LNG is a fossil fuel and does Not have long term future here. The only safe place for fossil fuels is to remain in the ground so as Not to continue to pollute our planet earth with its toxic emissions. These proposed LNGs would be using additional natural gas to freeze and liquefy, the vast majority of which is proposed to be provided by additional Fracking from the shale 140 miles north of their proposed plants.

So, the big selling point for the LNGs is the jobs they propose to create, thousands if you believe them. However, they always give the caveat that this is during the construction phase of 3 to 5 years. After that, the number drops precipitously to less than 100 jobs at each LNG plant. Not much job security or future for those “thousands of jobs.”

The Pope is a chemist by training and he says the same as the other scientists around the world, burning fossil fuels, in any form, is a Disaster for our mother planet, Earth. However, this is not totally true, in the strictest sense. The Earth has survived millions of years, most of those without any human population. Humans are a recent addition to the creatures on Earth as the proper conditions appeared on Earth to support the survival of the human species.

Now we are poised on the brink of extinction for our species of humankind. The Earth has survived these millions of years with a changing cast of characters as its climate evolved over time. Now we humans are destroying the proper conditions on Earth for humans to survive. Within 100 years, we humans could have killed off our species by ignoring global warming and climate change.

No future there.

Rick Teter Laguna Vista

Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

1 tablespoon coconut oil or light flavored olive oil

4 chicken thighs, depending on size (4 large pieces fill my skillet)

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

granulated garlic or garlic powder

dried oregano

dried basil

herbs de Provence

Instructions

1. Pour the oil into a large stainless or cast-iron skillet over medium heat. (A non-stick skillet will work as well, although it isn’t required.) Generously sprinkle the skin side of the chicken thighs with spices and then place them in the hot skillet, skin side down. Sprinkle the other side of the thighs and then, without moving them, cook uncovered* for about 20-25 minutes. Let them cook until the fat has rendered and the skin is deep golden brown and crisp; this could take as long as 30 minutes.

2. If the skin is sticking to the pan, it likely isn’t finished on that side. Reduce the heat as needed if the skin starts to burn before it is evenly golden brown. Turn the thighs over and continue to cook for about 20 more minutes. When the meat closest to the bone is cooked through, the chicken is done. Enjoy!

Prep Time: 20 mins

Cook Time: 45 mins

Total Time:1 hour 5 mins

Serves: 6-8

INGREDIENTS

8 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on

Olive oil

6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 cup dry white wine

2 limes, juice of

2 cups chicken broth

1 bunch cilantro, stems removed, chopped; more for garnish

Olive oil

Spice mix:

1 tbsp seasoned salt

1 tsp hot paprika

1 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp garlic powder

½ tsp ground nutmeg

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.

2. In a small bowl, mix the spices. Pat the chicken thighs dry, and season each thigh on both sides with the spice mix. Be sure to season underneath the skin as well. Let the chicken thighs sit in room temperature for about 15 minutes.

3. When ready, heat 1-2 tbsp of olive oil in a cast iron skillet or French braiser. Brown the chicken thighs deeply on both sides in the heated oil. Remove from the skillet and set aside briefly.

4. Lower the heat and deglaze the skillet with the white wine. Let cook to reduce and then add the broth.

5. Bring the liquid to a simmer then add lime juice and garlic.

6. Now return the chicken to the skillet; and toss in the cilantro.

7. Bring to a high-simmer for about 5 minutes or so.

8. Cover the skillet and transfer to the 375 degree F-heated oven for 45 minutes or until chicken is cooked through.

9. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes before serving. Garnish with more cilantro, if you like.

10. A simple fattoush salad and a side of white rice, couscous or Greek potatoes complete this chicken dinner.

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Yield 8 servings

Easy crisp-tender chicken with the creamiest lemon butter sauce ever – you’ll want to forget the chicken and drink the sauce instead!

Ingredients

8 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs

1 tablespoon smoked paprika

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup chicken broth

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Juice of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 cups baby spinach, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Season chicken thighs with paprika, salt and pepper, to taste.

3. Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large oven-proof skillet over medium high heat. Add chicken, skin-side down, and sear both sides until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side; drain excess fat and set aside.

4. Melt remaining tablespoon butter in the skillet. Add garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, heavy cream, Parmesan, lemon juice and thyme.

5. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, stir in spinach, and simmer until the spinach has wilted and the sauce has slightly thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Return chicken to the skillet.

6. Place into oven and roast until completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 175 degrees F, about 25-30 minutes.

7. Serve immediately.

SAN BENITO – Police say they had to use rubber bullets to subdue a man who was throwing rocks at a car and threatened officers with a knife.

Officers say they were called to a home in the 1000 block of Wick Street on Thursday night where the suspect, Thomas Randolph Taylor, 48, was throwing rocks. They say the vehicle’s front windshield was damaged.

Police say Taylor was inside the home with blood on his hands and he began to yell at officers.

“He then got up in an aggressive manner and pulled a knife from the back of his shirt. He was given multiple commands to drop the weapon but refused,” police said.

Officers say they fired .40 millimeter rubber bullets at Taylor’s leg and stomach after he refused to drop the knife. They say he finally threw it at officers and was arrested.

He was charged with four counts of aggravated assault against a peace officer, criminal mischief and an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in San Francisco.

He was arraigned by Judge Benjamin Yudesis and bond was set totaling $275,000 dollars. He’s being held at the Carrizales-Rucker Detention Center in Olmito.

RIO HONDO — A late night ride along a rural road outside of town turned fatal for an 18-year-old Harlingen woman.

Michelle Ashley Hernandez was east of Rio Hondo driving northbound on FM 2925, a mile north of FM 106, Sunday night when she swerved to avoid an oncoming vehicle that veered into her lane, authorities said.

The pickup truck she was driving went into a drainage ditch.

Her passenger, a 38-year-old San Benito woman, was found lying on the ground near the truck. She was taken to Valley Baptist Medical Center with minor injuries.

Authorities did not identify the passenger.

The accident happened just before 11 p.m.

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MERCEDES — When Winston Churchill said the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man, it’s unlikely he was talking about the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show.

But he could have been.

At the 77th RGV Livestock Show yesterday, that outside of a horse was good for women, girls and boys.

Lauren Foale, 18, of Harlingen, took first place in 2D Barrels on her horse, Texas. She credits a horse chiropractor for putting Texas back in shape for the event.

“He went to an equine osteopath in San Marcos, and he got all fixed up,” said Foale, who graduated from Harlingen High School South last year. “He was out in his hind end — I can’t explain it very well — but they go in there and they pop him all back in, and he feels great now.”

Sandy Torres is director of speed events for the livestock show, and she said 40 pole runs and 58 barrel runs were scheduled yesterday for the Open/Youth Horse Show Timed Events in the rodeo arena.

“It’s the biggest we’ve ever had,” Torres said. “We had some pretty serious competitors.”

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RAYMONDVILLE — Pat Turman-White rattles off horror stories when she talks about Willacy County’s stray dogs and cats.

“I saw a dog eating a dead dog,” the president of the Harlingen Humane Society said yesterday.

In Sebastian, she said, residents shoot dogs.

“They’re taking the dogs out and shooting them at the dump,” she said.

Now, the Harlingen Humane Society plans to raise money to build a holding center for dogs and a cat sanctuary in Willacy County, where strays are “out of control.”

“It’s everywhere,” Turman-White said of stray dogs and cats. “It’s horrible what we see.”

First, Turman-White asked for help to build the holding center and sanctuary.

Last month, she asked Willacy County commissioners to donate land on which the Humane Society could build the facilities.

But when she did not get a response last Thursday, she told commissioners the Humane Society would raise money itself to buy land for the project.

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EDINBURG — With the help of a walker and flanked by several sheriff’s deputies, 83-year-old former priest John Feit slowly entered a courtroom yesterday and faced a judge in connection with the 1960 rape and murder of Irene Garza.

Feit, who was making his first apearance in a Hidalgo County courtroom but was at his third court appearance since he was arrested in early February, stood in front of the judge and entered a plea of not guilty in the death of Garza.

Accompanied by Edinburg-based attorney O. Rene Flores, Feit was in court for a scheduled arraignment hearing in connection with the woman’s death.

Feit is accused in the April 1960 death of Garza, a schoolteacher and beauty queen who was last seen going to confession at McAllen’s Sacred Heart Church. Her body was found five days later after being dumped in a canal.

State prosecutor Michael Garza, no relation to the victim, suggested Feit’s bond be set at $750,000 but Flores, who attended Feit’s extradition hearing three weeks ago in Phoenix, said his client was not a flight risk and asked the court to set a bond of $100,000, citing Feit’s clean criminal record.

“We certainly disagree with the recommendation by the state,” Flores said. “This case is alleged to have occurred almost 60 years ago. Since the time that this incident was alleged, Mr. Feit has not had any arrests, felony, misdemeanors or otherwise.”

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MERCEDES — It’s the guilt that makes the simple pleasures so delicious at the Rio Grande Valley Livestock Show.

If a craving for funnel cakes, corn dogs, deep-fried cheesecake or breaded and fried pickles isn’t enough, livestock show officials are delivering even more temptation.

Enter the meat-filled empanada.

“It’s a traditional dish in Venezuela, the country of Venezuela,” said Elizabeth Miranda, who along with husband Gustavo (he’s the one from Venezuela), son Chris Perez and daughter Shakira Miranda, run El Chamo, which is based in Mission.

“It’s made out of corn meal, and we make them with all kinds of different meats. It could be chicken, it could be beef, browned meat and potato, cheese,” Elizabeth added.

“A lot of people just stand by our stand because they don’t know what it is,” she said. “So we’re giving out samples and every customer tastes them.”

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