Bet McGruff knows when January starts.

It seems that the state wants to cram in a lot of public education about the risk from stalkers in the end of the month. This Wednesday, First Lady Anita Perry and Rep. Valinda Bolton, D-Austin, will proclaim January 2008 the first ever Stalking Awareness Month in Texas.

Which sort of begs the question: if they wanted to make this stalking awareness month, wouldn’t it have been a good idea to do it, say, before the beginning of the month, rather than with nine days to go? Especially since it coincides with National Stalking Awareness Month, which has been going since 2004.

This article appears in January 18 • 2008.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.