![Map of NATO members colored by accession year]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/nato-members-by-year-to-2023-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":4626},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/nato-members-by-year-to-2023-270x152.jpg","width":270,"filesize":9452},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/nato-members-by-year-to-2023-475x267.jpg","width":475,"filesize":22687},"jaw_blog-16_9-big":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/nato-members-by-year-to-2023-878x494.jpg","width":878,"filesize":55403},"large":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/nato-members-by-year-to-2023-1024x1024.jpg","width":1024,"filesize":129706}})
Time for NATO to Fold Its Tent and Go Home?
By Rick Ehrlich We are told often that NATO is a wonderful, worthwhile organization that keeps the world safe. Smoke and mirrors, baby. NATO was started post-war, in 1949, chartered
![Caricature firefighter pouring fuel on LGBTQ+ rights]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.hrh_.June04-2025-170x95.png","width":170,"filesize":13556},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.hrh_.June04-2025-270x152.png","width":270,"filesize":30592},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.hrh_.June04-2025-475x267.png","width":475,"filesize":84770}})
Accept nothing less than complete equality and acceptance
By Johnny Trlica Commentary: Seems like old times. Pride Month is here again and once again we are compelled to demand equality while under hostile fire. All those battles we’ve
![Smiling glamorous person with voluminous dark hair]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.star_.WEB-PHOTO.roxanne.June04-2025-170x95.jpeg","width":170,"filesize":5205},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.star_.WEB-PHOTO.roxanne.June04-2025-270x152.jpeg","width":270,"filesize":9234},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.star_.WEB-PHOTO.roxanne.June04-2025-475x267.jpeg","width":475,"filesize":21661},"jaw_blog-16_9-big":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.star_.WEB-PHOTO.roxanne.June04-2025-878x494.jpeg","width":878,"filesize":54024},"large":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.trlica.star_.WEB-PHOTO.roxanne.June04-2025-1024x752.jpeg","width":1024,"filesize":81790}})
Roxanne Collins
...my rights as a trans woman have already been stripped away, and more are under threat. I see online that many LGBs want to divorce from the Ts.
![Person striking dramatic pose in red light]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.Tripi_.Ishida.PHOTO2_.June04-2025-170x95.png","width":170,"filesize":23464},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.Tripi_.Ishida.PHOTO2_.June04-2025-270x152.png","width":270,"filesize":34627},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.Tripi_.Ishida.PHOTO2_.June04-2025-286x267.png","width":286,"filesize":48640}})
KINDNESS, HUMILITY, RESPECT, REGARD
My work is about the human experience: loss, love, fear, struggle, and regard for others. So ultimately, it’s the stories in life that provide my ideas.
![Historic city building illuminated in rainbow lights]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.ford_.waw_.pride_.PHOTO_.June04-2025-170x95.png","width":170,"filesize":29716},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.ford_.waw_.pride_.PHOTO_.June04-2025-270x152.png","width":270,"filesize":49502},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.ford_.waw_.pride_.PHOTO_.June04-2025-475x267.png","width":475,"filesize":108211},"jaw_blog-16_9-big":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/334.ford_.waw_.pride_.PHOTO_.June04-2025-498x494.png","width":498,"filesize":182225}})
Get your Pride on
In the last Texas legislature alone, 160 bills arose, restricting freedom for LGBTQ folks — especially the Ts.
![Man standing behind bar shelves with bottles]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Alex-bartender-WEB-PHOTO-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":17669},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Alex-bartender-WEB-PHOTO-270x152.jpg","width":270,"filesize":25389},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Alex-bartender-WEB-PHOTO-475x267.jpg","width":475,"filesize":47123}})
Robert’s Lafitte’s Alex Keller
Find mixologist Alex Keller at Galveston's historic Robert's Lafitte bar.
![Elderly man in glasses holding jacket]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Jim-Nonus-WEB-PHOTO-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":9732},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Jim-Nonus-WEB-PHOTO-270x152.jpg","width":270,"filesize":12397},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Jim-Nonus-WEB-PHOTO-475x267.jpg","width":475,"filesize":20381}})
GALVESTON’S RENAISSANCE MAN
Galveston is known for its lore of pirates and Jean Lafitte. The island still has many great treasures and one of them, certainly, is Jim Nonus!
![Black pot logo with "dubu dubu" text]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/4.Dubu-Dubu-logo-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":4084},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/4.Dubu-Dubu-logo-225x152.jpg","width":225,"filesize":6665}}){kind=logo}
Dubu Dubu: a treasure found just under the radar
By Jim Ayres There are treasures to be found at under the radar joints that have opened quietly in recent months — places like Dubu Dubu, on Richmond across from
![New potatoes spilling from burlap sack]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/AdobeStock_53070616-170x95.jpeg","width":170,"filesize":24463},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/AdobeStock_53070616-270x152.jpeg","width":270,"filesize":29610},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/AdobeStock_53070616-475x267.jpeg","width":475,"filesize":45056},"jaw_blog-16_9-big":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/AdobeStock_53070616-878x494.jpeg","width":878,"filesize":87910},"large":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/AdobeStock_53070616-1024x733.jpeg","width":1024,"filesize":112830}})
Starch is your friend, not your enemy
If you are ever stuck on an island and all they grow is potatoes, you’ll be good. And the fact that you can make vodka from potatoes is an added plus.
![Cartoon girl spells "hypocrite" about Republican]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/HRH-HYPOCRITE-WEB-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":20136},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/HRH-HYPOCRITE-WEB-270x152.jpg","width":270,"filesize":23926},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/HRH-HYPOCRITE-WEB-475x267.jpg","width":475,"filesize":34938},"jaw_blog-16_9-big":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/HRH-HYPOCRITE-WEB-878x494.jpg","width":878,"filesize":60800}})
You can’t spell Hypocrite without a G, O and P
It may be understandable to defend elected officials of your own tribe, but don’t be a hypocrite about it. It makes your argument ineffective and weak.
![Two men in sunglasses taking festival selfie]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WEB-2025-Bunnies-KentonDerick-copy-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":21791},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WEB-2025-Bunnies-KentonDerick-copy-270x152.jpg","width":270,"filesize":31891},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/WEB-2025-Bunnies-KentonDerick-copy-475x267.jpg","width":475,"filesize":67568}})
Houston Pride Turns Out for Annual Bunnies on the Bayou
Coming together on April 20 for Bunnies is our way of uniting and saying that we are here to stay. Or to quote the late Harvey Milk: Hope Will Never Be Silent!
![Hand controlling marionette puppet on strings]({"jaw_blog-16_9-small":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/AdobeStock_881837854-WEB-PUPPET-170x95.jpg","width":170,"filesize":14925},"jaw_blog-16_9-middle":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/AdobeStock_881837854-WEB-PUPPET-270x152.jpg","width":270,"filesize":17922},"jaw_blog-16_9":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/AdobeStock_881837854-WEB-PUPPET-475x267.jpg","width":475,"filesize":26058},"jaw_blog-16_9-big":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/AdobeStock_881837854-WEB-PUPPET-878x494.jpg","width":878,"filesize":49989},"large":{"file":"https:\/\/montrosestar.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/AdobeStock_881837854-WEB-PUPPET-1024x682.jpg","width":1024,"filesize":61953}})
Who Owns our Congress?
The open scandal of PAC political contributions and lobbyist gifts By Rick Ehrlich Many Americans still believe we live in a Democracy. Ha. A Democracy is government by the people,