Opinion

Body A 26-page report from the Texas Comptroller concludes that the state needs 306,000 additional homes, a shortage that has sent housing costs soaring, The Texas Tribune reported.

Body All anybody needs to know about a free economy is alive and well thanks to social-media flea markets, such as Facebook Marketplace.

Body Here’s a story that is growing bigger by the day: Cyber scams are on the rise. My elderly family member fell for a common scam a few weeks ago: His screen appeared be locked by “Microsoft” and he was urged to call the number the phony security alert displayed.

Body The dog-day heat wave has sent power demands to new records, the Austin American- Statesman reported. With much of the state enduring an excessive heat warning, power demand peaked at 85,559 megawatts last week, breaking a record set last August.

Body Welcome to another installment of Things You Should Do Before a Wild Saturday Night Consists of Cruising the Aisles at Walgreen s for Prune Juice and Denture Adhesive!

Body CAPITAL HIGHLIGHTS As Texans endure the dog days of summer, experts say deaths related to heat in Texas and nationwide are likely undercounted, the Texas Standard reported. With climate change causing warmer days and nights, last year was the hottest on record in Texas.

Body Texas public schools received more than $19 billion in pandemic relief funds over the last four years, but that pipeline of cash will largely end on Sept. 30, The Texas Tribune reported.

Body With school back in full swing, I’d like to say a few words about teachers, without whom none of us would know what in the heck to do with the word “whom.” I come from a long-ish line of teachers myself.

Body A federal investigation into five state facilities concluded children in custody face excessive force, sexual abuse and a lack of vital services, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Body I’ve heard it said that things happen in threes, especially tragedies, deaths and doses of Pepto Bismol after a big Tex-Mex dinner. My own three defining experiences over the past few weeks can’t be described as tragedies, per se, so I’ll refer to them as catastrophes, instead.