It's fitting, perhaps, that within a week of Molly Ivins passing away, this article appears to remind us of the bizarre beast that is Texas politics. Gov. Rick Perry has signed an executive order forcing middle school girls to be vaccinated against HPV (a virus that can cause cervical cancer) in order to attend public schools. While I'm all for vaccinations myself, I'm guessing Gov. Perry is going to take a hit in his popularity when Texan families find out they have to shell out for a vaccine for an STD for their 11 year old daughters.

I also appreciated Perry's spokeswoman giving blatantly misleading information about the powers of the legislature. Contrary to her assertion, the legislature can effectively wipe out the executive order with a contrary law whenever it wants.