[Thumbs up] We are sorry to see Texan Julián Castro drop out of the presidential race this week, but the former mayor of San Antonio can be proud of the campaign he ran. Castro led the way on several policy issues, including immigration and police violence, while other Democrats avoided specifics and stuck to platitudes. Maybe he didn’t catch on because unlike Andrew Yang’s “Yang Gang,” he never came up with a catchy name for his fans (“The Castro Club” tested poorly in Florida), or that a guy named O’Rourke spoke better Spanish than he did, or because he insisted on focusing on the vulnerable and marginalized instead of advocating for the poor billionaires who might lose their third private jet to an Elizabeth Warren administration. Whatever it was, Castro couldn’t manage to spark voter interest in a crowded field and donors stayed away. “I’m not done fighting. I’ll keep working towards a nation where everyone counts. A nation where everyone can get a good job, good health care, and a decent place to live… ¡Ganaremos un día!” Castro said in a video released Thursday. That voice will be missed on the campaign trail.
[Thumbs down] If the last Texan’s departure from the presidential field wasn’t enough of a blow for the Lone Star State, how about losing out to New York for the sexiest American accent? A survey by Babbel.com which resurfaced this week reminded us that according to Europeans, a Texas twang can’t compete with accents in the South, New York, Boston or even Southern California. Perhaps it’s all that fine wine, rich food or loud street protest, but people in France and Italy ranked a New York accent as their favorite. You’d think having good public health care would mean good hearing for the English and the Swedes, but they somehow prefer the SoCal valley over the Rio Grande Valley. And don’t even get us started on the Germans, the Spanish or the Dutch, who would rather hear someone pahk the cah in Hah-vahd yahd than hear of y’all findin’ a real good parkin’ spot at Rice. We don’t want to let such a petty thing as sexy accents sway us, but maybe President Trump was right about our NATO “allies” after all.
[Thumbs up] Hoping to prove that if you build it, they will come, the city of Warner Robins and Peach County in Georgia will spend more than $2 million on traffic and utility improvements to lure a Buc-ee’s to their area. The world-famous Texas convenience store chain, known for its clean bathrooms and beaver mascot, is set to open a location there in early 2021. “I think we’re going to see a huge growth spurt out in that area,” Warner Robins Mayor Randy Thomas told the Associated Press. “I think there’s going to be a lot of businesses, possibly hotels, restaurants, that want to be in the area because of the number of people that are being brought off the interstate every day.” Buc-ee’s is already practically a religion in Texas and upcoming outposts in Alabama, Florida and Georgia can only help spread the gospel of beaver nuggets. Peach cobbler with your pristine potties, anyone? Hey, maybe some European locations next. London, your thrown awaits! Paris, you can hold it!
[Thumbs down] A Chicken Express outside of Fort Worth has become the latest battleground over religious liberty. Stefanae Coleman, who recently converted to Islam, showed up to work on Monday wearing a hijab. Her manager told her that she couldn’t wear the head covering while working at the restaurant. “I read the handbook and it doesn’t say anything about us not being able to wear religious headpieces,” she told the manager in an exchange captured on video by Coleman. “Your job is your job,” he told her. “Your job has nothing to do with religion.” Fortunately for Coleman, the Supreme Court is on her side, ruling in 2015 that an employer dress code cannot force employees to remove a hijab. The franchise owner has since apologized, the manager was reprimanded and Coleman is back at work. With so much bad news in the headlines lately, it’s good to start the New Year with a chicken tale of a religious veil that ended well.
