Monthly Archives: March 2005

Good news on the tollway front

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

The proposed toll road that would have cut through Oak Forest appears to be dead. A proposed toll road that would slice through the Oak Forest subdivision in north Houston is no longer an immediate threat to residents, who opposed … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 3 Comments

Selena, ten years after

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Ten years ago today, Tejano music sensation Selena Quintanilla Perez was murdered by the manager of her fan club, whom the singer had accused of embezzling funds. Here’s a sample of coverage of the anniversary of her death: Selena’s last … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Music | 11 Comments

State Democratic leaders denounce gambling

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Hallelujah. “We want to take gambling off the table this session,” said Rep. Jim Dunnam, D-Waco, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus. He was joined by Reps. Pete Gallego, D-Alpine, and Garnet Coleman, D-Houston. Gallego, chairman of the House’s Mexican … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Comments Off on State Democratic leaders denounce gambling

First one’s free, Rep. Rodriguez

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Eddie Rodriguez takes his first step down the blogging highway with a guest post on Rep. Aaron Pena’s blog. Next thing you know, he’ll be fiddling with stylesheets and hunting around for plugins. We’ll be there for you, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 1 Comment

I-45 Town Hall meeting on Saturday

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Attention, everyone who may be affected by TxDOT’s plan to widen I-45 inside Loop 610: State Rep. Jessica Farrar is hosting a town hall meeting this Saturday from 9 AM to 1 PM to discuss this. The meeting is at … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Comments Off on I-45 Town Hall meeting on Saturday

News flash: Katy Freeway expansion costs rise again

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Remember the good old days when the Katy Freeway expansion project cost a mere $2.2 billion? How young and foolish we all were, back before stories like this started appearing. The cost of expanding the Katy Freeway has gone up … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 1 Comment

Pop culture has truly passed me by

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Am I the last person on earth to realize that that actually is Darius “Hootie” Rucker in that bizarro Burger King ad? I swear, I thought that Boondocks comic was a joke. Whatever motivated him to do this ad is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in TV and movies | 11 Comments

Death to the BCS!

Posted on March 31, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

You know, having seen so many bad bills that could do real damage to people and institutions in this state, it’s nice that our Lege is still capable of contemplating legislation that’s just plain silly. Under bills filed by Sen. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 2 Comments

Aggies Against DeLay

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

One last thought for the day on L’Affaire DeLay: When Aggies turn against you, can the rest of Texas be far behind? Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 1 Comment

Ads target DeLay

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

By now you’ve probably heard of the anti-DeLay ads that are being run here in Houston (the Chron has a video link) and in various other Congressional districts – see here for more on that. Couple things to mention here, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Comments Off on Ads target DeLay

Aquifer land grab followup

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Pink Dome has more on the attempts by Sens. Armbrister and Madla to hand the Edwards Aquifer over to developers. Among other things, the legislation they’re set to propose would have a profound impact on Kinney County out in West … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Comments Off on Aquifer land grab followup

The National Press Club and GannonGuckert

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

I’m a signee of this open letter to the National Press Club about their upcoming conference on bloggers and journalists. It’s difficult to regard a panel which includes JimJeff GannonGuckert as anything other than a wretched parody, but then we … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 2 Comments

Star+Plus

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

I think one reason why so much regrettable legislation gets passed is that a lot of legislation is just plain complicated. Read some of the bills I’ve linked to for this session, or just go to either the House or … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Comments Off on Star+Plus

The next phase for HB789

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

OK, break’s over, time to work the Senate on HB789. We know that Senate Business and Commerce Chair Troy Fraser has his doubts about this bill, but that doesn’t mean he’ll kill it. If you need another reason to get … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Comments Off on The next phase for HB789

San Antonio mayoral race update

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Long as I’m on his site, let me recommend The Jeffersonian‘s followup post on the San Antonio Mayoral race (initial post noted here). There’s much there for the political junkie to chew on. One small piece of anecdotal data that … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2005 | Comments Off on San Antonio mayoral race update

Another view of Mike Villareal

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Mike Villareal has come under some fire for his role in helping HB3 pass out of committee (though he eventually voted against it, which has also contributed to the grumbling about him). The Jeffersonian puts some of the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 1 Comment

Martha, Martha, Martha!

Posted on March 30, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Martha Wong, on the hot seat, thanks to yet another anti-gay marriage bill in the Lege. Sure does suck representing a swing district sometimes, doesn’t it? Via Byron, who also has more info on the proposed legislation. Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Comments Off on Martha, Martha, Martha!

A request

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

If you’re a Texas-based progressive political blogger and you have not received an email from me in the last week or so, please drop me a note (kuff-at-offthekuff-dot-com) and tell me how to reach you. I’ve got a little project … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | 1 Comment

Send Richard Morrison to DC

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

We’d all like to help send Richard Morrison to Washington next year, but here’s a chance to help him now. He’s taking a trip up to DC next week to talk to the DCCC about his rematch with Tom DeLay, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | Comments Off on Send Richard Morrison to DC

Attacking the aquifer and other bad bills

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Sigh…What do some people have against a clean and stable water supply? Advocates for the Edwards Aquifer, already stunned by the pace of development over the recharge zone, are incensed by bills making their way through the Texas Legislature that … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 1 Comment

Did Smokey Joe bend the DMN to his will?

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Awhile back, I noted a story which told the tale of Things Gone Wrong at the Dallas Morning News. The American Journalism Review has a followup on the subject now (via Kimberly). All I can say to that is Yeesh. … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | 4 Comments

Mistakes were made

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

When you make a mistake, you try to fix it, right? Especially when you’ve publicly admitted to that mistake and publicly stated that it is your intent to fix it at your first opportunity, right? If so, you’re one up … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Comments Off on Mistakes were made

Meanwhile, on the substantive side of the campaign…

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Chris Bell has picked up the ball on the recent spate of anti-ethics PLOBs, in particular Mary Denny’s “Mother May I?” HB913 and Sylvester Turner’s “I’m just helping out a friend” HB3148. There’s certainly a target-rich environment here for a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | Comments Off on Meanwhile, on the substantive side of the campaign…

The Hillary Menace grows

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

And the furious debate over whether Kay Bailey or Little Ricky hates Hillary Clinton with more fervor continues on. A week after Gov. Rick Perry’s campaign tried to link one of his potential GOP primary rivals to U.S. Sen. Hillary … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | 4 Comments

When chickens attack

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

The best thing about this Chron story on the Wall Street Journal’s anti-DeLay editorial and the reaction to same is the following quote at the very end: But some observers of Congress say ethics probes can suddenly flare out of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 2 Comments

A Capitol Blog

Posted on March 29, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Aaron Pena has moved his blog to a friendlier location. Whether the peanut gallery of which I was a part got him to switch or not I couldn’t say, but I’m glad for it. Rep. Eddie Rodriguez, it’s … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Comments Off on A Capitol Blog

Yet another bill to make voting harder

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Criminy, I just can’t keep up with the wave of voter-unfriendly bills coming out of the 79th Lege. Lyn informs me that Houston’s own Rep. Dwayne Bohac has filed HB1269, which would essentially require you to re-fill out and submit … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | 3 Comments

The death of the scoop

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Adina writes about the death of the scoop in newspaper journalism and notes how the assumptions are different when blogs cover the news. Early reporting on the big Texas House telecom bill involves bloggers sharing information, puzzling out the intricacies … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Other punditry | 3 Comments

The best news you’ll read today

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Complete season sets of “The Muppet Show” will be released on DVD by the end of 2005. And the news just gets better: The video is reported to be transferred from their original British (PAL) tapes. Aside from working to … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in TV and movies | 3 Comments

The Fabulous Four

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

That was some weekend of basketball, huh? I don’t know how any of the Final Four teams can top what happened in the Michigan State-Kentucky game for excitement, but then I wouldn’t have known how anyone could have topped the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | 6 Comments

Story on DeLay’s father picked up by the Chron

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Like I said, better late than never. I can’t wait to see what the letters to the Editor will look like. As for whether or not DeLay’s name recognition and negatives may be on the rise, all I can say … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in National news | 6 Comments

Washington Avenue

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

Since this is near where I live, I’m quite interested in the development on Washington Avenue. Rob Johnson recently accomplished what few independent real estate developers can in the inner city. He bought enough land — on a hot corner, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 11 Comments

Oh, won’t you stay, just a little bit longer?

Posted on March 28, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

The mind games between Rick Perry and Kay Bailey Hutchison about KBH’s future plans continue on. As Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison eyes a possible race against Gov. Rick Perry, a network of key Republican activists and power players is moving … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2006 | 3 Comments

How much per gallon?

Posted on March 27, 2005 by Charles Kuffner

A little perspective on $2/gallon gasoline. If you think gasoline is expensive, be glad your SUV doesn’t run on double half-caf mocha lattes. At $32 per gallon, the popular Starbucks brew can make today’s prices at the pump look like … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness | 11 Comments