Monthly Archives: March 2010

Ballot position and the Republican races

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Inspired by a comment JJMB left on the previous post about the effect of ballot position on the judicial races, I went and looked at the Republican results to see what I could see. Here’s what I found. – Though … Continue reading →

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Interview with John Breeding

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Last week, I noted that several business owners along Post Oak had gotten together with one of the local anti-Metro agitators to complain about what was going on with the Uptown Line and make claims about working to stop it … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The effect of ballot order on the judicial races

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m going to have something tomorrow about how the different endorsing groups did in the various Democratic judicial primaries, but before we get too deep into the weeds, let’s pause to consider the effect of ballot position. Two candidates filed … Continue reading →

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All your empty lots are belong to HEB

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The empty lot that once housed the Wilshire Village apartments will be bought by HEB. Cyndy Garza-Roberts, director of public affairs for H-E-B, said the company is studying the feasibility of the acquisition and didn’t have an estimated closing date. … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

CIP meeting for District H

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the Inbox: City of Houston Capital Improvement Plan meeting in your neighborhood (District H) District H Council Member Ed Gonzalez City of Houston officials Wednesday, March 10, 2010 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Jefferson Davis High School 1101 Quitman … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for March 7

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Five more weeks till the primary runoffs. Aren’t you excited? What do the Brits have against WiFi hot spots? From the “It’s different for Republicans” files, Part One and Part Two. The end of the Tea Party is coming. Don’t … Continue reading →

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The Census and redisticting

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Mustafa Tameez has an op-ed in today’s Chron about the importance of the Census from a political perspective. Remember redistricting? Redistricting is the process by which the boundaries of elective districts are periodically redrawn to maintain equal representation on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Who is George Clayton?

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We’re still learning about surprise new SBOE member George Clayton. The Statesman talks to him and sheds a little light on who he is. Clayton said he realized the board needed a “voice of reason” last year when the board … Continue reading →

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Criminal probe of Metro document shredding begins

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t wait to see how this turns out. The Harris County District Attorney’s Office has begun a criminal investigation into allegations that the Metropolitan Transit Authority improperly destroyed public documents, a prosecutor confirmed Friday. The statement by Terese Buess, … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Petition to bring back WestFest

Posted on March 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Those of you who remember the old Westheimer Street Festival may be interested to know there’s a petition to start it up again. For twenty years, the Westheimer Art Festival / Westheimer Street Festival served as an essential shared community experience … Continue reading →

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

Saturday video break: Will KBH stay or will she go?

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Surely we all know the answer to that question by now. Republican U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison is getting some GOP pressure to change her mind about resigning her seat, but a close friend predicted Wednesday that her decision will … Continue reading →

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Judge Fine’s ruling about the death penalty

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure this will get a lot of attention. A Houston judge on Thursday granted a pretrial motion declaring the death penalty unconstitutional, saying he believes innocent people have been executed. “Based on the moratorium (on the death penalty) in … Continue reading →

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First post-primary poll of TX-GOV

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Give Rasmussen credit, they don’t waste any time. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of likely voters in Texas finds Perry leading White, the popular former mayor of Houston, by just six points, 49% to 43%. Three percent (3%) opt … Continue reading →

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Sugar Land wants Google Fiber for Communities

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Sugar Land joins Austin in making a concerted pitch to bring Google Fiber For Communities to their town. “This project is suited to Sugar Land. Our population is highly educated. We have high standards,” said Sharlett Chowning, director of information … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Olympic Marathon trials coming to Houston

Posted on March 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We get multiple marathons in 2012. Houston outbid the prestigious Boston and New York marathons and will host the men’s and women’s 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, the first time a city has staged both races. USA Track and Field … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: Q it up

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not even going to pretend that I tried to find ten songs that begin with the same Q word. Frankly, I think the fact that I have ten songs that begin with the letter Q at all is pretty … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Vasquez and Carrillo

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Newly-unelected Tax Assessor Leo Vasquez makes the same complaint about why he is headed for the unemployment line as Victor Carrillo did. Carrillo started the ethnic angst with an e-mail to supporters indicating racial bias had cost him re-election. That … Continue reading →

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Recount coming in HD146?

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s not official yet, but I can’t imagine there not being a recount in a race decided by 11 votes. [Borris] Miles, a former police officer who owns an insurance business, said he had not yet received a concession call … Continue reading →

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It’s magic

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve always been a fan of magic acts – I still remember seeing Doug Henning’s “The Magic Show” on Broadway with my dad when I was a kid – so I’m really excited about Magic!, the new exhibit at HMNS. … Continue reading →

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Here comes the Sports Authority

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Ready or not, here they are to ride to the rescue. The Harris County-Houston Sports Authority agreed Monday to talk to city and county officials about its possible involvement in a soccer stadium for the Houston Dynamo. The authority will … Continue reading →

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Texas State Climatologist on the EPA and greenhouse gases

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Did you know that Texas had a State Climatologist? I didn’t. His name is John Nielsen-Gammon, he’s a professor at Texas A&M, and you should read this brief interview in Think Progress about his opinions on carbon dioxide, the Environmental … Continue reading →

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“Don’t ask, don’t smell”

Posted on March 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron takes the TCEQ to task for it’s screw-the-public decision regarding the Lyondell permit. “They’re proposing to put thousands of tons of a cancer-causing chemical into our air,” says former Mayor Bill White. “They say they’ll reduce the amount … Continue reading →

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What Ron Kirk says

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Ron Kirk, the former Mayor of Dallas who is now the US Trade Representative, was asked a joking question about Rick Perry and his earlier statements about secession after Perry’s win on Tuesday. His response is well worth reading. “I … Continue reading →

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

Uptown agitation

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: A bunch of business owners along a proposed light rail corridor are upset with Metro. Business owners along Post Oak Boulevard met for about two hours Thursday in an effort learn about … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

More on the SBOE

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Freedom Network does a victory dance over the defeat of wingnut SBOE member Don McLeroy, noting that overall the forces of good did much better than the far right did. “Don McLeroy was right when he said this … Continue reading →

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Carrillo’s message to supporters

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Ousted Railroad Commission Chair Victor Carrillo sent a sharply-worded email to his supporters about how he lost his race on Tuesday. Early polling showed that the typical GOP primary voter has very little info about the position of Railroad Commissioner, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Bob Perry loses lawsuit to homeowners he’s screwed

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Good. By now, surely you know the story of Bob and Jane Cull, which has been around for a decade — when the twosome sued Perry Homes, claiming their house in Mansfield went to hell shortly after they bought it … Continue reading →

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

Food banks to help with food stamps interviews

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This sounds like a good idea. Houston’s food bank will begin helping qualify eligible Texans for food stamps on Monday under special authority from federal officials designed to shorten long wait times. The waiver will allow food banks in Houston, … Continue reading →

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What others are saying about the primaries

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Just a few links to other commentary about yesterday’s elections: Marc Campos Big Jolly Dog Canyon Bob Moser BOR Stace Medellin PDiddie In the Pink South Texas Chisme Martha TFN EoW The Texas Blue Nancy Sims Juanita Jean And finally, … Continue reading →

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Runoff roundup

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a look at some of the runoff elections that will be on the ballot next month. On the Democratic side…boy, there’s not much. No statewide runoffs, as Linda Chavez-Thompson got a majority in her three-candidate race for Lite Guv. … Continue reading →

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Election results: The Lege

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

There are way too many races to recap here, and since the Trib has done such a thorough job of it, I’ll leave the heavy lifting to them. A few highlights: – Steve Ogden easily won re-nomination in SD5, and … Continue reading →

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Election results: Harris County

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It was a bad day to be the establishment candidate for Harris County Clerk, let me tell you. Ann Harris Bennett crushed Sue Schechter for the Democratic nomination, winning with 63% of the vote. On the Republican side, wingnut Stan … Continue reading →

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Election results: Other statewides

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The big story in the other statewide primaries is the loss of Railroad Commission Chair Victor Carillo to a first-time candidate. David Porter, who moved to Giddings after building a business in Midland, ousted Victor Carrillo, the highest-ranking nonjudge Latino … Continue reading →

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Election results: McLeroy loses!

Posted on March 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The second-best news of the evening is that wackjob SBOE member Don McLeroy lost to Thomas Ratliff, thus making the state’s worst elected body at least somewhat less dysfunctional. The board’s balance of power is delicate. Though it’s had ten … Continue reading →

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