Monthly Archives: November 2010

Ortiz asks for a recount

Posted on November 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Rep. Solomon Ortiz, one of three Texas Congressional Democrats to be defeated on Tuesday, has asked for a recount. U.S. Rep. Solomon Ortiz, trailing Republican challenger Blake Farenthold by 792 votes in the race for Texas’ 27th District, officially announced … Continue reading →

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

Weekend link dump for November 7

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Have we recovered from the election yet? Blogs may have finite lifespans, but I have no plans to quit any time soon. “A historic global treaty to protect the world’s forests, coral reefs and other threatened ecosystems within 10 years … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 2 Comments

So where do we go from here?

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

All right, the shock is starting to wear off, so it’s time to take stock of what happened and think about what to do next. As shell-shocked Democrats begin crawling out of their cave, the question they have to confront, … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , | 9 Comments

Amazon was just the beginning

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I agree with this. By telling retail giant Amazon.com that it owes $269 million in uncollected sales taxes, the State of Texas has waded into the national debate over taxing Internet sales. The state comptroller’s office said it has sent … Continue reading →

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

Mobile billboards

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, City Council passed a more restrictive billboard ordinance in 2008, and just recently got a favorable resolution in a lawsuit about billboards in the extra-territorial jurisdiction. But that doesn’t mean the billboard battle is over. Nonsequiteuse wants … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: The 90s started out a lot like the 80s

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Last night, Tiffany and I went to “Feast with the Beasts”, the Houston Zoo’s annual fundraiser. The special musical guest was the Spin Doctors, her favorite band from back in the day. That would be circa 1990, when the music … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged | 2 Comments

Maybe we’re not on the hook for Keller’s legal fees after all

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Well, at least it’s a small consolation. Clearing up confusion in its dismissal of an ethics rebuke against Judge Sharon Keller, a special court of review has issued an order that no longer makes taxpayers liable for Keller’s legal costs. … Continue reading →

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The impending budget cuts will affect you in ways you don’t realize

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a bit from that big Chron story last weekend about Houston’s ongoing battle against sexually oriented businesses that masquerade as massage parlors and how the budget debacle will make that battle a little harder for the city. Regulating massage … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Why HEB is not like Wal-Mart

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I read this story about how residents near the old Wilshire Village Apartments site, where HEB plans to build a new store, will be voting on possible designs for that new store, and I wondered what might have been. Residents … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Friday random ten: It’s not the end of the world, but you can see it from here

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

No matter what you think, what happened Tuesday wasn’t the end of the world. But if you still feel that way, here are ten songs to take to the end of the world with you: 1. Party At Ground Zero … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

What now for Renew Houston?

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to the disposal of the red light cameras and the associated costs of their removal, Mayor Parker and City Council now need to work out the details for Prop 1, which created the dedicated fund for streets and … Continue reading →

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Texas thumbs its nose at the feds again

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Why bother to secede when all you need to do is disobey? Texas has refused to meet new federal greenhouse gas emission rules that go into effect in January, the latest anti-Washington move in an ongoing battle that could halt … Continue reading →

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The hole is deeper than we thought, the continuing story

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You have to admire the timing on this. Texas collected $2.5 billion less in taxes in the 2010 fiscal year that ended Aug. 31, than the previous year, state Comptroller Susan Combs said in a new cash report. The tax … Continue reading →

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Truck fuel efficiency

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This is long overdue. The Obama administration announced new rules [last week] to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants by requiring greater fuel efficiency for big trucks, buses and other heavy-duty vehicles starting with 2014 models. The regulations, the … Continue reading →

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RIP, Rep. Edmund Kuempel

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

State Rep. Edmund Kuempel (R-Seguin) has passed away at the age of 67. Kuempel, a salesman with CMC Steel Texas in Seguin, is chairman of the House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee, the panel through which gambling legislation typically flows. … Continue reading →

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What now for the red light cameras?

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Barring anything unusual, red light cameras will be history in Houston, but their effect will be felt for some time. City Controller Ronald Green said the loss of the devices would amount to a $10 million shortfall in revenues, a … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Do we or don’t we have a Speaker’s race?

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Depends on who you ask. I mean, it’s not a race if one person can legitimately claim to have already won, right? The speaker’s race in the Texas House is on, a challenger said today. The sitting speaker, however, said … Continue reading →

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Reinventing higher education

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

More stuff from last week to catch up on: Good luck with that. The state’s higher education agency called Thursday for sweeping changes in policy, including a revised method of funding community colleges and public universities, a greater emphasis on … Continue reading →

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

It’s a go for REV Eco Shuttle

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

This happened last week, but I didn’t get to posting about it at that time. A vote by city council [October 27] caps the long, strange regulatory journey of Erik Ibarra’s Rev Eco-Shuttle service. Rulespassed by the council in August restricted Jitneylicenses to … Continue reading →

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

Opening thoughts on the carnage

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In no particular order… – Republicans gain 22 seats in the State House, for a 99-51 advantage. That’s with Pete Gallego, Hubert Vo, and Donna Howard, all of whom had been trailing early, coming back to win. Howard’s margin of … Continue reading →

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Opening arguments at the DeLay trial

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a little weird that the Tom DeLay trial could be something other than the top news story, isn’t it? The political money laundering trial of former U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay opened Monday with the Sugar Land Republican … Continue reading →

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Beyond today

Posted on November 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I’m having a hard time right now thinking about anything past last night, but here’s a Trib story from Sunday that takes a look ahead to the legislative and other battles that will follow. I think you can take some … Continue reading →

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I’ve had worse days, but not by much

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So as I write this, it looks like the optimistic projections for the Republicans weren’t optimistic enough. Big wins for them in the state, in Harris County, and in the Legislature, where a circa-2003 partisan mix looks like a good … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2010 | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Electronic voting will be the norm today

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

From the County Clerk’s office: ELECTRONIC VOTING TO BE THE PRINCIPAL METHOD OF VOTING ON ELECTION DAY IN HARRIS COUNTY Houston, TX– As usual, on General Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2010, the eSlate electronic voting system will be the … Continue reading →

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From the “Grant me the grace to accept the things I cannot change” department

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

What’s that old saying? “Could be worse. Could be raining.” As Democrats around the country girded for a midterm GOP tsunami, Bill White and his down-ballot Democratic cohorts spent the weekend tacking up political plywood and looking for signs, any … Continue reading →

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“You know what that leads to? COMMUNISM!”

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I normally consider it unseemly to kick a man while he’s down, but some men richly deserve it. The godless, left-wing radicals have taken over universities and the national government and are radically transforming the country, State Board of Education … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of November 1

Posted on November 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is ready for Election Day as it brings you this week’s blog roundup.

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What the polls said

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a roundup of the most recent versions of the most recent polls on the Governor’s race, some of which include one or more other statewide races. We’ll come back to this and see how accurate they were after tomorrow: … Continue reading →

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

Endorsement watch: Early voting? Never heard of it

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Somewhat incredibly, there were still endorsements being made over the weekend. Two newspapers finally got around to picking a side in the Governor’s race. The good news is that at least they picked the right one. First up, the Abilene … Continue reading →

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The “Dan Patrick for Senate in 2012” campaign makes its unofficial debut

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Well no, nothing of that sort actually happened. But that’s my interpretation of this. Sen. Dan Patrick — the Houston Republican who earlier announced the founding of the Independent Conservative Republicans of Texas to reach out to Tea Party activists … Continue reading →

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Texas gets a teeny bit of high speed rail money

Posted on November 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a step forward, but a very very small step. High-speed rail in Texas, long left for dead, is likely to regain a pulse today when U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announces a $5.6 million grant to plan a passenger … Continue reading →

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