Jay Nordlinger praises Texas’s Ted Cruz. You should read it because Ted Cruz is a name you should remember. He will hopefully be my next state attorney general, but, as Nordlinger points out, Cruz’s future’s so bright he oughta wear shades.
I’ve had some very mild contact with Cruz through my law school. Before presenting his [winning] argument to the Supreme Court last year in Medellin, he did a moot court in front of some law school professors. He was not only practicing for the argument, but he turned it into a wonderful teaching experience for the students there. I’m extremely skeptical of the usefulessness of oral arguments in appellate cases, but an oral argument from Cruz is something unique. There were multiple levels of persuasion going on with every sentence he said; he was simply brilliant.
I briefly met him on a couple other occaisions. I don’t pretend to be a great talent evaluator, but I’ve never met anyone who made such a powerful impression in such small periods of time. He’s as smart as they come, personable, and an ideological conservative (and his wife with to CMC!). In the years to come, conservatives are going to be very pleased that he’s on our side.
Apollo posted this at 12:47 PM EDT on Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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From the Lone Star State:
Police said they were called to a motel on Wednesday (local time) where several men from the Houston area were sharing a room. Police said a 35-year-old man allegedly passed gas in the room on Tuesday night.
Police said one of the other men became upset, picked up a knife and threw it at the 35-year-old man, who was cut in the leg. The suspect was accused of then stabbing the man in the chest.
I guess Tex-Mex doesn’t agree with some people.
Dorothy posted this at 5:23 PM EDT on Tuesday, April 14th, 2009 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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As a suitable follow up of my last post, it’s snowing in Austin. I have a final in the morning at an unfortunate time when there’s normally bad traffic; I am not looking forward to seeing how Austinites handle driving in the snow.
Apollo posted this at 12:18 AM EST on Wednesday, December 10th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas, Grumblin Mumblins
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While I was on my way to school this morning, a fire truck started its siren just as I drove past the station. It was going my way, so I pulled over to let it pass, and so did everyone else on the road. Seeing this opportunity, a bum on crutches took off hobbling across the road, causing the fire engine to slam on its breaks and come to a stop to avoid hitting him.
Apollo posted this at 5:15 PM EST on Monday, November 24th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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This is an argument I hadn’t thought of:
A ban on same-sex marriage in California doesn’t go far enough. How about a Texas-imposed ban on all Californians having sex? Look at what happens when Californians have sex. You just get more Californians. Then they all move to Austin, vente becomes a drink size, and fruit becomes a side order.
[snip]
Now, one of the good things about same-sex Californians having sex is that it doesn’t lead to, you know, more Californians. So maybe the ban I’m proposing should allow sex for same-sex Californians only. Since they’re not the ones adding to the ongoing traffic jam on MoPac.
I’m semi-persuaded.
Apollo posted this at 4:06 PM EST on Friday, November 7th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas, Humor
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The local news had a live camera feed of a Halloween party in downtown Austin. It cut to the crowd a few minutes ago and, judging by this one guy’s lack of clothes and funny manner of running, I’m pretty sure someone went as Greased Up Deaf Guy. Certainly the tv news people couldn’t stop themselves from laughing until the camera cut away. “We see some people there in costume. And some . . . not.”
Apollo posted this at 9:20 PM EDT on Friday, October 31st, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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I’ve probably seen two dozen Obama ads today. Considering I don’t watch much television, and today have only watched the History Channel and TNT, this is weird. And since I’m in Texas, one of the least-likely-to-swing states, this is particularly weird.
So on the one hand, this should be mildly discouraging to McCain supporters. Seeing tons of Obama ads and not a single McCain ad, in light of recent polls, lends support to the notion that there’s about to be a landslide.
On the other hand, Obama is spending money to show ads to Texans. How dumb is he? I’m actually glad that I’m seeing lots of Obama ads and not a single McCain ad, because that means that Obama is wasting his money and McCain isn’t (or, at least, isn’t wasting money in the same way). Airing ads on national television doesn’t strike me as terribly intelligent. And, to the extent that Obama is promising to control federal spending once he’s elected, his profligate campaign spending is something to consider.
Apollo posted this at 8:41 PM EDT on Monday, October 13th, 2008 as Audacity of Hype, Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Traveling in south Texas this summer, we stumbled through Maverick County, a surprisingly populous county made up mostly of scrubland on the Rio Grande. It is named for Samuel Maverick, one of the great ranchers of early Texas. Maverick owned so much cattle and land that he refused to brand his cattle as a point of pride. Unbranded cattle found wandering on the range were presumed to be Maverick’s. And the word came to refer to someone who stubbornly insisted on doing things his own way.
P.S. For another great moment in Texas language history, Maverick’s grandson, Maury Maverick, gave us the word “gobbledygook” to describe bureaucratic jargon he encountered as part of the Smaller War Plants Committee during World War II.
Apollo posted this at 8:54 PM EDT on Thursday, September 4th, 2008 as Audacity of Hype, Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Perhaps it is because I’ve moved to central Texas and visited his home, or perhaps it’s because he compares so favorably to our current crop of politicians, but I’ve developed a soft spot for LBJ. Wednesday would have been his 100th birtheday, and they gave away cake and bar-b-que at his presidential library, located at the university I attend. Twice daily I drive over a lake now named for his wife. Texans, above all else, like Texans. So take this for what it’s worth.
This post is a wonderful summary of what we’ve lost since LBJ died. He was a titan of liberalism in its finest, most idealistic form. The party he left behind now occupies only a portion of his shadow. They seek neither American greatness nor their own moral superiority; at best, they seek to continue only a few of a the programs he started, and to have America be only one country among many.
Whatever criticisms conservatives have leveled at the Great Society–they are both plentiful and salient–there is still something admirable about the man. He didn’t want to destroy the country and rebuild anew; rather, he wanted to build on the greatness that he already saw in America. Compared to the current crop of Democrats who only love America to the extent that they can envision something better, Lyndon Johnson is a breath of fresh air. He loved America for what it was and what it had been, for its values and its faults, while seeking to make it better in the future. That he was the last Democrat to seek to defeat the Communists should not be overlooked.
Before he died, he grew his hair long and devoted himself to cattle ranching; that was probably preferable to watching his party being taken over by New Left nitwits.
Apollo posted this at 1:58 AM EDT on Friday, August 29th, 2008 as Amer-I-Can!, Deep in the Heart of Texas, Ourselves
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Received today: my first paycheck on which I paid no state income tax. The check actually smells like freedom.
Apollo posted this at 9:17 PM EDT on Tuesday, July 15th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas, Ourselves
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Tonight in Corpus Christi, there were six cars idling in line at the Starbucks drive-through. I went inside and there was no line whatsoever, but still there were people willing to idle their cars for fifteen minutes in line to buy $4 drinks.
Posited: Here, at least, we are not in a recession, and gas is not sufficiently expensive to alter daily activities.
Apollo posted this at 9:50 PM EDT on Saturday, June 28th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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A bumper sticker, on a particularly large truck:
“Texas: Bigger Than France.”
Which is true. In fact, if you took Metropolitan France and added New York State, not a small state by any means, Texas would still be larger.
Apollo posted this at 10:20 AM EDT on Friday, June 20th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Sign at the mall, in front of a vacant store: “Objet d’Art has moved next to Chik-fil-a.”
Apollo posted this at 11:41 AM EDT on Sunday, June 15th, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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Saw a man riding a bicycle up a hill. The following is a complete list of his attire: 1 dress shirt, 2 shoes, 2 socks, 1 necktie, 1 sports coat, 1 pair blue panties with red stars and trim, 1 helmet.
Apollo posted this at 5:51 PM EDT on Saturday, May 3rd, 2008 as Deep in the Heart of Texas
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