talkpolitics | Entries tagged with texas

Texas property tax bill excludes divorced, LGBTQ couples from getting relief

"A new Texas House bill that provides property tax relief based on the size of a family excludes LGBTQ couples and divorced parents with children, among other parties, from getting the tax advantage."

My first thought, after reading this was, OMG. Some Catholic from 150 years ago is determined to impose his outrageous beliefs on everyone who owns a house in Texas. The proposed bill says that no couple where at least one person has been divorced and even remarried nor LBGT couples, married or not, may get relief from Texas' property tax.

To get the relief, a married couple (first and only marriage) can get relief, and the amount of relief increases with the number of children the couple has - ten children and they pay nothing in property taxes.

How can people like this even get elected or even get enough support to even run for public office? Of course, the sponsor of the bill is a Republican from Texas, so that should explain it - at least it would if this was the 1800's.

luzribeiro

Let's not kid ourselves here, we have a rogue and renegade political party within our midst.

Does anyone doubt a Republican controlled Texas legislature wouldn't hesitate to replace the People's chosen Electors, should Trump lose the '24 election?

Texas GOP adopts resolution rejecting 2020 election results

The Republican Party of Texas over the weekend adopted a resolution at its state convention that rejects President Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 election, further aligning the state party establishment with former President Donald Trump in pushing false election claims.

"We reject the certified results of the 2020 Presidential election, and we hold that acting President Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was not legitimately elected by the people of the United States," reads the resolution, passed by voice vote in Houston on Saturday. "We strongly urge all Republicans to work to ensure election integrity and to show up to vote in November of 2022, bring your friends and family, volunteer for your local Republicans, and overwhelm any possible fraud."

Texas is an embarrassment. When are the people of that weird state going to show the leadership that the politics of revolution does not end well for those at the top?

When there is a failure of government to legislate rationally, what follows is sectarian violence, like in other theocracies.

The GOP should, henceforth, be referred to as banana-republicans, because that's what they're trying to create here.

The inmates are running the asylum! To state in your party's policy platform that you reject the results of a certified election and reject the duly elected President spells a death knell for democracy at least in Texas. One baby step from the TX legislators saying they can overturn any election that they don't agree with. They also make separation from the States party policy and reject homosexuality as a lifestyle choice. Then of course there was the terrible reception Cornyn got.

Democracy is officially dead in TX. Which State is next?

mahnmut

Dramatic warning of the polar regions for the last 30 years having weakened the polar winds to a point that extreme weather events such as the ones currently affecting the US, including places as far south as Texas, are being experienced on a regular basis now, and are more likely to increase in intensity and frequency in the future.

How Climate Change is Driving a Deep Freeze into Texas

And in the middle of all this, DIVERT ALERT! Best response to the situation? But of course. Blame it on the left!

Texas mayor who said residents were owed 'NOTHING' amid outages, record cold resigns

( Read more... )

luzribeiro.livejournal.com

This has become the fad of the day, eh? From Scotxit-2 to Finxit to Slovakxit... now to Texit. Trump doesn't seem impressed, though. He believes Texas loves him. The same way he believed the Scots loved the Brexit (which they don't of course).

But seriously. A real Texas secession movement does not exist. This is just some crank on Twitter who wants attention.

Gov. Perry joked about the idea in 2009 and someone actually conducted a poll to measure support for secession in Texas. The result was 3/4 against, which is approximately the same level of support for secession in other states.

This does not matter though, because Texas cannot secede from the United States even if the vote were 99-1, nor is there any mechanism by which the 30 million Americans living in Texas could be denied US citizenship outside of an Amendment to the Constitution.

Texas' membership in the United States expires only when the sun explodes. There is an argument that the US could split into smaller states (California, I'm looking at you), but these would all be US member states.

But... just imagine! Texas splitting away, and naming W their prez! Wouldn't that be awesome? :-)

luzribeiro.livejournal.com

First, there was that "clock kid" who's suing his school for $15m after being detained for bringing a homemade clock to class that was mistaken for a bomb. And now there's the expected backlash. Predictable like the tides, Mr O'Reilly...

Armed anti-Muslim protesters stage ‘strange’ protest outside mosque in clock kid’s hometown

It's hard to look at this group of protesters and their supporters and see anything redeeming about them. If some armed group was protesting outside a church during services, these guys would be furious.

Not entirely sure how people praying inside of a private building that they own is them "shoving their beliefs down our throats", but it I guess it wouldn't be a redneck party without at least a few idiots spewing meaningless platitudes.

Like seriously, I'm so sick of Indian food being shoved down my throat. I don't actually ever eat it, and no one's ever forced me to eat it, but there's like two or three Indian restaurants in my town now. I'm sick and tired of the Indianization of my country's dining options. WHY CAN'T THERE ONLY BE THINGS THAT ARE FAMILIAR TO ME IN MY TOWN?! I ONLY LIKE THINGS THAT I LIKE AND FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH!

Seriously. Stunts like this are the reason that everyone who doesn't firmly buy into the far-right mentality already, simply writes off everyone who does. The claim that they aren't bigots, then do shit like this - this smacks of blatant hypocrisy. How are these people any different from the ones who attacked Chinese immigrants in the late 19th century, or the Protestants that marginalized and ridiculed the Catholic Irish immigrants before that?

Cue the "freedom of expression" whiteknights now. I'm sure they'll find half a dozen ways to bullshit the hell out of this.

ricomsmith77.livejournal.com

Originally posted by

ricomsmith77 at "The Great Walls of Change.........from Bejing to Berlin.....to Brownsville, TX"

Close your eyes.

What's the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the words, Great Wall?

Of China! Right?

I mean come on, it's a pretty damn big wall......

1024px-The_Great_Wall_of_China_at_Jinshanling

1024px-The_Great_Wall_of_China_at_Jinshanling

........looks pretty cool too, doesn't it?

( Read more... )

ddstory.livejournal.com

Texas Public Schools: Still Teaching Creationism
"In Texas public schools, children learn that the Bible provides scientific proof that Earth is 6,000 years old, that the origins of racial diversity trace back to a curse placed on Noah's son, and that astronauts have discovered "a day missing in space" that corroborates biblical stories of the sun standing still."

Thus foundeth Reading, Writing & Religion II, a report by the Texas Freedom Network. Apparently, many Texan pupils are being taught the myths of Creationism, including Young Earth creationism (i.e. the world is 6000 years old, etc).

Of course, first reaction to this is: "Well, this is Texas after all. Does any of this surprise you at all?" Now, to be clear: there are lots of good, honest, decent, reasonable people in Texas. Lots of them. Meanwhile, there are quite a few who are ignorant, dogmatic and close-minded as well - just like in any other place. I'm not going to delve into speculations about how prevalent one or the other are. That said, I guess each of us could figure out for themselves which of the two segments is practically running the place right now, no? I'm willing to bet the Bible literalists actually constitute a not-so-significant portion of the entire population, but just as it seems to have happened on Capitol Hill, society at large has somehow allowed a very vocal, very well-organized and very determined fringe group to hijack the discourse, and exert disproportionate influence on the entire process of shaping the future generations. Which is kind of unfortunate, because it creates a generation of scientifically illiterate people who then become tomorrow's hamburger flippers, a human mass that's easy to govern and be lead by the nose. To deliberately deform entire segments of the population in such a way and severely cripple their career and life opportunities, is basically a form of child abuse in my book, sorry for the hysterically sounding hyperbole.

( But, but... what about free speech?!? )

brother-dour.livejournal.com

Or if you prefer, No War But the Class War.

Today I found this article, about a free clinic in a major exurb of Houston:

http://www.texasobserver.org/a-galveston-med-student-describes-life-and-death-in-the-safety-net/

To give you a little background about Galveston, Houston, and environs: Galveston was the state's major shipping port and something like New Orleans West until 1900, when a hurricane flattened the city and killed something like 6,000 people. As an aside for the history buffs who might like to read up on the worst natural disaster in U.S. history, I recommend Isaac's Storm by Eric Larsen. Anyway, if that hadn't happened, Houston would be a satellite community of Galveston, not the other way around. That storm shifted all shipping by rail and sea to Houston- and Galveston never caught up again. Between the two are Texas City, League City, Deer Park, La Porte, La Marque, Webster, and others. All of these cities are at least half oil refineries- that huge white blob you see in Google Earth is a massive cluster of oil refineries at Texas City. The fun thing about Galveston and Houston ism in the winter prevailing winds blow refinery pollutants right into Galveston, and in the summer prevailing winds blow pollutants right into Houston proper. The result, as you can imagine and as the article suggests, is one of the highest rates of certain kinds of cancer, lung disease, emphysema, and asthma in the nation.

To quote the article:

"UTMB ascribes these changes to financial strain from Hurricane Ike, the county’s inability to negotiate a suitable indigent-care contract and loss of state funding. The state blames budget shortfalls. The Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, could have been a huge relief. However, Gov. Rick Perry rejected billions of dollars in federal funding to expand Medicaid, funding that should have brought access to more than a million Texans, including many St. Vincent’s patients.

Perry’s refusal is catastrophic health policy. For patients, it means that seeking medical care will still require risking bankruptcy, and may lead nowhere."

And that sums it up. Tell me again how the class war isn't real?

rick-day.livejournal.com

Save a critically endangered species by hunting it?

The Dallas Safari Club says it is preparing to auction off an opportunity to hunt an endangered black rhino in Namibia -- to benefit the Namibian government's Game Products Trust Fund.

( Read more... )

Carter said he was concerned about how the auction is being perceived. The rhino that will be hunted will be an older, non-breeding male, he said.

The DSC has a stated mission of conservation, education and protecting hunters' rights.

The auction will occur during the group's annual convention, which will be held Jan. 9-12 at the Kay Bailey-Hutchison Dallas Convention Center.

Although this article previously stated that the DSC auction would benefit the Save the Rhino Trust, that nongovernmental organization is not involved with hunting or the auction.

"We are not responsible for hunting and we are not associated with hunting," the group said in a statement on its website. "Our job at Save the Rhino Trust is to save rhino, and that is exactly what we do every waking hour of our lives."

The group suggests that people concerned about the auction contact the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Environment and Tourism and its the Department of Parks and Wildlife.

Plagarized from this Texas Chili with Rhino sauce: http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/weird/Group-Auctions-Off-Chance-to-Hunt-Endangered-Rhino-229341391.html

ETA: you know..some days posts just write themselves...

devil-ad-vocate.livejournal.com

Court Blocks Texas Voter ID Law, Citing Racial Impact

WASHINGTON — A federal court on Thursday blocked Texas from enforcing a strict new voter identification law, ruling that the state had failed to prove that the mandate would not disproportionately suppress turnout among eligible voters who are members of minority groups.

“The State of Texas enacted a voter ID law that — at least to our knowledge — is the most stringent in the country,” the court wrote. “That law will almost certainly have retrogressive effect: it imposes strict, unforgiving burdens on the poor, and racial minorities in Texas are disproportionately likely to live in poverty."

Source:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/31/us/court-blocks-tough-voter-id-law-in-texas.html?pagewanted=all

----------

Court Throws Out Texas Congressional Map

The court ruled that, even though Texas gained four congressional seats in redistricting, it did not gain any Hispanic "ability districts," seats where Hispanic voters have the power in numbers to elect a preferred candidate. What's more, the court found "discriminatory purpose" in the plan, writing that the maps were crafted with the purpose of diluting minority voting power.

"The only explanation Texas offers for this pattern is 'coincidence,'" the court ruled. "But if this was coincidence, it was a striking one indeed. It is difficult to believe that pure chance would lead to such results." The judges also noted that they did not even need to consider the full body of evidence presented before them to conclude that Texas acted with discriminatory intent in crafting the maps... The court noted that it is the fourth time in as many decennial redistricting cycles that Texas has been taken to court over their new maps -- and they have lost in court each time.

Source:

http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2012/08/court-throws-ou.php

-----

Dang it, some days ya just feel like settin' afire to yur sheet and pointy hat. What makes it worse is two of them judges was appointed by Dubbya!

Seriously, It makes me wonder why Republicans express such dismay over accusations that they are mean to hispanics and blacks. Wherever did minorities get that impression? Could it have been when conservatives started bashing their own President for suggesting a modified amnesty program? Or was it when so many conservatives express the idea that children who were brought here as infants and grew up in this country should be thrown out?

enders-shadow.livejournal.com

This is beautiful, BEAUTIFUL hypocrisy. It's at a level of undeniable and, formerly, unimaginable hypocrisy.
--
HEY EVERYBODY!
yea?
WE NEED A LAW SAYING PEOPLE WHO VOTE NEED TO SHOW THEIR IDS SO THEY ONLY VOTE ONCE!
uhm, well, that kinda makes sense, ~~but we have to make sure ID's are free and easy to get...~~
--[STRIKE THAT LAST] GREAT! LETS VOTE ON IT!
*15 politicians cast 100 ballots and pass the measure*

/democracy.
--

For the ~~lame~~ videoless:

Video shows Texas lawmakers voting FOR OTHER PEOPLE. They vote more than once. They do what they are passing a law to stop other people from doing.
The Texas house rules prohibit lawmakers from doing this.
There is no enforcement of this rule.
Democrat and Republican alike do this. They vote for people who aren't there; it's a speed game. Walk around, vote for people. People who aren't even in your own party! Just whichever voting buttons you can reach.
WHAT.THE.FUCK.

teleens-journal.livejournal.com

( Under the cut is a heartbreaking story of what one woman had to go through to terminate a pregnancy that wasn't viable. The trauma she went through is inexcusable and may be triggering for some. Please read with caution. )

Source

Laws like this one make liars out of every GOP member who says they're in favor of "small government." Also, anyone who thinks a law that would put someone through this is a good thing should be watched closely for anti-social behavior, as they obviously lack any empathy for fellow human beings. Finally, before anyone says that it was simply a "miscommunication" and that it wouldn't have happened if the letter of the law was followed, I say that if the law hadn't been passed and this decision had been left to the woman and her doctor, the trauma she had to undergo might have been somewhat mitigated. As it was, she was put through a hell that no one should ever have to endure.

Mood: enraged

rick-day.livejournal.com

I would like to start a conversation on property rights. We have had some strange issues involving the rote concept of ownership; of the right to own and to assign value to things or places.

Seeds, genes, creative efforts, everything but the air we breathe can or has been claimed by someone/government as being 'owned by X'

Some things seem to generic, to much commonplace, to 'everyone uses it!' like, oh, some of the most common features of the World Wide Web.

Or is it?

There is some deep shit going down in Texas.

Michael Doyle, a low-profile Chicago biologist, claims that it was actually he and two co-inventors who invented — and patented — the “interactive web” before anyone else, while they were employed by the University of California back in 1993. Doyle argues that a program he created at the UC’s San Francisco campus, which allowed doctors to view embryos over the nascent World Wide Web, was the first program that allowed users to interact with images inside of a web browser window.

Feel free to read the story, it takes about 5 minutes.

Clearly, if the facts are correct as presented, Doyle is about to become an extremely wealthy man, benefiting off the work of others. That he has waited so long to file the actions is pretty smart on his part, the bigger Google and Yahoo get, the deeper their pockets are. Ultimately, it is all paper wealth, shifted from one account to the next but there is this nagging idea that he really didn't earn this money.
( And the argument seems valid as well )

This is about as big a case of property rights as it gets. The fact he has pursued this, and the players have fought him over this since 1993 pretty much settles any question of "Patent Troll". If you were on the jury and only had the info provided in the links and the story, which side would prevail? My opinion would be I would fall on the side with the best argument as to the validity of the patents. That the PTO reversed its decision and affirmed the validity, I am Sure UC/Eolas will point this out to the jury.

Mood: calm

enders-shadow.livejournal.com

Each day, hundreds of schoolchildren appear before courts in Texas charged with offences such as swearing, misbehaving on the school bus or getting in to a punch-up in the playground. Children have been arrested for possessing cigarettes, wearing "inappropriate" clothes and being late for school.

In 2010, the police gave close to 300,000 "Class C misdemeanour" tickets to children as young as six in Texas for offences in and out of school, which result in fines, community service and even prison time. What was once handled with a telling-off by the teacher or a call to parents can now result in arrest and a record that may cost a young person a place in college or a job years later....

Among the more extreme cases documented by Appleseed is of a teacher who had a pupil arrested after the child responded to a question as to where a word could be found in a text by saying: "In your culo (arse)", making the other children laugh. Another pupil was arrested for throwing paper aeroplanes.

-http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jan/09/texas-police-schools?INTCMP=SRCH

Shocked, shocked! am I to hear of this from Texas.
No seriously, wtf?

Kids doing kid stuff is normal and shouldn't be penalized under law. Talk about trying to do social engineering! Talk back to your teacher and WE ARREST YOU.
WTF?!

Hell no. I disagree with this. I cannot imagine who actually likes this.
Do you? Can you?

stewstewstewdio.livejournal.com

Other states are trying to abolish the death penalty. My state is putting in an express lane – Ron White

When I saw that this was “Bash a Country” month, I was hesitant. I have never travelled internationally and, as an American, I have always been satisfied with my life in America. For this reason, the country I decided to bash is Texas.

( About Texas )

enders-shadow.livejournal.com

http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/313613

Second amendment rights. But only for Christians and McCain voters.

This is really dumb, and I'd like to see everyone in this comm agree that the owner of this store is violating the law and discriminating unjustly. That is my view, if there is another view out there, please, share it with me.

allhatnocattle.livejournal.com

Lots of First Nations leaders, Nobel Laureates and "B" list celebrities (Margot Kidder, Daryl Hannah, Mark Ruffalo, Danny Glover, and Dave Thomas) Have been protested the proposed Keystone Pipeline that will take bitumen from Alberta oilsands down to Texas refineries.

( Read more... )

Music: Taggy Matcher- The Message

ddstory.livejournal.com

Because you knew someone was going to go there, didn't you?

Doctors question Perry's stem cell back treatment

He calls it innovative. Others call it a big risk. In any case, the stem cell procedure that Texas Gov. Rick Perry had last month was an unusual experiment to fix a common malady: a bad back. ... The treatment carries potential risks ranging from blood clots to infection to cancer and may even run afoul of federal rules, doctors say. At least one patient died of a clot hours after an infusion of fat-derived stem cells outside the United States. It's not clear how much of this Perry might have known.

Oh, here's one West Texan ultra-conservative Christian fundie beloved ~~Savior~~ governor (on the other hand, some have called him Bush on steroids), who'd probably support stem cell research, eh? I wonder what does God think of stem cell research. Funny, how all your principles suddenly become moot, not to mention what Jesus whispers in your ear, as soon as the shit you're talking about actually starts affecting YOU.

( Read more... )

devil-ad-vocate.livejournal.com

“Texas is a unique place. When we came into the union in 1845, one of the issues was that we would be able to leave if we decided to do that." - Rick Perry, April 15, 2009. Nope, the state entered the union with the ability to divide into five states, not withdraw. And the U.S. Supreme Court decided in 1869 (Texas v. White) that Texas cannot secede (again).

In 2007 Rick Perry issued an executive order requiring all sixth-grade girls to have a three-shot vaccination series (costing about $120 per shot). Gardasil, a preventative for cervical cancer, was made by Merck - which was pushing legislatures to put forward bills mandating the vaccine for preteen girls. Perry's former chief of staff was a lobbyist for Merck; the ex-staffer's mother-in-law was a sitting state representative and director of Merck's advocacy group. Needless to say, all hell broke loose. The state legislature overwhelmingly overturned Perry's executive order. In response to criticism of a government mandated vaccine, Perry's comment was: "That piece of legislation was not mandatory, in the sense of when you can say no, something's not mandatory." I wonder what his definition of "is" is.

Texas, South Carolina, Indiana, and Florida are the four weakest states when it comes to gubernatorial power. Perry's power as governor is divided among other elected Texas officials. Even Sarah Palin had more individual power as a governor.

This guy was a professional politician as a Democrat, and he's refined it as a Republican. Sucking up to the Religious Right, he has tried to appoint people to the Texas Board of Education who are committed to the teaching of "intelligent design" in schools. The state legislature, which is Republican-controlled, has had to consistently remind Perry that he doesn't run the show.

Whether you are a moderate conservative or Tea Partier, be aware that Perry can be expected to check which way the wind is blowing to keep his hair and political fortunes in place.

He has been trying to picture his youth as living on the brink of poverty in windblown West Texas. Rick, I grew up during the same era - not ten miles from you. We both drank the same gyp water from Stink Creek. I knew the same people, and knew your kinfolk. It wasn't the dust bowl of the 1930's; maybe you weren't rich, but you sure as hell weren't poor.

Links:
http://www.texasmonthly.com/2010-06-01/feature9.php
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1891829,00.html
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/special/07/legislature/4528909.html

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Talk politics.

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Entries tagged with texas

Ripe for a lawsuit

Wow, Texas.

What gives, Texas?

Texit!? Bullshit.

Free speech at the point of a gun

"The Great Walls of Change.........from Bejing to Berlin.....to Brownsville, TX"

Assault of the irrational: Texas and teaching the "controversy"

Life and Death in a Red State

In order to save the animal we had to kill it.

A Bad Week for Republicans

This is how politicians vote in the Texas house.

We Have No Choice: One Woman's Ordeal With Texas' New Sonogram Law

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Lone Star

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Dirty oil Vs Ethical Oil

Perry and stem cell

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