Texas State Capitol

Great to see the Texas State Capitol today. A lot of history, from Sam Houston to Stephen F. Austin to LBH, to George W. Bush.

Floods Overtaking Parts of Texas

Houston and other part of Texas experiencing extreme flooding.

Water Bills in Texas, This one 66K

Link

http://www.newsobserver.com/2013/07/30/3070095/texan-gets-another-wrong-water.html

Not the first time he has received a wrong bill.

Cheering with 'Bible Banners'

Cheerleaders at a Texas high school have won a court order allowing them to continue featuring Biblical quotes on the large paper banners that they hold up for football players to tear through when they take the field at the game opening.

The ruling by a Hardin County judge late Thursday over the so-called “Bible Banners” at the school in the east Texas town of Kountze marked the latest twist in a broader national clash over the separation of religion from public schools.

The banners typically use Biblical passages for messages such as “thanks be to God which gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ,” and are a tradition in Kountze, which has about 2,100 residents northeast of Houston.

Superintendent Kevin Weldon, a former high school football coach, said he contacted the school’s lawyers after he received the letter and ordered the practice with the banners canceled.

Weldon, a former high school football coach, said he was uncomfortable removing the banners and that a lot of Kountze residents agreed with the cheerleaders, but would follow the decisions of the courts and the school board.

“I applaud the students for what they are standing for, I applaud their convictions,” Weldon said. “I have the same convictions they do. My relationship with God is very important to me and this community feels the same way.”

Liberty Institute’s senior counsel, Mike Johnson, said the case was “a quintessential example of students’ private speech being censored unnecessarily by uninformed school officials” and the cheerleaders were committed to fighting for their rights.

“They wanted to demonstrate good sportsmanship by including positive messages on their banners that will encourage not only the home team, but also the players and fans on the opposing side,” Johnson said.

Liberty Institute President Kelly Shackelford said the group had worked to pass state laws that protect religious speech by students and was ready to pursue the issue as long as it takes.

Debby in Gulf, Expected to Become a Hurricane

A tropical storm warning was issued Sunday for Alabama to the Florida Panhandle as Debby lashed parts of the Gulf Coast with wind and rain.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Sunday morning that Debby was about 170 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. It said the storm warning has now been issued from the Mississippi-Alabama border eastward to the Florida Panhandle's Ochlockonee River.

Debby's top sustained winds had increased to about 60 mph.  It is expected to become a Category 1 hurricane at some point.

People from Texas to Florida should remain alert to Debby's movement.

Forecasters said Debby could be near hurricane strength by Monday night. Meanwhile, up to six inches of rain were possible along the coast, with isolated amounts possibly reaching 10 inches.