Monthly Archives: October 2009

Endorsement watch: BOR on the constitutional amendments

Posted on October 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve mentioned the conservative Blue Dot Blues‘ analyses of the eleven constitutional amendments that are on the ballot. Now we have a good progressive analysis of them as well, along with recommendations, courtesy of the Burnt Orange Report. I’m largely … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Endorsement watch: BOR on the constitutional amendments

Early voting: Rainy days and Mondays

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Today was the first day of the last week of early voting. On this day in 2003, with EV hours of only 8 AM to 4:30 PM, there were over 5500 in person votes cast. Today, in twelve hours of … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Parker polls and claims a lead

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Annise Parker campaign has released an internal poll (PDF) that shows her in the lead of the Mayoral race. A recent Lake Research Partners’ survey of likely voters in Houston’s upcoming mayoral contest shows that City Controller Annise Parker … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

More in support of Prop 4

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Many groups and individuals are supporting Proposition 4, which is the constitutional amendment to help create more Tier One universities in Texas. One local group in favor of Prop 4 is the Houston Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. I had a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

League of Women Voters guide to this election

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

If you haven’t voted yet and are looking for a nice one-stop guide to the election that you can print out and carry with you, let me point you to the League of Women Voters guide (PDF) to the Houston … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , | Comments Off on League of Women Voters guide to this election

The Chron on Prop 9

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Proposition 9 on the ballot would make Texas’ Open Beaches Act of 1959 and add it to the state constitution. This Chron story is an overview of it. “People who use the beach think of it as a public park,” … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The Chron on Prop 9

Recycling pays

Posted on October 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever works. City leaders announced [last] Tuesday a partnership with RecycleBank, a New York-based company that rewards residents with points for the amount of recycling they put out for the city to collect. The points, akin to frequent flier miles, … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Weekend early voting update

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

We head into the last week of Early Voting with a total of 30,463 ballots being cast so far; of those, 26,662 were done in person. That compares to 27,590 in person from 2003, and 31,440 total counting mail ballots. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Weekend link dump for October 25

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Good grief, it’s almost Halloween already… Mythbusting personal genomics. The Secret Service is under a lot of strain. Toke ’em if you got ’em, assuming you live in an appropriate state and have medical reasons for doing so. Have you … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | Comments Off on Weekend link dump for October 25

City to release documents related to red light camera study

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

They’re being ordered to do so by a judge, but it doesn’t look like they’re particularly bothered by it. Paul Kubosh and Randall Kallinen filed a lawsuit challenging the city’s refusal to release 208 documents they requested under the Texas … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

RIP, Soupy Sales

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Soupy Sales, the world’s funniest pie-in-the-face man, has passed away at the age of 83. As the star of “The Soupy Sales Show,” he performed live on television for 13 years in Detroit, Los Angeles and New York before the … Continue reading →

Posted in TV and movies | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on RIP, Soupy Sales

Perry’s got a secret

Posted on October 25, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Quite a few secrets, actually. He really, really doesn’t want you to know what he’s up to over there. When a national news organization in 2003 asked the state archives for the execution memoranda written for former Gov. George W. … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Saturday video break: Mah na mah na

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Surely this needs no introduction: What can I say? It was the 70s. You had to be there. And if there’s one group that can give a proper modern treatment to this song, it’s the Asylum Street Spankers: Happy Saturday!

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Saturday video break: Mah na mah na

Endorsement watch: Republicans (very quietly) for Roy

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Saturday edition of the Chron the past couple of weeks has had a feature in the City & State section called Campaign Watch, which is a blog-like collection of short items relating to the 2009 elections. For some odd … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Early voting, five days in

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve completed the first business week of early voting, and the spreadsheet has been updated to show the totals so far. Thursday was the slowest day so far, with 2889 in-person ballots, which I attribute to the torrential rain in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Early voting, five days in

Ashby developers lose appeal

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Given how long it took for the Ashby highrise developers to get their permit in the first place, I figured their appeal of the requirement that they cut back on some aspects of the project in order to get that … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Shriners Hospital reopens next month

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Back in July, delegates at the national Shriners convention voted to reopen the burn hospital for children in Galveston. The date to reopen has now been set for November. The hospital, a world leader in burn research and source of … Continue reading →

Posted in Hurricane Katrina | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Texas blog roundup for the week of October 19

Posted on October 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Yeah, late again. We’ll be back on track next week. Click on for the highlights.

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged , | Comments Off on Texas blog roundup for the week of October 19

Settlement reached in Harris County voter registration lawsuit

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

You may recall the lawsuit that was filed back in December against Paul Bettencourt and the Harris County Tax Assessor’s office over allegations that thousands of voter registration applications were rejected for frivolous reasons. That lawsuit has now been settled. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2008 | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Friday random ten: I can’t

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

While some letters have presented a challenge to this “Ten Songs That Start With The Same Word” theme, some letters present a plethora of riches. The letter I, for instance, as so many songs begin with the first person singular … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Locke v. Brown

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

So here’s the new Gene Locke ad: Everybody noticed the pause, right? Hey, if the electorate isn’t paying close attention to the details, you may as well make the most of it where you can. And here’s the Chron story … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

HISD Trustee IX overview

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

One more Chron overview of an HISD Trustee race, this one in District IX where three candidates are challenging incumbent and Board President Larry Marshall. During the last several months, Marshall has had a tumultuous stint as board president. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on HISD Trustee IX overview

Green’s tax liens

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I know some people think that the Mayor’s race is boring, so perhaps they should take a look at the City Controller’s race instead. The Internal Revenue Service has filed two tax liens on City Councilman Ronald Green for more … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Who’s ready for the Census?

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The good news is that Houston is in pretty decent shape, at least as far as big cities go, in being ready for the 2010 Census. The bad news is that a lot of other big cities aren’t ready at … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Who’s ready for the Census?

Be like Bill

Posted on October 23, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

On the matter of where the Mayoral candidates stand on environmental issues, I don’t mind that they’re basically indistinguishable. As long as they follow the good example that has been set for them, it’s fine by me. To improve air … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Be like Bill

Endorsement eatch: For HCC annexations

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Missed this from Wednesday. In this fall’s elections, voters in the Spring Branch and North Forest Independent School Districts are being asked to approve annexation of their respective districts into the Houston Community College System. We believe the larger region … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Another way to look at early voting so far

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Early Voting this year is running well ahead of recent years. In the first two days, 8295 in person ballots have been cast, compared to 6685 over the first two days in 2003. I’ve suggested that this … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Sharp loans himself another bundle

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Previously, we saw that Senate fundraising numbers for the third quarter were in. I noted that John Sharp reported raising $600,000, and I wondered if that was for real, or if once again he loaned himself a sizable chunk of … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Sharp loans himself another bundle

Dewhurst fibs about the budget and the stimulus

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

What Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst says: Given recent comments about our state’s budget, I feel it is time to separate fact from political fiction. The fact is, in stark contrast to the U. S. Congress, the Texas Constitution requires the … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Shapleigh’s successor

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Via Greg, the El Paso Times runs down the possible contenders for the to-be-vacated Senate seat of Eliot Shapleigh. Potential Democratic candidates include County Attorney José Rodríguez and state Reps. Joe Pickett and Norma Chávez. Two Republicans, businessman Dee Margo … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Shapleigh’s successor

UTSA-UT Health Science Center merger moves forward

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I noted last month that the University of Texas-San Antonio and the UT Health Science Center in San Antonio were discussing the possibility of a merger as a way for UTSA to become a Tier 1 university. That idea has … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on UTSA-UT Health Science Center merger moves forward

Brown ad #5

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

You’ll probably see this without my help, but here’s Peter Brown’s fifth, and presumably final (modulo the runoff) TV ad: I don’t know about you, but I’m seeing the Brown ads all over the place. I haven’t seen a Parker … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Brown ad #5

Those up-for-grabs conservative voters

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron gets one more story from the crosstabs of their poll. A Houston Chronicle poll conducted last week shows that [Peter] Brown, who has saturated the city with TV, radio and mail advertising, has a commanding lead among self-identified … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Interview with Sarah Winkler

Posted on October 21, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

For what truly will be my last interview of the 2009 cycle, I bring you a conversation with Alief ISD Trustee Sarah Winkler, who serves District 6 and is also the President of the AISD board. She has been in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2009 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments