Tag Archives: coronavirus

The state of the state’s response

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I mean, it’s something. Gov. Greg Abbott took multiple measures Sunday designed to expand hospital staffing and capacity in Texas, but declined to issue a statewide shelter-in-place order — even as calls for such an action increased as the new … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Worrying about the restaurants

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Alison Cook laments the potential fate for her favorite part of Houston. Depending on local or state strictures, to help stem the spread of Covid-19 restaurants in most major markets would be able to provide takeout, drive-thru or delivery rations … Continue reading →

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Metro suspends fare collections

Posted on March 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Among other things. Transit in Houston will be free starting Monday and passengers will use the rear door to board and exit buses to limit exposure to drivers and other riders, Metropolitan Transit Authority officials announced Friday. The changes are … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

TDP files lawsuit to expand vote by mail

Posted on March 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

All right, then. Following fruitless negotiations over how to proceed with the upcoming primary runoff elections, Texas Democrats are looking to the courts to push for an expansion of voting by mail in the state. In a lawsuit filed in … Continue reading →

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Does Houston have enough hospital capacity?

Posted on March 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We sure hope so. Houston-area hospitals would not have enough resources to respond to a widespread outbreak of the coronavirus unless they take strong action to significantly increase capacity, according to new calculations released by Harvard University. Even in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 26 Comments

Les traffic, easier construction

Posted on March 22, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We’ll be talking about the knock-on effects of the coronavirus pandemic for years to come. A lighter load on Houston-area freeways and COVID-19 concerns have not slowed the heavy machinery making way for more lanes or new ramps along many … Continue reading →

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

Abbott delays primary runoffs

Posted on March 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

So this was originally going to be a post about what various groups have been advocating for the primary runoffs. And then Greg Abbott went and pushed the runoffs back to July without addressing any of the other concerns that … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Coronavirus and local control

Posted on March 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

From Politico, evidence that there are no small-government “conservatives” in pandemic self-isolation foxholes: Texas is a big state with a proud small-government philosophy. And that’s being tested by the Covid-19 pandemic. Strict bans on public gatherings to curtail the virus’ … Continue reading →

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

Reducing the coronavirus risk in jail

Posted on March 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is an obvious step to take. More than 8,500 people are housed inside the Harris County jail, and thousands more move through the building and return to their communities each day to keep the criminal justice juggernaut running. Sheriff … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Distilling more hand sanitizer

Posted on March 21, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Well done. Even before the Great Toilet Paper Shortage of 2020, hand sanitizer was one of the first items to fly off the shelves during the spread of the novel coronavirus, and is still nowhere to be seen at local … Continue reading →

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Statewide restrictions on public gatherings

Posted on March 20, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This was expected. Gov. Greg Abbott on Thursday took sweeping action to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus across Texas, issuing an executive order that will close restaurants and schools, among other things. During a news conference at the … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Moving the May elections

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Another possible method for coping with coronavirus. As the coronavirus outbreak continues to grow in Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday issued a proclamation that will allow municipalities to postpone their upcoming May 2 elections until November. The move comes … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Abbott addresses vote by mail possibilities

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

He’s thinking about it. Gov. Greg Abbott acknowledged on Tuesday that he has the authority to postpone May 26 runoff elections or conduct them exclusively via mail-in ballots in response to the coronavirus. “Everything’s on the table,” Abbott told reporters … Continue reading →

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Further delay for Opening Day

Posted on March 19, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Mid-May at the most optimistic, and that’s very likely too soon. Major League Baseball pushed back opening day until mid-May at the earliest on Monday because of the new coronavirus after the federal government recommended restricting events of more than … Continue reading →

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We already have the power to do more voting by mail

Posted on March 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

KUT points to a path forward that could get a lot more people voting by mail in Texas. Texas has one of the most restrictive vote-by-mail laws in the country, but it is open to some of the state’s most … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 25 Comments

SD14 special election date set

Posted on March 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

A bit of a surprise, to me at least. Gov. Greg Abbott has postponed the special election for the Austin area’s Texas Senate District 14 due to the spreading coronavirus pandemic. The election to replace retiring state Sen. Kirk Watson, … Continue reading →

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Emergency orders extended

Posted on March 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

In Houston. City council on Tuesday extended Houston’s emergency health declaration, reflecting a warning by Mayor Sylvester Turner that the public health crisis fueled by the spread of COVID-19 will not go away anytime soon. “This is a crisis. I … Continue reading →

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Art Car Parade has been canceled

Posted on March 18, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Some inevitable sadness from the inbox: Dear Friends, As one of the city’s largest and most iconic annual events, the Houston Art Car Parade has celebrated the artist in everyone for each of the past 33 years, showcasing hundreds of mobile masterpieces … Continue reading →

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Bars and clubs to be closed

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Man, the effect of the coronavirus pandemic is going to be huge even if everything goes well. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo and Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner on Monday ordered all bars and clubs countywide to close for 15 days, … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

All mail ballots for the primary runoffs are being discussed

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This is a pleasant surprise. Texas is not making any moves to delay the May 26 primary runoff as of now, even as other states have opted to postpone elections. But election officials have had preliminary conversations about the potential … Continue reading →

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STAAR testing waived

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

This had to happen, given everything else. In an unprecedented move, Gov. Greg Abbott announced Monday he would waive testing requirements for this year’s STAAR exam, as many schools expect to be closed at least through the April testing window, … Continue reading →

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Schools could be closed for the rest of the academic year

Posted on March 17, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Lots of school-related news on Monday. Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath told school superintendents and lawmakers Sunday to be prepared for long-term school district closures, potentially through the end of the school year, especially in areas where the new coronavirus … Continue reading →

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The Houston healthcare community is preparing for COVID-19

Posted on March 16, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

I sure hope it’s enough. With last week’s new certainty that the novel coronavirus is loose and being transmitted in Houston, the region’s medical providers are bracing for the current handful of known cases to blaze into an outbreak like nothing in … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

School could be out for awhile

Posted on March 15, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

We got the news on Thursday that HISD schools were going to be closed until March 31 due to coronavirus. (This week is spring break, so the kids got an extra day off before the start of break, then a … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Abbott declares a state of emergency

Posted on March 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Seems like it’s called for. Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday declared that the new coronavirus is a statewide public health disaster and said that Texas is on the verge of being able to significantly ramp up its testing capacity. At … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 33 Comments

Coronavirus and the courts

Posted on March 14, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

More things that will be shut down for the time being. Courts in the Houston region are announcing measures to reduce or suspend some operations in response to the new coronavirus outbreak and local declarations of emergency. Harris County’s court … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

What should we do about the runoffs?

Posted on March 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

With coronavirus concerns now shutting down all kinds of public events and other large gatherings, it’s more than fair to wonder what the risks are of conducting the primary runoffs in the usual fashion. This post on Indivisible Houston suggests … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2020 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Let’s not play ball

Posted on March 13, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Not just yet, anyway. Major League Baseball has cancelled the remainder of its Spring Training games, also announcing that the start of the 2020 regular season will be delayed by at least two weeks due to the national emergency created … Continue reading →

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Thus endeth this year’s Rodeo

Posted on March 12, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Surely not a surprise. Mayor Sylvester Turner announced Wednesday the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo will close due to concerns about coronavirus after a Montgomery County man with no recent travel history tested positive for COVID-19. The case is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 25 Comments

SXSW canceled

Posted on March 7, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Austin Mayor Steve Adler declared a local disaster Friday in response to the new coronavirus and issued an order canceling South by Southwest for the first time in its 34-year history. The 10-day event was scheduled to begin next … Continue reading →

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Coronavirus comes to town

Posted on March 6, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

It was just a matter of time. After months of fear, preparations and cancellations, the new coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has officially come to the Houston area. One day after a Fort Bend man in his 70s was “presumptively … Continue reading →

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The state responds to coronavirus

Posted on March 2, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Like it or not, we need to be prepared. Texas officials are scrambling to remain prepared for a major outbreak of a pneumonia-like disease whose global spread one expert says is now moving into “the next phase.” From the governor’s … Continue reading →

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Please don’t freak out about coronavirus

Posted on February 23, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

If you are freaking out or think you may be on the verge of freaking out, or you know someone who is, Harris County is here to help. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Tuesday announced the creation of a … Continue reading →

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