We Became More Modest About Words—and Less Modest About Everything Else
I woke up from a dream in which I was trying to reassemble a robot. I had the pieces spread before me. Some belonged inside the chest. Others connected to
Houston Protected the Winners—and Lost the Program
Don’t feel sorry for the loss of the program; the beneficiaries needed to go on a diet. The city can build a much better program that really helps the little
White Progressives Want a Refund. Why Are Latino Leaders Still Vouching for John Whitmire?
I do not want a refund. I never bought John Whitmire. White progressives bought him because he was experienced. Moderate Democrats bought him because he promised stability. Republicans bought him
Same hate new words, Wets and tonks (sound of a flashlight hitting a head)
The New Well-Funded Cartel, Powered by MAGA “Pretty sure he’s wet.” “Tonks everywhere.” “See bodies, chase bodies.” These were not messages recovered from a Mexican drug cartel. According to evidence
The New Well-Funded Cartel, Powered by MAGA
It Is Not AI We Need to Fear. It Is the ICE Machine. Francisco Longoria was driving a truck through San Bernardino, California, delivering equipment for a child’s water slide.
It is not AI we need to fear; it is the ICE machine!
Nearly 9 in 10 Voted for Trump. Then the Deportation Machine Came for Two of Their Pastors. They were not hiding in a stash house. They were not running through
Greg Abbott is back to doing what he does best: picking our pockets.
First They Frighten You About the Grid. Then They Sell Texas the Satellites. Yesterday, I read one of those articles written to leave a little fear behind after you close
The first European immigrants who came to America before Jamestown and Plymouth Rock were my ancestors.
The story is faction (reconstructed as not all things are recorded) but the expedition was recorded. There is even a poem about it. Pedro and Catalina were immigrants before Jamestown
We Were Here First. We Ain’t Going Nowhere.
Chala Vato, we ain’t going nowhere. There is a story Americans like to tell about California. First there was empty land. Then Americans came west. They found gold, built cities,
I Went to Hear Fuerza Regida. Then Miss Colita Walked In.
I have a confession. I went to see Fuerza Regida. People have asked me whether the music was good. I shrug my shoulders. I have no idea. Apparently there was
Some Mornings I Wake Up Humble. This Was Not One of Them.
Excuse Me While I Beat My Own Drum Some mornings I wake up humble. This was not one of them. On January 20, I wrote a story titled “Harris County
In 1903, Mexican Workers Were Offered a Seat at the Table—If They Left the Japanese Outside
Mexican workers said no and gave a reason, in writing. That is what makes the story exceptional. They said the Japanese workers had stood beside them, shared hardship with them,
Are Americans Too Lazy to Read Their Television?
I enjoy foreign films; I don’t mind reading even when they are dubbed. I prefer to hear the actors’ voices. I often turn off the English dubbed voices; too often,
Bobby Pulido Won. Democrats Should Ask Why.
My December 2025 pieces show that both were legitimate candidates with different strengths. Cuellar impressed because she was an ER physician, studying law, focused on healthcare and women’s reproductive rights.
The Tortillas Hollywood Left Off the Cattle Drive
You can leave people out of the movie. You cannot erase the fact that they were there. I grew up watching cowboy movies. After a long day on the trail,
Houston May Be Pouring Tomorrow’s Fortune Down the Drain
Imagine Houston Residents as rich as Saudi Arabia, not because there is oil underneath us but because someone at City Hall saw a future fortune in water. Texas built pipelines
THE MYSTERY OF HOUSTON’S DISAPPEARING RED DOTS
Houston’s reported 32 billion gallons of annual water loss is enough water to supply roughly 275,000 to 290,000 American households for an entire year. Using the EPA estimate of 82
I Have Lived Here Since 1973. Edward Pollard Is the Best Council Member I Have Had.
I moved into this part of Houston in 1973. Richard Nixon was president. The Astros still played in the Astrodome. Houston was a very different city. The council districts have
The Rupture – I am not going to be “Left Behind.”
I once decided I should prepare for the Rapture. Not because I had received a vision, heard a trumpet, or seen four horsemen galloping down Interstate 10. I had started
Art Thou But a Worm?
William Blake once asked a question that sounds almost insulting: “Art thou but a Worm?” Perhaps he was asking the wrong creature. Perhaps he should have asked us. A worm