Laredo Chamber of Commerce Blog

Open Letter to Congressman Cuellar on Rescue Package

Sleeping with the Enemy

On Monday, September 8 of this year, Andres Vargas of San Antonio, Texas, opened fire with an assault rifle on patrol officers who had arrived at his home looking to arrest him. Minutes later two officers lay seriously wounded. Vargas kept police at bay for approximately six hours firing hundreds of rounds, the S.A. Express- News reported. Eventually, the violent stand off came to an end when the gunman reportedly took his own life.

Ask any police officer and he or she will tell you that family disturbance calls often may pose more of a danger than other types of disturbances. So, in that sense, the Vargas incident, as dangerous and as chaotic as it turned out, very much followed the norm. What goes unanswered is the fact that Andres Vargas had a history of domestic violence and failure to stop him earlier led to the shootout of September 8.

Two days before the incident, Vargas used the same assault rifle on an attempt on his ex-wife. That, in fact, led to the issue of the arrest order. The S.A. Express-News reports, however, that the signs of violence were there long before the shootings occurred. Vargas violated protective orders a number of times -- three times in a period of two weeks -- and reports by ex-wife Bonnie, although recorded, did not lead to arrests. It was only the fourth report, where an attempt was literally made on her life, that the case took a turn.

Understandably, it is difficult to make a call as to when an individual is infringing on someone else’s rights or welfare. But, protective orders are issued specifically for the protection of people given threats or a history preceding the order.

But want to hear one even better. Just take the case of a woman, any woman, trying to make a case for a protective order on an abusive former spouse or partner. Slashed tires, phone calls in the middle of the night, stalking -- none of it seems to matter as long as the spouse denies it. It’s literally her word against his. And corroborating witnesses don’t seem to matter.

Too many times I have seen women terrorized by former abusive partners and simply feel powerless given the response (or lack of) from the judicial system. A former employee of mine confided that in seeking a restraining order she informed the officer of the court of threats made against her, but was told that nothing could be done unless some act of physical harm actually occurred. Poor consolation.

The state of Texas passed a law against stalking in 1993. This was later amended after it was declared unconstitutional by the State Supreme Court. Yet, to date, proving harassment or an act of stalking very much falls on the victim. And this is unfortunate. We should not wait until a tragedy occurs, as it did in San Antonio, before we offer protection from an abusive spouse. If the signs are there the law should act. Waiting for the proof may just prove too late.

Talking Trash

What do you do when you come in second? A car rental company a few years back ran a very successful campaign with the slogan -- "When you’re number 2 you try harder." Implying that you’d get better service from them than from the company with the higher sales figures. I’ve often thought of that jingle particularly in relation to our local retail industry. For years, during the decades of the 60’s and 70’s Laredo was the leader in retail sales along the Texas- Mexico border. Thousands of visitors from throughout Mexico rained down on Laredo’s downtown sector every weekend and shopped for every product imaginable. Mexican movie stars were a common sight in high- end stores, while families of different income levels raided Laredo’s "5-cent" stores and locally-owned shops. No doubt about it, Laredo had the corner on the market.

But other communities were closely watching. And as the slogan said, they tried harder. Border cities began luring national retail developers and investing in stronger marketing campaigns. Major cities, like San Antonio and Houston, realized the purchasing power of the Mexican shopper and began focusing on that market. Even smaller communities in Central Texas figured they could take a share of the market and tried new innovative concepts -- outlet malls. Their efforts proved successful. Gradually these communities were able to gain a share of the market.

Today, in a more competitive market, Laredo still holds its own. Retail sales in in this city still rival and surpass those of most communities the same size. The local retail industry generates thousands of jobs and sales tax rebates are a major contributor to the local general fund. Laredo’s retail industry does well, but it must maintain a constant guard to keep its share.

Yet, it seems we haven’t learned our lesson. Not content with the ways things are or how better they could become, some of our own feel that the retail industry is the culprit in generating litter for the community. And, they have reasoned that government must step in and regulate the type of packaging and bags used by local stores. The sad part is that some within government agree and have considered an ordinance to eliminate the use of plastic bags (at least those that are thinner than 4-mil). No one reasoned that there are other options -- like recycling campaigns.

I agree that the sight of plastic bags on the street is unseemly and that, as litter, they may prove a hazard. But a review on the Internet of similar initiatives by other cities quickly informs one that only a handful of cities have attempted programs this drastic.... and some have quickly recanted. One must also realize that imposing a rule on retailers requiring them to purchase costlier bags, will result in higher prices for the consumer. This will affect not only local consumers, many of them trying to make ends meet with the rising cost of fuel, but the Mexican shopper, who may very well choose to go to other markets.

It is important that we be good stewards of our environment and that we work to beautify our city. But we must be careful not to shoot ourselves in the foot. Our organization is ready to partner with the public sector to institute a recycling program and work to educate the public. We can make it work.. After all, we didn’t ban the use of aluminum cans just because they proved a public nuisance at times.

The only thing you have to fear about International Trade is fear itself

On April 9, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi announced her intention to change the rules governing "fast track" consideration for the proposed Colombia Free Trade Agreement in the House of Representatives.  This would in all likelihood kill the agreement, since it is improbable that a vote would then be taken within the 90-day period under which the pact was negotiated.

As residents of a community that has enjoyed the fruits of increased international trade, we must urge Speaker Nancy Pelosi and members of the Congress to reconsider any action to amend the fast track process that will inevitably negate a vote on the Colombia FTA.

The city of Laredo,Texas, processes approximately 40% of all the goods that are traded overland between the U.S and Mexico annually.  In 2007 the value of cargo that crossed over Laredo’s bridges totaled $110.5 billion.  Without a doubt, this movement of cargo, while profitable for our import/export industry, generates thousands of jobs across the state of Texas and other states of the union. 

The leadership of the Laredo Chamber of Commerce (with membership of over 750 businesses) is fully cognizant of the impact that international trade can have on a community and our country as a whole. It is for this reason that communities like Laredo ought to be committed to ensuring that new markets are secured for U.S.goods and services.  If we are to compete with others in a global market, then this must be done on a level playing field.  Trade agreements like the proposed Colombia FTA are certain to do that.

Most importantly, it should be noted that today approximately 9,000 U.S.companies export their products to Colombia.  85% of those are small and medium-sized companies.  As part of a community with population of 235,000 in South Texas, which for years struggled with double-digit unemployment, the Laredo Chamber of Commerce is keenly aware of the opportunities available to small companies when trade tariffs are reduced and the opportunity for increased profit margins open.

This agreement is a vital to our continued effort to knock down barriers for U.S. exports.

Plastic, paper... or no bag?

The Citizens Environmental Advisory Committee of the city of Laredo has proposed an ordinance to ban/restrict the use of plastic shopping bags by local retailers.  Although, a final version of the proposed ordinance has yet to be drafted, preliminary discussion has ranged from complete elimination of all plastic and paper bags to restriction of plastic bags for large retailers only. There is no arguing that loose plastic bags are an eyesore and can have a long-term effect on the environment, but is banning them our only option?  Even further -- should this ban extend to paper bags too since they demand more energy and felling of trees for their production?

I think not.  Banning plastic and/or paper shopping bags will only result in an added cost to retailers -- which, in turn will inevitably be passed on to consumers.  This is bound to have a negative effect on a retail industry that is over 50% dependent on sales to Mexican shoppers.  Not to mention the impact on the local community, a large percentage of which hovers at or below poverty level.  Certainly Laredo must take steps to control the trash situation and protect the environment, but there are certainly a variety of options available that can improve our quality of life and not necessarily "throw the baby out with the bath water." A recycling campaign, as an example, comes to mind.

Let's remember that if it's the environment and Laredo's image we are concerned about, ridding ourselves of plastic bags will not solve the problem.  There is loose styrofoam, plastic containers, newspaper plastic bags (or are these part of the banned list too) and a number of other things that will still haunt us.  Let's have our public agencies join forces with the private sector to organize a campaign that addresses this problem.  We must learn to pick up after ourselves and teach others (including visitors) to be mindful of our community.

LAREDO CHAMBER OF COMMERCE PLASTIC BAG SURVEY

The Laredo Chamber of Commerce decided to conduct a survey to gauge its membership's response in regard to the proposed ordinance.  The survey was conducted electronically with the use of services by constantcontact.com.  A total of 1,412 e-mail addresses were contacted via the survey.  193 responses were recorded a 13.7% response level. The results are nonscientific.  (The instrument used for the survey does not permit an e-mail address to submit more than 1 response, however.)

The survey form consisted of seven statements.  Respondents were asked to rate each statement on a scale from 1 to 4 (1 denoting Strongly Agree and 4 denoting Strongly Disagree).  A fifth option offered respondents a No Comment alternative.  Following is a breakdown of responses.

CONCLUSIONS OF SURVEY

Results of the survey, in general terms, indicate that whereas respondents do feel that plastic bags create a trash nuisance and are bad for the environment, they disagree with the passing of an ordinance to ban all types of bags including paper.  The majority of respondents also disagreed with the concept of having shoppers buy non disposable bags.  The majority of respondents favor a community-wide campaign, other than a ban, to control the disposal of bags. Check out the complete survey results by clicking Download plastic_bag_ordinance_survey.pdf .