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I am an average speller. I swear by spellcheck. When you write as much as I do, you make mistakes. One word that I have learned to spell correctly is condolences. It is one of those confusing spellings when you don't know whether to use "a" or "e" in the last syllable.

It is an unraveling word because it forces us to confront a stark reality--death. And for 99.99% of us, we have never known death as we are knowing it now. You hope that someone doesn't write on your Facebook page--condolences.

I run through my Facebook page feed and every day it is someone new. Today I learned that Alex Guerrero, the father of past city commissioner candidate Carlos Guerrero, had passed. I am serving my usual 30-day FB sentence for dissing community standards, so I am unable to forward "condolences" to Carlos whom I've grown to appreciate after we initially found ourselves at opposite ends of the local political spectrum.

I had the pleasure to make the acquaintance of his father, a consummate gentleman who carried himself with class. He loved political pachangas as much as the rest of us who revel in Brownsville politics do. With his nicely groomed hair, his perfectly trimmed beard and his smart attire, Alex moved with dignity and style.

The last time I had the satisfaction of his company was at the Palm Lounge. Like myself, he was one of those guys who liked to sit at the bar and savor a cold beer. With or without company, he was content to drink and relish a bar's ambience. We chatted about the usual subjects and traded gossip we had overheard in sundry places. Spontaneous encounters are the reason you walk into a joint by yourself. It's a man thing.

These are painful times that are only growing worse with each passing day. We have met the enemy and he is showing us no pity. Again, we can only send our condolences and pray that in the future we won't be receiving condolences.

Brownsville is my family and too many of our brothers and sisters are victims of a cruel fate. We share your pain as we drop to our knees and beg for mercy.

Alex Guerrero...RIP... 

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