Securing the Border in Texas With More Cameras; A Solution for Flint's Lead Problem?
Juarez, Mexico, as seen from El Paso, Texas. Joseph Sohm / Shutterstock.com
Connecting state and local government leaders
Also: A one-person anti-bullying office in Iowa and a godly natural disaster-prevention plan in Tennessee
Here’s some of what we’ve been reading today…
AUSTIN, Texas: Last year, state officials sent the national guard and state troopers to the Rio Grande Valley as part of a two-year $800 million get tough at the border strategy. But, as the Dallas Morning News reports, the manpower surge had the seemingly “curious” effect of lowering the rate at which smugglers and drug runners were intercepted. Data from cameras set up at the border suggest the feds acting alone may have been doing a better job at border control: “From 2012 to late June 2014, cameras tallied that 48 percent of smuggling events detected by the technology resulted in an apprehension. But in the 14 months since the state’s border surge began, the interdiction rate has been around 40 percent.” Unlike the manpower surge, the state’s “Operation Drawbridge” has been touted for its low costs and high results. That program employs analysts who watch feeds from 1,200 automated wildlife cameras to dispatch authorities when border crossers are detected. Lawmakers in December approved funding for 4,000 more of the $300 cameras. [The Dallas Morning News]
FLINT, Michigan: In the wake of news that a new municipal water source is the cause of spiking lead levels in residential children, the state is issuing free filters and bottled water, reports The Associated Press. The home water filters come through a partnership with the state health department and the Genesee County Community Action Resource Department. Last year in an effort to cut costs, Flint stopped using Detroit’s water and started using water from the Flint River. Local officials are working on a more permanent solution to the city’s problems with lead levels. Related: Organizers of this year’s coming Flint River Fest announced they were postponing the event. [Associated Press via ABC News]
DES MOINES, Iowa: Gov. Terry Branstad last week through executive action created a bullying prevention office for Iowa’s schools. It’s a bold move that “bypasses years of failed legislative action,” the Associated Press reports. Less bold is that the budget for the office is enough to pay only one full-time employee. The office hopes to rely on volunteers and community groups already working the problem. [Associated Press via The Des Moines Register]
COLUMBIA, South Carolina: It’s one of the businesses located at a swamped intersection that has appeared in national video of the historic floods that came when the sky opened up on the Palmetto State this weekend. It’s a porn and sex-toy shop called Taboo housed in a former Taco Bell, reports the FreeTimes. Neighbors have been trying unsuccessfully to zone the shop out of the neighborhood for years. As the storm waters rose, locals joked that maybe the flood would succeed where they had failed. But Taboo survived, again. “I was waiting for comments to come like that—like ‘It was an act of God,’” said owner Jeffrey White. “I’m just glad the building is still there. I’m glad it’s still secure. I’m glad we don’t have pornography floating up in people’s backyards.” [Free-Times.com]
BLOUNT COUNTY, Tennessee: County Commissioner Karen Miller has submitted a natural disaster-prevention plan to her fellow county commissioners, who will vote this week on a resolution she penned asking for God’s mercy in reaction to the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that legalized gay marriage. "We adopt this resolution before God that He pass us by in His Coming Wrath and not destroy our County as He did Sodom and Gomorrah,” the resolution reads. It goes on to explain, to God, that the county, just south of Knoxville, is not at fault for being legally forced to comply with the ruling. The Tennessean reports that the resolution would also call on the governor, attorney general and state lawmakers to protect "natural marriage." Two state lawmakers have already introduced the "Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act." The paper reports that “word of the resolution spread quickly” but adds that, alas, any “natural marriage laws” passed in Tennessee would be struck down as unconstitutional. [The Tennessean]
John Tomasic is a journalist who lives in Boulder, Colorado.
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