Monthly Archives: February 2012

FBI looking into DA’s office over grand jury “investigation”

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, boy. Eyewitness News learned from people interviewed that the FBI and Texas Rangers are asking questions inside the DA’s office. The questions aren’t about BAT vans, but about the DA and her team and how they reacted once the … Continue reading →

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Interview with Cindy Vara-Leija

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Next up for Precinct 1 Constable is Cindy Vara-Leija. She is the only one of the four candidates to have worked as a Constable deputy, spending 35 years in the Precinct 1 office before retiring last year. She started out … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2012 | Tagged , , , , , | 10 Comments

The numbers in the “deal”

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

As I start to type this I have no idea if the “deal” that was announced earlier today will be in effect or on the trash heap. I think it’s instructive to look at the numbers in the proposed maps … Continue reading →

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As always, the hole is bigger than we thought

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Remember how the Republicans in the Lege underfunded Medicaid by $4.5 billion, which they will have to tap the Rainy Day Fund in 2013 to deal with, in order to make the budget for this biennium appear to be “balanced”? … Continue reading →

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There is nothing but highways

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

More bad policy coming from the Republicans in Congress. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said Thursday the House GOP’s highway spending plan is “the worst transportation bill” he’s seen in decades. “This is the most partisan transportation bill that I have … Continue reading →

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

Abbott proposes redistricting deal

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We may yet have a deadline deal on interim maps, though it is as yet unclear which plaintiffs have agreed to this deal and which have not. For now, you can see what the fuss is about here: Congress Map … Continue reading →

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Interview with Grady Castleberry

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This week I will be covering Constable candidates. I am limiting myself to Constable Precinct 1, partly because that’s my Constable precinct and I need to figure out who I’m going to vote for, and partly because there are just … Continue reading →

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Help me, Long-Range Financial Management Task Force! You’re our only hope!

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Having some Jedi mind tricks available to deal with this probably wouldn’t hurt. About one out of every 11 dollars in this year’s city budget goes to cover pension costs. The $165 million the city plans to send to its … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

LED power

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good for Harris County. The county is joining a growing list of local governments switching out incandescent bulbs for light-emitting diodes, or LEDs, embarking on a $1 million effort to begin replacing the bulbs at the 880 intersections it maintains. … Continue reading →

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Roseanne!

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Meet your newest Presidential wannabe. The Associated Press and TMZ are reporting that comedienne and self-proclaimed “domestic goddess” Roseanne Barr has filed documents to run for president. Apparently, she thinks that only a woman can solve this nation’s problems. Check … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for February 5

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Isn’t there some kind of football game on today? Speaking of football, when anti-immigrant hysteria forces your team to lose a prized recruit, maybe the human cost of said hysteria will begin to be made clear to those fanning its … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 2 Comments

January finance reports: Congress and Senate

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The last batch of finance reports to come in are the federal reports, which for the most part don’t get posted till a full month after they’re due, which in this case was February 1. I’ve created a Google spreadsheet … Continue reading →

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Gibson drops Senate bid

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I’d been saving this Chron profile of Democratic Senate candidate Jason Gibson for when the FEC finally got around to posting finance reports from the fourth quarter of last year, since the story gave the indication he was going to … Continue reading →

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Crowdsourcing legislation update

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Back in October, I noted an effort by the Texas Senate Committee on Business and Commerce, which is presided over by state Sen. John Carona, to crowdsource its upcoming hearings on payday lending. The Statesman has a report on how … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Houston Central Station

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is pretty cool. [Last Tuesday], the Houston Downtown Management District hosted a competition featuring designs from five award-winning architectural firms. The challenge: to design an iconic new Central Station – Main on Main Street between Capitol and Rusk. The … Continue reading →

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

Saturday video break: Just A Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Song #83 on the Popdose Top 100 Covers list is “Just A Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody”, originally by Louis Prima and covered by David Lee Roth. Here’s Prima: Two things to note. One, the song Just A Gigolo was recorded … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

What is an investigation?

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Remember when I said that the grand jury saga wasn’t over yet? After denying any investigation into the grand jurors who for six months investigated her office, Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos disclosed that she directed her chief investigator … Continue reading →

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

Wayside Wal-Mart update

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

From Nancy Sarnoff: The East End of Houston has been called a “food desert” for its lack of grocery stores. But come next year, the area will be a little less dry. Wal-Mart Stores said it will open a store … Continue reading →

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When the landed gentry squabble

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Am I a bad person for thinking this is funny? Was it sewer sabotage or self-defense? That was the question hanging in the genteel air of two of Houston’s toniest suburbs [last] Thursday after Hunters Creek Village city officials verbally … Continue reading →

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Not really buying it, Komen

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

So Komen has supposedly reversed itself on Planned Parenthood. I’ve read their statement, as well as TBogg’s improved version of it, and I don’t see a “reversal” so much as I see a bunch of weasel words that may very … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: The past is never what you remember it to be

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

What hath the iPod wrought this week? 1. The Best Is Yet To Come – Frank Sinatra and Count Basie 2. Better Be Good To Me – Tina Turner 3. Hammer To Fall – Queen 4. Bridge Of Sighs – … Continue reading →

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DC court will take its time

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

At least a month. A panel of federal judges told parties in a Texas redistricting case Wednesday not to expect a ruling within 30 days, throwing the date of the state’s political primaries further in doubt. A ruling by the … Continue reading →

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Doing business downtown

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Despite public and private attempts to revive a shopping scene downtown, the retail market has struggled. Some stores like Forever 21 and Books-A-Million have opened, but most of the activity in recent … Continue reading →

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

The state of water in Texas

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Statesman has a long story about the state of water in Texas and its outlook for the future. Short summary: We’re going to need more than what we’re capable of getting now, and it’s going to cost a lot … Continue reading →

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Texas Watch on the Supreme Court

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Texas Watch: The Texas Supreme Court has a long history of favoring corporate defendants over families and small businesses, according to a decade-long review of the Court’s decision making by Court Watch, a project of the non-profit Texas Watch Foundation. … Continue reading →

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Debt collection is harder than it looks

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Last year around this time, the city announced it was “getting tough on users of its services who have racked up nearly $1 billion in unpaid fines and fees, unveiling an aggressive collection program that is expected to make frequent … Continue reading →

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

Don’t go counting school finance lawsuit money yet

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas is very likely to have to do something about school finance soon, but “soon” is not the same as “right now”. Houston ISD counsel David Thompson was exuding confidence Saturday that Texas school districts will prevail … Continue reading →

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Grading Texas science classes

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We get a C. Texas public school science courses “pay lip service” to critical content and largely ignore evolution in the middle grades, according to a national education foundation study that gives the state of Texas an overall “C” for … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of January 30

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is stocking up on unhealthy snacks and adult beverages as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Interview with Sheriff Adrian Garcia

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia was elected in 2008 with the highest vote total of any candidate on the ballot. He inherited an office that was tainted by the scandals of his long-term predecessor, a jail system that was overcrowded, … Continue reading →

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Redistricting settlement deal looking unlikely

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Late last week we heard about the possibility of a settlement agreement in the San Antonio redistricting case that would allow for the creation of interim maps in time to keep the April 3 primary date. The court gave this … Continue reading →

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No more Not-Stros

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Glad we got that settled. New owner Jim Crane ended a week of speculation and rare attention on a national level and anticipated backlash among Houstonians, saying he would not change the name of the club – a possibility he … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Leland Woods

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve been banging the drum lately about encouraging growth inside the city’s boundaries as a long-term financial management strategy, so I’m glad to see this. Eight years ago, city of Houston officials decided to incentivize the conversion of 80 wooded … Continue reading →

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