Monthly Archives: October 2010

Endorsement watch: And I hope for a pony, too

Posted on October 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I am not surprised that the Chron has endorsed AG Greg Abbott for re-election. My expectation was that the newspapers would all endorse Bill White, Jeff Weems, and each of the Republican incumbents, and so far there have been no … Continue reading →

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Bumpy roads

Posted on October 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This story is mostly about how Houston ranks against other cities in road conditions. Of interest to me is the reasons why we’re not likely to get any better: At the Houston-Galveston Area Council, the transportation planning body for Harris … Continue reading →

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CM Johnson gets no-billed on evading arrest charge

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news for Council Member Jarvis Johnson. A Harris County grand jury has declined this morning to indict Houston City Councilman Jarvis Johnson on charges stemming from his arrest in June for evading arrest, according to his attorney. Johnson … Continue reading →

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Interview with Barbara Radnofsky

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Coming into the home stretch, we move towards the top of the ballot with Barbara Radnofsky, who is running for Attorney General. Radnofsky, the 2006 Democratic nominee for Senate, is an attorney and mediator who has remained very active in … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Mistakes are made

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron has decided for some unknowable reason to endorse County Treasurer Orlando Sanchez for re-election. Sanchez contends the treasurer’s office provides a vital checks-and-balances function on county spending, and that it would be a mistake to phase it out, … Continue reading →

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The preservation ordinance fight

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The revised preservation ordinance came before Council last week. It got a lot of feedback in addition to being tagged. Mayor Pro Tem Anne Clutterbuck also opposed the changes to the ordinance, which include a provision that would prevent property … Continue reading →

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

Casinos look to the Internet

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. Many of the country’s largest casinos, long opposed to gambling games like poker on the Internet, are now having second thoughts. Although online gambling is popular with millions of Americans, it is illegal in the United States, and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Jackpot! | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Weekend link dump for October 10

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Forget gay marriage, what about corporate marriage? Rescuing the baby turtles. Has it really been 15 years since the OJ verdict? RIP, Stephen J. Cannell. Heaven is putting together a team to greet you at the gates. RIP, Nancy W. … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Statesman and Express News for Weems

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Three for three. Commission Chairman Victor Carrillo suffered a stunning upset in the March primaries, setting up a contest between candidates who represent the state’s two major parties but who are also unknowns: Republican David Porter, who wrested the nomination … Continue reading →

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Latinos still prefer Democrats

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m not sure if it’s the poll itself or just the way the numbers are being presented, but if you can get past that, the news is good. Latino voters overwhelming back Democrats over Republicans in the upcoming election, but … Continue reading →

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No federal sex ed money for Texas

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Stay ignorant, kids. It’s what the state of Texas wants you to do. At the end of the summer, Texas quietly opted to forgo yet another pot of federal money — specifically, $4.4 million that would have gone toward educating … Continue reading →

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“For the Sake of the Song: The Story of Anderson Fair”

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Gish Creative (www.gishcreative.com) and Southwest Alternate Media Project/SWAMP (www.swamp.org) have come together to celebrate the arts and cultural landmarks with a public screening of “For the Sake of the Song: The Story of Anderson Fair” (www.andersonfairthemovie.com) on … Continue reading →

Posted in TV and movies | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Saturday video break: Happy birthday, John Lennon

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

He would have been 70 today. Feel old now? We all do shine on indeed.

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Metro’s Airport Direct service

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The good news is that the people who use Metro’s Airport Direct service from downtown to IAH really like it. The bad news is that not nearly enough people use it. The scarcity of passengers on the Airport Direct service … Continue reading →

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

Chron overview of the County Treasurer race

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

With this story, the Chron has overviewed all of the countywide races. The main issue to discuss, of course, is just what exactly is it that the Treasurer does. Four years ago, [incumbent Treausrer Orlando] Sanchez’s Democratic opponent advocated eliminating … Continue reading →

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Some Prop 3 action

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Campos observed last week that there hasn’t been any action on Prop 3, which is the red light camera referendum. That’s about to change. The Houston Professional Firefighters Association, a group that represents more than 4,000 firefighters, said it supports … Continue reading →

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From the “If at first you don’t succeed, lower your standards” department

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Too many bowl games, (maybe) not enough bowl-eligible teams. The NCAA’s football postseason licensing subcommittee might have to alter eligibility rules for playing in the postseason depending on how the season plays out. There are 35 bowl games this year, … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Family Court judges

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Ten more benches, ten more endorsements, only this time the score is 8-2 Democrats: 245th Family District Court: Janiece Horn, a Democrat, is our choice for this open bench. 246th Family District Court: Sherri Cothrun, the Democratic challenger, says she … Continue reading →

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Friday random ten: Playoffs

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

October! Cooler weather! Baseball playoffs! Songs that have the word “play” or “off” in them! Gratuitous exclamation points! 1. Evil Woman Don’t Play Your Games With Me – Crow 2. Foul Play – Robert Cray 3. A Passion Play Edit … Continue reading →

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Jenifer Pool announces for Council

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

We have another contender for the one At Large Council seat that will be open next fall, former Houston GLBT Political Caucus President Jenifer Pool. From her press release, which I received late Wednesday: Jenifer Rene Pool announced her candidacy … Continue reading →

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Interview with Hank Gilbert

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

For the third and final Commissioner candidate, we have Hank Gilbert, who is running for Agriculture Commissioner. Gilbert ran in 2006 and was the top non-judicial vote-getter for the Democrats that year. Gilbert is a rancher from the Tyler area … Continue reading →

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Chron overview of Tax Assessor race

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Sometimes, the difference between two candidates is especially clear. Don Sumners has been complaining about government for so long that the Republican’s slogan for his campaign for tax assessor-collector is “I was tea party before tea party was cool.” Elect … Continue reading →

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What will the teabaggers do?

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

For the most part, I don’t really care what they’ll do, but there is one point worth noting: “I can’t say the tea party support for Rick Perry is very strong, but the opposition to Bill White is intense,” said … Continue reading →

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We’ll only debate you on our terms

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Democratic SBOE candidates accept yet another debate invitation – by all-Republican panel Earlier: Republicans turn down debate after debate and hide from voters, claiming sponsor League of Women Voters is “too Democratic” Note: The following statement is … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of October 4

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance welcomes the arrival of October as it brings you this week’s blog roundup.

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HISD versus Prop 1

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This would be a tough obstacle to overcome. HISD Board President Greg Meyers on Wednesday raised the specter of teacher layoffs if the school system is forced to pay an estimated $2.5 million to $3.5 million a year in drainage … Continue reading →

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Endorsement watch: Civil district courts

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I suppose I was too quick with the kudos for the Chron on their endorsement schedule. They still haven’t endorsed in the Lite Guv and AG races, in any Congressional or state Legislative race, or in any county races, not … Continue reading →

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Judicial Q&A: Judge Kathy Stone

Posted on October 7, 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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Disclosure for thee, but not for me

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You don’t need to know. Gov. Rick Perry said [Monday] that he wouldn’t release documents revealing investors in recipients of Texas Emerging Technology Fund recipients. […] The governor’s office is told of investors in the tech fund applicants, a staffer … Continue reading →

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Another lawsuit relating to voter registration in Harris County

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, the TDP is suing the Harris County Tax Assessor’s office (again) over allegations that they are still not properly handling voter registrations. That suit followed the ugly accusations Tax Assessor Leo Vasquez and his radical buddies the … Continue reading →

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Overview of the Land Commissioner race

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You may never have seen a race quite like the 2010 race for Texas Land Commissioner. Meet Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, a Republican, and Democrat Hector Uribe, who offers some mild policy disagreements over the job Patterson has done … Continue reading →

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DA investigating CM Johnson

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Houston City Councilman Jarvis Johnson’s office pressured city officials to certify a security firm as a minority-owned business to win a lucrative subcontract for the company, which later gave a 40 percent ownership stake to a close Johnson associate, … Continue reading →

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Halladay makes history

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Wow. Roy Halladay waited his entire life to pitch in the postseason. Then he delivered the game of a lifetime. Halladay threw a no-hitter Wednesday in Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Reds at Citizens Bank … Continue reading →

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Lyceum poll: Perry 48, White 43

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Statewide poll numbers released today show that Democratic gubernatorial candidate and former Houston Mayor Bill White trails Republican Governor Rick Perry by five points. The fourth annual 2010 Texas Lyceum Poll, conducted September 22nd – September 30th, … Continue reading →

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