Monthly Archives: August 2010

Renew Houston proposition officially on the ballot

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

City Council voted to put the Renew Houston referendum on the ballot Wednesday. Details about how much the drainage fee it calls for will be, and other aspects of it are still to be worked out by the city before … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Lottery can’t meet its jackpots

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Lottery officials are celebrating an uptick in Lotto Texas sales this year, but ticket proceeds were nearly $1.2 million short of covering the latest winning jackpot, forcing officials to dip into the state lottery account to cover the difference. … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of August 9

Posted on August 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is pretty sure its invitation to President Obama’s events in Texas were lost in the mail, and we will keep saying that to ourselves as we bring you this week’s blog highlights.

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FBI smacks down Riddle and Gohmert

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The whole “terrorist babies” delusion is so mind-bendingly stupid that it doesn’t even belong on late night public access TV, but such is the nature of our discourse that it was featured on Anderson Cooper 360 Tuesday. Thankfully, Cooper took … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Judicial Q&A: William “Bill” Rice

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: I am running a series of Q&As for Democratic judicial candidates on the November ballot. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. These Q&As are primarily intended for candidates who were … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Birdwell ballot challenge timeline

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, the Texas Democratic Party and its candidate for SD22, John Cullar, have filed a lawsuit challenging the residency of Republican candidate Bill Birdwell. Here’s the latest news regarding that: The Dallas Court of Appeals has asked Sen. … Continue reading →

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The residency referendum

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Houston will get two more City Council districts after the 2010 Census is completed. To allow potential candidates sufficient time to adjust to the new map, Council will put a charter amendment on the ballot that reduces … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

It’s easier than you think to behave responsibly

Posted on August 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

With all the clutching of pearls and threatening of lawsuits surrounding those federal funds that Congress intends to be used for education and not general fund budget balancing tricks, we should all take a deep breath and keep in mind … Continue reading →

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More proof of my theory

Posted on August 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

That would be my theory that fifty or sixty years ago, a number of terror cells infiltrated the US and impregnated a bunch of women with babies who were groomed from birth to become utter morons who would destroy the … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Interview with State Rep. Sylvester Turner

Posted on August 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Sylvester Turner is one of the senior members of the Houston-area delegation, having served HD139 since he was first elected in 1988. He doesn’t have a campaign webpage, so let me refer you to his Texas Tribune biography … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Judicial Q&A: Tom Berg

Posted on August 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: I am running a series of Q&As for Democratic judicial candidates on the November ballot. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. These Q&As are primarily intended for candidates who were … Continue reading →

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Nominations, please

Posted on August 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I sure hope that while President Obama was in town, someone asked him if he ever intends to nominate a US Attorney for Texas? Justice goes on, but Obama could have used those prosecutor jobs to build a farm team … Continue reading →

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Red light camera opponents turn in their petitions

Posted on August 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I was beginning to wonder if the anti-red light camera crowd was ever going to turn in their petition signatures, as it’s starting too get a little late in the game. They made their move on Monday, submitting 30,000 petition … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Judicial Q&A: Mark Diaz

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

(Note: I am running a series of Q&As for Democratic judicial candidates on the November ballot. I am running these responses in the order that I receive them from the candidates. These Q&As are primarily intended for candidates who were … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

There goes the bag drag

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

That sound you heard was many thousands of dollars being taken in by the President and the DNC. For the past 22 years, some state Democrats complain, the national party has used Texas like an ATM. The national party’s constant … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

No, they won’t “cross swords” over this

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

A few days back, I blogged about how immigration reform is supposedly going to be a wedge issue for the GOP because evangelicals and business types support it. I took issue with a statement by Bill Hammond, the president of … Continue reading →

Posted in La Migra | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

More preschool, please

Posted on August 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Want to improve how high-risk children will do in school and later in life? Get them into preschool. [P]reschool seemed to improve performance on a variety of “non-cognitive” abilities, such as self-control, persistence and grit. While society has long obsessed … Continue reading →

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The city of Houston’s social media guidelines

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I received the following email from Justin Concepcion, who manages social media for Mayor Parker’s office, in response to the questions I asked in this post about how the city of Houston handles social media: We are in the process … Continue reading →

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Interview with Rep. Scott Hochberg

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Scott Hochberg, who represents HD137, is generally considered the Legislature’s leading expert on public education and school finance. He’s the Vice Chair of the House Public Education Committee, and he chairs the Appropriations Subcommittee on Education. With so … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Lawmakers ask TCEQ to help plants comply with EPA

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is a good idea. After a lobbying push by oil giants, a bipartisan group of Texas legislators have asked state environmental regulators to quickly solve a permit dispute with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that has left some of … Continue reading →

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The limits of gambling

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

People who like to gamble have a lot more options available to them than they used to. The Marcuses’ three-day pilgrimage had taken them across a region suddenly awash in slot parlors and Las Vegas-style casinos, what with New York, … Continue reading →

Posted in Jackpot! | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Social media guidelines in San Antonio

Posted on August 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. There’s no standard policy or set of procedures governing how public entities or their employees should use social networking sites. Agencies are in various stages of evaluating what constitutes proper online conduct. Bexar County is writing a social media … Continue reading →

Posted in Websurfing | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Weekend link dump for August 8

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

School starts in 15 days. Where did summer go? Ten movies that are smart about being dumb. “The Pink Panther Strikes Again” is one of my all-time favorites. Three cheers for the resurgent auto industry. I’m old enough to remember … Continue reading →

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What will the HISD board do with its open seat?

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

HISD Trustee Diana Davila announced her intention to resign on July 16. That became official on the 30th. The HISD Board of Trustees has the option of appointing someone to replace her, or to call a special election. So far, … Continue reading →

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John Cornyn sounds like a Democrat

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

To be more precise, he’s saying something many Democrats around here have been saying for a long time. Days before the president visits Austin and Dallas for Democratic fundraisers, Cornyn lashed out at Obama for focusing his Texas visit on … Continue reading →

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

New frontiers in sports branding

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Would you like your electrons in burnt orange or maroon? In a deal put together by sponsorship broker IMG College and Branded Retail Energy, a Dallas-based company that markets electricity through affinity partnerships, the schools will create university-branded power companies. … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: Follow the bouncing ball

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So Mitch Miller died this week at the age of 99. I’m not old enough to remember the “Sing Along With Mitch” TV show, but we did have a “Sing Along With Mitch” Christmas album when I was growing up, … Continue reading →

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Congress wants education money spent on education

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It sounds simple, but around here these things never are. State leaders on Thursday threatened to sue the federal government over a restriction Congress is placing on $830 million in education funding for Texas. Texas educators and Democratic congressional allies, … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Candidate named, suit filed in SD22

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

My questions have been answered. Democratic officials in Senate District 22 got together in a Hillsboro restaurant Thursday evening and nominated John Cullar to run for the state Senate seat now held by Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury. Cullar is a Waco … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The quest for a better solar cell

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe this will be a big step forward. A research team led by [UT chemistry professor Xiaoyang] Zhu, who refers to his Center for Materials Chemistry as the XYZ Lab, has shown that it’s possible to convert much more of … Continue reading →

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SCJC contests Keller’s appeal

Posted on August 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

When last we met, Sharon Keller had appealed the curious “warning” she received from the State Commission on Judicial Conduct to the Supreme Court, arguing that the Commission had acted “lawlessly” by issuing that particular sanction. The Commission has now … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: The teen years

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing with last week’s theme, here are ten more numeric songs, beginning with the number 11: 1. Eleven Easy Steps – Trout Fishing In America 2. Come And I Will Sing You (The Twelve Apostles) – Great Big Sea 3. … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , | 4 Comments

Interview with State Rep. Garnet Coleman

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Garnet Coleman of HD147 is one of my favorite elected officials anywhere. A 20-year veteran of the House and a member of the House leadership team, he’s a strong progressive advocate and a policy wonk who’s always on … Continue reading →

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Will they or won’t they field a challenger to Birdwell?

Posted on August 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

That’s the question for Democratic Part chairs in SD22. According to several Democratic consultants and officials knowledgeable about strategic discussions, a number of factors are being considered. These include the political makeup of the district, the cost of running a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment