Another painful thought: Political parties suck Okay, answer me this question: what is the legal justification for taxpayers paying to conduct primary elections? Political parties are not public entities, but private associations, aren’t they? Yet this morning I read in The Brownsville Herald that the county commissioners have voted to pay to defend election administrator [...]

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Dear Editor: I hope that as he begins his new term as Cameron County Regional Mobility Authority Chairman, David Allex will reconsider his support for the West Loop Toll Road/Parkway, and then find a more worthwhile road project. The nearly eight-mile railroad tracks that will be empty when the railroad is relocated should be converted [...]

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by Jack Moffitt Greetings Locavores! Are you shivering from this global warming yet? We are! But the bounty of the efforts makes it all worthwhile. Last weekend brought freezing weather to the Valley, even before the start of winter. Vendors straggled in after battling to save crops the night before, and customers bundled up to [...]

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The Brownsville Society for the Performing Arts (BSPA) The 13th Annual Brownsville Latin Jazz Festival October 8 to 11, 2009 Various Locations in Brownsville Texas The Brownsville Society for the Performing Arts (BSPA) announced its 13th Annual Browns­ville Latin Jazz Festival, scheduled to take place this coming October 8 to 11, 2009 in Brownsville, Texas. [...]

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From Mark Clark Opening Reception: Thursday, 01 October, 6:00 p.m. Chris Leonardski: ‘Depression Proof CommOddities Deliberately Designed for that Sweet, Lazy Life’ Paintings / Ceramics Free Admission Show runs through 24 October Noche de Pena: Sunday, 04 October, 7:30 p.m. Benito de la VillaMoreno – Techno Sitar Joey Tamayo – Singer, songwriter Ensamble La Misiøn [...]

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From Barry Horn, Director The Brownsville Museum of Fine Art is the result of the dedication and inspiration of eight artists who gathered together almost 75 years ago in Brownsville to develop their artistic talents and to provide educational and exhibition opportunities. These eight women would marvel at their legacy.

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An Announcement The Art of Personal Adornment Fashion by Carmen Rion Mexican fashion designer, Carmen Rión, will present her international fashions to a red carpet crowd on Thursday, August 13 at 5:30 p.m. Rion’s use of Mexico’s traditional embroidery in contemporary fashion has created a cottage industry for the talented artesanas of southern Mexico. Her [...]

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An announcement Brownsville native Oscar Casares will launch his new novel, Amigoland, at the Brownsville Museum of Fine Art on August 6 at 5:30 p.m. The event will feature a reception followed by a book reading and signing. Amigoland recently received a “starred review” from Publisher’s Weekly, which called it “a winning novel.” The novel [...]

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By Steve Trenfield Valedictory address delivered June 1, 2009 at Sams Stadium, Brownsville, Texas for the 2009 graduating class of Lopez High School I’d like to start off by saying thank you to some of the people who have helped me get where I am today. To Ms. Ascott and Mr. Simons, for loving their [...]

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By Jack Moffitt Bell Rings at 8a.m., last sale at noon! Last Market Until October This is it. It is time to concede to the blistering sun. It all works out. We can spend some time improving our soils, our farms and fix those things that have been getting put off until market closes. It [...]

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By Jack Moffitt Editor’s note: This is Mr. Moffitt’s essay from last week’s Farmers Market Report (June 20th), which didn’t get up as I was in a place without Internet service. My apologies to both my reader’s and Mr. Moffitt for the omission. In a backhanded way, someone makes your food choices for you. They [...]

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By Jack Moffitt Bell Rings at 8a.m., last sale at noon! What Have we Done? Thirty-three weeks ago we began setting up the awnings and tables that make the familiar sight-picture we now all know as the Brownsville Farmers Market. Three weeks to go and the season will close. Thousands of lettuces from California were [...]

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A comment Congratulations to Melissa Zamora and Rose Gowen, newly elected members of Brownsville’s city commission. We appreciate the strengths you’ve shown through the election cycles and wish you well in your new positions. We also look forward to your efforts to improve the city’s business and to a healthier atmosphere at city council meetings. [...]

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By Jack Moffitt Bell Rings at 8a.m., last sale at noon! Vitamin pills– good? bad? I like to listen to Dr. Dean Edell, the talk radio doctor. The guy seems like he is giving an honest opinion when he talks, and he keeps his game interesting by stirring controversies like the vitamin pill controversy. He [...]

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BROWNSVILLE, May 2009-The Brownsville Heritage Complex, in historic downtown Brownsville, invites the public to the launch of the 1st Sunday Music and Merienda Series, a musical lecture program presented by Joe and Rosa Perez of Rumbo al’Anacua on Sunday, June 7, 2009 at 2 p.m. The event is free for BHA members and $2 for [...]

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By Jack Moffitt Bell Rings at 8a.m., last sale at noon! Healthcare Crisis or self-care crises ? It would seem logical to conclude that the people-feeding arrangement in the U.S. is failing. Is the failure inherent in the mass production process? Is the failure endemic in a sedentary culture evolved in the glow of electronic [...]

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Jack Moffitt Bell Rings at 8a.m., last sale at noon! Food Futures I read a great book last winter – The Worst Hard Times, by Timothy Egan. It was a very timely reminder of the Great Depression. President Bush had just announced the economic catastrophe we are working through, and President Obama was coming to [...]

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Reading and Book Signing Saturday, 16 May, 7:00 p.m. Brenda Nettles Riojas will read from her new book of poetry, ” La Primera Voz Que Oi” Free Admission Noche de Peña XIV Sunday, 17 May, 7:30 p.m. Music: Irma Guadarrama, sings original compositions Bree Stevens, with J Tamayo and C Harris Ensamble la Misiøn, the [...]

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From Virginia Gause The Brownsville Heritage Complex, in historic downtown Brownsville, invites the public to Songs of the Border Brick Culture, a multimedia musical program presented by Joe and Rosa Perez of Rumbo al’Anacua on Saturday, May 9, 2009 at 6:00 p.m. The event is free to the public and is held in honor of [...]

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A comment It was interesting to read mayor Pat Ahumada’s defense of his one man disaster declaration in Monday’s paper and so kind of the Herald to print it up. Of course, it may be that the Herald is short on participants for its opinion page–some while back, the scene of healthy if slow debate [...]

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Free education! Free digitization! LOWER RIO GRANDE VALLEY, Texas – The Texas Archive of the Moving Image (TAMI) brings its new statewide traveling educational program, the Texas Film Round-Up, to the Cine El Ray in McAllen on Friday, May 15th from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m., the Historic Brownsville Museum in Brownsville on Saturday, May [...]

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from Virginia Gause Poetry Month in the Valley will conclude with the first official book signing in the United States for La Primera Voz Que Oí (The First Voice I Heard), a collection of Spanish poems by Brownsville native Brenda Nettles Riojas, is scheduled at 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 30 at the Arnulfo L. [...]

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Video by Edgar Clinton, Jr.

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from Gene’s Notebook …and the man in the Lopez Four line speaks of the puente George Washington in Spanish, so I cut into his conversation and say, “My grandparents used to live near the George Washington Bridge in New York City after they moved from a poorer section up to the bridge.” He listens. And [...]

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A Thank You Realizing that I have a certain prejudice, but my feeling was and is that last night’s celebration of NYBT’s first year as a literary rag was a screaming success. The parting comments were all positive and there is a strong possibility that, if we make it through another year, we’ll have another. [...]

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