political news

End the political messages … now!

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A friend and former colleague beat me to the punch, but I now intend to join him in his call to political strategists, candidates and other policy hacks in this desperate message.

End the incessant demands for money that are flooding my message and email inboxes! Now is a good time to start … or shall I say stop?

The culprits are Democrats seeking to flip Congress. I am hearing from candidates seeking seats on faraway locales at either end of the country. I delete them as soon as I discover them. I usually follow the deletion with a message to discontinue the deluge. It’s no good. You see, for as often as I delete the message and get acknowledgment that they won’t send me any more messages, other pop up like weeds in the Texas spring.

I am growing increasingly tempted to pull the hair off my skull by the roots.

I might hear from the occasional MAGA-inspired correspondent seeking to boost Donald Trump’s agenda. But it’s almost always Democrats who I reckon know the nature of High Plains Blogger or I have communicated with in some back-handed fashion. They’re going for the jugular. Only in this case it’s my jugular.

Well, I have made my pitch. If you see me around town with splotches of hair missing from my noggin, you’ll know how they got there.

Uncategorized

Is a Jan. 6 replay possible?

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You have no need to answer the question posed in the headline, because I know the answer. Damn right it’s possible … and Donald Trump has signaled it himself. Imagine that, eh?

Trump said the other day he might not accept the results of the midterm election if they don’t go his way. Meaning that if voters react the way every pundit from Pensacola to Portland is suggesting. That is, voters are likely to show the Republican-led Congress the door and hand the House — and maybe the Senate — gavel to the Democrats.

What does non-acceptance mean? We saw it play out in horrifying and graphic terms on Jan. 6, 2021 when Trump provoked the insurrection and sent the mob to Capitol Hill to storm the seat of our federal government while Congress was certifying the Electoral College victory of Joe Biden over Trump in the 2020 presidential election.

Spare me the crap that he called for a “peaceful demonstration.” The moron did nothing for hours while the mob gathered and then stormed into the Capitol building, smashing windows and assaulting police officers assigned to protect the place.

Some folks died in that assault. Many others were hurt. Capitol cops were beaten by the mob. The traitors threatened the life of Vice President Mike Pence. Some mobsters even defecated on the floor of the Capitol building.

But … what did the felon in chief do when he took office in January 2025? He pardoned all of them! Including the most violent among them!

So, when this imbecile says he might not accept the results of another free, fair and legal election, no one on this side of the grass should doubt what could transpire.

local news

Stunning casino discovery …

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I walked into a gambling casino this weekend and made a startling discovery upon entering the place … it was the lack of cigarette/cigar smoke lingering in the air.

Yep. Even casinos have become smoke-free environments.

This one was at the Winstar resort in Thackerville, Okla., just about 90 minutes or so from my North Texas home. My friend and I walked in and I was prepared to cover my mouth and nose from the stench.

Didn’t need to …

I don’t visit gambling joints very often but every one I ever have seen has been filled with blue smoke from cigarettes. I recall seeing a middle-aged woman one time in Las Vegas playing three slot machines at once, cigarette dangling from her mouth as she moved gracefully among the machines that were gobbling up her money.

Well, whatever. That was then. Today, I saw a smoke-free environment flourishing just fine without the stench of smoke.

State news

Going to wait until the end

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Truth be told, I actually pondered casting my vote early for the Texas primary election set for May 3 … then I thought differently about it.

That said, I am going to return to my usual manner of voting on Election Day.

All the fire and volleys have been lobbed in the Republican Party primary. The race for Texas attorney general has me confused. The MAGA gang is pounding Congressman Chip Roy for backing Liz Cheney and for voting to impeach Donald Trump. If I were voting in that primary, I would consider that a plus for Roy.

Roy is answering by saying he’s actually a Trump loyalist. Whatever … he’s trying to eat the whole cake.

My eyes are set on the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. It’s down to two fine candidates. Texas state Rep. James Talirico and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Talirico hails from San Antonio; Crocket calls Dallas home.

I’m leaning toward supporting Talirico. I like his deep religious faith that he doesn’t shove aside. He proclaims he’s a fighter, but distances himself from the Christian nationalists who comprise much of the MAGA base.

I long have resisted voting early over a fear of casting my vote and then being disappointed if my candidate messes up before Election Day. I am going to follow that path again this election cycle … and then hope for the best from the individuals I hope to support.

crime news

Randy Andy heads for the slammer

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A friend of mine who hails from Great Britain recently told me of a nickname the Brits have placed on a — now former — member of the Royal Family.

They call him Randy Andy, because the former Prince Andrew had a lengthy and time-honored reputation of being a bad boy.

These days, the ex-prince is in custody of British law enforcement authorities because of his relationship with the late Jeffrey Epstein, the noted sex trafficker who wheeled and dealt with underage girls.

The plot is thickening beyond anything King Charles and his kin could have ever wanted.

Blood certainly isn’t thicker than the royal standing with the public. His Majesty the King ordered Randy Andy arrested. I think the royals are done with him. Nice knowing about you, Andrew.

local news

Jackson bridged huge gap

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Jesse Jackson’s death at age 84 brought to my mind immediately an experience I had that bore witness to the enormous political strength of this iconic civil rights leader.

I was new to Southeast Texas in 1984, the year Rev. Jackson ran for the presidency the first time. I had a side hustle going on with an election research firm in which I would cover the election in Texas. They folks for whom I worked assigned me to cover a Democratic caucus in a precinct in what we used to call Beaumont’s “fashionalb west end.”

In 1984, Texas Democrats caucused on primary election night with representatives for candidates making their arguments on behalf of their candidate. Those who attended the caucus then were asked to cast their votes for the candidate of their choice.

The west end of Beaumont was mostly white. However, Rev. Jackson — a Black Baptist preacher — managed to parlay his passionate support into votes at this caucus. Black voters were present to cast their votes for the man who spoke directly to them and for them. As it turned, Jackson would end up winning the caucus in that particular precinct while doing exceptionally well throughout Jefferson County.

I cannot recall who won the Texas Democratic primary that year, but I do recall as the nation mourns Jackson’s passing that this fiery orator, disciple of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and a champion of what became the Rainbow Coalition of Americans made his presence felt in Democratic Party politics.

His imprint on the political landscape is as indelible today as it was in 1984 when he burst onto the scene as a mainstream candidate for president of the United States of America.

May this iconic leader and champion for the dispossessed rest in eternal peace.

national news

Interesting times? Ya think?

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Can it be that we all are living in an era that is producing a political climate none of us ever saw coming? I believe that is the case.

Ponder for just a moment a short series of events:

We elected an an individual to the presidency with zero public service experience and whose notoriety was forged on a reality TV show in which he fired make-believe businesspeople.

This individual has insulted a Vietnam War hero, a Gold Star family, a reporter with a physical challenge, and all the men and women who have chosen to wear the uniform of the nation’s military.

He lost an election, declared it — without an ounce of proof — to be a fraud, then instigated an insurrection against the very government he once swore to protect and defend.

He ran a third time for the White House vowing to be the “retribution” of those who cling to his cockeyed views. And he has delivered mightily on that promise.

Donald Trump then vowed to purge the nation of undocumented immigrants and deployed a poorly trained, heavily armed, masked-up army of agents who have killed American citizens on the street, arrested thousands of others wrongly.

What has all of this produced? Chaos, misery, grief, anxiety, heartbreak … and any other sort of emotion one can define.

I am disgusted beyond all measure by what is transpiring in real time in this nation I love with all my heart.

The Chinese proverb about “living in interesting times” doesn’t come within a country mile of defining what we’re enduring these days. It’s frightening, but I’ll say it once more that we have plenty of constitutional weapons we can deploy to fight this hideous trend.

business news, economic news, entertainment news, local news

Downtown doesn’t exist here

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Allow me a moment to vent about something that’s been gnawing at me since just about the time I laid eyes on the city I am proud to call home.

I have lived in Princeton, Texas, for seven years. My wife and I found a lovely, modest home in a newly built subdivision just south of U.S. 380.

We took to life in this Dallas suburban community right away … except for one key element that was missing. Princeton does not have any sort of downtown business, finance or entertainment district. I know where it should be, near the Veterans Park near Second Avenue. But it ain’t there, man.

The city has become the fastest-growing city in America, a label that I love advertising to people I meet. Many of the Dallas-Fort Worth residents know it already. I tell folks we’ve exploded from fewer than 10,000 residents to something north of 40,000 in just the past 15 years. The growth isn’t letting up, not even a little bit.

It’s happening, though, despite the absence of a downtown district that could serve as a magnet for those seeking a place to do business, to shop for goods and gifts, or to enjoy a quality meal with friends and family.

I spoke to Derek Borg, who at the time of our arrival in Princeton served as city manager. He told me of some conceptual plans that the city had approved and assured me downtown development would occur. He offered no timetable, no specific notion of what downtown would include. All he spoke about, as I recall it, was of some vague notion that the City Council had approved. Borg is now gone from City Hall and all the reporting I have read about the city’s future has made next to zero mention of downtown development.

I have noted already on this blog that Princeton is sprouting into a city with no personality, no identity. The place to establish such a trait must be in its downtown district. State demographers tell us the city will be home eventually to more than 100,000 people. Where in the world are they going to go to enjoy city life in this one-time burg?

We aren’t a burg any longer. I am just one resident in a community that needs to build an identity on which it can attract others to come here to enjoy themselves, or just to do business.

Downtown Princeton needs to be conceived and then given a set time for birth and then growth.

national news

The saga continues …

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There is not a single thing about the Donald Trump story I find to be “heroic,” but it surely has been a lengthy tale of tumult, a bit of woe and certainly drama.

I, along with many millions of American patriots, am anxious for the end to arrive. No one can predict how this matter will conclude. We’ll have an election in November, the result of which could turn Trump into a real-life lame duck who can wait it out until the end of his term in the White House.

Or the election, if it goes according to what the experts are predicting, will produce a ton of tempest … if Democrats win back control of the U.S. House and possibly even the U.S. Senate.

What happens then? I am quite certain an impeachment lies directly in Trump’s future. It’ll be the third such effort to remove Trump from the office he has pretended to serve for five of the past nine years.

Trump’s time in the White House has been all that many of us feared it would be and what Trump actually predicted would occur. He told us he would be the “retribution” his MAGA supporters sought. By golly, he’s delivered the goods, man.

I listen occasionally to the back-and-forth between congressional Democrats and Trump administration officials testifying before committees and I am left to wonder: How in the name of collegiality can the two sides bridge the chasm that divides them? I know the answer. They cannot.

We’ll have to weather more of what we have seen for as long as Donald Trump remains in office.

The question that will linger is this: Will the POTUS be standing for the remainder of his term?

International news

Restore US-EU relations? Try this

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Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that he wants the United States and the European Union to seek a fresh start to the relationship that has been damaged in recent months.

Here’s an idea, Mr. Secretary: How about advising your boss — the POTUS — to dial back his criticism of the nations that comprise the EU, which I am certain will help solve the bitterness that is growing in European capitals throughout the continent.

Donald Trump seems bent on pissing off our allies and near as I can tell from my distant perch, he’s doing a great job at it. No head of state or government in the EU has endorsed Trump’s efforts at claiming Greenland. Nor have they embraced his solidarity with Vladimir Putin in his illegal, immoral war against Ukraine.

Restart and restore relations, Marco Rubio? Start with some fundamental policy changes in the West Wing.

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