PECOS ENTERPRISE

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OPINION

Mar. 28, 1997

OBSERVATIONS


By Mac McKinnon

Easter heralds new life

with Jesus' resurrection


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This is Good Friday. I usually don't write a lot about religious
activities because my ignorance shows so badly.

But, Easter and Christmas are my two favorite holidays of the year as
they both have such special meaning. I've written about both before and
some of my feelings. I'd like to stress those feelings, and by writing
about them I hope I give you a chance to meditate about how you feel.

Both holidays are about new beginnings. The stress here is on new
beginnings because all of us are far from perfect and we always need to
start over in hopes of doing better.

That's one reason I pray a lot. I need help - always have and always
will. And those new beginnings are a part of that help.

Christmas comes in the dead of winter and it seems to signal a certain
brightness in the midst of bleakness. The Christmas star that brought
many to see the Christ child is such a brightness. Thus we have adopted
the practice of using brightly colored lights and in some cases white
ones and clear ones to signify our joining in this celebration.

Of course there is the giving to represent what we have been given.

Then we have Easter with the newness of the season of spring. All
things have a new beginning at this stage. The whole world is dressed in
new, brightly colored clothing - the Easter bonnet song comes to mind.

Of course, it's not all joy as we have to remember the pain that our
saviour went through and the mere thought of it should make us
appreciate what we have.

I was once told that I'm not a very spiritual person, and I guess I
don't show it like many other people. I don't write about it often, as
to me it is a very private affair. Being told such, however, was like
being slapped in the face. I'm a very private person in just about every
area.

My thoughts and prayers are private as I believe they should be. I hope
I live a life of setting a good example although I know that's not as
true as I'd like it to be, but none of us can be perfect. There was only
one of those.

I do relish this season, and I love religious music. I believes it adds
to the meaning of the season unlike anything else.

Even if you don't go to church this Easter, stop and think about what
it means to you and your family. Give thanks for what you and I have
been given.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Mac McKinnon is editor and publisher of the Pecos
Enterprise. His column appears on Friday.

CRITIC'S CORNER

Private owners keep environment clean


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A Geography of Hope is a call to renew America's public
commitment to conservation on private land. Seventy percent of the land
in the contiguous States is privately owned; 88 percent of all
precipitation falls on private land. Most of that private land is in
agricultural use, and how it is used and managed is critical to the
economic - and environmental - well-being of all Americans:
Farmers and ranchers produce much more than food and fiber.
Through their care and stewardship of the land, farmers and ranchers
produce safe drinking water, clear-flowing streams, lakes full of fish,
skies full of ducks and geese and scenic landscapes. We do not buy these
commodities in our supermarkets, but we value them just the same.

A Geography of Hope suggests that local action - neighbors
working together in a voluntary, democratic way - is the most promising
foundation for land stewardship. After all, everybody is somebody's
neighbor.

The slim, flexible book presents an accounting of private land health
in the United States and contains a wealth of useful information
presented clearly in maps, charts and text. It also includes some
conservation success stories: The Texas rancher who had a "grass
explosion" when he began rotational grazing; Ohio farmers whose
conservation efforts are helping reduce the need to dredge Toldeo's
harbor for shipping; the North Carolina farm family helping to protect a
rare species known as the bog turtle; displaced commercial fishermen
working on restoration of California's vital upland salmon habitat.

The title comes from Wallace Stegner's magnificent defense of the
wilderness. It is published by the Department of Agriculture's Natural
Resources Conservation Service.

--Peggy McCracken

OTHER VIEWS

Political theater darkens work bill


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To hear the Democrats and their union allies tell it, just about the
worst thing you could do to hourly employees in this country is to give
them a choice about whether they get pay or time off in recompense for
overtime work. ...

The Republican case for the measure is more than a little persuasive.
...

The Democratic response has been to take the darkest possible view of
their fellow Americans who happen to own or manage businesses. ...

... The Senate is not sure to pass the bill, and President Clinton has
vowed to veto it should it ever reach his desk. What's really going on
is political theater, but it's nevertheless educational theater, highly
informative about the irretrievable prejudices of some office holders.
-- The Daily News, Jacksonville, N.C.
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_


Copyright 1997 by Pecos Enterprise
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324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
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