Monthly Archives: April 2014

The downtown lifestyle

Posted on April 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Demand for residences in downtown Houston is up. For Krishnan Iyer, moving downtown meant a lot of things: Not having to use his car in auto-dependent Houston, being able to walk to work, to restaurants, to the movies. The 34-year-old … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What’s the health insurance enrollment status in Texas?

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The short answer is that we don’t know. The longer answer, as this Express-News story indicates, is that we’ll never really know. Self-sufficiency. Distrust. Desire for flexibility. Those are some reasons many consumers bypassed health insurance plans sold on government-run … Continue reading →

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Wilson whines to Commissioners Court

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Dave Wilson would like to not be sued any more, so he went to Commissioners Court to air his grievances over the lawsuit that stemmed from his controversial election last year. After Wilson won the election, and County Attorney Vince … Continue reading →

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Uptown BRT update

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From Swamplot: HERE ARE SOME of the purty watercolor renderings the Uptown District has been presenting of what Post Oak Blvd. will look like after the addition of 2 dedicated bus lanes down its middle. The proposed changes to the … Continue reading →

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Recycling cartons

Posted on April 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

More curbside recycling options. Houstonians accustomed to throwing out glossy cardboard cartons of milk, juice, soup and others foods and beverages now can send them to the curb in a green container for recycling. The Carton Council, a consortium of … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for April 13

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

How to bake scientifically accurate cake planets. Because who wouldn’t want a Uranus cake for their birthday? It’s hard out here on a pregnant TV star whose character isn’t pregnant. All about Aereo in Houston. If Alfred E. Neuman were … Continue reading →

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Davis keeps up the attack on Abbott over pre-k

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

She is not letting up. While addressing the Texas State Teachers Association’s convention in San Marcos on Saturday, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis accused her Republican opponent, Greg Abbott, of backing away from his early education policy proposal. Abbott, the … Continue reading →

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Council considers hoarding ordinance

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I hadn’t realized Houston didn’t already have an ordinance to deal with hoarding. Apparently, we are not at all unique in this regard. A proposed ordinance would begin to expand the city’s options for resolving hoarding situations even when the … Continue reading →

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

We really should have expanded Medicaid

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

We know it would have done a lot of good, at a very reasonable cost. Turns out that cost was even less than what we had been told. News reports and state officials have commonly stated that expanding the Medicaid program in this … Continue reading →

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The Super Bowl is making us get stuff done

Posted on April 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Nothing like a deadline to focus the mind. The 2017 Super Bowl not only will drive thousands of football fans to Houston, it will put a hard deadline on projects from office and hotel construction to a light-rail extension, a … Continue reading →

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

Saturday video break: Baby Got Back

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I trust this needs no introduction: Have you read the oral history of that video yet? Go ahead, I’ll wait. Besides, you know what’s coming next, right? You’re probably also aware of the Latin translation of the lyrics, which qualifies … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , | 2 Comments

HPD’s good, bad, and ugly

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The good news is that the testing of backlogged rape kits has led to the identification of a serial rapist in Houston. Houston police on Tuesday for the first time identified a criminal suspect – a possible serial rapist – … Continue reading →

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Two truths about testing

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg boils it down. While there’s no doubt standardized tests are an important part of student assessment, somewhere along the way, they became too important. We’ve tethered them to everything from student promotion to teacher pay to school reputation. … Continue reading →

Posted in School days | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Time is running out to undo Pratt’s mass dismissals

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Remember when now-former Judge Denise Pratt dismissed hundreds of cases at the end of 2013 without notice? Since her abrupt resignation last month, other Family Court judges have been trying to clean up the mess she left behind. This includes … Continue reading →

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Ralph Garr

Posted on April 12, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

On the anniversary this week of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run, the Chron profiles his teammate and resident of nearby Richmond, Ralph Garr. With Henry Aaron sitting on 714 career home runs as the Braves prepared to play the Dodgers … Continue reading →

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Friday random thirteen: Presidenting is hard work, part 2

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Finishing the job I started last week: 1. We’ve Only Just Begun – Grant Lee Buffalo 2. Buns O’Plenty – Isaac Hayes 3. Mary Ann – Ben Arthur 4. Devil’s Radio – George Harrison 5. Sweet Old Chicago – Roosevelt … Continue reading →

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Abbott denies his pre-k plan means standardized testing for 4-year-olds

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Glad we cleared that up. After questions were raised about language in a policy proposal that appears to call for the biannual testing of pre-kindergarten students, Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott’s campaign is clarifying his early education plan, saying he is … Continue reading →

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Planned Parenthood petitions Fifth Circuit for en banc review of HB2 ruling

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox: Today, Planned Parenthood affiliates in Texas filed a petition on behalf of their patients to request that the full bench of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals consider the constitutionality of harmful abortion restrictions that were struck down … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

No hiding behind privilege

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s your latest voter ID litigation update, from the Brad Blog: Just over a week ago, it was North Carolina legislators ordered by the court to cough up documentation relating to passage of new, draconian restrictions on voting rights in their state. … Continue reading →

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SBOE does something OK

Posted on April 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I know, I’m as surprised as you are. Instead of making Mexican-American studies an official high school course, the Texas State Board of Education has settled on a tentative compromise that would allow school districts to decide whether to offer … Continue reading →

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Taxi companies file suit against Uber and Lyft

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Color me skeptical. Taxi companies in Houston and San Antonio took their turf war with two online companies to federal court Tuesday, saying Uber and Lyft are operating illegally and skimming money from taxi firms that abide by the law. … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Counting votes on the non-discrimination ordinance

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From the Houston GLBT Political Caucus Facebook page: Members have asked for the responses on our questionnaires to the questions below. The President of the Caucus, Maverick Welsh, has asked me to post the information. As the chair of the … Continue reading →

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First Sunday Streets seemed like a success

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The weather was kinda lousy but there were plenty of people out on White Oak Street on Sunday. The city of Houston closed a 2.5 mile stretch of Quitman and White Oak to motor vehicles for four hours on Sunday, … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Texas blog roundup for the week of April 7

Posted on April 10, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance always comes in ahead of projections as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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A grassroots fighting force of extraordinary magnitude

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

At least, I hope it is. Addressing hundreds of volunteers on Saturday, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Wendy Davis highlighted her efforts to mobilize Texas voters and once again attacked her Republican opponent, Attorney General Greg Abbott, for being what she called … Continue reading →

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James O’Keefe is a lying liar

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t take my word for it. Listen to the special prosecutors that investigated the allegations by O’Keefe’s group Project Veritas made against Battleground Texas. A conservative activist’s allegations that Democratic group Battleground Texas illegally acquired voter information in San Antonio … Continue reading →

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No, there won’t be a flood of equal pay lawsuits in Texas

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There wasn’t one before, when the federal Lilly Ledbetter Act passed. There’s no reason to believe there will be one if a state version of the Ledbetter law is approved. Candidates for statewide office have wrangled recently over an effort … Continue reading →

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The microbreweries aren’t done with the Legislature

Posted on April 9, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Microbreweries took a big step forward in 2013, but there’s still more to be done. The 2013 legislative session, which featured the largest overhaul of the beer industry since 1993, was viewed by many observers as a watershed moment for … Continue reading →

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The farm team

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Roll Call takes a look at the Texas Democrats of the future. Democrats rarely fielded competitive Senate candidates over the past two decades — the party’s three best performers in that time span received 44 percent, 43 percent and 43 … Continue reading →

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HISD board votes for Mexican-American studies class

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

You would think this wouldn’t be a big deal. The Houston school board, representing the largest district in Texas, threw its support Thursday behind the creation of a Mexican-American studies course in Texas public schools. The 9-0 vote followed some … Continue reading →

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What the Burnam case is about

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I’m still not sure what to think about Rep. Lon Burnam’s electoral challenge against Ramon Romero in HD90. In a case that election officials statewide are monitoring — because it involves the use of electronic devices such as iPads — … Continue reading →

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Would pot be a cash crop?

Posted on April 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib takes a serious look at Kinky Friedman’s campaign platform. Currently, it is illegal to grow and possess marijuana in Texas and most other states, and while hemp is legal for consumption, Texas and most other states do not … Continue reading →

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Who’s afraid of the Republican slate?

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I was reading this story about a kerfuffle in the Republican runoff for Railroad Commissioner when a thought struck me. A Republican candidate seeking a post that regulates the state’s oil and gas industry said he won’t cut ties to … Continue reading →

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Look out for LVdP

Posted on April 7, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Do not underestimate her. In the lavish Belo Mansion, tucked in the heart of this city’s downtown, Sen. Leticia Van de Putte is locked in a back-and-forth with small-business owners from the region. Van de Putte, the San Antonio Democrat … Continue reading →

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