Monthly Archives: July 2016

KUHA sale completed

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Say goodbye to classical music on your terrestrial radio. Houston Public Media’s classical musical station transitions to an all-digital format starting at 9 a.m. Friday, July 15. It’s a result of Christian radio station KSBJ agreeing to purchase the KUHA 91.7 … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Saturday video break: Little Saint Nick

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Hey, how about a little Christmas music? Here are the Beach Boys with “Little Saint Nick”: Videos of bands where they all wear the same outfit – especially when they all also have the same haircut – will never get … Continue reading →

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Why would you even think to put a rape victim in jail?

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I am outraged. The 25-year-old rape victim, frightened and long-suffering from mental illness, agreed in December to testify against the Houston man who brutally assaulted her in 2013. She hoped to put him behind bars for life. But that decision … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Metro revives US90A commuter rail line

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The possibility of it, anyway. No promises or commitments at this time. Metropolitan Transit Authority board members on Thursday approved a resolution authorizing transit officials to “place” the project in the “Federal Transit Administration process” and look for ways to … Continue reading →

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As goes Pasadena

Posted on July 23, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

If Texas Democrats ever figure out the secret of getting more Latinos engaged in the voting process, it’ll be in places like Pasadena where they find the key. When Oscar Del Toro tries to persuade his fellow Pasadena Latinos to … Continue reading →

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

Friday random ten: Ladies’ night, part 5

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Wow, we’re still in the B’s. 1. Mad About You – Belinda Carlisle 2. Call It Whatever – Bella Thorne 3. I Could Be Persuaded – Bering Strait (Natasha Borzilova and Lydia Salnikova) 4. Take My Breath Away – Berlin … Continue reading →

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HD146 nomination process to take place on August 6

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Mark your calendars. Last Saturday, State Rep. Borris Miles secured the Democratic nomination to replace Senator Rodney Ellis for Senate District 13. As a result, Rep. Miles will have to vacate his seat in House District 146. Precinct chairs will … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

What next for voter ID?

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Rick Hasen, writing in Slate: The trial court was ready to throw out the entire law, but the 5th Circuit said such a remedy went too far. The court held that when a trial court finds a law has a … Continue reading →

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NBA pulls 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Bam! The NBA issued the following statement Thursday regarding the 2017 NBA All-Star Game: “The NBA has decided to relocate the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte with the hope of rescheduling for 2019. “Since March, when North Carolina enacted HB2 … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Another bad year for Kemp’s ridley turtles

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

This does not look good. The nesting season for the endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle is ending with zero nests found on either Galveston Island or the Bolivar Peninsula for the first time in at least a decade, although the … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit affirms voter ID ruling

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Made it by the deadline. Texas’ voter identification law violates the U.S. law prohibiting racial discrimination in elections, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday. The U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed previous rulings that the 2011 voter ID law … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Feds leave oversight of Texas Central to the state

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

No change in status. A proposed high-speed rail line between Houston and Dallas will remain a mostly Texas matter following a federal decision which opponents cheered as a blow to the project, while backers said provided a definitive scope of … Continue reading →

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In which we find another way to suck at textbooks

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, good Lord. If the State Board of Education approves a proposed Mexican-American studies textbook this fall, Texas students could learn that the Aztecs waged war because of “bloodlust,” 19th-century Mexican industrial laborers often drank on the job and slavery … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of July 18

Posted on July 21, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance urges the people of Cleveland to stay strong as it brings you this week’s roundup.

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Rick Perry still toadying for Trump

Posted on July 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Dude must really need a job. Former Gov. Rick Perry says he is open to serving in the administration of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, his former rival in the race for the White House. “They know that I … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Alignments proposed for Oklahoma City-South Texas passenger rail

Posted on July 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Check ’em out. The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) have released 10 service and route options for new and improved conventional and high-speed passenger rail service connecting Oklahoma City, … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Abbott pushes for hate crime status for targeted killing of police officers

Posted on July 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Gov. Greg Abbott wants the targeted killing of a police officer to be deemed a hate crime in Texas and urged lawmakers to send him such a bill to sign … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Potholing

Posted on July 20, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

The city’s pothole repair program seems to be going well. Faster response by city crews to resident-reported potholes has saved thousands of drivers a bumpier ride around Houston the past six months, though officials warn there’s a long way to … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Can we try this again with nine Justices, please?

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Can’t hurt to ask. The Obama administration on Monday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider the legality of the president’s controversial immigration enforcement plan, which stalled last month when the high court deadlocked on an appeal. The program, known … Continue reading →

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Castro ruled to have violated the Hatch Act

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. Julián Castro, the secretary of Housing and Urban Development and rumored Democratic vice presidential prospect, violated a law prohibiting federal employees from politicking on the job when he commented on the presidential election in an April interview with Katie … Continue reading →

Posted in The making of the President | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Astros hacker sentenced to 46 months

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Away he goes. Former St. Louis Cardinals executive Christopher Correa was sentenced Monday to 46 months in prison for illegal incursions into the Astros’ computer database, wrapping up a case of sports-related cybercrime that a federal judge and prosecutors summed … Continue reading →

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The Latino health insurance enrollment gap in Texas

Posted on July 19, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We have made great strides in reducing the uninsured rate in Texas thanks to the Affordable Care Act, but there’s still a lot of work to do. The percentage of Hispanics in Texas without health insurance has dropped by 30 … Continue reading →

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What it will take to win the District Court of Appeals benches

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

I’ve mentioned a couple of times that one place on the local ballot where Democrats could potentially gain some real ground is with the district Courts of Appeals. There are no competitive Congressional or State Senate races, the one competitive … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Will we ever learn what caused Greg Abbott’s burns?

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Not sure what to make of this. Gov. Greg Abbott was released Friday from a San Antonio military hospital, but he has yet to give details of the accident that put him there with second- and third-degree burns. Abbott’s office … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

We’re outsourcing inmates again

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We never learn. Harris County, in the latest move to keep its swelling jail population in check, is pursuing an agreement with neighboring Fort Bend County to send inmates to the suburb’s jail. A Harris County Sheriff’s Office spokesman called … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Main Street Line having on-time issues

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Not good. Poor on-time trends for Metro trains are costing riders time along the city’s most heavily-used transit route, and potentially leading some to consider other options for trips, a transit agency board member said Wednesday. “I think we are … Continue reading →

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Weekend link dump for July 17

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

You can now get your files back if they have been hijacked by ransomware. You’re going to have to wait a little longer for the final episodes of Game of Thrones. Gotta say, there’a a lot more to Emily Ratajkoski … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 1 Comment

Miles wins SD13 nomination

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

And so we gathered again to pick a nominee to fill an open slot on the ballot, though at least this time the “we” who did the actual picking did not include me. I went to observe, say Hi, gather … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What will the NBA do with Charlotte?

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

We are still waiting to see if NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will follow through with a threat to move the NBA All-Star Game out of Charlotte after North Carolina passed its odious anti-LGBT law HB2. Houston’s 2015 defeat of Proposition … Continue reading →

Posted in Other sports | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Legislative hearing on emergency leave

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Figure this will be on the legislative agenda next spring. At a Texas House hearing Tuesday looking into how some state agencies were able to keep some departing employees on the public payroll by granting them emergency leave, lawmakers expressed … Continue reading →

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America’s deadliest prosecutors

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. In anticipation of the 40th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark death penalty decision, Gregg v. Georgia, today the Fair Punishment Project released a new report called America’s Top Five Deadliest Prosecutors: How Overzealous Personalities Drive the Death Penalty. The report identified America’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Saturday video break: Little Bird

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s the fabulous Annie Lennox, from her hit solo album Diva: The things you learn when surfing Wikipedia: This song was featured in an episode of The Sopranos, and also in the Demi Moore movie Striptease. I remember it from … Continue reading →

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Today’s the day for SD13

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Feels like we’ve been here before, doesn’t it? Today is the day for the Senate precinct convention in SD13, in which a nominee for that office to replace Sen. Rodney Ellis will be chosen. There are 96 precinct chairs in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2016 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

First baby affected by Zika born in Texas

Posted on July 16, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Won’t be the last, unfortunately. A baby boy born with microcephaly in Harris County is the first Zika-affected infant in Texas, the Texas Department of State Health Services announced Wednesday. The baby’s mother contracted Zika in Colombia, and the baby … Continue reading →

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