Reefer Madness - Commentary

I recently had the delight of reading a very liberal post by blogger Raymund on his site What the Hell is Texas Doing? about the potential benefits of Texas adopting Marijuana as a legal substance. The post goes into great detail about the financial perks Texas stands to gain from legalizing the plant, and also addresses many of the common, misguided concerns the public has about pot. While Marijuana is a drug (there's no getting around that), the risk of abuse or addiction is significantly less than that of America's favorite past time- alcohol. So why is it illegal? I believe that the fear of a demotivated society is a poor justification of such close-minded actions, especially since we have had the living proof of Colorado that legalizing marijuana will not ruin a society. In fact, Colorado has not only seen a great reduction in the amount of substance-related crimes, but also an increase in tax revenue and a flood of new available jobs.

I truly believe that, if legalized, marijuana will have a positive affect on Texas as well, both ushering in a new era of liberal thinking to challenge the old ways, as well as giving our state a large sum of money to put towards helping people, rather than arresting them. The longer this prejudice against "reefer" continues, the more people have their lives ruined and the more our state finances get tied up in everything but what should be our government's priorities- health, education, and opportunities. The time for this change is now, and Texas is wasting precious time. Other states will soon grab at this chance of betterment and we will be left with nothing. It's unfortunate to think that the financial growth of other states will be what really changes the mind of Texans, but if money is what it takes for change, so be it.

What Century is Texas in?

After living in Texas for a majority of my life and seeing how things change, one thing about our state’s heading is clear- there will be slow change. A recent article published by the Austin American Statesman reveals the backwards processes our State still endorses- the death penalty. Despite the fact that most of the states in our country have outlawed this heinous practice of "justice", it is a very clear act of barbarianism to me. A recent botching of the procedure happened this week in Oklahoma, another state that supports the death penalty. Despite the large amount of negative attention this scandal received, putting into question why the procedure is still legal, Texas prison officials made it clear to the press that they were not looking for any alternatives, currently or for the future. 

This announcement from our state officials bothers me quite a bit, because currently our state executes more people than some countries even do, and yet we have lower crime rates than many of our states that have banned the penalty altogether. Our feudal way of thinking is going to prohibit us from making a change in the justice system, a change that would not only save taxpayers millions of dollars, but also a change in how we treat and respect life. It is a gift, not a privilege to be taken away when the state deems you criminal enough to be put down like an animal. This type of slow change is what currently defines our state, and until we begin to think more pro-actively, there will be no improvement in our government or our culture, and the rest of the world will move past us.

SO two-thousand-and-late

In the popular blog Burnt Orange Report, a shocking truth about our Republican gubernatorial candidate Gregg Abbott was revealed- he doesn't support Equal Pay. This is an insulting piece of news to hear, as women have been fighting for equal rights in the United States for over 150 years. Have we still not yet earned our rights? The article references a study that showed women in Texas are being paid on average 82% what a man would make in the exact same position. Despite this clear inequality, Abbott seems to have dismissed the problem as someone else’s, stating that he will not sign an Equal Pay bill like the one that Governor Perry vetoed last year. It is clear that the article is targeting women in Texas, raising awareness of the discrimination. However, the blog appeals to men as well, both showing the injustice of modern society, as well as the elusive intent of Attorney General Abbott. As a potential candidate for Governor, Abbott has made an error in offending at least half the population of his state.

 I believe that even conservative, Republican women will see this as too traditional of thinking. The same studies dissected Abbott’s employees’ pay. They compared the salary of men to women, and broke them into categories depending on experience. 6 of those 7 categories, the average man’s salary was anywhere from $647-$4,452 higher than the average woman’s. Clearly Abbott has little respect for the women of Texas and the hard work they have put into Equal Rights. While he denies opposing Equal Pay, his actions certainly speak louder than his words. The blog provides their reader with a fair critique, and references to their claims that contain even more information for those who wish to be involved. Hopefully the attention paid to this problem will gain substantial support for Democratic candidate Wendy Davis. Let's Go Davis!

A Change of Pace

An opinion piece by Todd Robberson raises Democrats' hopes for the upcoming Texas election of Governor, raising much needed awareness for the normally republican-dominated position. Robberson notes the effect of the recent misspeaking of State Sen. Wendy Davis, who perhaps embellished her trials as a single mother to the public. A survey taken shortly after revealed Republican candidate Greg Abbott had an unsurprising 11% lead over his opponent. From both the results of that survey and the long history of voting persuasions in Texas, one might assume this election to be another solid win for the Republican Party. 

However, recent mistakes made by Abbott provide a window of opportunity for the Democratic party- an opportunity that, if seized by the people, could change the course of Texas politics and social order completely. In an effort to campaign for the upcoming election, Republican candidate Abbott toured around Texas with famous person Ted Nugent and advertised early voting. When Nugent made some inappropriate remarks on-stage, Greg Abbott refused to apologize on his behalf or even openly disagree with the statements made.

The brash rocker went on record as calling President Obama a "subhuman mongrel", offending more people than he inspired. This was clearly a bust for Greg Abbott’s campaign ambitions, who both failed to please the crowd with his star supporter, as well as refused to amend the situation with an apologetic public announcement.  The writer of this article goes on to say that he predicts this will heavily influence voting this year, giving Davis, and the Democratic Party, a fighting chance.

Robberson seems to be targeting the democratic or unaligned population of Texas, in hopes of promoting voters to cast their ballots for Davis. This would be a huge change of political ideology for Texas. Surveys taken since then have indeed shown an increase in support of Davis and a corresponding decrease for Abbott’s potential voters. I agree wholly with the author, and hope that this example of poor judgment inspires voters to make a revolutionary change in Texas Politics and add some new perspective to this conservative southern state before we fall behind.

Out with the old, in with the Blue

A recent piece written by Jonathan Tilove highlights the decades of nearly unchallenged Republican control in Texas politics, and how their firm hold on our state has effected the representation of the people. Voter turn-out in our beloved State is a shamefully low percentage, especially compared to the other states in our Nation. Nearly every other state has a higher percentage of their population casting their ballots, while Texas "ranked 48th in the nation in voter turnout for the 2012 presidential election". Despite the fact that 62% of Texas citizens are registered, only 36% actually voted in 2010. 

What's truly upsetting is that of the people that did vote, demographic studies show that the minorities (the immigrants, the youth, the less well-educated, and the people of lower socioeconomic class) are not getting their say, and aren't so much minorities anymore. It is these groups of people that vote majority democratic, and yet we haven't had a Democratic Governor since 1994. 

However, it hasn't always been Republican dominance in Texas Politics. According to the Texas Civil Health Report, "In the 1950s, over 70% of Texas voters identified with the Democratic Party." The article explains this effect is, in part, due to the redistricting of county lines, as well as a lack of competitive campaignes. This decline in Democratic participation, and citizen participation in general, can only mean the halt of progress. Without the demands of the people, and the votes of the educated and involved, we simply cannot hope for our state to rise above the rest. I hope this article will draw the attention of Texans who have forgotten their civil duties, and inspire them to vote for the next upcoming election. Maybe then we can see change in our government.