Author Archives: Charles Kuffner

Charles Johnson elected Mayor of Baytown

Posted on December 29, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

There were a handful of runoff elections following the November 5…whatever you want to call it. This was the most consequential of the local races. Charles Johnson, who served as District 3 city councilman from 2017 until 2023, has come … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Elon Musk has been busy making Austin dirtier

Posted on December 29, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Some good reporting from the Wall Street Journal. Elon Musk made big promises to Wall Street about Tesla’s new Model Y SUV in 2022, and the company was ramping up its production in Austin, Texas, when environmental problems threatened to … Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

HCDE declines to censure Eric Dick

Posted on December 28, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Puzzling. The Harris County Department of Education board of trustees reversed course on censuring trustee Eric Dick Wednesday, one month after voting to propose a censure in the wake of a grievance hearing about his unpaid ethics fines. The board … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Be careful what Christmas music you listen to

Posted on December 28, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a lot of AI crap out there. AI slop has consumed Facebook, is running Wikipedia editors ragged, is rapidly destroying Google search, probably put an extra finger on the scales of election influence, is confusing and annoying crafters, steals endlessly from authors, is on … Continue reading →

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The YouTube judge

Posted on December 27, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. Defendants accused of low-level crimes could soon be handed cautionary fliers warning what they say and do in Harris County Judge David Fleischer’s courtroom may live on social media. This is because Fleischer, a two-term Democrat jurist, shares … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Time for the annual Christmas tree recycling post

Posted on December 27, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

It’s the most wonderful post-Christmas Day post of the year. The City of Houston’s Solid Waste Management Department (SWMD) and Houston Parks and Recreation Department invite residents to recycle their live Christmas trees and contribute to a greener holiday season. … Continue reading →

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Paxton sues NCAA over trans athletes

Posted on December 26, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Never not on brand. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Sunday he sued the National Collegiate Athletic Association, accusing the organization of misleading college sports fans by allowing transgender women to participate in events marketed as women’s competitions. Paxton said … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Recycle those Christmas lights

Posted on December 26, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Public service announcement: Houston’s Solid Waste Management Department has asked residents to recycle their discarded holiday lights in a very particular way. Instead of leaving them in a recycling bin, they are asked to bring them to either the Westpark … Continue reading →

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

Say goodbye to 2024, Mel Torme

Posted on December 25, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good riddance, too, but we’ll put that aside for today only. Here again I present to you my favorite Christmas story, which Mark Evanier has taken to rerunning, with a reminder to not just flat out reprint it and claim … Continue reading →

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Christmas Eve video break: Revisiting my manifesto

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I often have occasion to revisit something I wrote years ago on this site, and I’m happy to say that more often than not, the archived post still holds up. I say that because I just re-read my Christmas music … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

San Antonio gets more funds for its first BRT line

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. If only we had the same inclinations. San Antonio and Bexar County landed a $268 million federal grant to fund more than half the cost of the VIA Green Line, the Alamo City’s first-ever Advanced Rapid Transit … Continue reading →

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

Replacing NRG Arena

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Someone’s gotta pay for it. If NRG Arena were a car, it would be totaled. A 2019 assessment commissioned by the county found the arena, where the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo holds its horse show and auctions every March, … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Texas blog roundup for the week of December 23

Posted on December 24, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance wishes a Merry Christmas to all who celebrate as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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On Rep. Kay Granger

Posted on December 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

On Saturday I was perusing Bluesky, and posts like this were all over the place: US Rep. Kay Granger, R-Texas, hasn’t voted since July. The Dallas Express reports that it found her in a “memory care and assisted living home” … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

HISD to add metal detectors at all high schools

Posted on December 23, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Inevitable, I suppose. Ridiculous, but inevitable. Houston ISD will introduce new weapons detection systems to its high school campuses in the spring semester after experiencing an uptick in confiscated weapons in the 2024-25 school year. More than 10 guns have … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for December 22

Posted on December 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

“We are all passengers on the NFL’s journey. Private equity is too. It just gets to sit in better seats.” “Put simply, we don’t have anywhere near enough pardons: both at the federal and the state level.” “Our antivaccine friends … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 2 Comments

CenterPoint finds a use for those useless-to-us generators

Posted on December 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

San Antonio, here they come. A plan is in the works to partially relieve Houston-area ratepayers of CenterPoint Energy’s $800 million lease of controversial generators that have sat mostly unused during power outages. The bulk of the lease includes 15 large generators, … Continue reading →

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Who is all this Enron performance art for?

Posted on December 22, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I have no idea. The company that recently resurrected Enron’s fallen brand announced Friday it would host a “town hall” to address residents’ concerns after its CEO was allegedly targeted in a pie attack in New York. Despite the Chronicle’s … Continue reading →

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Harris County adopts plan for court translators

Posted on December 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good start, now needs follow through. Harris County’s district and county courts unveiled an updated plan Wednesday for expanding interpreter services for those navigating the court system, but said they will need millions in additional funding to sustain the effort. … Continue reading →

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

Lawsuit filed over SpaceX pollution

Posted on December 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

So many lawsuits, so little time. Rio Grande Valley groups are suing the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, accusing the agency of bypassing state regulations by allowing SpaceX to temporarily discharge industrial water at its South Texas launch site without … Continue reading →

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Dispatches from Dallas, December 21 edition

Posted on December 21, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth, we have another grab bag: the Lege; the Bum Steers from north Texas; updates on the disastrous … Continue reading →

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The coming push to require proof of citizenship to register to vote

Posted on December 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a complete non-problem, but “solving” things that aren’t problems and in doing so creating real problems that then need to be solved is very on brand for Republicans. Republicans are making a big push for legislation requiring Texans … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Expanding Metro’s micro-transit

Posted on December 20, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Okay fine, but show me the numbers. Metro will expand on-demand rides of its micro-transit to include services in Second Ward, Third Ward and downtown Houston through a partnership with the city of Houston and Evolve Houston. The expansion comes after … Continue reading →

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IAH Terminal E to be named for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee

Posted on December 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Fitting. City Council on Wednesday unanimously approved a resolution to rename a terminal at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in honor of the late U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee. The late congresswoman, who died in July from pancreatic cancer after representing … Continue reading →

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

Now Buzbee sues Roc Nation

Posted on December 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Back and forth, back and forth. Prominent Houston attorney Tony Buzbee has filed a lawsuit against Jay-Z’s entertainment company Roc Nation and several attorneys who represent the American rapper for allegedly conspiring with and paying former clients to sue the Buzbee … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Texas blog roundup for the week of December 16

Posted on December 19, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance would like some hot chocolate to go with this week’s blog roundup.

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There was some good news from Odessa last month

Posted on December 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Good to hear. When Craig Stoker pulled the flyer out of the mailbox, he chuckled. It was a political mailer, one of many deployed this fall in Odessa, the West Texas city in the heart of the oil-rich Permian Basin. … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Somehow, the Boca Chica land swap is off

Posted on December 18, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I only found out about this now because this story, dated November 14, was either never on the Houston Chronicle homepage or was missed by me when it was, until it was on Page One of the December 16 print … Continue reading →

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The Dustin Burrows dilemma

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

I have four things to say about this. Five years ago, Rep. Dustin Burrows’ reputation sustained a major blow among his House colleagues. The Lubbock Republican resigned as chair of the House GOP Caucus after it was revealed that he … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Expanding ETHAN

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Sounds like a good idea. The city may spin off the Houston Fire Department’s emergency telemedicine program to a local government corporation in hopes of generating enough funding to support the initiative and, perhaps, even turn a profit. The city’s … Continue reading →

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Uplift Harris 2.0 still on hold

Posted on December 17, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Just part of the process at this point. Harris County’s second version of a guaranteed income program has been blocked as it awaits a final appeal after a recent court order stopped the county from distributing funds under the revamped … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Starbase City

Posted on December 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

Elon Musk would like his own company town, please. SpaceX’s goal is to colonize Mars. But first, it wants to create an official city in Texas. Employees living on the site of SpaceX’s operations in South Texas are requesting a … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

The leopards are going to be very busy

Posted on December 16, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

This is a story about how the Trump administration is targeting Medicaid for cuts, mostly to finance its future tax giveaways to the wealthy, and how states like Texas could come in behind that and make even further cuts to … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Weekend link dump for December 15

Posted on December 15, 2024 by Charles Kuffner

“I don’t know how to explain to somebody what it feels like when your own military that you volunteered to fight for your country doesn’t want you.” “It’s shark-infested waters to procure moms, to then procure their children, to then … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 1 Comment