Staff Writer
BROWNSVILLE, Texas - Fernando Ruiz has a certain presence in front of a microphone. He will say things like this, "Listen to me! And you will never get elected again to this office. What's the matter with you? You're dreaming!"
And then he gets really angry: "Please do not interrupt me! I am not out-of-line!"
His stage: A meeting of the Brownsville City Commission.
Welcome to the funniest show in South Texas, a literal What-The-Hell-Can-Come-Next offering not seen in many places in the Free World. Need a bit of jousting between elected officials and the citizenry. Walk into a meeting here and be treated to a taste of border reality. Ruiz is not alone. Juan Mejia has a role in this rolling drama that plays out monthly here. While Ruiz is after the mayor's resignation for reasons to do with accusations earlier that he stole a $26,000 City of Brownsville check drafted for a vendor, Mejia came to harp about his property in nearby Olmito being looked-at as possible land for annexation by Btrownsville. Both came looking for a fight.
"Melissa," Mejia said in the direction of City Commissioner Melissa Zamora, "...this is in your district. Maybe you can do something for us there." Something about city requirements the affected property owners would have to deal with should they be annexed. He came, had his turgid say, and then yielded to the firebrand Ruiz, who arrived ready to hang a few city officials he felt had been derelict in providing the citizenry with sufficient facts to do with the mayor's involvement in the check mess. (To back up: Mayor Pat Ahumada went to trial after an investigation revealed he had deposited the check into his bank account. A jury rendered a not guilty verdict earlier this year).
Ruiz brought a certain act to the April 6 meeting, standing tall before the speaker's podium not more than 15 yards from the hostage City Commission. He blasted the timekeeper for cutting him short in previous appearances and, when he noticed smirking from a commisioner, said: "You know, this might be laughter for you. But, you know, what kind of people are you if you are cutting me short by half-a-minute?"
Like a hardened trailboss, he reared his emotions and stayed with the scolding. "This is how you get into trouble, mayor," he went on after asking for the resignation of City Manager Charles Cabler and his underlings for their role in the check snafu. "You don't know how to do things right! We still need an answer as to who gave you this check. This is how ignorant you are!"
And then he was gone, escorted by the police chief at the request of the mayor, his words pasted on the chamber walls, like rotten tortillas some joker had lobbed at the elected body. It was just another weekday night and there was little else going on town. For a few minutes, life had turned vicious. Respect had gone out the window. This was, it seemed to me, comedy of the first order. The First Amendment had done well in Brownsville, if "well" is a mixture of truth & bullshit.
Someone was heard to say, "This is better than what you see and hear at any 14th Street cantina."
Fernando Ruiz, quite satisfied by his sterling performance, walked down the hall and out the building's door...
- 30 -
8 comments:
(found the two undressed and having sex in the backseat, police said... (VMS)
I'm glad that I've refrained from ever having to do any such thing. Um, or at least I've never been caught. Truth.
ruben
Ruben:...I recall several backseat romps when I was in college. And, yeah, I'm not bothered by having done it. The gals seemed into it and I was, well, always on fire with every new crop of chickies that came on campus with every new semester. Ah, the sweet smell of sweaty Corinthian leather. Whatever became of these bold women anyway? Wish I knew.... - Editor
Okay, you guys, lets leave the days of summer, pretzel and beer alone. Forget about the women on the back seat. In Harlingen, if you get caught playing nookie, in the park, you go to the hotel harlingen, where it is always 60 degrees, and you don't get any blankets, bread, baloney and black coffee are the menu.
Is stonning a woman for adultery will ever work here in the Stone / rock free Rancho Grande Valley ?
We will be out of women in a very short time.
Tony Chapa and Jerry Deal reporting for The Tribune. That was a good one!
I would think the city cops in harlingen would have better things to do than to be altering mother natures bodily functions.
They just arrested one of their own for domestic violence and another was arrested for dwi. Plus they had law-suits from one the captains, who according to the complaining female officer took her to some place for favors.
I would say, the saying of an old refrain: The pot calling the Kettle black is very appropriate.
That police dept. in Harlingen is falling apart.
Read all the comments / commentaries at The Brownsville Berald Blog, so true and with character !!!
All:...Reporters Tony Chapa and Jerry Deal will continue to be featured her as much as possible. Both bring a unique perspective to the comings & goings of Harlingen. They are the Rio Grande Valley's Woodward and Bernstein of Watergate fame. In cahoots with the flame-throwing Scott Steinbeck of El Rocinante and our own Eliot Elcomedor, they have begun the cleansing of a city held hostage for years by a select, bigoted few... - Editor
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