Roswell Daily Record
Vol. 121, No. 250 75¢ Daily / $1.25 Sunday
INSIDE NEWS
A RARE FIGHT AGAINST BIG OIL FOR TEXAS LANDOWNERS
SUMNER, Texas (AP) — Oil has long lived in harmony with farmland and cattle across the Texas landscape, a symbiosis nurtured by generations and built on an unspoken honor code that allowed agriculture to thrive while oil was extracted. Proud Texans have ... - PAGE A7
THE VOICE OF THE PECOS VALLEY
October 18, 2012
THURSDAY
www.rdrnews.com
Obama, Romney seek support from women
MOUNT VERNON, Iowa (AP) — One day after their contentious, finger-pointing debate, President Barack Obama and Republican Mitt Romney vied aggressively for the support of women voters Wednesday, as they and their running mates charged across nearly a half-dozen battleground states in the close race for the White House with 20 days to run. Not even Republicans disputed that Obama’s debate performance was much stronger than the listless showing two weeks earlier that helped spark a rise in
Polls since the first debate two weeks ago show gains for Romney among women voters, a shift that Obama can ill afford given the traditional Republican advantage among men.
the polls for Romney. The two rivals meet one more time, next Monday in Florida. The first post-debate polls were divided, some saying Romney won, others finding Obama did. At least some of the voters who asked the questions in the town-hall style encounter remained uncommitted. “If Gov. Romney could actually provide the jobs, that would be a
good thing because we really need them,” said Nina Gonzalez, a 2008 Obama voter, neatly summarizing the uncertainty confronting voters in a slow-growth, highunemployment economy. Obama wore a pink wristband to show support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month as he campaigned in Iowa and then Ohio, and reminded his audience that the first legislation he signed
after becoming president made it easier for women to take pay grievances to court. Romney took no position on that bill when it passed Congress, and his campaign says he would not seek its repeal. But Obama chided him, saying, “That shouldn’t be a complicated question. Equal pay for equal work.” He also jabbed at Romney’s remark during Tuesday night’s debate that as Massachusetts governor, he received “whole binders full of women” after saying he wanted to appoint more of them to his administration.
The Tooth Fairy says, ‘Brush your teeth!’
TOP 5 WEB For The Past 24 Hours
• Do zombies do the Monster Mash? • Stratos skydive succeeds • Food drive to help nearly depleted ... • Domestic violence: Law enforcement ... • Fearless Felix ready ...
INSIDE SPORTS Mark Wilson Photo
The Tooth Fairy, played by ENMU-R dental assisting student Chandra Hawkins, and her assistant, 2-year-old Chloe Caley, perform in a play teaching young pre-schoolers proper dental hygiene at Parkview Early Literacy Center, Wednesday afternoon.
SPONSORS DUMP LANCE ARMSTRONG
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Already an outcast in cycling after a massive doping report, Lance Armstrong absorbed hits much closer to home Wednesday: to his wallet and his heart. Armstrong was dumped by Nike, Anheuser-Busch and other sponsors, and he gave up the top spot ... - PAGE B1
TODAY’S OBITUARIES
• Tomas F. Otero • Deborah Tungate • Ernesto Contreras - PAGE A7
HIGH ...80˚ LOW ....46˚
TODAY’S FORECAST
CLASSIFIEDS..........B6 COMICS.................B4 FINANCIAL .............B5 GENERAL ..............A2 HOROSCOPES ........B6 LOTTERIES ............A2 OPINION ................A4 SPORTS ................B1 WEATHER ..............A8
INDEX
“We don’t have to collect a bunch of binders to find qualified, talented women,” he said. “I’ve got two daughters and I don’t want them paid less for the same job as a man,” Obama said at an appearance in Athens, Ohio, later Wednesday. Obama spoke to a crowd of about 14,000 students and supporters at Ohio University, imploring them to vote early. “I want your vote. I am not too proud to beg. I want you to vote,” he said.
RPD phone system down
See WOMEN, Page A3
The Roswell Police Department has been beleagured this past week. On Oct. 12, rain seeped through the roof, causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to all three floors of the building and flooding the basement. Repairs are still under way. Commander Bill Brown said sheet rock, ceiling tiles and insulation are being torn down throughout the east side of the building. The IT specialist said a number of the older computers were damaged and police officers continue to use their mobile command vehicle to gain access to computers.
Homecoming events at NMMI Stolen Ruidoso PD connect past and future leaders car found in Roswell CHAUNTE’L POWELL RECORD STAFF WRITER
Pioneers of New Mexico Military Institute’s past will be connected with leaders of the future this week as the school conducts its annual Homecoming celebration. In a press release issued by the school, Major General Jerry W. Grizzle, NMMI president and superintendent, said, “We are always delighted to welcome the 50th reunion class, this year it’s the Class of 1962, and we have other special groups of alumni to recognize this year’s Hall of Fame inductees. “It’s also the 50th anniversary of those alumni who began their NMMI
experience in the summer of 1962. So, each year we see a bit of the renewal of the history of the Institute at Homecoming.” He also commented on the importance of the event for both alumni and the current cadets. “Attending Homecoming serves two purposes. First, alumni are able to reconnect with one another. Second, Homecoming enables our alumni to lear n about NMMI as it exists today. We all should be very proud of our current cadets and the quality of learning taking place here.” Festivities kicked of f Wednesday with the traditional Ring Dinner, where the graduating class of 2013 received a small piece
of their legacy to wear proudly. Various events will take place throughout today including the NMMI Senior College luncheon, for those that attended the school’s Senior College division in the 1950s. Today is also the day of the annual Lefty Stecklein Memorial Golf Tour nament at the NMMI Golf Course. Tonight there will be a dedication ceremony hosted by the NMMI Foundation for the newly installed columbarium, followed by the Silver Taps ceremony held to honor all alumni who have passed away this past year. Alumni and their guests are encouraged to attend See NMMI, Page A3
Felix Baumgartner’s skydive could influence spacesuit design
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Now that the dust has settled in the New Mexico desert where supersonic skydiver “Fearless Felix” Baumgartner landed safely on his feet, researchers are exhilarated over the possibility his exploit could someday help save the lives of pilots and space travelers in a disaster. Baumgartner’s death-defying jump Sunday from a balloon 24 miles above Earth yielded a wealth of information about the punishing effects of extreme speed and altitude on the human body — insights that could infor m the development of improved spacesuits, new training procedures and emergency medical treatment. A NASA engineer who specializes in astronaut escape systems said
Baumgartner’s mission “gives us a good foundation” for improving the odds of survival for professional astronauts, space tourists and high-altitude pilots and passengers. “What I would hope is that, perhaps, this is just the first step of many, many advancements to come” in emergency bailouts, said Dustin Gohmert, who heads NASA’s crew survival engineering office at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. In an interview after Baumgartner became the first skydiver to break the speed of sound, Gohmert noted that researchers have spent decades working on self-contained space escape systems, with no sigSee SPACESUIT, Page A3
JESSICA PALMER RECORD STAFF WRITER
Police responded to the 2400 block of South Sunset Avenue, Tueday, after Dispatch received a call from OnStar Navigation that a vehicle reported as stolen was tracked to Roswell and was now stationary on Sunset Avenue. Of ficers found the 2012 Chevy Equinox. When officials ran the plates, they learned that the vehicle belonged to the Ruidoso Police Department. The officers contacted Ruidoso PD and were asked to tow the vehicle to a place for
See RPD, Page A3
safekeeping. While awaiting for a tow truck, a male subject came to place something in the car. When confronted, the person identified himself as Landon Andrus. He protested as he was placed under arrest that he had per mission from his grandparents to use the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to the RPD evidence cage. A search revealed methamphetamines. The 21-year -old Andrus, 140 Paisano, Capitan, was arrested for possession of controlled substances and paraphernalia. j.palmer@rdrnews.com
Climb time at NMMI
Mark Wilson Photo
Bo Gephart, eighth-grader from Holloman Middle School at Holloman AFB near Alamogordo, navigates the High Ropes Course at NMMI during a Mathematics, Engineering, Science Achievement (MESA) program involving some 75 students enrolled in middle schools from Alamogordo, Portales and Ruidoso, Wednesday.