Here are the stories on Texas Standard for Wednesday, March 3, 2021.
Gov. Greg Abbott is reopening Texas. He has announced the state mandate to wear masks will be rescinded next week. Allie Morris, an Austin bureau correspondent for The Dallas Morning News, talks to the Standard about what the governor said yesterday. Reactions to Gov Abbott’s announcement yesterday have been mixed. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg talks to the Standard about why he thinks it is a mistake.
Since Winter Storm Uri left, there’s been an overwhelming demand for repair workers. Homeowners are especially scrambling to find plumbers to diagnose and fix leaks and water heaters damaged during the power and water outages. Texas Public Radio’s Carson Frame reports from San Antonio on how Texas put new rules so more qualified people can join the effort.
Exotic animal ranches offer hunters a chance to hunt an animal from far-flung corners of the planet without straying too far from home. But importing animals from other climates has consequences. Take for instance the axis deer, a species from India. It was brought to Texas in the 1930s as a game animal and now they’re all over the Hill Country. But during the Texas freeze a few weeks ago, the axis deer did not fare well. Wes Ferguson, senior editor at Texas Monthly, talks to the Standard.
Texas Climate Scientists Letter
In an open letter published in The Dallas Morning News, a group of Texas climate scientists are urging the state to take the threat of climate change seriously and prepare accordingly. Leading the charge is Ginny Catania, a professor at UT’s Jackson School of Geosciences.
Over time and during conquest, comida casera – home cooking of Texas Mexican families – sustained indigenous identity and memory. Cooking deer, cactus and tortillas, women led the cultural resistance against colonization. The documentary “Truly Texas Mexican” tells the story of the racism that erased Native American history and celebrates the food of a community.
All this and Texas News Roundup, plus Social Media Editor Wells Dunbar with the talk of Texas.
