10 Thursday, May !, 1997 Pahrump Valley Gazette
Editorial Writing--a time to be humble
Last week I heaped loads of accolades on the Nye County
Commissioners and other county officials. Now I humbly
admit a bit of a problem with that.
I'm the pin-head that named Bill Offutt our "man of the
year°"
Humble, humble, humble.
For those of you who have been living with your heads
buried in the sand for the past year, here's the situation.
Until March of last year, Bill Offutt was the Nye County
Manager and chief gopher for the commissioners. One week
I wrote an unsigned editorial (unsigned editorials represent
the posithn of the newspapeO that loaded Bill Offutt with
enough kudos to last a lifetime. I named him our "man of the
year." The very next week Offutt was fired in disgrace under
allegations of sexual misconduct. The allegations were ex-
tremely serious.
Humble, humble, humble.
If ever there was a time that I wished I could run around the
county and purchase every copy of the newspaper just to get
them out of the market -- this was the time.
On the other hand, let me tell you the events that led up to
the editorial and ask you what you would have done. Remem-
ber this: Offutt, to this day, has never been charged with a
crime. There is a lawsuit against him and other county
officials filed by the alleged victims but this has yet to go to
court.
In early December, 1995 Offutt was charged with the
responsibility of managing Nye Regional Medical Center. He
was to make whatever changes he felt necessary and report
back to the commissioners on all actions taken. In short, turn
this hospital around.
According to the reports given to the commissioners for
NORTHERN EXPOSURE
m
the next three months, Offutt made sweeping
changes. The very first month there was little
to no loss in the hospital's finances. In January
the hospital continued its upward trend by
breaking even -- the first time in years.
by Dave Downing
In February, 1996 it was reported that the hospital actually
made money. The reports showed a steady upward trend with
the hospital actually making a complete turnaround.
Meanwhile, commission business was moving at a fast
pace. Every single job given to Offutt by the commissioners
was getting done with positive results. Even when his time
was completely consumed by the hospital, Offutt was getting
his regular job completed in an outstanding fashion.
There appeared to be no question about it. One man had
successfully accomplished what teams of managers had failed
to do. He deserved recognition for this tremendous accom-
plishment and I, representing this newspaper, was put to work
to place the appropriate words on this page. I spread it on
thick.
This paper wasn't alone. I know of at least one other paper
that was in the process of doing the exact same thing but they
were doing it on the same day Offutt was fired. They had just
enough time to pull it.
Well, did I botch it? You tell me.
It is important that you realize that nothing has been heard
in acourt of law. Offutt is to be considered innocent of any and
all charges until such time as a court of law determines
otherwise. It is also important to note that the allegations are
extremely serious and are well-documented in the lawsuit
filed by those involved.
Getting back to last week's editorial. You may ask, what
about all the charges rm hearing directed against the Nye
County Commissioners and staff?. The key is that they are just
that. Unsubstantiated charges that are being made by indi-
viduals. The claims are numerous and they are, for the most
part, being ignored by the commissioners. They're being 0
ignored because there simply has been nothing to prove that
the commissioners are taking illegal actions with criminal
intent. Nothing.
The commissioners are certainly capable of making mis-
takes and if this were the case they would correct those
mistakes. The people on the Board of Commissioners are
good honest people. I truly believe that.
However, I'm also very humble, humble, humble.
EDITOR'S NOTE: You can e-mail Dave Downing at:
downing@sierra.net.
"Devil's Hole"...A Critical Review
by Richard Reul
Bill Branon's fwst novel, Let us Prey, was selected by the
New York Times as a 1992 Notable Book of the Year. It dealt
with a national conspiracy against the Internal Revenue
Service and a counter-conspiracy by certain factions within
the Federal Government.
Devil's Holeis Branon's second novel. It involves a pair of
contract killers, both in their fifties. Arthur and Montana had
met and worked together in Vietnam, where Arthur had been
an expert Army sniper and Montana was his spotter. This
brutal war has left its indelible stamp on both of them,
particularly on Arthur. His personal ghosts continue to haunt
his dreams and he uses his present career as a strange
atonement for what he was ordered to do in Nam. He accepts
targets only from among society's predators and tries to
devise a death that fits his victim's crimes. With his icy
control,. Arthur is an unstoppable juggernaut once he has a
contract.
The partners accept a contract offered by several casinos
in Las Vegas. Their target is an ex-Marine in his early thirties,
alleged to be a drug dealer. Mike has found a way to beat the
casino sport books and he is costing them heavily.
Melody and Karla are close friends. Melody has split from
Craig, an obnoxious young lawyer she laad been living with
in southern California. She takes off for Las Vegas and Karla
follows her later. Both girls obtain low level jobs and Melody
goes to Dealers School. Karla meets Montana at the pizza
parlor where she works and they are attracted to each other.
Melody encounters Mike when she is working the Sports
Book at her casino. The chemistry between them is immedi-
ate and startling in its intensity. Karla persuades Melody to go
on a double tate with Montana and Arthur. She finds herself
drawn strongly to the hit man, but by love rather than lust.
The story moves swiftly as Arthur and Montana zero in on
Mike. They are unaware of Melody's relationship with him
and Arthur finds himself irresistibly falling in love with
Melody.
The climax occurs at and near Devil's Hole in Ash Mead-
ows where two skilled warriors battle to the death and then for
mutual survival. It involves chilling suspense, treachery,
expected and unexpected violence and a totally unantici-
pated, double-twist ending where Melody becomes a key
player. Interestingly, part of the action during the climax is
told through the eyes and other senses of a desert wolf!
This novel is notable for its fine character delineation and
its detailed descriptions of local places and practices. As a
long time Pahrump resident, I found Frank - the retired
Nevada Test Site engineer and barfly at the Saddle West -
completely believable. There are revealing glimpses of the
Mountain Springs Saloon, the Pahrump brothels and the
Short Branch Saloon in Crystal. Also interesting are the
detailed and accurate characteristics and idiosyncrasies of
various weapons that are woven into the story. As a relatively.
expert rifleman, I was also intrigued by the shooting tech-
niques revealed. The erotic sex scenes are unbelievably
powerful and leave the reader with the feeling of participation
rather than observation.
My only criticism of this novel is that Branon did not "tie
up his loose ends" well enough for the average reader. The
surprising climax raised many questions that were not an,
swered in the rather off-beat epilog. Most of the answei are
buried in the earlier text but need coordination and emphasis.
Bill Branon now lives in Las Vegas. He is a Harvard
educated Navy veteran and an expert in weaponry, demoli-
tion and surveillance. He is also a champion ocean sailor, a
professional level golfer and a high-stakes casino gambler.
He frequently writes letters to the Review-Journal. I will look
forward to reading his future novels. Devil's Hole is available
in paperback at Pahrump's Reading Oas!s.
... Yet another group attempts mass suicide.
