Monthly Archives: May 2021

Trib polling roundup, part 1

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

On COVID and vaccinations. Texas voters are feeling safer about being out in public, and better about getting COVID-19 vaccines, but a majority of the state’s voters still consider the coronavirus a “significant crisis,” according to a new University of … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

More May election post-mortems

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

From the DMN: Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson bet the second half of his first term on these two council seats. Here’s how it looked after polls closed. Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson bet the second half of his first four-year term … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2021 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More May election post-mortems

The COVID wastewater tracking project has been a big success

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This has been one of the best things to come out of this interminable and miserable COVID experience. Lauren Stadler’s environmental engineering students always pose the same question at the beginning of a semester: “What happens to water in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston, Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on The COVID wastewater tracking project has been a big success

Other May election results

Posted on May 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Roundup style, mostly. San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg easily wins a fourth term. Mayor Ron Nirenberg vanquished the ghost of repeat challenger Greg Brockhouse in Saturday’s City election and secured his third term in office with a win of historic … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2021 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

A little incentive

Posted on May 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

If it takes a reward of some kind to get a few more people to be vaccinated against COVID, I’m fine with that. To increase the rate of vaccinations, the Harris County Commissioners Court approved giving incentives to citizens. At … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 14 Comments

Dave Wilson censure lawsuit goes to SCOTUS

Posted on May 3, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

We live in strange times. The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case involving former Houston Community College trustee Dave Wilson who alleges in a lawsuit that the school violated his constitutional rights. Wilson, who served on HCC’s board … Continue reading →

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

Weekend link dump for May 2

Posted on May 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Please don’t feed the bears. “U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s reported $2 million book deal is drawing criticism from legal experts who say its size and timing create bad optics for a court that is already in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 4 Comments

CD06 special election result

Posted on May 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not going to stay up late and wait till every last vote has been counted in CD06. You can see the latest report from the SOS here. As of when I drafted this, Susan Wright and Jake Ellzey were … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2021 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The best time to buy a house in Houston was last year

Posted on May 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Or the year before that, or the year before that… The O’Neals are part of a nationwide real estate frenzy playing out in Houston that is propelling prices to new highs. Houses are frequently drawing multiple offers, often above the … Continue reading →

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

Zombie same sex employee lawsuit denied again

Posted on May 2, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Shuffling along like the undead flesh eater that it is. A Texas appellate court struck a challenge Thursday to Houston’s policy giving same-sex spouses of city employees the same benefits as different-sex spouses, saying that the city was immune from … Continue reading →

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

Briscoe Cain’s latest follies

Posted on May 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

This guy, I swear. After an early misfire, House Republicans on Thursday succeeded in pushing their proposed restrictions on voting to the legislative forefront as the Texas Legislature’s 2021 session enters its final sprint. The House Elections Committee’s Republican majority … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Commissioners Court partially fills the flood bond funding gap

Posted on May 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County Commissioners Court took initial steps this week to plug a $1.4 billion funding hole for its flood bond program by diverting revenue from the county’s toll roads system. Court members also laid out a “backstop” plan to … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Commissioners Court partially fills the flood bond funding gap

Tesla disputes official account of that autopilot crash

Posted on May 1, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

Can’t say I’m surprised. Tesla officials are disputing numerous assertions of local police related to a recent deadly crash in the Spring area, reiterating statements by founder Elon Musk that autopilot was not engaged on the vehicle. Further, company officials … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Tesla disputes official account of that autopilot crash