Does the truth not matter to the media anymore? I’m really beginning to wonder and have decided to ponder the subject in this column over the next two weeks.

The appointments system in Texas has turned into one big joke. It isn’t a funny joke because our state government depends in large part on the appointment process, and when the governor thumbs his nose at it, quality suffers.

The Republican scrapes his "W" sticker off the car and laments the crooks from his party that were running the House of Representatives. The Democrat complains that his party's leaders are out of touch and don't seem to understand why they were successful in the last election. No one seems terribly happy, and one has to wonder what it all means for the future.

The Texas Democratic Party is experiencing growing pains. Luckily, we don't have to look any further than the Texas Republican Party to learn what not to do.

No good deed in politics and government goes unpunished. No matter how well meaning, you’re going to upset someone.

I learned that lesson shortly after my introduction to the sport. For years, Alison and I had bumped along down Drexel to get to her parents’ home on Betsy Lane. Drexel was about as torn up and pitted with potholes as a street could be.

The power of quiet. I was struck by it the other day during my first camping trip in years. In the dark, back country wilderness of Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, I kept finding myself saying, “Listen to that!” Not because there was anything to hear but because there was absolutely nothing; it was complete and total silence. It produced some of the clearest thinking I’ve experienced in years.

“Smelly socks.” That’s what one Texas student said came to mind when he thought about the TAKS test. There could be a more pleasing olfactory reaction for such students in the future.

Could the immigration debate get any more ridiculous? I don't think so. To no one's great surprise, the federal legislation went up in smoke. Now, border states like Texas are left to wrestle with the issue and all its tentacles, and we can expect more of the political grandstanding that has become all too commonplace.

(Originally published by Examiner News)

Why not Texas? It would seem that if you faced a massive problem, you would want to be in the forefront of finding solutions. Sadly, that doesn't appear to be the case when it comes to health care insurance in Texas.