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UT-Arlington Graduate Threatens To Sue If Maine Enforces Ebola Quarantine

Igor Stevanovic
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Five stories that have North Texas talking: A nurse and UT Arlington grad is pushing back against forced Ebola quarantines, Republican Dan Patrick has avoided the media in his campaign, what keeps affluent North Texans up at night, and more.

The Associated Press reports a nurse and UT Arlington graduate is threatening court action if Maine pushes its Ebola quarantine. Kaci Hickox was previously isolated in a New Jersey hospital over the weekend after returning from West Africa. Hickox was volunteering with Doctors Without Borders and helped care for Ebola patients.

New Jersey and New York ordered mandatory quarantines for any healthcare worker arriving from West Africa after a New York doctor tested positive for the virus last week. Hickox tested negative for the Ebola virus, but still spent the weekend in a quarantine tent. After threatening legal action, she allowed to return to Maine, where she currently lives.

Watch her interview with the NBC’s “Today” show below:

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  • The Republican candidate for lieutenant governor has not been seen stumping for votes like his Democratic opponent. KERA’s Shelley Kofler reports Dan Patrick has canceled media interviews and community appearances, choosing to communicate mostly through television ads and social media. His campaign spokesperson Alejandro Garcia says Patrick prefers communicating with voters directly through social media. “I know it frustrates the media they don’t get to put their spin on it, which works to the advantage of the candidate.  When you do post things to Facebook and use social media you get to dictate what happens,” Garcia said.

  • A new poll by the Texas Tribune and the University of Texas found that more Texans are supporting same sex unions. Although 47 percent of the registered voters said they opposed same sex marriage, that number dropped to 39 percent when civil unions were added to the question. The numbers varied along party lines and those who frequently attended religious services.  “The culture war is a lot more complex than you think,” said Daron Shaw, a professor of government at the University of Texas. “The way in which you execute it does matter. What you really find is that people are subtle. They appreciate conditions and context.”

  • Even the most affluent North Texans have budgeting worries. The Dallas Business Journal reports only 19 percent of affluent individuals feel they’ve made good budgeting decisions this year. The reason? Merrill Lynch officials behind the study say that as North Texans begin to clear their debt, it leaves them free to worry about other financial issues: saving for the future and retirement.

  • A team from UT Dallas have turned the popular game Minecraft into a teaching tool for chemistry. Professors, students and alumni teamed up to build “Polycraft World.” Similar to Minecraft, Polycraft World allows players to build worlds from scratch using 3D cubes, but while Polycraft players build flamethrowers, they also learn about chemical refinery as well. The game launched last week
Former KERA staffer Krystina Martinez was an assistant producer. She produced local content for Morning Edition and KERANews.org. She also produced The Friday Conversation, a weekly series of conversations with North Texas newsmakers. Krystina was also the backup newscaster for the Texas Standard.