The End of the Beginning of the End.

(Full Disclosure: I work for a large Oil & Gas company in Houston. I have my biases toward cap and trade and openly admit them. A large part of the reason for this is because I don't want to lose my job and my families livelihood so that Al Gore and friends can get even wealthier)



For Texas' economy that is....

Cap n' Trade is on the Senate Floor and the action is sure to move forward at a rapid pace.

[Richard Dunham, Chron.com]

Here's a section-by-section description of the legislation:

· Clean energy. Promotes renewable sources of energy, carbon capture and sequestration technologies, low-carbon fuels, clean electric vehicles, and the smart grid and electricity transmission;
· Energy efficiency. Designed to increase energy efficiency across all sectors of the economy, including buildings, appliances, transportation, and industry;
· Global warming title. Places limits on emissions of heat-trapping pollutants; and
· Green jobs. Promotes green jobs during the transition to a clean energy economy.

(emphasis mine)

I bolded the last two bullet points to high-light the fact that Even the friendliest of sources (Resources for the Future is a 'green' think tank out of Washington DC) can't manipulate the numbers to make it appear that this 'can n' trade' legislation is going to do anything but dampen the economy to the point of (in some industries) raising the unemployment numbers by as much as 10%. The American Institute for Economic Research (a decidedly market friendly research firm has more and paints an even darker picture.

As a whole, the The oil and gas industry is deeply concerned about the effects cap n' trade will have on the industry. For many a carbon tax would be a better solution long-term than a cap n' trade system, but Al Gore wouldn't profit off of that arrangement.

I've no doubt this folly will pass into law, and the Texas (and Houston's) economy will fall off the edge of a cliff because of it. Much of the talk among supporters is around so-called "green collar" jobs that are supposed to take the place of oil and gas jobs. Except, there aren't going to be enough well-paying jobs bubbling up to replace the number of jobs lost. Add to this the extreme losses that will be experienced in mining, refining, plastics manufacturing and exploration and production and you have a disaster scenario for the economy, but a very good scenario for the Government coffers and companies selling carbon off-sets.

I'd tell you to call your elected officials and tell them to vote against this but they're not going to listen to you anyway.

Ah well.

All things considered I'd rather have the tree.

Think about this: The Move It! columnist was let go by the Chron last week, and the Jr. Columnist was retained....

[Lisa Falkenberg, Chron.com]

As the Chronicle’s James Pinkerton reported in his recent series, some of the immigrants are using their U.S. earnings to start small businesses in their own country, from tequila distilleries to dairy cooperatives.

While there’s nothing new about migrants using remittances as investment capital, the opportunity presented by this recent surge of private enterprise is one of the few pieces of inspiring news we’ve heard lately from a country torn by poverty and drug violence.

The employment small- and medium-sized businesses provide would seem a perfect antidote to poverty, careers in narco-trafficking, and, yes, illegal immigration into the United States.

But if entrepreneurship were simple in Mexico, the country wouldn’t be in the shape it is now. Without nurturing from the Mexican government, and from us, many of the enterprises are doomed to fail.

(snip)

But the United States does very little to nourish Mexico’s fledgling upstarts.

Until recently, Mexico, considered a middle-income country, hasn’t been a major recipient of U.S. foreign aid. In fact, our southern neighbor is a member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. In theory, it should be among the richest nations doling out assistance to the poorer nations.

The recent boost in foreign aid Mexico has been promised from the United States is largely aimed at fighting Mexico’s raging drug war, and keeping it from spilling across our border.

(snip)

Increasing economic development aid to Mexico is a difficult concept. Mexico would almost certainly demand control over how the money is spent. And the idea isn’t politically popular here. Many wonder why we should fund new jobs in Mexico, when we need more jobs here.

The answer is increasingly clear. Mexico’s fate is entwined with our own.

What's increasingly clear is that, on the whole, I'd rather have a tree planted in Houston rather than to read this weekly bit of 'America sucks' self-immolation from the Chron's former teen columnist.

Not so clear is how America borrowing additional Billions to 'give' to Mexico is somehow a superior idea to Mexico borrowing the money herself? Then there's the, admitted, problem of Mexico not allocating the money we already give them to small business support. Not to mention the fact that America can't force them to do so.

What American "aid" to Mexico will do is continue to allow Mexico to funnel money to their ruling elites while allowing Americans with success remorse to feel better about themselves through the proliferation of hollow, meaningless gestures. This, in turn, allows them to saunter through life, retaining a focus on hair color and their contributions to Houston's red-light cameras, without having to consider that their calls for action are actually making the problem worse, by retarding the Mexican Government's ability to stand on its own two feet.

As I said, let's plant a tree. We'll get more out of it.

No Rainy Day Fund Expenditures in Budget.

This could be a political mistake...

[Peggy Fikac, Chron.com]

Senate budget-writers are leaving billions of dollars untouched in a state savings account even as Texans cope with the economic downturn — though federal stimulus money will help with increases in education, welfare and workforce development.

The $182.2 billion proposal for the fiscal year that starts Sept. 1 was approved Monday by the Senate Finance committee and is on track to be debated by the full Senate on Wednesday.

It would be a 7.3 percent increase overall, but a 24.2 percent increase in federal spending, compared with the current budget, including about $11 billion in stimulus money. State general revenue spending would dip.

“It’s a fairly significant increase in the overall budget,” said Senate Finance Committee Chairman Steve Ogden, R-Bryan. “The committee worked hard to try and address many, many legitimate needs in state government, and we wouldn’t have been able to do it without the federal stimulus money.”

The proposal includes some $500 million for workforce development from federal stimulus funds, Ogden said, and it includes a federal spending boost in Medicaid. Budget writers also plan to use federal stimulus money for a public-education spending increase they’d otherwise fund with state money.

(snip)

The proposal would not dip into the state savings account known as the rainy day fund, which takes a super-majority of lawmakers to spend. Ogden said he expects the state in the future to need “every cent” of the money in the fund, which is projected to grow to $9.1 billion in a couple of years if left untouched. The need stems in large part from the state taking on a larger share of funding public education in recent years by decreasing local property tax rates.

Ignoring the repeated pleas to spend the money on entitlements such as welfare etc. for a moment, I'm really surprised that the Budget-writers didn't strongly consider using the Rainy-day funds for one-time expenditures related to Hurricane Ike, and to shore up the Texas insurance fund. Both of those expenditures would qualify as 'rainy day' items to me, unlike the rush to spend in order to play to a constituency suggestions some are offering.

The problem with spending 'rainy day' monies on entitlement expansions is that said expansions are on-going concerns. Once you fund them, and attract more people to draw from the public largesse, those expenditures don't dissappear they perpetuate and grow, often to a point of unsustainability. People calling for flippant use of the fund are really calling for tax increases down the road, on those making slightly more than them of course. (and businesses)

Many political pundits are suggesting that this legislative session was the last, real chance Republicans had to make deep changes in the way the State operates before the National Democratic trends catch up to them. Instead of moving forward and addressing reform, they've fallen back on wedge issues such as Voter ID and have missed a huge opportunity to change the way Texas operates. Not that I had much faith in Republicans to get the revisions right, but I've got even less faith that a Democratic State Government won't empty out the coffers in an attempt to pander to their loose collection of interest groups, all of whom want a bigger piece of the Government pie. As bad as Texas Republicans are (and they're pretty bad), Texas Democrats have the potential to be worse. Worse because they are governing from the same absolutist principles as the Republicans, but they want to fund give-aways while doing it.

I also found this snippet by Republican State Senator Ogden to be of interest:

Ogden said he expects the state in the future to need “every cent” of the money in the fund, which is projected to grow to $9.1 billion in a couple of years if left untouched. The need stems in large part from the state taking on a larger share of funding public education in recent years by decreasing local property tax rates.

Ogden is referring to, without mentioning it, the ill-designed "margins tax" that Republicans, urged on by Gov. Perry, forced through two years ago. The tax was an ill-concieved, economic anchor then, one that was opposed by Democrats for no other reason than that it didn't go far enough. On the one hand we have the current majority Party that lacks the political will to make systemic fixes*, on the other hand we have a minority party whose goal is, admittedly, to increase taxes across the board on businesses and those who have met a modicum of success.

God help Texas before we turn into California.



OTHER EYES: Off the Kuff








*Texas leaders need to take a long look at the State's funding mechanism in its entirety and stop making reforms that amount to nothing more than placing a band-aid on the cancer. In order to survive, long-term, the State needs three things....1. Tax reform. (including taking a look at an income tax) 2. Real education reform (that does more than pander to the Teacher's lobby, and 3. Ethics reform that puts an end to the conflicts of interest and influence-peddling that are 100% legal in Austin today.

Giff Exits.

Long-time sportscaster Giff Nielsen is calling it a career. [KHOU]:

KHOU-TV Sports Director Giff Nielsen announced Monday that he will leave Channel 11 after 25 years on the air. Giff will deliver his last sportscast during 11 News at 10 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31.

Giff's announcement on 11 News at 6 View larger E-mail Clip More Video "Truly, it is a time of great joy for my wife Wendy and me as we look to the future with excitement," Giff said when he delivered the news to viewers during Monday's 6 p.m. newscast.

Giff joined the 11 News team in May 1984 after retiring from the Houston Oilers.

Long-time Houstonians will remember that Neilson was the successor of current State Senator Dan Patrick. His style was less flamboyant than that of Sen. Patrick (who's isn't) and that initial calm was a welcome change to viewers, many of whom had tired of Patrick's grandstanding.

Mr. Neilsen was very good covering football, as a former Oilers' quarterback he understood the sport well. The most enduring memories I have are during his time on "The Jack Pardee Show". At the time the Oilers were implementing the Run n' Shoot offense so there was typically a lot of offense to discuss and break down.

Congratulations Giff on 25 years of sports coverage and good luck in the future. I hope the next 25 are as good as the previous 25 for you and yours.

Houston Area Asides (03/31/09)

The 'confickered' version...

Lobbyists reach out to State Employees. [Matt Stiles, Chron.] - In a Corporatist society, courtisans.

Stem-cell research hits snag in Texas. [Todd Ackerman & Janet Elliot, Chron.com] -

“Such an amendment would be detrimental to Texas,” said the statement. “A ban would halt ongoing research projects and negatively impact the ability of Texas academic health institutions, both public and private, to competitively recruit and retain world-class scientists, professors and students in the biological sciences.”

I don't agree with the anti stem-cell argument, but there are good people who have legitimate reasons for making it. How much you want to bet the hyper-partisans term them all 'dangerous'? It's just the absolutism of science after all....Worship at the altar damn you.

Rule will call for clean air near shore. [Matthew Tresaugue, Chron.com] - This only works if every other Nation plays ball. If someone with a big port, say Brazil, chooses not to then we've effectively destroyed an effective part of the American economy. We'll all be broke, but we'll be breathing cleaner air under our bridges.

FDA issues warning on eating pistachios. [AP via Chron.com] - After careful study I have come to the scientific conclusion that someone is on a mission to take out squirrells.

Sen. Kerrey makes a push for tighter gun control. [LA Times via Chron.com] - Funny how, to some, the solution to almost any problem is the curtailment of rights for the American people.

New KIPP campuses have younger focus. [Jennifer Radcliffe, Chron.com]

Conficker worm might hold April Fools' Day surprise. [Dwight Silverman, Chron.com] - Yup, update your computers tonight...PLEASE.

Four to one.

I don't know about you, but a blurb in today's story by Hailey R. Branson of the Chron on climate change lobbying caught my attention, and was mildly disturbing at the same time...

The nation’s economy is in the tank, and companies in Houston and elsewhere have been shedding jobs. But in Washington, there’s a growth industry that’s putting some Texans to work: climate change lobbying.

The climate change business has spiked in the last year, especially after Barack Obama was elected president as a strong supporter of legislation to drastically reduce fossil fuel emissions. Roughly 2,340 lobbyists dealing with climate issues were hired in 2008, according to a Center for Public Integrity analysis of Senate lobbying disclosure forms.

The climate lobbyists now outnumber members of Congress by a margin of more than 4 to 1 and span the political spectrum — from Hollywood stars on the left to conservatives who argue global warming is a hoax. But one of the most active players in the debate has been a mainstay of the Texas economy: the energy industry.

Four to one, wow. The problem that I have with the preponderance of lobbyists now is that they don't produce anything of tangible value. Even stock traders (when they guess right) generate paper wealth. All lobbyists accomplish is to act as courtisans to the royalty in powerful positions. It's a legalized fellatio on a systemic scale played out in the back-rooms and taverns of the American Capitol.

Not that a pandering class is unique to American history. The Babylonians, Persians, Romans, Greeks and, especially, French royalty all had political hangers-on in legion. This was especially true in the latter days of their power, typically right before either the populace revolted or a foreign power came in and deposed what passed for leadership.

Stretching a gallon of gas.

A car that gets 4000 MPG? [Jeannie Kever, Chron.com]

Off campus, she’s just another driver in an anonymous Toyota Corolla.

But let Avanthi Kodur slip into the Phoenix, the experimental car she and two other University of Houston students are building, and people stare.

And that’s before they know what they’re looking at.

Kodur, along with fellow students James Smith and Brandon Marbach, is building a racer with a difference — a car they hope will travel several thousand miles on just one gallon of gasoline.

Top speed? Maybe 30 mph.

Consider it the anti-NASCAR.

The car is the trio’s final project before they earn a degree in mechanical engineering technology, a field that drew them with its hands-on requirements.

(snip)

Kodur, Marbach and Smith will be one of 52 teams in the Shell Eco-marathon, held at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., in mid-April. Then they’ll switch out the engine for a competition sponsored by the Society of Automotive Engineers.

Cars in the Eco-marathon must travel 9.6 miles, with an average speed of 15 mph; the winner is based on highest mileage and lowest emissions.

Last year’s winner got 2,883 mpg. A team from UH finished in 17th place with a car that got 268.2 mpg. Smith is hoping the Phoenix will get 4,000 mpg.

But it’s still a work-in-progress, and, so far, they’re not sure how close they are to the goal.

(snip)

For now, it looks like a Space Age go-kart, powered by a Honda 4-stroke, 50 cc engine, a small engine Marbach said was taken from a pile driver.

The three tires are 20-inch bicycle tires, and the gas tank is a tiny glass bottle that holds about half a cup of fuel.

It runs on unleaded gasoline.

Stories like this are neat, but I'm not sure if there's anything that will ever have practical applications. For one thing, the student's aren't re-tweaking an engine design or building a new engine from scratch to increase their milage, they're just using a very small existing engine to power an ultra-light car at very slow speeds. I wish them luck and hope they win, but I don't see anything in their design that will move forward the internal combustion engine, which is purportedly the goal of events such as these.

Still, hopefully they can come in better than 17th place, at 1/10th the milage of the existing winner. And it's nice to see a little good news sprinkled amongst todays financial gloom and doom.

Houston Area Asides (03/29/09)

The 'not a whole lotta talkin goin on' edition.

Regional Crime Lab Still a go. [Roma Khanna, Chron.com] - Again, I've got more planned on this issue (which I support FWIW) but until then there's this post by the Mighty Wizard that serves as a good starting point for the discussion.

Perry-Hutchison battle could impact National GOP [AP via Chron.com] It's conservatives vs. moderates in a battle for the soul of a shrinking, and increasingly irrelevant (on a National Level) Republican Party.

Former VT student fights to keep guns off Texas campus. [Jim Vertuno, AP via Chron.com] - So the answer to preventing the tragedy that occurred at VT is to replicate the conditions that were present at VT during the time of the shootings? That logic is hard to follow.

Neighbors stand up to Medical Center. [Mike Snyder, Chron.com] - The professional NIMBY's of Southampton are at it again. Of course, being politically well-connected and, most importantly, wealthy {READ: able to make large campaign donations} they have politicians willing to submit bills for them.

Outrage greets State's plans to raise sin taxes. [Roger Alford, AP via Chron.com] - And then they'll vote to re-elect the same people they're angry against. Gotta love democracy in action.

Bonuses are a negative. [Loren Steffy, Chron.com] - Is it me or did he end in an entirely different place in this article than he began? Tortured.

Now is the time to build Texas' solar industry. [Luke Metzger & John Hofmeister, Chron.com] - I'm a big believer in developing technologies involving personalized solar panels, specifically making them less cost prohibitive, and better battery storage. The key is to not punish existing energy sources. The key to energy 'independence' is multiple sources. I'm constantly amazed that many people don't seem to understand that and believe the best option is to decimate the current energy market.

If everything goes dark, how can you blog and tweet?

(screen shot from EarthHour.org.)

In terms of banal, worthless, symbolism this one has to take the cake. Earth hour. Definitive proof that a majority of those who claim to worry about the 'future of the planet' haven't given much thought about how to save it.

The premise behind Earth Hour is simple. Turn off your lights, and your electronics, for one hour on Saturday evening to 'cast a vote' for the health of Mother Earth. Ah a simple and easy way to show your support for the planet in a manner not requiring too much personal sacrifice. Brilliant.

Which has always been the key when selling the general public on the enviro-movement, a lack of personal sacrifice. The idea being that its going to be possible to eliminate all carbon-dioxide emitted into the atmosphere while retaining the trappings that make our lives bearable. You know, items such as TV, computers, automobiles, Inter-continental flights. On an even more basic level the folly sold to the current generation of Gaia-worshipers involves necessities such as food and drink. The biggest lie told to the population is the whopper that a few, prohibitively expensive farmer's markets can replace the entirety of the foodstocks that would be lost if Wal-Mart, Kroger, HEB, Safe-Way and the other major food chains just shuttered their doors. There's no mention that, in the abscense of a plastics industry, many of the food-safety containment advantages that we enjoy today would dissapear, setting back food safety to pre-WWII levels. A basic necessity of the environmental agenda is a large portion of society getting by on less than subsistance levels of food and nourishment. Information such as that kind of makes slow food seem a little extemporaneous doesn't it?

None of that matters however, because "Earth hour" is hip. All across America (and Texas) minimally educated bloggers and new-media mavens are going to be Blogging, Facebooking and Tweeting about how they're 'casting a vote for mother earth' blissfully unaware that that very act is a contradition. Your energy use in your devices is not a zero-impact gambit. Even if you don't 'technically' draw energy from your home during the hour (although some will, because they will not unplug their computers) you will be using energy during that hour that will have to be replenished later. It's the same folly that caused the 'don't gas up your car for a day' campaigns to fail miserably. The next day the gas station owners laughed as they had double the sales.

Unfortunately, given the rise of absolutism in America, no-one partaking in this event (and blogging, and tweeting, and recording videos, or watching coverage on TV) are going to ever have to confront the futility and idiocy of what it is they are doing. They won't have to realize that true 'change' involves a lifestyle change. True conservation work isn't performed in an hour while giggling over your iPhone with your buds. True conservation work requires a sustained effort to enact change, to clean up the polluted areas of the planet and let it heal itself, something the Earth has a remarkable ability to do.

Instead, Madison Ave. has created a hokey little hour where people can band together and perform meaningless online exhibitionism in the hopes that a commenter, follower or new friend will stumble onto their moment of faux self-sacrifice and, with flowery prose and fawning emoticons, re-affirm to them just how wonderful and worldly-minded they really are.

Exactly one-hour after this they're all going to turn their lights back on and, possibly, overload already stressed power grids. Thus proving that for every action their is an equal and opposite reaction.

Houston Area Asides (03/27/09)

The 'incompetence as defense' version....

Prosecutors disciplined in jury flap. [Brian Rogers, Chron.com] - And publically castigated because today's society demands it so they can feel better about what basically amounts to window dressing.

Costs, process, ruin parking-ban law. [Carolyn Feibel, Chron.com] - Neighborhood groups want control over their fifedoms but don't want to pay Caesar to receive it.

Evolution moves to head of class in Texas schools. [Gary Scharrar, Chron.com] - The first piece from the Chron on this issue that wasn't from an individual whose work was being dissected, and who's virulently anti-religion, or an AP piece. There's a word for science today, and it has religious roots. Absolutism.

Keller deserves lawyer from lower crust. [Rick Casey, Chron.com] - No, that would be vengence. Justice dictates that Judge Keller get competent representation. Just because the State does a poor job providing the indigent accused with quality representation doesn't require everyone play to the least common denominator to balance the scales. Let's not run our justice system like we run our schools. Knee-jerk, reactionary pleas from out-of-town columnists with a penchant for cribbing prose from others not-withstanding.

Houston Food Supplier faces health, safety violations. [Dale Lezon, Chron.com] - Yeesh.

A Tax on Dreams. [Four Caucasian Males, Chron.com] - A tax on dreams? What about the dreams of the middle class and their children, who are going to have to pay for this? The Four Caucasian Males probably haven't been to a public clinic for health care...ever. Never before has the voice of the Chron ed. board been more irrelevent to the public discourse.

Shine a light: Let Cities, others investigate whether or not they are overcharged for power. [Four Caucasian Males, Chron.com] - Utterly stupid idea. What Texas doesn't need is a bunch of politicians prosecuting the power companies in grandstanding ploys to get votes. The key is to empower the PUC, not to call for the set-up of kangaroo courts.

Mayoral Candidates Draw a Few Battle Lines [Alan Bernstein, Chron.com] - Very few, as the homogenization of Houston Municipal Politics rolls on, and debates are moved away from the key issues to the fringes of public policy.

GOP Works the Good and the Bad. [Alan Bernstein, Chron.com] - Exhibit "A" why politics in Houston are now homogenized. One side is listing without a cohesive message and trapped in a time warp.

On a Houston Area Regional Crime Lab. [The Mighty Wizard, Fireballs, Lightning Bolts and Hell storms] - A good jumping off point for a topic that I plan to give comprehensive treatment over the next few months.

A Glimmer of light in the Darkness. [Unca Darrell] - A topic that I don't plan to give much space to, Federal issues being a bit beyond my preferred scope, but one that should receive broad coverage.

The Corridor of Cruelty

*WARNING: The images on this link are DISTURBING, especially if you are a dog person. DO NOT click on this link if you aren't ready to see graphic images of abused and sick dogs that have been dumped by their owners. Fair warning.

A follow up story about Houston's "Corridor of Cruelty" where sick, or difficult dogs are dropped by Houstonians, and the story of the volunteers who are reaching out to remedy the situation that humans have put them in.


Comments on this post are going to be tightly moderated. I'm not in the mood for glibness or weak-attempts at humor after reading this.

Tragedy Averted (barely)

Some of the more (shall we say) interesting public commentary regarding the Chron lay-offs have come in the comments to the Chron Reader Rep's two sentance post regarding the same.

Questions about local news coverage in the future, Rice (and UH) atheletics and just a general feeling of malaise as readers vent against all things Chron.

Well, fear not, gentle reader, according to Kyrie "memo" O'Connor the FEATURES coverage is going to be just fine....

(comment posted by Jim Newkirk for O'Connor)

I just got word from Kyrie O'Conner, Deputy Managing Editor/Features, that there has been some confusion in the public and, frankly, on some blogs about certain areas of print coverage and how they will be addressed. For those concerned about the Chronicle's features section, O'Connor said we have made every effort not to shortchange the reader. Coverage of the fine arts remains unchanged, as follows:

Everett Evans will still handle theater and classical music.

Douglas Britt will continue to write about the visual arts.

Tara Dooley will still write feature stories and profiles on the arts.

Entertainment coverage is also undiminished, with Joey Guerra and Andrew Dansby writing about music and other topics, and Amy Biancolli reviewing movies.

One key change: Maggie Galehouse will be in charge of coverage of books.

Kristin Finan will be the new travel writer.

Joy Sewing will continue to write about fashion, with additional coverage from Greg Morago.

Jemimah Noonoo will cover religion, with Diane Cowen editing that section of the paper.

Other areas of features work should remain largely as they are now.

Two things.

1. (from another Chron commenter)

A number of posts have expressed concerns about local coverage and Mr. Newkirk (finally) responds with information about...wait for it...FEATURES

Heh. He's right though, MOST of the questions relating to future Chron plans were focused on local coverage. The Chron responding with reassurances that FEATURES would be humming along speaks volumes.

2. Don't you feel better knowing that FEATURES such as Tmi as well as stimulating, top-flight journalism including reporters impersonating hurricane evacuees (using up needed resources and volunteer time that could have gone to the truly harmed) and society columnists crashing funerals won't be missing from future editions of the Chron?

I know I'm relieved. We almost had something resembling real, hard news being talked about.

Houston Area Asides (03/26/09)

The "system reset" version...

Study: Witness errors lead juries astray. [Roma Khanna, Chron.com] - The headline makes it seem like eyewitnesses are intentionally lying. That's typically not the case. The problem lies with how most people process information, and how unreliable that information is, during periods of high stress.

State aims to avoid repeat of Ike-like outages. [R.G. Ratcliffe, Chron.com] - Oh, and energy companies will raise rates, drastically to make up for infrastructure losses. This would make sense if Texas' electricity rates were not the highest in the Nation due to the failure of the faux, almost-sorta deregulation pushed through by Republicans a few years back.

Harris County has a plan to keep voter rolls updated. [Alan Bernstein, Chron.com] - This should receive praise across the board, because its a pretty solid plan. It won't however, mainly due to the constant-campaign, zero-sum nature of Texas politics.

Perry's logic mis-leading. [Lisa Falkenberg, Chron.com] - The Chron's Jr. columnist cherry-picks provisions that support her claim (while ignoring the ones that don't) and hurls more personal insults at those with whom she does not agree. Nice.

Board hears testimony on science cirriculum. [April Castro, AP via Chron.com] - On this important issue the Chron's only coverage is this AP report and a live-blog from a scientist with a penchant for inflammatory statements who has a skin in the game. Allowing Dr. Stephen Schafersman, who had a hand in drafting the standards, provide the 'coverage' for the debate over the standards, without heavy disclosures (or the inclusion of a counter voice) is a short to the public trust.

Loyalty still has its rewards. [Liz Austin Peterson, Chron.com] - Maybe its just me, but I'm having a hard time getting worked up about County employees being able to select a service award (a better phrase than the loaded 'trinket' btw) from a catalogue for 20-50 years of service. You?

Forget WWE: Ryan vs. Sport Corp could be real showdown. [Alan Bernstein, Chron.com] - The Harris County Sports Authority should have been shuttered after Toyota Center was built. It's hanging on proves the old adage that you can never truly get rid of a useless Government agency once it firmly attaches to the teat. On top of that they are the most secretive organization in local politics. It's a double-whammy of bad government.

Cougar fans: Can we talk? [Steve Campbell, Chron Cougar Blog] - Campbell on the UH beat? Ah well, at least they're covering it. UH fans are already feeling slighted however because Campbell is a *gasp* UT-Austin grad. It's silly yes, but true.

LinkPost (03/24/09 Edition) [Kevin Whited, PubliusTX] - Heh, foodBorg...I like it.

The Chronicle is making me angry. [John Royal, The ClownVision Chronicles] - Megan Manfull on the Rice beat? Poor Rice. Still no-one covering TSU/Prarie View and the other small schools in the area. Sad.

Today's outlook: Very Cloudy. [John, By the Bayou] - An angry man.

Losing the grip on AIG. [Tom Kirkendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers] - A must read.

Transportation Theory [Andrew Burelson, neoHouston] - A good transportation primer and a basis for understanding his transportation posts. (which, is some of the better local transportation discussion available in any form BTW)

Trying Something New

Lately I've been spread out all across the Internet trying to satisfy my desire to write as a hobby (and creative release) as well as trying to keep in tuned with my other three passions...namely, food, drink and sports. (not necessarily in that order.)

For a while now I've been operating three seperate blogs with very little interface between the three. My hope is to change that move everything to a central location where accessing all three blogs is easy and centralized. This also allows me to, eventually, move into some cross-platform plans such as trivia and polls, which I've been dying to try out.

For now though I'm going to direct you attention to the top of this blog, and the new link that says Harris County Almanac. Going forward that's going to be the recommended starting point for my handful of daily readers.

Harris County Almanac is really just an electronic hat-tip to the one-man news organizations that dominated American media in the 18th and 19th Centuries. Far from being 'unbiased' early American media was VERY idealistic and, contrary to todays monolithic mainstream-media, offered the news consumer a wide-variety of perspectives from which to glean information. The linked article from the CATO institute provides a good synopsis of the turbulent history of media, and where they believe media will be heading in the future.

While neither Cato or I feel that media will be as primitive in the future as it was in the past (mainly due to technology) both of us feel that the single-entity news-gathering organization is primed to make a comeback.

Unlike some bloggers, I'm not here to 'make a fortune' or get wealthy, although the latter would be nice. I'm not expecting to make a dime off of this, nor do I forsee massive readership growth beyond the 150 or so daily readers I'm averaging today. I'm doing this because I like to write, a lot and, being an accountant, I don't get the chance to do that very often, except on my blog. Eventually comments on all blogs will be fairly open, and there will be a small amount of editorial content on Harris County Almanac, mostly in the form of administrative posts, short editorial statements and my Diigo and twitter feeds(both of which will be moving from LAE to HCA).

So, for now, head over and check it out, and fill out our poll. It has to with the effects of yesterday's bloodletting at the former Newspaper of Record for Houston.

Oliver Luck gets his corner office in a swanky downtown zip code. (Part II)

Not so fast my friend...

[Bernardo Fallas & Liz Austin Peterson, Chron.com]

As the Dynamo claim to have all but secured the funding needed for the construction of an $80 million soccer stadium just east of downtown and begin to daydream about its groundbreaking ceremony this fall, their apparent partners in the project have their own message: not so fast.

Dynamo president Oliver Luck said Tuesday that team ownership has secured financing of about $20 million to cover what the team is hoping the city of Houston and Harris County will contribute to the project.

“We have some i’s to dot and t’s to cross, but things are looking very favorable,” Luck said of securing the funds. “It’s not a done deal, but the principal points have been agreed upon.”

BBVA/Compass, the Birmingham, Ala.-based bank owned by Spanish-based BBVA Group, has agreed to loan the Dynamo the money and accept payments on most of the debt by the city and county, Luck said.

The developments appear to clear the way for Houston City Council and the county’s Commissioners Court to include the stadium issue on their respective agendas for voting.

Both government entities agreed to commit Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone revenue streams to the project provided the Dynamo secure financing up front, Luck said.

Still, the Dynamo might have to hold off on the hard hats and shovel. Commissioner El Franco Lee, whose Precinct 1 would house most of the stadium, said no agreement is in place.

“There is nothing that I’m about to put on the agenda at all,” Lee said. “There’s nothing happening on that.”

In my first post I commented on Fallas' cheerleading article and raised some questions regarding it that he didn't raise in his enthusiasm to see the Dynamo get their stadium. It seems that Liz Austin Peterson has stepped in, performed a little (you know) reporting, and fills in the details about an 'all but done deal' that's not as done as Dynamo fans would have us believe....

Late last year, Lee and Precinct 2 Commissioner Sylvia Garcia tentatively agreed to join the project as long as the team and the city agreed to conditions, including restricting the use of county money to building the public amenities and infrastructure serving the stadium rather than the physical structure itself.

Other conditions include guarantees that Texas Southern University will be allowed to play home football games at the stadium and that 15 percent of the seats never will be sold for more than the average price of a movie ticket. The county also wants the Dynamo to be held responsible for all facility upkeep and proposes the team fund such repairs through a monthly fee in addition to the lease.

TSU already has agreed to invest $2.5 million in exchange for the use of the stadium, Luck said.

Most of the stadium — to be located near the corner of Texas and Dowling, just east of downtown and U.S. 59 — falls in Lee’s precinct, while a smaller portion is in Garcia’s precinct.

Mark Seegers, a spokesman for Garcia, said a number of issues remain to be resolved, particularly involving the availability of affordable tickets for low-income families.

“Nothing is imminent in terms of this item appearing before Commissioners Court,” Seegers said.

Sounds a far cry from "almost a done deal" to me how about you?

That's not to say that AEG and the County won't come to an agreement, but it would have been nice to see this story in the first place, instead of boosterism passed off as news by a Soccer reporter who (to be fair to Fallas) doesn't have the business reporting credentials to flesh out the details of a deal such as this.

In other words, I don't think Fallas intentionally wrote anything that was misleading. I just think he doesn't view information coming from the Dynamo with a jaded eye, causing him to take their information at face value. It's not something that's uncommon at the Chron, where weak, syrupy Metro press-releases and statements have been passed off as 'news' for years now.

Congrats to Austin Peterson for getting it right, and Fallas for keeping his name on a report and being professional enough to accept the changes.


All that being said, I do eventually think that AEG will be able to offer enough incentives that there's a sufficient gain in political currency for Councilmembers Lee and Garcia to accept it.

Related: Fallas' gut assures the faithful that all is well. - I guess this is the type of 'hard nosed' reporting we can expect from the "new" Chronicle?

Taking stock of "Black Tuesday" at the Chron.

It started, for observers, yesterday around 11 o'clock with a simple tweet from Metro Columnist Rosanna Ruiz stating "I am now unemployed". What followed was 10 hours of butchery as the former local newspaper of record took out the scythe and made deep cuts to the local news coverage team.

As you can imagine, the Houston blogosphere was buzzing.

Banjo Jones, himself a reporter, has written the most in-depth commentary of yesterday's events here. According to Banjo yesterday saw the end of the staffing cuts on the editorial side, with today's cuts being more focused on circulation and administration. That's a comfort for the news staff, but it now means that the people behind the scenes are going to jump everytime their phone rings today. It also means that they probably got zero sleep last night. I'm willing to bet none of the Chron employees lied on their mattresses peacefully. (Except for upper management, they probably slept just fine).

Banjo points out some interesting facts about the layoffs that I'm going to reproduce here:

-- No upper management employees were laid off. Natch.

-- Management told employees no serious consideration was given to invoking wage cuts or involuntary furloughs, two strategies other newspapers are trying in dealing with the newspaper industry's decline.

-- The only two women on the editorial board -- Claudia Kolker and Veronica Bucio -- were laid off, leaving the board composed entirely of five white males. "They're talking about moving somebody up there that doesn't have a penis," snarked one miffed employee.

-- Houston is home to NASA, right? And they lay off the guy (Mark Carreau) who's covered NASA since the Challenger blew up in 1986?

(snip)

-- The religion writer's gone. The book editor's gone. The transportation reporter's gone. Details to be worked out later, evidently.

-- With this layoff and previous ones, the newspaper has effectively abandoned the suburbs outside Beltway 8, where in past years the Chronicle was finding circulation gains. If you don't count the so-called Neighborhood staff, which puts out the weekly zoned editions (Zzzzzzz) and offers a handful of blogs (but which also suffered at least two layoffs we know of) there aren't any Chron newshounds in Sugarland, Katy, Conroe, Brazosport/Angleton or Beaumont. Ah, they're all hayseeds anyway, right? Good news for the local rags, we guess.

(snip)

-- Chronicle Vice-President and Editor Jeff Cohen never came out of his office to address the staff during the day-long process of buttonholing employees to deliver the bad news. Instead, he issued a memo. What a leader.

Another blog holding an on-line wake was Unca Darrell who provided those interested with the most comprehensive on-line listing of those now pondering a career change in the midst of a tough time for reporters:

Here's my list of the desaparecidos, plus additional names from a separate list compiled by Richard Connelly at the Houston Press. The combined body count at this hour: thirty-seven.


BUSINESS: Brad Hem (energy), Woody Sixel (not on HouPress list), Lynn Cook, Bill Hensel, Ken Lanterman. (HouPress adds Joe Markman).


CITY DESK: David Ellison, Pete McConnell (suburban affairs), Darlene Stinson (assistant city editor), Burke Watson (editor), Bill Murphy (reporter), Richard Stewart (reporter), Rosanna Ruiz (Metro), Jennifer Leahy (reporter), Mark Carreau (NASA). (HouPress adds Neil Stratton).

COPY DESK: (HouPress adds Christina Marentes, Pat McClure, Chris Shively, Carla Torres, Barbara Tsafantakis.)

EDITORIAL BOARD: Veronica Bucio (letters, not on HouPress list), Claudia Kolker (editorialist).

FEATURES: Barbara Karkabi (religion), Clifford Pugh (writer), Mike McDaniel (editor), Lindsay Heinsen (food), Fritz Lanham (book editor), Lowry Allen. (HouPress adds Olaya Robles.)

SPORTS: Terrance Harris (Prairie View, TSU, SFA), Freddie Willis (not on HouPress list), Moisekapenda Bower (Rice), Mike Murphy (UH). (HouPress adds Fran Blineberry.)

AUSTIN BUREAU: Clay Robison (columnist) and Janet Elliott (reporter). (Both received buyouts but were held over until the end of the legislative session.)

As you can see, it's not pretty. What's amazing to me is that the Chronicle has gutted what should be their bread and butter: quality local reporting. As Banjo says it appears there will be no news of importance, excepting huge stories, occuring outside of Beltway 8, at least in the eyes of the leadership of the Chronicle.

What does this mean? Well, for one, it means that several large organizations, many of whom are in control of Millions of taxpayer dollars are going to recieve little, if any, watchdog coverage.

Cy-Fair ISD - The second largest school district in Texas, and one of the fastest growing.

Port of Houston Authority - The economic engine of Houston.

NASA - After all of the editorials speaking of the importance of funding the organization, the Chron management feels it not important enough to keep the beat writer. Pathetic.

Houston Metro - Wait a minute? Aren't they inside the Loop? Well, yes, but the Chron released the aforementioned Rosanna Ruiz and word is they're going to eliminate the transportation column all togehter. Not the the Chron has a long record of watchdog reporting, but Ruiz was doing some good work and asking the right questions.

On the sports side you can pretty much forget receiving any local college material at all from the Chron. Gone are UH beat reporter Mike Murphy, Rice beat reporter Moisekapenda Bower and local small College beat reporter Terrance Harris. One guesses that future Chron sports coverage will consist mainly of AP capsules of local sports and the questionable analysis of Richard Justice.

Oddly enough, despite past editorial ramblings against companies who laid-off workers, not one member of the Chron's masthead was laid-off, neither were any of the Senior leadership team. In short, the Chron did what they have scorned others for doing, they laid off the workers while the executives focused on their golf game (h/t: Matt Bramanti).

Unfortunately, today, the same drama is going to play out in miniature, without the wailing and public gnashing of teeth of course, but people are going to be losing their jobs just the same.


Well, the executives won't be losing their jobs, but you get the idea.



Good luck to everyone who's waking up this morning and updating the resume, and for those of you still at the Chron: Good luck as well.


OTHER EYES:

Mean Green Cougar Red, Rice Thresher, Lou Minatti, Houston Press Hairballs (which is also keeping a master list)

Not everyone's getting lower appraisals.

Property Tax hikes threaten Heights area trailer park. [Moises Mendoza, Chron.com]

You’d think Lourdes Gutierrez wouldn’t feel comfortable in her Houston neighborhood.

She lives across the street from a $240,000 home. A few blocks down are homes valued at nearly $1 million.

Gutierrez’s trailer at the Floyd mobile home park in Houston Heights is worth $2,500. But she still feels at home.

“People are friendly. They treat us good even though we don’t have as much money, maybe,” Gutierrez said recently while sweeping outside her home, near the corner of 9th and Studewood. Gutierrez has lived in this park with its tiny trailers and rusty cars for 25 years. But the enclave now tucked awkwardly amidst yuppies, carefully trimmed gardens and expensive houses, is in danger of disappearing.

Last month, tenants received a letter from property owner Marian Floyd telling them that, in the face of rising property tax bills, she intended to close the park and sell it.

As property values have skyrocketed in the Heights in recent years, other owners have faced similar decisions. Gradually, the area’s low-income housing has been swept away in a current of nonstop development and gentrification.

Now this trailer park represents one of the last holdouts in the evolution of the Heights.

For a while now opponents property tax appraisal caps have used derisive terms such as 'free candy' and 'tax cuts for the rich' to defend their objections to the proposals. I've argued all along that it's going to be the poor in urban areas, especially if current redevelopment trends continue, who will be suffering the brunt of this down the road. For the most part (although not always) middle-to-upper-class homeowners can shoulder the weight of the increased tax load, they may not like it, but they can afford it with only small tweaks to the family budget. The problems start arising when property taxes raise to levels that start to cut deeply into necessary expenditures and eliminate discretionary spending altogehter. Wrecks the economy and all that.

An additional cry, and one that's gone largely ignored, is placing some type of cap on business property as well as residential property. If you need to see an argument for this...just read the linked article.

Sadly, when the economy was humming along, there wasn't any interest from the media in exposing property tax hard-luck cases and most media coverage involved members of the Texas Municipal League or Texas Association of Counties spouting off high-sounding platitudes about 'revenue' and the 'fiscal health' of local Government. Now that people are losing their homes that's less of a concern and, wouldn't you know it, poor people being forced out of their homes because of high taxes are suddenly de rigeur.

Hopefully stories like this will prod both sides to come to an agreement that Texas' system of taxation needs to be modernized and reformed. Land is no longer the primary determinant of wealth in the State, yet its still used as the basis for distribution of the tax load. That needs to change.

Then again, maybe it won't.

In the past few years, Floyd has observed the neighborhood’s changes with concern. Nobody has ever complained to her face, but the 80-year-old landlord heard the whispers about her trailer park increase.

“I know people don’t want the park here now,” she said. “But it doesn’t matter to me.”

Floyd said she needs to make a living, and she’s not willing to kick out her residents. She knows they don’t have much money, so she’s kept rent low over the years.

High-minded rhetoric notwithstanding, I'm betting you won't see too much concern coming from the, predominently-caucasian, predominently-progressive, well-to-do Heights residents that this trailer park is being priced out of the neighborhood. After all, what the Heights REALLY needs is an upscale Italian restaurant in that exact location. Or a new mixed-use development. Something with some cache. As for those displaced? Well, we all pay our taxes, what we need is more government programs to find them new homes, preferably in some other part of town.

Oliver Luck gets his corner office in a swanky downtown zip code.

Well..maybe...

[Bernardo Fallas, Chron.com]

Dynamo ownership has all but secured all of the financing needed for the construction of an $80-million soccer stadium just east of downtown and plans to break ground on the project as early as this fall.

"We have some I's to dot and t's to cross, but things are looking very favorable," Dynamo president Oliver Luck said Tuesday. "It's not a done deal, but the principal points have been agreed upon."

Dynamo co-owners Anschutz Entertainment Group, Brener International and boxer/promoter Oscar De La Hoya have secured financing totalling[sic] about $20 million on behalf of the City of Houston and Harris County through Spanish bank BBVA/Compass.

The development clears the way for city council and commissioner's court to put the stadium item on their respective agendas.

I'm guessing, from the article, that the financing they have secured is for the City and County obligations toward the $80 Million dollars, to date we haven't heard how they hope to fund the remaining $60 Million that they're (supposedly) going to have to contribute toward construction.

This could be because they already have financing lined up for their part and, as a private concern, they don't feel the need to disclose those sources? Of course, since this is another one of those "public-private partnerships" that some in the public arena oppose (unless the correct 'private entity' benefits that is) you would think that they'd need to disclose that. The second, more disturbing, theory is that AEG is waiting to finance the latter 3/4th's of the sum until the economy turns around, at which time they're hoping they can grab better terms.

If the second theory is accurate at all, then the City and County could be at risk of defaulting on their $20 Million invested in a not-completed stadium. The option there would be for local government to pony up and continue the construction, or eat $20 Million. I certainly hope the latter scenario is not at all accurate.

Fortunately, this short circuits a burgeoning movement by the Dynamo and their fans to disparage UH field conditions. Something I believe would have turned a majority of fans in Houston against them, not due to some loyalty to UH, but because no one likes to hear the home team dis the home town, which is what Dynamo fans were basically doing.

Another question is one of attendance. According to the report in the Chronicle the Dynamo were only able to muster up a crowd of approximately 16K in a stadium that can seat close to 30K. That's just over 1/2 full. Granted, the new stadium is only expected to seat approx 20K, but that's still almost 1/4 short of a sell-out, on opening night, on one of the first days the weather cooperated. I don't care who you are, without a strong television deal, that's a problem for the viability of any sport, especially a minor-league sport in a major-league town.

As it is, Oliver Luck and AEG are smiling tonight, as are Dynamo fans. And they should be. Whether I support the building of private stadiums with public money or not (and I don't, not for any of them) they seem to have taken a big first step toward getting their play-pen constructed.

Now, I guess, we just sit-back and wait for the promised economic revival of the near East side right?

At first I thought this was a joke. (Updated +3)

I thought Richard Connelly was putting us all on...

Nope, It's real.

Real, real bad.

Not only does Hearst's new 'hip' website 'promise not to f*ck with you' but they probably won't be read by you much either. Judging by the early content that is.... On the 'bars' tab you have your choice of "Non-douchey sports bars" or "finding strong drinks in Houston." Outstanding. Apparantly Hearst's market researchers have decided that today's 'hip, young 20-somethings' all have an aversion to doucheyness and appreciate questionable grammar. It gets better.

You see, there's a comics and games page that offers up this page-topper: Sweet! Emos, Dykes and Dead Grrrls, all we need now is a transgender named Butch and we've ran the gamut. C'mon 29-95, let's get with it.

Had enough? If you haven't there's more. Lotsa more. You see, 29-95's not done. If emo's and dykes aren't your thing, there's a sex blog. In true 'hip' fashion its listed as being 'NSFW'. The first entry is a rant against Playgirl (Playgirl?) including several links to the (gasp!) Playgirl blog. (whee!)

There's also a Time suck! blog (edgy) where all kinds of hilarity are certain to ensue.

Sadly, you can't sign up for this wonderful, trippy, fun-filled tour of all things Houston yet, and thank God. You see, despite some folks' opinion of me, I love Houston. The Houston that I like has the Orange Show and the Beer Can House, the Menil Collection and the Museum of Fine Arts. I enjoy the Houston that's the Art Car Parade and brunch at La Strada after a night of drinking. I like the Houston where you can dine at DaMarco, Reef or Pappa's Brothers Steak House one evening, and then chill out at Taco's a-Go-Go or stop at a taco truck on the side of the road the next. I enjoy the weird, funky, eclectic landscape that is Houston, doucheyness and all. It's the slicked-back, sanitized, faux-controversial Houston that I'm railing against, the type of Houston who leads you to believe that something as mainstream as Houston Pavilions is ahead of the curve and somehow more 'cool' than what you currently do. I'm checking out Sig's Lagoon and Cactus Records, they're pushing me to the CD rack at Neiman Marcus (do they have a CD rack?) It's the mass-marketed Houston that I don't like. It's that part of Houston that I'm not into.

What I'd really like is for the 29-95 Houston to go to Dallas.com instead of what they suggest on their homepage. Let Dallas deal with them.

UPDATE:

So, if this is a Hearst project in Houston providing original reporting then does that mean that the 12% force reductions at the Chron are being made to free up money for this type of online content? Some of the names are already known, including some top-flight reporters. If that's the case then I think its safe to say that Hearst is moving away from hard news and more toward 'features' type content. That's not 'world class' at all.


UPDATE 2:

Thanks. (Apparently the folks at 29-95.com didn't like people snooping around into their little playground.) Heh.


UPDATE #3: From a comment on Connelly's original post. (linked above) The 'new media' marches on.

UPDATE #4: (This one courtesy of Proud Daddy Bramanti)

Some Actual Latitude-Longitude data for your perusal...

[IAH] 29.97 95.35 Houston,TX

29N 95W is in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico: FAIL!

Houston Area Asides (03/24/09)

The "mischief managed" edition...

Bankruptcy won't hurt City recycling plans. [Carolyn Feibel, Chron.com] - Translation: It's going to cost taxpayers out the ass. A fact that will be announced, sheepishly, on a future Friday afternoon hoping everyone will forget about this blurb. It's the Houston Way.

Supreme Court won't take border agents appeal. [Susan Carroll, Chron.com] - I don't listen to KSEV anymore, but I'm sure they've been blowing up over this.

Airline Industry Group predicts big losses. [AP via Chron.com] - Of course they do. All the better to position themselves to drink from the trough of pulic largesse.

Two women in rock band charged in tussle with HPD. [Chron.com] - Light on details, heavy on comments convicting either HPD or the band depending on one's political leanings. Humor potential: High.

Gun-control debate hangs over US-Mexico violence. [Suzanne Gamboa, AP via Chron.com] - Only in modern-day America are people dense enough to believe that Mexican drug cartels killing people means law-abiding American citizens should be disarmed by their Gov't.

Hurricane-heavy 2008 may leave insurers in Red. [Purva Patel & Janet Elliot, Chron.com] - One....two....three.....Bailout!

Good News, Bad News on Explorer 8. [Dwight Silverman, Chron.com] - Good News: IE8 is really a lot better. Bad News: Well..It's not an Apple product.

Need for beds may end Ben Taub Pediatric Care. [Todd Ackerman, Chron.com] - The second recent hit for pediatric care in Hoston.

Border plants to be killed to reveal smugglers. [Dane Schiller, Chron.com] - Scorched earth as immigration policy? Count me against this pooly designed idea.

How much money would expanding gambling generate? [Charles Kuffner, Off The Kuff] - Pro-gambling groups have overstated their case, leaving them open to criticism. Still, can you imagine the same groups (not Kuffner, but the anti-gambling groups) arguing against a tax increase on say..cigarettes because proponents over-stated suggested revenues? Nope, I can't either.

Not all Red-Light Cameras are Green. [Matt Stiles, Chron.com] - Houston's sure are though, to the tune of $3.7 Million dollars. Of course, in today's Government accounting, Millions are the new Thousands.

Smells like Teen Anger.

The Chron's Jr. Columnist is at it again....

[Lisa Falkenberg, Chron.com]

Ever seen a cat-dog? Of course not! That just proves it’s impossible for one species to evolve into another.

The human brain seems not to have changed since homo sapiens first appeared 150,000 years ago. That means evolution is false.

We don’t have every bone, so the fossil record undercuts the theory of evolution.

A few scientists have fudged proof of evolution, so that calls into question all the other evidence.

These are the brilliant observations and insinuations of a particularly dangerous right-wing fringe group: the seven-member social conservative bloc of the State Board of Education. (The cat-dog example, if you must know, is the brainchild of Ken Mercer, R-San Antonio, who seems to be incapable of understanding that it takes millions, if not billions of years for so-called macro-evolution to occur.)

If the Legislature is the circus, the Board of Education is the sideshow. And this week, they’re back in town.

The event in Austin would be laughable if the stakes weren’t so high.

Social 'Conservatives' (who estimates make up about 30-40% of the Texas Population BTW) are now a "dangerous Right-Wing Fringe group"? Seriously?

Granted, I may not agree with them, nor their version of creation or how Texas should teach it, but I do believe that a sizable minority who hold serious beliefs shouldn't be marginalized as a "dangerous" anything. Can you imagine someone calling GLBT activists (estimated at less than 5% of the Texas Population FWIW) a "dangerous Left-wing fringe group"? Of course not. Ms. Falkenberg would rather have her red-hair forcibly plucked from her head than to classify those brave GLBT warriors in that manner. Yet over 30% of the Texas population, who happens to hold different beliefs than her, are "dangerous".

Dangerous?

What's 'dangerous' is artificial attempts to limit the debate through emotional appeals to 'real science' etc. What's 'dangerous' is a devotion to the accepted orthodoxy to the point of excluding all other points of view. After all, at one time, 'scientists' thought that blood, not bacteria and viruses, was the cause of disease. 'Scientists' (granted, bought and paid for by the Catholic Church) believed that the Earth was the center of the known universe. As a matter of fact, it was an astronomer then considered 'dangerous' who's ideas eventually convinced us that the Earth does indeed rotate around the Sun, an idea that eventually led to the realization that we're just on a pebble that's located in a fairly undescript quadrant of a smallish galaxy in a rather uninspiring corner of the Univserse.

Dangerous?

Hardly. They may not be scientific, they may not even be right, but the only thing that's 'dangerous' in this debate is the scientific community trying to silence opposing points of view in favor of the accepted dogma of the Day. How odd that science is becoming the modern-personification of the Church they once despised.

Changing the Message

This story about Texas' relative success in toxic emissions reductions has undergone a little 'message massaging' overnight.

Yesterday (and still in the body of the story today) the Chron's headline was as follows: Hey..That's GREAT NEWS! Yes, we still have a long way to go and, yes, that doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet, but hey, outpacing the Nation is outpacing the Nation right?

Oh, wait. If we say we're 'outpacing the nation' then that has to mean Texas' voluntary reduction plans are working. That kills the 'Government action required' meme that's been running around. This headline is much, much better: Got that Texas? You're still a huge polluter despite you're leading the nation in pollution reduction. Therefore a expanded presence by the Federal EPA is still needed.

Whew! Crisis averted. You may now continue on with your day comfortable in the knowledge that the EPA will be there soon to reign in your dirty lifestyle.

That was a close one.

Green Auto Update

(The Subaru Boxer Diesel Engine)

Is the Boxer Diesel coming to America? Some people think so, and the prospect of a Forester that gets 45 MPG on the Highway and an Impreza that gets 75 MPG is making a lot of enthusiasts (including me) very happy.

If the rumors are true then this could be my next automobile purchase:


In other news Ford has decided that there's no market in America for a small-car with good stowage space that gets 65 MPG. Because of this, the Ford Fiesta EcoNetic may NEVER make it to the US Market.

Is there any question why Ford is on the ropes while Subaru sales are rising?

Houston Area Asides (03/23/09)

The "Give it away now" edition...

Lights! Camera! Houston! [tAFKAMW, Chron.com] - Tax cuts for businesses? Oh wait, it's the FILM business, which does little in the way of lasting economic development, or providing permanent jobs, but could mean that a "D"-list star or three shows up at society events frequently attended by Chron Ed-board members.

European Tariffs Stun US Biodiesel industry. [Brett Clanton, Chron.com] - It's amazing how protectionism is bad when the tables are turned isn't it?

Shriners fight to reopen Galveston Hospital. [Harvey Rice, Chron.com] - Here's wishing them good luck.

Political Donor's clout may extend TRCC's life. [Clay Robison, Chron.com] - Is Bob Perry the most hated quasi-political figure in Texas?

Great Moments in Houston Public Works. [Anne Linehan, BlogHouston.net] - Heh.

Tomorrow is Day 79 of "100 days of change" [Unca Darrell] - Tomorrow is today, which is also the day the rumored "staff reductions" at the Chron are going to come down. Good luck to everyone. There are some good people at the Chron that deserve their jobs. I hope they keep them.

Candidate Interview: Lupe Garcia. [Charles Kuffner, Off the Kuff]

Shaking hands and passing the gossip. [Miya Shay, KTRK Political Blog] - Peter Brown at a soiree for One Park Place? On the heels of the "Mayor White Letter Controversy" you'd think that place would be toxic for a politician. At least, a politician who didn't want to appear in the pocket of developers that is.

Getting a grip on AIG [Tom Kirkendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers] - Some perspective.

Halfway Mark: Where are We? [Elise Hu, KVUE Political Junkie] - Terribly behind and looking down the barrel of a long special session. The other option is lightly-considered, rushed legislation. Joy.

Pynchon at the Ship Channel: Another un-solved Houston mystery. [Slampo's Place] - Must reading for the educated Houstonian.

First Southwest won't talk about how they chose Sen. Ellis firm to help handle HISD's bond transactions. [Matt Pulle, Texas Watchdog] - Even more on this story.

Metro: No Stimulus Funds for Rail

No surprise...

[Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com]

As county leaders press forward with Grand Parkway plans, Metro leaders are looking for a Plan B for two rail lines they had planned to use federal economic stimulus money to help fund.

Metro’s pitch to fund the North and Southeast lines with stimulus funds fell short of the feds’ scheduling mandate.

Metro proposed to “get the ball rolling,” within 90 days, according to its brochure requesting $410 million in stimulus dollars. The transit agency also said $70 million could be used to convert 83 miles of high-occupancy vehicle lanes into high-occupancy toll lanes.

Last week, Metro leaders said they learned that federal transit authorities preferred the $92 million it will receive in stimulus funds be used primarily on the HOV conversion.

The two rail lines are not at the appropriate stage to satisfy a requirement that 50 percent of the funds be obligated by Sept. 1.

All of the funds also must be spent in a year, and the projects must be complete in three years, according to the Federal Transit Administration’s Web site.

There's sure to be a train-load of wailing and gnashing of teeth over this. And there should be. The key for rail supporters is to direct your ire at the correct target. As much as the knee-jerk reaction would be to blame "Republican representatives" for their stone-walling on the rail lines, the fact of the matter is that, over a year ago, those same "Republican representatives" in Congress, by all accounts, shelved their opposition and have since worked to push through Federal funding.

Have they worked as 'hard' as activists would have liked? Probably not. However, were the tables reversed, I'm sure Democratic Representatives wouldn't fight for public priorities with which they don't agree with much gusto either. As easy as it is to blame John Culberson, or some other politician, the hard facts are that most of the foot-dragging over the past year has been on the part of Metro.

Metro has dithered, changed technology, changed plans and done pretty much anything but get started on the projects, with delays and significant slack-time already used up in the pre-implementation phase. This time last year it would have been fair to say that the Light Rail project was being held-up by Culberson and others in Congress. Today, if Metro wants to see the reason for the delay, they only need look in the mirror.

Oddly, the second-half of Ruiz' column shows what can happen when an organization gets motivated:

Meanwhile, county leaders are wasting no time on the Grand Parkway as the clock continues to tick on the $181 million in stimulus funding allocated for the project.

The 185-mile proposed outer loop around Houston that has been under consideration for more than two decades. Now that it has an infusion of stimulus funds, planners are in frenzy mode to meet pressing deadlines. Seventeen design and engineeringcontracts related to the Grand Parkway are on this week’s Commissioner’s Court agenda.

“A year ago, no one was expecting to implement this project quite on this time frame,” Clark said. “TxDOT and Harris County are working like crazy to get the pieces wrapped up so it can be let to contract within the 12-month period.”

This despite a sizable minority (possibly even a slight majority) of the population opposed to the Grand Parkway and a group of Federal representatives who are, at least in part, opposed. Just like the Metro Rail project. Whatever your feelings toward either of the builds, there's not much to debate about the reasons for one being severely delayed and receiving no Federal stimulus funding.

Rapid Eye Movement (03/22/09)

The "Houston Way" edition....

Lawyer's late filings can be deadly for inmates. [Lise Olson, Chron.com] - After the "Did Texas Execute an Innocent Man" series fell flat, the Chron eye for the death-row killer guy gang tries again.

Death Row Inmate Loses Appeal in Kerrville Killing. [Michael Graczyk, AP via Chron.com] - Even when the appeal is on time, in Texas, that could not matter much.

**Someday I'd love to see the debate over the Death penalty come around to "how many" people Texas is killing instead of 'whether or not the State should put people to death at all". Unfortunately, as is the case in many of Houston's debates, it's either all or nothing. I believe the death penalty is a worthy punishment, but only when used sparingly, which is not how we're using it now. We don't get that discussion in Houston however, especially since our newspaper of record has openly taken sides, instead of reporting all sides of the debate**

AIG Bonuses: Return the money or be fired. [AP via Chron.com] - Oh good Lord.

And they always told us Winter Kills. [Christopher Massie, Cepage Noir] - More on this here.

Bowling Pins and Needles. [WSJ] - Obama's remark was in poor taste. Not as poor as people trying to make political hey over it however.

AIG and our embarrassing Congress. [Richard Chapman, Chicago Tribune via RCP] - The price of allowing yourself to be governed by society's Least Common Denominator.

End Corporate Welfare. [Michael Continetti, The Weekly Standard] - All corporate welfare, not just that which isn't politically popular.

The American Debate: US Turning into Europe, but that wouldn't be all bad. [Dick Polman, The Philly Inquirer] - Yeah, but it wouldn't bee all good either. The trick is to take the good ideas which regulate the economy and reject the bad which lead to the creation of a repressive class system and the reduction of civil rights. Our leader's haven't shown the inclination to do that.

Taxes as punishment: What else is new. [New Hampshire Union-Leader] - Sadly, public opinion has no problem with Bills of Attainder. As a matter of fact they're scrambling for it. This, of course, presumes that its always the money of the 'other guy' that's in the cross-hairs.

How to deny employees free choice. [Stewart Taylor Jr., National Journal]

A realistic approach to Iran's Nuclear Program. [Stephen Walt, Foreign Policy] - Bush missed a chance to re-approach Iran, bypassing the Mullahs. Will Obama?

Is this the end of America? [Terence Corcoran, National Post] - Probably not, but what emerges out the other side of the tunnel will look markedly different. (and weaker, both economically and politically)

Sites such as Yelp, Facebook face transparency questions. [Rachel Metz, AP via Chron.com]

$1 Trillion tab for toxic assets. [Martin Crutsinger, AP via Chron.com] - Fed is looking for private buyers for junk.

Rapid Eye Movement (03/20/09)

The "no one likes a stomach virus" edition...

A stimulus package for newspapers? [R.G. Ratcliffe, Chron.com] - A well written case for print journalism. That being said I would rather see print media die than live in a world where its survival is dependent on Government money.

Houston is not a sanctuary city. [Harold Hurtt, Chron.com] - Every time there's a crime incident involving an illegal entry status immigrant we get missives such as this. Still no mention of the Nucia directive. Odd.

AIG-gravation. [tAFKAMW, Chron.com] - Curious little editorial.

Budget deficit forecast to hit $1.8 Trillion this year. [Andrew Taylor, AP via Chron.com] - Damn.

Obama is no Socialist. [Alan Blinder, WSJ] - Using this budget's taxes as proof of case for or against Obama's socialism isn't really a fair measurement. What's telling is his plans to expand Government control into several areas of previously private enterprise...i.e. socialism. That he's choosing to do this with deficit spending in order to hold off a tax increase doesn't change that fact.

Congress's Own Liechtenstein. [WSJ] - Least Common Denominator syndrome.

Unionize or Die. [WSJ] - Union workers deserve better than the dreck their getting from their leadership.

Values for a sustainable world-wide economy. [Angela Merkel and Jan Peter Balkenede, Siegel Online] - Amazingly, they play to the strengths of their respective Countries. Funny how that works.

Barack Obama's election campaign runs on and on. [The Economist] - He's never stopped campaigning, really.

Republican heads explode over AIG bonuses. [Christopher Beam, Slate] - They're reaction has been humorous. Their case for getting placed back in charge dodgy at best. A crumbling party unsure of itself and without a rudder.

An earworm for ya

Don't say I didn't warn you.




Yup, the full song from the commercial. Love it!

Adventures in Transit

Charles Kuffner points out an interesting tidbit in this Chronicle story on Metro's impending conversion of HOV lanes to Toll lanes for single occupancy vehicles....

Metro President and CEO Frank J. Wilson estimated the cost at between $40 million and $50 million.

In its request for federal stimulus funds earlier this year, Metro estimated the project would cost $70 million.

Metro is slated to receive $92 million in stimulus funds.

Wilson said that he learned last week in discussions with Federal Transit Administration officials that the monies cannot be spent on the North and Southeast light rail lines, as Metro had planned, because those projects have not received the FTA’s final funding approval.

Ah geez. Anyone want to go out on a limb and forecast what this means?

As Kuffner suggests, if Metro had already budgeted the stimulus monies in their build-out plans for light-rail expansion then this could be a serious problem somewhere down the line. There is a chance that they're planning on using the revenues from the HOT lanes to fund rail expansion (something that would make anti-rail advocates' heads explode). It bears watching.

As an aside to this: Where in the world are all of the loud voices that opposed TxDOT spending Federal stimulus dollars on toll roads?

One plan received harsh criticism while the other recieves little more than a shrug of the shoulders and a "meh".

Even though the grousers probably won't get this far into this post I'll go ahead and reiterate my stance here: I'm opposed to both the Grand Parkway Toll Road expansion. (I prefer something closer to this idea by Andrew over at neoHouston) and I oppose Metro's plan to convert the HOV lanes to toll roads.

Toll roads are a terribly regressive tax that amounts to little more than placing a band-aid on the cancer that has become highway funding. In order to fix the funding mess you have to take a look at transportation taxes including fuel and usage. Those systems have to be reformed. Taxing on miles driven isn't an answer either because, in Texas and most of America, choosing to 'opt out' and live a car-free lifestyle isn't a viable option.

I've stated from the beginning of my blogging hobby that transportation discussions should always be focused on increasing available options. That includes making the choice to either embrace or abandon the automobile. Because of the bi-polar nature of Texas' transportation debate we're nowhere near where we should be in solving this issue. Of course, 'All Hail the Party' advocates giving transit agencies they favor a free pass doesn't help much either.

Houston Area Asides (03/19/09)

The "eve of a long weekend" edition.....

U.S. to beef up border security. [Stewart M. Powell & Clay Robison, Chron.com] - The drug cartels are rapidly becoming too large a security threat to ignore. (despite the calls to do so by some 'immigration' activists)

Clients' names in alleged brothel ring likely to stay secret. [Mike Tolson, Chron.com] - As well they should. This is a legal matter, not something to be tried in the kangaroo court of public opinion. That being said I admit to a healthy dose of curiosity, but I can live without knowing.

Houston Population Growth 2nd in U.S. behind Texas. [Mike Snyder, Chron.com] - Dallas is running a better City right now than Houston so I'm not surprised.

Stimulus use a Texas Sized debate. [R.G. Ratcliffe, Chron.com] - The key will be to keep the funds directed infrastructure programs, and not let them be directed to worthless pet projects of politicians (or development agencies)....wait...nevermind.

Embattled Judge feels 'liberal' heat. [Lisa Falkenberg, Chron.com] - The Chron's teen columnist follows up what was possibly her best work with juvinile backpatting and an adolescent argument against "liberal media bias". *sigh* The people who dismiss any and all biased based on party loyalty arguments are missing the boat. This despite repeated attempts by others to inform them of that. Yet they continue on. I say let the partisans battle it out. Heck, most of them have low reading comprehension anyway.

Obama takes 'responsibility' but avoids 'blame' [Jake Tapper, ABC News] - I'm responsible but it's not my fault? What the hell?

Bring back the "Red, White & Blue"[Kevin Whited, BlogHouston.net]

More Genius From Austin. [IJ Reilly, BayouCity Madman] - More Republicans and their "small government" in action eh?

Ficksing Skools (A Follow Up)

In my short series on education (found here, here, here and here) I theorized that one of the largest problems facing today's education system is the fairly recent societal notion that holding a college degree is somehow superior to attaining expertise in a skill or trade.

In short, society (spurred on by progressives and neo-conservative thinkers who wrongly felt that their chosen method of learning was the only "appropriate" path to "cultural sophistication")made a very conscious decision to devalue blue collar manual labor in favor of white-collar management or mental skills. The tangible off-shoot of this rather dim view of sweat equity has been the transformation of America's economy from a world-wide manufacturing powerhouse to that of a service-based economy where little is produced except for bad ideas and an excess of meeting requests.

Amazingly, there are some in Government who wish to keep the current system in place in order to prop up long-held racial stereotypes.

[Gary Scharrar, Chron.com Austin Bureau]

Some folks are concerned that students without college aptitude will be forced into a track where college is not an option. Texas House members Harold Dutton, D-Houston, and Alma Allen, D-Houston, forcefully expressed themselves during a House Public Education Committee hearing on HB 3.

Leaving students behind will only make them "raw material" for the state's prison system, Dutton said. Dutton, a lawyer, said he would have ended up on the lowest track had such a system existed during his school days, Most of the failing schools and low-performing students are minorities and come from low-income families, said Allen, a former Houston public school principal.


Failing schools get punished when, instead, should be getting more help, more technology, more experienced teachers and much smaller class sizes, Allen said. "Keep in mind our history - 310 years in slavery. No education. Didn't want you to read - trying to keep you from reading," she said, noting that segregation in the 1950s triggered attempts to keep minority children out of the better schools. "We need not throw them in the pool and say, 'swim with the rest of the kids', but you have shackles on those kids' legs," she said.

House Public Education Chairman Rob Eissler, R-The Woodlands, and Senate Public Education Chairman Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, plan to consider recommended improvements before they revise their school accountability plan for a final bill to move up to their respective chambers.

Texas must reform its public educations system so that a high school diploma means something, Eissler says. More than 40 percent of the state's 2007 high school graduating class was not college ready.

It could be argued that forcing obviously unqualified students toward a liberal arts eduction and limiting the definition of 'success' to completion of a single, preferred education track has done more to harm the current crop of poor children than any false appeals to emotion ever could. Today's poor, minority children aren't failing because of slavery, they're failing because we're telling them they have to fit their square peg of aptitudes into the round-hole of a liberal-arts college education.

The real discussion here shouldn't be about slavery and segregation, but about crafting a program that ensures ALL of the children with College aptitude get the education they need to succeed within the University system while ALL of the children who don't have that aptitude are given the job skills and training they need to earn a living wage performing skilled labor. The key will be to design a system that discourages favoritism based on class and income. After all, the true promise of America is 'each according to his ability'. For too long we've allowed those with sagging abilities to thrive (and, in many cases, Govern) due mostly to position and familial status. For all of their political-speak about 'giving the middle-class a fair shake' there's very little action on this front in terms of policy and fashioning a society that rewards talent over heritage.

Also misquided is Harold Dutton's curious contention that, by creating a non-University track for some students, the system would be providing "raw material" for the Texas Criminal Justice System. If anything, the current system provides more human material to run through Texas Prisons than does reform. No matter how much money you throw at the issue (the preferred method of dealing with education by certain education services "children's" groups) you still are left with a system that provides no fall-back for students who are not suited to higher education. By forcing them into a situation where they are more likely to fail than to succeed you're not giving them a fair chance at the very beginning of their work life. If anything, renewing a focus on trades education would reduce the "raw materials" that Texas is sending out into the workforce unprepared every year. No matter the economy, 'stuff' is still going to have to be built, energy is going to have to be produced, food is going to have to be grown etc. these are the immutable facts of any society, no matter how broken its system of finance may be.

What our Texas Lege is illustrating in vivid detail is just how far we need to go in order to stop shortchanging the intellect and worth of plumbers, welders, construction workers and other blue collar employees. Until people realize that a certificate in plumbing, construction, and welding (to name a few) can just as valuable (and constitutes just as significant of an achievement) as a traditional degree in Accounting, Economics, Law, etc. then Texas is going to continue to beat its head against the wall of a failed education system.

For now, I'm just happy that someone is initiating the conversation. If we can keep it free of Red Herrings there might be an outside chance at success. (There'd be a better chance if we could keep the politicians out of it I realize)

Houston Area Asides (03/18/09)

The "I'm not wearing any freaking' green!" edition...

Sophisticated Prostitution Ring said to be like those in New York, D.C. [Brian Rodgers, Bill Murphy & Mike Tolson, Chron.com] - Now we have New York penis envy in regards to our prostitution rings? That's world class I tell ya.

Houston Imama Planning Hunger Strike over his Jailing. [Lindsay Wise, Chron.com] - Uh...OK?

Poor oil market delays Port Arthur Refinery expansion. [Brett Clanton, Chron.com] - Costing the area jobs. Of course, those jobs aren't 'sexy' or politically connected(being primarily blue collar) so there's no outrage (or faulty bailout) for Motiva.

Lack of Rain stunts some vital wetland recovery after Ike. [Matthew Tresaugue, Chron.com] - Some Congressman somewhere will want to spend Millions here just you watch.

The Debate over Teens, Tanning Salons heating up. [Jackie Stone, AP via Chron.com] - Two things:

1. The Nanny State is ramping up into full gear, this time it's the Republicans leading the way.

2. Where the heck is the Austin bureau on this piece? AP....really?...pathetic.

Energy Firms Dispute "use it or lose it" idea. [Jennifer A. Dlouhy, Chron.com] - Explaining the logistics of oil and gas exploration to D.C. government officials is probably very similar to explaining physics to a pig.

Pay the Freight. [tAFKAMW, Chron.com] - Just curious here...Has there been any spending program that the most recent incarnation of the Chron editorial board has been against? I can't think of one off-hand. I'm not saying this idea is bad, but how is Texas (and America) going to possibly afford all of these spending initiatives?

"MWBE" Showdown at City Hall. [Bradley Olson, Chron.com] - Over at BlogHouston there's a discussion about this taking place. If you have any thoughts on it that would be a good place to air them out. Since 'some' of these 'minority businesses' typically just sub-contract the work out in the first place, a lot of people feel these programs do nothing but add in an additional level of cost. I haven't studied it enough to say one way or the other, but it sure makes for an interesting story.

Metro: Our Performance Levels aren't bad![Kevin Whited, BlogHouston.net] - They really kind of are. However, Metro has long stopped being about public transit in lieu of real estate development anyway so what's a little thing like performance?

Your Tax Dollars at Work. [Rorschach, Red Ink: Texas] - Hey, something on which the Right and I agree. Obama is going to go after ammunition rather than guns. Difficult to stop in court after all. (although equally as odious)

Tuscan Mania! [John, By the Bayou] - Funny post, made funnier by a commenter who feels calling suburbanites "fat" is the epitome of wit. What we let pass as witty discourse these days is an affront to discourse.

Planning the workaround. [Charles Kuffner, Chron.com] - To my anonymous commenter on this post who claimed that Hutchinson was being duplicitious on this issue I offer up this piece of evidence to the contrary. Now, on earmarks and the Omnibus spending bill? Yes, she's trying to have her cake and eat it too. Not on this issue however.

The Arno from the Ponte Veccio Bridge [Tom Kirkendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers] - I've been meaning to call attention to Tom's great Italy pictures. Here you go.

William Visits a cat house in Valencia. [Jay Lee, The Bald Heretic] - Ditto to Jay Lee's pictures from Valencia.

Slainte duine a ol!

St. Arnold's Bourbon casked special brew from Sunday's St. Paddy's Day event.


It's cliche' I know, but tonight I'll be eating my Corned Beef and Cabbage and chasing it down with a Guinness.

As you slide down the banister of life,
May the splinters never point in the wrong direction!

Houston Area Asides (03/17/09)

The "Irish Eyes are smiling" edition....(The Wife is Irish if you want to know)

Botched "gay-straight" Mixer Stirs Discord. [Jennifer Latson, Chron.com] - That's a nice way to put it. In actuality the event was an announced "guerilla takeover" by a GLBT group. I've never heard of winning the battle for equality by controlling the liquor but it sure makes sense.

Hutchison: No on Bill, yes on Pork. [Lisa Falkenberg, Chron.com] - Imagine the outcry if Hutchison would have gotten nothing for Texas? Heck, even Ron Paul inserts pork. It's a bad system that needs to be changed. Instead of reporting on the deeper issue we get "gotcha" reporting from the Chron's Jr. columnist. Still, its here, so it will be fun seeing if Hutchinson even feels the need to respond.

A First: President to appear on the Tonight Show. [AP via Chron.com] - Why not? Usually its candidates that appear on the show, since Obama's governing by campaigning it only makes sense. Obama's got some smart handlers. He was golden when campaigning, they need to keep him doing that and focus less on his steep learning curve.

UTMB Rush to Re-Hire Raises Questions about Fall Lay-offs. [Todd Ackerman, Chron.com] - Ah the benefit of hindsight. Everyone's a genius looking at the past.

Finger and Ashley Furniture part ways. [David Kaplan, Chron.com] - A Houston Icon is officially out of its core business.

Oil, gas group to make case against new fees. [Jennifer A. Dlouhy, Chron.com] - I can tell you that, as a card-carrying member of the evil empire, we're not optimistic. If the new charges are enacted Houston is looking at tough times.

Reminder: GHDC District H Candidate Forum. [Charles Kuffner, Off the Kuff] - Maybe this time some differences between the candidates will emerge?

Ozone, Lung Disease and Houston's Air Quality Rating. [Andrew Burleson, Neo Houston] - Another call for getting rid of cars. I still think the future is the eventual switch from the internal combustion engine to electrical. Cars will always be with us, they'll just run cleaner.

Sen. Ellis Responds to Texas Watchdog story about his firm's bond work for HISD [Matt Pulle, Texas Watchdog] - A 'non-denial denial' (h/t Kevin) spurs a series of follow-up questions that I'm betting won't be answered.

Or is it generic "Fruity-O's" in a down economy?

Long Time LaE readers know about the humorous series of Froot Loops Bureau items posted by Kevin Whited over at BlogHouston.net. From time to time the Chron will run "news stories" that seem to have been cribbed by the local bureau chief watching TV news.

Well....it's back...

[Houston Chronicle]

Houston police have arrested a couple who are accused of operating one of the city's largest prostitution rings, with a client list of more than 1,500 people.

Deborah L. Turbiville, 33, and her husband, Charles Fletcher Turbiville, 31, were charged with aggravated promotion of prostitution.

According to court records, the couple did "unlawfully and knowingly own, invest in, finance, control, supervise and manage a prostitution enterprise using more than one prostitute."

Their client list included including professional athletes, doctors and lawyers, according to television reports.

Nice.

Given the impending staff reductions at the Chron one has to wonder if, instead of Fruit Loops, the bureau should be renamed the Generic Fruity-O's department?

Regarding the story the REAL bombshell will occur if the client list is ever released to the public....That's when you want to be watching the morning news.

Sen. Ellis v. Texas Watchdog.

In case you missed it, local open-government advocates (and LaE friends) Texas Watchdog presented a well-sourced bit of journalism with State Senator Rodney Ellis firmly in the cross-hairs.

[Matt Pulle, Texas Watchdog]

It was one of the largest bond proposals in the history of Texas: $805 million to build new schools and repair old ones.

But in October 2007, officials with the Houston Independent School District had to be nervous that in just a few weeks, voters would reject their financial plan and send them back to the drawing board.

State Rep. Sylvester Turner, a Democrat, came out against the measure, saying that the plan failed to address problems in many of the city’s African-American neighborhoods. The NAACP, which would later sue the district over the proposal, also ripped the bond package as the campaign began to take on racial overtones.

That’s when Rodney Ellis, like a superhero in disguise, came to save the day. The longtime state senator, who himself had been an dogged champion of civil rights in the legislature, endorsed the school financial plan, telling the Houston Chronicle, “it’s a good package, it’s a fair package.” The district barely passed the measure, and Ellis’ stand drew applause and respect.

“Sen. Ellis took time to listen to the community leadership, and ultimately he decided publicly to support the package,” says Jeff Moseley, the president and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership, which also endorsed the proposal. “It was a brave thing to do, and it was a right thing to do.”

And, one might add, it was a profitable thing to do.

Pulle goes on to detail how Sen. Ellis personally profited from the passage of the school bond and went on to suggest that this was a textbook conflict of interest case. I encourage you to follow the link and read the entire piece. It's pretty convincing.

The Chron's Matt Stiles follows up with Sen. Ellis' response.

Senator Ellis follows Texas Ethics laws to the letter. He has done business with HISD for nearly two decades and in full compliance with Texas ethics statutes. Period.

Behind the juicy headline, the truth is that a partisan 'watchdog' group quoted a partisan HISD board member, mixed in a lot of 'ifs', 'mights' and 'coulds' and asked a series of questions with one simple conclusion: Senator Ellis followed the law. Yes, he proudly championed the bond package because it was the right thing for Houston schools and HISD asked him to do so.

Reading the Watchdog story I didn't see where they suggested that Ellis 'broke the law'. If anything their piece is a shining example of the weakness of Texas' ethics laws. Laws that Ellis champions as having a hand in writing.

Also curious is Ellis' accusations that Texas Watchdog is a 'partisan' group. A quick review of Texas Watchdog's front page reveals several cases where members of both parties are skewered.

Sen. Ellis' staff seems to be correct in their assertion that no laws were broken, however, they also didn't deny the accusations that Ellis personally profited from passage of the bonds. With several Democrats jumping on the "ethics reform" bandwagon it will be interesting to see if the meme that this is a 'partisan attack' has legs, or if those same sources follow up with a series of 'Partyline posts' slamming Texas Watchdog for pointing out what they've been crusading against for quite some time.

This will be a fun one to watch. Especially as it plays out in the Blogosphere.


OTHER EYES:

BlogHouston.

Some Interesting Poll Numbers

Courtesy of Gardner Selby of the Austin American-Statesman:

A wide-ranging poll by a group at the University of Texas suggests afresh that GOP Gov. Rick Perry would trail U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison if their March 2010 primary were held at this time.

The poll further suggests that Texans rate the economy and immigration as key issues. Surveyed Texans also leaned the most toward Attorney General Greg Abbott in an envisioned race to fill Hutchison’s Senate seat against other aspirants.

UPDATE: And, the poll results state, nearly 70 percent of the surveyed Texans agreed that voters should be required to present a government-issued photo ID at the polls before they are allowed to vote. Some 18 percent disagreed, 13 percent didn’t know. Forty-two percent said it’s true that existing law already requires presentation of a photo ID.

It's still very early, but so far KBH has done enough to not taint herself in the run-up to the expeted 2010 election showdown. I honestly believe that at least "some" of her vote totals are an "anyone but Perry" reaction to a Governor who has overstayed his welcome. As it stands for me Hutchison>Non-loony Democrat>Rick Perry. If Perry would somehow win the Republican primary then, for a lot of people, I think a Democrat would be in play. One thing recent elections have shown us however (on a micro-level) is that voters will still support a questionable Republican over a questionable Democrat. Look no further than the Harris County District Attorney's race for further evidence of that. And Houston is more Democratic than much of the rest of Texas at that, just something to keep in mind.

The Voter ID kerfuffle perplexes me. While I'm open to the idea of photo ID requirements with the inability of America to even provide the most basic of citizenship lists it all kind of smacks of doing half the job to me.

Were the Bill coupled with something that would work to make voting easier such as 'same day registration' (not so onorus if you have photo ID's) then I might be for it. As it is I'm opposed to this bill because its not designed to increase the percentage of voters. Eliminating fraud is laudable, but there has to be overriding electoral reform.

Still, 70% for....Sheesh. I wouldn't have thought it to be that high.

This, of course, raises the possibility that some enterprising Democrat in a conservative district crosses the line in the House to get this passed.

Rapid Eye Movement (03/16/09)

The "Lovin' a good woman feelin' bad" edition....

Why the GOP Can't win with Minorities. [Shelby Steele, WSJ] - Also does a great job explaining the differences between "progressive" liberalism, and "classical" liberalism. (Hint: The latter focuses on individual liberty)

Labor's European Model. [WSJ]

The Shadow of Depression. [Robert Samuelson, RCP]

Does Obama Know what he is Doing? [Dick Morris & Eileen McGann, RCP] - It's a fair question that could have "no" for an answer.

Blue Dogs not demanding PayGo for Health Care Reform. [Jared Allen, The Hill] - What's a little matter like principle when political power is on the line? Ask the Republicans that as well.

End of the Honeymoon. [David Broder, RCP]

Saudi's say $60-$75/bbl oil eventually needed. [AP via Chron.com] - And they're correct, knee-jerk reactions from Chron.commenters to the contrary.

Bernacke: Bank bailout "probably" will end recession in '09 [Chron.com] - Even Bush appointees are "hoping" for "change" now.

March Madness, Which TX College has the most political power. [Richard Dunham, Chron.com]

Political Motivations

Lawmakers will consider wording in abortion booklet. [Clay Robison, Chron.com]

Is there a doctor in the Texas House?

There are four, if you count veterinarians. But political responses, not medical opinions, will decide the fate of an abortion rights bill filed by two Houston Democrats.

The measure by Reps. Ellen Cohen and Garnet Coleman would remove what they contend is “medically inaccurate” language in a booklet prepared by the Texas Department of State Health Services, which doctors are required to distribute to women considering abortions.

The 23-page booklet, A Woman’s Right to Know, stems from a 2003 law designed to discourage abortions. It includes color photos of fetuses and a detailed recitation of potential physical and emotional consequences of the procedure.

Cohen and Coleman are trying to remove part of the language from a section that deals with whether women who have abortions are more likely to develop breast cancer. The pamphlet notes that studies are inconclusive and advises women to seek their doctors’ advice, but it also includes these sentences:

“If you have carried a pregnancy to term as a young woman, you may be less likely to get breast cancer in the future. However, you do not get the same protective effect if your pregnancy is ended by an abortion.”

Both Ellen Cohen and Garnet Coleman recieve substantial campaign assistance from Planned Parenthood (which, in turn, makes a LOT of money off of abortions). A little bit of 'basic' journalism work would have revealed that. It should have been included in the story rather than leaving readers with the (false) impression that the two politicians were doing this on strictly a "good of the public" basis.

If you're going to mention the 'anti-abortion' leanings of Rep. Frank Corte (who receives significant funding from anti-abortion groups) then its only fair to make mention of the pro-abortion funding that the two politicians on the other side recieve. Not to mention the 'get out the vote' and other campgain work that's done.

The biggest lie in the abortion debate is the one being told repeatedly about the motivations of pro-abortion politicians. If there wasn't significant money to be made doing it, people wouldn't be fighting this hard to keep it legal.

Worst.Editorial.Ever.

This piece of writing is just odd...

Maybe tAFKAMW, taking on a decreased role in the Chron of late, isn't putting much effort into these editorials any longer? Something has to explain today's mis-mash of choppy prose and faulty logic....

Gov. Rick Perry’s line in the sand is hard to figure. The governor is balking at taking federal stimulus dollars to help unemployed Texans get through tough times.

OK, fine. tAFKAMW takes issue with the Gov's refusal to accept the Federal stimulus. No surprise there. After all, the memos have been out there for quite some time. The InterLeft is banging away the Democratic take and the Bloggers O' the Right are gleefully reproducing the Republican copy verbatim.

Then She has to go and write this:

He says taking the money is unwise because it would impose permanent costs on Texas business owners after the $555 million in stimulus dollars runs out.

Perry has a point. The state of Texas shouldn’t be adding costs to business owners unnecessarily, especially in these difficult times.

Whua?

You JUST SAID that the Governor's actions were "hard to figure"? Then you turn around and provide us with very clear reasoning why Perry is against accepting the stimulus. Which is it?

It gets worse:

But there’s another point that merits the governor’s consideration — and a change of his mind. There’s likely a way to do this that wouldn’t add those long-term costs Perry is worked up about. It’s one that would benefit hundreds of thousands of out-of-work Texans who need and deserve a hand.

Great, another option. A hard point of fact that could help out in this mess right?

Uh...not so much:

The governor doesn’t have to accept this on our say-so. It’s according to Texas House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio. In a visit with the Chronicle editorial board on Friday, Straus said it may be possible to do a “hard sunset” on the program.

Translated from the Austinese, that means that the program could be ended when the federal stimulus dollars run out. There would be no permanent costs to the state’s business owners; no permanent changes to the state system dictated by Washington, as Perry evidently fears.

"May"? You mean to tell me that you're basing an entire editorial entitled "Take the Money" and chastising someone in print based on a "may"?

Oh, there's a 'back-off' clause:

Shouldn’t those possibilities be fully explored in Austin before the stimulus dollars are rejected out of hand, as Perry would do? We believe they should. A veteran of the Texas political wars summed it up best: “You’re letting a penny stand in the way of a dollar” by rejecting the stimulus dollars out hand.

Granted, it's a back-up clause made up of some brutally tortured prose but hey....tAFKAMW obviously isn't picky.

The issue is that "exploring options" is a lot different than "Take the Money" and the entire premise of this editorial is that the latter option is preferable. Unfortunately for tAFKAMW its a premise that falls apart even under the flimsiest of rationalizations.

Maybe there is a way to "hard sunset" the expanded unemployment provisions that the Feds seem so anxious to shoe-horn into State laws. Then again, this is an expansion of Government benefits so what are the odds that, once enacted, they don't go away? Some politicians somewhere will propose a bill to remove the 'hard sunset' because some constituency will demand it.

These are things that need to be discussed before any action is taken, whether 'out of hand' or no. A better option would be a wide-ranging discussion regarding unemployment reform, but that might cause the gears in tAFKAMW's head to sieze.

If they haven't already. (Judging by the tortured logic in this editorial we're not entirely sure.)

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Scrap the editorial board, use the salary to add to local reporting. Especially business reporting which has been suffering of late.

Single Party "Bi-Partisanship"

For some reason I found this funny....

[Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com]

Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood credited Houston’s leadership with moving light-rail expansion closer to a reality.

“People now are working close in a bipartisan way, which was not always the case here,” he said during a visit to Houston on Friday. “If you really want to get something done, work together.”

The stimulus money brought Harris County’s delegation together, with Republican Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison teaming up with Republican Rep. John Culberson and House Democrats Al Green, Gene Green and Sheila Jackson Lee to get funds for Houston Metro.

LaHood, speaking beside Mayor Bill White, Jackson Lee and Metro officials, said that Metro’s rail project follows President Barack Obama’s vision of creating both jobs and livable communities.

Let's see here: Sheila Jackson Lee? Democrat. Bill White? Democrat. "Barack Obama's vision"? Democrat.

Yup, that sounds like the definition of 'bi-partisan' to me. At least, bi-partisan as its currently defined. The term has different meanings depending on who's in charge after all. When Republicans are in power they defined bi-partisanship as Democrats voting for their programs. Now that Democrats are in charge they seem to be defining the term even more loosely. Basically, if a Republican is in the same room as Democrats when the bill is passed, even if they vote against it, it's given the wet-sloppy kiss of 'bi-partisan approval'.


Aside: Is it me or does "Obama's Vision" bring back nightmares of "Lee Brown's vision"? I get worried when politicians speak of visions, especially when they involve quality of life issues. Sheesh.

Rapid Eye Movement (03/15/09)

The "Irish Stew and Beer" edition...

In shift, Obama may support taxing health care benefits. [Jackie Calmes & Robert Pear, NYT via Chron.com] - So much for "95% of Americans will receive a tax cut" and all that. Add this to the Obama "cap n' trade" energy increases that are sure to come and pretty soon 95% of Americans are going to experience a severe tax increase.

Obama to use Billions to help Small Businesses Owners. [Hope Yen, AP via Chron.com] - Laughable.

Texas serving up more subsidized meals. [Jennifer Radcliffe, Chron.com]

Visitors swarm expanded Children's Museum. [Jennifer Leahy, Chron.com] - One of Houston's jewels.

AIG agrees to pay $165 Million in bonuses. [Martin Crutsinger, AP via Chron.com] - Anti-business groups' heads to explode in 5...4...3...

Chysler faces cash crunch even with more aid. [AP via Chron.com] - Chrysler needs to file for bankruptcy.

Lawmakers want to crack down on graffiti. [David Saleh Rauf, Chron.com] - The Federal Government's trying to create a majority on Gov't assistance while the State Gov't is trying to put a majority in jail. God Bless America eh?

Rethinking costs of FutureGen, Again. [Kimberley Kindy, AP via Chron.com] - "Clean coal" doesn't have a huge public following like say...other overly expensive pie-in-the-sky 'green' energy initiatives such as....well...wind.

Rep. Frank wants to see if AIG bonuses are recoverable. [Reuters via the Washington Post] - Can we 'recover' Barney Frank's salary? Truly we are governed by the Least Common Denominator of Society.

Tax me if you can. [WSJ] - Odd, the same folks who say taxes don't matter to businesses are crying when they are threatened to be placed on their business. Thus reinforcing the definition of a 'progressive': A person who desires political change, provided there is no change in their personal situation.

Houston Area Asides (03/14/09)

The "Pi of my eye" edition...

When Georgia Increased Yellow Light Times, Red Light Camera Violations Tanked. [Anne Linehan, BlogHouston.net] - Yeah, but what would that do to revenue?

Defying the Wall. [IJ Reilly, Bayou City Madman] - Nothing wrong with finding solace in a warm glass of whiskey.

March 14th: Buyer's Remorse A Continuing Series. [Unca Darrell] - Tracking an increasingly common trend.

Parker vs. Perry. [Charles Kuffner, Off the Kuff] - Why is everyone so surprised that Republicans and Democrats are falling on different sides on this issue? Stimulus is fine, but at the expense of trebling the cost of unemployment in future years? The 'choice' is laid out as 'helping people' vs. 'not helping people', that's not really accurate. The deeper issues surround the design of the unemployment system to begin with. To date, no one is so much as addressing that problem. Adding additional layers to a broken system is not a 'fix', it's a disaster in the making.

If at first you don't succeed, run for something else. [Miya Shay, ABC Political Blog] - Heh.

Guess White's coming to Dinner. [Elise Hu, Political Junkie] - "Tough Questions" from Texans for Obama? Maybe if White wants his steak well done. That could be tough.

Why Trade Publications are dying. [Lou Minatti] - Sad.

Lawmakers try an end-run around Perry's nixing of funds. [Peggy Fikac & Alan Bernstein, Chron.com] - A compromise is a bill allowing "extra provisions to go away when the Federal Funds run out." Yeah, that'll happen.

Rapid Eye Movement (03/13/09)

The "Walking under a ladder" version....

Hungry may find Feral Hogs on menu. [Liz Austin Peterson, Chron.com] - Vegetarian groups typically destroy good ideas such as these.

Obama Advisor: "Excess of Fear" must be broken [Jim Kunhenn and Tom Rahm AP via Chron.com] - Maybe if the Obama Administration (and Obama himself) would stop telling people how bad things are?

Post 9/11 reforms don't stop phony passports. [Eileen Sullivan, AP via Chron.com] - No matter how fail-safe you make it, people will find a way to fake it.

Obama's Poll Numbers are Falling to Earth. [Douglas E. Schoen & Scott Rasmussen, WSJ] - If you remove the partisans, Obama's numbers aren't doing all that well.

The Deficit-Hawk Blues. [Kimberley Strassel, WSJ] - Pity the Blue-Dog's who are having to go back on everything they claimed to believe during the Bush years.

Honkbal Miracle. [WSJ] - Yes. some players have tenuous, if that, connection to the Netherlands, but the 'Dutch' team has been just the type of story the World Baseball Classic needed.

The Economic Blame Game. [Joel Stein, LA Times] - We're all to blame, at one level or another.

Wrong move, Obama's liberal agenda. [Michael Gerson, RCP]

Obama has a multi-front mandate. [Eugene Robinson, RCP] - He has a mandate for his moderate agenda, you know, the one he campaigned on?

Signs of confusion from Obama, Geithner. [Byron York, Washington Examiner]

Card Check, just plain undemocratic. [Michelle Bernard, RCP] - Unions served an important purpose...once.

Strenghtening Unions will stimulate economy. [James Hoffa, Detroit News] - It'll stimulate Hoffa's (and other union leaders') personal economies that's for sure. As I said, unions served an important purpose...once.

Perry Rejects Unemployment Stimulus

Cites "long-term cost"...

[Alan Bernstein, Gary Scharrar, Chron.com]

From the center of a Houston hardware store, Gov. Rick Perry ignited a debate about Texas job cuts, business taxes and President Barack Obama’s so-called economic stimulus program Thursday by rejecting the federal government’s offer of $555 million in aid to the unemployed.

The action now moves to the Legislature, which can bypass Perry and take the offer as long as it changes state laws and blocks Republican Perry’s potential veto. Democratic lawmakers said Thursday they will try.

Perry said the money would come with too many strings attached. Taking the half billion would require the state to assist qualified out-of-work residents seeking part-time jobs, an idea that Perry said the state has rejected before, partly because it could discourage them from seeking full-time employment.

The federal money injection would also make Texas extend benefits to more low-paid workers, and Perry said the overall expansion would force business to make higher unemployment insurance payments.

He announced his stance near the Galleria at Bering’s Hardware, where descendants of the founder said they would have to pay about $12,000 more a year into the unemployment insurance fund to cover their 170 full- and part-time workers.

“Employers who have to pay more taxes have less money to make their payroll” and would have to raise prices on their products, the governor said. “The calls to take the (stimulus) money and sort out the consequences later are quite troubling to me.”

As expected, the InterLeft is in full apocolypse mode. As is the Democratic Party Think Tank.

The Bloggers O' The Right are just as as ecstatic as the InterLeft is angry.

You can pretty much forget any suggestion of a compromise on this one, as this issue cuts to the heart of the differences between the two parties.

The idea on the Left is to increase taxation on businesses and the employed to prop up those who aren't. The Right feels that the best way to help the unemployed is by reducing the tax burden on the employers to allow them to employ more. There's no middle ground here to be mined. For you moderates out there here's a situation where what side you take tells you something about your core beliefs. (Yes partisans, moderates do have core beliefs.)

My proclivities lie with the Governor's argument on this one. It also lies with the logic that states enacting large tax increases during times of a recession has, historically, been a bad thing. Unlike our friends on the Left I don't believe that all Government spending is good or stimulative to the economy. Unlike our friends on the Right I don't believe that the total answer lies in tax-cuts and cutting Government either. In fact, I believe that the Government has a real, substantial role to play in our lives. Unfortunately the Democrats, for the most part, choose the wrong role for Government to play which leads me to disagree with them from time to time. (This, despite the fact, that they and I often share the same end-goals)

In the case of the Federal stimulus funds for unemployment benefits Rick Perry is, for once, correct in his assertion that accepting those funds will place a huge, unfunded, mandate on Texas Businesses for the foreseeable future. Given the state of the economy, and the fact that Texas is now starting to feel the effects, increasing costs to business reeks of folly to me.

Unemployment sucks. I know, I've been there before. I've been laid-off, terminated, you name it. My wife recently lost her job, and had to find another. My wife was even on unemployment at one-time in the past. Let me tell you, unemployment payments suck.

But...they're supposed to suck. You shouldn't be able to live on unemployment checks. That's not what they're designed to do. Unemployment is a stop-gap to bridge the gap between not having a job and having a job. Ideally they are designed to allow a family to purchase food and gas, allowing their savings to go further during times of unemployment. Now, granted, many Americans don't have savings. Which is why the calls to 'increase' unemployment.

And here's where the Democrats and I agree....It's the American consumer culture that's gotten us into this mess. The same consumer culture that's been jack-hammered into our brains by corporate America. In order to successfully ride out this recession its going to take more than throwing Federal debt at unemployment, or cutting taxes for business, its going to require taking a deep, hard look at how we're running out lives. Cutting back on things we don't need and making things we have last longer.

Truth be told, that's the best 'unemployment' reform America can have.

Houston Area Asides (3/12/09)

The "all day spent in meetings" edition...

Lykos makes DNA testing mandatory. [Roma Khanna, Chron.com] - It should have been a long time ago.

Faster Drive, Slower Life on I-10. [Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com] - Sure, there have been some naysayers, mainly folks who have driven I-10 one time and then just stared blogging negatively. For those of us who commute daily on the Katy Freeway however, the difference has been night and day. Using I-10 as a 'public example' of why road expansion is 'bad' is sure to be a loser with the general public who drives it every day and knows better.

Tankers double hull prevented disaster. [Allan Turner, Chron.com]

Why is Tiger not at SHO? [Steve Campbell, Chron.com] - Tiger never plays the week before a major.

Houston Bridge Tourney comes during down era for the game. [Moises Mendoza, Chron.com] - Bridge confounds me. It's one of those games I want to learn to play...eventually. For now I'm sticking to poker games. (Hold 'em, Omaha, 7-card stud, etc.)

Arizona does qualify as "outside the boundries". [Kevin Whited, BlogHouston.net] - Heh.

MayorWhiteChiefHurtt: Blame the Feds! [Kevin Whited, BlogHouston.net] - Maybe Lisa Falkenberg is writing their copy now?

California here we Come? [Unca Darrell] - Following the advice of California? Yup. We're Texas!

The REAL March Madness. [Tom Kirkendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers]

Grand Parkway [Andrew Burleson, neoHouston] - It sure makes more sense than the current Grand Parkway plan. (of which I am solidly opposed FWIW)

The Sister Cities of Houston: A Critical Appraisal. Part 1 [John Nova Lomax, Houston Press] - Ha!

When in doubt, blame the accountants!

So sayeth the Chron's Jr. Columnist....

[Lisa Falkenberg, Chron.com]

The idea of Houston public school teachers, principals and administrators indulging in alcoholic beverages and busting a move to DJ Jammin J at a rodeo gala is a bit humorous.

The fact that they paid for their tickets with money intended to benefit students at schools with meager resources is troubling.

But the real shocker is the pitiful job the district’s and the state’s watchdog officials seem to have done in investigating the alleged misuse of funds.

As the Chronicle’s Bill Murphy reported this week, the tickets to the annual Black Heritage Western Gala at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo have been paid for with as much as $100,000 in discretionary funds, the profits from school vending machines, since 2003.

Murphy, citing the HISD financial procedures manual, wrote that such discretionary funds are to be used to “promote the general welfare and the educational development and morale of students” and “any expenditures directly from this account must benefit the entire student body.”

It’s the job of inspectors general and auditors to lead independent, fact-based investigations.

In this case, the district’s inspector general seemed to take on the role of legal counsel defending the district. And the Texas Education Agency, at least at first, decided not to muddy its hands with the matter, choosing simply to trust the district.

In a July letter to HISD’s inspector general, TEA auditor Robert Sanchez writes that the agency had received the district’s response to the complaint.

“We have responded to the complainant that your office was unable to substantiate any of the allegations in the complaint,” Sanchez writes. “And, accordingly, we are closing the complaint file.”

There you have it. The accused says he didn’t do it, so we’ll leave it at that. One might ask why we even need a TEA auditor. The agency says it has just reopened its investigation based on new information received.

No doubt the TEA should have caught this error, as should any auditor worth his/her salt, and raised several red flags. I've no doubt of that.

But, and here's the clever bit, instead of casting dispersions on third parties whose job it is to go over the finances with a fine tooth comb (after the fact and, often, with incomplete information) why not focus on stopping the questionable activity before it gets started?

I know, it sounds like a quaint idea, honesty in our public education system, a taxpayer organization that operates within moral bounds without being shamed into it, an end to the 'good old boy' system that constantly gets us into this mess in the first place.

That would be nice, right?

Of course, that solution would involve taking a look at the entire HISD system, the entrenched bureaucracy that prevents real reform from taking place, the Teacher's Union that prevents real reform from taking place, and an attitude of institutional malaise that's largely filters down from the top. Which would mean stepping on local toes, and possibly losing that 'killer' quote.

Nah...we can't have that. Not when "the Houston Way" is involved. Far better to cast dispersions at Austin. A competent columnist would have no qualms ripping local institutions when said ripping was due.

The TEA (and its auditors) deserve some of the blame, but the lion's share of guilt lies within HISD. A 'coporate' culture that allowed 'drinks and dancing' to be classified as 'for the good of all students'.

Houston Area Asides (03/11/2009)

The "something about something" edition....

Houston Mayor Rips Handling of Immigrant who Shot Cop. [Susan Carroll & Renee C. Lee, Chron.com] - A friend of mine noted that Chron.com has turned off the "comments" for this story. Smart move.

City Hopes More Will Recycle with Streamlined Plan. [Carolyn Feibel, Chron.com] - Recycling on a municipal level only makes sense if the costs line up. People don't like accepting that fact, but its true.

Harris County Commissioners OK $1.6 Billion Dollar Budget. [Liz Austin-Peterson, Chron.com] - An hour and a half discussing $10 Million (and much wailing and gnashing of teeth from transit 'activists') while 100 times the money gets nary a peep. What a world.

Police: Disabled forced into school's "fight club". [Terri Langford, Chron.com] - Clearly the answer is more of the same thing right>?

Fights symptom of a sick system. [Rick Casey, Chron.com] - See? A LOT more of the same thing.

At Least Metro's Blog Comments are Entertaining. [Kevin Whited, BlogHouston.net] - Yes they are.

Pierce/Dallas [Andrew Burleson, NeoHouston] - Once again the web is your source for the best transportation discussion in the Houston Region.

Houston housing (Plus Toll Roads) [Tory Gattis, Houston Strategies] - Ditto. (And I agree with him on the bit about toll roads.

Trampling Stanford [Tom Krikendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers] - What? No public outrage? Constitutional rights being trampled is only egregious when the target is a foreign National bent on our destruction I'm guessing.

Sierra Club Sues over Grand Parkway. [Richard Connelly, Houston Press] - Wow....I didn't see that one coming.

Mayoral Candidates Talk $$$ [Alan Bernstein, Chron.com] - Too bad none of them are talking sense.

Two Quick Items for Tuesday Evening.

1. State Senators Grapple over ID for Voters. [Janet Elliott, R.G. Ratcliffe and Gary Scharrar, Chron.com]

Faced with the likelihood that state Senate Republicans will ultimately pass a controversial bill requiring voters to show photo identification cards, Senate Democrats opened the fight Tuesday with delaying tactics designed to give the House a better chance of killing the measure.

The situation was starkly different from a 2007 legislative battle over the same proposal when Senate Democrats killed it by blocking debate. This time, the Republicans, who hold a 7-vote majority in the 31-member chamber, outflanked them by voting to change the rules for debate on the bill.

I've little doubt this will pass the Senate. The real fun will be when the new Speaker takes up the issue in the House.

As for me? I hold the same position I always have: The goal of any election "reform" should be to minimize illegal votes and maximize legal ones. This bill only satisfies half of those goals.

Posting on this settles my obligation of Section One of the "Political Hobby Bloggers Code". You must author at least one blurb on every controversial issue no matter how little personal importance you give it. Done.


2. Mayoral Hopeful wants "Houston 1st" contracting rules. [Alan Bernstein, Chron.com].

Candidate Annise Parker has tossed into the Houston mayor’s race a framework for making sure local companies and local workers are first in line for local government spending.

Parker, the city controller, said it was unclear how much municipal spending goes to contracting companies and workers from outside the Houston area.

(snip)

The Houston Contractors Association supports the general thrust of such proposals, president Jeff Nielsen said Tuesday, but the details “are almost impossible” to put in place because the involve changes in state and city laws.

“There are certain aspects that we might support and certain ones that we might not,” he added. “(Parker) would have to a lot of footwork with the state before anything happens (locally).”

2 things...

1. Shouldn't the City Comptroller have access to, or know, what percentage of Municipal contracts go to local contractors? "No idea"? Really?

2. Talk about your safe bets. Gotta love "campaign promises" that rely on changes of laws in Austin to enact. Instant scape-goat if nothing gets done. Brilliant!

All that being said I still would vote for Parker were the election held today.

HISD Investigated for Possible Mis-use of Funds

$100,000 for Rodeo Gala Tickets.

[Bill Murphy, Chron.com]

The Texas Education Agency is investigating whether some HISD principals and administrators wrongly tapped discretionary funds to spend as much as $100,000 on rodeo gala tickets since 2003.

The principals bought the tickets with profits from school vending machines that go into funds controlled by the school leaders, said George Garver, manager of campus audits in the Houston school district’s inspector general’s office. Tickets for the annual Black Heritage Western Gala were then given to teachers and administrators.

The discretionary funds are to be used to “promote the general welfare and the educational development and morale of students,” the HISD’s financial procedures manual says. “Any expenditures directly from this account must benefit the entire student body.”

School Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra said principals and administrators had appropriately used the funds because purchasing tickets works to cement a fruitful partnership between HISD and the rodeo. The rodeo, he said, awards more than $1 million in college scholarships to HISD students annually.

“I have been reassured by the (HISD) inspector general that there is nothing illegal or unethical about this practice,” he said. “It’s a relatively small investment when you consider that the return on that is very substantial.”

Saavedra is really stretching the definition of "benefits the entire student body" on this one. Any way you look at it his reasoning is problematic. On the one hand, this looks like an extravagance for a select few at the expense of many, if you look at it under the best possible light(from the districts POV), HISD is offering the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo $100,000 in payola in return for the scholarships that are handed out. (That being said, there's absolutely NO indication that the HLS&R made the purchase of the tickets the price of receiving the grants, that's important to point out.)

In my opinion what we are dealing with is another case where Government officials take a cavalier attitude toward the use of taxpayer money. This is probably something that's always been done, has never been questioned, and was viewed as an entitlement by the teachers and administrators who attended. That reality is systemic, and could be indicative of a larger, cultural, issue that's been allowed to take root in HISD.

Note to any prospective candidate for the HISD Super's position: This is the 'corporate' culture that you're running into.

Good luck.

Well...that's it.

Today my 12 plus year run with the daily newspaper ground to a halt. I called the offices of the Houston Chronicle and cancelled my daily subscription. Tomorrow will be the first time since my wife and I moved into our first place that we aren't a subscriber to at least one local newspaper.

We first subscribed to the Springfield News-Leader in Springfield MO where I had my first letter to the editor (an argument against a Springfield to Branson monorail) published much to my then naive joy. After that I was a subscriber to the Conroe Courier shunning the Chronicle for content more locally relevent to my (then) Conroe Apartment home. Finally, I settled with the Chronicle, interrupted by a short experiment with USA Today (which I still read online, for National news). I've been a loyal Chronicle subscriber for as long as I've lived in my current home. Eight years to be exact. Only cancelling the one-time that I was laid-off from my job and when everything was being reduced to save on expenses.

Unlike some disgruntled readers, I'm not leaving in protest to some 'left-wing bias' or to 'make a point' about the lack of quality reporting, I'm leaving because I just don't read the hard copy newspaper any longer. There's also the small matter of the Chronicle being willing to give away what I was previously paying to recieve (in many cases, hours later).

I cancelled my subcription because everything I need from the Chronicle can be found at Chron.com...for free.

Would I be willing to pay for an on-line subscription? You bet. As a matter of fact, I'm considering purchasing the Chron's e-edition. (If my 'beta-tester' *thanks Kevin* says it loads in FireFox But that subscription would be more valuable if it focused primarily on serious reporting of State and Local events, Items I can't get from the National organizations. In other words: I'm not willing to pay for Helen Thomas, Shelby Hodge or most of the *Star* section, but I will pay for the reporting of the D.C. Bureau, the Austin Bureau as well as City, County and other area news. I could, seriously, care less about the editorial work of the Chronicle as well. The New York Times couldn't even make something that foolhardy work, and they have a good op-ed page and top-flight columnists. There's too much free opinion on the web (self-included) to imagine ever paying for the minor-league, kiddie-inspired laziness the Chron offers up. Good reporting however is worth its weight in gold**, and I'd pay for the rights to see that, even provide snippets on my blog (in terms of fair use of course).

One additional benefit I believe can be had from putting reporting behind a firewall is that bloggers will then have to work harder. Less blockquotes and more original thinking always make for better reading.

So, for good, hail and farewell waking up in the morning, walking out to the curb and grabbing the paper, goodbye to drying out soaked copies in the oven and having ink stains all over everything on hot days.

Goodbye to the old newspaper. Amazingly I don't think I'm going to miss you, except when I'm starting the grill.*






*That being said, I still think reporting is a worthwhile commodity so I envision myself purchasing whatever online product the Chron offers up in the future (even if it sucks) just to ensure that there are ample resources in place to keep it going.

**Wouldn't it be interesting if the Chron held a fund-raising telethon in the manner of KPFT where each journalist had to 'make their quota' to keep their by-line running? Anyone want to hazard a guess who wouldn't make the grade? (I have some ideas)

Houston Area Asides (03/10/09)

The "nothing worthy of a complete blog post" edition...

Banish bad fats: Alvarado's bill would do the job in Texas. [tAFKAMW, Chron.com] - *sigh*

Voter ID battle heads to Senate. [R.G. Ratcliffe and Janet Elliot, Chron.com] - *sigh*

Homeless kids suffer in Texas. [Linda Stewart Ball, AP via Chron.com] - *sigh*

Kids in shape do better on TAKS test. [David Saleh Rauf, Chron.com] - *duh*

On the road again w/Sheriff Garcia [Liz Austin Peterson, Chron.com] - For such a "trivial matter" there sure is a lot of protesting and handwringing is there not?

Barnes again moves into the spotlight. [R.G. Ratcliffe, Chron.com] - Heh.

Texas Progressive Alliance Bloggers take Phone Call with Houston Mayor Bill White. [Neil Aquino, Texas Liberal] - Funniest.Post.Ever.

Metro responds to Chronicle Column. [Mary Sit, Write-On Metro] - *sigh* (It's just not even worth it any more when it comes to Metro.)

Confession Needed when Seeking out Wrongdoing at the Polls. [Lee Ann O'Neal, Texas Watchdog] - Consistently the best open-government reporting in Houston.

GOP RFP [John, By the Bayou] - *sigh* (Honestly, isn't GOP bashing getting a little too easy right now?)

Microsoft's vision of the future. [Lou Minatti] - Of course, the fanboys will tell you Apple was there five years ago. *sigh*

Living off the Government?

Granted, I'm not big fan of current Governor Rick Perry. As a matter of fact I've long said he needs to go and voted for Kinky Friedman last election. That being said, you've got to really stretch the bands of believability to follow the tortured logic of Chron columnist/Austin bureau chief Clay Robison...

Unlike thousands of his fellow Texans, Gov. Rick Perry is assured of a job for at least another 22 months and doesn’t have to worry about mortgage payments.

He has the keys to a big suburban house in Austin’s scenic hills that costs taxpayers $9,900 a month in rent.

These may not be the reasons he is threatening to snub $555 million in extra federal money for unemployment benefits for his more-mortal constituents. But the governor’s perks have made him blind and deaf to everyday realities, some critics believe.

“He’s been living off the government longer than any of these (unemployed) people ever would receive benefits,” said Rep. Garnet Coleman, D-Houston.

Perry, whose selective, anti-government rhetoric belies the fact that he has been a full- or part-time state employee for 24 years, also can be insensitive to public perception.

Whether or not you believe Perry's opposition to the unemployment stimulus to be correct (I do agree with him however, due to the long-term unfunded mandates accepting the funds would create) you'd be hard-pressed to term what he does "living off the Government" or equating them to unemployment benefits or other entitlements.

The argument, being proposed by Houston Democrat Garnet Coleman and championed by Robison, that Government officials are hypocrites if they oppose entitlements is weak sauce at best, outright dishonesty at worst. The fact is, whether you like him or not, Perry was duly elected to his position and the "perks" are nothing more than salary items negotiated in his employment contract. You may not agree with those terms, and many don't, but reporting them as kissing cousins to 'unemployment benefits'?

That's stretching it a little.

Out with the old, In with the new...

We're NOT wasting money you know?

[Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com]

Metro’s 5-year-old Red Line rail cars aren’t ready for the scrap heap yet, but it looks like they could be headed to the garage when new cars included in the just-passed $1.46 billion contract for four new rail lines start arriving.

The agreement with Parsons Transportation Group Inc. calls for the Metropolitan Transit Authority to spend $118 million on 29 new rail cars from CAF USA Inc., the Elmira, N.Y.-based American manufacturing subsidiary of Spanish firm Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles.

Metro spokesman George Smalley said the new cars are not luxury items, as some critics argue.

Nineteen of the new cars will be for the Main Street line, with the other 10 slated for the East End line once it’s complete.

“We’re running the wheels off the ones we have,” Smalley said. “They’re in use all the time. We’re carrying many more people at this time than were projected back when we constructed the line.”

Smalley said the Main Street line carries up to 45,000 passengers per weekday. The demand, he said, means the cars too infrequently are taken out of service for routine maintenance.

Mary Sit, who blogs for Metro as part of the agency’s communications division, wrote last week that the Siemens rail cars cannot be used in tandem with the new ones from CAF USA. The two have different operating parameters, she said.

Metro, she added, will keep the Siemens cars and eventually may use them on a commuter rail line.

In short: The new cars are 'cooler' than the old cars and, as we all know, much of the appeal of Light Rail is the 'coolness factor' and not, as is argued by Metro Apologists, its superior ability to move people.

What concerns me the most is the apparent lack of long-range planning that's gone into this entire system. Metro is now looking at a future reality where they are going to be sitting on Millions of dollars of depreciating assets with little or no use for them. They suggest a use could be found in commuter rail, but there's no telling when that system will be built.

Until then we just have to hope that the local media keeps track of these trains and their not allowed to become a multi-million dollar afterthought.

My Name is Lou, How do you do?

This isn't the first time they've done this.

Follow the link through Dwight's whimsical link-blog and you get here.


My apologies to Lou Minatti, his blog is more entertaining than mine.

An Open Letter to the Texas Lege.

Dear Lege,

PASS.THIS.BILL.

[Ronnie Crocker, Chron.com]

In announcing its most recent pub crawl through the Heights, Saint Arnold Brewing Co. declined to say exactly where the festivities would be held.

Instead, the invitation e-mail contained a series of clues: “Three (of the first four stops) will be located at the intersection of White Oak and Studewood. The stops will be on the Northwest, Southwest and Southeast corners.”

Such “orienteering” is a tradition familiar to fans of the Houston brewery, from the days when Texas law prohibited beer makers from advertising product promotions. The ban still applies when the featured beer’s alcohol content is less than 5 percent by volume, so, technically, the folks at Saint Arnold could have been more open about their Spring Bock event.

But they decided to stick with the ritual for fun; several hundred people figured out where to go.

Now Saint Arnold and other craft brewers in Texas are taking aim at another law with potentially bigger consequences for their bottom line, the one that forbids them from selling their product on premises, directly to the public.

State Rep. Jessica Farrar, D-Houston, introduced a bill this week allowing small brewers — those producing no more than 250,000 barrels a year — to sell up to 5,000 barrels’ worth of beer annually at their breweries.

On Monday, she said she felt the bill was limited enough to balance the brewers’ interest with those of distributors, the middlemen between breweries and the public.

By Thursday, Farrar had already run into stiff resistance from the distributors’ lobby.

“The industry feels that if you crack the door, you’ll open a Pandora’s box,” she said.

Bollocks.

Any legislator who slurps up the swill being served up by the distributor's lobby needs to be wrapped in bacon and braised to clear their head. For years now Big Distribution companies have held the Texas beer and liquor industry in a vice-lock that's done nothing to serve the public interest, and has only served to raise prices and make it difficult for small, local businesses to succeed and thrive.

Recently there's been something of a re-birth of the Texas spirits industry and it would be a shame to see it come crashing down because of a few gentlemen in suits who like to wine and dine legislators and spend tons of money bi-annually in order to squash the little guy.

It's crap, the system is bunk and everyone knows it. Not allowing micro-breweries to sell a limited amount of beer from storefronts deprives many of these small companies of direct cash-flow that they could use to expand and modernize. One need only look at the booming Texas wine industry to see the benefit of allowing direct to customer sales. What the distribution lobby won't tell you is that they are still making out like bandits despite the legality of store-front wine sales. It's not as if Anheiser-Bush, Miller or Coors are going to stop using distribution companies to peddle their sorry version of swill to the masses.

It's true, those of us who enjoy a good St. Arnolds or prefer to drink craft-brewed beer are a small minority, hardly enough to damage the bottom lines of the big distributors who are acting as if this is the end of the world.

To the Lege I only can say this: Grow a spine, stand up to the Lobby for once in your misbegotton tenure and Pass.This.Bill.

To the distributors I have this to say: Stop acting like this is the end of you. None of us are buying it.

Thank you,

The Beer-Drinking Public of Texas.

Houston Area Asides (03/06/2009)

The "by this time tomorrow I'll be running" edition...

Major East-West Line not a part of Metro Contract. [Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com] - Yet this mess of a plan, still mising $830 Million in presumed federal funding (what happens if the Fed's say 'no' hasn't been addresed), is being received with joyous rapture by Houston's chattering class. Rosanna Ruiz's reporting has been dead-solid on, BTW.

NASA official says counterfeit parts a growing problem. [Stewart M. Powell, Chron.com]

Major Life Events being broadcast on Twitter. [Carolyn Shropshire, Chron.com] - Totzilla, Bramanti's litter, had a public coming out. I still use my Twitter for more mundane purposes.

Expert: Now's not the time for Racing casinos. [David Barron, Chron.com] - For some, there's NEVER a good time. All while more and more money pours out of Texas into neighboring States.

Texas has Top Energy Star Rating in Texas. [Houston Business Journal]:

According to a new list from the Environmental Protection Agency, Houston has 168 Energy Star-rated properties. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex has the second-highest number of energy-efficient buildings with 81 properties, followed by San Antonio with 53 and Austin with 51.

The take-away from this is that it happened without Bill White's proposed 'green' building codes. Saving energy is cheaper long-term. The market's reacting.

Hunker Down Ed! [The County Seat] - I'm not the only one with misgivings about the Sheriff's driving plan it seems.

On Gerrymandering and Partisanship. [Charles Kuffner, Off the Kuff] - Something on which Kuff and I agree. Boundries should be based around communities of interest. That way, if a representative doesn't vote in the best interest of his district, they'll be taken out. (in theory) What we have now resembles worms in a bowl.

Transparency camp brings together brainy folks to talk about Government transparency. [Jennifer Peebles, Texas Watchdog] - Transparent Government are always a good thing, despite some partisan protests to the contrary that is.

Insightful thoughts to close the week. [Tom Kirkendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers] - Good stuff.

2009 Mutt Strut Bleg. (There's still time)

Remember, there's still time to donate if you can and are so inclined. Thank you to those who already have donated, I'll be sending you some pictures and a thank you via e-mail after the event is over.

My wife has informed me that I will be participating in the 2009 Mutt Strut, March 7, 2009 @ 8 AM. We've joined the Cork Cafe team because...well...we enjoy drinking wine there.

I seem to remember volunteering for this a while ago, one of those things happening way in the future that I agreed to without really thinking about it. Oh well, at least I get a t-shirt out of the deal.


As you might have guessed....here comes the bleg.

I've been assigned a fund-raising goal of $250.00 by the computer system. My personal donation to the cause was an initial $25.00 so that means I have $225.00 left to go before I hit my goal. That's 45 people making a one-time (tax deductible) donation of $5 a piece. I'm averaging over 200 readers per day on this blog.

In order to assuage your fears about the money not being put to its specific use (which has been rumored to happen from time to time) I'm providing a direct link to my personal donation page on the SPCA website here:

My Mutt Strut page.

Just click on "Support Cory!" and the system will walk you through the donation process. You can donate any amount you want, from a penny on up. I'm requesting at least $5 per person to make it easy. Dog's like Sly will thank you for it.


All donations are greatly appreciated, just please give what's comfortable in order to help the Houston SPCA and the animals that are housed there.

Houston Area Asides (03/05/09)

The "Free Texas" edition....

Barbara Bush, 83, has heart valve replaced in Houston. [Todd Ackerman, Chron.com] - Here's to a speedy recovery for "America's Grandmother".

Legislators will consider dropping State's TAKS testing. [Gary Scharrar, Chron.com] - I doubt it will pass, but it should be strongly considered.

Bill would slow Texas' quick foreclosure process. [Janet Elliot, Chron.com] - There has to be an incentive for companies to negotiate.

Sky-High price needed to bury powerlines. [Lynn Cook, Chron.com]:

Texas has 28,200 miles of overhead power lines within 50 miles of the coast, which would cost $28 billion to bury. By contrast, the cost of storm damage to the grid in the last decade was $1.8 billion, according to the report.

Despite the ridiculous cost Houston Mayoral Candidate Peter Brown is pushing it as a solution. In order to 'sweeten the pot' he's brought up some dreck about 'visual pollution'. *sigh*

Helen Thomas: No punishments in sight for Bush. [Helen Thomas, Chron.com] - There's nothing uglier than watching someone who feels entitled to attention trying to personally get back at the President who ignored her for eight years.

2 Tons of marijuana found in disguised HEB truck. [Houston Chronicle] - I didn't see that on yesterday's flier.

Houstonians cut budgets, keep lifestyles in recession. [David Ellison, Chron.com] - Meanwhile government agencies are getting fatter and fatter.

Forget it Jake, it's Asia Town. [Swamplot] - Just doesn't have the same ring as "China Town" does it?

DeLange Conference: Day Three [Andrew Burleson, neoHouston] - Complete with cool pictures of electric mini-cars! Love me some electric mini-cars.

What if they liked the Course? [Tom Kirkendall, Houston's Clear Thinkers] - I'm heading to the SHO this year just to get a chance to have my picture taken with Chris Everett. I agree though, Redstone is a terrible venue.

Houston Pavilions: The reviews are in and they're not good. [John Nova Lomax, Houston Press] - The future of Houston is clunky, out of place architecture with dodgy occupancy projections I'm guessing?

Fallon works to ensure her own job security.

Frames it as "giving the employees" a unified voice".

[Ericka Mellon, Chron.com]

The leader of the Houston school district’s most powerful teachers union is flexing her muscle to force smaller employee groups out of the bargaining room with top-level administrators.

Gayle Fallon, the longtime president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, wants her union and an affiliated union for blue-collar workers to be the lone groups at the negotiating table with the Houston ISD administration.

Currently, several employee groups are guaranteed seats at private monthly meetings, where issues involving wages and working conditions are hashed out. Fallon’s union, because it is the biggest, has three of the five seats reserved for teachers groups at those meetings.

(snip)

“If it wasn’t such a grab for power, then it would be a hilarious joke,” said Orell Fitzsimmons, local field director of the Texas United School Employees Union, Local 100. Fallon counters that the change to exclusive representation would give employees a more unified and influential voice against the Houston Independent School District administration.

“We’re trying to tighten up the process so the employees have a real voice,” she said. Fallon’s proposal asks that the school board call an election in April. Employees would get to vote via mail-in ballots for which group they want as the lone representative during the so-called consultation meetings or they could opt against exclusivity entirely.

“There’s an assumption that we’ll win,” Fallon said of the HFT, which has almost four times as many members as the second-largest teachers group, the Congress of Houston Teachers. “I hope that assumption’s right.”

(snip)

Chuck Robinson, executive director of the Congress of Houston Teachers, said Fallon’s move baffles him.

“We don’t understand why our members should not continue to have that direct voice,” said Robinson, whose group represents about 1,700 HISD employees, most of them classroom teachers.

Robinson also noted his group’s less expensive dues — $99 a year, compared with nearly $500 for the HFT.

The assumption here is that, instead of having to work together, the Federation of Houston Teacher's would absorb the members of competing groups, thus increasing their dues base, and providing increased job security for the individual who, in my opinion, is the single greatest detriment to student education in HISD.

Especially ironic is the exclusionary nature of the agreement being proposed by the Union, who often issues press releases and statements criticizing HISD for their lack of employee inclusion in large decisions.

It's a power grab plain and simple. Fallon's half-hearted efforts to deny it only strengthen the perception.


Because of the sheer size of her organization I have no doubt that Ms. Fallon will win this election, she'll become the chief negotiator in teacher contract talks with the district. Those members of other groups will then be faced with the unfortunate decision of paying a large increase in annual dues to have a seat at the table, or be stuck in the wilderness with no negotiating power regarding their employment contracts. Where I come from we say that Ms. Fallon has job security, especially if this passes.

Open up your checkbooks HISD teachers.

Metro Signs its Contract

And its a doozy...

[Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com]

The Metropolitan Transit Authority board of directors on Wednesday unanimously approved a $1.46 billion contract for four new light rail lines, which would add 20 miles to its lone seven-mile line along Main Street.

Under the contract, which came after almost a year of negotiations, Parsons Transportation Group is responsible for designing, building, operating and maintaining the new East End, Southeast, North and Uptown lines at an average cost of $73 million a mile. Metro has said the lines will be complete by 2012.

A fifth rail line, the University line, and an intermodal terminal near downtown still are planned, but are not included in the contract.

Metro officials said the agency intends to spend $632 million on the initial phase of the project, primarily on the East End line along Harrisburg as it is further along in the planning than the others.

“Today is obviously a very significant milestone in our building of the Metro Solutions program,” board Chairman David Wolff said moments before the vote. “Our objective is to improve transit in Houston.”

The first phase includes $390 million for the East End line and a rail vehicle service and inspection facility in that corridor.

Metro will spend another $93 million on what officials described as utility work in the Southeast, North and Uptown corridors.

The initial outlay also will include $118 million to buy 29 new light rail cars from manufacturer CAF USA Inc. Of those, 19 will be used on the existing Main Street line and 10 will go to the East End line.

$1.46 Billion

At minimum. Paul Knight of the Houston Press has more...

And maybe it is, but there still seems to be some doubt about how Metro is going to pay for the cost of the project. Only $632 million will be financed in the beginning, and Metro has until August 31 to come up with that money.

Furthermore, Wolff told Hair Balls that only 66 percent of the projected $1.46 billion is finalized because the engineering costs are still unknown, so the final cost could increase.

About $156 million of the $632 million is budgeted to come from the same type of financing that put Metro on the hook for $14 million about three months ago.

Needless to say, Metro Boosters are ecstatic, while Metro's critics are crying in their coffee this morning. (Several of the most vocal Metro critics don't have blogs, but I'll provide links to the criticism that's sure come in "other eyes" updates)

I'm concerned about the financials of the deal. I don't buy, for a minute, the $1.46 Billion dollar price tag. Especially when estimates for the project made last year, before the spike in prices, was slightly higher than that. Also of concern is the fact that Metro doesn't seem to have a solid plan for lining up 100% financing for the contract. Or, more accurately, they haven't communicated any such plans.

All that being said, you don't have to convince me that Houston needs a more robust system of mass transit. Nor do I need persuading that a multi-modal approach is best. I've seen it work in other Cities, it can work in Houston as well.

What I'm not convinced of is the fact that this system and plan is the best for Houston long-term. The debate for this has been filled with banal boosterism from supporters, and knee-jerk reactions from detractors. If only the entire system had been given the same critical evaluation as road projects from local Metro cheerleaders "transportation advocates" then I might feel a little better about expanding a system that's led the Nation in train/car collisions per mile, has choked off automobile mobility along the corridor and has only succeeded to such a great extent because the bus-map was re-routed to drive volume to a 7 mile train.

The argument Metro cheerleaders "transportation advocates" advance to explain this away is that Houston drivers are stupid, terrible, insipid creatures who lack the sophistication to, you know, see a train coming. While all of that may be (in part) true, it's a problem that's not going away. Except that now we're going to expand the same system by three times the original length without addressing the short-comings of the Main Street Line. Of course, according to Metro Cheerleaders "transportation advocates" there's nothing wrong with the current system that outlawing cars won't cure. I've already theorized why that's not going to happen.


And what happened to the much-ballyhooed 50% increase in bus service?


(written from my seat in the van pool, because there's no bus route that will take me from the Addicks Park N' Ride to my office in Bellaire without first going to the Downtown transit center, changing over to MetroRail, changing back to another bus to head back OUT to Bellaire)

Houston Area Asides (03/04/09)

The "yee haw" edition.

More Immigrants die trying to get through Texas through the Valley. [Lynn Brezosky, S-A Express-News via Chron.com] - That people are still willing to die to come to America, where jobs are scarce, shows just how pitiful conditions in Mexico are becoming.

A&M students feel left out as President makes secret hire. [Jeannie Kever, Chron.com] - Gig 'em!

Galveston Mayor: Revamp plan for Ike Aid. [Stewart M. Powell, Chron.com] - Galveston needs all they can get.

Dogs need their dough from Stanford Accounts. [Purva Patel, Chron.com]

NRG/Reliant merger exposes deregulation fallacy. [Loren Steffy, Chron.com] - I've never been a fan of deregulating utilities.

Concerns may darken teeth-whitening shops futures. [Moises Mendoza, Chron.com] - It seems that their biggest sin may be a failure of being regulated. Can't have that, these days.

Networks trotting out failed Bush administration to comment on Obama. [Bob Cavner, Gimme Some Truth] - The Chron's big-time Democratic donor is shocked, SHOCKED! I tell you to see networks due what they've done for years. Hopefully Hearst isn't thinking about placing this dreck behind the firewall.

Houston health clinics get share of stimulus funds. [Cindy George, Chron.com]

Another sales decline has automakers reeling. [Ken Bensinger, LA Times] - We've seen the effects of this in Houston.

Some from Countrywide are profiting off bailout. [Eric Lipton, NYT] - The headline is a little misleading. What they're doing is buying the toxic assets (that their loose lending created) from the Government for pennies on the dollar and making a healthy profit selling them. The rich get richer, even in America's Brand New World.

Sheriff assigns chauffers to himself, County Judge

Tells County residents to deal with it...

[Liz Austin Peterson, Chron.com]

Shortly after promising to put more boots on the ground to make Harris County safer, new Sheriff Adrian Garcia quietly assigned two veteran deputies to chauffeur him and County Judge Ed Emmett to meetings and events.

The move, done without Commissioners Court’s knowledge, comes as Harris County grapples with falling revenues and staffing shortages in the sheriff’s patrol and jail divisions that forced officers to work $35 million worth of overtime in the fiscal year that just ended.

Houston’s mayor long has traveled with a police-provided security detail that includes a driver and as many as two other officers. Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt also has a driver, as does Houston Independent School District Superintendent Abelardo Saavedra.

But Harris County never before extended that perk, and members of Commissioners Court said they do not think now is the time to start.

“The taxpayers of Harris County are going through one hell of a tough time and here we are making it more comfortable for two elected officials to get around?” Commissioner Jerry Eversole asked.

He and Commissioner Steve Radack said they would not vote for any new positions for the sheriff until Garcia started using his existing resources more wisely.

(snip)

The deputies, a 23-year sheriff’s office veteran and 25-year HPD veteran who joined the office after retiring, each spend about eight to 10 hours a week serving Emmett and Garcia at the officials’ discretion, Mabry said. The deputies otherwise are assigned to a special projects team that, among other things, is trying to devise a way to track correspondence from the public about crime hot spots and other problems. Garcia’s deputy makes about $40,000 a year, while Emmett’s makes nearly $60,000.

The pair has been trained in protecting dignitaries and will receive training from the Secret Service in the next month, Mabry said. He did not know how much, if anything, the sheriff’s office has paid for that instruction.

C'mon Harris County Residents, we're just talking about an annual expenditure of just over $100,000 here (including salary and training costs). When we have a Federal Government that's blowing through Trillions like candy, who has time to be worried about pocket change?

Of course, what public officials often don't understand is that appearances matter. The appearance here is that the Sheriff is instituting a perk to himself and the County Judge that's never been deemed critical before. The counter to this argument is that appearances DO matter, and this policy places Harris County on equal footing with the City of Houston (where the Mayor and Police Chief have HPD drivers).

Is this a big deal at the end of the day? Probably not.

Does it look bad? Of course it does. But there's a long history of politicians who are willing to take a temporary PR hit in exchange for personal luxury.

Not driving on Houston roads is a hell of a luxury.

The Transportation Follies (UPDATED)

Metro is rushing ahead without citizen input (or anything resembling transparency)...

[Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com]

The Metropolitan Transit Authority’s board is expected to vote on a multi-billion-dollar light rail contract tomorrow, but agency officials have refused to disclose details about the scope and price of the contract prior to the board action.

The board is reviewing the proposed contract in a closed-door executive session this afternoon.

Board President David Wolff on Tuesday defended the agency’s silence, saying negotiations with its builder, Parsons Transportation Group, likely will continue up until Wednesday’s meeting and that the terms of the contract also are likely to change.

Metro spokesman George Smalley today declined to disclose any details of the pending agreement, saying it still was being negotiated.

The board is scheduled to vote at 2 p.m. Wednesday at Metro’s downtown office.

“If the public can’t find out what’s going on until two seconds before the board makes a decision, that’s just too late,” said Jennifer Peebles, of the non-partisan Web advocacy group, Texas Watchdog. “If they are not giving details before the vote and not allowing us a chance to weigh in, they’re making decisions in a bubble.”

While "Citizen's groups" are encouraging TxDot to open up to public scrutiny...

[Kelley Shannon, AP via Chron.com]

A coalition of citizens groups demanded on Tuesday that Texas transportation officials slow down in selecting projects for economic stimulus money and that the federal cash not go toward toll roads or environmentally questionable highways.

They said at a Capitol rally that the Texas Department of Transportation should seek more citizen input in deciding how to spend much of the $2.25 billion in stimulus transportation money Texas is getting.

“We want TxDOT to slow down and fix it first and do the right thing with our stimulus money,” said Robin Holzer, chairwoman of the Citizens’ Transportation Coalition based in Houston. Another citizen activist said the state Transportation Department has “hijacked” the federal money.

The Texas Transportation Commission is scheduled to decide on $1.2 billion in stimulus road projects on Thursday. Commissioners already postponed that decision for a week because legislators complained there wasn’t enough time for them to give their opinions.

One of the activists’ chief worries is that stimulus money will be going to toll road projects.

“It’s insane, especially in these hard economic times,” said Terri Hall, executive director of Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom of San Antonio.

The folks at Texas Watchdog (LaE faves) offer more on the Metro mess on their blog while Texas Progressive blogger Charles Kuffner (who I keep on my blogroll to prove I link to bloggers who don't reciprocate*) provides links to more information on the TxDot terror on his blog.


It will be interesting to see (over time) if the criticism of each organization bleeds across party (and ideological) lines to where Democrats are as critical of Metro (and, it should be noted, one of their pet projects) as they're sure to be of TxDot, and if Republicans apply the same pressure to TxDot (and their favorite: road construction) as they're sure to be of Metro. Here's a case where both groups could get together and realize that they are both working for the same goal.

I've said it before (many times) and it's worth repeating: The goal of public transportation should be to increase the number of options people have available to them. That means that living a car-only lifestyle is just as acceptable as living a car-free lifestyle. Both options should be doable in a City the size of Houston.

Unfortunately, things being what they are, the same groups currently criticizing TxDot will remain silent, or become apologists, for Metro and vice versa.


Which explains why Houston currently has a road-system that's horridly undeveloped and a 7 mile shuttle tram that other cities snicker at while local Metro apologists gush.

We could have so much better. But we don't. Selective watchdogging is part of the reason why. Congrats to the Chron for highlighting both agencies acting like gits.



*Joke.


UPDATE:

Kuffner writes on the Metro situation and BlogHouston weighs in as well.

Rapid Eye Movement (03/03/09)

The "sky is falling!" edition...

Recession Sidetracks Railroad Cars by the Thousands. [Bill Hensel Jr., Chron.com]

Japan, Asian Markets take Dive in Global Sell-off. [Jeremiah Marquez, AP via Chron.com] - OK, bailouts and loose monetary policy is not working. Time for plan B. Anyone?

Bush Memos on Terror Seizures, Searches Released. [Devlin Barrett, AP via Chron.com]

Obama seeks Russian Help Blocking Iran Missle Threat. [Steven Hurst, AP via Chron.com]

Killer Set to be Executed on his 38th Birthday. [Allan Turner, Chron.com] - Does he get a piece of cake?

Shell Houston Open lines up several big name players. [Steve Campbell, Chron.com] - I'm going. Word is Chris Everett might be there.

Bush Friend Schieffer Mulls Running for Governor. [R.G. Ratcliffe, Chron.com] - I present to Moderates shunned by the Republican Party a viable option.

Obama Aides Defend Budget Plan to Congress. [Stephen Ohlemacher, AP via Yahoo! News] - Gov't 101: Tax increases are usually a bad idea during a recession. Got that? Gov't 101.

The Obama Economy [WSJ]

Can Congress Regulate All Political Speech? [Bradley Smith and Jeff Patch, WSJ] - A huge case who's First Amendment consequences have been largely ignored.

AIG's Black Box [WSJ]

Obama's Agenda is Rattling Wall Street. [Charlie Gasparino, The Daily Beast] - See "The Obama Economy" above.

Obama's Morning in America. [Robert Shrum, The Week] - Remember "Reconciliation" legislation, and that Reagan used the same.

Waging War on Propserity. [Dick Morris & Eileen McGann, NY Post] - "Equality of Opportunity" morphes to "Equality of Outcome". Excluding the hyper-wealthy that is. The Pelosi's and Kerry's of the Country aren't included in that. Their 'job' is to oversee not to partake. (see also: Soros, Gore et al.)

Gordon Brown Fiddles Abroad While Britain Burns. [Rachel Sylvester, The Times] - Money quote:

Gordon Brown is in Washington today to touch the hem of Barack Obama's cloak. Like the bleeding woman healed by Jesus, so the man haemorrhaging political support hopes to be saved by this modern Messiah.

Even the British are getting Obama fatigue.

Houston Public Works to Raise Water Rates (UPDATED)

Public encouraged to use more to generate revenue...

[Bradley Olson, Chron.com]

Water bills in Houston are poised to go up about $2.26 a month for an average homeowner under a plan City Council is expected to begin weighing today.

Under procedures put in place after 2004 – when water bills went up as high as 10 percent for many residents – rates only have increased from year to year based on inflation. If the proposal is approved, population increases also will be factored in the rates.

The amount of this year’s planned increase tied to inflation is an average of $1.46 per month; the proposed population increase would add 80 cents a month, for a total of about $27, or 5 percent, a year. The average city customer uses 6,000 gallons of water a month at a cost of about $40 in water and sewer fees.

City officials said the higher cost of treating water and repairing infrastructure after Hurricane Ike led them to seek the change, which, if approved, would provide the city with an additional $12.5 million for improvements. The city has about 460,000 customers.

“It puts us in a much better position to keep a healthy construction and maintenance program to make sure that the infrastructure across the city stays healthy,” said Susan Bandy, deputy director in the city’s Department of Public Works and Engineering.

OK, I'm kidding about the second part. If anything Civic leaders want people to use less water long term. I'm not kidding about the revenue however.

The thing that strikes me is the claim that these 'fee increases' are all about infrastructure repair and maintenance, which was what I thought the Ike relief was for? Of course, long-time readers of LaE know that I've been on an infrastructure tear on this blog for a long time. Public Works are what makes a City go, yet the current and recent City Administrations haven't given it the attention it deserves. The end result of that is a higher water tax increased fee structure for water service.

As an aside, this question: Part of the 'rate increase' is designed to put in an adjuster to account for "population growth". The thought behind this being that, as the population grows, the cost of providing water service goes up. However, shouldn't the amount of water revenue increase as well due to more people paying into the system? So why do you need to increase the rate on everyone to pay for the marginal gains?

If marginal costs are that elevated for each new user then there are inefficiencies in the system that need to be addressed. I'm not hearing that argument coming from anyone.

Of course, in the Chron article, you didn't hear an argument, or dissenting discussion period so there you go.

That's not to say the rate increase is a bad idea, but only to suggest that a a well-rounded debate on the issue could lead to improvements. This is Houston however, and discussing strengths, weaknesses or alternative options for big projects is discouraged. Also discouraged is carping when you're offered up a crap sandwich. "You should have said something when this was implemented, you've missed your chance."


Ummm...yeah...that.



UPDATE: Some good stuff from the comments from City Council Candidate Noel Freeman that I thought needed a spot on the front page:

A very large percentage of our infrastructure (streets, water lines, sewer lines, etc.) is quickly reaching the end of its lifespan. Some is far beyond the end of its lifespan. Would you believe we have some water and sewer lines that have been in service for 70+ years?

The current Capital Improvement Program (CIP) is not designed to deal with big picture public works issues. It is designed to give district Council members a roughly even piece of the CIP pie. I think we need to strongly consider separating some of the most vital public works programs (i.e. drainage improvements) from the CIP and create a dedicated pot of funding for projects that can be evaluated on a city-wide scale. If we don't do that, nobody wins.

And just for reference, in 2003 we learned that our drainage infrastructure needed roughly $3 BILLION in order to bring it up to 2003 standards, but since that time, we have only increased funding for drainage improvements by approximately $15 million per year.

A couple bucks a month is probably not a big price to pay if we use the added revenue the right way to make the improvements we need.

Did Apple Kill the iMac?

Interesting post from Dwight today asking whether Apple is going to announce an update to their desktops later this month....

It's been a long time since Apple refreshed its desktop Macintosh line, and it's starting to have an impact on sales. The company's last earning report indicated desktop sales were in retreat, even though other parts of the business were good.

Which raises the question (in my mind): Did Apple's success (and focus) on the MacBook, the MacBook Air and the iPhone make the iMac obsolete?

I'd ask this over on Dwight's blog but the Apple fanboys make getting serious answers to legitimate questions impossible. Dare to question the Apple Oracle and the E*plagues will be unleashed. I've seen it happen, it isn't pretty. That's too bad because Dwight's a nice guy.

That out of the way, there are two reasons why I believe Apple has rendered their old flagship product obsolete:

1. The infamous Apple price point.

2. The infamous Apple 'cool' factor.

First off, Apple products are expensive. Unlike PC products that you can get at discount prices an Apple computer is an investment. You have to be willing to pay a premium for modest performance gains, security advantages that are growing slimmer and slimmer by the day, and (yes) a certain amount of tech cache that comes with typing on a slim,shiny silver MacBook at the nearest coffee shop. Because of this cost Apple fanboys often have one Apple computer and an iPhone. Purchases are often made to replace systems not to add on to them. Where a PC user might purchase a mobile computer in addition to their desktop unit (although that is increasingly becoming obsolete as well) an Apple consumer will likely purchase a MacBook to replace their iMac, or Windows desktop.

Second, it's just not 'cool' to have a desktop PC these days. The tech world has gone mobile. Consumer devotees of a company basing its market appeal on 'cool' are more likely to own the mobile MacBook, the ultra-mobile MacBook Air, or the Hyper-mobile iPhone. Being physically tethered to a desk is lame, electronically tethering your iPhone to your MacBook Air has the hip factor that FanBoys are looking for. After all, what's the use of purchasing a $2000 computer if you can't whip it out of your overpriced messenger bag while sipping an overpriced cup of coffee right?

Finally: Consider this...Industry analysts have already declared the Desktop PC to be dead outside of business applications. If a work-a-day product such as the Microsoft powered PC has moved head-first into the mobile computing age then how much is there to gain for Apple to be applying much R&D in the old iMac model?

Because of this I'm expecting Apple to make strides forward in portable devices while iMac changes are little more than cosmetic. There's no way enough businesses are going to abandon the PC to make the iMac a viable business desktop device and what Apple is doing to date seems to be working....


Apples aren't for me, but I don't think the iMac is for much of anyone any longer. Espcially not Apple's key demographic.


Thoughts?

Decisions, Decisions.

The time has come to renew my Chronicle subscription and, for the first time ever, I'm considering letting it lapse.

I've always been a "newspaper guy". When I was a little kid, before I could read, I'd emulate my Grandad sitting in his chair reading the morning paper. I grew up reading, and enjoying, my morning dead-tree paper and, when I got older, a cup of coffee to start the day. This routine was my morning ritual for years. Things are different today.

As a part of my daily ritual I can be found sitting at my computer every morning before the wife wakes up skimming the Internet for stories, updating my blog, and drinking my first cup of coffee. (some things don't change after all) After drafting my morning posts I get ready for work, drive in, get set up and then, while I'm waiting for my morning report to run, I quickly log on, proof my blog posts and print them. (sometimes I just print them, I don't want to blog on employer time after all) The point of this is, unlike years past, my morning routine doesn't involve heading out and grabbing the day's hard-copy version of what I'm consuming on-line. Typically, while walking out to the car, I walk down to the end of the driveway, grab the paper, and throw it up on the porch. Typically, when I get home from work, I'll grab the paper and bring it inside, where it may (or may not) get unwrapped from the plastic sleeve that evening and deposited immediately into the recycle bin. This routine changes a little bit on Wednesday, Thursday when I read the food writing and Preview food reviews, and on Sunday morning when I thumb through the ads. But almost none of my news consumption is retrieved any longer from the print edition of the daily newspaper.

For a while the wife and I justified the cost of the subscription because of the coupons that we clipped. More recently however our shopping has seen a decline in the use of coupons due to our focus on fresh, organic, ingredients that we prepare at home. In short, our decision to eat healthier has reduced the amount of coupons that we use. We also find that coupons for cleaning items are often geared toward the most expensive options, which still cost more than a cheaper (equally as good) competitor who doesn't waste time with faux-discounts. $4 is still cheaper than $1.50 off $8.99. Yet people buy the $8.99 detergent because they are "getting a deal".

As an aside to this: Kevin Whited's discussion of a Banjo Jones mention of a Wall St. Journal posting of a Hearst memo (didja get all that?) regarding increasing costs for their print and on-line product is timely in the sense that price, especially in this economy, is going to be a key factor as I self-edit my daily news diet moving forward.

For me, and for my blogs, quality, local reporting is highly desired. I've got little to no use for National Content that can be gleaned from from other sources before they are reprinted in the Chron. I also have little use for former members of the Audio/Visual club eductating me on what's 'cool', or keeping abreast of the latest party trends of the terribly rich and clueless. Those things just aren't important to me.

I'm interested in quality local coverage of the entities that affect my life daily. Cy-Fair School district, the City of Houston, Harris County, the Port of Houston, Metro, etc. Good, quality reporting that views everything with a healthy dose of skepticism and steers clear of boosterism or outright advocacy. Unfortunately, the Houston Chroncile hasn't done a good job of fulfilling that mission historically.

Which leads me where I find myself currently....pondering a future with no newspaper.


If you would have told me three years ago that I'd be considering this I'd have said you were mad.

Houston Area Asides (03/02/09)

The "In like a lion" edition...

Is it really time to grant a pay raise? [Clay Robison, Chron.com] - It's bad judgement at the least. Too bad the messanger here instantly polarizes the issues, because (in his first bullet point) he actually has a point. (Not so for the second)

Hard Times' Safety Net. [tAFKAMW, Chron.com] - Absolutely brutal reasoning..."Long term" is a good idea when the idea is one the ed board supports but shouldn't be considered when they oppose. At this rate the Chron would do better to rid itself of a salary drag and just run citizen editorials.

How to go from worst to first - make a goober of yourself on national TV. [Robert Cavner, Gimmee Some Truth] - Hmmm..A big Demcratic donor says Jindal sucked. Imagine that.

Move it!: An inside look at a bus commute. [Rosanna Ruiz, Chron.com] - America's worst public agency gets it wrong again, on their most basic of services at that. Metro is a civic embarassment under its current direction and leadership.

NRG buying Reliant's retail business for $287.5 Million. [Mark Babineck, Chron.com] - Maybe they can do something about customer service? Just sayin'

A bargain to LAX that's well worth grabbing. [Bill Montgomery, Chron.com] - Yes, it IS worth grabbing.

13 Undercover Rolls Hidden Cameras on Mobile Response Team. [Wayne Dolcefino, KTRK 13] - Damning evidence, but this is Houston. Nothing will happen but promises from public officials to "improve" or to "increase oversight". Of course there will be the usual amount of faux-outrage involved for dramatic effect.

New Texas Bill May Require Teacher's to Take Mandatory Drug Tests. [Alex Sanz, Chron.com] - Didn't we learn our lesson with the student testing?

Republicans Criticize, help Inflate Bill. [AP via News 2 Houston] - Ron Paul, the king of 'no', inserts 22 earmarks. True believers head's to explode in 5....4.....3....2...

Swamplot: Ashby High-Rise developers rejected again. [Kevin Whited, BlogHouston.net] - A Lawsuit is a-brewin.

It's America's Fault. [Lou Minatti] - Heh.

Modern Protest, Houston Style. [Slampo, Slampo's Place] - Heh.

This year's Rodeo Scandal: Diversity! Or the lack thereof, with dueling memos. [Richard Connelly, Houston Press] - I admit to not being a 'rodeo' guy. As a matter of fact, I dread rodeo time because of the crowds, the bad western wear, and the lame-assed protests of those opposed.