Covering the civil-rights movement was a mind- and eye-opener for me. Houston was a segregated society, as was Texas as a whole - some of it by law, a lot of it by fear and tradition. But there was no violence where I lived, and if there was hate, it was either concealed from me or I just didn't recognize it.

I can say with confidence I know a fair bit about LSD.

A tough lesson in life that one has to learn is that not everybody wishes you well.

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I don't back down. I don't cave when the pressure gets too great from these partisan political ideological forces.

Ratings don't last. Good journalism does.

I still love following and thinking about politics. I enjoy recommending important journalism I read or see from other sources.