare legislation.” And Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said, “This is unfortunate news for the millions of Americans who have experienced first-hand the devastating effects Obamacare has had on their families and businesses.” Stacey Pogue of the Center for Public Policy Priorities, an independent Austin-based research organization, said, “This ruling means that the 832,000 Texans

whose subsidies pay 75 percent of the cost of their premiums on average will continue to have access to affordable health insurance.” Currently, Pogue said, some 3 million Texans are “potentially eligible for federal Marketplace coverage.” In March, when the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in King v. Burwell, various news sources reported national enrollment in “Obamacare” totaled 11.7 million people. In his June 26 address welcoming the high court’s decision, President Obama said 16 million Americans who were uninsured before, now have health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

Court rules on same-sex marriage The U.S. Supreme Court on June 26 ruled 5-4 in Obergefell v. Hodges, invalidating state bans that prevent the recognition of marriages of same-sex couples. Gov. Abbott reacted, saying, “Despite the Supreme Court’s rulings, Texans’ fundamental right to religious liberty remains protected. No Texan is required by the Supreme Court’s decision to act contrary to his or her religious beliefs regarding marriage.” Lt. Gov. Patrick said, “The Supreme Court, as it has in the past, is making law. I do not believe that is what the Constitution intended or allows.

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In my view, this is a clear violation of the separation of powers.” On June 28, Attorney General Paxton posted Opinion No. KP-0025, Re: Rights of government officials involved with issuing same-sex marriage licenses and conducting same-sex wedding ceremonies. Paxton’s summary of the opinion says: “County clerks and their employees retain religious freedoms that may provide accommodation of their religious objections to issuing same-sex marriage licenses. Justices of the peace and judges also may claim that the government forcing them to conduct same-sex wedding ceremonies over their religious objections, particularly when other authorized individuals have no objection to conducting such ceremonies, is not the least restrictive means of furthering any compelling governmental interest in ensuring that such ceremonies occur. Importantly, the strength of any particular religious accommodation claim depends on the particular facts of each case.”