Chairman



Newsletter [pic]June 21, 2011

The Texas Border Volunteers, Inc.

Volume5 Issue 6 Feel free to pass our news to other interested parties.



Chairman

The July TBV Watch has been cancelled. A vote was taken and it was agreed to skip the next month. The heat is one factor. July and August can be brutally hot.

Another factor, Illegal Alien traffic is being hit hard on the Rio Grande River by Border Patrol, DPS and Texas Rangers. This has made a big difference in the amount of traffic that reaches this area.

But Illegal Alien traffic has not stopped totally. It has just been rerouted slightly and much of the loading up is occurring just south of us.

If circumstances crop up, a Special TBV Op can and will be put together.

I would like to extend my gratitude to all those that participate in our TBV watches and any Special Operations. A special Thanks to Mr. Tom Kile for his assistance in arranging a recent Special Op for the news media.

Dr. Mike Vickers

President

At the last watch we discussed an issue around the tables that I would like to share. We discussed the issue of taking too much time to deploy on a hurry scurry. Most of us keep a go bag on post and we think we are “good to go” on any hurry scurry but are we really?

Please consider the following. Operations will receive notice 3-4 minutes after traffic has been spotted or detected. Most volunteers are not dressed to quickly deploy when needed. They must add portions of the uniform that have been discarded and then add snake guards or snake boots. Next they must locate their go-bag, collect their radio from the charger cradle, grab a couple of bottles of fresh water, locate a vehicle, and stop in operations to get last minute instructions. By the time the individual is actually ready to board their vehicle other volunteers detect something is going on and ask if they can go along.

The entire process then repeats itself while this “good to go” individual waits for the additional volunteers to ready themselves for the deployment. Once the vehicle finally rolls out of HQ it can take 5-10 minutes to get to their assigned position. The original post assignment given by Operations was based on immediate deployment so by the time you get to your assigned post the criminal trespasser(s) have most likely moved beyond your position.

Here are some of the suggestions we discussed that might speed up deployment of a hurry scurry. If you wish to be mission ready then equip your go-bag with everything needed including radio and water. Position your go bag in the table area and inform operations of your ready status. Do not discard any portion of your uniform that would be needed if you are called out. Volunteers that are not ready for immediate deployment should not delay those volunteers that are ready by making a last minute request to go along. Late comers to the hurry scurry can always deploy later but only if Operations has a position for them. It is not uncommon for the latter deployments to observe and report a group of illegal aliens.

Ken Sears

VP of Public Venues

If things were slow in May, June has been a real barn burner. Prof, Allie, Warthog and I did something completely out of the norm called the Republic of Texas Rally in Austin, a 5 day event for motorcycle enthusiasts which brought in an estimated 200,000 attendees. We just were not prepared for a crowd whose dress code was more than a little bizarre. We were not prepared for female attendees strolling the aisle of the exhibits in skimpy bikinis. If you remember the early 50’s movie the “Wild One” some of these folks would make Marlon Brando’s character look like a lightweight. We saw more ink in the form of tattoos on more exposed body parts than you would care to see. For many of these folks both their tailor and their barber had a distinct sense of humor. Sensory overload was the only way I can describe it. Add in a couple of gun shows in the month of June and it kept us quite busy.

We thrive on our ability to have more night vision equipment for Mission Control to hand out which makes us more efficient and productive and don’t forget, safer as well. NV is not cheap and is bought primarily with donations received at the various gun shows, Tea Parties and other events we attend. Hats off to the folks who work the tables, so the next time you have a NV or thermal to use on post, thank them. We keep adding to our inventory of high tech gear every time we add a few more bucks to the bank. I remember a few years back when we had one borrowed thermal and maybe two NVs. See you at the next watch.

Dennis Morrow

Chief of Staff 

Border Patrol stats-Falfurrias Sector

March 2011

538 IA's

309 OTM's (Other Than Mexicans)

A Border Patrol special Brush Crew started working in March of this year. In a 6 week period, they racked up 700 apprehensions. Also, please note that in the above apprehension numbers from Falfurrias, 57 percent were OTMs, proving once again that this is not just a Mexican problem.

One thing is for sure…Illegal Aliens and drugs are still crossing.

Linda Vickers

VP Mission Control

I have often asserted that if the microphone on your headset/earpiece wiring fails, you can simply speak into the "radio body" microphone, without un-plugging the wiring, and it will work normally. WRONG!! That works on some units but not on others.  It is important that the word get out. If you suspect a malfunction the best remedy will always be to turn the suspect unit off and put your back-up radio into action. Worry about the details later. A back-up radio eventually fixed the problem. It's a lot easier to accomplish our mission if we can communicate!  Extra and special thanks to those Volunteers who braved the awful heat during this month's watch. We probably went through a record amount of water but that's OK. Everybody wisely stayed hydrated and nobody had health problems. I look forward to "getting after it" again next time. Happy Trails!

Dave Boles

VP Media Interface

Our website has been without bugs for three years, a tribute to the thoroughness and concern of its creator, Steve Swan. Steve finished construction of the site just before he was murdered. I have noticed funny display issues on non-Mac computers that were due to my posting errors so if you notice any such thing, or links that have expired please inform me at:   swanmm@.

On Friday, June 24 the Texoma Patriots will host Suzanna Hupp speaking on our 2nd Amendment rights. I met members of the Texoma Patriots on the train on the way home from the 9/12 rally in Fort Worth, 2009. We have given our presentation at one of their meetings. TBV has donated a cap and hat for their silent auction. If you are in north Texas and can attend it should be a good meeting, I plan to be there. 

Here is the notice:

§  Suzanna Hupp’s talk:  the importance of protecting our 2nd Amendment rights

§  Southern Cross:  C&W band for dancing

§  Silent auction

Meeting Location:  Images of Dance, 519 W Main Street, Suite #102, Denison, TX

Time and Date:  7 pm on Friday, June 24th 

Entrance is free, but we do ask, if possible, for you to make a donation to help us cover our expenses.  We will graciously accept items for our silent auction or cash donations. 

The following businesses and individuals contributed so far to make this event happen:  Red River Firearms LLC, Spear’s Shooters Supply, Michael Munn, Ellen Koehne, Beverly & Royce Naud, Ron Clayton, Lou Keating, Texas Border Volunteers, Harley-Davidson, Rep Ralph Hall, Gov Rick Perry, Rep Larry Phillips, Sen Craig Estes, Bridgette Gabriel of ACT! for America, Dick Armey of Freedom Works, Risk Shoe Repair, BuckSnort BBQ, Cracker Barrel, Olive Garden, Cheddar’s, The Boiler Room, Sandi’s in Kelley Square, Panera Bread, Robin McCoy, Therapeutic Pain Solutions, Omar Angeles, Judy Bower, Tango & Cha-Cha Dance Studio,  

Jean Swan

VP Administration

The current financial data for this reporting period:

May 31, 2011 May 31, 2010

Total Assets $39,900 $26,688

Total Income $9,837 $7,986

Net Income $3,309 $5,560

Equipment $35,877 $22,583

Bank account balance as of May 31, 2011 is $4,023.00

Thanks to Ed Henderson for keeping the numbers up to date.

At the invitation of George Rodriguez, President of the San Antonio Tea Party, I and a select group recently met with Mr. Harold Hurtt, Assistant Director of ICE, out of Washington D.C. and two local ICE officials. As many of you know, Mr. Hurtt was at one time the Chief of Police in Houston where, as I understand it, he came under some criticism in respect to 287g and sanctuary issues. Our Houston area members may be more familiar with the subject. In respect to the meeting, it was mostly a dog and pony show. There were a lot of ICE stats in regards to apprehensions, crime, etc. Mr. Hurtt described the enforcement focus as being on removing criminal aliens convicted of the most serious crimes, such as murder, rape, kidnapping, major drug offenses and threats to national security. My personal impression was that Mr. Hurtt was less than enthusiastic about the meeting. During the Q&A we got mostly “non-response” responses. All answers were very carefully worded. For example, George Rodriguez noted the following in his report; Question: Does anyone really believe certain politicians’ statements that enforcement had improved over the years? Answer: It depends on how one defines improvement. The two local officials were a bit more forthcoming in one-on-ones after the meeting had adjourned. They seemed to be genuinely interested in hearing from us and encouraged future dialogue.

On another subject, TBV members may submit items to be included in the Comment Corner below. Topics should be concise and to the point due to space limitations. Also, as our newsletter is read by many non-members, comments should not include gripes, complaints, etc. Those are matters to be kept internal and dealt with through official channels. All submissions will be subject to editing as appropriate.

From the “Why we do, what we do” Department:

Police Charge Man for Raping Minor



Hoot Gibson

TBV COMMENT CORNER:

You Just Never Know

On my way home from the ROT Bike Rally last Thursday, I got a call from my wife. She and her sister were on their way to Lowe’s to pick up some items for the “Honey Do” list. About four miles from the house on Loop 1604 they saw what appeared to be a body on the side of the road. As they got closer they discovered it was in fact a male suffering from what seemed to be heat related distress. As it turned out he was also diabetic. In the meantime, another passerby with a medical background stopped as well to offer assistance. My wife told the man she was going to call EMS to have him transported to a hospital. He told her not to call because the hospital would not take him. She then asked him if he was an illegal to which he replied, yes. She called 911 and a Bexar County Sheriff’s Deputy arrived at the scene and took the man into custody. However, this is Bexar County so the term custody must be loosely interpreted. While there is nothing extraordinary about this event, it does serve to show that the problems associated with an unsecure border can manifest themselves anywhere, and at any given moment.

Hoot Gibson

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