Tina's Story

When Tina faced an unplanned pregnancy, she was tricked into visiting an anti-choice "crisis pregnancy center" (CPC). This is her story.

Cross Post: My Morning As a Clinic Escort

By Robin Marty, RH Reality Check

Back in April, I went to the Planned Parenthood in St. Paul, Minnesota to cover the Good Friday protest and counter-protest events that happens every year. While talking with some of the women touting signs in support of the clinic, I joked, "You know, if I ever get pregnant again, I'm totally going to try out clinic escorting while I'm huge."

Little did I know I was actually pregnant when I said that, and now, almost six months later, I felt like it was time to follow through on my promise.

This Saturday morning I sneaked quietly out of the house to head downtown to the Midwest Women's Clinic, to sit in on a clinic escort training session and test the waters a bit on escorting. I found that much of what I assumed about both escorting and the protesters I would encounter was quite different from what I saw in real life.

We met in a conference room in a non-descript building off of Nicollet Mall. And by non-descript, I mean that I missed it the first time and had to go back through my emails to get directions. There is no identifying marks on the front, no signage, no names. Unlike other clinics, where the escorts tend to have to provide more of a buffer for their clients, here we acted more as signage for the clinic, letting the women with appointments know exactly where they are supposed to be.

There are reasons that Midwest doesn't get the attention that many other clinics in the area receive from anti-choice protesters. And frankly, one of those reasons is that the people who want to "sidewalk counsel" simply don't want to pay for parking.

It's really not surprising. The main "sidewalk counselor" who shows daily at the clinic is paid for his efforts, as is one of the semi-regular protesters. It never occurred to me that clinic protesters might be paid for their work, in comparison to the escorts who volunteer their time to take the women past their pleas and jeers.

A majority of our training consisted of us being shown anti-choice literature that will likely be handed to the clients, and an explanation of the rules that escorts need to follow when it comes to dealing with protesters. Some made a good deal of sense when I considered them more: don't talk to or engage with a protester -- it can confuse the client who is unsure of who to trust (especially true for clinics where protesters may put themselves in vests to make women believe they are also escorts, although that has yet to happen locally).

Other rules confused me more. We had to be sure that as we escort a client we do not stand between the client and protester and interfere with the protester's ability to talk to the woman. In fact, the regular "counselor," Charley, had threatened to call the police on an escort earlier in the week for "blocking his access" to a client by standing in between the two of them when walking her into the clinic. It began to feel like there was a legally sanctioned right to harass, with protesters having more protected rights than the woman seeking an abortion.

The morning I was escorting, Charley was relatively mild. Because of the training session, most of the clients had already entered the building before I went out to train with the other escorts. I'd been told Charley has many standard tactics -- one favorite is to hand cigarettes out on the street in an attempt to draw a crowd (including, bizarrely, to underage teens, showing a confusing disconnect between wanting to help "babies" and actually harming real children.

Then, on most days, he carries around a batch of "baby" dolls, small plastic dolls made to look like curled up 14 week fetuses. He tries to pass them out to the women entering the clinic, picking pink ones for the Caucasian women he sees, and little brown ones for any woman of color who comes by. When he can, he follows the women to the door, shaking his "babies" at them through the big glass window while they wait in the lobby for an elevator to take them up to the clinic.

Because of these stories about him, I felt I was prepared for anything he would do. What I wasn't prepared for, however, was Debra.

I was sent to the far end of the street, by a paid parking lot, where I stood with another trainee and two veterans. A small, gray-haired, be-speckled, frail looking old woman was standing in the entrance to the parking lot. At first I thought she had a stack of diapers in her hand (which, frankly I thought was rather clever) but once she came closer I saw it was a very large batch of brochures. She walked the sidewalk up and down like she was marching a picket line, and the veterans just told me "Oh, yes, that's Debra. She's much worse than Charley."

I got to see her in action a few minutes later.

While we were still being trained, the patients were already starting to arrive, and one woman showed up with two other women for support, each of the friends wheeling an umbrella stroller with a toddler inside. The training stopped for a minute because we could hear shouting through the open door, which went on for quite some time. Later I found out one of the women who was providing emotional support got her stroller stuck in the door, and the full group was being shouted at by both Debra and Charley as they tried to get everyone inside. It was what I had expected. "You don't have to do this! You have other options! Please don't murder your child, he already loves you inside the womb!"

Now, the two women who were friends or family of the patient were leaving the clinic, still pushing their young children in strollers. I watched as Debra ran to the parking lot and grabbed a sign I hadn't seen earlier, with a 12 week fetus next to a picture of bloody tissue.

Debra yelled.

She called them murderers. She asked them how they felt to have blood on their hands. She told them that they couldn't even look at her sign because they knew that what she was showing them was the truth. She told them they were more guilty than the woman inside, because they already had children and know what was being destroyed in that building.

She chased them down the street, following them to the parking lot. She continued berating them as they put their children in car seats, packed away the strollers, climbed into their seats and pulled away. She continued as they paid for their parking on the way out, stood next to the window shouting while they paused, trying to figure out which way to drive down the street to get out of the maze that is downtown Minneapolis.

The Debra put down her sign, picked back up a stack of pamphlets, and began her incessant march, back and forth up and down the street in front of the clinic.

I was in shock. In my head, although I didn't agree with them, I could justify a lot of what anti-choice activists did under the umbrella of "Well, to them, it's justified to 'save a baby.'" I don't like or in any way condone the tactics being used to try and make it more difficult, both physically or emotionally, for a woman to go inside and have an abortion, but the motivation at least made sense: saving a "life." I often wondered how they thought that yelling, name calling and the like would make a woman change her mind, rather than simply antagonize her, but at least I thought I understood there was in fact a reason behind it.

But Debra's tactics aren't like that. I learned that she is the only protester at the clinic who stays the full day. She waits for the women to come out, and that's when she attacks. Once it's already done. Once there is no longer choice still to be made. Once there is no nothing left to "save."

She's not there to advocate. She's not there to counsel. And inherently, she's not there to change a person's mind, although if she managed to, no doubt it would be heralded by Pro-Life Action Ministries as a victory.

Debra, and people like Debra, are there to punish women. To try to make sure that they are somehow hurt emotionally by what they have undergone. They need more women to regret their abortions so that they can justify their own actions in front of the clinics and to bring in more recruits. Why else would you go out of your way, waiting for hours, simply to argue with a woman who has already done the thing you claim you are trying to stop her from doing?

It was the Debras of the world that I wasn't prepared for, the protester who isn't trying to stop what she sees as a murder, but instead gleefully takes the opportunity to hurt someone who is already at a time of emotional upheaval. I wasn't prepared, and I don't know if there even is enough training to make me able to accept her type, or that I'm not there to defend, to protect, but just to act as much like a buffer as I am legally allowed to be.

I'm officially trained as an escort now, but I'm not sure if I can actually be one. Silence is not something I'm equipped to handle, especially not while pregnant. Injustice and unfairness rankle me in a way that I find easier to ignore otherwise. However, I am considering a trip to Fargo in the next few weeks to do a clinic defense for Red River Women's Clinic, which is in the middle of a 40 Days for Life onslaught. If I think I can hold my tongue for an entire day, I might try it again.

Otherwise, I think that after I have my own baby, I may return to Midwest, and perhaps go through Patient Advocacy training instead. I want to help someone through the process, provide emotional support to her, and at the end of the day feel something more healthy than anger and frustration.

I'm not made to be a buffer, I don't think. I'm made to be a helping hand.

Originally Posted on Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Outside Influence: American Future Fund Attempts to Manipulate TX-17 Voters

The political advertisements from have become a regular feature on televisions across Texas Congressional District 17, as both Democrat Congressman Chet Edwards and Republican Bill Flores flood the airwaves with advertising. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, over $1.8 million has been spent already by both campaigns, and while Flores has already spent $1.2 million Edwards has over $2.1 million cash on hand that he will likely spend in the an advertising blitz during the last month of the campaign. However, there is not just money being spent by the two campaigns trying to influence the election in District 17. A conservative advocacy group, American Future Fund, is also spending money in the district. The AFF has released two advertisements attacking Edwards:





So who is the American Future Fund and why are they trying to influence the election in District 17? According to their web site the AFF is a non-profit 501(c)(4) formed to promote a “conservative and free market viewpoint.” The AFF is not located in District 17; in fact the AFF is not even located in Texas. The AFF is located in Des Moines, Iowa. The AFF is an outside influence on the District 17 election, and this district is not the only one that the AFF is attempting to influence. AFF commercials are also attacking Congressmen Baron Hill (D-IN), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Denny Heck (D-WA), and Congresswoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (D-SD), for supposedly deceiving voters on their voting records. The commercials are a cut and paste job which basically read like this:

Washington liberals like [candidate name] are trying to trick you. They'll spend a fortune to hide their liberal records. But [candidate surname] voted for Nancy Pelosi's agenda more than [x] percent of the time. For [his/her] trillion-dollar health plan that cuts $500 billion from Medicare. For raising the national debt. And for Nancy Pelosi as Speaker. Don't be tricked. Magic can't change [his/her] liberal record. But this November, your vote can make [candidate name] disappear. American Future Fund is responsible for the content of this advertising.

I’ll will address the substance of the advertisement in a moment, but first let’s take a look at who’s behind the American Future Fund. The Minnesota Independent reports that the people behind the AFF are two media consultants who played key roles in the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ads in 2004 and the Willie Horton ad in 1988. The AFF’s political advertisements have not been limited to criticizing Democratic incumbents on their voting records. According to an article in the Iowa Independent, an AFF advertisement targeted Iowa Democratic Congressman Bruce Braley for his support of Muslims “building a mosque at Ground Zero, where Islamic terrorists killed 3,000 Americans.” The add goes on to claim that building an Islamic community center two blocks away from the September 11th terrorist attacks, where by the way several Muslims also died, would be like the Japanese building at Pearl Harbor. While the analogy if offensive and actually not equivalent, I wonder if the AFF realizes that there are several Japanese owned businesses within walking distance of Pearl Harbor Naval Base. It doesn’t matter because the AFF does not let facts get in the way.

The AFF attack advertisements on Democratic Congress members voting records claim that the health care reform plan “cuts $500 billion from Medicare.” Research by Media Matters shows that according to four different sources the Affordable Care Act does not cut $500 billion from Medicare, but strengthens the program. The AFF also attacks Democrats for voting “for raising the national debt,” and cites HR 4314 which was a bill to permit continued financing of government operations which essentially raised the debt ceiling. However, Congress has little choice but to raise the debt ceiling or it could lead the nation to default, and the business community supports the raising of the debt ceiling as critical to the economy.

The AFF is using its status as a nonprofit to hide its donors and attempt to buy influence throughout the country. According to the Washington Post, the AFF has spent over $6.7 million across the country. In Texas Congressional District 17 $251,301 of outside influence has been spent in order to manipulate the voters of the district.

Tonight on Biased Transmission

This week on Biased Transmission Texas A&M in crisis. Our studios guest is Dr. Peter Hugill, the head of the local chapter of the American Association of University Professors, and Dr. Kati Takacs of Mays Business School. Topics of conversation will include the recent controversy over faculty valuation. Should Texas A&M adopt a business model?

Listen to Biased Transmission every Wednesday on 89.1FM KEOS College Station-Bryan from 6-7pm, to hear Teddy Wilson, Michael Alvard, Danny Yeager, and Ann Preston. If you have a question or comment you can post it here, or call the KEOS Bell Studios: 979-779-5367.

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What Does It Mean to be "Pro-Choice?"

Nancy Keenan, President of NARAL Pro-Choice America, discusses the meaning of the term "pro-choice" as it relates to the abortion debate.

The Wolfson Center for National Affairs at The New School presents "The Abortion Controversies," a panel discussion focusing on the Supreme Court's recent decision in Gonzalez v. Carhart, which has thrown the status of Roe v. Wade into doubt and suggests that the controversy may be reaching a new level of intensity.

Marjorie Heins, founder and coordinator of the Free Expression Policy Project at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU's School of Law will moderate a discussion of this historic decision with Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, Daniel C. Maguire, professor of moral theological ethics, Marquette University, and author of Sacred Rights, and Caitlin Borgmann, assistant professor, CUNY School of Law and editor of the Reproductive Rights Prof Blog. - The New School

Nancy Keenan is the current president of the United States-based abortion rights network NARAL Pro-Choice America. Keenan has also served in the Montana legislature and was the Superintendent of Public Instruction as a Democrat for the state of Montana from 1988-2000.

Campaign for TX-17 on the Issues: Reproductive Rights

The culture wars have been largely absent from the national debate over the last few years. However, over the course of the last several months the culture wars have begun to heat up over the debates over immigration, religion, and gay rights. Among the issues that has been absent from the national debate has been reproductive rights, although abortion has been a secondary issue in some of the debates. In the campaign for Congressional District 17 there are several differences between the candidates, and the differences between the candidates on reproductive rights might be the most stark.

While Congressman Chet Edwards has a moderate voting record on several issues, Edwards has been reliably progressive in supporting reproductive rights and protecting a woman’s right to choose. According to Project Vote Smart, Edwards has received high marks on legislative report cards released by pro-choice organizations for his voting record on reproductive rights. NARAL Pro-Choice America resented rated Edwards’ voting record as supporting reproductive rights 100% in 2009, and Edwards supported the interests of Planned Parenthood 85% of the time in 2008. From 2007-2008 the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association rated Edwards has supporting reproductive rights 100%. Edwards has vote for protecting women’s reproductive rights on several key pieces of legislation.

Edwards voted against the so-called Stupak Amendment (H.AMDT.509) in the health care reform legislation that not only prevents federal fund from being used to provide women with reproductive health care through federally funded programs, but also prevented women from receiving reproductive health care in private insurance plans if they used tax credits or federal subsidies. In 2006 Edwards vote against the so called “Abortion Pain Bill” (HR 6099) which would have mandated that a physician provide a woman seeking to terminate a pregnancy medically questionable and medically inaccurate information. In 2005 Edwards vote for an amendment (H.AMDT.209) that would have lifted the ban on privately funded abortions at US military facilities overseas, a ban that prevents women from having the choice to terminate a pregnancy who are serving their country in uniform.

According to Bill Flores campaign site, he believes that “life begins at conception and every life has a soul.” Flores also states that “government policies should be focused on the protection of this innocent life” and that he will always vote against reproductive rights if elected to Congress. In a letter of endorsement, the National Right to Life Committee cited Bill as a “strong advocate for life” and his “commitment to renewing a culture of life, not only in Texas, but throughout our nation and in the U.S. Congress.” The NRLC joins other major pro life organizations, Texas Right to Life, Concerned Women of America, and the Texas Alliance for Life in supporting Flores over Edwards. However, conservative bloggers question his pro-life credentials for supporting Hillary Clinton and Kay Bailey Hutchinson.

Flores position on reproductive rights leaves more questions than answers. Since Flores believes that “life begins at conception,” is Flores against allowing abortions in the case of incest or rape? Is Flores against abortion if the pregnancy endangers the life of the mother? If Flores is anti-abortion does he support public policies that reduce the number of abortions, such as comprehensive sex education and providing birth control as part of reproductive health care? Since Flores was endorsed by the NRLC is he against embryonic stem cell research that could potentially find cures to debilitating diseases? How extreme are Flores views on reproductive rights?

According to a recent Gallup poll, sightly more Americans self-identify as "pro-life" than "pro-choice," 47% to 45%. Over the last two decades Americans have been relatively evenly divided between those that consider themselves pro-choice and those that consider themselves prolife. However, according to another Gallup poll, it is clear that the vast majority of Americans think that abortion should remain legal. Over the last three decades never more than 21% of Americans think abortion should be illegal in all cases, while nearly 80% of Americans think that abortion should remain legal in either all cases or specific cases. Chet Edwards support for women’s reproductive rights is clearly in the mainstream, while Flores’ extremist views are clearly not what the majority of Americans believe.

Local News: Texas A&M Students Encouraged to Conserve Energy

Saving With Sustainability
By Paula Harman

From the Texas A&M University Battalion

The Fall 2010 Residence Life Energy Challenge, coordinated by ResLife in conjunction with the Residence Hall Association, Sustainability Office, Facilities Services-Utilities-Energy Management and Student Government, kicked off Sept. 13. It combines utilities monitoring, recycling projects and a series of events to promote sustainability awareness. The challenge will run until National Campus Sustainability Day on Oct. 20.

There are several dimensions to the challenge this year, with a competition between the dorms being the main aspect. Utilities are monitored and compared to the numbers from 2009 as students try to develop good habits that help cut back on unnecessary usage.

Carol Binzer, director of administrative and support services for the Department of Residence Life, stresses that the Energy Challenge is about more than just saving money.

"In the previous years, when we said we were doing an energy challenge, it sounded like we were only interested in saving the University money," she said. "But really, the point of the energy challenge is to foster leaders - if we want excellent global leaders, we need to teach and promote sustainability."

Thus, the focus in 2010 is on raising awareness and showing students why sustainability is so important. A series of sponsored events such as film screenings, recycling events and farm workshops are available, and students are encouraged to sign an e-pledge to show their commitment to sustainability. All of these aspects allow students to earn points toward the challenge for their dorms.

"We have added new elements to the challenge," said Katherine Gnadinger, senior university studies major, Residence Hall Association president. "Instead of basing the winner purely on a percentage of energy conserved as compared to the previous year, we have allowed students to actively get involved with sustainability initiatives on campus to further their development and knowledge. This allows for a greater understanding and appreciation of sustainability initiatives, as well as ideas and plans for after college, when [the students] have moved out of the residence halls."

The Energy Challenge was typically conducted during the spring semester before being reschedulded in 2010.

"This is the first time to do the Energy Challenge in the fall, but we thought it would be better to get on campus students interested in sustainability as early as possible," Gnadinger said. "By holding it in the fall, we are able to put the thought of sustainable residence hall living in [the students'] minds early on, and our goal is that it will affect how on-campus students live throughout their time here at Texas A&'M."
Because of the many new opportunities for involvement, students who do not live on campus can also become involved with the Energy Challenge.

"This challenge offers opportunities for off-campus students to participate in the events and sustainable initiatives such as the movie screenings, workshops and recycling projects," Binzer said. "We will be announcing our winners [Oct. 20], and it is a chance for any student at Texas A&'M to learn more about sustainability from the many organizations across campus who are working to create new green programs and initiatives."

Students who live off campus are invited and encouraged to participate in any of the events being held on campus during the Energy Challenge.

"This is challenging individuals to make a difference. It proves to them that their actions have a real effect on energy use," said Jasdeep Sandhu, senior international studies major and chairwoman of the Environmental Issues Committee.

Several new opportunities, $3000 donated by Siemens to go toward the awareness campaign and a Facebook page where students can find out information, network and submit tips that may be helpful to other students, mean that more consciousness will be raised and more students will be involved.

"This needs to become an Aggie tradition, a part of our culture - it is the responsible thing to do," Binzer said. "It's a footprint that we can live with, it's a part of taking care of our world."

Published on Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Aftershock: The Next Economy and America's Future

Texas Progressive Alliance Roundup - August 30, 2010

The Texas Progressive Alliance is still looking for that first nip of fall in the air as it brings you this week's blog roundup.

This week on Left of College Station, Teddy writes about why the Tea Party has an expiration date. Also, as the semiannual protest against reproductive rights 40 Days for Life begins, a guest blogger writes about being a pro-choice feminist Christian, and Teddy writes about how the Coalition for Life lies to women. Left of College Station also covers the week in headlines.

Off the Kuff interviewed Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, County Commissioner Sylvia Garcia, and Democratic candidate for County Judge Gordon Quan.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme knows that deregulation means more tainted food and more BP disasters like this one.

Bay Area Houston List some alternatives to white-wing wadio in Houston.

Nat-Wu at Three Wise Men examines the situation in Somalia, coverage of which has mostly ceased in the American press.

Jeff Weems, the Democratic candidate for Texas Railroad Commission, earned the endorsement of both the Dallas Morning News and the Houston Chronicle. Keith Hampton, our man for the Court of Appeals, got the DMN endorsement. Bill Moody (Texas Supreme Court),Wally Kronzer (14th Court of Appeals), and Robert Ray (1st Court of Appeals) also got endorsed by the Houston newspaper.

WCNews at Eye On Williamson has a question for you, Did you know Texas' public education finance system is hopelessly broken?

WhosPlayin calls B.S. on GOP Congressman Michael Burgess' taxpayer-funded "survey" over extending the Bush tax cuts. The only options were a dishonest choice of all or nothing, so WhosPlayin posted its own survey with the third option of "extend for the middle class".

This week at McBlogger, we take a look at Sleazy Todd Staples and his johnny-come-lately advocacy for tougher eminent domain restrictions.

Neil at Texas Liberal noted this week that the party holding the White House has lost seats in the U.S. House of Reps. in 33 of 36 midterms since the Civil War. Neil is not pleased that Democrats may lose some seats in the upcoming election, but these things do happen.

Libby Shaw at TexasKaos explains how one of our smirking Republican friends claim that "The American People Wrote the Pledge" when it was actually Written by Lobbyists Check it out.

Local News: Aggies Assistant Special Olympians

Aggies Help at B-CS Special Olympics
By Joanna Raines

From the Texas A&M University The Battalion

Cheers of encouragement, yells of victory, high fives and grins from ear to ear characterized the Special Olympic Bocce Ball Tournament in Veteran's Park on Saturday. Athletes and volunteers endured the September heat for a day of fun and competition. While the Aggie Bombers embodied the fighting Aggie spirit, Aggie Special Olympics Texas Volunteers represented the Aggies by giving back.

Special Olympics gives athletes of all ages the chance to find companionship and belonging. While in the outside community they might be viewed as having a disadvantage, through this program they are champions.

"I'm the best player they've got on the team," said Jimmy Evans, Special Olympics athlete. "Me and Becky won our first bocce ball game today, we're on to the next round."

Evans and his partner Becky Vivonka are members of the local Special Olympics team the Aggie Bombers. Special Olympics keeps participants active and allows them to build relationships.

The volunteers helped run the event. They are athlete's partners, coaches, support systems and friends. They are willing to endure the harsh heat and give days out of their busy schedules to watch the athletes compete.

"The coach is the most important part of our lives," Vivonka said. "I am very proud to have her in my life. And having other people that care and love us."

While the volunteers participate to help the athletes, they too benefit from the program.

"The Aggie volunteers that come out feel so enriched and so blessed to get to work with those Special Olympics athletes. It helps us grow, and it helps them grow," said Sue Calhoun, volunteer of the Special Olympics for 30 years.

It is through programs like Special Olympics that the community is able to come together and come to a mutual understanding of each other.

"In a changing world, people are starting to appreciate diversity, and people with intellectual disabilities are part of that," said Brittany Bongers, president of Aggie Special Olympics Texas Volunteers. "My goal is to make people realize they are just like us. They smile, they have fun, they have friends, they have boyfriends and girlfriends. They are no different than you and [me]."

Blake Maass has been volunteering through his Boy Scout troop 257 for five years. "I actually used to be almost afraid of people with Down syndrome, I didn't understand why they were different. It's the fear of the unknown," Maass said. "I honestly love coming out here now and I love them. It's taught me a lot."

Through Aggie Special Olympic Texas Volunteers, students at Texas A&'M are getting involved.

"Some of the volunteers are a little apprehensive when they come out. And before the day is out, there is really a bond between the athletes and volunteers," said Don Calhoun, volunteer of the year.

Events such as these happen year round. Special Olympics has six events that will take place in the Bryan-College Station area, and volunteers are always needed. Upcoming events include a buddy walk and the state competition, which will take place in Bryan.

"All year long we're planning competitions, recruiting volunteers and fundraising," said Cassie Northcutt, Area 6 director. "Our athletes build friendships and strengths; they inspire our volunteers, they've inspired me, that's why I'm here."

Published on Sunday, September 26, 2010

Scenes From Fashion Week BCS 2010

Fashion Week BCS 2010 Welcome and Kick Off
Photography by Brittany Glazner

Week in Headlines

Texas News
Innocent Texas Man May Have Been Convicted For Gruesome Crime

Texas Politics
A Claim of Pro-Islam Bias in Textbooks

National News
NOPD Officer Gets Three Years For Cover-Up of Danziger Bridge Shootings

National Politics
Corporate Political Giving Swings Toward the GOP

Foreign Policy
Cyber Command Chief Suggests Pentagon Networks Are Vulnerable

War & Peace
Contractor Deaths Exceed Military Ones in Iraq and Afghanistan

Economy
Link Between Mortgages and Wall Street Securities Rewarded Risky Loans

Education
Federal Regulators and Lawmakers Are Scrutinizing For-Profit Colleges

Environment
Extreme Heat Bleaches Coral, and Threat Is Seen

Climate Change
Could the garbage heap help save us from global warming?

Energy
World’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm Opens Off England

Immigration
Alien Minors Act Could Boost US Military Ranks

Reproductive Rights
Many States in Mexico Crack Down on Abortion

Women’s Issues
Why Women Need the Paycheck Fairness Act

GLBT Issues
Gay Activists Look to the Courts to End 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'

Race & Racism
Discrimination Against Muslims in Workplace Spiked Last Year

From the Blogs
Life on the Brazos:
Property Rights vs. Community Rights

Eye on Williamson:
As Close As We Get to Rick Perry and Bill White Debate

Ezra Klein:
The Revolving Door in One Graph

Defending Reproductive Rights By Supporting Pregnant Women

A key strategy of the anti-abortion movement is creating the illusion that there are two kinds of women: those who have abortions and those who have babies. The truth is that 61 percent of women who have abortions are already mothers, and another 24 percent will go on to become mothers. One of NAPW's own staff members works in both worlds -- advocating as lawyer for reproductive justice, and supporting pregnant women in labor as a doula. Staff Attorney Tiloma Jayasinghe talks about her work as a lawyer and her first experience supporting a birth as a doula.

Repost: How the Coalition for Life Lies to Women

Every day during 40 Days for Life protesters stand in front of the fence at the Planned Parenthood in Bryan, and every day they spread misinformation and lies to the patients that utilize the clinic for reproductive health care. The protesters regularly attempt to pass information to the clients of Planned Parenthood both verbally and in written form. However, much of the information that the protesters try and give the clients is both intellectually dishonest and factually incorrect. Often false information is given about the services provided at Planned Parenthood and the facts about abortion and reproductive health care.

One of the pamphlets that are often given to clients, titled “10 Reasons to Avoid Planned Parenthood,” includes several factual inaccuracies and misrepresentations. The first claim listed is that the services at Planned Parenthood focus only abortion, and that while over 6,000 abortions were performed less than 300 women received prenatal care. The truth is that according to annual reports abortion only makes up 7% of the total services provided at Planned Parenthood. Also Planned Parenthood does provide both prenatal care and adoption refers for women that chose not to terminate a pregnancy.

According to the Planned Parenthood of Houston and Southeast Texas 2006 annual report, 87% of the patients visited Planned Parenthood for family planning: 89,611 out of the 103,004 patients. Also, 4,969 people were tested for HIV and counseled on prevention. Only 6,811 patients who visited all of the area Planned Parenthoods, including the Houston metropolitan area and Bryan-College Station, terminated pregnancies.

Another distortion of the facts include implying that surgical abortions are dangerous, even though less than 0.3% of abortion patients experience a complication that requires hospitalization.

The pamphlet also claims that the free condoms available at Planned Parenthood are “ranked dead last” in a study by Consumer Reports. This particular study used the airburst method instead of the “gold standard” water burst method, and all of the condoms tested in the study are FDA approved. While two Planned Parenthood where ranked 23rd and 24th in the comparative study of condoms, although another Planned Parenthood condom was ranked 14th in the same study. Consumer Report recalled the study after it was found to be flawed. It should also be noted Coalition for Life and its supporters are against all forms of birth control.

Free services such as pregnancy testing and STD screening are advertised in the pamphlet to be available at the local crisis pregnancy centers, and it claims that Planned Parenthood “is not the cheapest place in town.” However, Planned Parenthood does offer free pregnancy testing, and because Planned Parenthood is a medical facility medical grade pregnancy test are used and onsite STD screenings can be performed. Planned Parenthood also accepts Medicaid.

These distortions and outright lies are part of the propaganda that is spread by the protesters from the Coalition for Life in front of Planned Parenthood. The Coalition for Life does not care about the women of the Brazos Valley, as their advertisements proclaim, the Coalition for Life only cares about attempting to preventing women from having access reproductive health care.

Framing Reproductive Rights

Amanda Marcotte of RH Reality Check examines the way the anti-choice movement attempts to frame the debate through language choices and offers some tips on combating them.

Tonight on Biased Transmission

This week Biased Transmission presents the return of the culture wars! The resurgence of the conservative movement was supposed to be about fiscal responsibility, the national debt, and big government. However, with the debates about religion, undocumented immigrants, and gays in the military, the culture warriors are back. We what to hear what you have to say, so call in and join the conversation.

Listen to Biased Transmission every Wednesday on 89.1FM KEOS College Station-Bryan from 6-7pm, to hear Teddy Wilson, Michael Alvard, Danny Yeager, and Sam White. If you have a question or comment you can post it here, or call the KEOS Bell Studios: 979-779-5367.

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Guest Blog: Prochoice Feminist Christian

From Fair and Feminist

Last October, we held a protest on Texas A&M Campus to support choice and Planned Parenthood. I held up a sign that read: Prochoice Feminist Christian. Many Aggies came up to me wanting to challenge my views; “how can you be prochoice and a Christian? Aren’t those, like, the opposite?”

I too remember when I believed in a world of binaries. Growing up a fundamentalist Christian, I was taught that God (and His moral fortitude) could be located on one side of any debate. If you discovered you weren’t on the side of God, the punishment was hell.

I am a prochoice feminist Christian, even though many people consider it a contradiction. I love living in the third space, a space where I reject the Bush-echoed false dichotomies that sustain fundamentalist Christianity. My God is bigger than one issue, my God is bigger than one person. The God I choose to believe in does not reveal herself in one way, through one text, or to a small group of people.

My journey to becoming a prochoice person of faith was long, difficult, and filled with sleepless nights. It’s difficult to reject the teachings you have heard for years. After years of feeling confused, studying, and searching, I realized: how dare I tell someone else what to do with her body? How dare I make you bring a child into this world that may not be able to eat, to breathe, to be loved?

The religious right does not own Jesus. Jesus didn’t protest the prostitutes—he hung out with them. The Coalition for Life does not have insider’s knowledge that all other Christians don’t. There are many Christian organizations that support choice—a simple google search brings up many.

The phrase WWJD is extremely popular in fundamentalist circles. It’s supposed to be a behavioral yard stick to help individuals make “the right decision.” I think it’s a cop-out. It’s much harder to face a decision and admit that you don’t know what to do. Moral certainty is a crutch. It takes the decision out of the individual’s hands and places it in a “higher authority–” usually a pastor.

Well that’s not good enough for me. I think we are held to a higher standard than following orders. It takes courage to live in betwixt and between the binaries that pervade this culture. It takes moral fortitude. It takes bravery. We owe it to ourselves and to the women of this country to truly investigate and question what we believe about choice, about pregnancy, about biology, about abortion . And we owe it to God to stop assuming that we speak for Him or Her. All we can do is supplicate ourselves, open our eyes to the pain we see, and try to stop it.

One thing the protesters love to yell through the fence is something like this: Maa’m if you’re like most other women, you’re going to regret this in the days and weeks to come.” The Guttmacher institute reports that overwhelming majority of women report feeling one emotion after an abortion: relief.

Please fight the lies, question what you’re being told, and research on your own. Don’t be afraid of critical thinking, don’t be afraid to questions your assumptions. If you’re a person of faith, you ought to believe in a God that can handle questioning. Or else you’re only going through the motions.

Choice is an issue of freedom. Choice is an issue of compassion. Choice is an issue of health and wellness. Choice is an issue of love. Choice resists the binary of good-bad and opens up our hearts to understanding the everyday experiences of living on earth together. Chose to let other people make up their own minds.

Reproductive Health Care Clinic Protest

Guest Blog: Fashion Week BCS Unites and Benefits the Community

Fashion Week BCS Unites and Benefits the Community
by Brad Dressler

Fashion Week BCS offers something unique for the local community through a week long series of free events (VIP tickets available). Proceeds benefit local organizations, CARPOOL, Bryan/College Station Habitat for Humanity, and Brazos Valley Community Action Agency.
Paige Melvin, Fashion Week BCS organizer and Texas A&M student, hopes the event will strengthen the community. “I want to show people that this area can be very welcoming to new and different perspectives,” Melvin says. “I hope that Fashion Week BCS will help encourage that this is a unique and diverse place to live, while showcasing all the variety that BCS has to offer. We hope to create more interactions among the various aspects of our great community - young and old, students and professionals, gay and straight, and much more.”

A diverse spectrum of participants are involved in Fashion Week BCS, from designers to models to local business owners. Tiffany Henley, owner of Catwalk Hair Studio, coordinated a fashion show in 2009 and is glad to see the growth of creativity in the area. “It’s cool to watch this town evolve,” Henley says. “The arts and music scenes have been growing. But, fashion has not always been a part of that. I believe that Fashion Week BCS will help to bridge the gap and bring together all types of creative expression.”

Martin Hooper, co-owner and designer with Vices, is inspired by the fact that the events involve both Bryan and College Station. “While downtown Bryan has often been a focus for the local arts community, it is great to see so many Texas A&M students actively involved,” Hooper says. “Businesses from both cities are participating. And hopefully residents from both Bryan and College Station will attend events at multiple locations.”

Fashion Week BCS events are listed below. For a detailed schedule and information about participants, please visit fashionweekbcs.com.

Tuesday:
7pm Catwalk Hair Studio's "A Night in Wonderland" at The Corner Bar and Grill - Rooftop; Featuring DJ Get Low; VIP tickets are $15 each and include VIP swag bags.

Wednesday:
9pm-Midnight Style, Salsa and Sangria at The Village in Downtown Bryan

Thursday:
7pm Cocktails and T's: Menswear Presentation and Cocktail Hour at La Salle Hotel Lounge; Brands featured: Braille, Desired Hearts, TRILOGIII and Vices

9pm ABC: Art, Bras and Canvas Fashion Show at artBAC; VIP tickets are $15 each and include VIP swag bags.

Friday:
7pm Inspirations Fall Aggie Fashion Show at Inspirations in Post Oak Mall; Featuring DJ Get Low; VIP tickets are $15 each and include VIP swag bags.

Saturday:
6pm Featured Event of Fashion Week BCS Featuring local boutiques J Dolce, Merge and Southern Jewelz; local designers Orbit Reform, KeaL, and Material; Featuring DJ Get Low;
VIP tickets are $15 each and include VIP swag bags.

Local News: Habitat for Humanity Struggles After Thefts

Habitat Trying to Overcome Thefts
By Maggie Kiely

From the Bryan-College Station Eagle

The local chapter of Habitat for Humanity is looking to rebuild its finances after being victimized twice by unrelated theft schemes earlier this year.

An identity theft investigation wrapped up last week, ending with the arrest of Kelli Renee Williams, 19, accused of obtaining the nonprofit's bank account number and using $5,200 to pay her own bills.

Meanwhile, an investigation into an independent consultant hired to do Habitat's bookkeeping in 2008 remains under criminal investigation after authorities said he was forging checks and making them payable to himself.

The consultant, whose name has not been released, had worked for the group since September 2008 and was immediately terminated after the forgeries were discovered in March, said Steven Steele, former board president and spokesperson for Habitat for Humanity.

The total for the checks with fraudulent or insufficient signatures was more than $40,000, Steele said.

The consultant also was responsible for depositing money earned from Habitat ReStore. Proceeds from the resale shop go toward funding operations for the organization. After comparing bank deposit statements to cash receipts from the store, officials said they discovered a discrepancy of nearly $115,000.

Bryan police said they're still investigating the forgery case and have not filed charges yet.

It was unclear when Williams' case will go to trial, but authorities said Wells Fargo Bank has refunded the stolen money to Habitat. She was arrested last week on aggravated theft charges, accused of somehow gaining access to Habitat's checking account. She faces up to two years behind bars and a $10,000 fine for the state jail felony.

Despite the losses, Steele said the organization's goal to build 20 houses in a one-year period ending in July 2011 still stands.

"I want to stress we are still moving forward with our mission," he said. "Right now we are in a cash crunch."

Habitat officials are working with insurance agents on reimbursement options for missing ReStore funds, Steele said. The organization could receive up to $100,000 back, he said.

While Habitat home-building projects are not in jeopardy, officials said funds used to pay staff and take care of bills are down significantly.

Any volunteer time that could be offered or money donated would be of tremendous help, Steele said.

For information on how to donate, go to www.habitatbcs.org/donate/donatenow.

Published on Tuesday, September 21, 2010

Why the Tea Party Has an Expiration Date

While the Republican Party is probably only a few weeks away from wondering out of the wilderness, the Tea Party has already been affecting Republican electoral politics. However, since the primaries ended last week, the Tea Party may have already reached its peak. Throughout the primary season the Tea Party backed candidates have been competing in Republican primaries, and in a few of them those candidates have won (in some cases defeating incumbents or establishment candidates). However, although they do not know it yet, the tea has already expired.

There will be a few Tea Party backed candidates that may have success in the general election; however, it is much more likely that the gains by the Republican Party in the Senate and in the House will be blunted by the effect of unelectable general election candidates. Even so, it is likely that a Republican will be Speaker of the House (the speculation is that it will be Minority Leader John Boehner), and the Senate Republicans will easily be able to filibuster Democratic legislation in the Senate. However, with a Democratic President that has the power of the veto pen, a Democratic majority in the Senate, and in all probability a slim Republican majority in the House it is unlikely that the Republicans will be able to pass any significant legislation.

The problem with zealots and converts is that when you put that much passion into something, it is easy to burn out. The Tea Party will have spent two years opposing President Obama and Congressional Democrats, and the Republicans spent those two years courting Tea Party support to set up this November’s electoral success. Over the next two years not much will probably get done in Washington. With bipartisan seemingly a dirty word, it is unlikely that any substantive compromise will be reached on significant legislation. The economy may recover over the next two years, but in all likelihood is will be agonizingly slow and unemployment will increase initially as more people reenter the workforce.

The Republican presidential primary in 2012 is the beginning of the end for the Tea Party’s power within the party. It is difficult to determine who will have the best chance to win the nomination two years from now, and I hesitate to rehash the same list of front runners that everyone else seems to think will be involved. In all likelihood the Republican nominee for president in 2012 will not be on the list of names that the pundits and commentators have been talking about. That being said, I have my own theory.

The only candidates that will compete in the Republican presidential primary in 2012 are those that are willing to take a hard line on most issues. With the 2008 election in their review mirrors the common wisdom among the Republican base will be that the reason Republicans lost was because Senator John McCain was too moderate. Some of the familiar names will compete and may even win early primaries; the Iowa primary will probably be won by one of the more recognizable names. However, the Republican primary will belong to one person: Texas Governor Rick Perry. While Perry’s reelection to the Texas Governor’s mansion is not completely certain, it is going to be difficult for Democratic challenger Bill White to win in such a red state during such a red year. Perry is the perfect match for the anxiety within the Republican Party and the firebrand of the Tea Party. In New Hampshire Perry’s secessionist comments might actually play well, and in South Carolina his connection to the South will benefit him. If he comes into Texas with momentum he could pull ahead of the other candidates, and be standing at the podium in Tampa, Florida as the Republican nominee for President in 2012. But that’s just one theory.

The point is that in 2012 the Republican Party is going to nominated someone that is by all measures not a moderate. They will nominate someone who might say something like “extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice.” The conservative base of the Republican Party and the Tea Party will love whomever this candidate happens to be. But, the rest of America will recoil. The Republican party will not learn anything from history, perhaps because conservatives seems to constantly rewrite it, and they will repeat the election of 1964. But, this will actually be a good thing for the Republican Party. Moderates will return to the fold, and the Tea Party’s power will expire. The Republican Party will restore its sanity (apologizes to Jon Stewart), but it will have to lose its collective mind to find it.

Texas Progressive Alliance Roundup - September 20, 2010

The Texas Progressive Alliance hopes everyone has a pleasant fall equinox as it brings you this week's roundup.

This week on Left of College Station, Teddy analyzes at what positions Chet Edwards and Bill Flores take on American foreign policy, and looks at what the polls look like as the primaries end and the general election begins. Left of College Station also covers the week in headlines.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme notes that Texas remains 6th in the nation as poverty levels soar. What are republicans doing about it? Defunding education and health care, two of the most important pillars of success for Texans.

It's been a terrible week for Todd Staples. It's rare that the failure of a public official is so glaringly obvious. It's exceedingly rare for the coverup of that failure to be bungled quite so badly. Then again, it's not often that said public official is facing Hank Gilbert.

Off the Kuff commented on the proposal to create an elections administrator in Harris County.

Both Rick Perry and Todd Staples committed their own comedies of errors, preserved forever on video. See PDiddie's Brains and Eggs and LYAO.

Dembones at Eye On Williamson highlights the less than truthful attack of Diana Maldonado's opponents, Maldonado fires back over debate flap.

At TexasKaos, lightseeker takes on the overblown conventional wisdom of a Republican landslide in November. Give a read: Self-fulfilling Prophecy and Midterms.

Neil at Texas Liberal used a picture he took this week of an unattended lifeguard station in Galveston to show how the Tea Party/Republican Party would govern America.

Crises of Capitalism

Week in Headlines

Texas News
More Texans Living in Poverty

Texas Politics
Top Texas House Races to Watch

National News
Violent Crime Falls for Third Straight Year

National Politics
Obama Will Put Warren in Special Advisory Role for Consumer Agency

Foreign Policy
Saudi Arms Deal Advances

Poverty
US Poverty Set for Record Gains as Elections Loom

Health Care
Surgeons Routinely Fail to Disclose Financial Ties

Education
Student Loan Default Rate Is Continuing to Increase

Environment
Arctic Warms, Sea Ice Shrinks, Extinction Risk Grows

Climate Change
2010 Was Fourth Warmest U.S. Summer on Record

Immigration
Houston Native Wrongly Deported for 85 Days

GLBT Issues
Study Finds Shifting Views of Gay Couples

Race & Racism
Racial Disparity in School Suspensions

From the Blogs
Life on the Brazos:
Firing the City Manager

Jobsanger:
Republicans Are A Leaderless Party

Look at the Polls: General Election Begins

Now that the long primary season is over the sprint to the general election has began, and the struggle to control the narrative continues. The Republicans are going to try and promote the narrative that this election is about repudiating the agenda of the Obama Administration and Congressional Democrats, while attempting to use the enthusiasm of the Tea Party without losing to many elections in places like Delaware and New York. The Democrats are going to be trying to tout some of their legislative achievements while ignoring others, and they will be using their fundraising advantage to ensure that their Senate and House majorities are not taken without a fight. The question that will be answered is how will each party be able to affect the narrative, and how will that affect the polls and subsequently the election. So, what do the polls look like now?
According to analysis by Nate Silver at FiveThirtyEight (now at the New York Times), the Republicans have a two-in-three chance of winning the majority in the House and a one-in-four chance of winning the majority in the Senate. The current conventional wisdom seems to be that the Republicans are going to win the majority in the House and slim the Democratic majority in the Senate. The forecast vary, but only a few analysts are predicting that the Democrats will be able to maintain control of the House. John Sides at the Monkey Cage created a useful graph of the predictions that shows that most are predicting the Democrats are going to be on the wrong side of the majority in the House.

Despite the apparent Republican advantage, they are not exactly the most popular team (fortunately for Republicans and Democrats third parties are relegated to minor league status). According to a recent Gallup Poll, Republicans and Democrats are tied at 46% among registered voters, which marks a shift from a Republican advantage but continues a trend throughout the year that has shown the public going back and forth congressional voting preferences. However, the poll also shows a 25 point gap in the all important enthusiasm measure as 50% of Republicans described themselves as "very enthusiastic" about voting. Despite the voting preferences both parties are equally disliked it seems. The generic ballot split between Democrats and Republicans was replicated in the Politico/George Washington University Battleground poll, as Republicans and Democrats were tied at 43%. According to another recent Gallup poll, Congressional Democrats have 33% approval rating and Congressional Republicans have 32% approval rating. While both parties enjoy support within their own parties of over 60%, independent voters approve of Congressional Democrats and Republicans is 24% and 25%, respectfully.

Then there is Texas. This election cycle there is not a Senate seat up for election, and only two house races appear to be competitive (TX-17 and TX-23). However, the gubernator race does appear to be competitive, and you can beat that as Election Day draws near the polls will tighten and you won’t be able to watch much television without seeing either an advertisement for Republican Governor Rick Perry or Democratic Challenger Bill White. According to a University of Texas/Texas Tribune poll released this week, Perry currently leads White 39%-33% with a 3.5% margin of error. However, the Governor only enjoys a 40% approval rating, but Republicans lead the generic ballot in Texas 48%-33%. The Talking Points Memo PollTracker shows that the Texas gubernatorial campaign has been tightening, but if White expects to upset Perry he is going to swing a significant amount of the undecideds his way. If this was any other year Perry would not be this close to spending a third term in the governor’s mansion.

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Local News: Texas A&M GLBT Resource Center Holds Open House

From the Texas A&M University Battalion

The Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Resource Center is a unique and important institution on Texas A&M’s campus and it’s that time of the year to hold our annual Open House, 3 to 6 p.m. Thursday from in Cain Hall, room C118

Each year we welcome the community to show what the center is all about. Everyone is invited to meet the staff, tour the office and learn about our upcoming programs for the year. The center has a large collection of DVDs and books available check out for up to two weeks, as well as travel guides, brochures and information about the Bryan-College Station community and beyond.

The center works hard to spread awareness about GLBT issues and create a welcoming and affirming environment for Aggies every day. This year we are celebrating our third year in the offices of the dean of student life, serving as a resource and referral center for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Aggies and their straight supporters. Throughout the year, the center puts on numerous events to encourage students to learn more about the GLBT community, such as Coming Out Week, Transgender Day of Remembrance, Aggie Allies Safe Zone workshops and The National Day of Silence.

On October 4, the GLBT Resource Center is bringing the first official NOH8 Campaign photoshoot in the state to Texas A&M University. This event is open to everyone and it is an exciting event that we are very proud to be a part of.

The center also presents “Guess Who’s Gay?” panels: an interactive exercise that exposes the discrepancies between social stereotypes of gay, lesbian and bisexual people and reality. This program is ideal for classrooms and residence halls. Outside of all of our events, the center is also a dedicated safe zone to hang out between classes and mingle with friends, as well as a great place to obtain resources.

Everyone is welcome at the Center, so spread the word and we’ll see you Thursday.

For more information on the GLBT, visit http://glbt.tamu.edu and http://allies.tamu.edu

Check out the celebrities involved in the NOH8 Campaign at http://noh8campaign.com

Published on Thursday, September 16, 2010

What I'm Reading

Economic inequality has continued to grow, and the Economic Policy Institute finds that income growth over the last few decades has been enormously unbalanced. So much so that 38.7% of all of the income growth accrued to the upper 1% between 1979 and 2007 was a greater share than the 36.3% share received by the entire bottom 90% of the population. While those in the in the top 10% of the income scale received 63.7% of all the income growth generated, the bottom 20% of all earners only receive 0.4% share of income growth.

The consensus among economists is that the stimulus worked in staving off Depression 2.0, and a new study finds that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan created 2.7 million jobs and added $460 billion to gross domestic product. While conservatives argue that the stimulus did not prevent unemployment rate below 8% as promised, economist Mark Zandi and Alan Blinder conclude that the stimulus prevented 11% unemployment (and unemployment would have been 16% had neither the stimulus nor the bank rescue been enacted).

In an argument for a new Manhattan Project, Nobel laureate Carlo Rubbia says that the use of thorium as a cheap, clean and safe alternative to uranium in reactors could be the magic bullet. The metal produces as much energy as 200 tons of uranium, or 3,500,000 tons of coal, and it eats its own hazardous waste. Manhattan II could restore American optimism and strategic leadership.

23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism

Tonight on Biased Transmission

This week on Biased Transmission our studio guest is Don Clark, a wildlife toxicologist, formerly with the USDA and TAMU, and Deborah Cowman, director of the Brazos Valley Museum of Natural History.

Listen to Biased Transmission every Wednesday on 89.1FM KEOS College Station-Bryan from 6-7pm, to hear Teddy Wilson, Michael Alvard, Danny Yeager, and Ann Preston. If you have a question or comment you can post it here, or call the KEOS Bell Studios: 979-779-5367.

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Biased Transmission Online Archive of Shows

Local News: Chet Edwards Challenges Bill Flores to Debate

Edwards Issues Debate Challenge to Flores
By Matthew Watkins

From the Bryan-College Station Eagle

U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards on Tuesday challenged his opponent, Bill Flores, to a series of debates before Election Day as both candidates fought over who has been more accessible to voters.

Edwards, a Democrat, said he wanted residents of every county in the sprawling Congressional District 17 to have the opportunity to hear the candidates discuss important issues. The district contains nine full counties and parts of three more.

"I believe the voters of every county in our district have a right to hear Mr. Flores and me debate openly and publicly," Edwards said in a telephone interview. "I have one question: Will Mr. Flores agree with me to have at least one public debate in every county in our district, or will he disrespect our voters by saying no?"

Flores gave no indication that he would agree.

The request comes as the race heats up with less than two months to go. Both candidates have run radio and television ads criticizing each other. Flores threatened a lawsuit against Edwards for one ad that suggested Flores was involved in the layoff of more than 3,000 employees between two oil companies. Flores said he had nothing to do with the job losses.

Tuesday's challenge came after Flores, a Republican, criticized Edwards for ignoring Flores' calls to host a town hall meeting in the district during a congressional recess.

"Edwards is asking you to vote for him in November, but for the past year, he has refused to let you meet with him," Flores said in a statement. "This is a dereliction of duty and shows his contempt for the people he claims to represent."

He said Edwards was avoiding meeting with voters because he didn't want to answer for "his steadfast support for the job-killing agenda of [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi and [President Barack] Obama."

"Before we consider such an offer [to debate], Chet Edwards will have to first stop running false negative advertising and hold 12 town hall meetings himself as a congressman," Flores said. "It is not our responsibility to help Chet Edwards make up for the time he has ignored the concerns and the people of our district."

Edwards had been away from Washington for almost seven weeks while Congress took a break. He said he has had dialogue with voters multiple times during that recess, including during a telephone town hall meeting with 6,700 senior citizens, 12 house receptions in Brazos County, meetings with representatives from Texas A&M and forums with veterans groups.

The two candidates have agreed to a televised debate in Waco on Oct. 24. That event will be shown on ABC 40 locally. The campaigns are also engaged in discussions to participate in a candidate forum in College Station hosted by WTAW radio and the Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce, but no date has been set.

Flores turned down another proposed debate in College Station organized by Texas A&M professor groups that would have focused solely on education issues. His campaign requested that the format be broadened to include issues such as the economy, jobs and spending, but organizers declined.

Published on Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Campaign for TX-17 on the Issues: Foreign Policy

In the past two weeks, as part of a series analyzing the candidates for Texas Congressional District 17 positions on the issues, Left of College Station looked at the positions of Democratic Congressman Chet Edwards and Republican challenger Bill Flores on the issues of energy and immigration. This week Left of College Station breaks down the positions of each candidate on foreign policy. This weekend marked the ninth anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, however, according to a recent Gallup poll only 1% of Americans surveyed mention terrorism as the most important problem facing the country, and another Gallup poll found that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq will probably have little effect on the election. While many Republicans have objected to ever domestic policy that President Obama and Congressional Democrats have proposed, the administration has enjoyed broad support for his foreign policy.

Congressman Edwards lays out is position on national defense on his campaign web site, and says that “defending our nation is the first and most important responsibility of the federal government.” Edwards has tended to be one of the more hawkish Democrats in Congress, and voted to authorize military force in Iraq, and voting in favor of the removal of Saddam Hussein. Despite opposition to the war in Iraq, in 2007 Edwards voted against the redeployment of military from Iraq, and vote for declaring Iraq part of War on Terror with no exit date.

Flores makes the case that “we cannot ever relent in our efforts to kill or capture these terrorists” on his campaign web site. In Afghanistan Flores believes that we should “support our Generals in their plans to expand counter insurgency operations in Afghanistan,” and that “the Taliban and Al Qaeda must be eradicated, their supporters imprisoned, and their funding sources cut off.” However, Flores also seems to support what many considered violations of civil liberties by the Bush Administration, and says that he can be counted on to “stand as a voice against radicals in Congress who fought to prevent wiretapping, surveillance, and the work needed to uncover terrorist plots against our country.” It is interesting that Flores would highlight his support for a policy that Edwards also supports, since Edwards voted for the USA PATRIOT Act.

Another position that both candidates have close positions on, that indirectly affects the United States foreign policy, is their opposition to the Cordoba Islamic culture center that is in Lower Manhattan two blocks from the site of the September 11th attacks (known as “ground zero”). Edwards issued a press release stating that he does not “support the building of a mosque near Ground Zero in New York City, and would urge those planning to do so to reconsider. Ground Zero should be a site that unites, not divides, our nation.” Flores also released a press release stating that he opposes “the effort to build this mosque near the site of Ground Zero,” and that the “building of this facility does not reflect good wisdom or sensitivity toward the victims of the 9/11 attacks, their families, or to Americans in general. This proposed action has enraged the victims' families and may cause further security concerns in lower Manhattan.” However, despite Flores characterization, many families of the victims of the September 11th attacks have supported the Islamic center, and recently the September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows released a statement supporting “efforts to bring an Islamic Cultural Center to lower Manhattan, near the Ground Zero site.

It is unclear what specific positions Flores would take on different foreign policy issues that are outside the realm of the so called war on terrorism, or the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. While Edwards has taken voted on foreign policy issues, the majority of his focus on foreign policy has centered around the treatment of veterans after they have returned from the wars the United States is involved in currently. Edwards voted to support giving permanent “normal trade relations” status to China which the majority of Democrats opposed due to human rights concerns, and voted to continue a policy of keeping Cuba travel ban until political prisoners released. While Flores generally uses harsher rhetoric than Edwards, it appears to be no significant substantive difference between the two on foreign policy issues.

Local News: Bryan and College Station Agree on Landfill

Councils Come to Agreement Over Landfill
By Cassie Smith

From the Bryan-College Station Eagle

A decade-long struggle between Bryan and College Station city councils ended Monday with an almost-unanimous vote, applause, pictures and even cake.

The cities, along with the Brazos Valley Solid Waste Management Agency board of directors, voted to create a new partnership to manage the Rock Prairie Road and Twin Oaks landfills, along with the Compost Facility in northwest Bryan.

The agreement creating BVSWMA Inc. goes into effect Sept. 30.

The new landfill in Grimes County has a $20 million pricetag. Funding comes from a combination of cash and debt reserves. BVSWMA over the next 19 years will repay the debt that Bryan and College Station issued equally, which was about $5.2 million each.

Following the vote, Bryan officially dropped its lawsuit against the city of College Station. Bryan sued its sister city in 2008, arguing it was being left out of decisions concerning construction of the new landfill. A judge eventually ordered them into mediation.

Officials with both cities said information was not available Monday detailing how much has been spent on legal matters related to the suit.

College Station Mayor Nancy Berry said there's been contention in recent years because of the lawsuit, but the action taken Monday night will resolve the differences.

Berry said she was looking forward to creating the partnership and moving on.

She wouldn't comment on concerns raised by Councilman Dennis Maloney, saying she was "late to the dance" regarding discussions about the landfill. She was elected in May.

Maloney was the only one to not vote in favor of the deal; he abstained as he's done for the past year on matters concerning BVSWMA Inc.

Once the Twin Oaks Landfill opens, Eric Zaragoza, with Bryan's environmental services, said the 12.6 acre compost facility's move will improve efficiency. The facility receives about 10,000 to 15,000 tons of brush and about 9,000 tons of biosolids a year. Zaragoza said it hasn't been determined what will happen to the land off Pleasant Hill in Bryan Road after the change in location.

Maloney said if there isn't written documentation in the agreement stating where both areas of land will go it's not certain to happen.

College Station Mayor Pro Tem John Crompton said the intent of BVSWMA Inc. is clear in that it understands it will return under the city of College Station and become a park.

The only option for a closed landfill is a park, according to officials who pointed out that buildings and trees are not allowed to be built or planted on a landfill due to the strong possibility of settlement of the land from the packed trash.

Bryan Mayor Jason Bienski said the actions taken Monday were positive steps for the community.

"We need to keep moving forward for the betterment of Bryan-College Station," he said.

Bienski said he was glad the agencies were able experience a positive end to the issue.

Some members of both city councils and the BVSWMA board toured the landfills before Monday's meeting.

BVSWMA Landfill Manager Samantha Best said the Rock Prairie Road Landfill, which is nearing capacity, opened in 1981 and moved from being operated by College Station to a joint partnership between the two cities in the early 1990s to minimize solid waste management costs. The 180-acre facility will close sometime this year.

Best joked about hard-to-miss buzzards being their friends and the strong likelihood that they would follow the crew to the Twin Oaks Landfill once it opens.

The 76 acres that were purchased alongside the old landfill to dig enough dirt to cover the trash was a vast hole of white dirt Monday as officials took the tour.

Best said it's likely with enough rain, the hole will fill with water and can be used as a recreational pond for the adjoining park.

BVSWMA Director Pete Caler said the Twin Oaks Landfill, located south of Texas 30, just across the Navasota River, will be much larger than the old landfill. Trash eventually will be piled 30 feet deep and 175 feet high, he said, adding that since it will be so high, some type of visual buffer will have to be built.

"All the things we saw were weaknesses at the Rock Prairie Road Landfill, we tried to fix here," Caler said.

The facility includes a machine that will shake mud off dump trucks to keep a build-up from littering Texas 30 after vehicles exit the landfill, Caler said. About 100 acres of the landfill can't be touched because of the possibility of endangering the Navasota Ladies' Tresses, an orchid protected under the Federal Endangered Species Act.

Published on Tuesday, September 14, 2010