Y’all.

The Texas Tribune is reporting that Georgia native Allen West is resigning from his position as the head of the Texas GOP and “can’t rule out” a run for statewide office.

West declined to say whether he was eyeing any particular statewide office, though he told a radio host earlier Friday morning that the host was “safe” to assume West was mulling a gubernatorial run.

It is one of my grandest dreams to see Greg Abbott, Don Huffines, and Allen West duke it out in a primary. It could only get better if Alex Jones threw his hat in the ring. Huffines has already started running for governor and is promising to build the wall, eliminate property taxes completely, and “secure our elections” by which he likely means that he will outlaw Democrats from voting or something along those lines.

Greg Abbott is already trying to appeal to evangelicals by threatening to take licenses away from any childcare agencies that house unaccompanied minors. He’s going to defund the Texas legislature, because why not? Forget the wall, he’s just going to arrest everyone that crosses the border – I hope he doesn’t arrest the guy that brings us the avocados or tequila from Mexico.

I want these three men to out-crazy each other for about six months while Beto O’Rourke sits back and spends time registering Democrats to vote in a post-Trump post-COVID economy. Beto could win with a candidate worse than Ted Cruz. A candidate so bad that it doesn’t matter that Beto said “Hell Yeah” about taking away guns.

That candidate is Allen “I am the modern-day Harriet Tubman” West.

At the very least, it will be an entertaining election season.

We seem to be doing this a lot lately, so I thought I would try this from another angle. It seems the governor and others are determined to shove character education down our throats. Character education is only one way to put it. Another way to put it is white washing. Another way to put it is indoctrination. However, the most accurate way to put it is to call it what it really is: an empty gesture.

Of course, the governor couldn’t resist the urge to pump himself up.ss

To keep Texas the best state in the nation, we can never forget WHY our state is so exceptional.

I signed a law establishing the 1836 project, which promotes patriotic education & ensures future generations understand TX values.

Together, we'll keep our rich history alive. pic.twitter.com/4yZuygS2yX

— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) June 7, 2021

So, we could take this from a few angles, but I decided to take a look at the source. If you take a look at the list of priorities you’ll see that we are currently teaching those things. Sure, you’ve added a few awards and what not, but I’m struggling to figure out what the point is. I’m sure the governor is already aware, but maybe he’s not. We teach Texas history to 7th graders. Maybe he’s suggesting we do more, but it doesn’t seem clear by the verbiage of the bill.

Like I said before, we could conceivably approach this from numerous angles. Sure, we could look at the likely desire to remove unsavory facts from the historical account. However, let’s assume the very best and only look at the letter of the law. They want to assure that we are doing something we’re already doing. What’s the purpose of that exactly?

When you abandon your ideology I’m not sure what you have left. Some people are dedicated to the idea of limited government. They don’t want the government involved unless absolutely necessary. It is a philosophy I’ve always respected. I’ve always disagreed but I’ve always respected it. When you abandon that philosophy and fill it with empty gestures you’ve abandoned that philosophy for good public relations. Congratulations.

Judas sold his soul for some pieces of silver. The governor appears to be selling his for a simple photo opp. He can’t even come up with an original name for this fiasco. His hero dubbed character education as the 1776 project. Just adopt the year we gained our independence and pass a quick law. Throw in a black guy into the picture to make it look good. The law really won’t change anything. It’s a great use of our time and money.

Well, it’s just the wild west here in Texas since the legislature decided that everybody can and should have a gun. This immediately happened in Houston.

ICYMI: Houston mom out riding bikes with her son shoots at a homeowner’s boxer puppy. She misses, hitting her five-year-old instead. Mom is now charged with deadly conduct, & all caught on video. https://t.co/3EFhWU837B pic.twitter.com/r48JLMkqp3

— Miya Shay (@miyashay) June 2, 2021

Mother and Dog Lover of the Year!

Children ask the most fascinating questions. Our daughter is now entering high school, so her questions are more complex than they used to be. She asked a doozy the other day. She asked what we would tell our children and grandchildren about the pandemic. Every once in awhile I allow myself to go down that rabbit hole and this was one of those times.

It hit me like a ton of bricks when I was perusing my Facebook feed the other day. You get the unholy mixture of childhood friends reminiscing about childhood memories with a sudden heavy dose of Anthony Fauci. I’m not exactly sure why Fauci was on so many people’s minds, but the Facebook wall is a veritable Rorschach test of people’s thoughts and feelings.

In the span of just a few minutes of scrolling I found numerous posts that chastised people for doubting Fauci while others were poking fun at him. Strictly speaking, the future is yet unwritten and while we seem to be closer to the end than to the beginning of the pandemic we don’t know for sure how this will end. More than anything else, we don’t know if there will ever be a return to “normal”. They did following the 1918 flu epidemic (it is in fact 1918 despite what our former president said). It just took awhile.

We will be traveling and others will as well, but things are not back to normal. That might never return to normal. We might be looking at the new normal. Obviously, that will be a large part of the story we tell. It could be something as innocuous as telling them what we did during the two or three years of the pandemic or as earth shattering as telling them how we did things before all of the changes.

However, I think Fauci is the key to it all. How people view someone that has spent over 50 years studying infectious diseases is fascinating. We have a very clear divide in the population. Some exist in the current century as they trust subject experts to bring the most up to date information. Some exist in the dark ages where scientific information is met with distrust and disbelief. That information becomes replaced by rumor, innuendo, and “alternative facts”. The vast difference is that the internet seems to be the vector for both.

Specialization is almost as old as time itself. One could argue that job specialization could be the most significant advancement in society itself. Others will argue the invention of the wheel or the discovery of fire. Some might argue for the domestication of animals or farming techniques. We each become subject experts in something and society gets by because we have everything covered. Apparently, that’s not good enough anymore.

At least, it’s not good enough for some people. It’s also not good enough for only some specialties. The ones that require more education and training are disdained. Instead some trust their gut. Some trust the random YouTube video from the neighborhood yahoo. They trust anyone but the people trained in this very thing. How our children explain that to their children and grandchildren will be fascinating from a historical perspective. In the here and now it’s just plain sad.

We’re gonna file this in the “And You Know He Wasn’t The Only One” file, which is getting powerfully thick.

Sean Michael McHugh of California was in Washington on January 6th and federal prosecutors have a recording of him yelling through a megaphone such golden oldies as, “You guys like protecting pedophiles?” “you’re protecting communists,” “I’d be shaking in your little s–t boots too,” and, “there is a Second Amendment behind us, what are you going to do then?”

Actual photo of Sean Michael McHugh on January 6th

If you’re in the mood for some good reading and some spectacular photographs, just click this here little link.  Seriously, it’s worth writing home about.

He picked pedophiles for a reason.

McHugh was convicted in 2010 on a state charge of unlawful sex with a minor, according to California court records reviewed by CNN and lawyers involved in McHugh’s cases. McHugh was sentenced to 240 days in jail — though he served less — and got four years of probation.

She was 13 and he was 23.

He’s probably a communist, too.

George P. Bush, son of Jeb, nephew of Dubya, and grandson of the late George P. Bush, is currently the Land Commissioner in Texas.  He’s going to primary the felony indicted Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. You know, the dude who went to Dee Cee on January 6th to stand beside Trump at the rally and beg for a pardon.  He didn’t get it.

Trump endorsed George P. and joins Ted Cruz in the category of men who threw their families under the bus for Trump.  Check out his campaign announcement released two days ago – his family is not mentioned, but if ya wanna keep your beer cold, they had this swag.

I missed out on the @georgepbush swag yesterday: The koozie says "this is the only Bush that likes me. This is the Bush that got it right. I like him" – Donald Trump #txlege pic.twitter.com/pFTzQCmoRG

— Scott Braddock (@scottbraddock) June 3, 2021

That’s cold, Little Guy.  Remember when you were 18 and tried to break into your ex-girlfriend’s window at her parents’ home?

He proceeded to break into the house via the woman’s bedroom window, and then began arguing with his ex’s father. Bush, then a Rice University student, soon fled the scene. But he returned 20 minutes later to drive his Ford Explorer across the home’s front lawn, leaving wide swaths of burned grass in his wake. Young Bush avoided arrest when the victims declined to press charges. (3 pages)

Where was Trump then to get you out of trouble?