TxSkirt’s Blog

Thank GOD! I've been a mother for ten years and three months and I'm soooo tired of going it alone. I've been waiting for some enterprising governmental official to come and show me how to do it properly.
 
Sarcasm is so cleansing.
 
Our Texas Legislature kicks off it's 2009 session on January 13th. Among the land grabs and immigration issues on the table is a little gem from Rep. Robert Alonzo (D-Dallas). House Bill 188 would establish a "Children's Bill of Rights." Did a chill just go down your spine? Immediately after giving birth or adopting a child, parents would be required to sign this bill of rights promising, among other things:
 
"...that each child has the right to be free from...any form of discipline that humiliates or demeans the child;
 
To be determined by a panel of experts at the local Junior College. I kid you not. And if said panel of experts at the local Junior College deems you to be disciplining your child in a demeaning or humiliating manner, you will be forced to endure classes in parenting or have your child removed from the home.
 
Every mother knows that a good dose of humiliation frequently is just the ticket to curb an errant child. But Rep. Alonzo things that is too harsh for the little darlings and should not be tolerated.
 
Mr. Alonzo, I'll thank you to keep your and the experts at my local Junior college's collective noses out of my child rearing. I have a sneaking suspicion that should I succumb to your wishes on this, and thereby hand over my authority to parent my kidlets granted to me by God, that Texas would soon be overrun by snivel, spoiled know-it-alls very in need of a good spanking.

Loading mentions Retweet

Nuclear energy has been given a very bad name. Here in Texas, we have one nuclear power plant that has never given us problems. Another one is on the books--if the regulatory agencies don't mess it up.

This a thoughtful, factual article in favor of nuclear power. Enjoy.

http://www.texaspolicy.com/pdf/2008-12-17-IBD-TPPF.pdf

(H/T @DavidGuenthner on twitter)

Loading mentions Retweet

Let's just get this out of the way. I am not a reporter. I'm just a chick with a keyboard and an opinion. This is not an in depth analysis of Arne Duncan's philosphy on education. What I found, you could find with a Google search.

So, what did I find?

My hour searching around the internet revealed no actual quote from Mr. Duncan regarding homeschooling, but it did reveal some things that I find....well, curious.

1.  He received the Abraham Lincoln Award from the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence in October of this year, but left it sitting on the table. He refused to accept the award because he felt he didn't deserve it because 16 kids had already been killed this school year (almost double last year). Sounds good until you get the part about how he thinks the problem of gun violence should be solved: more gun control.

2.  He gave a speech in May 2007 to a group of Educators in Washington DC and talked at great length about how Chicago schools were becoming "full-service community schools" that were open 24/7 and offered everything from chess club to parenting classes. This is an idea that is favored with the teachers unions because it makes them more powerful. There is great power in making the school, not the home, the center of your families activities.

3.  According to UPI.com on October 10th of this year, Duncan put forth an idea to open a "Gay-friendly" school to study famous gay heroes and protect gay/lesbian/transgendered children from bullies.

4.  He's not an educator. He's never spent one day teaching in a public school. He also never attended a public school. He went to a posh private school (where the Obama girls attend now and his wife is a teacher), and then went to Harvard. 

5.  Apparently there are a whole host of parents and teachers in Chicago that are unimpressed with Mr. Duncan. I found several blog entries that noted the lack of enthusiasm for him. The best is here:

http://gothamschools.org/2008/12/04/chicagos-arne-duncan-educations-one-man-team-of-rivals/ 

So, what can we take from all this? 

Well, he's a union guy and unions hate home schoolers. So that's very bad. He thinks the schools should be the center of your universe instead of the home. Another bad thing. He will have to be watched carefully because he is not a "frontal assault" kind of guy. He'll nibble away around the edges of our rights until they are all gone. Beware the nibblers.

Loading mentions Retweet

Well, the boondoggle continues. Rep. Joe Barton thinks every business who is troubled should get a piece of the pie. After voting YES on the auto bailout, he had this to say:

 "It would be an absolute shame to force those companies into bankruptcy," he said. "If we can give the AIG's and the Wells Fargos and the JPMorgans of the world — each of those individual companies — between $40 and $45 billion," then certainly the carmakers deserve a $15 billion bridge loan.

Here's the full story here: (H/T Drudge Report)

http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/12/10/business/11auto.php

HERE'S THE GOOD PART

This is what Barton posted on his website on November 7, 2008

Find it all here: http://joebarton.house.gov/NewsRoom.aspx?FormMode=Detail&ID=448

Tragic.

Loading mentions Retweet

Well, here's the statement we've all been waiting for

http://cornyn.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ForPress.NewsReleases&ContentRecord_id=fe2e07ff-802a-23ad-4bcb-199df92045bb

I'll save you the time, however. Let me summarize it for you:

"I haven't bothered to read the bailout proposal that has been on line since Monday so I can't comment on that. I want you all to know that I will do whatever I can to cover my own ass with all special interest groups in Texas. I don't want to anger anyone, so I will not be making a bold stand. Most likely I will vote yes because I have no spine."

Wuss.

Loading mentions Retweet

Dear Constituent:

Thanks but I am waaaaaaayyyy smarter than you and will tell you what the right thing to do in this situation. I don't have to explain myself.

Thanks,

Sen. RINO Cornyn

Okay, here's the REAL letter.

Dear Wendy Herman,

Thank you for contacting my offices. Your correspondence has been received, and we will respond to you as quickly as possible. A copy of your message is attached below for your records.

If you need immediate assistance regarding an urgent problem you are experiencing with the federal government, visit the "Help With Federal Agencies" section of the website for details on how to proceed so that your difficulties are brought to my attention as soon as possible.

If you are seeking information or services from my offices that are NOT related to my Legislative duties, please visit my "Services For Texans" section for more information.

Warmest Regards,
U.S. Senator John Cornyn

---------------------------------------------------



Dear Sen. Cornyn:

I just got off the phone with your office. I was calling to find out your position on the auto industry bailout. I was surprised to find out that you were "undecided". I am writing you to encourage you to vote "NO" to the 15 billion dollar auto bailout that the Democrats and the White House are so eager to give away.

I am part of Top Conservatives on Twitter. TCOT is a group of active and concerned conservatives that do not like the direction both the country and the Republican Party have been headed. I am part of Operation Fight the Bail Out. OFBO is an action group formed by TCOT expressly to make sure our Republican leaders know that their constituents are unhappy with the continued outpouring of our tax dollars to companies that do not deserve them.

Sen. Shelby has committed to do whatever is necessary, including filibustering, to keep this bailout from passing. I encourage you to join Sen. Shelby. Not only is it the right thing to do, it would also show thousands of Texas voters that you are serious about not wasting their money.

I was highly critical of your voting in favor of the original $700 Billion banking bailout. I think people in Washington tend to forget exactly whose money they are spending. If these bailouts continue, they will ruin our country. Do not be part of this fiscally irresponsible action.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about this matter.

Sincerely,

Wendy Herman


    
        
    

Loading mentions Retweet

I just sent this to her office.

HAVE YOU WRITTEN YOUR REPRESENTATIVES YET?

DO IT NOW!

Dear Sen. Hutchison:

I just spoke with your office and they told me that you do not "favor" any further bailouts. While that sounds nice, it is not a resounding NO. So I am writing you to encourage you to vote "NO" to the 15 billion dollar auto bailout that the Democrats and the White House are so eager to give away.

I am part of Top Conservatives on Twitter. TCOT is a group of active and concerned conservatives that do not like the direction both the country and the Republican Party have been headed. I am part of Operation Fight the Bail Out. OFBO is an action group formed by TCOT expressly to make sure our Republican leaders know that their constituents are unhappy with the continued outpouring of our tax dollars to companies that do not deserve them.

Sen. Shelby has committed to do whatever is necessary, including filibustering, to keep this bailout from passing. I encourage you to join Sen. Shelby. Not only is it the right thing to do, it would also show thousands of Texas voters that you are serious about not wasting their money.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about this matter.

Sincerely,

Wendy Herman

UPDATE:

Michelle Malkin has an excellent post on this topic here:

http://michellemalkin.com/2008/12/08/gird-your-loins-for-the-uaw-bailout-fight/

I posted the following on MichelleMalkin.com

Loading mentions Retweet

So I'm watching Fox News a couple of days ago whilst chopping veggies for dinner and Neil Cavuto is yammering on about the state of the economy and layoffs and all the things that are apparently happening outside the walls of my kindom in Texas. Cavuto's guest puts up a graphic of the states that have been hit hardest by the down turning economy and had the most layoffs. Well, I almost dropped my carrots when I saw The Great State of Texas highlighted! Weren't we flush with all that oil money? Didn't we all still have our gas guzzling suv's, mcmansions, and acrylic nails? Surely Neil and company were wrong about Texas.

I did a little research. I found this. http://www.star-telegram.com/100/story/1073543.html Apparently, my beloved Texas ranks number 4 in lay-offs in the nation with a whopping 60,127 newly unemployed folks. I was stunned. How could that be? Who was firing these people and why?

Back to Google.

A big chunk of the layoffs came from Hurricane Ike and his effects on our once beatiful Galveston Island. Univerisity of Texas Medical Branch layed off 3,800 Texans. Mission Food Group layed off another 450 people. (They make tortillas. If you are shuttering tortilla factories in Texas, there are some issues with the economy.) AT&T let 700 go, and Avis Rental Cars closed a call center and forced 155 out of their cubicles. Add to that some banking (650), media (330) and industrial (3500) and it all adds up to number 4.

My Opinion.

Texas is not tanking yet. In fact, I believe that we will be one of the last states to feel the pressures of the recession. We learned our lessons in the early '80s. We remember when oil was $15 a barrell and all the saving and loans were bankrupt and no one could find a job. We were smarter during the boom of the early 2000's and will be more stable during its bust. We diversified our economies so that not just one segment could take us down. Texas is like Mr. Miagi in the Karate Kid movies--wise, quirky, a little rough around the edges, but ready for action at the drop of a hat.

It's a great time to live in Texas.

Loading mentions Retweet

My girlfriend, Wendy Sullivan, just wrote an amazing piece that anyone with a kid in public school should read. In fact, lets make the little varmints memorize the thing.

http://culture11.com/blogs/ladyblog/2008/12/03/for-the-9th-grade-class/#comment-3332

We have it so easy in this country. We have the right to whine and be self absorbed because of the hard work that has been done by those before us. If we fail to respect that effort, we will pay a terrible price.

Loading mentions Retweet

Not a surprise, I know, but I was surprised by what she said in an interview after the Big 3 CEO's came a courtin', “I believe that an intervention will happen,” Pelosi said at a briefing in Washington. “Everybody is disadvantaged by bankruptcy, including our economy, so that’s not an option.” (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aBkUNf9lHUKo) 

Not an OPTION. Oh, but it is, Ms. Pelosi. Arrogance, thy name is Nancy.

(H/T Drudgreport.com)

Loading mentions Retweet