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Strangest State: August 2018
Weird news from far-flung Texas.
SAN ANTONIO // A former master plumber put his collection of more than 1,300 decorated toilet seats up for sale. Barney “King of the Commode” Smith has oper...Read More
Will Hurricane Harvey Recovery Sink or Save a Texas City Already Fighting for Survival?
by Michael Barajas and Sophie Novack July 30, 2018 On a Friday morning in mid-May, Beatrice Sanders stepped outside her FEMA trailer to find a port-a-potty park...Read More
Cash-Strapped Rural Texas Schools Look to Universities for Help
From East Texas to the Rio Grande Valley, universities are helping struggling schools train staff, start enrichment programs and expand space for district activities.
On June 20, a few weeks after Commerce ISD released students for the summer, about 10 fifth-grade students gather in teacher Cari Aaron’s classroom, playing m...Read More
Strangest State: June 2018
Weird news from far-flung Texas.
SAN JACINTO COUNTY // A man selling a rifle on Facebook apparently hoped that posting a photo of the weapon next to a live alligator would garner more attention...Read More
Can Texas Oil Money Stop a Blue Gusher?
The PACs responsible for defending GOP majorities in the U.S. House and Senate are already gushing with money from Lone Star energy giants.
In June 2017, Tesoro Corp., a major oil refiner based in San Antonio, bought El Paso-based Western Refining for $5.8 billion and rebranded itself as Andeavor, b...Read More
Tracking DPS Across the Sky: How We Did It
Tracking DPS Across the Sky: How We Did It To find out where the Texas Department of Public Safety flies its two surveillance aircraft, the Texas Observer and t...Read More
Red State: Does Socialism Have a Future in Texas?
Democratic Socialists of America members are pushing progressive local policies, organizing disaster relief and running Sanders-style candidates — all in the GOP’s top stronghold.
Democratic Socialists of America members are pushing progressive local policies, organizing disaster relief and running Sanders-style candidates — all in the ...Read More
Indoctrinated
For one woman, that made a painful loss even worse — and she worries it could soon become routine across Texas.
A Catholic hospital in Austin forces patients who miscarry to consent to fetal burials. For one woman, that made a painful loss even worse — and she worries i...Read More