Category Archives: RagBlog

ALICE EMBREE | VERSE | The brutality of August

The clock was stopped at 11:48 a.m. I took this photo the day they dedicated the memorial. On August 1, many of us remember the 1966 University of Texas tower shooting.  Fifty years later, in 2016, the University of Texas … Continue reading

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LAMAR HANKINS | EDUCATION & DIVERSITY | SCOTUS majority misunderstands benefits of college in its recent affirmative action decision.

By Lamar Hankins | The Rag Blog | July 27, 2023 Listen to Thorne Dreyer‘s interview with Lamar Hankins on Rag Radio at 2 p.m., Friday, July 28, 2023, on KOOP 91.7 in Austin or stream at KOOP.org. Six members … Continue reading

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BRUCE MELTON | CLIMATE | It’s not the heat… The difference today with climate change is duration.

Is it time to rent out Texas? By Bruce Melton | The Rag Blog | July 21, 2023 Listen to Thorne Dreyer’s interview with Bruce Melton on Rag Radio at 2 p.m., Friday, July 21, 2023, on KOOP 91.7 in … Continue reading

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RICHARD CROXDALE | TEXAS HISTORY | The battle of Waller Creek: The felling of the Erwin Drum

In the Movement Folk Tales, Frank Erwin plays the role of the evil stepmother. By Richard Croxdale | The Rag Blog | June 20, 2023 The Rag Blog is cross-posting a piece of history published by People’s History in Texas … Continue reading

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ALLEN YOUNG | TELEVISION | In defense of drag queens

A review of ‘AJ and the Queen’ and a lot more. By Allen Young | The Rag Blog | June 2, 2023 Drag queens have recently become the target of right-wing politicians in several Republican-dominated states, and while I’ve never … Continue reading

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ALLEN YOUNG | HISTORY | Mixing the tequila of Cinco de Mayo with the blood of Kent State: A quirky history essay

We look back at two days in May. By Allen Young | The Rag Blog | May 17, 2023 Sí, mis amigos, Cinco de Mayo is a well-known date (that’s May 5 in English), and of course it’s a time … Continue reading

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CLIFF WILKIE | MEMOIR | In a little cafe just the other side of the border

It all happened in Ciudad Acuna, Mexico, on March 30, 1969. By Cliff Wilkie | The Rag Blog | April 30, 2023 It was just like in the Marty Robbins song, “in a little cafe just the other side of … Continue reading

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ALLEN YOUNG | BOOKS | ‘To Tell the Truth: My Life as a Foreign Correspondent’ by Lewis M. Simons

Valuable insights into journalism offer a very enjoyable read. By Allen Young | The Rag Blog | April 21, 2023 Reading this book has provided me with a unique experience that is both intellectual and emotional, and I think it … Continue reading

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ALICE EMBREE | BOOKS | ‘The Ad Hoc Livers’ by Jim Simons

Simons’ book is a great trip down memory lane with a few name changes to protect the not-so-innocent. By Alice Embree | The Rag Blog | April 17, 2023 Jim Simons’ novel, Ad Hoc Livers, is now available on Amazon … Continue reading

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LAMAR HANKINS | POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY | ‘Woke’ attacks promote inequality and injustice

Not to be ‘woke’ is to willfully ignore reality. By Lamar Hankins | The Rag Blog | April 13, 2023 Right-wingers, the emotionally damaged, and “lazy ideologues” who hurl being “woke,” like an epithet studded with sharp spikes to wound … Continue reading

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The Orange Show Presents ‘Old Weird Houston’

Events include presentation by ‘Rag Blog’ editor Thorne Dreyer. By Pete Gershon | The Rag Blog | March 17, 2023 HOUSTON — Houston at mid-century was a place where anything seemed possible, from an air-conditioned domed stadium to a monument … Continue reading

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JONAH RASKIN | THE SIXTIES | Avedon at the Met: the Chicago Seven and the Sixties

‘I wanted to see if I could reinvent what a group photo is,’ Avedon observed. By Jonah Raskin | The Rag Blog | March 8, 2023 Looking at Richard Avedon’s black-and-white photos of the Chicago Seven which peered out at … Continue reading

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