To the Editor: Since when did Americans start believing government propaganda? Who ordered the FBI to censor stories it did not like and writers it feared? How did we wake up one morning to find our president impeached over a phone call? Or to see the House Speaker tearing up the State of the Union message on national TV? Or barring members of congress from serving on their assigned committees? When did we give the FBI the right to subvert the campaign of a candidate it disliked? Was it legal for one presidential candidate to hire a foreign ex-spy to subvert the campaign of her rival? Was some law passed allowing biological males to compete in female sports? Did the Supreme Court guarantee that biological males students could shower in gym locker rooms with biological females? When did the government pass a law depriving Americans of their freedom during a pandemic? When and by whom were health officials allowed to simply cancel rental contracts or declare loan payments in suspension? When has it become illegal for momand- pop stores to sell flowers during a quarantine, but not so for Walmart or Target? Since when did the people decide that 70% of voters would not cast their ballots on Election Day? How did this revolutionary change come about? What happened to Election Night returns? Did electronic ballots and computerized tallies make it take much longer to tabulate the votes? How did the nation abruptly decide that theft is not a crime, assault not a felony? How can thieves walk out with a bag of stolen goods in front of other shoppers and no fear of the law? Was there ever a demand made to account for the terrified withdrawal from Afganistan? Were any apologies made to the families for the lives lost during the flight from that conflict? Has anyone been held accountable for the military equipment left behind for the enemies’use? If 10,000 Russians crossing the Ukraine Border is an invasion, why aren’t 2 million people crossing our Southern Border called an invasion? How can the chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff call his Chinese Communist counterpart to warn him that America’s President is potentially unstable? Since when can generals (active and retired) routinely libel their Commanderin- chief? Not out of questions….just out of time and space. The answer is not more government laws and regulations, it’s not spending more money on education or stronger law enforcement, it’s not greater welfare expenditures.

C The clock is ticking on getting bills out of the House and to the Texas Senate, Lt. Gov.

I attended Radhost School until 4th grade in 1953 when it closed permanently. After that, I attended Hostyn School through eighth grade. While at Radhost, we would have time set aside once a week when one or more of us were required to stand up in front of the whole classroom and tell a story. The classroom consisted of all eight grades with about 35 to 40 students. When it was time to choose who would tell a story, everyone would shout, “Let Flo tell another one!”

T EXAS History A White House errand boy delivered a handwritten message from the President to the Speaker of the House on May 10, 1949. Sam Rayburn left the floor earlier in the day feeling that his passionate defense of an administration bill had been near perfect.

The origins of Mother’s Day as a national commemoration date back to 1914, when President Woodrow Wilson, as the result of an influence campaign led by Anna Jarvis of West Virginia and by the wealthy Philadelphia department store magnate, John Wannamaker, signed a proclamation setting aside the second Sunday in May as a date for honoring motherhood. Never married herself, and never having her own children, Jarvis was inspired by her own mother’s sacrifices made for her children.

Books and DVDs left on the shelves following last weekend’s successful Fayette Public Library book sale have a second chance at ending up in the hands of appreciative readers. “On Monday, May 1, we packed up and helped load a couple of dozen boxes of books for a community service volunteer organization in Austin called Inside Books Project.

May 4, 1973 The La Grange Recreational Association set June 1 as registration day at the pool. Individual annual memberships cost $4 or a lifetime membership was offered for $15.

That Little Voice It’s been an interesting, and stressful, couple of weeks as I returned to the states for my annual visit to doctors of all sorts. This yearly trek puts me in physical touch with my stepdaughter, her husband, and my step-son, as well as a cadre of physicians waiting to prod, poke, and scare the well developed stuffing out of me with all the ‘maybes’ they offer.

Miles of Memories Last month a columnist for the state newspaper posted a piece with this title referring to growing up in the 1950s. During the following days, several letters were written to the editor from people who questioned his view, saying their memory of the era had not been so pleasant.

C The Texas House last Thursday passed two education-related bills, one that allocates $4.5 billion for teacher pay raises and another to increase the annual per-student base funding from $6,160 to $6,300 – a 2.3% increase. The Austin American-Statesman reported the bill would create minimum salaries for teachers ranging from $35,000 to $63,000 depending on experience and level of education.