Can anyone from Texas tell me if the tampon story is legit?

It’s all over the news, including reliable sources. Seems totally legit. Crazy, but true.

They’ve since changed it, but it was happening for a while.

Houston Chronicle

CNN

Texas Tribune

KVUE

Etc.

Tampon band?

I thought I was going to read something about a group of musicians.

No matter how my imagination twisted the possibilities, it didn’t come up with anything as bizarre as the reality. Texas has descended into utter self-parody.

I’m just shocked they allowed vaginas in the capitol building.

@Jeruba Oops, I missed that typo. Fixed it via internal edit, @Pandora. Hope you don’t mind!

Why? Did they think it was a weapon? I don’t get it.

Aw, that spoils the fun a little.

@JLeslie Apparently, they were concerned they’d be used as “projectiles”. Why they’d be worried about tampons, but not, you know, actual projectiles (aka bullets), is beyond me.

Well, tampons are used by women during their cycle, and they are known to be angry, irritable, and surly during that time. Maybe the lawmakers are just trying to fill the Senate chamber with clear thinkers.
What? I could be right…

<Throws tampons at @filmfann>

When I first read the question I thought it was some crazy religious right thing that women should not use them. I couldn’t figure it out. Tampons are one of the greatest inventions of all time.

Tampons are one of the greatest inventions of all time.

I sure do agree with you there, @JLeslie. I was no more than twenty the first time I thought (and said), “I’m glad I didn’t live before the invention of refrigeration and feminine personal products.” Did you know there’s an online Museum of Menstruation? I found it when I was researching some historical information for a piece of fiction. Wonder if this Texas story is going to be added to it.

This abundance of news is a lot to absorb.

Good, old Texas.

@Jeruba You should submit the story.

I agree that the ban on tampons and diabetic supplies etc. is stupid.

It sounds like there is an upper gallery that is open to the floor below. I think they’re trying to prevent people in the gallery from throwing trash and other stuff onto the people below.

Here’s a thought. They could put up a glass partition or a screen that would prevent people from tossing stuff over the rail. Or they could post security guards who could arrest anyone who would toss stuff.

Sorry, Texas legislature. If you can’t stand the rain of tampons, stay out of the vagina.

@Jeruba and @augustlan LOL, I kept staring at it and knew it was wrong and yet it wasn’t registering because spell check didn’t highlight it. Problems with getting use to spell check and old age. Things will fall through the cracks. :(

@filmfann Then they should be equally checking all the guys and taking away their guns. Some of them seem to suffer from vagina fears.
@glacial It seems that texas police couldn’t take the humiliation and went there to stop them. LOL Even law enforcement thinks they are making Texas look bad. Must of been a lot of wives calling. Loved your comment. So true.

The weren’t banning them. They were prohibiting them into the chamber and confiscating the products from protestors. The protestors were planning on throwing them at legislators during a debate on an abortion bill.

Redacted.

Better not take my first aid kit to Texas then. I’ve found tampons to be better for stuffing into wounds to stop bleeding than the more expensive medical equivalents.

@bkcunningham But really. They are afraid of angry protesters with tampons but it was still ok to go in with a gun? Where is the sense in that? It shows the logic they lack.

Did a little more research, they were not worried about the unopened tampons, just the used ones, the bricks and the jars of urine and feces. Someone at DPS evidently got carried away initially.

Really, when you fear used tampons getting tossed your way maybe you shouldn’t be a politician.

I guess a super plus size Carefree tampon vaguely resembles a shot gun cartridge???

@bkcunningham That makes more sense, but it doesn’t explain the diabetic supplies.

At least women weren’t forced to surrender tampons in use!

@bkcunningham prohibiting and confiscating them is, in fact, banning them from the chambers. And beyond what @Pandora said, a large amount of women have a perfectly valid reason to want them on their person. Confiscating them is needlessly invasive.

@WestRiverrat Did they actually find any used tampons in their searches? Or jars of urine or feces? Bricks?

I don’t know about the used tampons, but they did find bricks, 1 jar of urine and 3 jars of feces.

Eww.

Yeah, the jars were apparently a thing, and that I don’t have a problem with them confiscating those, naturally. I did not know about bricks, though.

Also, for the record, there were no tampon throwings that actually occurred as far as I have seen, despite DPS stopping the confiscation partway through. So much for that theory.

@BhacSsylan I would guess if there was some sort of plan to throw tampons it was a token few who were in on it and wanting to participate. It all could have been a rumor that anyone planned to do anything of the sort.

I see no reason why they should be prevented from throwing unused tampons in protest. As to use tampons… way to provide DNA evidence for your own trial. That would be dumb.

But the bigger and more symbolic picture here is that once again, men (the Texas DPS) told women what they could not do with regards to a female issue.

There’s a certain symmetry here.

@elbanditoroso Well, exactly.

What exactly did they tell the women in Texas, @elbanditoroso and/or @glacial?

@bkcunningham – read some of the links at the top of this thread, or google “texas tampons”

No. I mean what do you feel the legislators did to tell women what they could not do in regards to female issues?

Off topic, but George Zimmerman has been found not guilty.

I think it was an attempt to humiliate women protesters from attending the session on the abortion bill which will limit what many women may do or not do with their bodies. The impact of the bill will prevent many poor people from seeking affordable protection and abortion and even gyn exams. This is not simply an abortion bill, this will close the doors to many plan parenthood clinics and will cause more births, and more back door abortions that will result in more deaths. Deaths of both mothers and fetus. This bill is to tell women that the only way to prevent it all is to abstain from sex. That dream is long gone. Why should men get a vote on how women handle their bodies. It is none of their business. I am a women who is pro life but I believe the issue of abortion isn’t so black and white. It is not mine or anyone’s business to force my beliefs on someone else. I do not see this same approach going towards men. They want to tell women to have babies they don’t want, then force the fathers to raise the child and pay for its care. I don’t see that coming up on any votes.