Comment to Carlos Mendoza

In Carlos Mendoza's post focusing on the abuse and misappropriation of money in our political figures, he blames the politicians for their errant behavior but I garner a different opinion. When Attourney General Ken Paxton uses $78,000 in expenses for trips and Governor Greg Abbott spends about $147,000 dollars of campaign money for travel expenses, I think it merely reinforces my beliefs that it is not the politician's duty to curb their spending, but rather that the responsibility lies within the people to note when corruption is happening. Because let's face it, politics and corruption go hand in hand, yet the only way conniving businessmen find their way into such arenas is only through the people.

Carlos states that "there is no policing net that can prevent such things", yet I respectfully disagree. It is our duty as citizens to note when corruption is happening and to hold those accountable when it violates the promises to which they stand on. But yet I speak more on an ideal while Mr. Mendoza speaks about reality, because truthfully, most people have resigned themselves into thinking that their opinions don't matter. Many think that no one cares about such far away things so it's okay to not care themselves, and that misappropriation of funds is not something to fuss about. Yet for people who care so much about their freedoms, often they can forget that political activism is just another extension of their rights, and that corruption does not need be so rampant. I think Carlos's article is indicative not of our state politician's greed, but of the general apathy people feel toward political injustice.

Editorial: Eagle Ford Town's Residents Disgusted by Waste Site's Approval

Posted on the Texas Tribune on May 3rd, environmentally-focused writer Jim Malewitz, shines a spotlight on the small town of Nordheim, a population of 316 which will soon have to face a 143 acre facility to store waste. Driving two hours north at a time, local residents fought the decision to approve the construction of the facility to Texas regulators in Austin, and finally lost this Tuesday. Now, as the small town will now have to prepare as oil based muds, fracking sad, and various toxic oilfield leftovers potentially pollute the air and possibly other areas of life. 

Now on the other hand, with so many potential problems of runoff, air polution and general complaints, Commissioner Ryan Sitton says "the margin of error is exceptionally small".  Developers claim it to be a highly engineered landfill so that residents of the small town will not be disturbed. Yet they already are. While this could bring in business and create better infrastructure for the small town of "cracked local roads", this was land that was forcefully taken from residents and nature that will be disturbed by major construction. Whether they construct this well or not, this was a case of a little town being taken advantage of. With more than 200 people protesting the creation of a landfill so close to their day to day life, it is sad to see that nothing will come of it, that because of a lack of representation, will find their lives disrupted by the coming and going of cement trucks and whatever else will arise from the consequences of this decision.