Monthly Archives: April 2007

Letter from border police chiefs regarding HB13

Posted on April 25, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I received the following in email late yesterday: To Whom It May Concern: This is an open letter to the media, our state legislators, and the Texas community as a whole that serves the purpose of voicing our collective concern … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 1 Comment

A slideshow of racist spokescharacters

Posted on April 25, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Slate magazine has a slideshow of racist spokescharacters for various products. I can’t really do this justice in a capsule description – just click and be appalled. Continue reading →

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A pocketful of Kryptonite

Posted on April 25, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Where can I get some? Kryptonite, which robbed Superman of his powers, is no longer the stuff of comic books and films. A mineral found by geologists in Serbia shares virtually the same chemical composition as the fictional kryptonite from … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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TSEU on TIERS and HHSC

Posted on April 25, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

The following is an email from the Texas State Employees’ Union (TSEU) regarding the Office of the Inspector General’s report on TIERS. It was sent to me by an HHSC worker. It’s long, so I’ve put it beneath the fold. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Light pollution

Posted on April 25, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, I grew up in New York City. I experienced a number of culture shocks in coming down to Texas as a college student, but one of the more vivid ones was during my sophomore year, when I … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | 2 Comments

Combs rescinds Strayhorn’s question about the business tax

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Boy, does this ever raise a bunch of red flags. Former state Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn more than a year ago asked Attorney General Greg Abbott for a legal opinion on whether the state’s expanded business tax amounts to an … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Senate blocks Perry’s HPV order

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Well, in one area at least, the Lege is standing up to Governor Perry for his attempts at grabbing power. The Senate Monday passed a bill overturning Gov. Rick Perry’s order that middle-school girls be vaccinated against a sexually transmitted … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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One voter ID measure passes, one gets delayed

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I had hope for defeating the voter ID measures, but not that much hope – there’s only so much you can do when your the minority and the majority really really wants something. And so one bill passed while the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 2 Comments

Farrar on HB13

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

The following is a press release from Rep. Jessica Farrar (my State Rep) regarding the Homeland Security bill HB13: On Thursday, April 19, the House Committee on State Affairs voted to send HB 13 by Chairman Swinford (R-Dumas) to the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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The Center’s letter of intent with the city

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

For your perusal, here’s the letter of intent from the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation to the city of Houston concerning their proposal to buy the land on which they now sit and which they now lease. Most of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Take this dog, please

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting story about how the dog shelters try to make sure that once an animal has been adopted it stays adopted. In an effort to reduce animal returns, municipal and private shelters tinker with their systems. Harris County, for example, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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More on wiretapping in Texas

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I briefly mentioned that there are a couple of bills working their way through the Lege that would allow big-city police forces to do wiretaps, instead of having to go through the Department of Public Safety. Grits explains why this … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 1 Comment

Save chocolate!

Posted on April 24, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Julia forwards the call to arms. The FDA is entertaining a “citizen’s petition” to allow manufacturers to substitute vegetable fats and oils for cocoa butter. The “citizens” who created this petition represent groups that would benefit most from this degradation … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Voter ID debate going on

Posted on April 23, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Eye on Williamson is sort-of liveblogging things. Vince is in the Capitol, so maybe he’ll have a report for us soon. Inside Texas Politics has some analysis, Postcards from the Lege mentions the Royal Masset column, which was (in what … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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It’s not just a partisan dispute

Posted on April 23, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

As noted yesterday, the evil and pernicious voter ID bills are coming to the House floor today. And this is the treatment it gets from the Chron’s Clay Robison. Expect a big partisan fight on the House floor today if … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 4 Comments

HHSC response to OIG report

Posted on April 23, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I received a copy in the mail of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission’s official response to the Office of the Inspector General’s report about the abject failure of the TIERS software system. It’s uploaded here (PDF) for those … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Monday random thirty

Posted on April 23, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Seems my recent Friday random music-blogging effort has spawned a few replies. I hereby give you the Random Ten efforts of Greg Wythe, Jeff Balke, and once removed from my post, Houston Grooves. I kinda like the collaborativeness of this. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Music | 2 Comments

Another bohemian hippie attorney update

Posted on April 23, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Just because I never get tired of this picture: Nancy Sarnoff has another update on my current favorite real estate project (see here for the previous installment). The developers of a controversial mixed-use project in Rice Village kicked off an … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Vroom! Vroooommmm!

Posted on April 23, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I drove past Reliant Stadium on Friday coming back to my office from lunch, and with the car windows up, the air conditioning on, and music playing, all I could hear was the noise of the cars coming from the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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What about the other nonprofit leases?

Posted on April 22, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Now that the situation with the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation has been essentially settled, the question becomes what about other nonprofits with similar leases? What the nonprofits have in common is their lease agreement with the city of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

Common Cause on Voter ID

Posted on April 22, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

The following is an op-ed by Mario Perez of Common Cause Texas. It’s scheduled to run in Tuesday’s Statesman, but apparently the voter ID bills are going to come to the floor on Monday, which would make this a day … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 2 Comments

Cigarette run!

Posted on April 22, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

This article about how convenience stores just on the other side of the Texas border – especially those in Louisiana – are doing a landmark business since the state cigarette tax went up by a dollar isn’t surprising. This is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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It’s official: Ray Jones will not be on the May 12 ballot

Posted on April 22, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Never got to this on Friday, but Matt Stiles reported that Ray Jones’ petition to the State Supreme Court to be placed on the May 12 ballot for City Council was denied. The info is here, though it’s nothing more … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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More details on the Center’s deal with the city

Posted on April 21, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I’m still waiting to receive a copy of the city’s letter of intent with the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation, but in the meantime, today’s Chron story provides a few more details. The agreement, which must be approved by … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

Metro response to “lawsuit” coming soon

Posted on April 21, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

We learn three things from this Examiner story about the anti–rail “lawsuit” filed last week. One, what court the petition was filed in: A possible prelude to a lawsuit challenging Metro’s plans to build the University light rail line along … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 3 Comments

The Sixth Ward and the Planning Commission

Posted on April 21, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

This article is about the Mayor’s belief that the recent proposal to make permanent the ban on demolitions in the Old Sixth Ward would have widespread support, but what really interests me is the quote from the opposition: The Old … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 2 Comments

The Center’s deal with the city

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s what we know so far: The Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation will pay the city $6 million for prime inner city property it now uses in exchange for the services it provides, city officials said today. Mayor Bill … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 2 Comments

Announcement of agreement with the Center

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Hot off the presses out of my inbox, here’s an announcement that the City of Houston and the Center Serving Persons with Mental Retardation have reached an agreement: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 20, 2007 Mayor Bill White, Officials of the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Senate says “No smoking till 19”

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Thus says the Senate: Don’t smoke ’em if you’re under 19. You’re old enough to vote and serve your country at 18, but you’d have to wait a year to buy cigarettes under a bill approved Thursday by the Texas … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 1 Comment

Toll road moratorium bill passes from Senate

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Such as it is, anyway. The Texas Senate voted unanimously Thursday for a two-year moratorium on private company toll roads — although stopping those projects won’t solve the state’s bulging highway needs, a leading lawmaker warned. The House already approved … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 1 Comment

Senate passes TYC reform bill

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

This looks pretty good. The Texas Senate unanimously approved fundamental changes in the Texas Youth Commission on Thursday, supporting efforts to reduce the population at its facilities, improve staff-to-offender ratios and require enhanced training for guards. Senate Bill 103, by … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Deal or no deal on Jessica’s Law?

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

Lots of Lege activity in the last day or two – we’ve got what, a bit more than five weeks to go? I’m gonna hit a few of the highlights, for lack of a better term. Stand Down Texas notes … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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TDEx bill approved in committee

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

HB13, the homeland security bill that Governor Perry really really wants, has passed out of committee, and while it has addressed one concern of its detractors, it still sounds highly problematic to me. House State Affairs Committee Chairman David Swinford, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: The other side of the CD shelf

Posted on April 20, 2007 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve got a floor-to-ceiling shelf for our CDs. The left half is mostly filled with the non-mainstream, bought-at-the-Mucky-Duck CDs, while the right half is mostly filled with the music you might hear on the radio, much of which was bought … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Music | 1 Comment