AMERIQUE:


A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR: It is the unspoken statistic, but it is as real as anything to do with the lingering U.S. war efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan. According to the military, 1,800 American servicemen have killed themselves since the initial invasion of Baghdad. That is in addition to the more than 4,000 who died in battle. This week, families of the soldiers who committed suicide asked President Barack Obama to change the government policy of not forwarding letters of appreciation to mothers and fathers of these servicemen. By week's end, the White House had reversed the policy and agreed that such letters are needed, as well... - Eduardo Paz-Martinez, Editor of The Tribune

Thursday, April 7, 2011

La Pistola y El Corazon: In The Valley, It's Open Season On Love & Marriage...Guns, No Roses...

By EDUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ
Editor-In-Chief

RIO HONDO, Texas - They killed a young mother here last week and the news fell like a lead balloon. There were a few eyebrows lifted to the ceiling, and the police issued cursory details that spoke of rage, of marital problems, of arguments, of bullets in the dead of night. It was all so routine, just another senseless act. Big deal. The woman's last name was Perez, but it could have been Lopez, or Gonzalez, or Chapa, or McHale, or Montoya, or Hernandez.

The victim's name only serves law enforcement paperwork and the newspapers.

Lost in the latest murder is the fact that it is just another of those all-too-often stories. Last week it was a wife, this week it is a husband gone from the planet - another faded love shot down on some desolate Texas road or in the home. A bloody goodbye courtesy of the spouse. Love in the Rio Grande Valley is not blue; it is red, bloody red. Who will answer the question of why this is such a big part of the border culture. A domestic murder hits the news here without much emotion anymore. It may as well be some drunk plowing into a house while on his way home. It may as well be another taqueria burned by local health reports. It may as well be another lamentful dirge rising from the dusty, weedy cemetery and moving through the craggy branches of a nearby mesquite on its way to the Heavens. Forgive us Father, for we have sinned.

In the local case, the husband reportedly paid someone $1,300 to off his wife. They shot her in the head and in the torso. She died at the scene. Thirteen hundred dollars. It seemed damned cold, yet it also seemed typically economic for this part of the world, one used to flea markets and bargains. You can't get a horse for $1,300. You can't get a good set of golf clubs for $1,300. You can't get a good dog for $1,300. But here, here in the land of second-hand stores, you can get your wife knocked-off for less than what it would cost to get a new roof for the house. Shocking, I know.

The woman in Mission, shown in the photo on the sidebar at top right, offered a bit more. Twenty grand was her dirty deal, and she found a taker. In the rot-gut Valley, she likely could have found a hundred unemployed stiffs who would have done it for much, much less.

Life is funny in the RGV. It's a lot of laughs and drinking and eating interrupted by a little gunfire.

But they all go on with their lives. It's just the latest sad story of yet another wife going down in the grave, just another husband who fell out of sexual favor with his old lady, just another spouse written off by the barrel of a gun. It's the border, and along the border, well, you gotta do what you gotta do.

Pistol shots ring out in the barroom night.

It never ends...

- 30 -

26 comments:

Cable Guy said...

I hear you, dude. Who hasn't wanted to do it? Being married in the valley is tough. Guys have no chance cause they're always wanting to do somebody else's wife and visa versa. It's hard to feel real sorry, man. real hard.

Anonymous said...

It's disgusting to see the government play with the lives of our soldiers. Mofos are acting like children. Soldiers need to be paid!

Anonymous said...

I hear a harlingen city commissioner made some comments to several people about another commissioner having a strong ordor of alcohol at the Harlingen city commission meeting last night.
The word is that people are calling the DA's office to bring Harlingen city commissioners to Justice.
Something is coming up in April. Because Ethic violations are misdomeanors, they don't go through a grand jury, only felonies.
Interesting, Larry, your date is comming, Korri, your date is coming as well.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Paz-Martinez, the Valley is like the Wild, Wild West. Women get killed, small children are abused, women hire men to kill the Viagra user husband, Husbands hire hit man to kill the sex-less wife, drugs, and alcohol are rampant, the cheap cantinas open at 8:00AM, and life goes.
Welcome to el ejido known as the LRGV.

El De Los Fresnos said...

hey, McHale posted a good story about The editor of The Tribune and all the clowns are now posting stupidities against him. In that town they wouldn't know the difference between what's good and bad because it's all bad down there. Bola de Pendejos!

Ralph said...

i don't think the editor of The Tribune cares one way or the other. the BLR is known for allowing soem really disgusting posts. It's idiots and more idiots. the Trib is way better.

Anonymous said...

They are upset because the editor, smashed browntown and the political establishment. Look, Brownsville is Brownsville, an extension of Matamoros. It isn't going anywhere.
Many of the residents of the city, say that seeing the city limits on the rear view mirror, is a vacatiion from Brownsville.

Anonymous said...

I think the editor of the BLR ought to be the editor of Hustler magazine, the blr blog is about at their level.

Johnny Joe said...

We breathe clean air here at The Trib. Those other desgraciados can go back to Mejico where they don't know about class. LOL!!!

Anonymous said...

Brownsville is the barrio side of the valley. who cares what they say? que se vayan a ----

Blogger M said...

Statistics have already proven that when the speed limit is higher, more people will die. Most people just can't drive 85 without endangering their own lives and those around them. Why are we even thinking about allowing this? Not even considering the waste of gas which is already sky high in cost. In fact that leads me to wonder if the gasoline companies' lobbyists had something to do with this law. There are already enough idiots out there doing 85, we don't need to make stupidity legal.

Anonymous said...

Good post Blogger M. I agree with your comments 100%. Just drive throught Kings Ranch, I do 70 miles and people pass like like nothing. And where is the DPS. Who knows drinking coffee in Kinsville.

Mary lou Tovarez said...

McHale is upset, because DP-M is blogging about Harlingen, if you think Browsnville is corrupted, you ought to see our little unsophisticated town whore. It is rotten to the core.

Anonymous said...

Every town is South Texas has rotten politicians, greedy landgrabbers, thiefs, farmers that live of goverment handouts, over prized Doctors and Dentist, you name it, we have it.

Gilbert Longoria/harlingen said...

[rotten Politicians] Anon, you forgot, also ROTTEN BLOG FAKERS LIKE TONIS CHAPISNENCO, HE TO IS A FRAUD, bad judges, bad police officers, bad teachers, wait, let me make the story short.
Todo el Pinche Valley esta cheuco.
MHNs.com, IS THE WORST BLOG IN SOUTH TEXAS, NO VALE MADRE. AYAYAIIII, ABAJO CON EL CHAPA-PERRRO.

Anonymous said...

yeah, life is real funny in the RGV. marriage is a joke. it's ha-ha-ha at the motels with different people not their spouses.

Anonymous said...

kenneth Benton again blogging with chapaneco. Either Chapete begged him for another post or Benton is feeling inferior. why would he post on a hateful, racist blog? isn't Benton black? Wow!!!

Styling and Prolfiling man said...

"at the motels", Anon, well what do you think keeps this motels/hotels in business? Husbands and wives, no sireeiii, well husbands and someone else wife, and wifes with someone else husband.
Divorcees, and future divorcees, with another lady's beau, and you name it.
I like nice fancy hotels, none of these, live the light on stuff, just the best for the ladies.

Anonymous said...

Styling man, sounds arrogant, I can't believe you actually have dates, well probably paid dates, if you know what I mean.

Mr. Brownsville said...

Benton doesn't know he's black. Do he? Just saying. LOL!!!

Anonymous said...

No, Benton is an okay guy. But he risks being labeled a moron by blogging with Chapaneco's bloggers. Most of the time Chapa and his bloggers make about as much sense as a gang of retards. If benton has any ideas of being a positive force in Harlingen he needs to bail out of that smelly hole. He knows me and he knows what I'm saying.

UT-PA Professor said...

There is a tremendous variety of news here. I am very impressed. Thank you. You make the other Blogs look like amateur undertakings. Keep doing what you're doing. We appreciate it.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Brownsville, for every negative there is a positive.
Benton and Kingi canutie are the counter balance of that equation known as MHNs.
Those are the only bloggers that write things that make sense. Kingi, litterally educates the operator of the blog, who is a dumb as they come.
And Benton, writes editorials, about no one else publishes.
Remember, the blog is shot and gone to hell. 5 comments one story. The rest nada, Jerry and the Trib have neutralized his blog.

Anonymous said...

Man what are the Texas legislators drinking, 85 miles an hour, common people you must be smoking something. That is a lot of speed.

Low rider Y que said...

Who is this Juan J.Ortega, and why is he kissing the Mayors butt??
That Cuz, wants to get appointed to a board.
Cuz, they don't like you, Korri doesn't like you, the Chris Soprano Boswell doesn't like you, see cuz, you hang out with Tony Chapis, and they hate his dwarfy ass. They also hate that rag line blog you blog on. Orale Cuzzz!!!

Low rider Y que said...

"Gilbert in Harlingen", bro you forgot bad husbands and bad wives. Bad movidas, bad sanchas, orale.