Guest Column: Red State, Purple Legislation

• by Mark P. Jones
• June 18, 2013 (June 13, 2013 for Subscribers)

On Nov. 6, Texas reaffirmed its status at the ballot box as the reddest of the nation’s major states, with Mitt Romney winning 57 percent of the vote to Barack Obama’s 41 percent. Simultaneously, Republicans garnered 24 of 36 seats in the congressional delegation, 19 of 31 in the state Senate and 95 of 150 of the seats in the state House.

Texas Democrats exercised considerable influence over the legislative process during the 2013 regular session this spring, in contrast with their relative impotence last fall. While the November election results were unequivocally red — Democrats won a mere 12 of 31 senators and 55 of 150 representatives — the legislation passed during the session was decidedly purple.

Read more: The Texas Tribune - Red State, Purple Legislation

If fast food advertising worked, my purchases at such establishments would be very different. I don't care for the Whataburger marketing, but their burger is my choice among fast food restaurants. They outshine hamburgers from Sonic, Jack in the Box, Wendy's, Burger King, and McDonald's. I get mine all the way, with jalapenos and bacon added, mustard and mayonnaise. That's slurping good, and a complete meal. It's all my major food groups: bacon, beef, jalapenos, onions, pickles, tomatoes, bun and condiments. Each fast food chain has something I like on their menu. If I'm pulling into McDonald's, I'm there to get a sausage biscuit. Theirs is the best. The biscuit is not undercooked. It has a nice butter flavor to it. The sausage is uniform in size and consistency, and tasty. I don't care for their commercials. Wendy's makes the best chili of the burger chains. Theirs is a good, hearty chili and a good meal if one is hungry now and plans to eat again in a few hours. But what is it with the crackers? I want to meet the executive at Wendy's who said "four crackers is enough for a bowl of chili!" Must I always ask for more crackers, Wendy's? Wendy's also makes a nice desert treat called a Frosty, a delicious chocolate ice cream like treat. I don't know what it's made of and don't care. I will eat a Frosty if given the chance. Wendy's has a fairly new direction in their commercials, with a red haired "Wendy" as their emblem. She's pleasant and joyful, and that communicates well. I love Jack in the Box commercials. They are the among funniest commercials on television. But it comes back to the menu and values. If I'm pulling into Jack in the Box, I'm probably buying their Spicy Chicken Sandwich. It's kind of pricey, but it is very tasty. A trip to Jack in the Box often includes my obligatory purchase of some tacos. They're not awesome tacos, but they are two for a dollar! I'll take four! At that price I can't afford not to eat them. Sonic has a foot long Coney that is delicious. The price is right and it is a meal. It's really a foot long or better. With mustard, chili and onions. I don't know how many calories I cut by not having cheese on it, but I like to pretend it is two hundred calories. Sonic has a chicken strips meal that is a decent meal. If you're there after 8 pm, you may have to get their milk shakes at half price. At four dollars, I can turn down their eight hundred calories of chocolate milk shake, but at two dollars, I'm a buyer! Sonic has managed to enter the "funny" competition in its commercials with two goofy guys talking about the menu. Of all the burger commercials, Burger King's appeal the least to me. I can eat a Whopper every couple of months, and do. Something about the sauce they put on them and the grilled flavor of the burger. I don't want it most of the time, but several times a year I'll buy one and enjoy it. The King is kind of creepy, though. Might be time for a totally new approach to selling those. Hey, wait a minute. Maybe television advertising does work on me.


© 2013, Jim “Pappy” Moore,
All Rights Reserved.
Jim “Pappy” Moore is a native son of East Texas who still makes the piney woods his home. oaktreefm58@juno.com