by James C. Moore Down near the Terlingua ghost town, the Rio Grande marks a course through ancient volcanic lava before it enters Santa Elena Canyon’s 1500-foot walls. The river’s history and geology are profoundly complex as it approaches the remote national park. In one low, sandy, flood plain, the Read more…
“The promise of America is that something is going to happen, but after a while you grow tired of waiting because nothing ever does happen to people in America; except they grow old. And nothing ever happens to American art, either, because the story of America is the story of Read more…
by James C. Moore Since we are entering into the season of giving, one of the more predictable annual traditions is for the overpaid CEO of the Texas Tribune to come around with his hand out. Of course, Evan Smith doesn’t ask of us for himself; it’s for our benefit Read more…
by James C. Moore I have lately tried to stay away from writing about politics. Oddly, I’ve had some success with avoiding drafting analyses and tedious thumb-sucker pieces. Social media has, admittedly, sucked me into inane and useless exchanges but I have generally not wanted to participate in the vitriol Read more…
“Sometimes I get this crazy dream that I just take off in my car. But you can travel on 10,000 miles and still stay where you are.” — Harry Chapin, WOLD The radio station was an unremarkable brick building encircled by palm and fruit trees. My intention was to use Read more…
When we lived in our little white rented house a few miles north of the big river there were two bushes that grew in a corner of the back yard. They struggled because an old cottonwood and two orange trees took most of the sun and when the slanted rain Read more…
“Well, you know we’re probably too old for this Maybe the rest of the world is too young We drive five hundred miles to get loose and get wild And stay up ‘till the last song is done.” – Gary P. Nunn, Terlingua Sky There is a time in Texas Read more…
“DJ wanted, first class license required, morning drive, top-notch entertainer, produce commercials, local news gathering/reporting, sports announce, public appearances/promotions, light sales – $131.50/week and no beginners please.” Broadcasting Magazine Help Wanted Ad Circa 1974 “You know this road pretty much follows the old Oregon Trail, don’t you?” The man with Read more…
I don’t like Ted Cruz. And there are a lot of Texans who share my sentiment. But I’ve been writing and reporting on politics here since 1975, and I can assure anyone who asks that I’ve never encountered a public figure I’ve found more reprehensible than our junior senator. Harsh Read more…
Flint used to be a place of hope. When Daddy and Ma came up from Mississippi with the first two of their six children, big tractor graders were out in the meadows cutting roads for new neighborhoods. A great post war migration was underway from south of the Mason-Dixon Line Read more…
(Author’s note: I wrote this a few months after the BP blowout in the Gulf. On the fifth anniversary of that tragedy, there is little to be hopeful about as we continue to deny the damage we cannot completely see and ignore the obvious evidence.) “When one tugs at a Read more…
by Ken Zornes On April 15th millions of American will take part in that annual ritual of filing their federal income tax returns. Another significant event on that day will be overlooked by most of us, save for those attending major league baseball games where every player on every team will Read more…
The Internet tends to be exactly like the people who use it: entertaining, informative, and stupider than anyone might have imagined. The latest example of ignorance comes from Breitbart, Texas, whose managing editor Brandon Darby traveled along the Rio Grande to inform us Mexico is on the other side of Read more…
In an era of profound medical advancements in drug therapies and technologies, the U.S. finds itself immersed in a controversy over the very basic issue of vaccines. An increasing number of parents have made a decision to not have their children vaccinated for measles, mumps, and rubella. Their rationale for Read more…
The timing was a thing of pure political beauty. President George W. Bush was only a few days away from speaking to the United Nations’ General Assembly about Iraq’s renewed efforts to acquire banned weaponry. And, in a month, the president was going to Congress to seek a resolution approving Read more…