Feds increase southern NM's commercial zone 30 miles

From Alamogordo Daily News - by Milan Simonich, Texas-New Mexico Newspapers - New Mexico's southern border will become broader in terms of the customer base. U.S. Customs and Border Protection on Friday submitted a rule change that will extend the border commercial zone in New Mexico from 25 to 55 miles.
     It means that shoppers and diners from Mexico will be able to venture into Las Cruces, Deming and Lordsburg, the three largest New Mexico cities on the border. Mexican nationals who have undergone background, fingerprint and security checks can obtain Border Crossing Cards that will give them access to all three towns.
     El Paso, snug against Mexico, already is positioned for border commerce. Tucson, Ariz., also had an edge over the New Mexico cities, even though it is further from the Mexican border. That is because the former Immigration and Naturalization Service in 1999 issued a rule permitting a border zone up to 75 miles in Arizona. More

Feds increase southern NM's commercial zone 30 miles

Lightning caused fire burns 400 acres in the Gila Forest

From KOB-TV.com - By: Shaun Griswold, KOB.com - A fire ignited by lightning in the Gila National Forest on Friday has now burned more than 400 acres. The Sillver Fire is located about 7 miles southwest of Kingston, NM and is now considered a Type II incident.
     Firefighters have not been able to access the fire from the ground due to extreme rough terrain. Two air tankers and two helicopters are working the fire today. Air suppression efforts yesterday did not stop the fire’s spread. Smoke is visible from Highway 152 and Silver City.
     Today crews are mopping up the Indian and Papoose Fires, also lightning caused. Both fires burned about 80 acres each near Hillsboro Peak, roughly 10 miles northwest of the Silver Fire. New Mexico 152 from 35 miles east of Bayard at mile marker 16 to 28.8 miles west of Hillsboro at mile marker 24 is closed due to the fire. More

Lightning caused fire burns 400 acres in the Gila Forest

AG bows out of same-sex marriage fight

NM Attorney General Gary King

From KRQE-TV.com - by Gabrielle Burkhart - The much anticipated opinion from Attorney General Gary King on same-sex marriage in New Mexico turned out to be no opinion. "The policy of this office generally prohibits us from issuing opinions in cases where the same issue has been raised in court," said King at a press conference Thursday.
     King was asked to weigh in a couple of months ago after Santa Fe city officials claimed same-sex marriage is legal in New Mexico because state marriage law is not gender-specific. They said county clerks should start issuing marriage licenses to gay couples.
     However, King said after legal research by his staff, he cannot say definitely that state law allows same sex marriage. King said he personally supports it, but that the courts or the Legislature must decide the issue. At least one lawsuit is pending. King's no call is a major disappointment for supporters of same sex marriage. They're calling it a delay of justice for gay couples.
     "We cannot state definitively that state law currently permits same sex marriage," said King.  According to Santa Fe City Attorney Geno Zamora, the announcement is a disappointment. "The attorney general had an opportunity to single-handedly end discrimination against our brothers, sisters and children, and didn't," Zamora told KRQE News 13. Read more

AG bows out of same-sex marriage fight

Swickard: Working at getting and keeping jobs

© 2013 Michael Swickard, Ph.D. These are tough times on some American citizens. Jobs are harder to get for many Americans than they were a few years ago. The economy has turned somewhat sour. Yet, there are other Americans who find this the best of times. They are making money and building a business. Go figure. They have gone against the tide of everyone else and done well despite the market.
     In the midst of all the economic bad news some Americans are starting businesses that are thriving. They are taking a chance and working very hard. For some Americans they are hitting the jackpot. Yes, others may be slipping down the porcelain convenience. It is capitalism where those who satisfy the customers best usually do the best in business.
     That needs to be the American motto: you can still do well in America. And you can. There are important factors which include being business smart, working hard and having some luck. Does luck play a part? Yes, especially if you equate luck with smarts and hard work. There is a correlation but as my stats professor drummed into our minds, correlation does not infer causation.
     Advice is like lice, better to keep to oneself. But I must offer this advice to those who are unemployed and have been for an extended time. It seems to me I have spoken with a number of Americans in the last couple of years who seem to not know the game. What is the game? To get and keep a job there must be a fair trade between employer and employee. If either in this transaction are abused then something bad will happen to both.
     What makes and made capitalism so powerful is that it runs on satisfied customers. If either party in the transaction is not satisfied, it is not capitalism; rather, it is something else. Read full column

Swickard: Working at getting and keeping jobs

Man arrested for child pornography is linked to Governor's email hijacking

Jason Loera

From KOB-TV.com - by Gadi Schwartz, KOB Eyewitness News 4 - A political operative arrested for child pornography has been linked to the hijacking of Governor Susana Martinez's campaign emails. FBI search warrants obtained on Wednesday served on Google show the email account under the fictitious name Omar Ravenhurst was created and maintained by a user associated with an IP address assigned to Jason Loera of Albuquerque.
     The email activity also showed several batches of hijacked emails being sent between the Ravenhurst address and a Gmail account in Loera's name. According to search warrants, when the FBI raided Loera's home they found several CD's of child pornography depicting children who looked to be under the age of 12 having sex and masturbating.
     Court records show Loera was arrested on a traffic bench warrant by State Police on the day his house was raided. Loera is a democrat political operative who at one time worked for the campaign of Congressman Ben Ray Lujan.
     Loera has also been linked to the current Democratic Party Chairman Sam Bregman. According to the search warrant, an unnamed attorney believed to be Bregman used a hijacked email from Omar Ravenhurst to help a client in a lawsuit against the state. Read more

Man arrested for child pornography is linked to Governor's email hijacking

Fort Hood suspect says he was protecting Taliban

Maj. Nidal Hasan

NewsNM Swickard - We are told by the Administration that this was workplace violence. From the El Paso Times - by ANGELA. BROWN - FORT HOOD, Texas (AP) - An Army psychiatrist charged with gunning down Fort Hood soldiers said Tuesday his defense would show that he was compelled to do so because deploying U.S. troops posed an imminent danger to Taliban fighters.
     The military judge asked Maj. Nidal Hasan if he has evidence to support his "defense of others" strategy, hinting that it could be thrown out. Such a defense requires Hasan to prove the 2009 killings were necessary to protect others from immediate harm or death, and military law experts not involved in the case said the judge is unlikely to allow him to present that defense.
     "A 'defense of others' strategy is not going to work when you're at war and the 'others' are enemies of the U.S.," said Jeff Addicott, director of the Center for Terrorism Law at St. Mary's University in San Antonio. "And what makes it more egregious is that he targeted medical personnel whose primary purpose was to heal, not to kill."
     While Hasan's argument may have been a bit more sympathetic if he said the rampage was necessary to protect Muslim women and children, that defense strategy does not apply in a war situation, said Lisa M. Windsor, a retired Army colonel and former judge advocate. Still, it's unclear what Hasan may present because attorneys are not allowed to give evidence themselves, said Windsor, an attorney specializing in military law. Read more

Fort Hood suspect says he was protecting Taliban

PRC finds ticket insurance company fraudulent

From KOB-TV.com - By: Jill Galus, KOB Eyewitness News 4 - he New Mexico Public Regulation Commission's Division of Insurance is taking action to shut down www.ticketsbite.com after a KOB Eyewitness News 4 investigation. The PRC has been looking into the company for more than a month now and issued a cease and desist order last week, which said, Ticketsbite LLC has no business doing business here in New Mexico.
     If you are a driver who has a hard time obeying the law, traffic ticket protection may look like the answer to your problems. For anywhere from $50 to $200 a year, Ticketsbite LLC offers to cover fines for everything from speeding to running red lights, and just about anything in between.
     But John Gaherty says that is where all the problems actually start. "We are not going to tolerate this kind of business in New Mexico," Gaherty said. Gaherty said Ticketsbite LLC is selling insurance, but without the right qualifications, the polices are fake.
     The PRC sent a letter to the company's P.O. Box address in Las Vegas, Nev. about a month ago. Gaherty said the PRC received a roundabout response. "It was vague, ambiguous, they indicate they're not selling insurance, they're selling vouchers, but yet their website has insurance plastered all over it," Gaherty said. "Our inquiry letter asked specific questions, for example, how many policy holders do you have in New Mexico, and they didn't answer all of that... they didn't answer any question."
     Two weeks ago, KOB contacted the company's co-founder, Chris Thomas, over the phone. Thomas explained, "We really operate like a voucher system." At the same time, he agreed, the word "voucher" is not used anywhere on the website. "A lot of states, they don't view providing insurance for traffic tickets as a legal way of doing business," Thomas added.
     The PRC is making that same point, that it is not legal. Read more

PRC finds ticket insurance company fraudulent

1,200-acre fire near Jemez Springs forces evacuations

From KOAT-TV.com - The Thompson fire was first reported Friday afternoon. Fire officials said the fire has reached 1,200 acres in size. The fire started on private land and has burned onto some federal Forest Service property. Crews report fire is creeping along the ground with occasional tree torching.
     Resident Lisa Yost said the fire started next door to her home. "My husband, Craig, said it was a power line between our house and the neighbor's house, and it went down and caught the grass on fire," said Yost.
     Strong winds and dry conditions quickly fanned the fire, prompting firefighters to force evacuation in 40 homes. "We just went in and got as much out of the house as we could, and they told us we need to leave because the helicopters were coming in and they wouldn’t dump while we were there," said Yost.
     Officials said no homes have been lost. Nearly 100 fire personnel were fighting the fire into the evening Friday. Read more

1,200-acre fire near Jemez Springs forces evacuations

Swickard: The age’s most uncertain hour

© 2013 Michael Swickard, Ph.D. “We come on a ship they call the Mayflower, we come on a ship that sailed the moon. We come in the age’s most uncertain hour and sing an American tune.” Paul Simon
     In these most uncertain hours some Americans wonder how our nation got to this point politically and as a society. They wonder with concern where America is headed. The question is: are things in our country going to get better or worse? The problem is even agreeing on what is better or worse.
      One definition of better or worse involves the freedom of citizens to make their own decisions. This measures the intrusive reach of government into our lives. Some citizens give up their personal freedoms in trade for being in the care of our government. Others are afraid that at some point the government will have no more use for them. The Government might literally kill those citizens who do not allow the government to get stronger. It has happened in other societies.
     So there is a divide in our country of citizens very worried and other citizens, in fact, most citizens who seem to be paying no attention at all to the desperate clouds on our horizon. They pray to the God Media and do not believe anything the propaganda Media does not endorse.
     It is a most uncertain hour for America. I personally have been through decades of uncertain hours but these hours seem very dangerous. When I was a child our whole world was minutes away from everyone perishing in a nuclear cloud of debris. We practiced nuclear attack drills in schools: under our desks.
These concerns are not as pernicious a threat as complete annihilation. But if I had died decades ago, I would have died a free person. Is it better to die young and free than live long and enslaved? Optimism seems out of place in a society that controls neither its borders nor its currency.
     Perhaps what makes this the most uncertain hour is there are no leaders of either party who grasp the dangers to our country. They are still jousting with each other for their own political power and do not face these potential disasters unless they can use the potential disasters as a political stick to strike their opponents. Read column

Swickard: The age’s most uncertain hour

Tim Keller for State Auditor in 2014, not Governor

From Capitol Report New Mexico - You can count state Sen. Tim Keller, D-Albuquerque, out as a potential rival to Gov. Susana Martinez in 2014.
     The 35-year-old who won a second term in what’s known as the International District in north-central Albuquerque in 2012, told New Mexico Watchdog Thursday afternoon (May 30) he’ll run for State Auditor in 2014.
     “I think it’s a good fit for my background,” Sen. Keller, who earned a master’s in business administration from Harvard. “I think that I have enough experience that I know where to look” to investigate agencies and oversee the audits the office mandates that entities who accept and/or receive state dollars turn in each year.
     Keller had flirted with the idea of challenging Gov. Martinez, a Republican who will run for a second term next year and has enjoyed poll numbers showing her at 60-plus percent approval ratings.
      “I think the biggest issue is timing,” Keller said, citing the fact that his wife is eight months pregnant with the couple’s first child.
     “To run for governor, you have to be ‘all in’ yesterday,” Keller said. “The timing is not right.” Read more

Tim Keller for State Auditor in 2014, not Governor