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Larry T. Spider

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Everything posted by Larry T. Spider

  1. I was recently given documents showing that both Amy and I are descended from people who owned slaves. Along with other possessions listed in their property log were two human beings, Rose and Eliza. A paternal great-great-great grandfather of mine, Andrew Cowan Jasper, owned these two women in the 1850s. There are also records showing that a maternal great-great-great grandfather, Frederick Williams, most likely owned slaves in the 1860s (“most likely,” because we are not certain that the Frederick Williams who is my ancestor and the Frederick Williams who owned slaves are the same person, but there’s enough circumstantial data to lead me to conclude that it’s likely). Records also showed that Amy had an ancestor who owned slaves and another who was a member of the Confederate Army. Something that we’ve been thinking about and talking about in town hall meetings and out on the campaign — the legacy of slavery in the United States — now has a much more personal connection. Ownership of other human beings conferred advantages not just to Andrew Jasper and Frederick Williams, but to Jasper’s and Williams’ descendants as well. They were able to build wealth on the backs and off the sweat of others, wealth that they would then be able to pass down to their children and their children’s children. In some way, and in some form, that advantage would pass through to me and my children. That those enslaved Americans owned by my ancestors were denied their freedom, denied the ability to amass wealth, denied full civil rights in America after slavery also had long term repercussions for them and their descendants. The way that fortune was passed through the generations from Andrew to me, misfortune was passed through the generations from Rose and Eliza to their descendants who are alive today. Rose and Eliza were denied their freedom and the benefits that their labor produced; they and their children were then denied their civil rights after the end of Reconstruction; and their descendants endured open terrorism, economic exclusion and racism in the form of Jim Crow, lynchings, convict leasing, voter suppression, red lining, predatory lending, and mass incarceration. Everything their descendants have accomplished in their lives is despite having all of these odds stacked against them. In the aggregate, slavery, its legacy and the ensuing forms of institutionalized racism have produced an America with stark differences in opportunities and outcomes, depending on race. For example, there is 10 times the wealth in white American than there is in black America. Black men are six times more likely to be incarcerated than white men. The disparity in infant mortality between black families and white families is greater today than it was in 1850. Whether it’s the economy, healthcare, education, criminal justice or even in the inherent biases revealed by technology, there really are two Americas. I benefit from a system that my ancestors built to favor themselves at the expense of others. That only increases the urgency I feel to help change this country so that it works for those who have been locked-out of — or locked-up in — this system. As a person, as a candidate for the office of the Presidency, I will do everything I can to deliver on this responsibility. In addition to making significant changes to education policy (immediately address $23 billion in underfunding for minority-majority public schools), economic policy (ensuring equal pay, deploying capital to minority- and women-owned businesses, $25 billion in government procurement to these same businesses), healthcare (universal healthcare and home health visits to women of color to reverse trend in maternal and infant mortality) and criminal justice (police accountability, ending the drug war, and expunging arrest records for nonviolent drug crimes), I will continue to support reparations, beginning with an important national conversation on slavery and racial injustice. We all need to know our own story as it relates to the national story, much as I am learning mine. It is only then, I believe, that we can take the necessary steps to repair the damage done and stop visiting this injustice on the generations that follow ours. - Beto
  2. I certainly hope you are right. It’s not often that republicans nominate somebody so polarizing that it will really drive democrat turn out. W’s second election could have been that way but Texas was much more conservative back then and he was from here. McCain and Romney were vanilla enough to not rile up Dems too much. Trump is a different animal. I truly expect Texans to show up and vote against him in record numbers, making the closest presidential election this state has seen in a long time. Carter beat ford by 3.2% in 1976. The next election Reagan won by 27.5% and it’s been red ever since. My prediction is that trump wins Texas by less than 5% (it was 9% last time) and it becomes very clear to all that Texas is a swing state. Republicans will later claim it was just a trump problem...and they will be wrong.
  3. Waco has some advantages that many of these other towns don’t. It has a university, it’s in between Dallas and SA/Austin, and it already has almost 300k people in the metro area.
  4. Of the early states, which ones are winner take all? I would never concede a state that is proportional.
  5. I can offer some perspective on the teacher situation as I’m somebody that hires them. As a group, you have to think of them as degreed professionals that like the same types of amenities that other degreed professionals like. They are no more likely to want to live in a town with few entertainment options than anybody else. Another major point for older, married teachers is that they are likely to not be the breadwinner in their household. They are married to another professional that would have limited job prospects in a smaller town. Teachers that are unhappy with their job are mostly likely to decide to quit the profession or move to a new school or district in the same metro area. When I was a teacher, I moved districts in the Austin area. It never once crossed my mind to move to a small town. In fact, I have been interviewing more teachers interested in moving from a small town to the city. Why? Because they are degreed professionals that like the same things that other degreed professionals like. Finally, culture matters and smaller cities/towns have a reputation problem. Whether it is true or not, they are perceived as backwards and not that interested in education. They aren’t very diverse and have a reputation of being intolerant to outsiders. It’s possible to fix that, but would the current residents allow it? Doubtful.
  6. The question is how motivated Texans will be to show up for trump.
  7. There will be 10 cents left when his lawyers are done with the costs of his legal defense.
  8. Mildred from needville will be donating $5 a month as soon as she gets her grandkids to set up her America online with her credit card info.
  9. I’m in this district and will support the democrat against carter. It’s very close to flipping. That being said, I have more twitter followers than Imam and I have 122. She is going to have an uphill battle considering MJ was great and lost.
  10. I came here to bitch about lines and crowds for everything that I like in Austin. Glad to see that people beat me to it. I grew up here when you could just drive down to Barton springs, park, and hang out for the afternoon. It’s an ordeal to do anything now. San Antonio has a completely different culture for being so close but many things about it remind me of Austin in the 90s. I would honestly consider it.
  11. Completely agree with this. It worries me that she doesnt just say that though.
  12. Harris and Castro both came off looking like snakes to me. I’m trying to be reflective and think about the fact that it was minority candidates going after white males and I might be more sensitive to that. But, I just can’t shake that it made them seem hard to trust.
  13. When should we expect fundraising numbers to become available to the public?
  14. During the school year public school administrators are in a perpetual state of being swamped with work. Unless its cyber bullying, which we legally have to deal with, being the internet police is the last thing I’m going to do.
  15. Limited media access after Vietnam. Can’t have joe public seeing what he supported. Just keep liking the military Facebook posts and move along.
  16. Anybody else out there have experience in mining? I find the whole idea fascinating.
  17. I’m curious about the unwritten rules for the media in which pictures are shown. It seems that they do have a line that they typically don’t cross. Usually the face isn’t shown but the body with the scene to give context is. I also wonder how the internet has changed things as people have become desensitized to graphic images. Some of those images from 50 year ago were so powerful because people hasn’t seen stuff like that in print.
  18. I feel more justified in my hatred of the olympics.
  19. Just spitballing here: We have 2000 chronically homeless people in Austin. I would create a database of these people (with pictures) that includes basic information on them, any mental health diagnosis, addiction issues, work history, and criminal record. When an officer approaches one of these people they will (hopefully) be able to identify them and get some history on them. They can then divert the homeless person to the correct service. The three basic options would be a work program, mental health treatment, or addiction treatment. I’m not sure what already exists in these areas but I’m under the assumption it would be created from scratch or an existing programs would need significant funding increases. If you are involved in one of these three programs, you get access to a huge shelter that would be built in north east Austin with bus access to the rest of the city. The shelter would have tiers of living with the top tier being like a halfway house. If the person refuses all three options then jail is the last resort. I truly want to help homeless people by treating the root cause of their homelessness and would be willing to pay more for a comprehensive program. I’m not in favor of just letting them camp and do drugs all over the city. That isn’t helping the homeless live a fulfilling life or the city in any way.
  20. I’ve seen the sales pitch in action before. It goes something like this: Coach: Timmy is a really good player and we are happy to have him. He’s good but he’s only scratching the surface of his potential. The sky is the limit for Timmy because most people are just not born with what he has and they would kill for it. Hes a bit raw right now and will need a couple of days with our batting coach to really set him up right. We also have an extra infield drills practice each week he should attend. Parents: I don’t know, this sounds expensive and we just want him to enjoy the game. Coach: I would really hate for you to regret not giving it your all later in life considering his talent. He has real potential and you don’t want him to wonder how far he could have gone if you had let him. Parents: I don’t know.....he’s only 7, this seems like a lot. End of the story: they signed up.
  21. “If Austin — or any other Texas city — permits camping on city streets it will be yet another local ordinance the State of Texas will override.” — Gov. Greg Abbott
  22. The same thing happens for UIL academic competitions. Parents wanting to confront judges about how some thing subjective like 3rd grade storytelling. I hate zero tolerance policies but we need to go in that direction for youth sports. If you have a problem with a ref/ump you go through a formal process to file a complaint. If you have a problem with a coach, you take that up on your own time. We now have a shortage of referees despite despite decent pay because of this. Yell at the ref once and you’re done for the season.
  23. It’s not just in sports that this happens. That’s just where the cameras are out and rolling. Let’s just say I learned a lot in my first week as a school administrator.
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