"Toll road foe sues over TxDOT ad campaign"

You didn't have to be a political activist to be aware of the controversy that was a recent buzz (or, for many, buzz-kill) here in Austin over whether or not tolls should be put up on local highways. Many were indifferent, plenty were enraged, a good amount were frustrated, and then there were the politicians who were oh-so pleased to get the green light on putting those big-boy money gobblers up all over town. Whether or not you chose to stand on one side of the fence on this issue, or fell into the category of "indifferent's," you can see how the volatile issue of Texas tolls could arrive TxDOT in the position that the below mentioned article reveals....

The title of this article pretty much says it all; a Texas activist names Terry Hall is suing TxDOT over what she claims is inappropriate spending of state transportation funds. Ms. Hall is a San Antonio activist who is arguing in court that TxDOT's "Keep Texas Moving" campaign violates a state prohibition on state officers or employees using their authority for political purposes. From her perspective, the advertising promotes toll roads; an issue she contends is very much unsettled, and thus those ads give an unfair advantage to the success of that one point of view prevailing. Her main point; state transportation money should not be funding this multi-million dollar, one-sided campaign.

TxDOT defends that the campaign is intended to be educational and to insight further participation from the public in helping solve the issues of transportation in Texas.

I found the article to be quite interesting; though brief. I would recommend reading it, if not for sheer entertainment (TxDOT's defense seemed to evade the true premise...kinda funny, no?), then at least to broaden your perspective. I wonder if I would have watched one of these ads, before reading the article, and thought, "Where did the money to pay for this come from? Is that sage?" If TxDOT is using our state funds to promote one agenda, I should probably be ticked too! Read on, and decide for yourself if this should turn into a "class action suit"...get it, "class" action?!! Just read the article!!!

~Jacqueline

P.S. I also looked up the "Keep Texas Moving" campaign on their website, and have to say I left the site feeling like Ms. Hall has some excellent points. Here's the link:

http://www.keeptexasmoving.com/

Viva Tejas!

I've only been in Texas for five years, and have to say one of the first things I noticed was the inordinate amount of political bumper stickers; hence the title of my blog! It's one of those endearing things I've come to appreciate about Austin, and certainly excuses (to some degree) the ridiculous amount of traffic I'm constantly stuck in around this town! The bumper stickers really seem to reflect the diversity of thought here in Texas, not to mention an atmosphere that really promotes participation. To quote a few off the top of my head:

"God is not a Republican"
"I wasn't born in Texas, but I got here as fast as I could."
"My Governor is a Jewish Cowboy."
"Impeach George Dubya"
"Christian Democrat"
"How Many Lives per Gallon?"
"Abortion is Murder"
"Keep Austin Reading"
.....and who could fail to include the world-famous "Keep Austin Weird"

The list goes on....

I was really interested by the "best intro everrr" article that Professor Seago posted; it certainly helped to clarify why on earth Texans are so darn, well...proud to be Texans! I am looking forward to learning more about this grand ol' state, and the dynamics that have contributed to the political atmosphere here. The undeniable cure for my ignorance of the political workings of Texas...."Keep Austin Reading!" We really are in bumper sticker heaven!!

Here's to a great semester........

~Jacqueline