Polk County Enterprise (Livingston, Tex.), Vol. 127, No. 52, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 2, 2009 Page: 4 of 18
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PAGE 4A
OPINIONS
THE POLK COUNTY ENTERPRISE
THURSDAY, JULY 2,790$
The Fourth of July is now
a celebration of agitation
A re you an agitator? You
know, one of those
JL \.people who won't leave
well enough alone, who's always
questioning authority and trying to
stir things up.
If so, the Powers That Be detest
you - you... you... “agitator!”They
spit the term out as a pejorative to
brand anyone who dares to challenge
the established order. "Oh.” they
scoff, “our people didn’t mind liv ing
next to that toxic waste dump until
those environmental agitators got
them upset.” Corporate chieftains
routinely wail that “our workers
were perfectly happy until those
union agitators started messing
with their minds.”
In each case, the message is that
America would be a fine country
if only we could gel rid of those
pesky troublemakers who get
the hoi polloi agitated about one
thing or another.
Bovine excrement. Were it not for
agitators, we wouldn't even have an
America. The Fourth of July would
be just another hot day, we’d be
singing “God Save the Queen," and
our government officials would be
wearing white-powdered wigs.
Agitators created America, and
it’s their feisty spirit and outright
rebelliousness that we celebrate on
our national holiday. 1 don’t merely
refer to the Founders, either. Thomas
Jefferson, George Washington,
James Madison, Ben J ranklin and
the rest certainly were derring-
do agitators when they wrote the
Declaration of Independence, the
Constitution and the Bill of Rights,
creating the framework for a
democratic republic.
But they didn’t actually create
much democracy. In the first
presidential election, only 4 percent
of the people were even eligible to
vote. No women allowed, no African
Americans, no American Indians
and no one who was landless.
So, on the Fourth, it’s neither
the documents of democracy that
we celebrate nor the authors of
the documents. Rather, it's the
intervening two-plus centuries of
ordinary American agitators who
have struggled mightily against
formidable odds to democratize
those documents.
America’s great rebellion didn’t
end with the British surrender at
Yorktown. It was only getting
started — and the rebellion has
moved through such great forces
of agitation as the abolitionists and
suffragists, Sojourner Truth and
Frederick Douglass, the Populists
and the Wobblics, Fighting Bob La
Follette and Huey I .ong, the Square
Deal and New Deal, Mother Jones
and Woodie Guthrie, Rachel Carson
and Ralph Nader. Martin Luther
King Jr. and Cesar Chavez - and
on into today’s continuing fight for
economic fairness, social justice
Jim Hightower
and equal opportunity for all.
Without agitators battling
in politics, on the job, in
the marketplace, for the
environment, on Wall Street, in
education, for civil liberties and
rights, and all across our society,
democratic progress doesn’t just
stall, it falls back.
The Powers That Be - especially
America’s overarching corporate
and political forces (often the same)
- give lip service to democracy, but
tend toward plutocracy, autocracy
and kleptocracy.
They prefer (and often demand)
that We the People be passive
consumers of their economic and
political policies. Don’t rock the
boat, stay in your place, go along to
get along - be quiet, they urge.
Be quiet? Holy Thomas Paine!
How could freedom-loving,
democratic citizens shrink into
quietude, especially when the
Powers That Be feel so entitled to
run roughshod over us? Even a dead
fish can go with the flow. We’ve got
to be livelier than that.
July Fourth is a time to enjoy
fireworks, flags, hotdogs, ballgames
and such -- but it’s also a time to
remember who we are: agitators!
It’s not easy to stand against
powerful interests. Sometimes it’s
lonely, and you get to feeling like
the guy B.B. King sings about: “No
one likes you but your momma,
and she might be jiving you, too.”
It’s not easy, but having those who
dare to stand up is essential if our
country is ever to achieve our ideals
of fairness, justice and opportunity
for all.
And when the establishment
derisively assails you as an agitator,
remember this: The agitator is the
center post in the washing machine
that gets the dirt out.
To find out more about Jim
Hightower, and read features
by other Creators Syndicate
writers and cartoonists, visit
the Creators Syndicate web
page at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2009 CREATORS
SYNDICATE INC.
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Gov. calls for a1
special session,
to begin July 1:
AUSTIN -- Gov. Rick Perry on June 25
summoned the 81 st Texas Legislature back to:
Austin for a special session to begin July I. [
“After speaking with legislators I am calling,
a special session to extend the operation of*
five critical agencies and help reduce gridlockc
by continuing to provide options for financing;
• ■ • i . ii n___J
State | Capital i'
When traditions die memories become sweeter
w
m
hen I drove by Eddie
Gabor’s old house,
I was transported
back 20 years — back to the
wonderful Fourth of July outings
my family once enjoyed there.
Eddie Gabor was my grandmother’s
longtime companion.
For the last 20 years of her
life, Eddie treated her like gold.
She’d had a hard life, after all.
Widowed in her late 40s, she
struggled for years to pay the bills
— she struggled to tend to the last
of her six children (who all went
on to do well in life).
Then Providence intervened.
My grandmother, a regular churchgoer, had
caught the eye of another parishioner — a
colorful old bachelor named Eddie Gabor.
Eddie and his brother ran a successful office-
cleaning business.
They had hundreds of employees who
maintained the interiors and exteriors of
Pittsburgh’s biggest high-rise buildings.
Though Eddie’s brother married and raised a
family, Eddie was never blessed that way. Many
years went by and Eddie was still alone — until
he met my grandmother.
The two hit it off instantly. They were soon
inseparable. They went to Mass together every
day. Eddie took her to Pittsburgh’s finest
restaurants every night. My grandmother
brought Eddie to every family event.
Eddie made the last 20 years of her life her best
years — he made our Fourth of July celebrations
wonderful, too.
Eddie lived in a beautiful stone home up high
on a hill. His home bordered a park. Every Fourth
of July his township gave a fireworks display.
Eddie’s backyard offered a perfect view.
So every year, he set out tables and chairs. He
made refreshments and food. Just before dusk,
my grandmother’s children, grandchildren, their
spouses and others would arrive.
As the adults laughed and caught up with
each other, the children danced around the
yard, giggling .as their sparklers burned bright.
Soon, the sky would fall black and the fireworks
would begin. As we “oohed” and “aahed” — as
the sky exploded into light and just as quickly
returned to darkness — Eddie would be next to
my grandmother, as contented as a man can be.
is
Tom Purcell
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Eddie threw his last Fourth of
July party in 1993, five years after
my grandmother died. He died the
following winter. Our sadness at
the loss of both hit hardest the next
Fourth of July when we could no
longer gather at Eddie’s to celebrate.
The fact is there was no better place to
celebrate the Fourth of July — not just
because Eddie made my grandmother’s
last years so wonderful, but in part
because of Eddie’s father.
Eddie’s father was bom in
Hungary. He came to America
seeking a better life for himself
and his family. He took the
first job he could get — janitor.
Where others may view mopping and cleaning as
demeaning work, Eddie’s father surely didn’t. He
saw a future.
He started his own cleaning business.
He began by cleaning small commercial
buildings and kept moving his way up.
His company was soon maintaining larger
buildings. He soon had the means to send his sons
to college — to develop their business skills to
help him keep growing the business.
He built himself a nice stone home in
the suburbs — the home in which Eddie
Gabor would live the rest of his life.
The story of Eddie’s father is an American story.
Through hard work, he made ah incredible life for
his family, and he unwittingly made an incredible
life for my grandmother.
As I first drove by Eddie Gabor’s old
house, I was initially filled with sadness
— sad that my grandmother and Eddie
have been gone nearly 20 years already.
But as all the memories came flooding back
— as I pieced together what the old house really
symbolizes — I couldn’t help but smile.
Despite America’s temporary setbacks, I
prefer to focus on the incredible blessings
our country bestowed on Eddie’s father,
Eddie, my grandmother and my family.
I plan to drive by Eddie Gabor’s old house every
Fourth of July.
Tom Purcell, a humor columnist for the
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, is nationally
syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons
newspaper syndicate. Visit Tom on the web
at www.TomPurcell.com or e-mail him at
Purcell@caglecartoons.com.
our state’s highways,” Perry said,
Perry and
Lt. Gov. David
Dewhurst share
an optimistic
goal for the
special session to
last only a couple
of days.
The governor’s
call includes
three goals for
lawmakers. He
wants them to
pass legislation:
Extending the life of the five state*1
HIGHLIGHTS
By Ed Starting
i.
1.
Letter to TxDOT representatives regarding dangerous intersections along Hwy 59
Michael W. Brehrens Executive
Director
Texas Department of Transportation
125 East II” St.
Austin, TX 7870 I
REF: My letter to Kevin LHarbuck
dated I 1-15-2004
Richard K. Ivy letter to me dated
11-182004 Sigricd by Hubert Bickly
Richard K. Ivy letter to me dated 12-09-
2004
My letter to'Richard K. Ivy dated 12-
21 -2004
Richard K. Ivy letter to me dated 12-
30-2004
My letter to Richard K. Ivy dated 5-
03-2005
My letter to Michael W. Behrens dated
7-1 6-2006 Steven E. Simmons letter to
me dated 7-31-2006 Steven E. Simmons
letter to me dated 9-28-2006
Thank you very kindly for your
letters. The gravel issue in my letter is
minor compared to the safety issue. I
tried to get the accident records for the
intersections of 59 HWY & 1988 and
59HWY & East Lake DR. They told
me they weren’t available from 2001 to
date. This would be the most important
time period to review.
I have talked to quite a few people
in the Livingston area since I received
your letters. They either agree with me
or feel worst about it than I do. They
amount of traffic at this intersection as
there is on 1988 and 59.
Who determines the speed limit from
Livingston to Goodrich? State or county?
Who determines whether caution lights
are required? State or county?
Please answer these questions and
don’t refer me to something else.
The area I am talking about is very
hilly and you can’t see very far down
the road when driving at 75mph. I am
attaching a sketch of this road and the
businesses on it.
stop where there are caution lights. Who
did this? State or county? Please answer
this question. And just to top things off
there are 16 double hwy lights at the
entrance to the truck stop! And we can’t
get anything done.
I think you should send some one
from your office to check this area out. I
would be glad to show some one around
or Don Baskin said he would also. This
area is much much, much worse than
1988 in Goodrich.
I just completed a trip to Springfield,
can’t seem to believe that nothing is
to be done about the problem of 59
HWY from Livingston to North of
Goodrich.
They have really gotten upset when
they see the millions of dollars being
spent to build a overpass for 1988 in
Goodrich. For what reason?? Yet you
won’t build aentrance ramp
from Lakeside Village onto ■■ ■ • ■ iiiai ■ • , , ...
59 into Livingston. Independence in jeopardy, US headed toward socialism
When you go south of the city limits^ Mo. and the roads were all very good
of Shepherd on HWY 59 the speed except for Hwy 59 in Polk County. Why
limit stays at 60 mph for the next 4.5 is that? 200 miles of good road and then
miles. The road is perfectly straight and 50 miles of bad road!
perfectly flat. ROBERT I. FRAIZER
Half way through this area is a truck LIVINGSTON
There is 10 times the
m POLK COUNTY
ENTERPRISE
ALVIN HOLLEY, PUBLISHER
Telephone Number 9341-327-4357
(USPS 437-340)
WEBSITE: www.EastTexaiNewi.coin
E-MAIL: Advertising: en(erprise®easitexasnewi.com Newsroom: poiknewt@gmul.com
Circulation: circulUion@eatnexasnewj.com. Entered as Periodical Matter u the Pott Office at Livingtton TX
Any erroneout reflection upon the character, standing or reputation of any person. Arm or corporation which
may appear in this newspaper will be gladly corrected upon being brought to the attention of the publisher.
Opinions expressed in columns are those of the writer and not necessarily thorn at this newspaper. Opinions
expressed in editorial are those of the Enterprise. POSTMASTER: Periodical pottage paid u Livingston. TX.
Please tend address changes to PO, Box 1276. Livingston. Texas 77331.
1 |>"i I 4 n.mir(I iiiissiiil; |m|m i ur l«» u pm I ,i hroki 11 '» ndnti* m.ivhim t.ill t si |U5
Tn my opinion I don’t think it is unpatriotic
I to have a tea party on Independence Day.
X Yes, Independence Day is a day to celebrate
our independence and it is patriotic to do so,
but it is also patriotic to make sure we keep our
independence and freedom.
Is there a better day to let people know their
freedom is under attack than on the day they
celebrate it?
We are not protesting the United States rather
Congress, the President, their out-of-control
spending, and their attempts at making the
government bigger. Their attempts, if successful,
will most likely bring about the downfall of a free
America. The free America would become, most
likely, a socialist country, and if our economy is
bad now it will become even worse if we are a
socialist country. Socialist countries’ economies
are not wonderful because the government takes
money from the workers and gives it to the non-
workers.
Mr. Vanosodol perhaps you were right aboiit
how this should have been done eight years ago,
but here is my question. If you think it should
have been done eight years ago, then why did you
not do it?
ALEXANDRA SMITH
LIVINGSTON
agenciesclosetoexpiration:Texas Department
of Transportation, Texas Department of'
Insurance, Texas Racing Commission, Office'
of Public Insurance Counsel and Texas State,
Affordable Housing Corporation.
2. Allowing the Texas Department of'
Transportation to issue $5 billion in general
obligation bonds to build roads. <
3. Extending the authority of the Texas _
Department of Transportation and a regional ’
mobility authority to use “comprehensive'
development agreements” to design,'*
finance, build and maintain transportation^
infrastructure. ]
Perry lauded work done by lawmakers*
during the Legislature’s regular session that
ended June 1. He expressed satisfaction with!
the profit-margin tax cut given to 40,000 small >
businesses and the 40 percent increase iiF-
financial aid for college students “all without
touching our state’s rainy day fund.” i
The rainy day, fund, about $7' billion set
aside for emergency needs, was left untouched'
because lawmakers plugged gaps in the 20104
2011 state budget with $12 billion in federab
stimulus funding. )
Back to the special session: Sen. John.
Carona, R-Dallas, chair of the Senate'
Committee on Transportation and Homeland!
Security, filed SB 1 on June 26.
SB 1, if passed, would give the Texas i
Transportation1' Commission statutory-
authorization to issue road-building bonds;
that voters approved by constitutional,,
amendment in 2007. It also would
create a revolving transportation fund,
for local governments to borrow from,.
Road project is federally funded •
Texas will break ground June 30 on a local,
highway project on FM 60 in Burleson County,,
near Bryan. Funding comes from the federal,
government’s new American Recovery and'
Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
The $7.5 million, 2.8-mile project, is,
the first of 29 ARRA-funded mobility,
projects approved in March by the.
Texas Transportation Commission, the,'
governmental body that oversees the'
Texas Department of Transportation.'*
Tax break for disabled veterans
Military veterans who reside in Texas1
and who have a 100 percent disability’
rating or are considered unemployable by
the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
are temporarily exempt from paying!
property tax on the total appraised value
of their homestead, thanks to the passage
of HB 3613. 1
The legislation, authored by Rep.'
John Otto, R-Dayton, and signed by the
governor on June 19, makes the exemption'
effective for the 2009 tax year.
Comptroller Susan Combs on June 26
prompted local tax assessors to update^
property tax rolls to ensure eligible'
veterans receive the new tax break
TEA rejects standardization
The Texas Education Agency ha
decided not to join 46 other states ii
adopting the Common Core curriculum
a set of voluntary national standard:
for math anrf English textbook
and curriculum. Texas Education
Commissioner Robert Scott’s reasons fo,
not joining: loss of local control, increased
costs, and Texas has its own standards!
Schieffer announces candidacy
Democrat John f homas ‘Tom” Schieffefl
of Fort Worth, a 61-year-old gas and oi{
industry lawyer, businessman, forme*
Texas House member, former president
of the Texas Rangers Baseball Club
and former U.S. ambassador on June 2^
announced his candidacy for governor^
Party primaries will be held in March 20101
Former speaker arrested for DW1
Former state Rep. Gib Lewis, D-Fortl
Worth, who served as speaker of th<j
Texas House from 1983 to 1993, was|
charged with drunken driving after being
arrested June 26 in downtown Austin!
Marriage of Lt. Gov. is reported
Lt. Gov. Dewhurst reportedly married
Houston attorney Patricia Bivins, formed
wife of former state Sen. Teel Bivins, R-|
Amarillo, in Houston, on June 27. 1
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Reddell, Valerie. Polk County Enterprise (Livingston, Tex.), Vol. 127, No. 52, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 2, 2009, newspaper, July 2, 2009; Livingston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth820844/m1/4/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Livingston Municipal Library.