The major tragedy of the tragedy that took the lives of Ray and Ruben
Franco - two good kids most everyone liked, two good kids that were
normal American kids on their way to graduation from high school - is
this. It will happen again. It has happened before.
Although I am now an avid, some say fanatical, disciple of moderation
when it comes to the use of alcohol, I was not always such. This thing
that happened in Monahans just after midnight on Saturday also happened
when I was a high school sophomore a thousand years ago.
That one killed a beautiful girl, Sue Hackler, who was a senior, in a
particularly horrible way. She was decapitated. Her boyfriend was maimed
for life. For some reason, I do not remember his name.
But I do remember how he got the booze.
In our little town those eons ago, there were two or three people in
their 20s who, for a few dollars and a six pack of their own, would trot
out to the nearest package store and buy the beer and the whiskey.
That was then. This is now.
And nothing has changed.
But there is one difference. In this era, there have been decades of
court decisions that establish that those who provide liquor to underage
drinkers are themselves liable for anything that happens - if it can be
proven that the person so charged was the purveyor, a difficult thing,
sometimes, to prove.
Far be it for me to advocate lynching as an answer to anything, but I
could well understand if relatives and other parents of the two young
men killed on Saturday thought about it.
The young men had been in Wickett. There is in Wickett a trailer,
investigators have been told, where there often is a party on the
weekend where the young men and women gather to do rebellious things.
Sheriff Ben Keele, Highway Patrol Trooper Eric White and Monahans Chief
Dave Watts know a lot more than can be reported.
It may be possible those who provided the booze to these kids can be
charged with a double killing if the evidence is there.
But even if that happens, it won't be enough.
It is hoped that the combined efforts of the sheriff's office, Highway
Patrol and Monahans Police can put a slight damper on the Friday night
parties. Legal purveyors of ethanol can lose their licenses to operate
if they sell to a minor. It seems only just that those who go to one of
the legitimate stores and buy ethanol for a minor might also lose some
of their ability to operate.
Literally hundreds of young people have died on the highways and byways
of this nation since the automobile became a part of the American
culture at the same time youthful use of spirits became as popular as
what ever the latest fad might be.
In the 1930s, I am told there was an old country song. Some of the
lyrics went something like this:
"I saw a wreck on the highway
Whiskey and blood ran together
But I didn't hear nobody pray.
Dear brother, I didn't hear nobody pray."
It's time to start praying.
Some day, the carnage must stop.
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The Cherry Pie Auction brought in between $6,000 and $7,000 this past Saturday. The money will go to The Gleaners food pantry, the Opportunity Workshop and Shoes for the Needy.
The First Place Pie was baked by Judy Greer and brought in $1,500 from five bidders. (I'm here to tell you that Judy's pie is the best pie I have ever tasted. It's good enough to bribe Saint Peter...)
The Second Place Pie was baked by Jean Venters and it brought in $325. The Third Place Pie came from Pat Finley and it brought in $250.
The Community Pie had 20 bidders join forces to bring in $1,165.
The esteemed Dick Hoyer acted as auctioneer with help from Mayor David Cutbirth, Charlie Walker, Curtis Howard and the Rev. David Weyant.
Hal and Patsy Callaway kept the action moving at KLBO. The usually mild-mannered Hal actually stepped forcefully in front of Kevin Slay to prevent him from helping himself to fourths.
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