The State of Texas: October 12, 2015

Instagram Monday

Ain’t nothin’ holds George H.W. Bush—or the Astros, apparently—back. Bush, joined by his wife Barbara, threw out the first pitch during the Astros game against the Royals on Sunday. Considering how well the postseason is going, perhaps the team should rub Barbara’s head for good luck before every game.

Former President George H.W. Bush takes a baseball from former First Lady Barbara Bush throwing out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 3 of the #ALDS between the #Astros & #Royals. ( Brett Coomer / Houston Chronicle ) @bcoomer713

A photo posted by Houston Chronicle (@houstonchron) on Oct 11, 2015 at 8:11pm PDT

Daily Roundup

Remembering the Alamo — If you thought defending the Alamo was hard, try navigating the complications surrounding its upkeep. The Associated Press took a look at the historic site and its surrounding properties ongoing $48 million facelift. The state has been working to buy the nearby properties containing the wonderfully tacky Ripley’s Believe It … Or Not and the Guinness World Records Museum. Davis Phillips, the owner of those businesses, has his doubts about the impact of relocating businesses around the Alamo. “What I’m trying to tell everybody is that San Antonio is the No. 1 destination for leisure (in Texas) so let’s be careful to not harm that,” Davis said.

Cop Soap Opera — The story surrounding the execution-style death of Harris County Deputy Darren Goforth took a strange turn when an investigator with the case admitted to “sexual contact with a witness during the investigation,” according to ABC. The witness appears to be the same woman Goforth was supposedly seeing during the time of his death. That aspect of the case has been an important one for the defense of alleged killer Shannon Miles, whose lawyer contends that Goforth was not killed while on official duty, but as a regular citizen meeting up for a tryst. How that defense plays out will likely determine how Miles will be charged. The investigator involved in the relationship has been suspended, though it has allowed Miles’s lawyer to “question the integrity of the Sheriff’s Office’s investigation,” writes the Houston Chronicle. “Authorities there said the incident was an ‘anomaly’ and pledged to keep working with the district attorney’s office as the case moves forward.”

#Winning — It was a good weekend in Texas for winning games. Pretty much everyone agrees the University of Texas’s victory against Oklahoma in the Red River Rivalry was a “long shot,” but a win’s a win and it was very much needed. USA Today went as far as saying that the game was super great for “Charlie Strong, team unity, team identity” (can one game do that?). Meanwhile, the Astros beat the Royals 4-2 in game three of the ALDS. But the team is still crossing its fingers. As the Houston Chronicle notes: “The next step is just one win away now, as the Astros pulled ahead 2-1 in the ALDS and Monday can clinch a chance to play for the AL pennant in the Championship Series — a series that might just pit them against the team that beat them out for the West division title, the Rangers.” Speaking of the Rangers, they weren’t as lucky in their game three against the Blue Jays, losing 5-1. Considering the momentum of Texas sports wins, however, spirits are high going into game four, which both teams play Monday.

Plastic Packin’ Petes — College kids protest in the darndest ways. While a forum about guns on campus is all well and good, a sexy demonstration is much better. “Hundreds of students at the University of Texas at Austin will protest a new law that will allow more guns on campus not with signs or sit-ins, but by ‘strapping gigantic swinging dildos to our backpacks,'” writes the Houston Chronicle. The chant, of course, is “Cocks Not Glocks.” “More than 330 people had signed up to participate by Saturday morning. The ‘strap in’ will occur on Aug. 24, 2016, the first day of next year’s fall semester. The event was created the same day one student was killed and another wounded in a shooting at Texas Southern University, and just days after other deadly shootings on campuses in Oregon and Arizona.” Even better, “”ANYBODY can participate in solidarity: alum, non-UT students, people outside of Texas,” [said the protest’s organizer] “Come one dildo, come all dildos.”