New Mexico Mercury

Wolf Medicine

To be born into mountain life in a time when the wolves howled in the Sangre de Cristos. 

Provincial Matters, 12-23-2013

V.B. Price's weekly collection of appreciations and observations.

Flat-Lining New Mexico’s Tax System Would Make it Even More Unfair

New Mexico’s state and local tax system is already unfair—with the lowest-income New Mexicans paying a rate double that of the highest-income earners. A so-called ‘flat tax’ or ‘consumption tax’ would make the tax system even more regressive. Still, there are legislators who would like to enact a consumption tax. Representative Tom Taylor and Senator William Sharer introduced twin bills (HB-369 and SB-368) during the 2013 legislative session to do just that. Although that legislation did not pass, it is all but guaranteed to make a reappearance in January—and in subsequent years if it is not adopted in 2014...

Insight New Mexico - Dr. Veronica Garcia

V.B. Price talks with Dr. Veronica Garcia, Executive Director of NM Voices for Children and former Education Secretary under Bill Richardson, about the state of childhood poverty in the state.

Immigrant Women Rise Against Domestic Violence

Off a busy Albuquerque boulevard, one of the city’s most vital services goes on quietly with its work.  Now 13 years old, Enlace Comunitario, or Community Link, works non-stop to prevent and resolve domestic violence among the Duke City’s large, Spanish-speaking immigrant population.

Beginning with a handful of visionary founders, Enlace Comunitario now employs a fulltime staff of 31 and many volunteers who educate the community about the varied manifestations of domestic violence, as well as channels assistance and resources to victims...

Friday Voyage - The Galápagos

Margaret Randall takes us on a personal journey through animal relationships and a family excursion to The Galápagos.

World Breastfeeding Week and Support for All Mothers

Fostering a breastfeeding culture through education and support.

Hunger in New Mexico

More bad news for kids in the Land of Enchantment.  Not only is New Mexico the second worst state in which to raise your children (thank God for Mississippi!) according to Kids Count, but it’s the absolute worst in food security.  Maybe we need a Department of Homeland Food Security – we’re not doing very well at protecting our children.

Food insecurity is a term that replaces “hunger,” perhaps a euphemism, but more descriptive of families that at least some of the time don’t know where the next meal is coming from...

The rape of a five-year-old

Almost lost amidst the terrorist attack on the Boston Marathon was the news a few days later of a five-year-old girl raped and left for dead in New Delhi, India. Only four months earlier, a young Indian woman was gang raped on a bus; she died of her injuries. Much of the world’s attention focused on that faraway country, on its startling number of sexualized power crimes against women and girls, and the failure of its authorities to take such crimes seriously.

But this is not an Indian problem. There is really nothing unusual about men raping or otherwise sexually abusing women and young girls...

Juarez Mothers Renew International Campaign

Missing daughters and femicide haunt Mothers Day in border region.