Monthly Archives: March 2010

Runoff endorsement watch: HASD and HSYD

Posted on March 14, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here are some more endorsements for the Democratic primary runoffs. First, from the Houston Area Stonewall Democrats: HASD is proud to announce that 60 of its 73 previously endorsed candidates ( 82% ) either won their respective races or made … Continue reading →

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White: No expansion of gambling

Posted on March 14, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m okay with this. Democratic gubernatorial nominee Bill White said today he does not support the legalization of slot machines and does not think Texas should legalize casinos across the state. “I don’t think the State of Texas should be … Continue reading →

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

Saturday still picture break: Go Texan

Posted on March 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This little piece of yard art is on Greenbriar, across the street from Roberts Elementary School: It appeared a couple of weeks ago, just before the start of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. I can only presume that was … Continue reading →

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Census forms start arriving next week

Posted on March 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Fill out those forms and send them back, because redistricting and all that it entails will follow close behind. Experts’ early looks at Census estimates point to a potential new congressional district in northwest Harris County. That could be alluring … Continue reading →

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Montgomery County gets in the minor league act

Posted on March 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We know about Sugar Land’s plan to build a stadium for a minor league baseball team. They’ve now been joined by a neighbor to the north in that pursuit. The East Montgomery County Improvement District signed a memorandum of understanding … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

UTSA football update

Posted on March 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib has a nice story about the state of UTSA’s fledgling football program. Next fall, UTSA will spend millions to field a football team it hopes will someday compete with cross-state rivals like the University of Texas, Texas Tech … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sneak peek at new light rail stations

Posted on March 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

With all the allegations of naughty emails and debates over whether or not the two U lines will get built, it may be hard to remember that we do have three light rail lines in the works. We’re still a … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: Rock and roll

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Are you ready to rock? Of course you are. So here are ten “Rock” songs for you. 1. Rock & Roll Stew – Traffic 2. Rock and Roll – Velvet Underground 3. Rock and Roll Lawyer – Austin Lounge Lizards … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

The Commissioners

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a look at how the candidates in the three Commissioner races did across Texas. – In the Democratic primary for Land Commissioner, Bill Burton won a majority in an astonishing 193 counties; of those, he scored better than 70% … Continue reading →

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“Drop by drop”

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve talked a lot about flooding and drainage issues, and about the possibility of water rate increases in Houston, but something that has not gotten a lot of attention is water conservation. I want to call your attention to a … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Got evidence?

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

If you saw Wednesday night’s rather sensational coverage of the allegations that Metro CEO Frank Wilson had an “improper” relationship with an employee, you would have come away with the impression that things were about to go all Chuck Rosenthal … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

The city’s budget gap widens

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Everywhere you look, it’s bad budget news. Mayor Annise Parker raised the possibility of furloughs and layoffs for city employees for the first time Wednesday, saying the city’s dire budget outlook will require City Council to consider all available options … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Galveston County transportation district

Posted on March 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Well, at least somebody is moving forward with rail plans. The creation of a Galveston County urban and rural transit district would potentially pull together all 13 municipalities in the county, providing a single voice to negotiate with Houston Metro, … Continue reading →

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Miles wins by 10

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Just call him Landslide Borris. State Rep. Al Edwards, who lost his rematch with challenger Borris Miles by 11 votes in last week’s Democratic primary, saw that margin narrow by one vote Tuesday, after an early-voting ballot board canvassed provisional … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The SBOE continues on its rampage

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Sadly, despite the encouraging election results in the SBOE races last week, there’s still plenty of opportunity for the Board’s troglodyte caucus to wreak havoc on the schoolchildren of Texas. The State Board of Education’s Hispanic and African American members … Continue reading →

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

The Lite Guv race by the counties

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Lite Guv primary was an interesting race. One candidate, Ronnie Earle, had a decent amount of name recognition, a base of support in a vote-rich area, with likely secondary support in other populous counties, and electoral experience. He didn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Parker expresses doubt about University and Uptown lines

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is not the sort of thing I want to see. Mayor Annise Parker cast doubt Wednesday on whether the Metropolitan Transit Authority has the money to pay for two planned light-rail lines that proponents say are critical to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

HISD Radio

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This, from the inbox, sounds very cool: K12RADIOHOUSTON: HISD’s NEW SCHOOL OF THOUGHT The nation’s first custom radio station created for a major school district (Houston, Texas) No radio tower or transmitter necessary! The Houston Independent School District (HISD) begins … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What passes for good budget news these days

Posted on March 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Sales tax revenue didn’t decline as much as in previous months. In February, the state’s sales tax collections were down 8.8 percent compared with the same month a year earlier. Though still in the red, the February figure looked better … Continue reading →

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

Liveblogging the SBOE social studies hearings

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

No, not me. I’m not there, and besides, I’m no good at liveblogging. Here’s all the coverage you could need, from people who actually are good at this. First and foremost, the indispensable Texas Freedom Network. Stephen Schafersman, blogging for … Continue reading →

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Metro CEO accused of inappropriate relationship with employee

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Well, at least we now have some idea of what Lloyd Kelley has been looking for. The president and CEO of the Metropolitan Transit Authority was accused in open court Wednesday of having an improper relationship with a female employee … Continue reading →

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Where KBH and Medina did best, where White did worst

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been poking around the county by county results in the Democratic and Republican gubernatorial primaries to see what might be of interest. Here’s what I’ve found. – Debra Medina carried three counties: Zavala, Crane, and Carson. There only 16 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Runoff endorsement watch: DFH and HGLBTPC

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There are five local runoffs for the Democratic primary, so we should expect to see updated endorsements from various groups soon. Two of them have already issued theirs. First up, wasting no time at all, is Democracy for Houston: DEMOCRACY … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Grier pushing to dump CEP

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, HISD Superintendent Terry Grier has been pushing to get HISD away from using Community Education Partners (CEP) as a provider of alternate schools for kids with discipline issues. He has now made his recommendation to the Board … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Time to send in the clowns

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You know that old expression about how no one’s life, liberty, or property are safe when the Legislature is in session? That’s how I feel these days about the State Board of Education. And that means it’s loin-girding time, because … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of March 8

Posted on March 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance would like to thank the Academy by presenting it with this week’s roundup. Click on for the highlights.

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2010 Opera Vista tickets on sale

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve mentioned Opera Vista in this space before. If it sounded interesting to you, now is a good time to check it out. From the inbox: Tickets for 2010 Opera Vista Festival On Sale Now! Opera Vista, winner of the … Continue reading →

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Here comes the county budget

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Considering how gloom-and-doomy the reports have been, this is downright sunny. Commissioners Court today will consider a $1.4 billion budget that cuts spending by about 3.2 percent from the fiscal year that ended on Feb. 28. The spending blueprint does … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Important dates for the runoff

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox, from the County Clerk: April 13, 2010 – Primary Runoff Election: Important Dates Authority conducting elections – Political Party County Chairs First Day to Apply for Ballot by Mail – February 12, 2010 (if did not request … Continue reading →

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Interview with David Wolff

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

David Wolff has been the Chair of the Metro Board since 2004. He will be stepping down as soon as Mayor Parker names a replacement for him. With all that’s been going on regarding Metro in the news lately, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

How much was that endorsement worth?

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, I tracked endorsements for multiple groups in all Democratic judicial primary races in this Google spreadsheet. There were 30 such contested primaries, and 15 endorsing organizations. How did these organizations’ candidates do? After highlighting the winners in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Why the moon?

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I understand the politics of the fight against NASA cutbacks. Jobs are at stake, even if they are being funded by those evil, dirty, not-job-creating federal dollars. But I’m still puzzled by the whole thing. Texans have so little clout … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Averitt resigns

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

After announcing his withdrawal of his re-election bid to the State Senate but getting nominated anyway because it was too late to remove his name from the primary ballot, Sen. Kip Averitt has formally resigned, which will trigger a special … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Kesha Rogers

Posted on March 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

No, I can’t explain the result in CD22, either. Stuff just happens sometimes, especially in races where not much attention is being paid. The good news, if you can call it that, is that nobody was going to make a … Continue reading →

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