therandomtexan
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Ethical Reading
“This paperback edition, and no other, has been published with my consent and co-operation. Those who approve of courtesy (at least) to living authors will purchase it and no other.” —J. R. R. Tolkien Hello, my name is The Random Texan, and I am a junk literature addict. I am here to confess my addiction Read more
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Make a List. And a List of the Lists.
February 15th, I embarked on what I call my Great Medical Adventure. I had a series of debilitating seizures (a new and terrifying experience) that treated me to a delightful ride with EMS to a less-than-delightful local hospital (doctors, nurses, and staff were great) followed up by a brain biopsy. Results are pending, but it Read more
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Sucker Punches.
Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him. –Sun Tzu, The Art of War Remoderned America is enjoying a Master’s Class in the sucker punch. It all began with President Trump’s speech before the joint session of Congress on March 4th. The fun began when Representative Al Green of Texas’ 9th Congressional Read more
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You. Gotta. See. This.
The Electric State is the knock-it-out-of-the-park alt-history sci-fi movie of the year. This movie is disturbingly gorgeous. Stephen F. Windon’s cinematography dazzles the eye with bizarre yet mudane mechanical junk; Millie Bobby Brown and Chris Pratt are pitch perfect in the leads. Brown makes the big character jump from the gawky Number 11 of Stranger Read more
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American Heart Association steps on a rake
The American Heart Association is fighting a Texas bill that would remove candy and soda from SNAP benefits. Somebody (probably lots of somebodies) in the AHA is on the take. Read more
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Be Your Best
Mary Borman wants to be the first Down Syndrome athlete to complete the Women’s Ironman Half Marathon. She just might do it. My wife pointed out to me that Mary seems to have a very supportive family, so much so that she has had cosmetic surgery to soften her appearance as a Down Syndrome individual. Read more
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The Orator Trump
Recent events banged me in the head with the memory of the opening chapters of Gordon Dickson’s Dorsai novel, The Tactics of Mistake. President Donald J. Trump isn’t Cletus Grahame (no one is), but he might be the greatest orator in recorded history. Don’t think so? Consider this speech he gave on Pi Day: Trump Read more
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A CFPB Sob Story: I smell a rat
Another heart-wrenching story of the callous Trump/Musk axis: Pastor Eva Steege planned to meet with officials from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on February 10 hoping to get $15,000 of student debt forgiven. She was under the nation’s Public Service Loan Forgiveness program that is designed to give loan relief to people who participate in public service. In Steege’s Read more
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An Urban Chicken Saga
You absolutely must read Larissa Phillip’s charming story about raising chickens. [Larissa] tells the story of her life-changing decision to buy a few chicks—which will inspire and guide any Free Pressers who are thinking of following in her footsteps. But first: a video, in which Larissa explains the basics of keeping chickens. —The Editors Do Read more
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The Random Texan is IN THE HOUSE
A year and a half ago, I retired from University teaching. Turns out there was a buttload of stuff that I’d neglected or procrastinated on AND a whole new set of surprise chores that the retirement counselors (some folks get ’em, right?) don’t tell you about. So I’ve been busy, not with “honey do’s,” but Read more
The Random Texan 