Flea Market Raids in Rio Grande Valley Leave Women Without Birth Control and Abortion Care

The few reproductive health options women in the Rio Grande Valley have are dwindling: Recent raids on the RGV's biggest flea market have pushed contraception and abortifacient providers out.

After multiple family planning and abortion clinics closed, more women began seeking misoprostol, a drug commonly available in Mexican pharmacies and frequently transported across the border.

While misoprostol is not the ideal replacement for legal abortion care supervised by a doctor, it is one of the safer methods of self-inducing abortion.

But, as MSNBC reported this week, after the Sheriff of Hidalgo County charged nine market vendors with selling prescription drugs like diet pills and Viagra, birth control and misoprostol have disappeared from the markets.

More at http://www.burntorangereport.com/diary/15167/flea-market-raids-in-rio-grande-valley-leave-women-without-birth-control-and-abortion-care .

Happy May Day!

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Was that a double entendre headline that made me ROTFL? "Voters come out for CBC election"

Yes, that is what appeared as a headline on the www.mysoutex.com Website in the uber-conservative region of the state where I was raised as a youngster. Considering that the area is dominated by ranchers, I could envision the main characters of Brokeback Mountain leading the LGBT flocks to the polls in a scene that for lack of better words could be described as "yummy". With all those people choosing to "out" themselves for this election, maybe they can get organized for a Gay Pride parade in June?


The story is about an election at Coastal Bend College in Beeville, Texas where there is some dissension about the Board of Trustees because of the elimination of some of the vocational programs and the rise in administrative costs. There have been significant budgetary adjustments since most of the prospective students are able to find high-paying jobs that don't require any college courses due to exploration related to the Eagle Ford Shale play.

Nearly all of the story is hidden behind a paywall so I'll skip providing a link--however, I thought that my fellow DUers would enjoy the humorous headline.

Texas 'Has No Plans' to Use Drug From Botched Oklahoma Execution

Update: After Tuesday night's botched execution in Oklahoma, Texas corrections officials say they have no plans to use midazolam in future executions. Midazolam was the first component of a three-drug cocktail administered to death row inmate Clayton Lockett yesterday. Read more about the execution here.

As KUT first reported in February, the state has supplies of midazolam on hand. But the Texas Department of Criminal Justice says in a statement that it "has no plans to change our procedures. Texas does not use the same drugs as Oklahoma as we use a single lethal dose of pentobarbital and we have done so since 2012.”

Attorneys for death row inmates in Texas have unsuccessfully tried to find out who is selling compounded pentobarbital to the state. They're suing in civil court and making a case to the Open Records Division of the Office of the Attorney General that TDCJ should disclose its source.

The botched execution in Oklahoma is "what litigators and inmates have been talking about," says Maurie Levin, a lawyer who represents death row inmates. "The possibility that something like this will happen when there's no transparency or openness, and when the prisons proceed with executions in this unbelievably unacceptable, secretive manner."

More at http://kut.org/post/texas-has-no-plans-use-drug-botched-oklahoma-execution .

Campaign signs defaced with Nazi symbols in Arlington

ARLINGTON — Campaign signs for two Asian-American candidates in separate Tarrant County races were vandalized recently in Arlington with swastikas and another Nazi symbol.

The vandal apparently targeted a handful of signs belonging to Gerald Kern, who is seeking the Arlington City Council District 7 at-large seat in the May 10 election, and Alex Kim, who is in the Republican primary runoff on May 27 for County Criminal Court No. 3.

Arlington code compliance officials removed the signs, which were defaced with swastikas and SS lightning bolts in black spray paint, from at least four areas of town on Wednesday.

Both candidates said they planned to replace the signs, which cost about $30 each. Neither said they would file a police report, although Arlington police were contacted about the situation by code compliance officers.

More at http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/04/30/5781508/campaign-signs-defaced-with-nazi.html?rh=1 .

Disowning Your Children?

Pundits see Rick Perry’s presidential chances rising from the ashes

Democratic consultant James Carville, who two years ago crowned Rick Perry “the worst presidential campaign, candidate in American history,” this week sees him as a main GOP contender in 2016.

He’s joined in the opinion by Republican consultant Dick Morris, who also wrote a column naming Perry as one of the early favorites to take the Republican nomination.

Perry has been traveling the country and rehabilitating his image on the consistent and long-serving message of small government, low taxes and limited regulation. Whether through the fade of other major contenders – such as New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie fending off allegations in Bridgegate – or the rising of his own star, Perry is once again is among the names being bandied about as potential GOP leaders.

Only last year, pollsters said they were removing his name from their questionnaires because he consistently finished with less than one percent.

More at http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2014/04/pundits-see-rick-perrys-presidential-chances-rising-from-the-ashes.html/ .

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