Free Republic

Texas moved a bit closer to passing campus carry and open carry bills out of the Texas Senate yesterday, February 12.   The Senate has been the bottleneck for these bills because a  super majority is needed to get them out of the Senate.  That majority used to be 21 votes out of 31.   It was amended early this session to become 19 votes out of 31.   It is still a high hurdle, but Lt. Governor Dan Patrick heads the Texas Senate.  He has promised to pass both campus and open carry.  I am convinced that he is working hard...

In this murder trial in Big Spring Texas, Sean Thomas Smith was found not guilty on Thursday, 12 February, 2015.   The shooting occurred on October 14th of 2013, involved an altercation where Smith shot 26-year-old Carlos Guerrero once in the chest with a .17 caliber rifle.  The shooting is said to have occurred in Guerrero's yard.  Smith then left the scene and was later stopped by police.  The rifle was in the vehicle. Smith plead not guilty, by reason of self defense.  Details of the events that lead up to the shooting have been hard to come by.  From ...

Following an outbreak of measles that was traced back to Disneyland, public-health authorities are ramping up their campaign to persuade all American parents that their children should be vaccinated. This campaign places pressure on some parents who have moral objections to the use of certain vaccines. We should not underestimate the vigor of the public-health campaign. Writers from RealClear Science and from Fox News-- not outlets ordinarily inclined to favor the expansion of government powers—have called for mandatory vaccination of all children, and even jail time for parents who resist. Nor should we underestimate the seriousness of some parents who...

Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) unequivocally declared Monday that Texas is a "crazy state" he never wants to live in, infuriating a Texas lawmaker. Tensions flared between Hastings and Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas) during a House Rules Committee meeting to prepare a bill slated for a floor vote Tuesday to repeal ObamaCare. Hastings showed disdain for Texas during a discussion about states' implementation of the 2010 healthcare overhaul and decisions over whether or not to participate in the exchanges. "I don't know about in your state, which I think is a crazy state to begin with," Hastings told Burgess. Burgess immediately...

Lt. Governor Dan Patrick was quoted as saying that open carry bills might not come up for a vote this session on Tuesday.  From dallasnews.com:  “Open carry is important, but I don’t think there is support in the Legislature to pass it,” Patrick said. “The votes have not been there.”  Wednesday he reiterated his support for that legislation.  From texastribune.org: After noting that he had referred a bill to committee allowing concealed weapons to be carried on university campuses by those with appropriate licenses, Patrick said in a statement, "Now that [Senate Bill] 11 has support and is moving...

Open carry activists at the State Capitol in Austin. The movement to restore open carry to Texas has heated up in the last year and a half.  It arguably accelerated with  C.J. Grisham being accosted by a police officer in rural Bell County.  An army veteran whose family owns thousands of acres in Bell county,  Grisham was eventually convicted of "interfering with police duties" after a second jury trial.  He is paying a $2,000 fine.  On the installment plan.  In nickles.   The results are still under appeal.  Many who have watched the video of the event think the police...

A bill to reduce defenseless victim zones on establishments of higher learning has been introduced in the Texas legislature.  It is commonly known as a "campus carry" bill, SB11. SB11 has 19 of 20 Republican senators as authors. They are; Birdwell | Bettencourt | Burton | Campbell | Creighton | Eltife | Estes | Fraser | Hall | Hancock | Huffines | Kolkhorst | Nelson | Nichols | Perry | Schwertner | Seliger | Taylor, Larry | Taylor, Van. There are only 31 senators in the Texas senate, so a majority of senators already agree with the bill. The...

by John Urban | TopRight News A potentially disastrous security breach by the Pentagon was discovered by sheriff's deputies during a routine traffic stop in Southern Arizona. Pinal County deputies stopped a 2006 Ford Expedition for a traffic violation. The Mexican national initially presented an Arizona Identification Card, in the name of Armando Villalobos of Phoenix. A records check revealed that not only did the illegal alien have no driver's license, but there were outstanding felony warrants for his arrest in Texas.The suspect eventually told the deputy that his real name was in fact Mario Bustamante, 37, and that he was in...

H-E-B issued a voluntary and precautionary recall for the H-E-B Homestyle White Corn Tortillas. •H-E-B Homestyle White Corn Tortillas 12 ct. packages with Best By dates of Jan. 22, 2015 and earlier •H-E-B Homestyle White Corn Tortillas 30 ct. packages with Best By dates of Jan. 22, 2015 and earlier •Retail packed H-E-B Texas Ranch Casserole purchased from an H-E-B Deli on, or before, Jan. 13, 2015 with a scan code beginning with 279075 or 279108 •Retail packed H-E-B Gumbo purchased from an H-E-B Deli on, or before, Jan. 13, 2015 with a scan code beginning with 27909

People who go about legally armed are taught to avoid conflict and confrontation.   As people grow older, and hopefully, wiser, they become better practiced at avoiding conflict.   Age exacts its toll in exchange.  Nearly everyone gets slower; slower reflexes, balance deteriorates, you cannot run as fast.   Even though I have maintained a disciplined aerobic program, I am nowhere near as fast as I was only a dozen years ago.  Age also makes a person more attractive as a potential victim.   If an assailant is aggressive, and faster than you, for even a short sprint, running is not an option. ...

Being in the Texas Legislature is not intended to be a lucrative career. Legislators receive part-time pay. They are only in session six months every two years. It is, for all intents and purposes, a volunteer position for those wishing to serve the public. Last week, we released an exhaustive report covering the loans relating to the campaigns and PACs of every Texas Legislator. Despite a tepid and defensive response from the Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) regarding our figures and call for an audit, we delved further into the campaign finances of the Legislature. This time we took a closer...

Last night, new year's eve, I waited for midnight, listening intently.  I was in North Dallas, and I had heard that celebratory gunfire was sometimes practiced in the area.  About 10 pm, I heard 4-8 gunshots, (or good facsimiles there of).  They were distant, so I could not be certain.   From 12:01 am to 12:20 am, I heard about 50.  Most were clearly gunshots.  They fit the pattern of gunshots.   There is a certain cadence that is different from firecrackers or random loud noises.   In addition, the timing, just after midnight seems much more than coincidental.  It is a...

After releasing our report on Monday covering the accounting issues of the PAC and campaign finance reports of the Texas Legislature, the Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) issued a response defending its “important work”. In the two page letter, TEC chairman Paul W. Hobby, a Joe Straus appointee, admitted that we were correct about the TEC’s limited enforcement powers (thanks to the Legislature) and bemoaned the appeals process that hindered prosecution. He defended the commissioners’ diligence, claiming they have “met much more than is required by law.” Unfortunately, the figures the TEC provides only tell half the story. One of the...

Link to video This video of an attempted armed robbery in Houston, Texas, illustrates the fact that most armed robbers are reluctant to shoot, and reluctant to kill their victims.   I am not saying that they have high moral standards.  I am saying that robbers respond to incentives; they know that a killing of an innocent brings down unwanted attention; and a shooting brings quicker response and often, greater investigation.  In this case the robber grabs the store owner through a small opening in a bullet proof enclosure and points a gun at him while demanding money.   The wife...

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-La.) said Wednesday that House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) needs to respond with "more than words" to a controversy over a speech he gave to a white supremacist group in 2002. Jackson Lee, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, implied that she doubted her fellow Louisiana lawmaker's explanation, that he did not know the views of the European-American Unity and Rights Organization, which was founded by well-known former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke. "This was not 50 years ago, it was 12 years ago, and every member knows what David Duke stands for,...

In April, a clerk at a Shell station in Houston was shot. From abc13.com: HOUSTON -- Police say armed robbers held up a gas station in northwest Houston overnight. They got away, but not before shooting the clerk   Now we learn that the clerk was paralyzed.  From click2houston.com: According to his co-workers, the shooting left that clerk paralyzed. No one was arrested. Back at the Shell station, Thursday night, 4 December, 2014.  This time things proceeded in a different fashion.  From click2houston.com: Police said the clerk pointed his gun at the robbers and ordered them to leave. One...

Austin, Texas – In what sounds like something out of the Cold War Soviet Union playbook, Austin Police Chief, Art Acevedo urged the community to turn in neighbors and friends who are “gun enthusiasts” or who have “extreme” views, just days after Larry McQuilliams shot-up buildings in Austin.Acevedo, in a press conference, stated that he is fearful of “homegrown” terrorists like McQuilliams who harbor “hate” and have access to firearms.But what Americans should be fearful about isn’t the likes of McQuilliams, but rather the response by Acevedo on how to go about countering these perceived threats. While obviously no rational...

After the shooting in Austin last week, our dear police chief has come up with a plan to curb future shootings, namely … tell the cops about your friends or family members who love guns. Especially if they ‘hate’ anyone. Uh, okay.

Midland, TX — Rosendo Gino Rodriquez, 49, was shot dead in an altercation Monday while Midland Police were conducting a routine welfare check. The Midland County mental health unit was conducting a regular welfare check at a home on the 2700 block of Washington Street, when things went sour. According to the Midland police, Rodriquez became “aggressive” during the welfare check. The term aggressive is used loosely by the MPD, as they claim he acted out said “aggression” by running away from them, back into his house, and barricading himself in a room. The Free Thought Project would like to...

Arrest in Austin September, 2013 The State Trooper, center, has a holstered antique revolver in his left hand. About a year  ago, Open Carry Texas held a demonstration at the Texas State Capitol at Austin.  Several people were arrested.  Charges were slow in coming.  It appeared that they might be charged with the catch-all of "disorderly conduct".  The open carriers repeatedly said that they were doing nothing illegal. There is breaking news on opencarry.org.  It has been reported that seven people who were arrested over a year ago, in conjunction with open carry, have had all charges against them...