Life, Interrupted

I went to a local semi-regular gathering Friday night, with a few others, and friends who live maybe four long blocks south and two long blocks west asked me if I'd heard about the cougar.

"What cougar?" or something of that ilk was my response.

"The cougar spotted stalking a deer around...what's the street that north of XXX?"

"YYY."

That street! We're talking two blocks south of my house. Apparently TX Parks and Wildlife have found tracks and a seriously gnawed deer carcass.

This is not the first time I've heard about a cougar. There has been one northeast of here in the suburbs. And cougars do appear in the hill country.

I don't want anyone to get hurt. But the poor cougar will be lucky if they can tranquilize him and relocate him quickly.

Apparently it's rather big. I do not have a confirmed size, but let's say bigger than I want in my back yard.

Welcome to Texas, where the Old West is only a block away....

This link goes to an article in the Washington Post. It came out in December, 2005. Granted, I have been ill and don't read the local paper that often--but with all the other hysteria (much of it deserved) going on about the wiretapping, Gitmo, etc. this just flew by under the radar.
( Polite rant follows )
Why do I bring this up now? Because the White House requested the Supreme Court to allow them to join Texas in defending the redistricting plan before the court, and that request was granted today.
My only hope is that 100 years from now, this administration will be seen as the most corrupt in history, and remain a specter haunting our government at how close we brushed to fascism.

I trust we will in the end dodge this bullet. But it will be close.