Free Republic

Riders work to keep cattle fever ticks confined to a quarantine zone LAREDO - This federal employee works along a treacherous stretch of high Rio Grande riverbank known as No Man's Land. His work uniform: leather chaps, sturdy Wranglers, high-top bullhide boots and silver spurs. His tools: a .357-caliber revolver, a lariat, a machete, a walkie-talkie and his beloved brown-and-white Appaloosa, Payaso. snip It's hard and lonely work in unforgiving terrain. The cowboys live away from their families in remote shacks four to five nights a week. They ride solo six or seven hours daily in 100-plus-degree temperatures, cutting trails...

<p>THE FACTS Ever notice a tiny speck on your skin and then discover that what looked like a piece of dirt was actually a tick? For most people, that moment is about the only time exposing an arm or a leg to an open flame can seem like a good idea.</p>

Only in Pennsylvania would insect control stand a chance of becoming a significant issue in a gubernatorial campaign. Many political observers believe Republican state Sen. Jeff Piccola of Dauphin County will emerge as Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell's GOP challenger next year. Piccola's insect-related criticism of the proposed 2005-06 state budget that Rendell unveiled Wednesday leaves little doubt that he will seek the office. Piccola blasted Rendell over the planned elimination of the Department of Environmental Protection's $4.4 million black-fly control and suppression program. He strongly opposes ending state-financed spraying to reduce the summertime population of black flies -- more commonly...

With a $2.5 billion overrun on the new span and only about $140 million left in the bank, the Bay Bridge project is in danger of running out of money before a solution to the funding gap is found. Caltrans was expected to brief the California Transportation Commission today on the span --now estimated to cost $5.1 billion, according to a draft Caltrans budget document -- but agency spokesman David Anderson said Wednesday the status report has been postponed until next month. That has put the link between Oakland and San Francisco in legislative limbo. Legislators are waiting for Caltrans...