This question could go to either party in a different situation; it just happens to be about the fix the Republicans are in, in this instance. There is a sense that the Republican controlled House, Senate, and Presidency must pass a tax cut so they can demonstrate to their constituents that they really can do what they say they are going to do, and deserve re-election at the mid-terms in 2018. If they don’t have any accomplishments to run on in 2018 they could get rejected. But the tax cut they are trying to pass has something like a 20% public approval rating. I’m trying to find the logic, but all I can see is a lose-lose. If they don’t pass anything they’ll be seen as ineffective. But how do you prove you’re effective, and win favor, by passing a law that people don’t want?
We went on a great parakeet hunt
The challenge was not just to find parakeets, it was to find any parakeet that didn’t look like all the other green parakeets coming in to roost in McAllen at dusk. Our search started at 10th and Dove, and took us north to Trenton, north again to the Best Buy store, east to McColl and Trenton, then back for another trip up and down 10th Street. We scoured the wires with our binoculars and found hundreds of green parakeets.
And *one* little yellow-chevroned parakeet!
Year bird! Parakeets in the sunset.
And *one* little yellow-chevroned parakeet!Year bird! Parakeets in the sunset. Long-tailed duck
A hundred miles north of Brownsville, in a pond outside Riveria.
Hanging out with coots, mottled ducks, a couple redheads, and a bunch of lesser scaup.
You can’t really see the long tail, but the color is distinctive.
Year-bird!
Hanging out with coots, mottled ducks, a couple redheads, and a bunch of lesser scaup. You can’t really see the long tail, but the color is distinctive. Year-bird! Tamaulipas crow
You may not have heard of it. It’s a bird with a limited range in dry northeastern Mexico; not normally found in the United States. It’s a small crow, bigger than a bronzed cowbird, but about the same size as a great-tailed grackle. It was here in South Texas for a while, then disappeared for a few years. Suddenly, it’s back. At the Brownsville Dump! So Judy and I made the trek. When we got there we were in luck right off the bat. There was a group of birders standing around a scope pointed at a bunch of blackbirds. Here:
In this section:
Next to a bronzed cowbird.
The size of a grackle, but with a crow face!
Tamaulipas Crow. Not only a year-bird, but a lifer!
In this section: Next to a bronzed cowbird. The size of a grackle, but with a crow face! Tamaulipas Crow. Not only a year-bird, but a lifer! The elusive javelina
Warily takes his turn at the watering hole.
Thirst sated, he bounds back to the safety of the African bush.
