OPEN LETTERS
An Open Letter To My Friends And Family In Texas
I so didn’t want to have to write this letter
Dear Family and Friends,
Seeing this license plate bugged me so much that I had to post it on Facebook.
As you know, this is not the first time I’ve posted a derogatory piece about Texas. But before I begin, a few preludes.
- Sorry, but this letter could be as long as Texas is big. So I’ll try to summarize.
- You may call me a hypocrite as I was born in Texas and lived there until the age of ten. But I had no say in the matter. I didn’t ask to be born!
- Some of you are likely Republicans who vote on issues rather than morality. Some of you may be Democrats. Regardless of political affiliation, some of you are probably progressive. But some of you are none of these things. So somebody voted in Abbott and Cruz.
- Whatever the case, it is your politicians that have their big girl panties stuck up their asses. They have upset a large chunk of your populace by their evil doings.
- Greg Abbottabad (welcoming Afghani refugees while claiming refugees from Mexico/Haitai are Covid carriers) and Lyin’ Ted Cruz (though I rather like Cancun Cruz) were voted in by someone. How the hell was Ann Richards ever elected Governor of Texas?
- Texas gives the rest of America much material to comment on an almost daily basis. It’s not just me.
- In the end, this is more about your politicians than it is about you, who want to create a utopian, Christian, right-leaning Eden where there is no separation of church and state.
“Not another diatribe about Texas,” you may be saying. Well, there are some good things to say. People and companies, mainly from California, are moving there to take advantage of the favorable tax climate and lower housing costs (for now). Austin is the fastest-growing city in the country. In the winter, you can have polar conditions (Amarillo) or a tropical paradise (Brownsville) on the same day. It does have variety and even diversity. Most folks are friendly — in front of your face.
Personally, I think the best thing about Texas is the chicken fried steak. However, let’s not go down the road to whether macaroni and cheese is a vegetable. But this letter isn’t about food, so let’s get to the point of why the rest of America has an issue with Texas.
Anti-Vaxxers and Covid-19 Nonbelievers
Abbott signed an executive order stating that almost no entity can require any person to wear a face mask or make a mandate that another person wear a face covering. Yet, cases of COVID in Texas continue to skyrocket.
Gun Control
There isn’t any. The third most deadly school shooting happened in a Houston suburb in 2018. What short memories your lawmakers have. Now you can carry a gun with no permit and no training. As of September 27, 344 homicides were recorded in Houston, a 30% increase over the same time in 2020. By June 12, Austin had as many homicides as there were in all of 2020.
Systemic Racism
Once again, your governor signed a bill in June which bans the teaching of “critical race theory” in public school classrooms. This could conceivably mean that Martin Luther King, Jr. may never be talked about in your schools. But everyone will sure enjoy the day off.
Labor
Texas declined to pay the additional $300/week in unemployment benefits. The Feds would have paid for it! You didn’t have to pay for it, and you still fucked the lower class over! The minimum wage in Texas is the same as the federal minimum wage of $7.25/hour. But why let people get their heads above water?
Medicaid
This one goes back a while, but not that far back. Texas is one of 17 states that chose not to expand the Medicaid program. Only one of those states is blue. As a result, your state has the nation’s highest uninsured rate. The uninsured aren’t just illegal immigrants. Sixteen percent of your citizens live in poverty. That’s number 41 in the country. (Yes, I know New Mexico has it worse, but that’s not the point.)
Voting
Senate Bill 1, passed into law on September 1, further tightens election laws and raises new barriers for marginalized voters. It mainly affects people of color, who happen to be democrats primarily. You guys are brilliant, if not unethical.
Abortion
I can’t say anything that hasn’t already been said about this issue. Your law is archaic, barbaric, and misogynist. In the past, we always thought of Texans as kind people. But this new law, which can pit neighbor against neighbor? Truly appalling. New Mexico and Oklahoma are bearing the brunt of those women seeking an abortion because there are not enough clinics to handle the crisis east of Texas.
And finally…
Politics and Politicians in General
Would someone please do something about Ted Cruz? Nobody seems to like him, even his fellow senators. He won by the narrowest of margins.
Californians are moving to Texas in droves. Many because of how they feel California is being run. These are the reds. Others are moving because of the job market. OR, they’re being moved by their companies as part of Silicon Valley’s hiatus to Texas. These are the blues. Meanwhile, Medium writer Robert Turner states that there very well might be a “Texodus.” In his article, he says:
A clear goal of the Republican-driven Senate is to force Texans to conform to a very conservative set of values held so dear by radical and ultra-conservative members of the GOP.
To Summarize
Governor Greg Abbott’s administration is responsible for all of the issues outlined. I hope that you will remember this when you are in the voting booth.
Other gubernatorial hopefuls have not yet made their decisions on whether to run. While whites make up about 40% of your population, Hispanics are hot on the trail at about 39%. They tend towards blue. I’d like to see Beto O’Rourke decide to run. Or one of the Castro brothers. But not Matthew McConaughy. You already saw how another clown that didn’t know about governing turned this country upside down. I’m not saying that Matthew McConnaughy is a clown — he looks good! But he doesn’t understand government.
Let’s get real.
I plead that all of you will make the right decision in the future. The above perpetuates the status quo and makes it worse. There’s no plan but to tear things down. I dare you to look at the above issues and try to find someone you know who hasn’t been affected by one or more.
Love, Arthur
P.S. Sorry about the memes on Facebook, but I hope you at least see my point of view. I want to be proud of Texas again, so I don’t have to irritate y’all constantly!
Please read some of my other letters, er…stories:
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