Monthly Archives: April 2012

Saturday video break: Wild Thing

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Song #73 on the Popdose Top 100 Covers list is “Wild Thing”, originally by The Wild Ones and covered by The Troggs. Here’s the original: Boy howdy was that not what I expected. I have to admit, I like it … Continue reading →

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Douglas denies sending anti-gay email

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Keryl Douglas held a press conference Thursday afternoon to discuss the Willie Howard email, and she sent out this statement regarding the matter. Let me begin by stating immediately and unequivocally that I did not write, nor cause to be … Continue reading →

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Are SBOE districts too big?

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That’s a question that the House Redistricting Committee will be studying next week. The Committee will meet in a public hearing to hear testimony on the following interim charge: “Study State Board of Education districts to determine whether the size … Continue reading →

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Bastard cabbage

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

All that recent rain benefits good plants and bad plants. With its thick outcropping of leafy green branches topped with small yellow flowers, an invasive weed commonly called bastard cabbage is blotting out large swaths of wildflowers, including the beloved … Continue reading →

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Unconventional

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Looking for something interesting to do today? Consider going to Rice’s UnConvention. For 100 years, Rice faculty, researchers and students have believed that anything is possible — that drive, devotion and innovative thinking can turn ideas into achievements. We call … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Friday random ten: Tax day

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It’s what really makes the world go ’round. 1. Easy Money – Billy Joel 2. Money – Pink Floyd 3. Money – Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings 4. Money – Yes 5. Money – N.A.S.A 6. Money, Money, Money … Continue reading →

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The home stretch for interviews

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Barring anything unusual, I’ve done all of the Harris County interviews I’m going to do at this point. You can see who I’ve spoken to and listen to them all on the Harris County primary page. You may have noticed … Continue reading →

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The plot thickens

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Once again, I got nothing. Houston City Councilwoman Helena Brown voted against a city construction project Wednesday, warning that in signing off on two energy-efficient building projects the council was handing millions of dollars to a “non-American initiative and interests.” … Continue reading →

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Groundbreaking on the county’s new DNA forensics lab

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. Harris County officials on Tuesday broke ground on a new forensic genetics laboratory, to open later this year, which will let county scientists test DNA evidence in a growing number of cases. The 15,000-square-foot facility, on Holcombe in the … Continue reading →

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SJL talks high speed rail

Posted on April 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The dream lives on. Officials in Japan and South Korea told Houston Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee that they are interested in helping Texas build a high-speed rail line between Houston and Dallas. The Houston Democrat said the foreign officials described … Continue reading →

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Planned Parenthood sues Texas

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Two can play at that game. Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday to block a rule aimed at excluding their health centers from the Medicaid Women’s Health Program. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Austin, … Continue reading →

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One million uninsured kids

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

One point two million uninsured kids in Texas, actually. But who’s counting? More than 1 million Texas children remain without health insurance, and those kids are not getting the care they need. The startling condition of the state’s children came … Continue reading →

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Campaign for Primary Accountability aims at Republicans

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. A Houston-based super PAC aiming to unseat long-time congressional incumbents added Reps. Joe Barton of Arlington and Ralph Hall of Rockwall to its hit list [last week]. The two Republicans join Democrats Eddie Bernice Johnson of Dallas and Silvestre … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of April 9

Posted on April 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance’s heart will go on as it brings you this week’s blog roundup.

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Interview with Mary Ann Perez

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We come now to my final interview for Harris County and for the State House. Next week I will start running interviews with Congressional candidates from elsewhere in Texas. Today’s candidate for HD144 is Mary Ann Perez. Perez was elected … Continue reading →

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So long, Santorum

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That sound you hear is Texas Republicans crying in their beer. Rick Santorum’s withdrawal today from the 2012 presidential contest makes Texas Republicans, once again, all but irrelevant in their party’s nomination process. The drawn-out nature of the race had … Continue reading →

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Nasty yet nice

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron’s characterization of the GOP primary race for District Attorney as a nasty fight between polite people strikes me as apt. Complaints about Harris County District Attorney Pat Lykos buzz through Houston’s criminal courthouse. Assistant district attorneys, police officers … Continue reading →

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Rally for women’s rights in Austin April 28

Posted on April 11, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Seems like there’s been an awful lot of these lately. Here’s the next one: Go here to learn more and to register. I’ve generally been skeptical about rallies in the past, but at this point I’m glad to see evidence … Continue reading →

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A little bit of NOM comes to the race for HCDP Chair

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

NOM is the National Organization for Marriage. They are big proponents of “traditional” marriage and opponents of marriage equality, and have been the driving force behind anti-marriage equality initiatives around the country, including California’s notorious Proposition 8. They have been … Continue reading →

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Interview with Kevin Risner

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

My second interview in HD144 is with Kevin Risner. Risner is a Pasadena native who is employed with CBS Radio as a Senior Account Manager for all marketing and public relations campaigns for State agencies. He previously worked for then-Congressman … Continue reading →

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“Phantom” voters

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This is a molehill, not a mountain. Sixteen small counties across Texas appear to have more registered voters on their rolls as of 2010 than qualified citizens of voting age – a phenomenon prompting conservative Washington, D.C., watchdog group to … Continue reading →

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Tomorrow’s traffic jams are being planned today

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Projects to widen U.S. 290 and Texas 288 with a mix of free and toll lanes in an attempt to ease congestion in the traffic-choked corridors would get a jump-start under a … Continue reading →

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No, San Antonio will not be getting an MLB team any time soon

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

You are right to be skeptical. It’s a development that has become as predictable as yellow pollen in the spring. A Major League Baseball franchise, struggling financially, seeks a new stadium deal, a new location, a new life. In the … Continue reading →

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Houston Airport System sides with Southwest

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Hot out of the inbox: In a memorandum to Mayor Annise Parker, Houston Director of Aviation Mario Diaz recommends the City of Houston work with Southwest Airlines (Southwest) to expand the federal inspection services (FIS) facility at William P. Hobby … Continue reading →

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Interview with Ornaldo Ybarra

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

This week we return to the State House and wrap up the Harris County interviews for the primary cycle. HD144, which mostly covers the city of Pasadena, is one of the stronger pickup opportunities for Democrats this fall, having been … Continue reading →

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Today’s the day for the airport report

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Today’s the day when we get that report from Houston Airport System Director Mario Diaz that makes a recommendation to Mayor Parker and City Council about whether or not to expand Hobby Airport to include international flights. We will also … Continue reading →

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Hard times in the prison building business

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Bad news for the mostly small counties that are left holding the bag on their bond debt, good news for the rest of us. The dusty West Texas ranch town of Anson, once known for its no-dancing law made famous … Continue reading →

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Sugar Land has its own Ashby

Posted on April 9, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The unhappy dissenters part of it, anyway. The planned development of the city’s last piece of open land would turn the abandoned Imperial Sugar site – the very genesis of the city – into an $800 million urban space with … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for April 8

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Won’t someone please think of the Trekkies? Instead of increasing security for standardized tests we could de-emphasize them and thus not need all that security. News stories about people caught smuggling things in their pants are always noteworthy. Draping is … Continue reading →

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All the “news” that fits, we print

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve heard of slow news days before, but this is ridiculous. State Comptroller Susan Combs trumpeted a survey Tuesday showing – as she wrote in the forward to a 15-page report – that a mere 3.4 percent of employers surveyed … Continue reading →

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Who testifies about voter ID?

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

That was the question before the federal court on Tuesday. U.S. Justice Department lawyers told a federal three-judge panel Tuesday that Texas legislators should not be shielded from testifying in a voter ID case. But lawyers for state Attorney General … Continue reading →

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RIP, Bubba the roach

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Another Houston institution bites the dust. For 42 years, a 2-ton sign featuring a neon-lighted cockroach blazed over the Southwest Freeway near Westpark, a garish but iconic advertisement for Holder’s Pest Control. The 8-foot-by-16-foot sign, nicknamed Bubba, was taken down … Continue reading →

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Saturday video break: I Love Rock & Roll

Posted on April 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Song #74 on the Popdose Top 100 Covers list is “I Love Rock & Roll”, originally by the Arrows and covered by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. Here’s the original: Yeah, I’ve never heard of that version, either. Here’s the … Continue reading →

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Harris County voter registration lawsuit settled

Posted on April 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

For now, at least. Something tells me we have not heard the last of this. Harris County officials and the Democratic Party have settled an ongoing legal dispute over denial rates of new voter registration applications – at least for … Continue reading →

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