WACO, July 1 - Despite the recent lack of rain, a malady currently affecting many parts of the country, the “grass” in Texas is much greener than in most states. 

SAN JUAN, June 28 - Before the vote House Minority Leader John Boehner read through the 300-page 3:00 a.m. last minute Democrat amendment to the cap and trade bill from the podium and made side comments about the effects of each element. Congressmen, therefore, are without excuse. 

WACO, June 25 - Over the past couple of decades, the financial services industry and the environment in which it operates has experienced a sea of changes. 

WACO, June 17 - Often, when someone mentions the “eyes of Texas,” they are referring to the popular song that has become the alma mater of the University of Texas. Although the inspiration of the writing of the song is disputed, there is no argument regarding the emotional impact the tune has on students and alumni of that institution.

SAN JUAN, June 14 - The Old Gray Lady is looking grayer than usual these days. The New York Times lost $73 million last quarter. It is roughly a billion dollars in debt and is turning the screws on the Boston Globe which it bought a while ago for its printing presses. 

WACO, June 10 - Prior to the Great Depression of the 1920s and ’30s, practically every major downturn in the nation’s economy, at least those that lasted over several months, was labeled a “panic.” Such calamities have borne such a descriptive nomenclature throughout history. In more recent times, economic calamities such as the one we are currently experiencing have been known as recessions.

CLAREMONT, June 7 - Tapping Judge Sonia Sotomayor as his first Supreme Court nominee was a brilliant move on President Obama’s part. Just ask the Republicans.

WACO, June 4 - It’s all over—or is it? The Texas biennial legislative session mercifully closed this week amid cries of both congratulation and consternation. 

SAN JUAN, May 31 - I have watched with fascination the predictable reactions of both the right and the left to President Obama's nomination of Appeals Court Judge Sonia Sotomayor to fill Justice Souter's seat on the Supreme Court. 

WACO, May 27 - Just a few months ago, one of the main things on the minds of college students expecting to graduate this spring was studying for final exams. With most of the tests over and diplomas now (or soon to be) in hand, the focus has turned to getting a job.

SAN JUAN, May 24 - There is no more unforgiving tax in the world than the coward's tax called inflation. When the dollar loses value we are all hurt. Initially that tax creeps in at the edges when the international value of the dollar declines.

AUSTIN, May 21 - A recent study estimated that proposed federal legislation aimed at decreasing greenhouse gas emissions would increase Texans electricity bills by a minimum of $10 billion.

SAN JUAN, May 17 - President Obama recently came out against some of Chrysler's bond holders by accusing them of being "unwilling to sacrifice" and declared that he didn't "stand with them." 

WACO, May 13 - Of all the seasons of the year, I believe that Spring is my favorite. It’s the time when we begin to see new life emerge, from blossoms on trees to bluebonnets that grace so many highways and byways. It’s a time of renewal, when the bleak of winter is over and prospects for tomorrow begin to burst into bloom.

SAN JUAN, May 12 - Memos have been released about purported torture by the CIA.

CLAREMONT, May 11 - You may never have heard of Julián Castro, an ambitious San Antonio politician, but that will soon change, for he has just won a smashing victory as that city’s new mayor.

SAN JUAN, May 10 - As a reward for destroying General Motors and Chrysler, the Obama Administration will give those two companies to the United Auto Workers. 

WACO, May 6 - Englishman John Spilsbury is credited with inventing the jigsaw puzzle in 1767. An engraver and mapmaker, Spilsbury often fashioned his puzzles so that the total picture was not recognizable until the last piece was placed properly.

SAN JUAN, May 3 - At the risk of being labeled by the Homeland Security’s “rightwing (sic) extremism” threat assessment report as a “rightwing (sic) extremist, I find it necessary to speak out against a current piece of legislation percolating through the U.S. Congress. 

SAN JUAN, April 26 - I attended the tea party in Archer Park, McAllen, where roughly a thousand people assembled to protest excessive government spending. 

SAN JUAN, April 22 - In reviewing the video of Rick Perry's April 15th statement concerning secession to a reporter, I find it interesting that it was the reporter who brought up the issue of secession or sovereignty for the state. 

SAN JUAN, April 19 - On President Obama's recent junket he stopped off in Turkey and proclaimed that the United States is not a Christian nation. He pointed to the diverse religions in America and to the secular nature of the state. 

WACO, April 16 - In the library at my home is a large document written in four languages. It was carried by the captain of the schooner Fox and declared that his was an unarmed merchant ship that should not be attacked. 

SAN JUAN, April 11- I've spent the last couple of hours reading through the final version of the community service expansion bill which has been sent to the President for his signature.