Sunday, August 09, 2020
Saturday, August 08, 2020
EOW* Lone Star Wrangle
My point is that as independent media comes full circle in terms of its importance to and influence on the dialogue in the public square, I'm looking for more Texas voices to include here: vlogs, podcasts, tweeting, writings on Medium and Substack, what have you. All I ask is that they be intelligent, consistent in producing content, and original (promoting Democrats and Democratic campaigns is overtilled acreage, y'all. They also have to have an RSS feed that Blogger can detect so that they show up in the right-hand column, of course.) Keep sending me your tips, but please also send your favorite sources so I can add them to the blogroll and include them in this biweekly round-up.
Opening today with the optimism brimming among the Donkey herd. Patrick Svitek and Abby Livingston for the TexTrib compile snapshots of the state of play for a few of the spotlight dances.
Democrats are optimistic they’ll flip as many as seven congressional seats in Texas in November. Republicans, though, have resisted fueling a narrative that they're playing defense in the traditionally red state. https://t.co/CWsmd6Rgxi
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 7, 2020
#TX24 GE:
— Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) August 6, 2020
Candace Valenzuela (D) 47% (+6)
Beth Van Duyne (R) 41%
.
Biden 49% (+5)
Trump 44%
Victoria Research/@HouseMajPAC (D) 7/31-8/2https://t.co/9YvOyzNuoL
As House Democrats expand the map, Texas is ‘ground zero’ - the @nationaljournal looks at #TX22 & #TX24 https://t.co/CrA5OhWFtD via @kirk_bado #tx2020 #tx2020
— Jim Henson (@jamesrhenson) August 3, 2020
-- TX21: The incumbent, former Ted Cruz flack Chip Roy, squares off with Democratic darling Wendy Davis, and recent polling shows a tight race. The progressive alternative in this contest is also a former gubernatorial candidate, Tom Wakely, who's running under the Green banner.
Join us next week #TX21 voters for a discussion on #MedicareForAll from a political, religious and healthcare perspective @EJinAction @AllOnMedicare @TXGreens pic.twitter.com/29ugyAOQns
— Tom Wakely For Congress - TX21 (@Wakely2020) August 7, 2020
TX22: After Troy Nehls emerged from the muddy, bloody GOP runoff with Kathaleen Wall, he scraped his website of references
to Trump. That's because he's up against the Democrat who nearly
defeated the retiring Congressman (Pete Olson) two years ago, Sri Preston
Kulkarni. Few places in America reflect the changing demographics and
politics of America's suburbs better than this Sugar Land district,
which was represented by Tom DeLay just a few years ago.
TX10: Mike Seigel is back for another shot at Michael McCaul. He's the most progressive Democrat in this class, and as you might have guessed, the DCCC is staying away again. Texas' electeds are treating him better, though, and he came close enough in '18 -- five points in a district Beto O'Rourke won by .1 of a percentage point -- that a presidential turnout might get him over the hump.
TX2: Dems think they have a shot at knocking off Dan Crenshaw, the media favorite who lives to scratch on "libruls" and "Communists" and other so-called ee-vils. Sima Ladjevardian is a solid establishment candidate but Crenshaw has a national following and the fundraising to back it up. This district was surgically gerrymandered to cancel Montrose and other inner Houston Democrats with bumfuck East Texas Republicans, and IMO the only thing that will excise Crenshaw is a redraw in 2022 by a Democratic statehouse at the Lege. I'd like to be wrong.
TX31: After MJ Hegar chose to challenge John Cornyn instead of taking a rematch with John Carter, Christine Mann, the runner-up in 2018, stepped up again. But she lost the runoff to Donna Imam, another progressive whiz kid whom the DCCC has avoided. With a small war chest and some bruised intraparty feelings locally, Imam has a tall hill to climb.
TX7: Lizzie Fletcher's challenger Wesley Hunt was diagnosed with COVID-19 as tried to board Air Force One last week, alongside Louie Gohmert and Donald Trump. Fletcher is the neoliberal poster child: Pelosi sycophant, loves fossil fuels and war toys, hates Medicare for All. I didn't vote for her in 2018 and I won't vote for her again this November. She should still win.
TX32: Colin Allred is Lizzie Fletcher's brain in the body of a Dallas Cowboys linebacker. They vote exactly the same way. This is classic old school, Martin Frost/Matt Angle Texas Democrat machine politics. It's also the reason why Joe Biden narrowly won the Texas primary after Obama told all the other shitlibs to drop out and fall in line behind him. The whining about "soshulism", even from seemingly progressive Democrats like Sylvia Garcia, was at fever pitch that first weekend in March, and Obama heard their cries and answered their prayers.
Hey, it might win one more time, if the polls are right. Later today, in Sulphur Springs ...
Local GOP officials poised to select Texas’ newest member of Congress replacing John Ratcliffe in atypical election https://t.co/1aOzWJlK9A via @Progrexas #TX04
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 7, 2020
Hegar underperforms Biden in the Lone Star State by 9 points, with 38% support.
— Morning Consult (@MorningConsult) August 4, 2020
That's 6 points behind Cornyn, who roughly matches Trump's vote share in the state with 44% support. #TXSenhttps://t.co/Nbbr9f824y pic.twitter.com/zoCVaFyEAT
The D Team could have a had a truly popular, widely respected, eloquent, innovative nominee with the youth, the future of the party, behind him. But corporate contributions speak louder than Bernie & his $27 donors.
— David B. Collins for Senate 🌻☮ (@dbcgreentx) August 2, 2020
Nobody ever runs on the Dem ballot for state offices in east Texas.@Julie4Texas and I are trying to turn that around. We're running for Texas House in our respective districts in Tyler and Lufkin.
— Jason Rogers (@Rogers4Texas) August 5, 2020
Give Julie a follow, and help flip Texas blue!#txlege
Five GOP #TXLege members sue @GovAbbott over $295M contact tracing deal https://t.co/jsMGfK1pvt via @CourthouseNews
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 4, 2020
NEW: I went to a Black Voices for Trump event. The only Black people there were the speaker & myself.
— Alexandra Samuels (@AlexSamuelsx5) August 6, 2020
Trump’s campaign has tried to make inroads w/ Black voters, but party leaders have struggled to make progress during a national moment of racial strife.https://t.co/fTvd75gAyp
Not sure but Teen Vogue routinely owns Ted Cruz https://t.co/CwYtdjQBnk
— Austin Tyler Rogers (@austintylerro) August 7, 2020
'May karma find you all' | East Texas man's obituary goes viral on social media https://t.co/VeRAw63wUm pic.twitter.com/SDHcQtRdIa
— 🍀Pearl Jolly of the Feral Left🍀⏳ (@PearlJolly) August 4, 2020
'We are no less American': Deaths pile up on Texas border https://t.co/GrDMTE442B
— Laredo Morning Times (@lmtnews) August 5, 2020
1/ This Missouri City, Texas nursing home has a COVID outbreak that killed 17 residents. There are currently 24 infected staff and 11 residents, who are in stable condition. @mvenk82 and @carla_astudi reporthttps://t.co/Xrjz9VUNjf
— Rebekah Allen (@rebekahallen) August 7, 2020
Over the past four months, coronavirus data errors have plagued several important metrics that the state reports, mistakes that have the potential to mislead decision-makers about the virus’ true course, and to feed dangerous misinformation narratives. https://t.co/vAHMYUwZFe
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 6, 2020
There's a point at which Republicans' efforts to demonstrate that government doesn't work becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy just isn't funny. We reached that point many years ago.
Federal agents are expelling asylum seekers as young as 8 months from the border, citing COVID-19 risks.
— Manny García (@manny_garcia1) August 4, 2020
You read this right: babies, children are being expelled. Important reporting from @lomikriel https://t.co/LaiboLxZFK via @TexasTribune
Study finds uneven distribution of air pollution in Houston https://t.co/ZshApcxJgK #HouNews
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 5, 2020
In a far-flung corner of West Texas, just off a lonely oilfield highway on the state’s dusty border with New Mexico, a small facility that the @nytimes dubbed “America’s most valuable hole in the ground” has drawn the ire of environmentalists for years. https://t.co/PDRyQJX0JW
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 7, 2020
New El Paso gas plant: JP Morgan locking in #climate destruction for the next 20 years #Permian #fracking https://t.co/DQIexHKHAL
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 6, 2020
The Census Bureau on Monday lopped a month off the time people have to respond to the 2020 count. Texas is already lagging behind the country in response rates, with low-income and Hispanic Texans at higher risk of being missed: https://t.co/JrtXojQKJQ #txlege
— Alexa Ura (@alexazura) August 4, 2020
There’s a new billboard in Houston that serves as reminder to protect Black trans women. This is a demand. Not a suggestion. Black trans women deserve our very best! pic.twitter.com/cohXt5dEVq
— RustinBrother (@HarrisonGuy) August 6, 2020
Texas opens hemp program applications while making it tougher to sell ‘smokable’ products https://t.co/x73yVhFe5p #TXLege
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 6, 2020
In February, Texas restaurants employed 1.2 million people.
— Texas Observer (@TexasObserver) August 1, 2020
By late April, 700,000 had already lost their jobs.
But Texas stands to lose so much more than jobs, writes @paulaforbes. If the small restaurants go under, what will be left for Texas cuisine?https://t.co/FhXVbaTlq3
Just incase your timeline went “back to normal.” Here are some Black Owned restaurants in Texas. pic.twitter.com/sXrUswHTuA
— Jimmyyyy from Linkedinnnnnn (@albizthere) July 31, 2020
I told you I had a lot to get to. We're almost at the end.
The Texas Renaissance Festival won't require masks.
— Lisa Gray (@LisaGray_HouTX) July 31, 2020
<Insert Ye Olde Plague joke here.>https://t.co/wPoiHnFOnr
For many of Houston’s zydeco dancers, musical gatherings are just one aspect of a lifestyle rooted in their Creole heritage: trail riding by day, zydeco dancing by night.https://t.co/qgjM0zIsEp
— Texas Observer (@TexasObserver) August 8, 2020
TEXAS HISTORY: I should never have trusted Peewee's Big Adventure as history. Turns out, there is a basement at the Alamo. pic.twitter.com/Zo0D45pVfl
— Michael Barnes (@outandabout) August 3, 2020
Thursday, August 06, 2020
White House Update: "Are You a Junkie?"
Joe Biden on cognitive decline testing: “I've been tested and I'm constantly tested"
— President Raprock Obiden Bama (@aturtlenamedbo1) August 5, 2020
Also Joe Biden: "No I haven't taken a test. Why the hell would I take a test."
pic.twitter.com/F6E4MiRT7q https://t.co/tmUsx3YHvh
— MSDNC - Commentary & Satire (@MSDNCNews) August 5, 2020
I suppose you read the news that he's still trying to make up his mind about a running mate.
😂🤣😂 pic.twitter.com/O8bdVNmuQL
— 🔥Allison🔥 (@kruppofnoodles) August 1, 2020
IIRC Biden would have picked Amy Klobuchar back in May, after Obama cleared the field for his nomination. But then George Floyd was murdered, and the nation's mood shifted, and while Joe kept saying he would put a Black woman on the Supreme Court, he made no such promise about veep. Finally Amy removed herself from consideration, making it obvious what he should do (I expect we'll read in one of those TIME magazine-styled inside-the-campaign reveals a year or two from now that Jill Biden and Valerie Owens Biden leaned on Klobuchar to do that).
#BREAKING:
— MSDNC - Commentary & Satire (@MSDNCNews) August 3, 2020
Biden forgets to pick VP. pic.twitter.com/ubuERMKkZ7
Instead of things like this being the top story ...
New: Manhattan DA Cy Vance in a new filing pointed to reporting by @Fahrenthold that Trump inflated his wealth to potential lenders and business partners as a justification for subpoenaing his tax returns, signaling a possible fraud investigation. https://t.co/94bw4q3Fuo
— Andrew Solender (@AndrewSolender) August 3, 2020
... this is.
Joe Biden strongly opposes marijuana legalization and made sure it was not in the Democratic Party Platform.
— Prof Zenkus (@anthonyzenkus) August 3, 2020
People are literally dying in prison for the crime of selling weed, and Biden just doesn't care. #NeverBidenhttps://t.co/AjcUMI9IJD
Instead of this ...
At ⬇️32.9%, Q2 was THE WORST economic crash in U.S. history.
— Richard Hine (@richardhine) August 3, 2020
For months,🍊🤡💩 has been telling us the July-September would be a YUGE rebound.
It’s August already and he just went golfing as emergency benefits expired for millions.#TrumpHasNoPlan https://t.co/d5ZMLpGFrG
... this.
— Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) August 2, 2020
A larger percentage of Republicans support Medicare for All compared to members of the @DNC platform committee. Let that sink in.
— Augie Lindmark (@AugieLindmark) August 3, 2020
Biden over his career has been a center-right corporate extremist and he has not made one *major* policy concession yet to the left. The DNC just voted AGAINST Medicare for All, Medicare for Kids, legalizing cannabis, rejecting corporate pac money and banning corporate lobbyists.
— Ryan Knight 🌹 (@ProudSocialist) August 4, 2020
If Biden refuses to adopt popular policies that would help him get elected and which would also relieve an enormous amount of healthcare related suffering & stress during a global health pandemic, any disaffected voters are Biden’s responsibility alone. https://t.co/vB76MCD5eT https://t.co/XjA6nfboFC pic.twitter.com/9Tajl3U6b3
— Briahna Joy Gray (@briebriejoy) August 2, 2020
And then there's this.
This is actually really telling...@BernieSanders gave 10 reasons to vote AGAINST Trump, but did not give one reason to vote FOR @JoeBiden. https://t.co/b5FosUymCf
— Ryan Knight 🌹 (@ProudSocialist) August 4, 2020
No, Bernie. This isn't good enough to get me to vote for your friend Joe, or any other Democrat.
Look, y'all. Joe Biden may very well become our next president. Putting aside his center-right policy positions & all his baggage, I don't foresee him being very good at the job.
— David B. Collins for Senate 🌻☮ (@dbcgreentx) August 2, 2020
And Walter Bragman, an excellent point.
Humans are going to look back one day—after millions have been made refugees, the Equator is unlivable, Dengue fever has reached Chicago, crop yields have dropped 30%, and the coasts have moved miles inland—and wonder why so many of us tolerated pro-fracking politicians.
— Walker Bragman (@WalkerBragman) August 2, 2020
I am weary of this.
This may surprise some of you, but after a lot of soul searching I have come to a conclusion you may not like. Like it or not, we really only have two choices. Sorry, we do. That is just the reality.
— citizen uprising (@cit_uprising) August 2, 2020
You can either:
1. Vote Green
2. Write in
Anything else is wasting your vote.
Here's our Daily Jackass: Chris Wright, posting at OpEd News.
The two party system will always find a reason to tell you why now is not the time for systemic change.
— Mark Charles 2020 (@wirelesshogan) August 5, 2020
The illusion of choice in a two party system. pic.twitter.com/9tFCcJttpo
— Jameson Lopp (@lopp) August 2, 2020
very cool and respectful pic.twitter.com/UA8uqvHdly
— Bes🌹 (@besf0rt) August 3, 2020
— Angela Walker (@AngelaNWalker) August 1, 2020
A few words about Kanye.
Whether he meant to or not, Kanye West has become a prop for the Trump campaign. https://t.co/sbGFG1YzWP
— Jesse Damiani (@JesseDamiani) August 5, 2020
To all the people worrying about how Kanye West being on the ballot could split the vote: pass #RankedChoiceVoting in your state, and you won't have to worry about "vote-splitting" or "spoilers" anymore. We did it in Maine, and it works. We can fix this broken voting system.
— Lisa Savage for US Senate🌻 (@LisaForMaine) August 5, 2020
Update:
Amid various reports that Republican and Trump-affiliated political operatives are trying to get Kanye West onto various state ballots for November’s presidential election, the billionaire rap superstar indicated, in an interview by text today, that he was in fact running to siphon votes from the presumptive Democratic nominee, Joe Biden.Asked about that directly, West said that rather than running for president, he was “walking,” quickly adding that he was “walking . . . to win.”
When it was pointed out that he actually can’t win in 2020 -- that he won’t be on enough ballots to yield 270 electoral votes, and that a write-in campaign isn’t feasible --and thus was serving as a spoiler, West replied: “I’m not going to argue with you. Jesus is King.”
Monday, August 03, 2020
The TexProgBlog Wrangle
One year ago today, El Paso was the site of one of America's deadliest shootings and the deadliest terrorist attack on Latinos in U.S. history. As we honor the memory of the 23 people who lost their lives, let us never forget what makes our community strong.#ElPasoStrong⭐️ pic.twitter.com/KhmXzxcK1f
— Rodrigo Santos Legaspi (@r_santoslegaspi) August 3, 2020
Saturday marked another night of demonstrations against #PoliceBrutality in #Austin, w/ tensions heightened bc of last week's shooting death of Garrett Foster, a 28-year-old protester, by a man who has not been charged. https://t.co/eFpsHwDcWv via @TexasTribune #ATXprotests
— Joel Mayer 🍁✡🌹 (@LostMapleTX) August 3, 2020
Austin Police Department arresting protesters while they are legally standing on the sidewalk, shoving folks back to prevent filming their arrest, and attacking a journalist with pepper spray.#austinprotests #ACAB #austinprotest #AustinTX #APD pic.twitter.com/1u85CwyPF5
— Basically Just Kanaya @ HSNewGamePlus (@AltUniverseWash) August 2, 2020
APD is kettling and pepper spraying protesters on the sidewalk by Garrett's memorial. People need to come out to 4th and congress! This is ridiculous #austinprotests https://t.co/Ua3HUDf3yT
— Mike Ramos Brigade (@mike_r_brigade) August 2, 2020
I'm one of the people who got sprayed. Tried to stop a guy from rushing the cop who had just shoved him to the ground. Rewarded with pepper spray in the eyes from <10 yards. So sorry I was trying to keep it peaceful. Oh wait... isn't that YOUR job? #austinprotests https://t.co/zaPnJ004UH
— Caroline_Faison (@CarolineFaison) August 3, 2020
Controversy erupts after 'Back the Blue Cruise' makes uninvited stop at Friendship-West Baptist Church | https://t.co/20bHcbe272 https://t.co/Nbo0ycTb3N
— Malcolm Mac (@MAMcGuire) August 2, 2020
A group of 1,000+ bikers & Jeep drivers led a convoy across DFW in support of police today. During the convoy, there was a heated exchange at Friendship-West Church, which was widely documented on social media. No arrests were made & the convoy continued.https://t.co/IejnbveyUn
— DFW Scanner (@DFWscanner) August 2, 2020
Dozens descended on Dallas Police Headquarters for a Black Lives Matter march Sunday night after hundreds of people participating in a Back the Blue caravan stopped in the parking lot of a prominent Black church in Oak Cliff earlier in the afternoon.https://t.co/hxjyHQVqlU
— Alanna Quillen (@AlannaNBC5) August 3, 2020
#RGV: Plasma donations urgently needed https://t.co/x3Xjx7DESD via @RioGGuardian
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) August 1, 2020
What @SenTedCruz is saying is that the U.S. economy does not work, and will not recover, unless it can compel marginalized people to risk their lives in the midst of a global pandemic to go back to work for wages that are not livable. https://t.co/Xngo53tWqh
— Mark Charles 2020 (@wirelesshogan) August 2, 2020
Texas on the road to the death of tens of thousands of Texan children. https://t.co/aiKZzMeWrC
— 𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐬𝐤𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟐𝟏𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐲 (@LTrotsky21) August 1, 2020
“Rental assistance will only reach so many people, a grace period could protect countless more." - Zoe Mddleton TX Housers
— Texas Poor People's Campaign (@texas_ppc) August 2, 2020
Houston's last fund for rental assistance ran out in 90 min., leaving a countless number of people with no help and no where to go.https://t.co/g9pmUaryYI
The COVID-19 pandemic has turned telehealth into a necessity. But across Texas, only 69 percent of rural residents have access to broadband to make it happen. https://t.co/nM3SL4oWvc
— Texas Observer (@TexasObserver) July 31, 2020
As more & more of our brothers & sisters fall sick from CoVid19 what is left behind is shattered lives & bankrupt families. Join us next week Thursday @7pm #TX21 for a Zoom townhall on why we need #MedicareForAll Info: https://t.co/OU8Pznc3Sg https://t.co/6oMAi79xjD
— Tom Wakely For Congress - TX21 (@Wakely2020) July 31, 2020
I do have some political headlines.
SD14: Sen. Sarah Eckhardt was sworn in following Rep. Eddie Rodriguez’s decision to withdraw from the special runoff election. There are now 10 women serving in the Texas Senate for the first time in state history.CD23 open: Raul Reyes Jr. will seek a recount of his 46-vote Republican runoff loss to Tony Gonzales II. “We want to ensure all ballots were counted properly through an expeditious recount process as allowed under law.”Texas Libertarian Convention: At its convention in Big Spring, the state's Libertarians nominated Kerry McKennon as its candidate for U.S. Senate. He received 2% of the vote in 2018 as the Libertarian nominee for lieutenant governor. The party’s delegates elected four women to its top leadership positions, including Whitney Bilyeu as chair and Bekah Congdon as vice chair.
The Biden Texas team includes @racunatx as state director, @CollierForTexas as senior adviser, and @TariqThowfeek on comms #TxLege https://t.co/Td45tocBne
— Scott Braddock (@scottbraddock) August 3, 2020
#HOUSTON BEYOND FOSSIL FUELS: Breakthroughs in utility-scale batteries “co-located" with wind and solar facilities have enabled renewables to replace fossil fuels as the low-cost electrical baseload for two-thirds of the world population. More: https://t.co/HgIx74sN0s#hounews pic.twitter.com/yJMckb3wXk
— Progressive Forum (@ProgressHouston) August 1, 2020
The momentum to end routine flaring by 2025 is stronger than ever. With combined interest from investors, operators and local communities the pressure is on for @txrrc to end the wasteful and harmful practice. #CutMethane. #TXEnergy #txlege https://t.co/E66HJAML6I
— EDF Energy Program (@EDFEnergyEX) August 1, 2020
The Texas Association of School Administrators is firing back at what it calls state leaders’ politicized attempts to “micromanage” school reopenings. https://t.co/bQRY2QCo34 pic.twitter.com/AMZvtkhQNe
— Texas Standard (@TexasStandard) August 3, 2020
So the math on this: There are roughly 363,000 teachers in Texas.
— Scott Braddock (@scottbraddock) August 1, 2020
Of those, about 130,000 could take retirement now & avoid exposure to #coronavirus in a classroom.
That's 36% of the state's teacher workforce.
Maybe tap the brakes on opening schools? #txLege https://t.co/COzUTvDvW5
Reminded me of this quote from a black school board member in @alexazura and my school desegregation project:
— Aliyya Swaby (@AliyyaSwaby) July 30, 2020
“People don’t believe in educating all children. They believe in educating their kids, not your kid." https://t.co/cteq5m8D8D#txlege #txed
Has this Wrangle been long enough for ya? Let's end here with something cool and refreshing.
Willie Shannon eats his lunch in an ice house during a heat wave in San Antonio in June, 1948. Everything about this image, which was taken by a photographer for the San Antonio Light newspaper, is absolutely outstanding. I'll bet it felt great in there on that particular day. pic.twitter.com/BTgA4s1HdG
— Traces of Texas (@TracesofTexas) August 1, 2020
Sunday, August 02, 2020
Saturday, August 01, 2020
Week-ending Lone Star Round-up
Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert to take hydroxychloroquine to treat COVID-19 https://t.co/H0Y9baJ7Zc #hounews
— Matt Schwartz (@SchwartzChron) July 30, 2020
A Houston doctor who praises hydroxychloroquine and says that face masks aren’t necessary to stop transmission of the highly contagious coronavirus has become a star on the right-wing internet, garnering tens of millions of views on Facebook on Monday alone. Donald Trump Jr. declared the video of Stella Immanuel a “must watch,” while Donald Trump himself retweeted the video.
Before Trump and his supporters embrace Immanuel’s medical expertise, though, they should consider other medical claims Immanuel has made—including those about alien DNA and the physical effects of having sex with witches and demons in your dreams.
Immanuel, a pediatrician and a religious minister, has a history of making bizarre claims about medical topics and other issues. She has often claimed that gynecological problems like cysts and endometriosis are in fact caused by people having sex in their dreams with demons and witches.
She alleges alien DNA is currently used in medical treatments, and that scientists are cooking up a vaccine to prevent people from being religious. And, despite appearing in Washington, D.C. to lobby Congress on Monday, she has said that the government is run in part not by humans but by “reptilians” and other aliens.
In the interest of fairness, I'll concede that last claim of hers could be true.
Harris County, where Houston sits, has the fifth-highest number of confirmed coronavirus cases of any U.S. county.
— NPR (@NPR) August 1, 2020
"I signed more death certificates last week than in my entire life almost all put together,” one doctor says. https://t.co/OPzfdduZYP
Masculinity can be toxic, I've read. I will never believe the social and educational gains of having Texas schoolchildren return to the classroom is worth risking their lives and long-term health, or that of our state's teachers (or school bus drivers and custodians and cafeteria workers). Just know that the wealthy have options that the rest of you don't. I don't have any children or grandchildren in the state's school system but I do have a few nieces and nephews (and grands- of those). Should I care as much as their parents and grandparents? I don't really have a say or influence. I certainly didn't think that disregard for the threat, or poor planning and execution -- much less the economy -- was a good excuse for sacrificing our seniors, like Dan Patrick. (Nor the prisoners and immigrant detainees in our jails, but hey, maybe that's just me and a few other bleeding hearts.)
.@VanceGinn: Schools should reopen since most Texans dying from COVID-19 are elderly or Hispanic https://t.co/WIgi2aiCuZ #TXLege
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) July 29, 2020
I wasn't elected to anything, and I sure didn't vote for any of these people who do think that.
My uncle was one of the 93 deaths last week in Texas from #covid19. No federal leadership in #TX14 from Weber, no state leadership from Abbott. It did not have to be like this in Texas, with our loved ones dying. https://t.co/3sTk2VIkUB
— Adrienne Bell (@AdrBell) July 20, 2020
Rep. @EddieforTexas withdraws from SD14 special runoff election. Former Travis County Judge @sarah_eckhardt (D) will succeed former Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin). #txlege https://t.co/mzmqTVyIHL
— Texas Election Source (@TXElects) July 27, 2020
Gonna give this a closer look later, but at first glance I like what I see--esp. the "fixing broken Texas" gif.
— David B. Collins for Senate 🌻☮ (@dbcgreentx) July 30, 2020
Courtesy of Common Cause:https://t.co/slStTwQ1kW
Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday extended the early voting period for the November election by six days, citing continued challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) July 27, 2020
Early voting for the Nov. 3 election will now begin Oct. 13 instead of Oct. 19. https://t.co/Mvvr03y6G5
TX DEMS plan 7-figure digital ad buy as they try to turn Lone Star State blue in Nov.
— ChickenFriedPolitics (@ChkFriPolitics) July 27, 2020
--The Place for Southern Politics is ChickenFriedPolitics.com--https://t.co/RvKY3VJVHq
Because of the resignation of Diane Trautman and the withdrawal of Andrea Duhon, there are now two Democratic nominee vacancies on the November 3, 2020 General Election ballot:Harris County Clerk - Unexpired term, through 2022Harris County Department of Education Trustee, Position 7, At-Large - Full termUnder state law, precinct chairs from each political party nominate a candidate to appear on the November ballot. HCDP precinct chairs will vote at a County Executive Committee (CEC) meeting to be held virtually (conducted by computer, rather than in-person) on Saturday, August 15, 2020, at 11:00 am.
Environmental updates include these developments. First, from Juan Cole:
Ashton Nichols at The Dallas Morning News reports that ExxonMobil lost over $1 billion in the second quarter, up from a $600 million lost in the first. Year on year, its revenues are down 33% for the first half of this year. It has been forced to close down half its fracking rigs in the Permian Basin. In recent years, the company is responsible for 124 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually and it is one of the biggest polluters in the world, helping wreck the planet.Nichols quoted senior vice president Neal Chapman as saying, “Absolute demand fell to levels we haven’t seen in nearly 20 years. We’ve never seen a decline with this magnitude and pace before, even relative to the historic periods of demand volatility following the global financial crisis as far back as the 1970s oil and energy crisis.”
Chevron did even worse, losing a whopping $8 billion.
[...]
This crisis is a foretaste of what is coming when electric cars take off in the consumer market, something that will happen through the 2020s.
As I have written before, I simply do not have the same amount of sympathy for these companies that I do for small businesses. They haven't only failied to adapt; they have refused to, and have denied that their commerce is at the root of a more serious global pandemic than COVID-19.
ExxonMobil has known about the catastrophic effects of using its product for decades, and has spent tens of millions of dollars to muddy the waters and discourage people from giving up gasoline. It also engages in greenwashing, pretending to be working on renewable energy or the (non-existent) carbon capture, when in fact only 1% of its profits go toward such research. ExxonMobil executives and flacks are committing premeditated inter-generational genocide.
Mike, it’s not just the GOP supporting big oil but many Democrats as well, both candidates and elected officials. We cannot afford centrist gradualism when our world is being destroyed. @sunriseatx @SierraClubAlamo @itsTracyChapman https://t.co/Znnqla0I5i
— Tom Wakely For Congress - TX21 (@Wakely2020) July 27, 2020
Every dark cloud has a silver lining, and the Progressive Forum's blog, written by Randall Morton, presents the capitalist opportunity in the midst of the crisis:
Let’s rouse the business opportunities at our feet. The next decade is an opportunity to generate a Houston renaissance by taking the most practical economic course. While still works in progress, post-industrial cities like Pittsburgh and Tulsa are proven examples of hope. This common-sense direction is also the path to solve our three major crises: Economic recovery, inequality, and climate. The pain of our current passage, the common suffering of rich and poor, the common suffering of politically right and left, are driving common support for dynamic business answers. The bottom line: Profitable investments toward renaissance and resilience are better than endless trillions for rescue. Let’s put our HAT on.
They'd better get after it because we're all running out of time. And shit like this isn't the right way to fix anything.
Didn't anyone in Houston consider how bad this looks??https://t.co/EOWZFwksnw?
— Geoff Dembicki (@GeoffDembicki) July 31, 2020
I have a variety of social justice posts and Tweets.
Darrington prison is named after a slave plantation. Draper is named after a KKK leader. Goree Unit is named after a Confederate captain.
— Keri Blakinger (@keribla) July 29, 2020
We talk a lot about racist monuments & team names, but here’s a look at prison names - which are just as bad: https://t.co/mPfIQjcxT1
US will not expel migrant children detained in McAllen, TX hotel https://t.co/9FqYS4kbI3 #TXLege #RGV
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) July 28, 2020
Vandals spray-paint crude swastika, other markings on Houston's Buffalo Soldiers Museum https://t.co/2xg8ZWwunA #hounews
— Matt Schwartz (@SchwartzChron) July 29, 2020
Spc. Vanessa Guillen’s family, along with their attorney, Natalie Khawam, gathered outside the Capitol on the National Mall to announce the #IamVanessaGuillen bill.https://t.co/sVBurJayXX
— Stars and Stripes (@starsandstripes) July 30, 2020
Zachery Taylor blogs about how the mainstream media continues to overlook the murders of US veterans beyond Vanessa Guillen. Which leads us to the latest news on the killing of Garrett Foster, the Austin BLM protestor gunned down last weekend.
Investigation exposes Army sergeant as murderer of #GarrettFoster https://t.co/EqsimTzs32 #ATX
— Forever in debt to your priceless advice. (@PDiddie) July 31, 2020
The Texas Tribune has confirmed that Austin protester Garrett Foster’s suspected killer tweeted about retaliating against demonstrators. His posts have strengthened activists’ concerns over how police are handling the investigation of the deadly shooting. https://t.co/8FpgVXhxzZ
— Texas Tribune (@TexasTribune) August 1, 2020
Today is the first of the month, and that is creating a crisis for many Texans who are unable to pay their rent. Once again, I'm not sure our state's leaders care.
“This is one area where we found that we did make a mistake, because we actually added a $600-a-week benefit from the federal government." - @JohnCornyn
— Progress Texas (@ProgressTX) July 28, 2020
As Texans struggle to make rent, remember who called for taking these benefits away. #TurnTexasBluehttps://t.co/tFsHJPoJYP
As this post was set to publish, some sad news came over the Tweet feed
derek howard, husband of rep. donna howard, passed away : https://t.co/05gyo03BOI #txlege
— quorumreport (@quorumreport) August 1, 2020
Sincerest condolences to Rep. Howard and her family.
Traces of Texas reader David McGill was so kind as to send in this photo of kids eating watermelon on a summer day in San Antonio, 1959. David is on the far right. His brother, noted actor Bruce McGill (Secretary of War Edwin Stanton in "Lincoln" among others) is on the far left pic.twitter.com/vTzrZ1Pspk
— Traces of Texas (@TracesofTexas) July 31, 2020