PLEA FOR UNITY
Recently last week someone wrote a diary suggesting that Texas be "demonized". Why are people bashing and throwing rocks at Texas? Could it be because our Presnit has made his residence in our state? Many people do not know that George W. Bush was actually born in the state of Connecticut. Anybody can come to Texas, buy land, build a house, a farm, a ranch. We can't say no to people, don't live here, it's a free country. Why don't we demonize Ohio or Florida? John Kerry needed to win one state to the win the Presidency, and both Ohio and Florida went red and to George W. Bush. I don't think I would ever demonize either state, especially Ohio, and here's why:
On November 17, 1835 the people of Cincinnatti, Ohio were convinced to aid the Texas Revolution. The Ohioans procured two cannon for Texas. The United States took a stance of neutrality toward the rebellion in Texas, so the Cincinnati citizens referred to their cannon as "hollow ware". Two guns, probably six pounders, were manufactured at the foundry of Greenwood & Webb in Cincinnati and shipped down the Mississippi to New Orleans. From New Orleans the guns were shipped aboard the schooner Pennsylvania and taken to Galveston. The cannons arrived in Galveston beginning April 1836. On board the Pennsylvania was the family of Dr. Charles Rice. When the schooner arrived in Galveston, the guns were presented to representatives of Texas by Dr. Rice's twin daughters, Elizabeth and Eleanor. Someone in the crowd noticed the fact there were two sets of twins, the girls and the guns, so the cannon became the Twin Sisters.
There were several attempts to get the Twin Sisters to the Texas Army under General Sam Houston. The Texans were retreating toward the Sabine River before the forces of General Santa Anna. The Twins finally reached the army on April 11, 1836. A thirty man artillery corp was immediately formed to service the guns. Nine days later the Twins saw their first action during a skirmish on April 20. The next day April 21, 1836 saw the battle of San Jacinto and fame for the Twin Sisters. That afternoon near the banks of the Buffalo Bayou the Texas Army attacked the unsuspecting Mexican troops. The Twins were probably near the center of the Texan line of battle, and ten yards in advance of the infantry. Their first shots were fired at a distance of 200 yards, and their fire was credited with helping to throw the Mexican force into confusion and aiding the infantry attack. Ker-boom! Ker-boom! The loud reports from the Twin Sisters was like music to the ears of the Texas infantrymen and spurred them on. The Twins fired handfulls of musket balls, glass, and horseshoes, as this was their only ammunition the Texans had for the guns. The rest is history. The Mexican Army was defeated and the Republic of Texas was born.
Now the point I am trying to make is if the citizens of Ohio had not sent the Twin Sisters Texas may not be here. We all might be speaking Spanish, and the Mexicans crossing the Red River into Oklahoma, instead of the Rio Grande into Texas. Texas could have been a Mexican state.
Like the citizens of Ohio we need to be putting all our resources, energy, pooling our money, and our ideas together, and working together, instead of against each other. Lets throw our rocks at the Republicans and the extreme religious right, and not at each other. When we fight amongst ourselves, it only makes the Republicans stronger.
Texas has been blue about 133 years and did not start going red until the days of Ronald Reagan and Pappy George H.W. Bush decided to move the Bush clan to Houston, Texas. It got worse when Tom "Bugman" Delay decided to sit his can of bug spray down and enter politics. Texas has not been the same since. Texas Kos was formed to help make Texas more progressive. If you haven't done so please join us.