Five stories that have North Texas talking: The Austin-San Antonio breakfast taco debacle has escalated; Super Tuesday’s results could go one of six ways; Texans think it’s hard to see a doctor these days; KERA News launched its latest digital project, One Crisis Away: Rebuilding A Life; and more.
It's (sort of) official — Austin and San Antonio are engaged in a taco war. The beginnings of the feud are hard to pinpoint. It was either the article some guy from New York wrote a week and a half ago for Eater Austin about the state capital's claim on the origins of the breakfast taco. Or, who knows, this war could have been a long time coming. Either way, things escalated quickly since Matthew Sedacca's article ran, outraging San Antonians so much that they created an actual petition to exile the poor guy.
Moreover, the San Antonio Current didn't respond with a think piece to "#tacogate2016" but rather doled out 26 breakfast taco spots that would make Austin quiver in its boots. By Saturday morning at UT's largest community event of the year, Mayor Steve Adler had had it. It was war. The Austin American-Statesman recorded Adler's declaration from the scene:
“Now some may look out at you and see 1,500 shining examples of volunteerism and virtue, but I see something greater,” he told the crowd of student volunteers. “I see our army in a war against San Antonio. As your commander in chief for the Breakfast Taco War, it is my solemn duty to inform you that after you have selflessly given of yourselves, I will be drafting you into the Great Breakfast Taco War of 2016.”
There you have it. Our state is in some sort of civil war over breakfast. But stranger things have happened in Texas. [Austin American-Statesman, San Antonio Current]
- Before the numbers officially come in, here’s how Super Tuesday elections could play out. NPR posited six different scenarios for the big day for both the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates. More than a dozen states will vote today, but Texas is the biggest prize for both sides of the ballot, awarding 155 Republican delegates and 222 Democratic delegates. Ponder the six scenarios and read why “your primary vote really does count.” [NPR, The Dallas Morning News]
- Meet four families who are rebuilding their lives after surviving the tornados that ripped through North Texas on Dec. 26. “Rebuilding A Life” is the latest installment of One Crisis Away, the KERA News series about people living on the financial edge. Each week throughout March, reporter Courtney Collins will introduce listeners to a new family from Garland and Rowlett — the two hardest hit cities — to show the many obstacles that follow surviving a sudden natural disaster. The project also includes an interactive checklist to Build Your Own Tornado Kit. Explore One Crisis Away: Rebuilding A Life. [KERA News]
- On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will revisit a 1992 abortion case from Texas to potentially redefine the abortion restrictions set in 2013. The Texas Tribune reported: “On Wednesday, the court is expected to revisit the standards set by [Planned Parenthood vs. Casey] — and potentially redefine the next era of abortion restrictions in the United States — when it takes upa legal challenge to Texas’ 2013 abortion restrictions, collectively known as House Bill 2. The Texas case, formally known as Whole Woman’s Health v. Hellerstedt, will allow the court to address disagreements among lower courts over what constitutes an undue burden and clarify how far states can go in restricting abortion.” Read more. [The Texas Tribune]
- Almost one in five people in Texas says it’s gotten harder to see a doctor in the past two years. Texans more than any other group of American adults are likely to feel this way, according to a new poll from NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard T-H Chan School of Public Health. KERA’s Breakthroughs reported: “About 70 percent of plans available on healthcare.gov in Texas are size small according to Dan Polsky of the University of Pennsylvania. Staying on top of which doctors are in or out of network is hard for administrators as well as patients.” Read more. [KERA News]
