Today in Texas History – June 2

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From the Annals of Prohibition –   In 1911, prohibitionists mourned the death of  Carry Nation.  Nation was born in Kentucky in 1846, but lived in Texas for several years as a child in the 1860s and from 1879 to 1889. While in Texas, Nation claimed to have had numerous mystic experiences and ultimately came to believe that she had been selected by God and that she spoke through divine inspiration.  Her husband, a reporter for the Houston Post, ran afoul of the feuding sides in the Jaybird-Woodpecker War, and the couple relocated to Kansas. In 1892 she helped organize a local chapter of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union and was appointed jail evangelist. She began a crusade against alcohol and tobacco that lasted until her disability and death.  She became famous as the hatchet-wielding illegal “joint” wrecker  and berated persons who sold liquor. The sale of souvenir hatchets and earnings from nationwide lecture tours allowed her to pay the fines that resulted from more than thirty arrests. Although she was a national leader of the extremist element of the prohibitionist movement, she never had the unqualified support of the WCTU or of any other national organization.

Hillary Claims She Can Win Texas

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Politico reports that Hillary Clinton thinks that Texas is in play in the November general election.   According to  interview with Rebecca Traister of New York Magazine, Clinton has indicated that “If black and Latino voters come out and vote, we could win Texas.”

Here is a list of ten Texas things that Red thinks are more likely to happen than Hillary winning ultra-Red Texas in November:

  1. LBJ rises from the dead to reclaim control of the Democratic party.
  2. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick wears make-up and dress -insists on using Ladies room.
  3. The Texas Supreme Court rules against an insurance company.
  4. Mary Lou Bruner commits herself to lunatic asylum.
  5. Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller gives up cupcakes – loses 75 lbs.
  6. Land Commissioner George P. Bush figures out that the laws apply to him too.
  7. The Rio Grande reverses course – flows backwards to Colorado.
  8. Trump builds wall – Mexico pays.
  9. Sen. Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) decides to not run for President in 2020.
  10. Brownsville freezes over.

 

Today in Texas History – June 1

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From the Annals of the State Parks –  in 1969, the Lyndon B. Johnson State Historical Park opened to the public.  The state park is directly across the Pedernales River from the LBJ National Historical Park which encompasses much of the LBJ Ranch.  The two parks operate largely in tandem and feature numerous sites including the family cemetery where LBJ and Lady Bird are laid to rest.

Ken Paxton – Vexatious Litigant (cont.)

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It’s not enough that Ken Paxton is suing the federal government (again) – this time over the important issue of who gets to pee where.  But now it comes out that Paxton went actively looking for a client to challenge new guidelines aimed at protecting the rights of transgender students.   The Texas Tribune reports that Paxton approached at least two school districts in his quest to find a client to represent.  Paxton was turned down after his assistants made a pitch to the Wichita Falls ISD to enact an identity at birth peeing policy.   But the WFISD board turned him down.

“I feel like in this situation we’ve been put between a rock and a hard place by both the federal and our state government where we are the ones who would be the sacrificial lambs effectively in this fight,” said board member Elizabeth Yeager. “I think that would be completely a waste of time and a distraction from our school business of educating students.”

Wichita Falls Superintendent Michael Kurht also came out against adopting the policy, citing legal counsel that the school district’s current policies were in compliance with the new federal guidelines.  “I don’t know that my time and the district’s time is best suited to do this,” he said.

Kudos to the WFISD for having the sense to not pick an unnecessary fight and to not make their transgender students into a political pawn.

Unfortunately, the folks at the tiny Harrold ISD were not so immune to the charms of the wily Paxton.   After being approached by Paxton’s surrogates, the Harrold ISD adopted a transgender policy clearly targeted to run afoul of the federal guidelines.  Finding a willing dupe for his political agenda, Paxton issued the following duplicitous statement:

“Harrold Independent School District fulfilled a responsibility to their community and adopted a bathroom policy that puts the safety of their students first. Unfortunately the policy placed them at odds with federal directives handed down earlier this month. That means the district is in the crosshairs of the Obama administration, which has maintained it will punish anyone who doesn’t comply with their orders.”

Yes, they were goaded into adopting a policy so that Paxton would have yet another chance to file a frivolous lawsuit and waste more of your taxpayer dollars.  When a non-government lawyer goes looking for a client unsolicited they have a name for it – Barratry.  When Ken Paxton does it nothing happens.

 

Texas, Baptists and Football

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Not all Texans love their football, but a sizable majority do.  And although the state has produced exactly zero championships on any level above high school in more than a decade now, there remains the perception that Texas football is somehow superior and more manly than the rest.  The quest to achieve football prominence (or prominence in any sport) can overwhelm more pedestrian desires such as education, quality of life and safety.  What has happened at Baylor and in Waco is a prime example of misplaced priorities and an institution run amok in its goal of building a nationally recognized college football program.  Baylor had had brief moments of football success winning the Southwest Conference several times in the early days of the SWC and twice (1974 and 1980) under Grant Teaff in a more competitive era.  But until winning the Big 12 in 2013, it had been over 30 years without a trophy on the shelf.  Then sharing a Big 12 title in 2014 opened the possibility that the Bears might actually be on the road to long term success and regular national recognition.

But a what price?  Red does not know and probably does not care to know all the details of the investigation that has resulted in the firing of Head Coach Art Briles, the demotion of Ken Starr and the quick exit of the Baylor Athletic Director (whose name only the faithful knew before this week and even they will want to forget it).  Suffice it to say, that to fire a highly successful coach that had brought Baylor to national prominence, the facts are probably worse than we will ever know or want to know.  The athletic program, the administration and the Waco police and district attorney are all complicit in a horrendous cover up of gross criminality.  Anyone who has spent hard-earned money to send their child to what has been revealed to be a corrupt institution cloaking itself in Christian teaching can only be truly shocked and disappointed at how low this place has fallen.

Everyone Red knows that went to Baylor really loves the place.  It has a great reputation for being a place where students feel at home and build a sense of community and friendship.  Will that still be the case?

Red gives no credit to Baylor whatsoever for firing Briles and demoting Starr.  It is incredible that all of this occurred under the noses of the Board of Regents and they too must be considered complicit in the lack of oversight of a program that completely lost any ethical or moral mooring.

So when you are watching college football next fall, think about the consequences of the bloated importance placed on these games, these coaches and these players.  Something is seriously out of order when what happened at Baylor can go on for years without some consequences.

Today in Texas History – May 31

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From the Annals of the Frontier –  In 1881, Capt. J. B. Irvine closed Fort Griffin and marched the only remaining unit, Company A, 22nd Infantry to Fort Clark near present day Bracketville.  Fort Griffin, located just north of Albany in Shackelford County was instrumental in the campaign against the Comanche, Kiowa and their allies.   The post was established in 1867 on the Clear Fork of the Brazos River.  The fort became the centerpiece of the border-defense line from Fort Richardson at Jacksboro to the Big Bend country. By 1879 the southern buffalo herd was depleted, and the fort and its outposts were within a settled area.

The history of the fort (sort of) and the settlement of Albany and environs is celebrated each weekend June at the Fort Griffin Fandangle.

Today in Texas History – May 27

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From the Annals of Rock and Roll –  In 1957, Buddy Holly’s band, the Crickets, released their first single, “That’ll Be the Day” on Brunswick Records.   The song was written by song written by Buddy Holly and Jerry Allison.  It has been recorded by various other artists including notably Linda Ronstadt and it was the first song to be recorded by the Quarrymen.  The catch line of the song came from a visit to the cinema by Holly, Allison and Sonny Curtis to see “The Searchers.”  Holly liked John Wayne’s oft repeated phrase “that’ll be the day.”  The song was a major hit and propelled the band into national prominence.  It is listed as number 39 on Billboard’s 500 all time greatest rock and roll records.

The Best Golf Tournament in Texas

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Fore

Formerly known as the Colonial National Invitational, the golf tournament now called the Dean & Deluca Invitational at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth is being played this week.  If you are a golfer or fan and can only attend one event on the Texas tour, this is the one.  The tournament has been held at the same course for over 70 years and is superbly well run.  Not only that, but the course layout is such that there are excellent opportunities for viewing the action.  It is very easy to move from one hole to another and the facilities are second to none for the average golf fan.  The action on the par-3 13th is rumored to get a bit out of hand, but there are plenty of places on the course for a more relaxing view of actual golf being played.

 

Ken Paxton – Vexatious Litigant (cont.)

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Embattled Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton just can’t help himself from continuing to waste taxpayer dollars on important issues like who gets to pee where.  One might think that Paxton was merely trying to draw attention away from his own considerable legal woes – but then one would be a small petty-minded type of person – like Red.

But the chances that Paxton would shy away from the most important legal and moral issue of the day, involving – as Red so crudely puts it – which hole gets to go in which hole, were slim to none.  Apparently there is not a single action of the federal government that Paxton does not feel up to challenge – at least until another Bush becomes President.  Paxton reflexively must challenge anything that might possible offend or cause the slightest consternation amongst his Tea Party followers – all the while maintaining his innocence in the face of what the legal experts refer to as “pretty damn good evidence” that he himself is the real lawbreaker.   Thus despite the lack of a shred of evidence that allowing the various varieties of our transgendered Texans to decide where they would like to evacuate their various by-products of human existence has endangered anyone or caused any of the Baptist women to cry “Oh, my!”, Paxton bravely soldiers on in the belief that only he knows best and that the very fate of the constitutional republic hangs in the balance on his briefs (no pun intended).

Red for one expresses no opinion (as yet) on the constitutionality of the Obama administration’s rule on bathroom equality.  What is clear, however, is that Paxton and ilk truly believe that this is the issue that will re-ignite the Tea Party movement (not just their bowels) and lead them back to national prominence in the wake of seeing their influence eviscerated by Donald Trump’s emergence (from the anus of the political sphere).  The right must have a bogeyman – real or imagined – and fear is the only thing they know how to properly manipulate into a position of power.  If not the Red Menace washing upon our shores, or the Hippies destroying our social fabric, or the Welfare Queens taking us to the cleaners, or Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll corrupting our youth anymore, then there must be a new cause.  And with the so-called War on Terror falling out of fashion after a sort, what can the denizens of the right latch onto now.  Aha, bathroom safety.  The terrifying image of a grizzled child molester tarted up in a chemise and sporting some f*#k me pumps coming in to the Women’s room to terrorize Ted Cruz’s daughters will certainly get the base riled up.  Except maybe enough Americans are not quite stupid enough to believe such nonsense.  And no one will ever accuse Ken Paxton of not being stupid enough.