Living in Texas is sometimes so full of contradictions. I hope you'll find the following round-up of news from the Lone Star State as interesting and informative as I did. And maybe, just maybe, your view of Texas might begin to change.
Currently, I'm proud to say, two of Texas most notable politicians are not afraid to "mess with Texas!"
About damn time. About damn time. Follow me through the bluebonnets below the fold for some Texas-sized news.
Bill White posted a video comment about the State Board of Education's vote in May to remove Thomas Jefferson from part of the social studies curriculum. http://www.youtube.com/...
White also recently posted that parts of West Texas have benefited from wind energy, an industry which he promoted as Deputy Sec. of Energy of the US. While he was Mayor Houston became the largest purchaser of wind energy of any public entity--local, state or federal agency--in the US.
Meanwhile, Sarah Palin was in Austin, joined by Rick "Coyote Slayer" Perry, for a private fundraiser for Heroic Media, a pro-life nonprofit that advertises alternatives to abortion.
At the event, Perry called Obama "the most pro-abortion president to ever occupy the White House." Oh, that’s such crap. Obama doesn’t want to get rid of babies, he wants to get rid of useless old people. Palin, meanwhile, praised Texas for having "so many prolife pro-family legislators." Pro-family? You mean the legislators trying to kick all children off of health insurance and take away free breakfasts? Those pro-family legislators?
But that wasn’t her best line. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. "You’re not afraid to cling to your guns and your religion!" OH MY GOD MAKE IT STOP. It’s like her brain’s so full of batshi*t that she can’t come up with any other lines. It’s the same reason that I can sing all the lyrics on the Flashdance soundtrack but can’t remember my name when I wake up in the morning. I’d rather hear her sing that she’s goin’ on a manhunt 100 times than hear that tired guns and religion bit ever again. (Via Texas Monthly)
To be fair, Perry's broken clock can still be right twice a day, and he proved it in a recent statement to the Austin American Statesmen.
"I fully recognize and support a state's right and obligation to protect its citizens, but I have concerns with portions of the law passed in Arizona and believe it would not be the right direction for Texas,"[Gov. Rick] Perry in a written statement. http://www.statesman.com/
Pssst, Arizona...when you've lost the secessionist governor of Texas, you might seriously want to re-think things.
Back in Houston Mayor Annise Parker was just named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People.
It's not every Democrat who quotes Calvin Coolidge after spending 100 days in office as mayor of Houston. But then Annise Parker, 53, has never fit the mold. She's a demure, pearl-wearing lesbian businesswoman with three kids and a longtime partner. When she quoted Silent Cal in her first state of the city address, in April, saying, "There is no dignity quite so impressive and no independence quite so important as living within your means," it was a sign she would focus on her city's $100 million budget shortfall during her time in office. And so she has. The fourth largest city in the U.S. is having its belt dramatically tightened. "I feel like a mom planning a family budget,'' she says. "We're going to make sure we still have plenty of healthy vegetables, but we might have to cut back on dessert for a while."
Mayor Parker also recently joined with Interfaith Ministries and volunteers for Meals on Wheels to provide home-bound seniors with a nutritional meal. Learn more about volunteering with Interfaith Ministries and Meals on Wheels here: http://www.imgh.org/...
And more good news: Rice University has just released the 2010 Houston Area Survey. Through almost three decades of systematic research, the annual survey has measured this region’s remarkable economic and demographic transformations and recorded the way area residents are responding to them. No other metropolitan area in America has been the focus of a research program of this scope. None more clearly exemplifies the trends that are rapidly refashioning the social and political landscape of urban America.
One of the most interesting findings, which comes as no surprise in light of Annise Parker's election as mayor, is the city's growing comfort with diversity is accompanied by mounting support for gay rights.
The belief that homosexuality is primarily "a matter of
personal choice," rather than an inborn trait or something
caused by the social environment, declined from 41% in
2008 to 34% in 2010.
The numbers of area residents who were in favor of
"homosexuals being legally permitted to adopt children"
increased steadily from 19% in 1991 to 37% in 2004 to 43%
in 2008 and to 52% in 2010.
Support for "allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly
in the military" grew from 52% in 2000 to 64% in 2008 and
to 73% in 2010.
As one of my good friend reminds us, you can usually tell a person's political affiliation just by looking at his face.
Well, obviously. Do you look severe and constipated, nervous and ruddy, fearful the gays are coming to convert your cat and steal your fetish porn? You're a Republican. Do you look warm and approachable, calm and likable, slightly insane and mushy as a tofu popsicle? You're a Democrat.
http://www.sfgate.com/...