Monthly Archives: October 2002

MEC Day 3 Report

Posted on October 10, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Party time last night – HP (among others) sponsored a food-drink-and-playathon at the ESPN Zone, where I’d met some of the local folks on Monday. The difference was no Monday Night Football crowd to deal with, and all of the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in See, I do have a life! | 3 Comments

The Conservative Top 40

Posted on October 10, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Via The Poor Man comes The Top 40 conservative rock songs. My initial reaction was to snark about the cheesy nature of many of the songs within, but I reconsidered. A requirement for making the list was cracking the actual … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Music | 6 Comments

Budget fantasies exist at all levels

Posted on October 9, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

What do you do when you’re a budget director who’s just received a revenue estimate that will force painful cuts in already-reduced services? Well, if you’re the City of Houston’s Finance and Administration Department director, you increase the revenue estimate, … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | 4 Comments

MEC Day Two Report

Posted on October 9, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

So far the strangest thing I’ve seen at MEC this year is at my hotel, the Hilton Anaheim. For reasons that are unclear to me, there is always at least one uniformed hotel staffer whose job it is to hold … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in See, I do have a life! | 1 Comment

Feds to intervene in Burdine retrial

Posted on October 9, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

A federal judge will rule whether or not Calvin Burdine, the Texas death row inmate who was granted a new trial on appeal because his original lawyer slept through much of the case, gets to retain the attorney who won … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Comments Off on Feds to intervene in Burdine retrial

Playoffs

Posted on October 8, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Twins-Angels and Cards-Giants. You’d have gotten some kind of odds on those matchups back in April, let me tell you. Welcome to the Payroll-Isn’t-Destiny Playoffs, folks. Two articles in USA Today about the Twins, contraction, and Bellzebud Selig. Ian O’Connor … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Comments Off on Playoffs

Them’s fightin’ words

Posted on October 8, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

The Slacktivist discovers that “Ashcroft” is an epithet even among Republicans. Via Body and Soul. Continue reading →

Posted in Other punditry | Comments Off on Them’s fightin’ words

Does not play well with others

Posted on October 8, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Former Attorney General and failed Democratic candidate for governor Dan Morales is set to endorse Governor Goodhair over Tony Sanchez. For months Morales has made it clear he disagrees with Sanchez on certain issues and tactics. And he has taken … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2002 | 1 Comment

MEC Day One Report

Posted on October 8, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

MEC 2002 officially begins today. After attending two of these things, I know enough to bag the morning keynote addresses – the marketing to technology ratio is always dangerously out of whack. There are a few like-minded souls here in … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | 2 Comments

Make yourself at home

Posted on October 8, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Had a great time last night with Ann, Kevin, and Brian. We hung out and talked about a zillion things until the ESPN Zone restaurant in Downtown Disney finally threw us out at midnight. Thanks for making this traveller feel … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in See, I do have a life! | 2 Comments

Go west, young man

Posted on October 7, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

I’m off to Anaheim for a week. I’ll be attending MEC 2002, so I’ll have access to computers and the ability to post, but don’t expect too much this week. Tiffany’s coming out later in the week – Disneyland, here … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in See, I do have a life! | Comments Off on Go west, young man

They’re doing this just to annoy me, I’m sure of it

Posted on October 7, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t believe that WB has scheduled Angel for Sunday nights opposite The Sopranos. Why must they complicate my life? Continue reading →

Posted in TV and movies | 1 Comment

A belated shout-out

Posted on October 7, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

To Jish, who hung out with us Houston bloggers on Thursday night. Jish travels a lot for work, and when he does, he looks for a blogger group in whatever city he’s visiting and tries to plan a get-together. He … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in See, I do have a life! | Comments Off on A belated shout-out

Victims’ rights and wrongs

Posted on October 6, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

The cover story in this week’s Houston Press is on the schism in the victims’ rights movement. One of the main players is Houston-based Justice for All, led by Dianne Clements. JFA is as tuff-on-crime as they come, and they … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | 1 Comment

Beam me up – to El Paso?

Posted on October 6, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

El Paso, Texas, is hoping to capitalize on its status as Gene Roddenberry’s birthplace to draw the lucrative Trekkie tourist trade: Trekkies in town for the city’s first Star Trek convention won’t need star charts to find the birthplace of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | 3 Comments

Max speaks

Posted on October 6, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Max Sawicky takes time from his busy blogging schedule to do some paid work arguing against the Bush tax cut. Continue reading →

Posted in Other punditry | Comments Off on Max speaks

Wait ’til next year

Posted on October 6, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Well, the Yankees are out of the playoffs. Not much to say other than congrats to the Angels for a job well done. Not what I expected, but anything can happen in a short series, and in this series the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | 5 Comments

Brand loyalty

Posted on October 6, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

A nice article in today’s Chron about local brewery and success story St. Arnold’s. If you’re a local and you haven’t done one of the Saturday afternoon brewery tours, you’re missing out on a fun experience as well as some … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Comments Off on Brand loyalty

Rummy and Saddam

Posted on October 5, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Michael O’Hanlon gives Donald Rumsfeld a spanking for deliberately misleading the nation about the case for war against Iraq. It’s a short summary of Rummy’s misstatements that should come in handy when you need it. Continue reading →

Posted in Around the world | Comments Off on Rummy and Saddam

Einhorn update

Posted on October 5, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

They’ve got a different reporter covering the story today, so it’s not quite as snarky as earlier efforts. There’s still no mistaking who the bad guy is, though: Grisly autopsy photos of Holly Maddux made the courtroom audience gasp yesterday, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Comments Off on Einhorn update

Those drug-testing blues

Posted on October 5, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Ken Goldstein was the first to call my attention to a little tempest at the World Bridge Federation’s Open Championships in Montreal this August. One of the gold medal winners, an Iceland-born American named Hjordis Eythorsdottir was denied her silver … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | 2 Comments

Are they trying to tell me something?

Posted on October 5, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

From the referral log: Next year in space Kuffner. Well, we have been discussing a family reunion, but so far we’re just considering Colorado and Oregon. But we appreciate your suggestion anyway. I should note that there is a Kuffner … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in General snarkiness | 3 Comments

Up or down, Mister Brown?

Posted on October 4, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

President Bush says the economy is just peachy despite precipitous declines in the stock market and more people giving up the search for jobs: The Bush administration […] issued an upbeat report yesterday on the economy, proclaiming that despite lost … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Comments Off on Up or down, Mister Brown?

Larry explains it all

Posted on October 4, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Larry sits for a blogger interview with Dawn Olsen. Check it out. Continue reading →

Posted in Websurfing | 1 Comment

Another way to drive hit count

Posted on October 4, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Jack points out this story which I saw but forgot to blog about the hot new trend in fundraising: Nekkid calendars. In today’s precarious economy, charities seeking to raise money are finding that bake sales just don’t cut it anymore. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Society and cultcha | 3 Comments

I’d like to thank the Academy

Posted on October 4, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Larry is kind enough to list yours truly among his ten favorite blogs. As you can tell from the rest of his list, mine is not the prevailing viewpoint. I know Larry’s also quite fond of Ginger, Mac, Meryl, and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Websurfing | 4 Comments

Guess they don’t like him

Posted on October 3, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

We here in Houston like to complain about the Houston Chronicle for its many sins: it’s mealy-mouthed, a corporate shill, doesn’t have a good investigative reporting tradition (they missed the whole Enron scandal, after all), and is just as colorless … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Comments Off on Guess they don’t like him

Another word for the blogger’s dictionary

Posted on October 3, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Via Mikey comes the latest addition to the blogger’s vocabulary: blurker (BLUR-kur): n. 1. One who reads many blogs but leaves no evidence of themselves such as comments behind; a silent observer of blogs. 2. One who reads many blogs … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 3 Comments

The shot heard ’round the world

Posted on October 3, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Scott reminds me that today is the anniversary of Bobby Thomson’s famous home run that won the 1951 playoff for the Giants against the Dodgers. In commemoration of the event, I’ve got a little trivia quiz for you: 1. Who … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | 2 Comments

Dems can replace Torch

Posted on October 3, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

The NJ Supreme Court has ruled unanimously that Frank Lautenberg can appear on the state ballot to replace Bob Torricelli. That was a 7-0 ruling, with two Republicans and one independent joining in. Six of those judges were appointed by … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2002 | 5 Comments

Fastow followup

Posted on October 3, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

More speculation today that the arrest and indictment of Andrew Fastow will lead to more big fish, as the plea bargain with Michael Kopper helped lead to Fastow. While Fastow is charged with stealing money from Enron investors to personally … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Enronarama | Comments Off on Fastow followup

Lili arrives

Posted on October 3, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Hurricane Lili has made landfall in Louisiana. The good news is that Lili has been weakened by some dry western winds and has been downgraded to a Category 2 storm. The bad news is that she’s still packing 100 MPH … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Around the world | Comments Off on Lili arrives

Homeowners v. Wal-Mart, round 2

Posted on October 2, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

The homeowners in Northwest Houston who are fighting to prevent a 24-hour Wal-Mart from opening up nearby have gotten some help from their county commissioner, who has looked into the possibility of buying the land and turning it into a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 4 Comments

Fastow arraigned

Posted on October 2, 2002 by Charles Kuffner

Breaking news from the Chron: Former Enron Chief Financial Officer Andrew S. Fastow was arraigned in a packed, downtown courtrooom about 11:20 a.m., on charges of securities, wire and mail fraud, money laundering and conspiracy. Fastow, one of the top … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Enronarama | Comments Off on Fastow arraigned