Monthly Archives: August 2008

Will the checks clear DeLay?

Posted on August 26, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around the idea that the notorious “checks aren’t cash” defense might have gotten enough of a boost from the appeals court ruling on Friday to make it actually viable in a real … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 1 Comment

City Council spending

Posted on August 26, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

I found this front page story from yesterday about how various City Council members spent leftover funds in their budgets a little puzzling. For one thing, it lacked a certain amount of context. Why is it that some members had … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | 1 Comment

Texas blog roundup for the week of August 25

Posted on August 26, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

It’s Democratic convention week, and whether you’re still holding out hope for a last minute switch to Hillary by the superdelegates or are just ready to put the primary to rest once and for all, there’ll be something we can … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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From the “Heads I win, tails you lose” department

Posted on August 25, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

That Andy Taylor. What a kidder. Metropolitan Transit Authority officials were jubilant Thursday on learning that a lawsuit aimed at keeping the planned University light rail line from being built, even partly, on Richmond Avenue had been tossed out of … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Comments Off on From the “Heads I win, tails you lose” department

Did you remember to hang up and drive in West U?

Posted on August 25, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Remember the West U school zone cellphone ban? Well, today is the first day of school, and not everyone remembered. Police in West University Place, a small enclave city within southwest Houston, chose to issue warnings this morning to help … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Interview with Brad Bradford

Posted on August 25, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

The Harris County District Attorney race may be the second highest profile race locally after the one for President. It’s been a little quieter since former DA Chuck Rosenthal slunk off the scene in disgrace and since the contentious Republican … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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The greening of Houston

Posted on August 25, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Mimi Swartz looks at the city of Houston’s journey to becoming a more environmentally-conscious place. After years of dismissing as whiners the small minority who suggested that pollution was doing damage not just to Houston’s image but also to its … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

Another loss in court for DeLay’s cronies

Posted on August 25, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Yes, the appeals process in the matter of the indictments against Tom DeLay and his cohorts Jim Ellis and John Colyandro are still ongoing. And yes, the defendants keep on losing. An appeals court has upheld money-laundering indictments against two … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | 2 Comments

Texas colleges and the drinking age

Posted on August 25, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Boy, where was all this back in 1986 when the drinking age was being raised to 21? UT says maybe. Texas A&M says not now. And a West Texas school says sign it up. Colleges in Texas are debating whether … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Society and cultcha, The great state of Texas | 1 Comment

Conventional coverage

Posted on August 24, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not in Denver or going to Denver. I’m not that big on the national conventions, though I’m sure I’ll tune in for a couple of speeches. If you’re someone who wants wall-to-wall coverage of it, especially from a Texas … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Comments Off on Conventional coverage

The city of Houston versus the strip clubs

Posted on August 24, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Just an update in the ongoing legal battle. [N]early five months after winning the right to keep sexually oriented businesses at least 1,500 feet from residential neighborhoods, the city’s officials have yet to close a single establishment. The businesses have … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | 3 Comments

Corndog

Posted on August 24, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

A little weekend video fun, courtesy of Rindy Miller Media: I just want to know, where’d they find the bobblehead? Did they buy it, or was it a souvenir item from some event? Because I want one, too. Continue reading →

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An end to recorded sales calls?

Posted on August 24, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

I just have one question about this: After a barrage of consumer complaints, the government is banning phone calls of recorded sales messages unless consumers agree to receive the calls. The Federal Trade Commission also announced that by December all … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in National news | 1 Comment

Weekend link dump for August 23

Posted on August 23, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

These links were not generated by a special effects master. Newt Gingrich, fighting the good fight against Big Air. I vote for Galactus. Bobby Jindal is the new Kirk Watson. Gay Street will apparently remain Gay. The excitement thing? They’re … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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It’s Biden

Posted on August 23, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

At long last, we have an answer. Barack Obama has ended an intense and highly secretive search for a vice-presidential nominee by settling on Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware–a choice calculated to offset some of the weaknesses in Obama’s own … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in The making of the President | 4 Comments

Tres Hombres talk up Houston

Posted on August 23, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

ZZ Top says “Come visit Houston, y’all.” The trio, who grew up in Houston and calls themselves the “little ole band from Texas,” was recruited by the Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau to promote the virtues of visiting the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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The definite possibility of a firm maybe

Posted on August 23, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Star-Telegram: “Hutchison definitely considering 2010 governor’s race”. Um, so like what else is new? U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison backed away from announcing that she is going to run for governor on Tuesday, but said that she hopes to take … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Tort reform for me, but not for thee

Posted on August 23, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

I just don’t know whether to laugh or cry when I see a headline like Doctors: Lawsuits help guarantee drug safety. Top doctors who run one of the most influential U.S. medical journals are giving the U.S. Supreme Court some … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Comments Off on Tort reform for me, but not for thee

Scarbrough lawsuit against Metro dismissed

Posted on August 22, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

You wouldn’t know it from reading the headline to this story about Metro CEO Frank Wilson, but that lawsuit filed by anti-rail activist Daphne Scarbrough to block construction of the Universities line on Richmond has been dismissed. On Thursday, State … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 1 Comment

Houses houses everywhere

Posted on August 22, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

McCain not sure how many houses he and wife own. Don’t you hate it when you forget stuff like that? John McCain may have created his own housing crisis. Hours after a report that the Republican presidential nominee-in-waiting didn’t know … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in The making of the President | 3 Comments

There’s spending, and then there’s spending

Posted on August 22, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

John Culberson talks about his credentials as a fiscal conservative. “I’ve voted against $345 billion in new spending in this Congress, and since 2001, I’ve voted against over $1 trillion in new spending,” Culberson said. “I have always co-authored a … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Self-deportation not a hit

Posted on August 22, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Whoda thunk it? In the weeks since Immigration and Customs Enforcement director Julie Myers revealed in a TV interview that officials were planning to offer a new “self-deportation” program, the story has been picked up by media outlets worldwide. ICE … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in National news | 1 Comment

Regent Square, coming soon (maybe)

Posted on August 22, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Hair Balls updates us on Regent Square, the development that will eventually replace the departed Allen House. Although final approval is pretty much final approval, there are still steps to be taken, says the planning department’s Suzy Hartgrove. There’s the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

Will the county kick in for Dynamo Stadium?

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor White would like for Harris County to pick up part of the tab for Dynamo Stadium. Mayor Bill White has asked Harris County to join the city in a Dynamo stadium deal, hinting that a $10 million contribution by … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Corte and Patrick start the session early

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

It’s never too early to get started on bad legislation. Some Texas lawmakers could launch a new effort to crack down on illegal immigrants by punishing businesses that employ them or cities that give them sanctuary, if the ideas get … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Candidate Q&A: Shawna Reagin

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Note: This entry is part of a series of written Q&As with judicial candidates who will be on the ballot in Harris County. I am also doing recorded interviews with non-judicial candidates. 1. Who are you, and what are you … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Don’t get too attached to that house

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Some new homeowners whose houses may be in the path of the proposed new Grand Parkway segment are saying they wish they’d been told about that little detail earlier. Nobody told [Spring homeowner Tracy Martin] that their brand-new neighborhood was … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | 5 Comments

Not-UH-Downtown

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

UH-Downtown wants a new name. “UH-Downtown has undergone a dramatic transformation … but we’re still referred to as a branch campus,” President Max Castillo said. “We are not.” UH-Downtown, located in the shadow of a freeway overpass on the northern … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

The bottled water blues

Posted on August 21, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Really interesting cover story from the Press about the bottled water industry and its effects. Some of it, like the relative cost per gallon compared to gasoline, has been covered before, but there was quite a bit that was new … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Food, glorious food | 1 Comment

And the VP nominee will be…

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Hope you’ve got your “Hail to the Chief” ringtone in place for that special text message from Barack Obama, because he’ll be naming his VP real soon now. Barack Obama and his newly named running mate will campaign together Saturday … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in The making of the President | 3 Comments

More on the Astrodome movie studio

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Missed this from last week: As county officials and the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo haggle over how best to make use of the Houston Astrodome, a new group has emerged with a novel idea. They want to turn the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | 1 Comment

Interview with Loren Jackson

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Next up in the interview series is Loren Jackson, who is running for the office of Harris County District Clerk, one of two “extra” offices on the ballot this year thanks to GOP incumbent resignations (Harris County Judge is the … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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A peek at neighborhoods of the future

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

If you work downtown and have an interest in urban design, check this out: The event showcases the work done by a group of summer interns in architecture. Super Neighborhood 22 covers, among other things, the rapidly changing Washington Avenue … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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Where the line gets drawn

Posted on August 20, 2008 by Charles Kuffner

Marc Campos comes to Council Member Peter Brown’s defense after the Annie’s List smackdown. Commentary wants to know if Annie’s List will really lay off of Peter if he does say I’m sorry. I doubt it. This is the second … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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