Among the odd sights I’ve seen in Austin perhaps none can match seeing Kinky Friedman speak from the Texas Senate Chamber. My friend and I made it to Austin Saturday for the Texas Book Festival on the State Capitol grounds just in time to hear the independent gubernatorial candidate, the Kinkster, speak.
Now I will admit it was rather odd to hear what was almost a pure political speech at an event in which books and writing are celebrated. But then again, Kinky is a mystery writer. He did a hell of a lot better at that gig than fronting the Texas Jewboys. Although, I did see Kinky and the Jewboys playing with Bob Dylan on the Rolling Thunder Review Tour back in the mid-70s in Hattiesburg, Miss. Just the fact that Kinky sang a song called “I’m Proud to be an Asshole from El Paso” was enough to endear the man to me for life.
Just how serious Kinky is about becoming governor of Texas, I don’t know. It’s one hell of a long shot. But he speaks more and more like he really is serious. And he makes some sense, at times. The photo above that I took this morning outside an Austin strip-mall church shows how big an issue the November General Election proposition to ban gay marriage in Texas is to a lot of folks. Kinky, who repeated his one-liner about supporting gay marriage “because they should be just as miserable as everybody else,” nonetheless made a very salient point in his speech.
He said people are all obsessing over gay marriage. Meanwhile, “Texas is last in education and first in executions. You do the math,” says Kinky.
Then again, if the gays are allowed to marry, the next thing you know they’ll be teaching evolution in high school science classes in Texas. I don’t guess we can have that can we?