EoT: ‘Duck Dynasty’ and Prurient Politics
A roundup of news, columns and features about the state, from media around the world.
State Sen. Dan Patrick, Republican lieutenant governor candidate, will not have Mother Jones’ endorsement in the upcoming election.
The magazine compiled a list of Patrick’s “greatest hits” from his career as a radio host and politician, ranging from his artwork showing the face of Christ on the Statue of Liberty to his recommendation for the movie “Signs” starring Mel Gibson.
The article’s headline reminds readers that Patrick thinks “God is speaking to us” through “Duck Dynasty” star Phil Robertson after Robertson told GQ that homosexuality is not logical. “God is using pop culture and a highly successful cable TV show to remind us about His teaching,” Patrick wrote on Facebook.
Patrick also railed against MTV in an online post in 2004, saying parents should delete the channel. His tirade included “STAND UP TO YOUR KIDS” and “DEMAND THAT THE FCC GET TOUGH WITH THOSE WHO WANT TO COME INTO YOUR HOME AND DESTROY YOUR FAMILY VALUES.”
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State Sen. Wendy Davis’ campaign for governor caught the attention of The Daily Caller after emailing a press release entitled “Texas Observer: ‘Greg Abbott: Dildos? Against ‘em. Interracial Marriage? No Comment.’”
Under the headline “Master Debater: Wendy Davis Attacks Abbott With Dildos,” the conservative website reported that the press release linked to an article from the Observer that “attacks Abbott for his supposed reluctance to say whether he’d defend interracial marriage and his defense of Texas’ ban on the sale of sex toys.”
The Caller noted that sending an email with “dildo” in the subject line was “hard to swallow.”
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention can strike another name from the Ebola watch list.
Bentley, the year-old Cavalier King Charles spaniel owned by Ebola patient Nina Pham, has tested negative for the disease, the New York Daily News reported. The Dallas nurse who helped care for the country’s first Ebola fatality received daily updates on her furry friend while she received treatment in Maryland.
Bentley’s happy tale contrasts with the killing of a Spanish Ebola patient’s dog after she was hospitalized. The dog later tested negative for the disease. The puppy will remain in quarantine in Dallas until Nov. 1, but Pham has been declared Ebola free.
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An Austin resident named Chloe is seeking funds through Kickstarter to erect a 6-foot-tall statue depicting a vagina, reports Salon.
Chloe intends to raise money for abortions after the statue is completed, writing that she wants “to start a group that provides housing, meals, and transportation to women who are traveling for the procedure.”
The statue is her response to anti-abortion legislation that has closed abortion clinics across the state.
In her Kickstarter biography, Chloe has a less-than-friendly message for Texas lawmakers: “I am ready to say ‘f**k you’ to the rich, white, men in Texas who are limiting my rights to my own body and I am ready to make something hilarious,” she wrote.
As of Oct. 24 Chloe had raised $913. Her goal was $600.