Greetings from red, rural Texas. While the local newspaper (shopper, actually) is well to the right of Mussolini, we do have a local Enews that provides balance. Here are a couple of my pieces that they have published lately.

http://www.ntxe-news.com/artman/publish/article_119443.shtml

http://www.ntxe-news.com/artman/publish/article_119634.shtml


As NPR has reported, our U.S. government is paying millions of dollars so that flocks of chickens can lead a life of leisure. They won't tell us how much they are spending. They won't tell us how many chickens there are. They won't even tell us where the chickens are. Millions of chickens are living off of our tax dollars.

As chickens are wont to do, these hens have been laying eggs every day or two. For many years, most of these eggs were not even used by the government. They were turned into feed for other animals. At our expense.

Mad? Well let's think about it for a minute. Why would our government do this?

Because, it turns out, eggs are the most crucial ingredient in many vaccines. Now, pharmaceutical companies can make arrangements to buy eggs for the vaccines that are needed on a regular basis (such as childhood vaccines for mumps, measles, etc., yearly flu vaccines, shingles vaccines, and others). But every once in a while, a new disease pops up for which no plans have been made in advance, and consequently no eggs are available. Anthrax, a few years ago, and now COVID-19.

...

Spent the last few days working the Democratic Party Booth at the local county fair along with my Beagle-cross, Elvis.

Had a number of middle-aged and older white females requesting signs, stickers, etc. For signs, we requested a $3 donation, and most of them contributed $10 to $20. Don't remember requests for this many signs in last 4 years of working here, not even in 2016 election.

My favorite was a woman who said, "I've voted for a lot of Republicans in the past, but I've had it!"

"Because of the last couple of weeks?" I said.

"Weeks, hell," she said, "the last couple of years!"

Every one of them said something similar.

And we were working the early shifts before most of the crowd arrives, when it is mostly school children (who all love Elvis). Was also able to register a school teacher and her husband and son, as well as several new arrivals to the area. I am hearing from people who worked the later shifts of enthusiastic women showing up then, as well.

No way will Beto win, here, but if we can grow from the 15% that we got in 2016 to 20% in counties like this, it may be enough to turn the tide along with blue areas like Dallas, Austin, Houston, San Antonio and El Paso. A boy can dream, anyway.