Opinions

Abbott lays out seven top priorities Gov. Greg Abbott, in a State of the State address last Thursday, outlined his seven top priorities for the ongoing legislative session before an invitation-only audience at a manufacturing facility in San Marcos, the Austin American- Statesman reported. Those priorities include $4 billion for border security, property tax relief and more school choice for parents, which he called “education freedom.” He avoided use of the word “vouchers.’

After watching the damage done to Austin neighborhoods by the ice storms of last week and the number of homes who have lost power for five or more days, I want to express sincere appreciation and gratitude to our Mayor Jane Hughson, the City Council and the McCoy Tree Surgeons of Oklahoma. Their actions over the last few years have significantly reduced the number of power outages from falling limbs or trees in our city.

DEAR ABBY: My partner and I recently had a baby, and it has created some major issues with my mom and in-laws. Mom is an unhappy person who blames others and external factors for her unhappiness. She laments her unhappiness to me. She’s incredibly jealous of any time we spend with my partner’s family. She makes mean comments about them to me and questions the amount of time we spend with them.

All my father ever wanted as a young man was to marry my mother and start a family — plans that were interrupted when he was drafted into the Army during the Korean conflict.