Author Archives: Charles Kuffner

Texas blog roundup for the week of December 12

Posted on December 15, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance welcomes Britney Griner back home as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Precinct analysis: Beto versus Abbott

Posted on December 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

All right, I have the full landscape data for Harris County and the November 2022 election, and I’ll be doing my usual thing with it. There’s a lot of data and a lot of ways to explore it, some of … Continue reading →

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Judge assigned to hear election loser contest

Posted on December 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox, a press release from Harris County Attorney Christian Menefee: Judge David Peeples will preside over the election contest filed by Republican candidate Erin Lunceford to void the results of her race for the 189th District Court in … Continue reading →

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Vertical farming

Posted on December 14, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Very interesting. Scaling scissor lifts are a daily duty for a vertical farmer overseeing the growth of about 10 million heads of lettuce annually from Kalera’s 4.5-acre indoor farm located in the Parc-59 industrial park in North Houston. Kalera, an Orlando-based vertical … Continue reading →

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Gender affirming care is happening in Dallas

Posted on December 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news that I had not been fully aware of. The Dallas doctor who ran the state’s most prominent medical program for transgender youth says she has seen dozens of new patients since crucial court wins this summer and … Continue reading →

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Recruitment of next summer’s lifeguards is already underway.

Posted on December 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Better luck this time, we hope. The city has begun recruiting lifeguards for next summer following a significant staffing shortage that led to the closure of two-thirds of Houston’s public pools this past season. The Parks and Recreation Department, which operates Houston’s 37 aquatic centers, usually … Continue reading →

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Santa Claus is back

Posted on December 13, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

So, you know, you better watch out, and all that. Some Santas who stayed home the past two years out of concern for their health have returned, but performers have pressing issues, including inflation, on their minds. Many are older, … Continue reading →

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State and county election result relationships: Tarrant County

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

In years past, Tarrant County was a pretty close bellwether for election results in the state of Texas. From 2004 through 2016, the closeness of their Presidential numbers with the statewide numbers was eerie. But since 2018 the talk has … Continue reading →

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Settlement of the sexual harassment lawsuit against HCC Trustee Glaser on the agenda

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

On the agenda for this Wednesday’s HCC Trustee meeting is this item of interest. Proposed Settlement Authority regarding Southern District of Texas Houston Division, Civil Action 4:21-cv-02216; Patricia Dodd vs. Houston Community College, et al. RECOMMENDATION Authorize the administration to … Continue reading →

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Driverless taxi update

Posted on December 12, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Things to watch out for in the nearer-than-you-think future, with Austin first in line. When transit systems experience delays, the reason usually isn’t very interesting: congested streets, medical emergencies, mechanical problems. But the cause of a recent holdup on San … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for December 11

Posted on December 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

“Why do McCarthy, Scott, and other so-called Republican leaders duck explicit invitations to address the former president’s behavior? Because they’re cowards.” “Imagine an “Oh, yeah?” button on your browser.” “Here’s a midterm report on remote work”. “I have a few … Continue reading →

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A thousand days of the COVID disaster declaration

Posted on December 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Happy COVID Disaster Declaration Thousand-Day Anniversary to all who celebrate. Thursday marks 1,000 days that Texans have been living under Gov. Greg Abbott’s public health disaster proclamation — an era of unprecedented gubernatorial authority for the state’s chief executive, triggered … Continue reading →

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At least we avoided violence

Posted on December 11, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve tried and failed to come up with a better post title than that for this. After two years of fears of electoral dysfunction and violence, voting rights advocates breathed bated sighs of relief this week as Texas finished a … Continue reading →

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“Heartbeat” lawsuit against doctor dismissed

Posted on December 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I’d forgotten this was still a thing, it had been so long since it was filed. In the first test of the Texas law that empowers private citizens to sue for a minimum of $10,000 in damages over any illegal … Continue reading →

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So why wasn’t that report on maternal mortality released when it was supposed to be?

Posted on December 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll never really know, mostly because there’s no one with the power to compel an answer from those who do know that cares enough to use that power. State health officials had completed a long-awaited report on maternal deaths and … Continue reading →

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In which I ponder the future of cryptomining

Posted on December 10, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

I know I’m stepping away from things I have knowledge and experience with when I comment on stories like this, but sometimes I just can’t help myself. Beleaguered crypto lenders are being dealt another blow from Bitcoin miners as they … Continue reading →

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And now we have a judicial loser contesting the election

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The Republicans did warn us they’d be sore losers. Republican judicial candidate Erin Lunceford filed a petition Wednesday seeking a new election in Harris County’s 189th judicial district court race after losing by 2,743 votes out of more than 1 … Continue reading →

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League City to mess with its libraries

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This is watered down from the original proposal, which was a true book ban situation, but it’s still bad and dumb and ominous. At a packed League City council chambers Tuesday night, residents made their voices heard about a proposed … Continue reading →

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Abbott bans TikTok on state-issued devices

Posted on December 9, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Honestly, I’m fine with this. Gov. Greg Abbott announced Wednesday a ban of the popular app TikTok from all government-issued devices. In a news release, the Republican said the Chinese government could use the app to access critical U.S. infrastructure … Continue reading →

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Yes, we’re talking about Texas Senate 2024

Posted on December 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Gromer Jeffers points out that Ted Cruz may run for both President and re-election to the Senate in 2024, which he can do under the law that was passed to allow LBJ to run for Vice President in 1960 (and … Continue reading →

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Look to the state legislatures for the next frontiers in forced birtherism

Posted on December 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas will of course be on the forefront of this, but it will surely follow examples from other states as well. As statehouses across the country prepare for next year’s legislative sessions — most for the first … Continue reading →

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Beto tries again to get ridiculous defamation lawsuit dismissed

Posted on December 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Hope he has better luck here. The gubernatorial election is over, but Kelcy Warren’s defamation lawsuit against Beto O’Rourke lives on. Warren, the Dallas pipeline tycoon, sued O’Rourke in February over accusations he made on the campaign trail that Warren … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of December 5

Posted on December 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s beginning to look a lot like the weekly Texas Progressive Alliance blog roundup, everywhere you go.

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City approves new regulations on outdoor music festivals

Posted on December 8, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Hope they help. Houston City Council on Monday approved stricter permitting requirements for outdoor music events on private property with more than 500 attendees. There has been an increasing number of instances in which organizers only informed the city of … Continue reading →

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Abbott to nominate Jane Nelson as next SOS

Posted on December 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

That was quick. Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday he will nominate retiring state Sen. Jane Nelson to be secretary of state. The announcement comes one day after John Scott said he would step down from the role at the end … Continue reading →

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I regret to inform you that “tripledemic” is a word

Posted on December 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

The good news is that we may avoid it here in Houston. A collision of three respiratory viruses — COVID-19, influenza and RSV — may not hit Houston as severely as other parts of the country, experts say, but pediatric … Continue reading →

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Fred McGriff elected to the Hall of Fame

Posted on December 7, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Congratulations to him. “The Crime Dog” finally had his day. In Fred McGriff’s first second chance at the National Baseball Hall of Fame voting process, the Contemporary Baseball Era Players Committee did what the Baseball Writers’ Association did not. McGriff … Continue reading →

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LULAC files that lawsuit to end Houston City Council At Large districts

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve been waiting for this. The League of United Latin American Citizens on Monday filed its long-anticipated lawsuit against the city of Houston, seeking to get rid of at-large City Council seats that it says leave Hispanic residents with insufficient representation at City Hall. … Continue reading →

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Time for the biennial salute to the new Secretary of State

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

So long, John. Hope the next guy is better than you were. Texas Secretary of State John Scott will step down from his role as the state’s top elections official at the end of the year. “When I took office … Continue reading →

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A non-prescription pill

Posted on December 6, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds like a good idea. If you’re one of the estimated 10 million people in the United States taking oral contraception, you probably needed a prescription to get it. But that could soon change: In July, a Paris-based company, HRA Pharma, announced it … Continue reading →

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Uvalde class action lawsuit over mass shooting officially filed

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve been waiting for this. Survivors of the fatal mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, have filed a $27 billion class action lawsuit against multiple law enforcement agencies in Texas, according to court documents. The lawsuit, filed … Continue reading →

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The environmental attack on abortion

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

It’s ridiculous. Abortion opponents and their allies in elected office are seizing on an unusual strategy after suffering a wave of election defeats — using environmental laws to try to block the distribution of abortion pills. The new approach comes … Continue reading →

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HISD to get funding for electric school buses

Posted on December 5, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news. Houston Independent School District is hopping on the city’s net-zero carbon emissions bus, so to speak, thanks to more than $6.2 million in funding from the Environmental Protection Agency. The funds are part of the EPA’s Clean … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for December 4

Posted on December 4, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

“Everyone should start blogging again. Own your own site. Visit all your friends’ sites. Bring back the artisan, hand-crafted Web.” “As first reported by The Wall Street Journal, the first self-proclaimed anti-woke “bank” in the nation is dying a hot … Continue reading →

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