Texas Teachers Want Districts To Decide Whether To Wear Masks

Today (July 27), the Texas State Teachers Association called for Governor Greg Abbott to allow school districts to decide whether or not they'll put mask requirements in place when students return to classrooms this fall.

KHOU-TV reports that as the Delta variant makes the rounds and COVID-19 cases continue to rise here in Texas, the association wants the governor to allow individual districts to decide for themselves if masks should be required when they reopen.

During a press conference last week, Governor Abbott was asked about a mask mandate for schools. His reply was:

"First and most importantly, everyone needs to take seriously the spread of COVID, and there are different ways to do that. The foremost way is to make sure that everyone receives a vaccine, which is the best way to reduce the spread of COVID. Everyone has had more than a year to master all the same strategies that they can choose what is best for them and their family members will pass the time of government mandates. We're into the time for personal responsibility, and this exactly what we will do."

I don't think his reply really answered the question, but if you had a choice to leave it in his hands or the individual school district's choice to institute a mask mandate, which way would you go?

Personally, I think the safety of our children should come first. I don't think there's a such thing as being "too careful".

Having said that, outside of a medical condition that prohibits you from wearing a mask, I feel all children should have to wear masks when at school and it should absolutely be the school district's choice.

As of yesterday, according to the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, the state of Texas has 1,387 confirmed cases of COVID-19.

The Center For Disease Control is expected to announce that vaccinated people should wear masks as well to help slow the spread of new variants.

What do you think?

12 of Eddie Murphy's Best Movies Ranked

With the recent release of Coming 2 America, the sequel to the classic cult hit made back in 1988, I got to thinking about Eddie Murphy's other classic films. Whether he's talking to animals, wearing purple tight leather doing stand-up, or playing multiple characters in one movie, here are my Top 12 favorite Eddie Murphy Movies of All Time.

7 Seafood Restaurants in Killeen and Harker Heights You Need To Check Out

You don't have to travel to the coast to find great seafood. There are plenty of places right here in Central Texas that serve it up fresh and serve it up right. These are just a handful of our favorites. Did yours make the list? If not, let us know what we should try next!

LOOK: The most expensive weather and climate disasters in recent decades

Stacker ranked the most expensive climate disasters by the billions since 1980 by the total cost of all damages, adjusted for inflation, based on 2021 data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The list starts with Hurricane Sally, which caused $7.3 billion in damages in 2020, and ends with a devastating 2005 hurricane that caused $170 billion in damage and killed at least 1,833 people. Keep reading to discover the 50 of the most expensive climate disasters in recent decades in the U.S.