Black Comedy for Taosenos

(Ashram Breaking News Below)

County Guards and Taos Cops

School Officials and Traveling Trustees

Recent visitors to Taos County’s Jail, Lawrence Miera, Jr. and Joshua Lara, who checked themselves out of the ‘self-service” lock-up on Sunday night, thanks to a gracious guard, have joined a pantheon of past escapees. Who can forget how Leroy “The Rabbit” Fresquez escaped through the food slot and how Andrew Martinez—held on an open count of murder–wandered away from a leaf-raking detail to kill (again).

As Undersheriff Romero said about the jail guard, “he didn’t do nothing.” Our man Flavio, who has been raking up autumn leaves around the jail, said, “Commissioners might consider hiring these experienced inmates as detention guards. They know the ins and outs.”

Over at the Town of Taos, the cops are being sued for tasing the drunk and handcuffed female of “tremendous weight” (allegedly 190 lbs.) who was lying prone on the pavement. She would not get up as ordered so the officer shocked her a few times with his taser. Then, according to the news, the judge threatened her with incarceration and worse if she didn’t shape up. Town and state cops have a history of picking up females on traffic violations and then turning them over to County jailers, who strip-search them and worse—despite civil rights provisions. You can’t blame the fat girl for not wanting to go “downtown” with the men in blue.

At the Taos Municipal Schools, a mean-spirited interim Superintendent and Notre Dame grad reprimanded and allegedly got the basketball coach fired. Apparently he rubbed his St. Jude Medal for help in front of his team. They say he wouldn’t give her son playing time, so she got the coach fired on a state and church rap. Now the No. 1 Attorney in Taos is gunning for a beaucoup settlement big time from Taos Municipal Schools on behalf of St. Jude et al.

At the Kit Carson Coop, the trustees have run out of travel dollars and money to fund the CEO’s dreams of becoming the No. 1. Techno Rabbit. Now Coop Trustees have voted to raise rates to keep the CEO plans and Trustee planes flying. But the Trustees are also phoning 911 when they see the coop members coming across the street. The multi-million-dollar flops of the last decade threaten to turn into double indemnity as the Trustees and their Rabbit Boss place their faith in Mr. Broadband. Mr. Macgregor—call him St. Jerome or Lucid Linda–are looking for the Rabbit and his handlers at the Public Regulation Commission hearings if and when they are scheduled.

As luck would have it, a last minute session of negotiations resolved the Downtown Dunn House parking lot issue and all is right with Polly’s world. TSV waits for snow and the merchants wait for Santa Claus and the fabulous free spending tourists—no doubt buoyed by the recent GOP surge at the polls. Substitute “trustee”, “CEO”, or “manager” for “the richest 1 percent” and we Taosenos might have the last laugh cause we live the life Nick Kristof speaks of in his New York Times piece aptly titled, “Our Banana Republic,” Nov. 6, 2010:

“The richest 1 percent of Americans now take home almost 24 percent of income, up from almost 9 percent in 1976. As Timothy Noah of Slate noted in an excellent series on inequality, the United States now arguably has a more unequal distribution of wealth than traditional banana republics like Nicaragua, Venezuela and Guyana.

“C.E.O.’s of the largest American companies earned an average of 42 times as much as the average worker in 1980, but 531 times as much in 2001. Perhaps the most astounding statistic is this: From 1980 to 2005, more than four-fifths of the total increase in American incomes went to the richest 1 percent.”

And, this, according to the NYT Editorial on Nov. 6, “In the midterm elections four years ago, candidates and their friends spent a little over $2.8 billion, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, to garner some 86 million votes. The cost was about $33 per voter. Data from this week’s election is still coming in. But it seems that total spending will hit $4 billion, which would make this year’s voters about $10 more expensive.”

And that’s the way it is in Taos and America on Nov. 10, 2010.

Breaking News (Taos). Late last night, Taos County Planning Commission approved the Neem Karoli Baba Ashram’s request for a new 2,500 sq ft. temple, adjacent restroom facilities, and improved site access.  A restricted overflow 16 space parking area was rejected.  Awaiting  formal record of decision by staff.  The Commission, in an unusual move, went into executive session prior to the vote.

Annoucement: