It doesn’t say much for education when the Austin public school system joins in hyping a hurricane hundreds of miles away from its forecast path. They’re letting Mr. B. and his chums out three hours early today.
He called me this morning from a teacher-telephone station on the playground, sounding worried, as of course he would be since he’s in the midst of group-think and not likely getting the local forecast for clear skies this afternoon and only normally-gusty winds tonight with just a forty percent chance of rain. What nonsense. There is some, but only just, concern that the wobbly storm may track farther west than the now-forecast radical curve northeast through East Texas, which would miss us entirely. It’s a wide storm, true enough, but the west side of it, where we’ll be, isn’t likely to carry much wind or rain this far inland.
MORE: Not saying there’s no danger, just that it’s not likely here. Coastal Texas already is seeing flooding with a big storm surge expected to seriously threaten life and property in the Galveston-Houston area. Could be Indianola, 1886, all over again down there. JD, at Mouth of the Brazos, already has fled. Check out this KHOU Houston aerial video of Galveston taken about 4 p.m. Friday showing waves routinely topping the seawall. That can only get worse as Ike crosses the coast.
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 
He. I always suspected that the teachers are as ready to find a reason for splitting as the kids.
More reason this time, it seems.