Monthly Archives: February 2012

Interview with Sean Hubbard

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Sean Hubbard has been in the race for Senator longer than any other candidate, having started his campaign in January, 2011, right when Sen. Hutchison made her retirement official. Hubbard is easily the youngest candidate running for Senate at 30 … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

It’s always easier to talk in the abstract

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. The city of Houston has been papering over multimillion-dollar budget deficits for nine years by borrowing money, tapping its rainy day fund, selling buildings and just plain putting off bills to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

From the “How can we miss you if you won’t go away?” files

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Rick Perry is doing his best to make us miss him. After almost six months away from the state to campaign for president, Rick Perry has barely returned to his Capitol office since arriving back in Austin, state records show. … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Pinterest

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Rachel brings up a topic that I admit had not occurred to me. Raise your hand if you’ve heard of Pinterest. Chances are, if you’re a woman, your hand is up right now. Chances are, if you’re a man, you … Continue reading →

Posted in Websurfing | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Two modest campaign finance reform suggestions

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What to do about this? As indicted ex-constable Jack Abercia fights federal corruption and bribery charges brought against him last month, a lack of money for his legal defense isn’t one of his problems. The former Precinct 1 Harris County … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Santorum surges in January UT/Trib poll

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

There will come a day when using the word “surge” to describe the now-frontrunning Republican Presidential candidate in Texas will get old. That day has not arrived yet. Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania has a commanding lead among Republican … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

The feds will run Texas’ health insurance exchange

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That seems to be where we’re headed. Texas is almost alone among the nation’s largest states in failing to start work on a key piece of the Affordable Care Act, as legislators and state agencies follow Gov. Rick Perry’s wish … Continue reading →

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Rolling blackouts may be on the summer horizon

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Better hope the mild weather we’re getting in winter translates to mild weather for the summer, because the alternative isn’t pretty. Inadequate electric power reserves likely will force Texans to cut back this summer to avoid rolling outages if the … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Interview with Paul Sadler

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have just a couple of Harris County Democratic races left to deal with, and I will return to them in two weeks. In the meantime, we now have a sorta-kinda primary date of May 29, but we still don’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Court of inquiry appointed in Morton case

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe now we’ll get some answers. A special court will examine whether Georgetown District Judge Ken Anderson acted improperly when, as Williamson County’s district attorney in 1987, he prosecuted Michael Morton for a murder the authorities now acknowledge he did … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

What’s to become of the downtown post office?

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Gray writes about the future of the downtown post office on Franklin. In the past couple of years, there have been rumblings that the U.S. Postal Service plans to leave 401 Franklin and sell the 16-acre complex – a … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

UH Downtown drops open admissions

Posted on February 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

UH-Downtown took up the issue of adopting admissions standards last week. “It’s time and it’s the right thing to do,” said President William Flores, who began advocating for admissions standards shortly after taking over as president in 2009. “We’re building … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for February 19

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Happy birthday, Justine Bateman! Don’t be too smug about your eco-friendly lifestyle. I’d like to be the fact checker for New Yorker cartoons. Remember “voodoo math”? Mitt Romney makes that look like basic algebra. Do you want fewer fries with … Continue reading →

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Weekend redistricting update

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

One more plaintiff has signed on to the Abbott map deal. The Mexican American Legislative Caucus is now joining the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund in saying that the state-backed Congressional District 35, a proposed new district that … Continue reading →

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A bit of perspective on pensions

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker and current members of Council will receive pensions from the city some day. They also will some day vote on what steps the city should take to deal with the pension system. Is that a problem? “Whenever you’re … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 7 Comments

Berrymania

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This Michael Berry thing. WTF? A police source familiar with the investigation into a hit-and-run accident linked to former city councilman and radio talk show host Michael Berry said Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland is upset with the handling of … Continue reading →

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More on those police “charities”

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Nice story in the Statesman about those law enforcement charities that call you for donations. The first time he got the call last year, Rodney Shaheen thought one of his children had been in a bad car crash. The name … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Dancing In The Street

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Song #81 on the Popdose Top 100 Covers list is “Dancing in The Street”, originally by Martha and the Vandellas, and covered by Van Halen. Here’s the original: And here’s the Van Halen cover: Sorry, I couldn’t find an official … Continue reading →

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Parker to sue pension boards for more information

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s pensions all the time around here. Mayor Annise Parker said Thursday that her administration is gearing up to sue the city’s pension systems to open their books and preparing a “road show” of pension reforms she will present throughout … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Why salary caps suck

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

In a sane world, the Houston Texans would not have to worry about whether they have or can free up the cap space to re-sign Mario Williams as well as whichever else of their free agents they would like to … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Austin may accelerate its bag ban schedule

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

They’re considering their options. The City of Austin might ban the thin plastic and paper bags offered at checkout counters beginning in March 2013 a year earlier than expected and scrap plans to require retailers to charge a fee for … Continue reading →

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C-USA and and MWC make merger plans official

Posted on February 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We knew it was coming. With their respective leagues being picked apart by the month to fulfill others’ expansion plans, 16 presidents and chancellors from Conference USA and Mountain West Conference met Sunday in Dallas, knowing they needed to do … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: Unexpected genius

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I was just going to do another normal random ten listing – I had the iPod in shuffle mode and was just waiting for a time to collect the songs I’d heard and put them in a post, when I … Continue reading →

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Calling for a special session

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It started with the Texas State Teachers Association. The Texas State Teachers Association today urged Gov. Rick Perry to call the Legislature into special session now to appropriate $2.5 billion from the Rainy Day Fund and head off another round … Continue reading →

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Shapiro backs STAAR delay

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This was unexpected. Senate Education Committee Chairwoman Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said Monday in a letter to [TEA Commissioner Robert] Scott that ninth-graders taking the exams this year should be given a reprieve from the 15 percent requirement during the phase-in … Continue reading →

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Why do we make it so hard to vote?

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

News item: Many voter registrations around the country are outdated or incorrect. Some 24 million voter registrations in the United States contain significant errors, including about 1.8 million dead people still on the rolls and many more approved to vote … Continue reading →

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Harry Potter and the Truly Awful Presidential Candidates

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You tell ’em, Daniel Radcliffe. [Daniel Radcliffe, star of the “Harry Potter” movies, says] that he has been “disgusted, amazed, stunned” by candidates seeking the Republican presidential nomination, such as Rick Santorum or Michele Bachmann, who have been openly hostile to … Continue reading →

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Meet the Houston Regional Forensic Science Center

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker has revealed her vision for an independent regional crime lab. Mayor Annise Parker proposed on Wednesday taking control of the city’s crime lab away from the police department and handing it to an independent seven-member board with expertise … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Non-discrimination ballot referendum coming

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been waiting for this. Activists are preparing a petition to put a referendum on Houston’s November ballot, calling for a ban on discrimination against gays and permission for the city to grant health insurance benefits to the unmarried partners … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Benchmarking biking and walking

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Via Dallas Transportation, here’s a ginormous comprehensive report on the way we walk and bike in 2012, the 2012 Bicycling and Walking in the United States Benchmark Report, by the Alliance for Biking and Walking. It’s a 200+ page PDF … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of February 13

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is still waiting for Greg Abbott to ask for its opinion about interim maps as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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State agrees to leave SD10 unchanged

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is big. Negotiators in San Antonio — trying to find common ground on state legislative and congressional districts so a primary date in Texas that can stick may finally be set — agreed to leave unchanged state Senate District … Continue reading →

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Interview with Mike Anderson

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Challenging Pat Lykos in the GOP primary for District Attorney is another person who has spent years as a judge, Mike Anderson. Anderson started out in the DA’s office after completing law school and spent 17 years as a prosecutor, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The plaintiffs’ proposal for the Lege

Posted on February 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I know it will break your heart to hear that Harris County GOP Chair Jared Woodfill is a little peeved at Greg Abbott and Steve Munisteri because he thinks the Abbott map makes Harris County too Democratic. What got Woodfill … Continue reading →

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