Wow!!!

I don't care who you are, that's fast...

(from the Chronicle news services)

Tyson Gay was a blur in blue, sprinting 100 meters faster than anyone in history.

His time of 9.68 seconds at the U.S. Olympic trials Sunday doesn't count as a world record, because it was run with the help of a too-strong tailwind. What does matter is that Gay qualified for his first Summer Games team, serving notice he's someone to watch in Beijing.

"It means a lot to me," the 25-year-old Gay said. "I'm glad my body could do it, because now I know I have it in me."

I watched that last night on TV. I remember watching the race and then, when the time appeared on the bottom of the screen, screaming "Wow!!!" over and over.

Wind aided or no that was an incredible 100 meters.

The Chron's head-in-the-sand reporting on the Astros

It's summertime in Houston. Two things are going to be constants:

1. It's Hot.

2. The Chron is going to roll out pages of bad sports coverage and analysis, especially surrounding the Astros.

Exhibit A: Jose de Jesus Ortiz' mind-numbing tripe on the future of Carlos Lee...

They call him El Caballo. And if you want him out of town, you can get back on the horse you rode in on because Carlos Lee isn't going anywhere.

And he shouldn't go anywhere.

He's among the league leaders in runs batted in, yet some around town keep wondering why the Astros don't trade him.

First of all, he has a no-trade clause that he won't waive. He signed for $8 million less than the San Francisco Giants offered him because he wanted to be near to his prized Brahman cattle in Boling.

Ask Miguel Tejada. Ask Lance Berkman. Ask Wandy Rodriguez, Humberto Quintero, Hunter Pence, Michael Bourn and Jose Valverde what presence and leadership Lee poses in the Astros' clubhouse.

He's accountable before and after games. What did he do in his first season after signing his $100 million deal with the Astros? He played every game, won a Silver Slugger, was an All-Star and the team's MVP.

Before we start: Jose, It's called a leading paragraph. Learn how to write one that doesn't give the readers a migraine. Thank you. ("get back on the horse you rode in on"??)

The reason El Caballo isn't going to be traded is that, last year, the Astros overpaid for a middle of the road slugger with a questionable work ethic. It's not his so-called leadership (leader's run out ground balls), it's not his sparkling defensive play (Left field is an adventure) and its certainly not his stellar offensive numbers (when compared to the rest of the leagues sluggers El Caballo is is "eh"). Nope, there's just not an active market in the league for a slugger with questionable desire and an apparent inability to back away from the buffet. Oh yeah, and one that's still on the hook for around $80 Mil to boot. The one thing that Ortiz got correct is that Lee has a "no-trade" clause in his contract. He's not going anywhere.

Exhibit B: Richard Justice's defense of Cecil Cooper...

Day by day, this baseball season is becoming a referendum on Cooper's competence. This is ridiculous.

It's not always about the manager. Besides, Drayton McLane hasn't even finished paying off Phil Garner, so he's not likely to get around to firing this manager until he gets the last one off the payroll.

Besides, there's no way Cooper should be fired. Not now. Not next month. Firing another manager would make the Astros look sillier than they already do.

Cooper isn't the reason the Astros are buried in the standings. They're losing because they're a lousy baseball team, and they'd be lousy even if Bobby Cox was filling out the lineup card.

Next season is another matter. Cooper must understand his weaknesses and show he has the ability to learn from his mistakes. This season is his only free pass.

No need to make a decision now. By the time this season ends, we'll all know if he deserves another shot.

No manager (or coach) should ever get a "free pass" period. The fact is, if Cecil Cooper doesn't show some drastic improvement in his in-game decision making, there could be a very compelling case to be made that he's not manager material. Of course, the Astros haven't had a competent manager in the clubhouse since Art Howe. During the Biggio/Bagwell era the Astros had a lot of potential, and always lacked someone who could pull the right levers down the stretch. They also had weak managers who abdicated the clubhouse rule to the two stars. The foxes were guarding the chicken coop, and now that the foxes are gone its free reign. There's no control, no guiding force, no rudder for the ship, insert tired cliche here.

If Cecil Cooper can't (or won't) get control of the clubhouse and his players, then it wouldn't be out of bounds to broach the subject of a new manager. It still surprises me that he and pitching coach Dewey Robinson didn't get at least some of the blame for the Shawn Chacon/Ed Wade dustup. Remember, Wade asked Cooper and Robinson to call Chacon into their office, he left, and when he came back the two were still sitting there like Wally and Lumpy with no Chacon. "Gee, I don't know boss, we called the guy but he wouldn't come." The fact is Cooper should have been the heavy in this case, not waited for his general manager (who has a history of bad player relations dating back to Philly BTW {Something you won't find in the pages of the Chroncile}) to come in and play the role of enforcer.

That's the sign of a weak manager, one who's lost effective control of his team.

OTHER EYES:

HouSTONED Ballz.

Rail is contagious.

Now the H-GAC has the fever...

(from Rad Sallee of the Chron)

The first public meeting on a new Regional Commuter Rail Connectivity Study will begin at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Houston-Galveston Area Council offices, 3555 Timmons.

Recommendations in the study, by H-GAC staff and consultants Kimley-Horn and Associates, differ from those in Metro's 2003 transit referendum in several ways.

•The referendum called for commuter rail out U.S. 90A (S. Main) and U.S. 290, but only the latter is in the study. To keep costs down, the study recommends sharing existing low-traffic tracks with freight railroads, but Union Pacific says those on U.S. 90A are too busy to be shared.
•The referendum map also showed potential routes along the Katy Freeway, Westpark, Hardy Toll Road, Texas 3 and Texas 249 (Tomball Parkway), but only the last two are in the study. The other three are shown as possible extensions of Metro's light rail service.
•The study recommends starting with a "baseline" system of five routes: U.S. 290, Texas 3, Texas 249, Texas 35 to Pearland, and — as an alternative to U.S. 90A — a route running south along Almeda (FM 521) and turning west through the middle of Fort Bend County.
•Although the study shows four lines continuing to downtown, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said they ought not duplicate Metro's light rail service. There also is resistance on City Council, and from neighborhoods such as the Heights, to more inner-city trains.

2 things:

1. To my way of thinking this proposal is never going to get off the ground. Already the City of Houston, Heights "activists" and other groups are against any rail that comes near their neighborhood carrying mass quantities of suburbanites into areas that might share their air. Add to that the fact that there is no inner loop development dollars to be had and you have a situation where commuter rail is probably going to be D.O.A.

2. There is a lot of buzz spinning around cyberspace regarding some of the cost estimates in this plan etc. I'm going to let other bloggers handle that and I'm going to focus on something else: Two of the main railroads on this plan are getting the snub before the ink is dry on the planning stages and its obvious that the Chron and other opinion makers are going to do their best to shoot this down before it gets off the ground. You never saw this kind of negative reporting surrounding the Metro Rail, nor did you see an honest assessment of the shortcomings that should have been forseen with at-grade rail on major arteries.

Still, rail is a fever. Expect this to be noisy before it dies out.

Shoot.

In a landmark 5-4 decision, The SCOTUS took its first step in interpreting the 2nd Amendment issuing a ruling that's sure to be hotly contested over the "next" 200+ years.

(from Mark Sherman of the AP via the Chron)

The Supreme Court ruled today that Americans have a right to own guns for self-defense and hunting, the justices' first major pronouncement on gun rights in U.S. history.

The court's 5-4 ruling struck down the District of Columbia's 32-year-old ban on handguns as incompatible with gun rights under the Second Amendment. The decision went further than even the Bush administration wanted, but probably leaves most firearms laws intact.

The court had not conclusively interpreted the Second Amendment since its ratification in 1791.

Lest we forget...

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

As 5-4 decisions are wont to do, this one has stirred up a hornet's nest of debate, wailing and gnashing of teeth, and joyus applause. It's also crystallized, on both sides of the political spectrum, the importance of winning the Presidential election, as well as having a strong majority in the Senate to steer Supreme Court Justice nominations in what is often viewed to be the "proper" direction.

As a practical matter gun bans are ridiculous on their face. As one blogger against the decision so eloquently phrased it: "Great! Every time I’m in DC, the first thing I think is, “What this place really needs is more guns." What the blogger doesn't realize his is admitting is that there are already guns in Washington D.C. despite the Nation's most restrictive gun ban (now null and void per the Supreme Court).

It's just that, in D.C. only the criminals posessed guns, now the citizens will have the right to own one themselves.

This is perhaps my favorite quote of the day:

(from Adam B of Daily Kos)

I encourage you to read this fully before rendering your opinions, because, well, it's a Constitution we're expounding here, and this comes up in other contexts as well. Sometimes in life (and in law), there are things that we might desire from a policy standpoint -- like certain forms of gun control, or restrictions on some election-related speech -- which are nevertheless forbidden by the Constitution. And as liberals -- unlike the other guys -- we ought not try to pretend that the Constitution doesn't exist when it gets in the way of our policy preferences.

Ignore for a minute the silly partisan suggestion that the "other guys" flippantly throw away the Constitution and liberals are blessed by the angels and don't. The important bit is that the Constitution exists regardless of our feelings about it. It's job is to reign us in as a Nation from going off the deep end of the Cult of Personality.

Besides, in a party populated by Trial Lawyers you'd think there'd be some joy in seeing a 5-4 decision passed down by the SCOTUS on an issue that's sure to be a lucrative revenue stream for decades to come.

Aside: Is anyone else but me concerned that the bulk of the dissenting Justices arguments centered around the theory that there is no right to self defense inherent in the Constitution?

The (New) Houston Political Dictionary (Revised) G-I

G

Gallop - Prominent pollster that's either "well respected" or "totally unreliable" depending on what the results reflect and who's commenting on them.

Games, Political - What one's political opposites inevitably are playing when they bring up something in a candidate's past or platform that they hope goes unnoticed. (See: Reasonable questioning for the definition of what it's called when your side does it)

General, The - Shorthand for the main election that occurs after the primaries. Typically something that under-delivers after big promises. (Ex: Wait for the general, THEN you'll see our support)

Gin, Bathtub - Formerly the illegal alcohol that was made cheaply during the Prohibition years. Today, Crystal meth, the illegal drug that's made cheaply during the drug prohibition years.

Gin, Victory - George Orwell's fictional opiate of the people in his foretelling book 1984. Used to keep the people slightly drunk so they wouldn't notice the authoritarian government surrounding them. Real Life equivilent: American Idol.

God - (Political) The ultimate trump card in a tight political race. (Sports) Someone who loves the winner more than the loser. (Lakewood Church) An ATM machine with an endless supply of funds.

Government - (Democratic): The physical manifistation of Utopia on Earth. (Republican): The seventh cocentric ring in Dante's Inferno. (Reality): Jobs program for the bottom 10% in every graduating class.

Governor, Texas - The political equivilent of Ms. Texas.

Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau - What happens when smart people get in a room and the oxygen supply is cut off. (Recently) An orgainzation realizing a drastic cut in their shoe budget.

Gun - Indisputable proof that the Darwinistic theory of survival of the fittest is, in fact, law.

For a long time, in America especially, guns were a necessity for life and security. Whether for hunting or keeping one's holdings secure owning a gun was a tenet of American life. As the free-range, self-sufficient era of America draws to a close the "gun" has become a political hot-potato as those who are decidedly not self-sufficient seek to neuter those who choose to try and remain so. In a commune, a gun is an imbalance of power, and not a tool.

Grove, The - A creepy attempt by Houston to partially satisfy its NY Penis Envy by recreating the "Tavern on the Green"

Growth, Smart - Urban planning ideal stating that the financial well-being of a few select developers is preferential to the happiness and well-being of the remaining 99.999% of the population of a large City. (See Brown, Peter for more)

H

Halliburton - A highly successful energy services company with deployment capabilities that are unrivaled in their efficiency. Because of this success they are vilified by those who are less successful.

Harwin - Texas' largest concentration of people who complain about slave labor in other countries buying products produced at slave wages in other countries.

Haze - The gunk that is visible during most days in Houston's air. Also the same material that clouds the judgement of local politicians.

Help - 1. Something every politician initially feels they were elected to do, especially those who are not as enlightened as they. 2. (legal) What said politicians typically need after a few years in office, their purity of thought lost, and their palms open. 3. A cry for...usually seen when people dress over the top at Political conventions.

Houston, City of - Technically, the fourth largest City in America. In reality, the largest collective inferiority complex in the World.

From its founding, Houston was a City where a person could relocate and realize their dreams. With a lax regulatory enviroment and plenty of opportunity to be found, Houston was an opportunity fueled by low entry costs and higher taxes. Recent trends in Houston, and worldwide, has served to stifle the environment of opportunity that Houston once fostered and replaced it with a series of trinkets and ordinances designed to make it more closely resemble a City in the Northeast United States.

Houston: It's Worth It - The marketing campaign that the Greater Houston Convention and Visitors Bureau might have dreamed up had they left the oxygen flowing in the room.

Houston, My - The "offical" marketing campaign for the City of Houston using testimonials from a series of public figures who, for large portions of the year, don't call Houston home. (See: Knowels, Beyonce; Bush, George H.W. for more)

Hummer (General Motors) - Quite possibly the most worthless vehicle ever invented. A domesticated knock off of the military vehicle of the same name but with the off-road and towing capabilities severly reduced. Typically driven by professional athletes, salesmen with type A personalities, and people who wouldn't know what off-roading was if a cactus bit them in the ass.

I

I - Literary designation of the "first person" and something that's typically frowned on in journalism unless quoting. Used with aplomb by Houston's "Jr." columnist. (See: Falkenberg, Lisa)

Ibarra Brothers - Sherriff Tommy Thomas resignation letter.

Idiot - Overused put-down employed mainly by those who lost their thesaurus in third grade. Typically employed when one is on the losing side of an argument.

Idiot, Village - Very overused derogatory term typically used to equate someone's bad idea to that of an old folk saying "somewhere a village is missing their idiot".

Historically Houston has had its share of Village idiots, from Dan Patrick to Lee P. Brown to Peter Brown to Orlando Sanchez the litany of bad politicians emanating from the Bayou City is almost as onorus as the brown water that flows through the bayous themselves.

Immaculate conception - How Jolanda Jones views her election to Houston City Council.

Inner Loop - (Real Estate) The geographical designation for Houston property that lies inside the geographical boundries of Loop 610. (Residents) Hallowed ground that istantly gives the opinions of those who live there twice the credibility and gravitas of those who choose {or are forced} to live "outside the loop". (Suburban) A locale that breeds a group of jerks that will be the first people lined up against the wall and shot should the revolution come. (Chronicle) - Civilized Houston, with everything else being the wild lands where those with speech impediments and circular family trees reside. (see Chron; Brown, Peter; Growth, Smart for more)

InterLeft - A loosly organized group of political bloggers whose political views are decidedly to the left of Mainstream America. Most often associated with angry posts and attack politics the "netroots" as they prefer to call themselves have been some of the biggest supporters of some of the worst candidates in recent history. (See: Bell, Chris; Van Os, David; Radnofsky, Barbera Ann for more)

Interstate 10 - (literal) An East-West Highway spoke in the great wheel that is the United States Interstate system. (Democratic) The physical embodiment of all that is wrong with transportation planning in Houston. (Republican) The physical embodiment of all that is right with transportation planning in Houston.

Interstate 45 - See "Interstate 10" substitute "North-South" for "East-West".

Interview - A lost art.

The "Hope" of State Democrats renewed.

Obama's opening the purse strings! Obama's opening the purse strings!

(from Bennett Roth of the Chron)

Barack Obama's campaign will send money and staffers to Texas and other heavily Republican states to help elect Democrats in congressional and local races, officials said Wednesday.

"Our strategy orientation is to play offense," said David Plouffe, Obama's campaign manager, who announced the strategy at a news conference.

While Plouffe conceded that the Illinois Democrat was unlikely to defeat Republican John McCain in Texas, he said the move into the state is part of a strategy to boost other Democrats and train Texas volunteers who would later be sent to battleground states.

Obama's 50-state strategy, he said, is designed to help the party increase its majority on Capitol Hill and to try to regain control of state legislatures, including Texas, where the Democrats need to pick up just five House seats to control the chamber.

First news of this came from Ben Smith of the Politico who adds a little bit more detail:

Barack Obama will focus his resources largely in 14 states George W. Bush won in 2004, his chief field operative said Tuesday, hoping to score upsets in places such as Virginia, Indiana and Georgia.

But winning the White House won’t be his only goal, deputy campaign manager Steve Hildebrand told Politico: In an unusual move, Obama’s campaign will also devote some resources to states it’s unlikely to win, with the goal of influencing specific local contests in places such as Texas and Wyoming.

InterLeft Reaction has ranged from quite pleased to more reserved.

The fact is, if you're a Democrat, you should be very happy this morning learning that your Party standard bearer is going to dedicate resources to your State, a State that will need them if they are to be competitive in localized (Texas) races.

For better or worse (depending on the outcome, its still to early to tell) the fate of the Democratic Party in 2008 lies on the politically young shoulders of Barack Obama. If he is successful in articulating his message in a way that appeals to large majorities, and if he can convince folks that he needs more people with (D)'s behind their name to help him achieve that mission, then Republicans should get ready to hunker down get used to being on the losing side of several policy battles.

I'm still not sold on that happening however, because eventually people are going to start pondering the ramifications of higher "windfall" gas taxes on oil companies (energy sector slowdown and layoffs) higher taxes for families making over $70K per year (decreased spending) and agressive Government intervention into the free market. (decreased investment)

Of course, when the alternative is John McCain and "tax cuts and increased deficeit spending" (higher cost of goods and a weak dollar) maybe Obama's dream for the future won't look that bad?

That's the hope of Democrats everywhere. (especially in Texas)

Houston Sports media wars (Part II)

A lot of opinion regarding my initial posting on the state of sports media in Houston, despite the fact that the initial post took a different turn than I intended when I first started typing.

Them's the breaks right? It's what you get when you read the ramblings of an amateur writer with no mandate from above to cover a certain topic.

That mea culpa out of the way I still think that the local sports media scene in Houston is a compelling topic whether its good, or bad. There are an ever increasing number of "good" sports outlets from which junkies can get their fix. Including National powerhouses, regional outlets, and local commentators both professional and amateur. Some are good, some not so good, some have good takes and insight, and some are just flotsam on the local sports pond. Which probably brings Houston in line with pretty much every other major sports City, excluding New York and Chicago, whose markets are much more developed and whose sports appetites are insatiable.

Houston, it seems, has a limit for the amount of sports content it is willing to digest.

In my first post, I was very hard on AM 1560 "The Game". While my criticism still stands, and I still believe its valid, it's probably not fair to let this discussion go without mentioning what they are doing right.

KGOW has the best morning show in Houston sports talk radio, period. Unfortunately that's not saying much when your competition is serving up Vandermeer/Ware and Davies/Roberts (warning, sometimes website is NSFW) as the competition. I'm not sure which show is more unlistenable, the Texans announcer who's afraid to voice a strong opinion paired with the former UH QB/Heisman Trophy winner who's just (to be honest) bland, or the transplanted Davies paired up with the humor impaired Craig Roberts. Tough call.

The sad thing is, I liked Roberts as the Sports guy when he was at Channel 2, I don't like him on the radio. His brand of "dry" humor ALL THE TIME doesn't translate very well from the dashboard, and he's gotten a LOT more cynical over the years which is too bad. On television he offered up good sports coverage with a little bit of humor sprinkled in. On the radio he offers up dry humor with a little bit of sports sprinkled in. Not good.

Mid-morning (up until noon) is somewhat of a wasteland. John and Lance give way to the aforementioned Richard Justice, Davies and Roberts give way to the "Monsters of the mid-day" John Lopez and Ted DeLuca, and 610 provides an hour of Adam Clanton. It's during this time of morning that I'm typically tuning out and making phone calls at work. I try to get them all in before Hoffman comes on at noon.

The lunch hour is dominated by Ken Hoffman and a bunch of syndicated mess. If you're a Jim Rome fan then you like his show, if you're a Monster's of the mid-day fan then you get them for three more hours. From what I hear there are some nice rehabilitation programs for you if you find yourself addicted to either of these shows. For the good of society you might want to consider them.

Afternoon drive time will always be about Charlie Palillo. 1560's Sean and John aren't ready for prime time, and Rich Lord and Matt Jackson are a shadowy reflection of the duo that was Palillo and Lord in their heyday. Palillo had enough sports chops to counterbalance the self-depreciating, goofy mess that is a Rich Lord broadcast. Matt Jackson is goofy, but he doesn't have 1/4 of the sports chops that Palillo has. As a result he's totally incapable of reigning in Lord, and the show suffers for it.

Of all of the challengers I think Sean and John have the most potential to grow into a show. Get them to stop using "uh" after every phrase, find a producer that's going to keep them focused, and there's some potential there for a real show to develop.

Which is something important that 1560 "The Game" has over all of the other channels, the potential to develop into something worth listening to. Keep John and Lance humming along, replace (or pair) Richard Justice with a solid, competent radio guy (someone who can wear the headphones and control the board), leave Hoffy alone and drizzle in some professionalism with the drive home broadcast and you have yourself an entertaining brand of radio. One that's local, not syndicated and, most probably, very entertaining over the entire course of the day.


I left 97.5 FM out of my evaluation because they are almost entirely ESPN National feeds. If that's your deal, great. But its really not comperable to local sports coverage. (although some would argue its better. To each their own).

Another step in dropping the charade.

Light rail is about transit correct? It's about moving people around Houston in an effective manner?

Uh, huh. Tell me another one...

(from Rad Sallee of the Chron)

The Metropolitan Transit Authority will host a ceremonial groundbreaking Thursday for the East End light rail line, the first of five scheduled to be completed by late 2012, and the first to start construction since the Red Line opened in 2004.

Metro spokeswoman Sandra Salazar said the event will be on property owned by developer Frank Liu on Harrisburg Boulevard near Eastwood and will involve mostly public officials and community leaders.

This on the heels of Mr. Sallee's admission that rail routes are made with punitive thoughts in mind...

•Metro and Harris County are planning commuter rail, and outlying counties are interested, but now it's the inner city's turn. It voted for rail. Affluent suburbs generally voted against it. Years earlier, some of the same suburbs also voted not to be part of Metro. Some didn't want its 1-cent sales tax. Some just didn't want transit and what it might bring. Metro cannot legally extend service outside its taxing jurisdiction, except by contract.

•Transit service does not pay for itself and is not expected to. Its core mission is to serve low-income areas, where a high percentage of residents depend on it. Metro needs some improvement on that score, and distributing the planned rail lines around the city is a start.

Now that they have want they want, it seems that Metro is going to drop the charade and just fess up that they don't really care about improving mobility at all.

Shame they couldn't have been as honest with Harris County residents in 2003.

The (New) Houston Political Dictionary (Revised) D-F

D

Danger Train. - Free Demolition Derby for the masses.

Democratic Party, Texas - 1. A group of like-minded, well-meaning individuals who could lose to themselves in a game of tic-tac-toe. 2. (1992-2008)(see: irrelevent) 3. (current) The group of people most thankful that President Bush didn't get impeached.

Developer (Inner Loop) - 1. (Democratic) - A generous, civic-minded businessman whose goal is to provide livable environments with only the happiness of the population in mind. 2. (Republican) - An evil businessman whose goal is to use taxpayer funds to line their pockets.

Developer (Suburbs) - 1. (Republican) - A generous, civic-minded businessman whose goal is to provide livable environments with only the happiness of the population in mind. 2. (Democratic) - An evil businessman whose goal is to use taxpayer funds to line their pockets.

Discovery Green. - 1. A wonderful summer camp for the homeless, complete with outdoor showers. 2. A physical manifistation of Houston's New York Penis Envy. 3. People!!

Dive, Max's Wine - 1. Definitive proof that there's a sucker born every minute. 2. A restaurant that's so focus grouped it's both true to concept and a parody of itself. (Yes, I know I've used that before, this is a dictionary)

Downtown, Houston - 1. A business district suffering from multiple personality disorder. 2. (currently) Houston's 'premier' entertainment district. (see Strip, Richmond; Westheimer, Lower; for more)

Dynamo, Houston - Houston's most popular Minor League Franchise.

Dynegy - A trial lawyer's wet dream. (See: Enron)

E

East End Line (MetroRail) - An official signal to the poor in Houston that they don't matter. (See: Danger Train, MetroRail for more)

Editor & Publisher - AKA: The Houston Chronicle wasting disease tracking mechanism.

Eeyore - 1. Perpetually pessimistic pal of Winnie the Pooh. 2. Proposed, unofficial 2008 election mascot of the Harris County Republican Party (see: Scandals; Press, bad; and Patrick, Dan for more)

Energy - Still the engine that drives the economy of Houston, despite the protestations of Dr's and Lawyers.

Certainly Houston is no longer dependent on the energy sector to survive, but a slump in energy would still have disasterous reprecussions to the local economy. Despite this, a large number of Houstonians support punishing the energy district, including some employees of energy companies. (See: masochism for more)

Enron - 1. America's scapegoat for their portfolio imbalances. 2. Exhibit "A" why the Chron has not won a Pulitzer. (see: Chron) 3. Pinata


F

Falafel - Technically, Fried, ground chick-pea patties served in Middle-Eastern Restaurants. Unofficially, a pretty good candidate for the dish that most embodies Houston.

Falkenberg, Lisa - Personification of "in over your head".

Fall - Election term that causes some confusion in Houston.

Fall doesn't exist in Houston, at least as far as its known in other States and regions. The leaves don't turn pretty colors the weather doesn't get "chilly" and people don't pull their sweaters out of cedar boxes in preparation for the winter. In Houston shorts are worn up until Christmas and the leaves just die and drop down, all at once, in your front yard. In Houston elections don't occur "In the Fall". They occur at the end of Indian Summer when 1/2 the population is suffering from heat stroke.

Fallon, Gayle - Person most likely to be represented on Abe Saavedra's voodoo doll.

False - Catagory for 3/4 of the statements made by every local politician.

Farmer's Markets - Place were the wealthy go to buy soap, prepared foods and breads that, for the most part, are lacking actual live, breathing farmers. (Excludes Bayou City Farmer's market, which has farmers)

Forest Brook ISD - Who HISD looks to when they need an eqo boost.

Fort Bend County - Wilber to Harris County's Spike.

Future, The - Increasingly, something foreboding and terrifying that will occur if program "X" isn't implemented, and implemented now. Oddly enough the divining line for the difference between a "good" future and a "bad" future is getting thinner and thinner. Example:

1960's: The "future" depended on the ability of the Soviets and America to co-exist. Nuclear Winter was the thing to avoid in order to ensure a "good future".

1970's: The "future" depended on the ability of the U.S. economy to rebound from recession. Economic Collapse was the thing to avoid in order to ensure a "good future".

1980's: The "future" depended on the ability of the U.S. to guide the world through the troubling times after the USSR fell. Eastern Bloc instability was the thing to avoid in order to ensure a "good future".

1990's: The "future" depended on whether or not the U.S. could restore a manufacturing base. Massive Job flight was the thing to avoid to ensure a "good future"

2001-2005: The "future" depended on whether or not the U.S. could contain terrorism. Terrorist attacks were the thing to avoid to ensure a "good future".

2005-2008: The "future" depneded on whether or not the U.S. continued to use incandescant light bulbs. Too few taxes on oil companies was the thing to avoid to ensure a "good future".

Fuzz, Facial - HPD Chief Harold Hurtt's Public enemy #1

Slightly overboard

Set my Bar-B-Q FREE!!!!

(from the AP via the Chron)

Leaders of the Black Cultural Council say volunteers and the black community felt "humiliated" after two health department food inspectors threatened to put a stop to a Juneteenth celebration over questions about food preparation for 600 free barbecue sandwiches.

Council President Jo Ann Davenport-Littleton said health inspectors told them it was illegal for the group to serve the sandwiches because they were not prepared at the site where they were served.

Gino Solla, the county's top health official, said state law prohibits any food service operation from having food prepared in a private home for public consumption.

"I hate that it happened," Davenport-Littleton said in a story for today's edition of the Odessa American. "I wanted people to go away talking about how great the celebration was this year. All you heard was 'They were going to deny us barbecue. Here we are in modern-day slavery again.' "

What?

Jo Ann Davenport-Littleton needs to step back and take a series of deep breaths, then she needs to go dunk her head in ice water.

Getting called out for serving dodgy pork is hardly the same as "forced servitude". All this scene needed was Shiela Jackson Lee in front of the cameras talking about how she was going to fast track a "pork freedom bill" through committee when Congress gets back from their vacation.

Sadly this was out of her district.

Whiz Bang!

Time for the City to fund those Summer Junkets!!!

(from Allan Turner of the Chron)

Where there's smoke, there'll be fines.

With July 4 fireworks going on sale today, Houston fire officials Monday vowed to get tough with pyrotechnics fans who illegally set off their noisy mini-explosives inside the city limits. Beginning this week, inspectors will patrol neighborhoods, issuing offenders citations that can bring up to $2,000 in fines per item.

"No warnings will be issued," said Fire Capt. Beda Kent.

I'm somewhat kidding of course. I'd be happy if the sale of fireworks were banned totally. Not that I don't like a good, professional fireworks show, because I do. What I don't like is having the drunkards in my neigborhood firing off screaching rockets until two in the morning, every night of the week (even work nights) around Holidays. It's like Bagdhad in my neigborhood, minus the cruddy buildings and dirt roads.

Seriously:

Fireworks in the hands of professionals = beautiful.

Fireworks in the hands of drunk amateurs = me out watering my roof on Friday the 4th.


There are some things we should just leave to the pros. Lighting the wick of a minature bomb is one of them. Besides, the ones you fire off at home aren't as pretty anyway.

Ah well, I'm off to get the waterhose.

The Pachyderms Strike Back

OK, not really, but Sheriff Thomas is really trying to do some damage control.

(from Matt Stiles of the Chron)

In his first extended interview in several months, Harris County Sheriff Tommy Thomas on Monday took responsibility for recent mistakes under his command, while also defending his deputies' conduct and dismissing some criticism as "pure politics."

The sheriff also acknowledged that the scrutiny over civil rights lawsuits, his relationship with a county contractor and deleted e-mails could threaten his 13-year hold on the office.

He now is expecting a tough re-election fight against City Councilman Adrian Garcia, a former Houston police officer on the Democratic ticket.

(snip)

One by one, Thomas addressed the various allegations and widespread rumors swirling in political circles in recent months:

• Thomas said he did nothing wrong in accepting design services from Hermes, who he said was selected for county work by a committee reviewing at least three bids. He said he paid Hermes to redesign plans for a "retirement home" to save some oak trees. He declined to disclose the amount. "You'll just have to take my word for it," he said. "I paid him, and I paid him fair market value."

• The sheriff beat back the suggestion that he lives beyond his means, noting that his wife, Debra, makes a good salary at a software company. He said he no longer has a mortgage on a $200,000 home in Katy and noted that he bought the ranch land 15 years ago for $90,000. "I think it was a damned good investment," he said.

• Thomas also said information technology staffers prompted the decision to delete e-mails on a 14-day schedule, but he acknowledged the "bad timing" after controversy erupted over the e-mails of former District Attorney Chuck Rosenthal. "We were told by our technical people that we're about to shut down the system, we've got so many e-mails," the sheriff said.

• He declined to discuss much about the Ibarra case, citing the ongoing lawsuit. But he suggested their complaint was overblown. "As far as the surveillance goes, it was something that was a matter of a few hours. They were suing the county for millions of dollars," Thomas said. "They (deputies) didn't approach these guys or anything. They merely went by their house. I guess I don't see the real harm when we're being sued for that kind of money."

If the election were held today, I would say that Thomas would be toast. Unfortunately this is another local race where the choices that voters are offered are less than stellar.

One the one hand you have an incumbent who seems to have lost control of both his department and his sense of entitlement, and on the other hand you have a challenger who's first love will always be the City of Houston.

Another race where I'm not sure which way I lean. I'll have the survey's out soon and hopefully the candidates answer and I can make up my mind then.

These editorials should come with warning labels.

Today's label: Warning: Sudden disregard of previously written items can cause whiplash in the uninitiated. Please read slowly and with extreme caution....

Too often, these diverse countries, with their individual histories, many languages and diverse cultures, are simply lumped together in any discussion of Africa. If conflict is brewing in Eritrea or genocide raging in the Darfur region of Sudan, the perception is that all of Africa is at war. If children are starving in Niger and in Ethiopia, all African children must be suffering from hunger.

In truth, Africans endure many troubles. Women suffer high rates of death in child birth, and child mortality is high. Many Africans live in poverty and suffer under the rule of oppressive dictatorships. But it's important to understand that Africans are not backward people helpless to improve their lives.

I agree that too often African Nations are unfairly grouped together as "Africans". Obviously by many of the same people that chide others for doing so.

The (New) Houston Political Dictionary (revised) A-C

A

Activist - 1. (1950-1999)A concerned individual working to resolve an issue about which they have great concern. 2. (2000-present) A political hack seeking to add legitimacy to partisan efforts.

There was a time, briefly, that political activism was issues based regardless of one's party persuasion. Modern-day activism comes straight from the Party orthodoxy and is often used as sounding-board campaign tools for candidates. (see: Patrick, Dan or Jackson-Lee, Shiela for more)

Alien - 1. The boogeyman. 2. A construct created by the Republican Party leadership to distract the public from the pathetic job they've done running the country over the last Eight years. 3. (Democratic) A sympathetic figure whose only usefulness comes at political rallies in the Valley.

Alvarado, Carol - 1. Definitive proof that politicians are elected more on looks and personality than actual skill or ability to govern. 2. The opening argument in the case for term limits.

Appendix - A worthless piece of tissue, best removed and discarded. (See: City Council)


B

Beer - A very effective form of self medication.

Bell, Chris - Perennial candidate

Bell, Chris - Perennial candidate

Bell, Chris - Perennial candidate

Bicycle - 1. Ancient, outdated, mode of personal transportation being given renewed life by those with no common sense, or sweat glands. 2. A difinitive sign that you welcome the coming of the new Chinese overlords. 3. A logical choice for those who wish to braise themselves during Houston Summers.

Blog - An ego stroke for those with an underdeveloped sense of self.

Bloggers O' The Right. - The Republican Parties' ham-fisted attempt to control the flow of information on "the Internets". Doomed to failure from the onset.

Bradford, C.O. - The Invisible man. (See Also: Jetton, Steve)*

Brown, Lee P. - The closing argument in the case for term limits.

Brown, Peter - (see: Paralysis through analysis, political rigamortis et all for more)

Burger - The symbol of the decline and fall of Western Civilization.

Once the symbol of a hearty meal, the politization of the burger is one of the leading indicators of the decline of America. Once her citizens had enough leisure time to develop disdain for the lowly burger (blaming it for everything from obestiy to global warming) the noon-time of American world dominance was near an end. In rising powers burgers are for eating. In America they are for protesting.

Bush, George H.W. - A nice old man whose Presidency never amounted to much.

Bush, George W. - 1. (Republican) A dissapointing President who is a good man, but who took bad advice. 2. (Democratic) Beelzebub. 3. (John Cornyn) The Maker.

C

Central Market - 1. "Let them eat cake" realized in physical form. 2. Best place to suffer an Achilles tear.

While part of America starves, political movers and shakers shop in a safe, high-priced enclave of French ingredients at high price points. Occasional curiosity seekers from the working class are discouraged from returning through the use of a carefully orchestrated series of cart demolition derby.

Chronicle - 1. The largest daily newspaper in America to have never won a Pulitzer Prize. 2. (Republican) A bunch of communist weenies who never met a spending program they didn't like. 3. (Democratic) A bunch of corporate shills who couldn't get an endorsement right in an uncontested election. 4. Future case study for new media college classes titled: "The death of print media, how and why."

City Council - A fourteen person rubber stamp for the sitting Mayor. (See: appendix for more)

C.L.O.U.T. - Renamed: Friends of Dan Patrick for King of Texas sec. 527 PAC.

Coffee. - The driving force behind the worst student protest group ever.

Computer. - The technological advance most responsible for bringing about the decline of the Western Civilization.

Before computers people had to read, and their published writing went through a system of literary reviews for accuracy and relevence. After the computer (and the Internet especially, the flow of information became free, and much more unreliable. (See Internet, Blog, Wikipedia, Netroots and Bloggers O' the Right for more)

Cornyn, John. - A Presidential sock monkey with a voice box. (See: Bush, George W. for more)

County Commissioners - Texas' answer to the House of Lords.

Culberson, John. - 1. Candidate for the 2008 "defeat from the jaws of victory" award. (See: Skelley, Michael) 2. The man who gave you the I-10 construction industry full employment project. 3. The newest member of the political endangered species list. 4. (Democratic) The Satan of Northwest Houston. 5. (Republican) One of the last "true" conservatives.

Cy-Fair ISD - 1. The fastest growing school district in Texas and the proud parent of the Berry Center. 2. The poster child for government waste and graft. 3. A bunch of children whose parents are a bunch of leeching white folks too scared to move into the Center City.


*^1 - Edit suggestion submitted by Kevin Whited.

Oh that train.

As Rad Sallee tells us today, it's already impacting the local economy by stimulating sales of anti-heartburn medications...

The Metropolitan Transit Authority has loyal supporters in Houston's East End, whose voters approved Metro's transit plan in 2003 by a 14 percent margin.

Bus ridership is also strong there, and many in the community look forward to light rail on Harrisburg Boulevard.

But some of that support has waned as Metro's plans have expanded to include a large bridge over freight tracks at Harrisburg near 65th Street, and nearby, build a service facility several blocks long for light rail trains.

Some residents and community leaders welcome the bridge, while others say the large Metro facility should find a different home.

Add to that the controversy over Wheeler avenue and you have a situation where Houston's predominently poor, minority communities are starting to feel a bit put upon.

Unfortunately, as Mrs. White decided to tell us, in order to make an omelette you have to break some eggs...

In response to the complaints, Metro officials will meet with Wheeler Avenue residents and business owners. As they do, all Houstonians should bear in mind that the transportation world has changed, virtually overnight.

Of course, I'm willing to bet that Mrs. White isn't facing the prospect of having the main thouroughfare in her neigborhood ripped up and access to homes threatened either. Call that a shot in the dark.

Then there's the reaction of our "political leadership" (term used loosely) in Houston, 2010 Mayoral candidate Peter Brown wants a plan..

Maybe we need a plan, I thought?

Of course, about the only thing of consequence that Peter Brown has ever proposed are plans, and planning, and increased development of plans. I swear to you, if elected, Houston will become the "City of Plans" where well-compensated "thinkers" spend time sitting in rooms drinking latte's and wondering how in the heck to increase the funding for their project, before the project ever hits the implementation stage.

How many major cities have at-grade rail routed directly through major thouroughfares? Go ahead, do your research, I'll wait....


Yeah.

I've said from the beginning that I had no doubts that Metro would get to build their toy. I've also said from the beinning that the current plan was wrong-headed, destined to fail, and wouldn't do anything in respects to providing actual transportation solutions to Houston. The train is a trinket. All of the blustering and non-sequiter preening about "the hight cost of fuel" notwithstanding. It's not a transportation solution so much as it is a neat little plaything for Houston's "creative" class.

What was always missing from this debate were the reasonable voices calling for different ideas relating to transit. The choice was either "Metro's way" or "tear it down" and no serious discussion regarding the movement of people ever took place. The idea was always to spur development inside the Loop (where higher rents could be charged) with no regard to how the approximately 60% of the local population OUTSIDE the Loop would move around.


Aside: I'd be remiss in my duties if I didn't point out this little moment of brevity from Mrs. White regarding the Metro vote:

All those who relentlessly stood in rail transit's way — insisting that the city spend all its transportation dollars on roads and buses — have been proved woefully shortsighted or irresponsibly wedded to narrow self-interest at the expense of the greater good.

Nothing like a little mean spirited, unfactual, jab against one's political opposites is there not? Very reflective of the elegence, wit and insight that one would expect to find in the editorial page of a major daily newspaper.

RIP - Geogre Carlin

We all laughed with him (well, most of us)

(from Mel Watkins of the NY Times via the Chron)

George Carlin, the Grammy-Award winning standup comedian and actor who was hailed for his irreverent social commentary, poignant observations of the absurdities of everyday life and language, and groundbreaking routines like Seven Words You Can Never Use on Television, died in Los Angeles on Sunday, according to his publicist, Jeff Abraham. He was 71.

Probably most famous for his "seven words" routine, George Carlin will be mostly remembered for being a counterculture zealot. A very funny counterculture zealot. Unfortunately, what will happen now that he's passed is that political groups will tray to claim him as their own, disregarding the fact that he wasn't beholden to any political group, or ideology. George Carlin was just funny, and profane, and thought provoking.

I'll always remember George Carlin for his "stuff" routine. Probably the hardest I've ever laughed at a stand-up comedian. His comedy was spot-on, as was his social commentary.

Today the world wakes up just a bit less happy.

Thar's a "new" Houston on the horizon.

and it's more "world class" than ever...

(from Mike Snyder of the Chron)

Over the next 20 years, Houston will become a denser city where people won't have to drive as much because they're riding mass transit and living close to where they work and shop.

That might sound like a pie-in-the-sky prediction from a New Urbanist visionary, but it actually came from someone not known for flights of fancy: Mayor Bill White.

In an interview aired today on National Public Radio's Morning Edition, White said the high price of gasoline is increasing demand for urban mixed-use developments, which combine housing, retail and other amenities.

Host Steve Inskeep interviewed White as part of a series on how people around the country are changing their behavior in response to gasoline prices that top $4 per gallon. White began by noting that his personal car is a hybrid Toyota Prius, and that he sometimes rides his bicycle to work. "We just need to re-order the way we live," the mayor said.

Maybe its just me, but if I want to know how people are "changing their behavior" in response to increased gasoline prices I'm not going to go out and interview a politician.

And no, this isn't a "slam" or an "attack" on Mayor White, I'm meaning ANY politician. They're just not an accurate reflector of the majority of people. Now, if you wanted to inverview people at a park n' ride, at the grocery store, etc. Yeah, I'm fine with that, but having Mayor White tell us how much he's "sacraficing" because of high gas prices sounds more like a political pitch than an actual story from a hard working citizen.

Then there's the fact that I disagree with the Mayor that the City of Houston will look more than marginally different in 20 years than it does today.

There will be more people living here.

There will be more rail built.

Inside the loop will be more developed.

But the basic layout of Houston is going to remain unchanged. People are still going to live in Kingwood and The Woodlands, they're still going to commute to work, and they're going to be even more people choosing to do that.

So, why is my vision of the future and other people's vision of the future so different?



I give you the new Honda FCX Fuel Cell vehicle and the Chevy Volt rechargable vehicle, both of which are scheduled to come into full production within 5 years.

Technology, as usual, is the key. Oh...and this...


That's right, nuclear power. Hey, it works for the French right?

What the naysayers and doomsday prophets always fail to consider is that technology is an ever advancing organism. We don't live in a stasis chamber (OK, Keith Richards lives in a stasis chamber) and we haven't lost our ability to invent. Because of this "the car" in all of its recent villanous splendour isn't going anywhere.

Neither is the planned community and suburb. Because they're going to be the last place in Houston where a working class family can live.

Texas Elections 2008 - The Summer of Republican Discontent

According to the Houston Politics Blog, things are not looking up for local Republicans, something that's sure to have the "other side" atwitter with glee...

(from Alan Bernstien of the Chron)

Houston Republican insiders are buzzing -- with worry -- about an election poll conducted privately for their local party.

(snip)

According to three Republican activists who have seen the poll numbers -- they did not want to be identified because the results are supposed to be confidential -- their picture may be worse for non-judicial contests such as the one between Republican Ed Emmett and challenger David Mincberg for county chief executive. In these races, the poll indicates Democrats may have a slight lead, they said.

The forecast may be darker for Republicans if the poll did not take into account the anticipated huge turnout by minority voters with Barack Obama on the ballot. (The poll did show a statistically significant lead for John McCain in Harris County). Nor would all those Republican judicial and governmental candidates do well if they don't get the participation at the polls of a group Baselice calls "grumpy Republicans." Half the Republican voters in Texas say the Republican-led state and nation (helmed by Republicans Rick Perry and George W. Bush) are on the wrong track, according to Baselice.

Uh..yeah.

I'm not sure if it's a testament to the hard-held beliefs of the Texas voter or the rather high levels of ineptitude within the State Democratic Party that Republicans even have a shot in the upcoming election. I suspect however that the real reason is a combination of both.

Despite the fact that the "big four" urban areas are increasingly populated by transplants, and increasingly liberal, the mid-sized cities and most of the rural landscape is still rather conservative in their political principles. These are people that don't WANT the Government telling them they need to be more urban. They don't want to sell their truck and get a hybrid, and they don't want to live in an apartment in Midtown Houston. To date the redesigned liberal new progressive movement hasn't done a very good job explaining to them what they have to offer, besides more farmer's markets and form based codes. The Texas Democratic Party of today more closely resembles the mainstream Democratic Party of the NorthEast, moreso than it does the party that gave us Pete Laney, LBJ and John Connally.

Still, if you're a Republican partisan today you cannot be experiencing happy warm fuzzies when you take a glance forward to November. Looking at the race right now you might even want to break out in hives a little. Not because you're going to take a beating in Texas, but because, for the first time since seizing the reigns of power in Texas, your party is showing severe signs of collapse.

Of course, if you're a Democratic partisan you probably aren't overjoyed either. You have a party in power that's failed to properly address any one single campaign issue, is about to implement a very unpopular and poorly designed business tax, and which has rammed through poorly thought out deregulation of both electricity and college tuition, and you've STILL trailing to them, albeit within the margin of error.

And let's face it (yes, I'm talking to you Republicans) The Governance of the State of Texas has been B-A-D since the pachyderms came to power. The economy of the State is not being propped up by wise Government decisions, it's beeing supported by extremely high energy prices. Gov. Perry's promised $2000 chicken-in-every-pot promise has amounted to nothing, and we're about to be right back where we started in respect to school financing. The Republican leadership has been a sniping, shoddy legislation passing mess.

Imagine what will happen if Texas Republicans ever get it right?

Houston sports media wars.

If a tree falls in the woods and the public cut it down....

Is there any reason for concern?

(From Richard Justice of the Chron)

Houston has four all-sports radio stations. That's a problem because there aren't enough smart people to fill the air time at four stations. I mean, you've got Hoffy and me and The General makes three.

Whew, that is a short list. Besides, there aren't enough ratings to go around. Some of these stations are going to disappear. Anyway, a couple of guys on a station with pretty much no ratings and no clue suggested Thursday that fans boycott the Astros until they get better.

I know what you're thinking, "Richard Justice calling out anyone for ineptitude on the radio is like Hunter Pence criticizing a teammate for not laying off the slider away."

Yup, you're right. If there's anyone in Houston that has no right to pile on sports radio talkers it's Justice, he of the failed 1560 mid-morning talk slot. Heck, Justice put on a show so bad I've heard rumor that the KTRU guys are airing clips to their hapless DJ team as a case study of what not to do.

Plus, Richard is one of those people for whom instant public feedback is not a good idea. The man's too "soft", too "easily bruised" to work in a format where people can instantly comment on his (many)faults as a prognosticator/sports commenter. The Chronicle now has a situation where its lead columnist spends at least a portion of his day typing "idiot" and "jerk" over and over again to people who disagree with his opinion of the Astros/Texans/Rockets etc.

Before blogging (and their dalliance in sports radio) the Chron columnists sat comfortably in thier cubicles pounding out drivel for which there was a very weak accountability system. With Chon.com's search feature functioning as an exercise in random mathmatics, and the "letters" section on the sports page being a highly edited piece of drivel, there was no outlet for the fans to say "Hey, that {insert name here} jerk got it wrong, wrong, wrong in his/her last column." Or, more likely, point out the inconsistency of a sports' section who feels a constant need to discuss season-long events on a week-to-week basis. (Note: A good start does not equal World Series/Superbowl success, a good game does not equate to a 1,600 yd rushing season, and scoring 30 in one game doesn't morph into superstardom.)

Add to that laundry list of problems some questionable talent and you've got yourself a prescription for impending disaster.

Here's how I see it. (The following are my opinions based on observation, take them for what they're worth [i.e. not much])

1. The Chron columnists' opinions are not highly reguarded by the listening public.

If they were, you wouldn't have their radio shows failing left and right. You see, I honestly believe that Justice' show would have been given a chance to mature (and Justice given a chance to learn the basics of radio booth work) if people gave a damn about what he had to say. They don't, and his show is gone before it started. The fact is more people go to NFL Network (if they can get it) and ESPN for Texans/Astros/Rockets news than they do to the Chronicle. If they're not going there then they're perusing one of several local blogs that provide sports commentary with both humor and actual insight.

2. The Chron Sports beat has just gotten lazy.

In a one paper town that can happen. But in the age of new media, if it does happen, it signals the death knell for your product. Not that laziness is something wholly unique to the Chron. Most radio talkers are relatively unprepped as well, excluding David Dalati and Charlie Pallilo. You know the laziness is there because it's become almost a cottage industry in radio to criticize Fox 26' Mark Berman for working too hard.

3. By the time its in the Chron, it's been clubbed to death on the radio or other media outlets.

There's maybe no other area of "news" gathering where dead-tree newspapers have been made irrelevent than in the area of sports news. By the time Richard Justice and friends have time to report on something, ESPN, the NFL network, FoxSports and all of the late night radio talk shows and local blogs have beaten the topic to death. There are few "scoops" that the Chron can dish out in sports any longer, because they're getting beaten to the punch be more nimble, better reporters. I don't mean that as a slam, its just a limitation of the medium.


So, what are we left with? Angry columnists hashing out screeds against fans, other media and well..fans, while trying to tout their "access" to team ownership and management as a 'plus' for their label. What they should be doing is taking the columnists off the blog roll, focusing more on local previews, local colleges and high schools (credit where credit is due, the Chron's local HS coverage is excellent) and quit trying to engage in a war of wills with the readers. The thing is, I beleive that print media still has a role to play in sports (and news coverage) but they've got to work harder than ever and unearth local stories to fill it.

And get Richard Justice back behind the firewall. The man is going to have a seizure if he keeps having direct contact with his critics. You might want to keep him far away from a radio for a while as well. Just sayin'

TX Senate: Why Noriega isn't dead

Despite the fact that his campaign is facing issues....


The border fence...

(From Elizabeth White of the AP via the El Paso Times)

Cornyn voted in favor of the law requiring a border fence, which has strong opposition in the Valley.

The heavily Hispanic Rio Grande Valley is a key constituency in Noriega's effort to beat the better-funded Cornyn, who is seeking a second six-year term in the U.S. Senate. For Cornyn, the endorsements are a big plus in a year when Republicans have lost some gains with Hispanic voters.

"I understand Rick Noriega is angry and embarrassed that nearly two dozen prominent Valley Democrats endorsed Senator Cornyn but having a difference of opinion is no reason to insult their intelligence," Cornyn campaign spokesman Kevin McLaughlin said in a statement.

I firmly believe that "building a fence" is one of the larger political mistakes in Republican history. Walls don't work. Ask China, ask the East Germans. One issue on which I agree with the Democrats is that border security will be attained not through building a wall, but by fully staffing our border patrol, and providing them the resources that they need to protect both borders of the United States.

Of course, Cornyn is running into trouble with some of his Conservative base, so this vote was needed to attempt to shore them up. It's political suicide for him if he doesn't vote for the wall. That's the prevailing orthodoxy for the Pachyderms right now for better or worse depending on your point of view.

One thing about the Hispanic population however, unlike other minority groups they don't vote in an easily defined bloc. They can't be counted on year after year, and they typically vote with their pocketbooks.

In other words, they're learning how to be a majority, something they will soon be in Texas btw. A majority-minority who's finding the Elephant tent to be increasingly uncomfortable. Based on this I'd still say Noriega still has a puncher's chance. IF Obama contests Texas at all.

Falkenberg: Dallas Public Defender's office is GREAT!!!

Provided you ignore political sniping, poor management and budgetary issues. It will work in Harris County I swear! (cross my heart)

Dallas County's public defender office, the oldest and largest in Texas, has been held up as a model by some of the folks trying to establish a similar indigent defense system here in Harris County.

But lately, the grass isn't looking so green on the other side.

Dallas' Chief Public Defender Brad Lollar was forced to resign last week amid criticisms from county commissioners that he failed to fix performance issues, that some public defenders were pleading out too many cases, avoiding trials, not pulling their own weight and simply being reassigned to another court if a judge complained about them.

(snip)

But, on closer look, the situation in Dallas isn't as dire as it appears. The tumult seems to have more to do with politics, budget woes and, possibly, management issues, than any inherent flaws of the public defender system itself.

The remainder of the opinion piece goes on to justify through projection and presumption (for the most part, ignoring fact) the problems that the Public Defender's office is having as being created by judges with agendas.

Hey, maybe the judges with the lightest case loads ARE really working harder. It's as good a fairy tale as any. Because that's what most of the case for the PD's office is being based on, fairy stories. Brave New World imagining by a bunch of people whose limited imagination defaults back to a new level of government to solve every issue. It's the same thinking that gave us Sarbanes-Oxley. If some regulation didn't work then the answer is more oversight and regulation. If a government organization is failing the obvious answer is to increase funds to said organization. Chase the tail, chase the tail, chase the...whoops, sorry.

At this point in the game I'm unsure whether or not creating a Harris County PD's office would be a benefit or detriment to the County. Part of this is because I've seen conflicting cost/benefit projections. Supporters claim that the (inarguably) lower court costs that are realized by having PD's in place will offset the very high costs of creating a new Government funded entity. Opponents claim that the creation of a PD's office will be a financial burden that will drain the County of much needed infrastructure funds.

Unfortunately, the arguments forwarded by both sides are being made using elementary school false logic. Right now the argument centers more on "feelings" and "imaginings" than it does cold, hard facts.


We all know what assume does. (Well, maybe not Falkenberg)

Coming soon to an intersection near you.

125 NEW Red Light cameras for the Cities revenue pleasure...

At least they admit it this time:

(from Carolyn Feibel of the Chron)

Councilman James Rodriguez asked for the budget amendment, arguing that red-light cameras are good sources of revenue, and the money can be used to put more police on the streets.

Of course, that is a departure from the press release" that Rodriguez sent out with a "different" set of reasons:

“Red light cameras work. They decrease the amount of red light violations and stop major intersection accidents while providing revenue to much needed public safety programs.”

Because "It's all about safety", on the surface at least.


And no, I've never been ticketed by a Red Light camera, I don't run red lights and always come to a complete stop before making a right turn on red. But I still have problems with the cameras because of privacy concerns.

Metro gets OK to build its toy.

And they only had to cross their fingers once...

(from Rad Sallee of the Chron)

City Council today approved an agreement with the Metropolitan Transit Authority, giving the agency permission to build five light rail lines on Houston streets.

The 13-2 vote, with Council members Jolanda Jones and Mike Sullivan opposed, paves the way for Metro to break ground next month, probably on the East End line. Metro says it can complete all five by 2012.

Council's approval also came after two amendments requested by Councilwoman Pam Holm and Metro's statement that it would reconsider plans to build parts of the Southeast and University lines on Wheeler Avenue, a main thoroughfare in the Third Ward.

Jones said she had concerns about the Wheeler route and about Metro's credibility and allegedly favorable treatment of wealthy neighborhoods over less affluent ones. She cited Metro's decision to take the western University Line segment across the Southwest Freeway to avoid opposition from wealthy Afton Oaks, while choosing a route on Wheeler, in part because it would cost less than alternatives.

Sullivan was not immediately available for comment, but his district includes the Clear Lake area and Kingwood — neither of which would be reached by the five planned light rail routes.

Metro President and CEO Frank Wilson said a meeting among Metro and city officials and stakeholders along the Wheeler routes will be held, possibly Monday, to hear residents' concerns and discuss possible alternatives.

Sure they will. They'll discuss them until residents are blue in the face. Notice that the "amendment" didn't specify that they would actually DO anything about moving the line, only that they would "discuss" it. Just like they "discussed" Richmond, and then blinked when certain elected officials realized that the Afton Oaks folks had money, the type of money that could get them un-elected in a Citywide race.

At the end of the day however Houston is facing the reality that METRO will be constructing at least five light-rail lines down some of the most high-traffic thoroughfares in the City. Automobile traffic on those streets is going to become almost impossible during peak hours. And STILL, people will have to drive into town, pay to park, and then pay to ride the train. I'm not sure where supporters of this plan are getting their transit ideas from, but that's not a workable transit system, even IF some buses are designed to feed into it.

Over the next few months the story that is going to be told is one of economic and real estate development. We're going to be given grand new visions for the Third ward that includes pocket communities and "mixed-use" development and an endless well-spring of businesses that will "bubble up" along the rail lines.



Of course, Metro doesn't want to see more of this. Preferring instead to see the well-heeled and affluent move inside the loop where transportation via a car-free lifestyle is sold and hipsters show up to work in sweat stained shirts clamoring for showers and deodorant. As for the poor? Well, they can move out to the suburbs and struggle to get into town like they deserve. The grand new age in Houston doesn't have room for gauche modes of transportation that, you know, actually move people (predominately poor) from their homes to their jobs, that's old-school, bus-centric thinking. Far too out-dated for a City such as Houston. Here the "trams" run from "hipster scene" to "hipster scene" and mundane structures like shopping centers and pharmacies are frowned on in lieu of shoppes and speciality boutiques. Houston now has a "dive" that serves a $12 hot dog for Chrissakes. It's all so "haute" and "chic" and cloyingly fake, in that cloyingly fake way that urbane young folks find "trendy". Riding MetroRail is like going to Dallas to buy a Philly Cheesesteak. What?!? One only wonders if the new trains will be properly equipped to handle $3,000 bicycles and have doggie poop disposal units on board? Gone are the gentle trudges of people heading to work, to the store, to pick up the kids. They've been replaced with the "click, clack, click" of modern urbanists with too-tight spandex biking pants and attitudes. Because, THAT's transit in Houston people. Moving around the neuveau-riche as the homeless man gets prodded by the Metro police to stop slobbering on Ms. Society Maven's $4,000 Gucci handbag.

"What part of "privileged" do you not understand?"

For a long time I advocated working with Metro to ensure that the mass transit system they did ultimately build provided the best bang for the buck and was compatible with a robust bus system that provided saturated "circulator" service to neighborhoods. The system I envisioned would co-habitate with existing vehicle traffic but wouldn't be punitive towards it. It would also provide a backbone for a very flexible system. Unfortunately the prevailing idea among the nay-sayers was to back only "nothing" or a plan that included the dissolution of Metro totally. That this wasn't going to happen was lost in the wash, as was any meaningful discussion of the future of Houston Transit.


Too late for that now unfortunately. Instead of a public transporation system that's designed to transport the public we get a public relations piece that's still designed to get an Olympic nod and winks from those who will never view Houston as "world class".

Toot toot.

Mincberg to buy Multi-Million dollar property

And tear down mid-century modern home by noted architect?


Say it ain't so...One of Mayor White's "Dollar Executives" who's been too pre-occupied with "other pursuits" (read: running for County Judge) to fully immerse himself in the service of the taxpayers that he promised, is planning on tearing down this historic home?...

The purchaser: County Judge candidate David Mincberg.

And apparently, Mincberg isn’t too interested in that free Talbott Wilson Midcentury Modern home that comes with it.

I guess it's "do what they (the "new" progressives) say" and not what they do?


It will be interesting to see how Democratic partisans spin this little bit of news. If they address it at all. They have a peculiar head in the sand habit when negative news appears. I'm not suggesting that it's enough for anyone who likes Mincberg to not vote for him, far from it. But this flies in the face of the public image that "new progressivism" is putting forth.

Still, right now this is a blurb on Swamplot. It's not prime time. And given the sad state of affairs in local election coverage, I doubt it will ever bubble up beyond this. I would imagine that local preservationists might be interested however, as well as prospective voters who are going to be subject to preservation ordinances pushed strongly by some of Mincberg's supporters.

Of course, this is all null and void if he decides to keep the house. Which is what I'd do. It is a beautiful home after all.

TX Senate: Days of unrest in Camp Noriega

Start with an unflattering Texas Monthly piece on the Noriega Campaign, mix in blog reaction from some of his strongest supporters which agrees, for the most part, with the following John Spong assessemnt:

Alas, what was whispered in those phone calls was a different c word: “chaos.” You had already been through three campaign managers and two chief fund-raisers. You were spending money hand over fist, but your fund-raising efforts had gone belly-up. Then I spent primary day with you, traveling to various Houston polling places, and saw a campaign stalled at the fork between viability and Radnofsky Land. Here we were in your hometown, your political base, and nobody knew where you were going or how to get there. Your driver got lost more than once. We almost ran out of gas. Your advance team sent you to shake voters’ hands over lunch at an empty soul-food kitchen. Your spokesperson trumpeted the early returns from “Bex”-ar County. Then, at your victory party, at a Houston Heights-area bar—in a development that was in no way your fault but sure seemed to carry poetic import—the cable went out, and no one could watch the election returns. The night’s biggest applause came not when you announced that you’d avoided a runoff, but when the TVs came back on.

And what you have is a candidacy that's hovering around the 37% range in the general unless they turn it around. In case you're not paying attention, that's Radnofsky v. Hutchison territory.

Now, I don't believe for a minute that Noriega is as bad a candidate as Radnofsky. He's certainly not perfect, and I have severe issues-based disagreements with he (and his supporters) but, as a candidate, he should be stronger than his is turning out to be.

Rockets are cool

Provided we don't have to pay for them....

(from Stewart M. Powell of the Chron D.C. Bureau)

Key arguments being made by supporters of increased NASA funding are not resonating with the American public, a new Gallup Poll released Tuesday found.

The poll conducted for a business group called the Coalition for Space Exploration found that voters strongly approve of the venerable space agency's work but are reluctant to pay more taxes to finance new initiatives.

The Gallup survey — released just a day before the House is scheduled to vote on adding $2.9 billion to the NASA budget — undercut a key argument being used by Texas lawmakers in their bid to persuade Congress to boost spending: that more money is needed to compete in space against China and to close a five-year gap in manned U.S. space operations between retirement of the shuttle fleet in 2010 and launch of the Constellation program in 2015.

Is it any wonder that these results come on the heels of a Space Shuttle mission where the task that recieved the most media "run" was the repairing of a toilet?

I'm sure there were other tasks performed, most of them important. Recently however the sole mission of manned space flight has been to complete an outer space "honey do" list and keep the rickety International Space Station from falling down on our heads. That thing malfunctions more than a Yugo in the Drakar Rally. The problem with this centers on the fact that manned space travel has seemingly lost its utility.

Think of all the things that we now have because of space travel, and then think about what NASA has done for you lately? Or, more accurately, what they've promoted themselves as doing. Uh-huh. I'm sure if the Earth's gravity is somehow suspended then we can learn a lot regarding toilet repair.

That's not the entirety that NASA provides of course. They are constantly in the lead in regards to computer technology, battery power storage, materials science, etc. The problem is that they don't connect the dots very well when it comes to providing the public with a cost/benefit analysis. Too often we're told that the ultimate goal of a mission is "science" in and of itself. That doesn't work because science, without a purpose, is just a bunch of very smart people giving each other a reach-around in search of financial gain. It's intellectual prostitution at its highest levels, and its increasingly being accepted in the community as study after study hits the airwaves with no practical application in mind.

If NASA really wants to jump start public support for funding their programs, then they need to do a better job connecting the dots between their bottle rockets and our daily lives. This applies to science as a whole as well.

Until they pull that off then rockets will just be "kinda cool" but no one will want to pay for it. Except the Chinese, who just want to be "world class".

Energetic

There's a lot of hullabaloo surrounding presumptive Republican Presidential candidate John McCain's "energy" speech yesterday, some of it is noise, some of it is actually substantial.

(From Alan Bernstein and Kristen Hays of the Chron)

McCain said the federal government should ease regulations on offshore oil drilling and refinery construction and expand the use of nuclear energy, but press for eventual reliance on alternate energy sources such as wind and sunlight.

(snip)

With prices soaring for gasoline and unrefined oil, McCain chose the nation's energy capital as the location for sketching what he said would be a series of ideas designed to make the U.S. less dependent on foreign oil shipments now and sensitive in the long term to global warming caused by the burning of fuels that create greenhouse gases.

As promised, he called for dissolving the federal ban on offshore oil drilling on the Pacific and Atlantic coasts and some parts of the eastern Gulf of Mexico. States should decide, he said.

(snip)

The Democratic National Committee said McCain was engaging in double talk because he voted against at least some legislation promoting development of alternate fuels. McCain has also voted for keeping the offshore drilling ban.

There's a lot more in the article itself, I suggest you go and read it in its entirety. Then you should read additional feedback here, here and here.

If that's not enough for you then here's my take on the entire deal....

"So?"

The big lynchpin in McCain's domestic energy strategy is to remove the so-called "Federal hurdle" for exploration and production of oil and gas in offshore waters. What he leaves in place however are the State's ability to block any drilling. Say goodbye to California, Oregon, Washington, Florida and almost any State on the East coast. Maybe Georgia says to drill away, but that's about it.

He could have stated that, as President, he'd allow drilling, but what McCain is hoping to accomplish here is to appease the Conservative wing, without actually accomplishing anything. Sure, his nuclear promises are grand, but he doesn't provide any detail as to how he's going to help companies cut through the miles of red tape that each level of Government throws up to stop construction. Water, wind and (not mentioned) geothermal have a lot of promise, but he doesn't say how he's going to work to stop all of the lawsuits and injunctions that invariably come when a new project is announced.

In short, McCain (or someone) needs to tell Americans to grow up. To quit thinking that the energy fairy is going to come solve their needs, and to realize that increasing capacity means going on a building spree, possibly in one's figurative back yard. Until one of the candidates does that, the great American Energy policy isn't either great or a policy.

Still, on the other side of the aisle you have Barack Obama and his windfall taxes and Government takeover of the oil industry, and a Government that intrudes into the free market even more than it has already. Since Government regulation and artificial supply chokes are causing this problem, it only makes sense (to him) that the "answer" to the problem are more supply chokes and...more Government.

It could be that our leaders are intellectually incapable of crafting a solution to the energy problem. You can't rule that out in your decision making on this issue. If they are incapable, and if their solutions are not likely to work, then the "best" plan is the one that is the least intrusive and allows the market to move, organically, toward a healthy mix of renewables and fossil fuels.

Looking at it from that angle its advantage McCain. If only because his plan won't do much, and Obama's will wreak havoc on an industry.

"Windfall" Profits..

No, its not oil this time, but corn futures that are increasing at breakneck speed.

(from Stevenson Jacobs of the AP via the Chron)

Corn prices reached another record Monday, closing in on $8 a bushel, as devastating Midwest floods raised fears of a sharply smaller U.S. corn crop and another spike in world food prices.

Other commodities traded mostly higher, with gold, silver, copper and wheat futures all climbing. Crude oil surged to a record near $140 a barrel and then fell in volatile trading.

Corn prices have shot up 11 percent in the last week as floodwaters continue to ravage the Midwest, swallowing corn fields just before the crucial growing season. The U.S. government will report June 30 on how many acres have been lost to flooding, but a survey in Farm Futures magazine estimated that flooding could claim 3.3 million acres — or nearly 4 percent of the expected crop.

"We're not going to have a bumper crop this year because of all these losses," said Vic Lespinasse, a grains trader and analyst for Grainanalyst.com.

Corn futures for July delivery jumped to an all-time high of $7.60 a bushel on the Chicago Board of Trade before falling back to settle at $7.325 a bushel, up 0.75 cent. Prices for the corn in the ground now surged even higher. Corn for December delivery hit a record $7.91 a bushel before easing back to settle flat at $7.65 a bushel. It was corn's eighth consecutive day of trading records.

(snip)

Corn prices have almost doubled in the past year amid rocketing demand to feed livestock and make biofuel. Record-high oil prices and a weak dollar have also boosted prices.

So the price of corn is increasing due to an increase in demand, and tight supply. The corn farmers are profiting, not due to their hard work, but due to a "windfall" caused by market conditions beyond their control. Because of their "ill-gotten gains" working Americans are having trouble making ends meet due to rising fuel costs. Therefore we're going to take these "windfall profits" from the corn farmer and use them to invest in rice producing research......


Doesn't make as much sense now does it? Yet we still hear the drumbeat coming from societies' Least Common Denominator regarding "windfall" profits taxes for energy companies and the voters and media lap it up.

I wonder which industry will be the next "bad guy" on the radar?

No Jokes Zone

Despite my obvious differences with Lisa Falkenberg, I want to take a quick second to congratulate her, and her new partner, on their recent wedding and honeymoon.

Congratulations from the writer of this "silly little blog".

The worst student group ever.

(And getting more ink than they deserve mind you...)

Fair Trade Coffee Student group at it again...

(from Jeannie Kever of the Chron)

Students carrying a giant replica of a coffee bean stormed Chancellor Renu Khator's office at the University of Houston on Monday, the latest skirmish in their two-year campaign to force the school to offer only fair-trade coffee in a library kiosk.

Khator was out of town, so leader Timothy O'Brien peppered a receptionist with questions until campus police arrived.

The students left. Police Sgt. L. Gremillion and Khator's office staff insisted they take the coffee bean, too.

It was just another day's work for members of Students for Fair Trade.

Note to Students for Fair Trade: When you plan a protest to the Chancellor it makes a little bit of sense to check the Chencellor's schedule to ensure she's in town.

Verbally beating down an administrative assistant?



Weakest. Protest. Ever.



It's sad public displays of "advocacy" like this that make me worry for the future of our Country.

Food poisoning potporri

So...I've been down with food poisoning but regular blogging is imminent. Unfortunately, I had some posts planned on the Sunday Q&A with John Cornyn in the Chron, and some stuff regarding other political races but, by now, that's old news and well....things have moved on.

Needless to say I'm still selecting "none of the above" in the race for TX Senate and you should as well.


The Pachyderm Party has come and gone. The Chron is supposed to do some stuff on each parties' platforms...we shall see. So far the Chron's reporting of BOTH conventions has been less than spectacular. I understand that it's "hip" for reporters to act jaded on their blogs, but at the least could we get some more information and less amateurish snark etc? Because, really...there's not much difference between this:

The announcer hailed him as "an American hero." Olson was a Navy pilot who flew missions in the Middle East and elsewhere before becoming a Senate aide for about nine years. He returned to Texas to run for Congress.

I mean, c'mon....I can get better than that here.

Sadly, the Chron's political coverage seems to focus more on snark than actual news, especially on their blogs. Too bad as well, they had so much promise with their resources and superior journalism abilities. (in relation to most amateur bloggers *self included*)

Ah well, hopefully I'll be able to fire this thing back up tomorrow.

The "wealthy"

Further proof that Hypocricy knows no party...

(From the AP via the Chron)

Senate leaders are doing well financially thanks to a combination of their $183,500 salary, assets and relatively low debt. Some colleagues, however, have run up large legal bills in connection with political scandals, according to 2007 disclosure reports released today.

Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., listed that salary as their only earned income last year.

Reid reported a $14,000 gift: full ownership of a 4-acre property in his hometown of Searchlight, Nev., that he received from the widow of a friend. McConnell reported receiving a crystal sculpture award valued at $500 from the American Ireland Fund.

Reid owns millions of dollars worth of land in Nevada, as well as bonds. The larger assets on McConnell's financial report are held by his wife, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao.

While not exact, the annual disclosure forms offer a glimpse of how lawmakers are doing financially. House reports were to be released Monday.

In this election year, all 435 House seats, one-third of the 100-member Senate and the presidency are up for grabs in November. Those running frequently make the case that they, too, feel the current financial crunch, or at least the pain of people who do.

It is not always an easy case for senators to make. In the early 20th century, the Senate was known as a millionaire's club, and the reputation has stuck to some extent.

Don't buy any of the "man of the people" crap either in the upcoming Presidential campaign...

Disclosures from the two likely presidential nominees, Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain, shed a little new light on their finances, but do reveal some investment strategies. The candidates already had released more detailed tax returns as part of their White House bids; those returns showed significant wealth in both their families.

Obama, D-Ill., made $4 million last year from sales of his two books that jumped along with interest in his presidential campaign. The forms showed that the senator and his wife invested $1 million to $5 million in a money market fund; bought $500,000-$1 million in U.S. treasury notes; and purchased college savings plans, valued at $100,000-$250,000 each, for their two daughters. The Obamas' total worth was $2 million-$7.4 million.

The McCains are richer, but most of the wealth is held by the lawmaker's wife and children. Cindy McCain is the heiress to a large Arizona beer distributorship and is estimated to be worth more than $100 million. She reported $6 million in income in 2006, the last year of tax returns publicly released, while the senator reported a total income of $405,409 in 2007.

Do they feel your pain or do they want to manage your pain?


If you said the latter go enjoy a beer.

Politicalspeak. (the Houston City Council edition)

A. Houston City Councilman James Rodriguez proposed amendment to add 200 Red Light cameras to the City's already sizable network: (courtesy of the Chron's Houston politics blog)

According to the amendment, Rodriguez wants to use the extra revenue for police "public safety programs including, but not limited to the recruitment of new officers to ensure safer neighborhoods."

So here we have a clear case where extra cameras are being proposed for the express purpose of providing a revenue stream to fund priorities.

Pretty cut n' dried right?

Not in the wonderful world of politicalspeak.

From the press release:

“Red light
cameras work. They decrease the amount of red light violations and stop major intersection accidents while providing revenue to much needed public safety programs.”

From Rodriquez' statements to the Chron:

"It's about public safety for me," he said. "I believe they save lives. I believe they change driver behavior."

I guess by "change driver behavior" he means in the "revenue positive" manner?

Somewhere George Orwell is laughing his ass off.

Cutting-edge power?

Change could be coming in the way you buy your power. So says a KHOU report by Dave Fehling...

You may be one of the first people in the country to use a new way to pay for your electricity.

Houston power companies could soon start selling you electricity at different rates, depending on the time of day, and the old meters stuck on the side of your house could be on their way out.

It’s that time of year: summertime in a state with some of the highest costs in the nation for keeping cool.

The monthly bills were a shock to Fabiana Morris, who moved here a couple years ago from Hawaii.

“We’ve been making it a point not to keep our a/c running all the time because of what happened last year,” Fabiana said. Here’s what happened: $200 bills.

(snip)

But that’s just the beginning. In Houston, the utility company CenterPoint has plans to put even more advanced meters in a quarter-million homes -- meters that someday could allow the power company to talk to your appliances.

“This is the first of a kind,” CenterPoint Energy spokesman Don Cortez said.

The CenterPoint Technical Center has a mock-up home. In it, they’re testing the new interactive meters. Each meter is the base for an entire electronic network that uses wireless transmitters connected to major appliances.

You could control when the appliances run. For example, you could shut down a refrigerator for a few hours while you’re at work.

What’s more, the interactive meters and your home network would themselves be digitally connected to the utility company.

I like the idea of personal control. It makes a lot of sense, and in the digitized, Internet generation I'm surprised we don't have more robust remote control of our electrical consumption and other aspects of our home life. What I'm concerned about is being "digitally connected to the utility company". This sounds like the first step in having others control my consumption.

What if, say, you were having a birthday party and Centerpoint decided your power was needed in another part of the grid? What if you were home sick during a Summer day and Centerpoint decided that they were going to shut down your A/C to alleviate pressure on the grid? I don't want $9/hour operators deciding when I use electricity and how much of it I can use.

Having more control over your power usage is a good thing, giving away control of basic items to a third party is something that we shouldn't consider. It's too bad a precedent.

Of course, people who support power rationing are living under the assumption that they are somehow more green than the rest of society, so they assume that said rationing will not affect them. That they'll be the ones complaining the loudest when they lose electrical power temporarily shouldn't come to you as a huge shock.

These are the same people who drive to work and complain that more people don't take public transportation after all.

Ignorance

First, a good story by L.M Sixel on companies embracing alternative work schedules to help employees save on commute costs:

As gasoline prices surge toward $4 a gallon, companies are struggling to find ways to help employees with commuting costs. Some are offering to subsidize bus fare, others are compressing their workweeks, and some have dusted off telecommuting policies.

At State Tax Advisors, a consulting and auditing support firm, everyone seemed to be getting frustrated with the growing cost of commuting, said Kathy Mayeux, director of operations for the 12-person company.

But like many businesses, it couldn't just subsidize the extra gas tab for employees, especially since no one knows how high gas prices will go, she said. And its client focus coupled with its small size made it difficult to shift to a four-day work schedule for everyone.

Mayeux settled on a schedule that's become popular in the energy industry. But to be sure it can handle client requests, the firm has asked workers to be available on the 10th day to check e-mail or handle an emergency client call.

The firm also has asked employees to use the biweekly off day for pre-arranged doctor and dentist visits.

The schedule in question is called a 9/80 schedule where an employee gets every-other Friday off. You work 9 hours per day Monday-Thursday, and 8 hours on your "on" Friday.

Now, for the ignorance, from chron.com "commenter" Get a clue:

Somehow, I don't guess that Houston's oil company employers will like any of these strategies. A few might say they do in a PR kind of way, but in practice, they'll think it makes workers look disloyal somehow.

That's nice boilerplate, and total, complete 100% crap.

As my 50 or so regular readers know by now, I'm employed by the evil empire. As a matter of fact I work for one of the larger companies IN said empire.

I'm off tomorrow for my scheduled Friday as a part of my 9/80 schedule. If something comes up and I have to work my Friday off then I can take a "make-up" day. Employees are encouraged to take their Friday's off, and to use all of their vacation in order to get time away from work.

On top of that the company actively promotes van-pooling, including sending out weekly e-mails informing prospective riders of slots that are open on the various vans to different locations. Oh, and they subsidize bus-riding and we have bike racks on site where, at least a few, bikers park their bikes as they commute in every morning. There's a gym and shower facility where they are allowed to wash up every day and change.

Not that I blame "Get a Clue" for their ignorance. MOST people wouldn't think that an energy company would be at the leading edge of gas savings. It doesn't fit the "mantra" that the politicians and media have been dishing out.

We're all born with ignorance, we have to work to be stupid. Don't let irrational hatred of certain companies make you look stupid.


I have a hair cut and massage scheduled for tomorrow on my Friday off. I wonder what "Get a clue" will be doing? Probably working at their "enlightened" job-space eh?

Ain't no party like a pachyderm party

And that's a good thing...

(from Alan Bernstein of the Chron)

The Texas Republican Convention gets under way in earnest today in downtown Houston with an appeals court still considering a lawsuit aimed at changing the gathering's procedures.

Gov. Rick Perry, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and state House Speaker Tom Craddick are today's scheduled featured speakers for the gathering of about 10,000 delegates and activists at the George R. Brown Convention Center.

Speakers set for Friday and Saturday include Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison and national GOP figures Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Mike Huckabee and Mitt Romney.

A group of Republicans including supporters of Paul's presidential campaign and others sued the party last week on grounds that it fails to follow state law that requires procedures to make the convention's actions official. The group essentially alleges that party leaders ignore the rules to retain power and limit dissent — a charge the party denies.

After County Court-at-Law Judge Roberta Lloyd said Monday she had no jurisdiction to try the lawsuit, the group appealed to the all-Republican, Houston-based First Court of Appeals, which refused Wednesday to intervene on an emergency basis. That means the convention will kick off at 1 p.m. free of any court orders.

But the court — justices Tim Taft, Sam Nuchia and Jane Bland — asked lawyers in the case to send written arguments on the case by 5 p.m. today, leaving the possibility of further court action.

Woo Hoo!

Elderly caucasians in ridiculous get-up and a bunch of starched shirts telling us how things will be good this time around, if we just give them a second chance.

Bring out your dead!

OK Mrs. White, tell us how you really feel.

Wow...

This nation of fatties who throw out tons of food is beginning to stop taking meals for granted

"This nation of fatties"?

Just Wow.

If only we could all be as concientious as Mrs. White...

Yeah, what a wonderful world THAT would be.


(Aside) This has to be my favorite bit in the entire piece however:

When President Bush noted that rising wealth in the developing world had increased upward pressure on fuel prices, Indians noted that if Americans ate less, there'd be less global starvation. Touché.

Because if you would just forgo that last piece of chocolate cake then Governments would stop starving their people, we'd stop diverting foodstuffs to make bio-fuel and weather patterns would stabilize.


Fatties.

"No tax increase" goes by the boards.

The Houston City Council has gotten its mitts on the proposed City budget, and the results aren't pretty...

(from Carolyn Feibel of the Chron)

Houston council members will begin debating Mayor Bill White's budget today, offering amendments and pet projects to a proposed spending plan that already will surpass $4 billion for the first time in history.

With oil prices on the rise and construction costs escalating, some council members plan to submit proposals they say could make city government more efficient.

(snip)

Khan, chair of the Flooding and Drainage Committee, also wants more money dedicated to flood control. Although the proposed budget would dedicate 0.3 cents of every $100 in assessed value to drainage projects, Khan said that was not enough.

He said he wants the administration to study other sources of funding, including a fee on new developments.

(snip)

Councilwoman Melissa Noriega wants the city to get a head start on designing and funding light-rail stations.

To make sure the stations have proper sidewalks, landscaping and amenities, she is expected to introduce an amendment to make sure the city coordinates with Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones in neighborhoods through which the light-rail lines will pass.

Councilwoman Jolanda Jones is asking for $100,000 in funding for veterans services such as job placement and counseling.

Jones and Councilman Ron Green also want at least $15,000 reinstated for a homeless outreach program that was cut from the proposed budget.

The point here is not to address the validity of the requests. Some of them are very valid and warrent serious consideration. The point here is that, when all is said and done, the new taxes and fees that could be required to fund all of these programs makes null and void this claim by Mayor White:

"Because we've enjoyed strong economic growth, and because we're running City Hall more efficiently, we can afford a tax rate cut of half a penny per $100 of valuation to bring our tax rate down," White said.

If these amendments are passed as requested (and funded properly) then that small tax rate cut will be washed away in the form of fees and other taxes. Not to mention higher costs which will be passed on to the consumer.

Consultants paid to recommend rail, recommend rail.

Not a surprise...

(from Rad Sallee of the Chron)

A commuter rail study for the Houston area, unveiled Tuesday, recommends starting with five lines — but none would provide direct service to Sugar Land, The Woodlands or Kingwood, or to Bush and Hobby airports.

Alan Clark, who heads transportation planning for the Houston-Galveston Area Council, where the plan was presented, said conflict with heavy freight rail operations would prevent commuter rail to those destinations in the near future.

But that does not mean the areas cannot be served by light rail or other transit such as dedicated bus lanes, he said.

The commuter rail plan would cost about $3 billion — although no funding plan was included — and the trains would share tracks that have light freight traffic, said consultants Sam Lott and Joe Wilhite, of Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc.

The five recommended routes are:

•U.S. 290, with a passenger terminal and maintenance facility near Metro's Northwest Transit Center. This route would connect to Metro's planned Uptown light rail line.
•Texas 3 to Galveston.
•Texas 249 to Tomball, providing "back door" service to The Woodlands.
•Texas 35 to Pearland.
•Almeda Road, later turning west and providing an indirect route to Fort Bend County.
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett said he will push for commuter trains to start running as soon as possible on the U.S. 290 and Texas 3 routes, even though the overall plan may not be finished.

How can you leave The Woodlands, Kingwood, Sugar Land and both aiports out of any serious commuter rail plan? Not only are these the largest communities and destinations in the County, but they're probably 90% of any commuter rail market. I'm one who thinks a commuter system, supplemented by "hubs" at designated transit centers which would allow commuter riders to be dropped off near their place of business makes perfect sense. That's not what this panel is recommending however. What they're recommending is propping up Metro's poorly planned light-rail system with a poorly planned commuter rail system.

Two wrongs don't make a right.

The Senate Race in Texas: New polling numbers

The last Rasmussen poll was good news for the candidacy of Rick Noriega the newest poll? Not so much...

United States Senator John Cornyn has opened a seventeen percentage point lead in his bid for re-election. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey in the state find Cornyn leading Democratic state legislator Rick Noriega 52% to 35%. That’s a significant improvement for the incumbent from a month ago when his lead dwindled to four percentage points.

Cornyn is supported by 86% of Republicans and has a two-to-one edge among unaffiliated voters. Last month, his lead among the unaffiliateds was just four percentage points. Noreiga attracts 72% of Democrats, down from 81% a month ago.

The Democrat leads among voters under 30, reflecting a nationwide trend. He is competitive among those who earn less than $40,000 a year. However, Cornyn has the advantage among adults over 30 and those with annual incomes topping $40,000.

Among the elephants there is much rejoicing.

The donkey's response is to question the poll numbers while giving last month's poll numbers a pass.

To my way of thinking the previous poll (showing Noriega pulling within 4% of Cornyn) are now the results that are questionable. The double-digit lead of this poll is in line with what was seen historically, and relying on "FOX News" bias to 'splain away your deficiencies doesn't seem prudent to me.

Again, it should be warned, these are just polling numbers, not ballots in the box. At the end of the day the key to this election will be each parties' success in their "get out the vote" efforts and how much money Noriega is able to receive for advertising.

In other words: Despite having a seemingly large lead in the polls Cornyn still shouldn't consider himself safe, especially if the DNC decides to weigh in on this race.

The FBI crime report.

And in White's kingdom there was much rejoicing...

(from Peggy O'Hare of the Chron)

Violent crimes and property crimes in Houston increased slightly in 2007 from the previous year, but the number of homicides dropped by nearly 7 percent and rapes dropped by nearly 19 percent, according to preliminary crime statistics released Monday by the FBI.

Despite the uptick in violent crime, the risk of becoming a victim of violence actually decreased because Houston's population increased by nearly 100,000 during that time period, said Mayor Bill White.

"This does reflect aggressive policing efforts, but I would like to see the violent crime rate come down even further," White said.

And what of the KHOU reports of HPD undercounting homicide statistics?

HPD has been accused of undercounting some killings in previous years, but the mayor said these numbers can be trusted.

Though the police department erred in the past by not including some deaths in the total number of homicides, White insisted HPD's command staff showed "no bias" on the issue.

He said the city's Uniform Crime Report numbers, which form the basis of the statistical reports such as the one released Monday, have been audited by the FBI, most recently last summer.(sic)

Mark Greenblatt of KHOU addressed that "audit" in this story...

HPD Chief Harold Hurtt responded with his own guest editorial, claiming the FBI has checked out and approved HPD’s records from 2007.

The only problem? Out of more than 200,000 incidents that took place in Houston during 2007, the feds looked at just 277 records.

Further, Chief Hurtt claimed to the Chronicle the state had conducted its own audits of HPD as well, writing: “In fact, the Texas Department of Public Safety has conducted several audits within our Records Division (2001, 2002, 2004 and 2007).”

But the Defenders called DPS to check on that statement. DPS spokeswoman Tela Mange said: “We have not done an audit of their uniform crime reporting program since the year 2000.”

11 News: “So the audits you have done have absolutely nothing to do with crime statistics?

DPS: “That is correct.”

DPS spokeswoman Mange went on to say that the only time DPS has audited Houston crime statistics was back in 1995. A different Houston police chief requested the audit back then. Mange said DPS cannot begin an audit on its own - stressing that HPD would have to request an audit for the process to begin.

Mage also said any audit DPS would do would be much more comprehensive than an FBI "review."

So we have crime numbers that may or may not (with a BIG focus on the may not) be accurate and an FBI audit that the White administration is relying on to validate the reporting that wasn't an audit of crime statistics at all. I don't know whether the KHOU reporting in this was intentionally or accidentally omitted from the story, or whether the reporter included it and an editor struck it out(likely) but not mentioning the KHOU work in discrediting the FBI audit as an audit of crime statistics is shoddy reporting at best, newspeak at worst.

The Least Common Denominator Re-visits the early 80's (UPDATED)

It's Carter economics all over again...

(from the AP via the Chron)

With gasoline prices topping $4 a gallon, Senate Democrats want the government to grab some of the billions of dollars in profits being taken in by the major oil companies.

Senators were to vote today on whether to consider a windfall profits tax against the five largest U.S. oil companies and rescind $17 billion in tax breaks the companies expect to enjoy over the next decade.

"The oil companies need to know that there is a limit on how much profit they can take in this economy," said Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, warning that if energy prices are not reined in "we're going to find ourselves in a deep recession."

But the Democrats are going to have to overcome staunch Republican opposition to any new taxes on the oil industry. The five largest U.S. oil companies earned $36 billion during the first three months of the year.

Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., will need 60 votes to proceed with the oil tax legislation in the face of a threatened GOP filibuster. If he doesn't get 60, he likely will pull the bill from the floor.

This has been tried before:

Oil executives, testifying before Congress last month, called the proposed taxes "punitive" and warned that they would discourage domestic oil and gas exploration and production, possibly causing prices to rise instead of fall.

The American Petroleum Institute, which represents the major oil companies, has been reminding lawmakers that in the early 1980s, when the government imposed windfall profits taxes on oil companies domestic oil production dropped and imports increased.

This is economic fact. Oil companies are simply going to reign in exploration and production if increasing their efforts means a net loss. Jobs are going to be lost, and our reliance on foreign oil imports will increase. It's happened before.

Of course, reality isn't a barrier to societies' Least Common Denominator:

Democrats reject the comparison.

The Senate proposal would impose a 25 percent tax on profits over what would be determined "reasonable" and would allow oil companies to avoid paying the tax if they invest the money in alternative energy projects or refinery expansion.

The tax breaks that would be rescinded, given by Congress over the past five years, are expected to save the five largest oil companies about $17 billion over the next 10 years. The Democratic proposal would funnel the money into tax incentives for renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, and to promote energy efficiency and conservation.

"Democrats" (and some Republicans) can "reject the comparison" all they want, it doesn't change the fact. Another fact that is unchanged is the fact that high gas prices are already driving research and development dollars into renewable resources. Some of the largest investments are being funded by so-called "big-oil" companies who are turning an eye to the future. A future that is going to need several sources of energy to meet demand.

The "market" is not a panacea for all of societies ills, but sometimes it does just fine without the Government making all of its decisions. In the case of energy its moving the way Senate Democrats want it to move. That should be fine were this really about energy and the economy.

Of course, its not, Americans should know that. It's all about votes.


The Government we deserve.

UPDATE: Fortunately this was shot down...

Americans are angry, and expressing their displeasure with Windfall Profit's taxes all over the Internet.

So, what does the Senate do? Wait for Obama to win so they can try again.

Truly we are governed by idiots.

Family squabbles

Oh those zany Republicans. Squabbling over who gets to wear Reagan's underwear again...

(From R. G. Ratcliffe of the Chron)

After a decade of political dominance, the Texas GOP is opening its party convention in Houston this week with a troubling prospect: Grumpy Republicans may not turn out to vote this fall.

Many of the grass-roots Texas Republicans see presumptive presidential nominee John McCain as not conservative enough. Others still support presidential candidate Ron Paul. Some are unhappy over immigration, high federal spending, a sagging national economy and rising gasoline prices.

"A lot of them, and rightly so in many cases, are mad. They're concerned," said Roger Williams, chairman of the Texas GOP's voter turnout efforts this year. "What we've got to do is alleviate those concerns and get them to vote."

"We're the underdogs, and anybody who tells you we're not hasn't been out and about," Williams said.

(snip)

Cathie Adams, president of the Texas Eagle Forum, said McCain is not building bridges with the grass roots by sending Romney to speak to the Texas convention in his place.

"It would have been better if he had come himself," Adams said.

Adams said many delegates to the convention will want to be reassured about McCain on immigration. She said many are upset that he supports a process of granting citizenship to those who entered the country illegally.

Adams said McCain cannot win just by telling voters the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama is bad.

"Everyone I know is unhappy with the prospects of Obama," Adams said. "But they'll stay home rather than just go out and vote against someone."

Similarly, some of Paul's supporters are upset with McCain and how the state convention is run. Some sued the Texas GOP last week in an effort to block the seating of some non-Paul delegates.

It's symbolic of how weak the Republican leadership is that a fringe candidate such as Ron Paul has the ability to potentially cost Republicans the 2008 election. After all, this was the problem facing Democrats in 2000 & 2004 was it not? They were weak, uninspired by their duos at the top of the ticket, and a fringe candidate (Ralph Nadar) took away just enough votes to usher in the age of their discontent. That eight years of the Bush administration provided them the fuel they needed to re-group and re-arm is sometimes lost in the wash.

Because, that's the history of the American political system. One of the two parties gets into power. It's a brand new day in America. Party in power fails to do much more than grow corrupt. Contry's economy cycles downward. New party comes into power on a platform of "reform".

Wash, rinse, repeat.

That's what we're seeing this election. Nothing "new", nothing "groundbreaking" except the cosmetics of the candidate of change. While its certainly a watershed moment for the Country to have a minority receive the nomination, the power structure of the Democratic party is, by overwhelming majority, wealthy caucasian.

Wash, rinse, repeat.


Should be an interesting Republican convention, especially if they don't play nice in the sandbox.


OTHER EYES:

Bayou City Madman: What a Dan Wants...(A must read for Harris County Republicans that aren't Dan Patrick disciples)

Lone Star Times: Texas GOP Chair out to lunch...(speaking of)

World Classiness (part III)

Today's object lesson in Houston's eternal climb out of the primordial muck of "great place to live" status to that etheral plane being that is 'World Class' comes to us courtesy of BlogHouston who point out the Sunday editorial in the Chron from Jonathan Smulian...

And yet, Houston, with its many wonderful assets, is sadly lacking in an important criterion that would define a truly world-class city: appreciation, preservation and promotion of 150-plus years of history.

Historical appreciation! Beautiful. That would put Houston in line with such "world-class" destinations as Grapevine, TX. (pop. 48,535)

Except that Houston won't have this:



Slackers.

Rough day to be a driver.

Mrs. White doesn't like you...

The love affair between suburban Americans and fuel guzzling sport utility vehicles survived environmental guilt trips, but it seems to be foundering on the rocks of $4-a-gallon gasoline.

Perhaps the ultimate symbol of excessive consumption, the 10 mpg General Motors Hummer, is living on borrowed time after sales of large vehicles plummeted in the past few months. The massive, boxy Hummer has its devoted fans, but to others it seems more appropriate as an armored vehicle in a war zone than a conveyance for picking up the kids or shopping.

Charles Krauthammer doesn't like you...

At $3 a gallon, Americans just grin and bear it, suck it up, and, while complaining profusely, keep driving like crazy. At $4, it is a world transformed. Americans become rational creatures. Mass transit ridership is at a 50-year high. Driving is down 4 percent. (Any U.S. decline is something close to a miracle.) Hybrids and compacts are flying off the lots. SUV sales are in free fall.

The wholesale flight from gas guzzlers is stunning in its swiftness, but utterly predictable. Everything has a price point. Remember that "love affair" with SUVs? Love, it seems, has its price too.

None of the Chron "letter writers" like you either...

Sadly, as people pass through there so does their waste. Humans have a tendency to throw their junk out a car window. If you were just slurping down a drink, some animal is choking on that cup that was thrown out the window. Choking.

Pollution from our cars isn't only carbon-dioxide in the air that influences global warming. Ozone is a secondary pollutant from cars (hazardous gas). It is what makes up the ozone layer, but ozone should stay up in the stratosphere to protect us from the sun's harmful rays. When our cars put ozone in the troposphere, then lung problems, diseases and asthma bloom everywhere.

It's just a bad day all around to own a car. Of course, the alternative you're given is to Ride Metro.


And we've seen how impossible that is.


Sucks to be 99% of Houstonians does it not?

Dodging the question.

All politicians do it, some are just "better" at it than others....

Rick Noriega is pretty good...

(Questions asked by R.G. Ratcliffe of the Chron)

A: The five biggest oil companies in the world made $36 billion in profits in the first three months of this year. If they continue at this rate, they are set to make $144 billion in profits by the end of the year.

These companies were set to make profits when oil was at $65 per barrel, but with the price of crude breaking $130 per barrel, they are now enjoying record-breaking windfall profits.

For years, renewable energy has remained a fringe option because this administration and incumbents in Congress remain beholden to the lobbying power of the oil companies. We need investment in renewable energy technology to make it viable on a large scale, and to make it a more stable and potent source of energy. We need an environment in which investing in renewable energy is incentivized.

We cannot drill our way out of our energy problems. We cannot solely rely on piecemeal transitional measures like drilling in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge. We need to make a commitment to renewable energy now for the energy independence for future generations. Our national security depends on it.

The "Lose an Eye" political decoder ring is reading this as a "certain yes". If elected Senator, Rick Noriega would vote along with the faction of his party to issue windfall profits taxes.

He won't say "yes" however because that's political suicide in Houston, a City where a large portion of the populace earns their income from said "big oil" companies. You know, those baddies that have kept Houston from feeling the brunt of the current economic slowdown to the extent that some other Cities felt it.


That's too bad, because I REALLY want to like Noriega. He's got a good story and his opponent, Republican Senator John Cornyn, is one of my least favorite politicians from Texas. Cornyn is the epitome of the corporatist, insider politics type of politician that I think America needs less of. Noriega is revealing himself to be the, socialist, big government type of politician that we need less of.

The thing is, the market is already acting to push the desired direction that the Democrats want it to go. The answer is not to pass "windfall" taxes on oil companies nor is it to offer incentives for drilling as the Republicans claim. Corporate welfare isn't the answer, neither is heavy-handed income redistribution. Let the market determine where the investment dollars head. If the price of oil stays high then investments will flow to renewable energy, if the price drops then investment will flow toward oil and gas exploration.

Sadly, with the quality of candidates that we have in the election for the next Texas Senator "none of the above" is probably where your vote should flow.

Unless something changes.

Sending a message?

Reports that presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Barack Obama would appear in Austin to address the Texas Democratic Convention have turned out to be false. This is causing some Texas Dems to furrow their brows.

I hope Senator Obama comes not only to Texas again, but spends some quality time in Houston, where he can find a strong group of active Democrats---voters he needs to woo because they are at higher risk of voting for McCain than white female Hillary supporters.

Obama would be mistaken to leave Texas alone in this election. As I mentioned before regarding the the Republicans, relying on your opponents to self-destruct during an election is a bad strategy.

I don't forsee any scenario where Obama takes Texas, but keeping the base energized here could be vital for their hopes down ballot.


And that could have more impact than a Presidential win in Texas.

Question asked: Do all HISD teachers deserve a raise?

Abe Saavedra thinks so....

(from Ericka Mellon of the Chron)

Houston ISD Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra on Thursday proposed across-the-board pay raises of at least 3 percent for teachers, but some school board members suggested offering unequal pay boosts — an idea already sparking controversy.

Trustees of the Houston Independent School District did not rally behind specific ideas but pressed Saavedra to think creatively, perhaps paying teachers even more for getting results in the classroom, rather than guaranteeing a flat raise for having a master's degree. Paying teachers based on their education and years of experience is a long-standing tradition in districts nationwide, though some, including HISD, have begun awarding annual bonuses based on student test scores.

"I would have thought we would have been a little more creative as we're giving raises out to our teachers," trustee Diana Dávila said.

Saavedra's plan for the 3 percent raise came as part of his proposed $1.5 billion budget for 2008-09. The budget represents a 1 percent increase in spending over last year and will not require a tax-rate increase.

"It's a healthy budget," Saavedra said, "and it's a budget that I think is responsible to the school district, as well as employees."

The argument, of course, is that Texas doesn't pay educators enough, and that too much of the salary pie is sliced in favor of administrative staff, folks that do little on a day-to-day basis in terms of educating children. In light of this its understandable that the desire is there to raise the pay of all teachers. It's a small pay raise, one I'm sure Gail Fallon will take issue with. (since she takes issue with pretty much EVERYTHING) but a pay raise all the same.


I am sympathetic to those who suggest that the staff at this location isn't worthy of any sort of pay raise.

(from Ericka Mellon and Jennifer Radcliffe of the Chron)

The Texas education commissioner ordered Sam Houston High School to close Thursday but in the same breath gave the Houston school district another shot at overhauling the campus, which has not met minimum academic standards for six straight years.

Houston Independent School District Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra said he plans to ask Commissioner Robert Scott to reopen the northside campus in August with a new principal, mostly new teachers, a different academic focus and perhaps a separate school for freshmen.

"This is not the end of the story," Saavedra said Thursday. "This is actually the beginning of a great new story."

With the worst academic streak in Texas, Sam Houston has tested state lawmakers' promise to shut down or take over consistently poor-performing schools. Some question whether the law is tough enough if those schools are allowed to reopen, albeit significantly redesigned.

Tough call.

Reminder: All politicians are the same.

Meetings in a smoke-filled room?

(from the AP via the Chron)

Barack Obama met privately Thursday night with Hillary Rodham Clinton, a likely vice presidential candidate, as the Democratic nominee-in-waiting sought to unite his fractured party against Republican John McCain in November.

One of her top supporters, fellow New York senator Charles Schumer, said today that Clinton would accept the No. 2 spot.

"She has said if Senator Obama should want her to be vice president and thinks it would be best for the ticket, she will serve, she will accept that. But on the other hand, if he chooses someone else she will work just as hard for the party in November," Schumer, Clinton's New York colleague in the Senate, told ABC's "Good Morning America."

Clinton and Obama met in Washington Thursday night, going to great lengths to keep the meeting secret from the media beforehand. Schumer said the meeting was not about the vice presidency.

Hmmm...Deals made in back-rooms shielded from the public eye, influential Party members determining "Party direction".....


Sounds like the things the Demcorats accuse the Republicans of doing does it not?

Why the "Republican Hope" isn't much of one.

This is overblown...

(From R.G. Ratcliffe and Gary Scharrer of the Chron)

Texas Democrats nursed bruised egos, settled last-minute squabbles over delegate seating and celebrated with a pub crawl to heal the wounds of a hard-fought presidential nominating process Thursday as they prepared for today's opening of the state party convention.

The battle for the national party's presidential nomination between Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton had threatened to split the state party convention. But Obama secured the nomination in primaries on Tuesday, and Clinton is preparing to endorse him Saturday.

So the focus of the Texas Democrats shifted from fighting to win the nomination for the candidate they supported to putting behind them a contest that drew 2.8 million people into the party's primary and up to a million people into precinct convention caucuses.

And in those caucuses across Texas, Obama supporters and Clinton supporters each accused each other of violating the party rules and running roughshod over their opponents to win delegates to the state convention.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, they had a hard fought primary and some egos are bruised. It happens. If I remember correctly there was a hefty amount of Republican angst when John McCain got the nod. They're working their way through it nicely.

The point is that, by the time the election rolls around, both parties are going to be marching more or less in lock-step with the party dogma. The fund-raising machines are going to be ticking over at full speed, and the GOTV movements are going to be legion, as they always are in Presidential elections. The Democrats' hatred of Bush and Conservatives will override any hard feelings they had for one another in the primary, for the most part.

Which is why I believe Jared Woodfill (and other party leaders) are whistling past the graveyard if they continue to rely on "votes against the other guy" as opposed to votes for their candidate. Ignore for a minute the Demcoratic taunts of McLame, McSame and others. That's what you expect partisans to do in a highly polarized election. Is it as onerus as Barack Hussein Obama? No, but it's just as daft, a play on a name is neither witty political banter, nor is it particualry original. It's blunt object political posturing instead of focusing on the issues. Issues with which both parties believe the American people will identify IF (big IF) they are successful at getting the message out. A point that's debatable for McCain because of the visceral dislike of the Bush Administration right now.

The bottom line is this: Mr. Woodfill and his pachyderm friends are in for a long, tough election if they pin their hopes on a historical (R) majority in Texas and a fractured, ineffective (D) vote.

Ride Metro - Northwest side to the Galleria

Ever want to know if and when you could ride METRO? So have I. So I've decided to play around with their trip planner feature and try and map some destinations to see what the results are. I expect this will be the first in a series of posts designed to test the functionality of the system. At a later date I'm planning on riding the options to see if they work as advertised, or not.

Let's have some fun...

Trip one: Addicks Park n' Ride to the Galleria leaving at 1:23PM today.

Results:


Analysis: Well let's see. To get to the Galleria from the Energy Corridor I would be diverted downtown, and then driven back out to Uptown. Yeah, that makes sense. I guess if you have a day off during the week and want to get some birthday/Christmas shopping done you could also head downtown to...well...you could swing downtown.


Trip 2: The Cypress Park n' Ride to the Galleria. Departure time: Saturday at 10:00 AM.

Results:



Analysis: So on a Saturday afternoon, Metro has no good way to get a prospective rider from far Northwest Houston to one of the largest shopping malls in the region.

Trip 3: West Little York Park n' Ride to the Galleria. Departure time: Friday 6:30 AM.

Results:


Analysis: Actually, this is a good route, and a good option for riders who live near this Park n' ride and work in (or near) the Galleria. However, as with the other Park n' Rides if you attempt to make this trip outisde of the main commute times, you're driving your car.

Call it me but that's sub-par service to one of the most populated areas of the Houston Metropolitan region.

Thoughts?

Hockeytown!

Congrats to the Red Wings on winning Lord Stanley's Cup.

It's too bad more people didn't watch it because this was a truly great team, and the finals provided some exciting hockey.


Octopi on the ice.

Love those environmentalist groups.

Always at the forefront of useless complaining...

(from Kristen Hays of the Chron)

Refinery expansions in the U.S. focused on processing crude from Canadian oil sands show an entrenched reliance on fossil fuels even as concerns grow about the effects of oil sands production, an environmental group said Wednesday.

Such multibillion-dollar investments illustrate a long-term shift in refining toward so-called heavy oil, which requires more energy-intensive production and prompts worries about emissions and waste runoff, the report's authors said.

"The first step is to start with awareness of what it means," said Eric Schaeffer, a former Environmental Protection Agency lawyer who is director of the Washington-based Environmental Integrity Project, an advocacy group that produced the report.

"This is an intensely wasteful way to feed an oil habit," Schaeffer said.

Canada is the biggest exporter of oil to the U.S., sending more crude than Mexico, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia. And with an estimated 173 billion barrels of reserves, Canada's bounty is second only to Saudi Arabia's.

The oil sands now produce 1.3 million barrels a day, which could ramp up to 3 million barrels a day by 2015, according to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.

More and more companies have jumped into the oil sands game as high oil prices have made its costly production economical. The world's five largest oil companies, as well as Canadian producers and some independent explorers and producers, have sands operations or joint ventures.

But as oil sands production has increased, so have concerns about increases in emissions and possible releases of toxic waste into waterways.

There are always concerns from environmental groups when energy production is the question. These are the same people who argue against wind farms because a bird might fly into the windmills for crying out loud.

Meeting our future energy needs is going to take a mixture of oil/gas/coal/nuclear and renewables. Sticking your head in the sand and decrying cutting edge production techniques that are environmentally sound won't do anything but revert us back to a subsistance farming society.

Feifdoms anyone?

Nov. 4th for SD-17 special.

Perry tries to do a solid for the local Republican Party.

(from R.G. Ratcliffe of the Chron)

Gov. Rick Perry today set the Nov. 4 general election day as the date for the special election to replace retiring state Sen. Kyle Janek, R-Houston, in Senate District 17.

The winner will serve until Janek's current term expires in January 2011.

The filing deadline for the special election is 5 p.m. Aug. 29 with the Texas secretary of state. Early voting will run from Oct. 20 to Oct. 31.

The prevailing theory is that the strongest Democratic candidate (State Rep. Scott Hochberg) will now be out of the picture leaving hand-picked Republican replacement candidate Austin Furse with what is seen to be a easy path to the office, facing only Demcratic re-tread Chris Bell and the assumed group of fringe candidates who either run for vanity, or other reasons (and possibly Gary Polland, more on that later). Of course, Democratic party members are overjoyed about another Chris Bell campaign, I guess the thought is that the guy has to win eventually right? Another theory is that Bell is nearing the end of his political life, and offering him up as a sacraficial lamb ensures that whomever the Dems choose to run in the regular election in 2010 doesn't have the excess baggage of already losing a race to Furse on their resume. Still, you have to allow that this is politics, and a special election at that.

It's a bad time to be a member of the Republican establishment, and Dem's doing oppo research won't have a hard time connecting the dots between Furse and the Republican establishment so who knows. Then you have the issue of Gary Polland, he of the recently filed GOP lawsuit won't be tied to the "current establishment" (despite being a former Harris County GOP Chairman) but he might just create a wide enough rift in the Republican vote to allow Bell to skate back into public office. Hey, stanger things have happened.

Now that we have an election date we'll have some real candidates step up. Until then all we have is the sputtering of partisans and pundits (self included) and no real accurate measure of where things stand.

The fallacy in the "high gasoline price" debate

As illustrated in the comments to Tara Dooley's Chron Story regarding Houstonians and their Hummers.

First, from the story..

Even as gasoline prices tick continuously upward, Matthew Lee's affection for his Hummer H2 has not headed south.

(snip)

Indeed, there is probably not a gas price that would induce Robert Mielke and his wife, Dr. Theresa Honeycutt, to get rid of their Hummer H1, an SUV that is safe and has enough room to fit children and grandchildren.

"The overall economy would have to go into the dump before something like that would happen," Mielke said.

Auggie Mathis is probably the Hummer's No. 1 cheerleader. Mathis owns four himself, but he is also the Hummer sales manager for Ron Carter Hummer in Friendswood. Though sales of SUVs have dropped in the area, Mathis says, residents are still buying Hummers. He sold 65 to 70 in the past two months, he said.

"I cannot imagine not driving a Hummer," Mathis said. "I would cut back on other expenses before I would cut back on driving my truck."

Which drew this response in the comments:

GabrielC wrote:

I hope you're good at starving and living inside your truck. Idiot.

It appears that we are getting closer and closer to the tipping point in the fuel debate where rational discussion of the issue is closed off by small-minded put-downs and childish name calling*. Merely expressing a desire to keep one's vehicle of choice is now sufficient grounds for a complete stranger to deem you an "idiot", a charge levelled with not other facts known about the indiviual other than the fact that they have a different value system, a different preference when it comes to what is a "necessity" and what is not. Never mind that the person in question also makes their living selling Hummer SUV's, or that "liking" a car has always been an acceptable reason to own one, if you can afford it.

And so car choices slowly wander down the same dead-end road as many other "hot-button" issues in America.


You will either accept the current prevailing Dogma in its entirety, or the World will suddenly explode and you'll still be an idiot. All because you didn't want to trade in your Hummer for a Smart car.



*If "idiot" is the best you can come up with? Do us all a favor and invest in a Thesaurus. - pretty please -

South Dakota displays some common sense

First they voted out Tom Daschle, (a sorry excuse for a politician, I don't care what side of the aisle you are on) now this...

(from the AP via the Chron)

Voters in this mostly agricultural corner of the Midwest have approved a proposal to build the first new U.S. oil refinery in more than 30 years.

Union County residents voted 58 percent to 42 percent Tuesday to endorse the rezoning of almost 3,300 acres of pristine farm land north of Elk Point for the oil refinery.

Texas-based Hyperion Resources requested the rezoning for the $10 billion refinery, billed as a potential step toward national energy independence. The proposal has been a contentious issue in the southeast corner of South Dakota, with supporters citing economic development benefits and opponents voicing environmental and quality-of-life concerns.

The ballot measure garnered solid support in the southern part of Union County. Most rural precincts strongly rejected the rezoning, but they didn't have the population to overcome support in the county's largest towns.

Preston Phillips, a Hyperion Resources project executive, said he was ecstatic with the outcome.

"We'll continue to work with everyone in the county," he said. "We want to be a good corporate citizen. We want to be a good corporate neighbor."

Despite the approval of the rezoning, Phillips said Elk Point is not the only site being considered and that the site selection process would continue. "Any big project like this has to have options," he said.

Hyperion's next big hurdle is a lengthy air quality permit application being reviewed by the South Dakota Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

"It's going to be a long road before anything's done on it," project opponent Jason Quam said of the refinery.

Nice bit of editorializing by the writer on the bolded word. The implication being that the refinery is going to scar some tract of land that is among the most beautiful ever made.

Of course, anytime anything is built over undeveloped land there's the loss of "pritine" land. It just happens. It's why we call it de-vel-op-ment.

You know, developing undeveloped (or pristine) lands? Happens all the time.


Unfortunately when much needed refining capacity is the subject there's a disconnect between reality and the horror-world of three-legged fish that "environmentalists" throw up as a smoke screen.

McCain vs. Obama in the cage match of DEATH.

It's all but official, Obama it is...

(By Bennett Roth of the Chron)

The Associated Press reports that Sen. Barack Obama, of Illinois, sealed the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday, a historic step toward his once-improbable goal of becoming the nation's first black president. A vanquished Hillary Rodham Clinton maneuvered for the vice-presidential spot on his fall ticket.

Obama, 46, is the first black to lead his party in the race for the White House. Obama will face Republican John McCain, a 71-year old former prisoner of war in Vietnam, in a fall campaign in which Iraq, the economy and generational divide are likely to be dominant issues.

On Tuesday Obama continued to pick up high-profile support, including Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., the third-ranking Democrat in the House. He is expected to be endorsed Wednesday by former President Jimmy Carter. Meanwhile, Clinton told New York lawmakers that she would be open to the vice presidential slot.

Obama was able to nab the 2,118 delegates needed to win based on an Associated Press tally.

And thus endeth one of oddest Primary seasons in recent memory. Anyone who tries to blog, or tell you, that they had McCain/Obama at this time last year as the two surviving candidates they're lying their political tails off. Heck, anyone who tells you that, in January, they still didn't think that Clinton would still be the Democratic nominee is probably 3 to 1 lying. Heck, up until the Wednesday after Super, Duper (extra special) Tuesday I thought the same thing. I always thought that the Clinton's Nationwide infrastructure would originally overwhelm Obama. Never happened. That's why I get paid to be an accountant and write this blog for fun eh?

At the end of the day however Obama was the candidate that most personified the 'change' that Democratic voters are looking for. It's liberal progressive, Baby Boom and unconnected to the last 30 years of political history. In a way this pick shouldn't have surprised us as much as it did. After the fall of the early to mid 90's the "new" Democratic Party that emerged was much more liberal than the former Party that developed Del Miller and a handful of other conservative Democrats. The "third way" of the Clintons has been replaced with progressive angst, and it appears that the Democrats feel its time to see if that message will resonate with the Nation. If its a successful message like many Democrats hope, then they could be looking at controlling the Executive Branch, both Houses of the Legislature with an outside (very outside) shot at a super-majority Senate, effectively leaving the Republicans in "campaign" mode for the next two years. Whether this is a bad thing or not depends on your point of view. One thing is for certain, the fundamental way that America's economy functions will change.

The Republicans, on the other hand, eschewed idealism and went with the candidate furthest from the current, highly unpopular, administration. They're hope is that conservatives will have no where else to go. They also run the risk that conservatives will stay home. If the latter happens then their worst case scenario is the Democrats best case scenario that I outlined above. So far it seems that McCain isn't too concerned in winning them over, time will tell if that will change.

Either way the preliminaries are over, now we get into the heavy lifting of the general election. Expect the bad commercials, angry rhetoric (mainly from bloggers and political outsiders that want *badly* to be insiders) and baby kissing to begin in earnest.

World Classiness

Spotted on the way to the Inidan River during May's "Float Trip"....


I give you "Watsonburger".

Look closely at the banner: "Free Wi-Fi"


Houston: just like Durant, Oklahoma. (pop. 15,050)

Except that Houston doesn't have this...



Slackers.

A double dose of good news

First you have Vestes opening a wind research center...

(From Tom Fowler of the Chron)

Oil and gas may be the prime mover in Houston's economy, but a growing wind power business is proving there's more than one way to spell "energy" in the Bayou City.

Houston is already home to a handful of major wind power project developers, including those owned by oil and gas giants BP and Shell, thanks in large part to the state's ample wind resources, renewable energy incentives created by lawmakers and competitive power markets.

And the industry blew this way again Monday when Dutch powerhouse Vestas Wind Systems said it will open its first U.S. research and development facility here. The office will open in 2009 and grow to about 100 researchers by early 2010, not including support staff, with more positions likely to come.

Energy Quote of the year nominee:

Large-scale renewable energy has to be done in conjunction with major energy companies," said Ditlev Engel, Vestas chief executive. "There's no either-or with renewable and traditional fossil fuels. You need them all."

Second is the opening of the GreenHunter biodiesel plant near the Houston Ship Channel...

(from Brett Clanton of the Chron)

The nation's largest biodiesel plant opened Monday at the Houston Ship Channel, expanding Texas' lead as the biggest producer of the alternative fuel and helping chart a course for making it from nonedible sources.

The $70 million facility, owned by Grapevine-based GreenHunter Energy, will be able to produce 105 million gallons a year of biodiesel, boosting the nation's capacity to make the fuel by nearly 5 percent.

But at a grand opening event Monday, GreenHunter officials were just as eager to highlight the plant's flexibility to produce the fuel from a wide range of animal fats and vegetable oils, both edible and nonedible.

The design not only will help the industry move away from competition with food crops like soybeans but will prevent the facility from being too closely tied to one feedstock, which is by far the biggest expense of making the fuel, company officials said.

Good luck to both ventures, here's hoping they find a way to make each one profitable and workable without hugh Government subsidies.


Which is what renewable fuel producers need to figure out before the revolution will be alternatively powered.

Why transportation planning fails....

It's 'all or nothing' spewing from both sides instead of a rational, nuanced solution.

Case in point: The Grand Parkway

(from Rad Sallee of the Chron)

Commissioners Court is scheduled to vote today on a proposal to speed the start of construction on a segment of the planned Grand Parkway connecting the Katy Freeway and U.S. 290.

The long-standing plan to build a 180-mile parkway, a four-lane toll road also called Texas 99, is conceived as an "outer outer" loop around Houston and has drawn fire from environmentalists as a magnet for sprawl.

Developers and other supporters say that growth will come anyway and that the parkway would be better than a hodgepodge of unplanned roads.

Precinct 3 Commissioner Steve Radack said Monday that he pushed to fast-track Segment E "because we have to figure out a way to help with the incredible traffic on U.S. 290.

"The short-term solution," Radack said, "is to get Segment E built and get them onto the Katy Freeway. It takes people almost two hours to get from Hockley to downtown Houston."

Matthew Tejada, executive director of the Galveston-Houston Association for Smog Prevention (GHASP), was incredulous.

"So, the solution to more roads and congested roads is more roads?" he asked. "This is a continuation of the same wrongheaded solution to a continuing problem. The only solution is get people out of their cars."

No, that's not the only solution. It's one of many solutions, each of which could serve as an integral cog in the transportation wheel. For example:

The "best" transit solution would be one that recognizes the need for increased, effective mass transit while recognizing the reality that many people are not going to give up the independence and sense of security that their cars provide. Groups such as GHASP only serve to obscure the real transit issue because of their single-minded insistence that people be "forced" into transit solutions with which they don't agree. Last I checked, we still live in America where "free will" is given credence, at least on its face, and as such to "force" Americans to do anything probably isn't going to be well received.

What would be nice is if someone were to come up with a workable solution that involves multimodal modelling that takes into account a more robust, more inclusive Metro service as well as an adequate infrastructure to handle individual vehicles. This could be handled by a mix of fixed "long haul" bus routes well-connected to neighborhood centric "circulator" routes and a network of fixed transportation lines within the City Center. Those "fixed" lines should not be more light rail built at-grade. Which are proving expensive to run and detrimental to mobility for other types of transit.

The first step should be throwing away Metro's current service map and redrawing bus routes to provide comprehensive, neighborhood circulator service to the areas where public transit is most needed. Next would be to abandon the ineffective "Metro Solutions" plan and present to the public a new plan that takes advantage of BRT, circulator routes and long-haul park-n-ride service from the outlying suburbs. Any form of "tram service" should be grade-separated and limited in scope INSIDE the Loop and designed to move from employment center to employment center. The single biggest fault of the current transit system is that it assumes all people that are riding it eventually want to end up downtown. That assumption needs to change as well.

Perhaps Metro could benefit from a little Summer house cleaning?

Yeah, it will snow in August first. Until then I'm afraid we're going to hear increasing siren calls to "get people out of their cars" as transportation planning in Houston continues to run headlong down a dark tunnel into the headlights of an oncoming train, thinking all the time that the light they see is the other end of the tunnel. After all, it sounds so "reasonable" does it not?

"World Class"

Discovery Green, Houston's downtown park (and most recent example of "trinket government") has been marketed as another step in the continual march toward "world class status" by those who fall back on that argument when their initial pleas for public funding fall through.

After all, who doesn't want to be "world class"?

I don't have a picture, but I know that one of the key "selling points" of the park are the "world class" bocce ball courts. there's even a call for players on the forums for the Houston Architecture Info site.


The good news is that Houston can now claim to be on par with.....


Okemah, Oklahoma (pop. 3038)


(the Okemah Bocce ball courts at Grape Ranch Winery)

One thing that Okemah has that Houston does not however is a peacock roaming the grounds of their star attraction... (In Houston however the peacock would be tagged with a corporate sponsorship.)



Slackers.

Mixed Martial Arts

It's too bad that the Kimbo Slice fight is going to suck up all the MSM oxygen.

Because the best MMA show of the weekend was the WEC card that featured WEC Featherweight Champion (and short list member of "best pound for pound fighter") Uriah Faber and MMA all-time great Jens Pulver.

If EliteXC was sizzle, the WEC event was the steak. As a matter of fact the best fight of the weekend was the Miguel Torres/Yoshiro Maeda fight. A fight that saw dual ankle locks applied simultaneously. It should have been the WEC event on CBS and EliteXC on cable. What the uninitiated got to see on Saturday was "AA" level minor-league fighting. The Sunday cable event was the major leagues. The big problem with all of this is that MSM sports columnists (like Jerome Soloman linked above) are going to base their decisions on the minor leagues.

Which is why MSM sports reporting is, for the most part, getting trumped time after time by sports bloggers and other sources. A single-issue blog written by a former competitor or devoted fan can be far more compelling than a column written by a journalist who's exposure to sports is limited to kicking the crap out of other journalists in the local softball league, or in a pickup game at the local Y.

Don't get me wrong, sports columnists at large newspapers serve a purpose. They provide sounding boards to fans regarding the local teams in the major sports. At their best they provide deeper insight into the inner workings of the local teams, they ask good questions and have the ability to connect the fan base to the local franchises. They also can put pressure on organizations to fix glaring errors IF they are brave enough to address them honestly.

In Houston its a mixed bag.

The Chron sports columnists are "hit and miss" with certain ones being more "miss" than "hit". You're best bet is to look at alternative sources in the Houston Sports market for meaningful info, and Charlie Pallilo.

When it comes to MMA the best local resource is the Chron's Brawl Sports blog currently penned by local MMA fighter Jared Barnes. He gives an honest opinion of the action and is well-versed on the minutia of the sport. Unlike the major columnists he doesn't spend too much ink space justifying the existence (or dislike) of MMA. He just reports on the matches.

As for me? I like all "combat" sports. I've been a boxing fan for as long as I can remember, and have been watching MMA since UFC 1, back when it was a tournement fight with no rules. I've seen the evolution of the sport from something that Sen. John McCain called "human cockfighting" to a polished, yet brutal, discipline that draws Millions of fans to Pay-per-views monthly.

What I saw Saturday (outside of the Carano/Young and Lawler/Smith fights) was a big step back. What I watched Sunday was what the sport should be.

Just be careful where you go for your reporting.


More: Kimbo Fight fixed?...My vote is no.

Flown away..

When you absolutely, positively have to get there overnight...(probably to receive a campaign donation.....)

(from Peggy Fikac of the Chron)

Five years after Texas leaders tried to disband the state's airplane fleet, officials still call on the service to fly them to meetings, award ceremonies, funerals and even a neighboring GOP governor's inauguration.

Office-holders and bureaucrats, including Gov. Rick Perry, say they look at cost and efficiency before deciding whether to use the aircraft, which range from $258.75 to $977.50 per flight-hour.

But some question the fleet, since bills are often footed by taxpayers and commercial airfare may be cheaper.

"It sure does raise the eyebrows and make the nose crinkle a bit," said Michael Quinn Sullivan of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility. "Between two really good Texas-based airlines, there's any number of options to get from anywhere to anywhere by air pretty quickly."

Then-Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn and Perry talked about selling the planes during the 2003 budget crunch.

But the Texas Department of Transportation, which oversees the fleet, expects it to log 1,227 more flight hours this two-year budget period than last. The planes are expected to fly a total of 3,350 hours at a cost of $2.3 million this budget cycle.

"State agencies have seen the value of our services as an effective business tool," said Texas Department of Transportation spokesman Chris Lippincott, noting the cost to fly on commercial airlines "continues to rise and its reliability continues to deteriorate."

I present to you exhibit "A" as to why Texas Republicans are predicting doom, gloom and the coming of the Apocolypse during the 2008 elections. If you preach "fiscal responsibility" then its probably a good idea to practice it as well. If the election outcome is as ugly as Republicans are predicting then they'll only have themselves to blame.

"Airline service is deteriating" is a tough argument to make to the voter whose daily life is impacted by rising costs and bad airline service. What's good for the goose and all of that.

Of course, there will be a lot of noise and cacaphony about "voting the bums out of office"...and then the same vocal group will go vote for THEIR incumbent while chastising the rest of the State for not fixing the problem.