Texas State and Local Government News

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2009-05-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

My comment to Mark's Blog about guns is I believe that guns should not be allowed anywhere in school. I mean yeah the government should comprehend exactly what happened at VT. I mean carrying a loaded gun on campus can be very dangerous. People can get hurt. College is supposed to be a safe learning environment. I think that this bill should not be passed under any circumstances to save the lives all people. Loaded guns and a place occupied of people, anything is possible. I like the way you said, "Don't you think if someone decides to go onto a Texas campus to cause harm to the student body and faculty, that the first thing that would come to mind would be the fact that there are possibly hundreds if not thousands of guns on the premises." And my response is definitely yes that would be the first thing that would come to mind as far as safety. I don’t understand how the government can pass this bill. Maybe they aren’t thinking right. I would highly suggest better security at schools than consider having the right to carry a gun. There are people out there who are certified to hold a loaded gun (police) and are trained to fight justice. We ought to let them do the work rather than risk our own lives and be surrounded by weapons left and right.

Swine flu calls for prudence, not panic

2009-04-30T14:19:00.000-07:00

I agree with this editorial because the swine flu is not only affecting people in Texas but also around the world. Luckily the spread of swine flu in the United States have been mild. "However, common sense dictates that Texans carefully consider travel next door to Mexico, where more than 1,300 cases of the flu strain have been diagnosed and more than 150 people might have died from it." For the most part about seven countries have reported the flu, but "the only deaths so far have occurred in Mexico, ground zero for this new strain of swine flu."The editorial said, "This is a difficult time for a serious communicable disease to be spreading through the country. The Obama administration doesn't have a surgeon general yet; the top post at the CDC is vacant; and the president's nominee to head the Department of Health and Human Services, former Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, was just confirmed Tuesday. Thankfully, the Texas and federal governments have adequate supplies of anti-viral medicine that appears to be effective against this particular flu. Both Tamiflu and Relenza can defeat the current strain, medical experts say." Texas has spent millions preparing for such an emergency that is well-positioned to fight the outbreak. Dr. David Lakey, head of the Texas Department of State Health Services, said the situation could get worse, however, because flu viruses mutate easily and can spread quickly, he expects there will be deaths in the United States. Texas has not been a unbreakable hit yet, the state's nearness to Mexico and the amount of traffic crossing the border make us helpless to the eruption.

Comment on "Guns on Campus"

2009-04-19T19:04:00.000-07:00

Very good topic but there are some things that I disagree with.I like the way and agree to the situation about students and teacher carrying a gun in school. If you think about it guns do not belong in school because school is made for learning and gaining knowledge. I also believe that there should be no reason why anybody should carry a gun period. Also I do not agree to the HB 1893 and SB 1164,due to the fact that we can stop people from carrying guns in school by having a strong security system in institutions of higher learning. I totally agree on the fact that Virgina Tech had a dramatic tragedy but we can all step forward and create a safe environment in school. I believe that protection should be granted to everyone but it can be created without hand guns.We should carry metal detectors and high security in schools to protect students and faculty. I mean if they have metal detectors at airports why cannot we establish one in schools to secure the environment? They government should spend more money on that rather than investing.

Free Tuition

2009-04-08T00:21:00.000-07:00

We should offer free tuition for higher learning. Meaning college/higher studies should be free of charge for all students who are determined to study and declare a major for themselves. There are many Americans out there that cannot even afford to go to a college EVEN with the assistant of financial aid. Surprising huh? Financial aid will only cover tuition and books but the money wont last them through out the year for necessities, and personal needs. College tuition should be payed by those who make or live in a household that makes over $200,000 or more. The rich folks are making the unfortunate suffer to pay tuition rather than the rich people donating money or funds for free college tuition. We should allow all student to complete the best and fullest education possible without spending a penny out of their pockets. College should be something one wants to attend to be someone in life, and when tuition stops somebody from doing this it shatters peoples dreams and for others it leaves no hope. We should make it a law that higher education should absolutely be free for those who are wanting to get a college degree of some sort. We need to do anything we can to make this happen for students.

Obama's Mexico policy so far depressingly familiar

2009-03-26T07:40:00.000-07:00

"President Obama should never have signed legislation banning Mexican truckers, which not only violated a treaty but immediately inspired new Mexican tariffs on US products. " I can understand why President Obama and his staff made a decision to ban Mexican trucker, because of the economic situations we are facing right now. I also understand that the transportation of drugs are also an issue to why he chose to sign this bill. "Obama has received high marks from drug policy reformers in D.C. and on the west coast who are happy he ended the crackdown on state-sanctioned medical marijuana dispensaries, but for the issues I care about most, I can't say I care much for the new president's drug policies, particularly regarding Mexican drug cartels." Obama's drug poliicies are pretty strong and he wants to fight for to get rid of drugs that are harming America today. "DOJ's Organized Drug Enforcement Task Forces Program (OCDETF) is adding analyst personnel to its strike force capacity along the Southwest border and the Office of Justice Programs will be investing $30 million in stimulus funding to assist with state and local law enforcement to combat narcotics activity coming through the southern border and in high intensity drug trafficking areas.""Obama's Mexico policy so far amounts to more of the same, with a healthy new dose of protectionism larded on top. I'd hoped for a more thoughtful approach, starting with a greater focus on rooting out US-side corruption." I totally agree with President Obama and his decision.

Whistle-blower protection bill should be law in Texas

2009-03-03T20:35:00.000-08:00

I totally agree with this editorial because I mean whistle-blowers should definitely report about those who do wrong things due to misconduct. For those of you who do not know what a "Whistle-Blower" is it is basically a "United States federal law that protects federal Whistle blowers , or persons who work for the government who report agency misconduct. A federal agency violates the Whistleblower Protection Act if it takes or fails to take (or threatens to take or fail to take) a personnel action with respect to any employee or applicant because of any disclosure of information by the employee or applicant that he or she reasonably believes evidences a violation of a law, rule or regulation; gross mismanagement; gross waste of funds; an abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety. The article also said, "The Legislature should finally grant Texas journalists a right not to have to reveal sources in certain situations, something that is already law in most other states. A similar bill almost made it last session but was killed in the 11th hour on a point of order by Rep. Debbie Riddle, R-Tomball." I think this law should definately be applied to Texas because of the safety of the public. This law should basically be applied to all states and be taken very seriously.

UT execs pay rises, as does tuition

2009-02-17T18:35:00.000-08:00

This article is very concerning to those who wish to transfer into UT (me) in the future. The tuition for the University of Texas has risen enormously by at least $2500 up to 2008. I mean by raising the salaries for the executives, students will find it very difficult and intriguing to pay college tuition because its rising very rapidly. "UT isn't the only school that has seen big salary increases for its top administrators. Former Texas A&M President Robert Gates, now the U.S. defense secretary, made $362,000 in 2004. The new A&M president, Elsa Murano, was making $525,000 in 2008, school records show. That's a 45 percent increase. At the University of Houston, figures show a more modest 10 percent increase in the president's salary, from $387,500 in 2004 to $425,000 last year."(WOW). Tuition is becoming a great issue nowadays for students, because as soon as they graduate from college some are broke to find a new job or some have to pay off their college loans. But i mean if you think about it UT does want the best for its students, because it wants to have the best executives to teach the future of the generation ahead. You have to pay for the best.