Monthly Archives: August 2023

Lawsuit filed over anti-porn law

Posted on August 21, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s another one I missed. My God what a wretched session this was. A consortium of adult entertainment advocacy groups, including the online giant Pornhub, is suing the state of Texas ahead of its pending enforcement of a new law … Continue reading →

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

What if Houston gets too hot?

Posted on August 21, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Some cheery thoughts from the Wall Street Journal. Houstonians pride themselves on how they tolerate heat. This summer, the heat has become intolerable. Businesses and residents in America’s fourth-largest city have moved much of life indoors, changing work and spending … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

Weekend link dump for August 20

Posted on August 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Find someone who loves you as much as a bunch of right-wing billionaires “love” Clarence Thomas. Love giving him lavish gifts, anyway. ““Overconfidence,” the committee concluded, had “dulled faculties usually so alert.”” “Twitter Is Auctioning Off Old Items with Former … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 1 Comment

Part of the omnibus voter suppression law struck down

Posted on August 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Some good news. A federal judge in San Antonio ruled this week that it is illegal for Texas elections officials to reject mail-in ballots and the applications for them over ID mistakes on elections paperwork. The requirement was part of … Continue reading →

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

More cities’ responses to the Death Star law

Posted on August 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Some good reporting from El Paso Matters. In 2015, El Paso became the second city in the country to safeguard its workers by passing a historic wage theft ordinance. Now, as a sweeping new state law aimed at handicapping Texas’ … Continue reading →

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Averie Bishop to run for the Lege

Posted on August 20, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Nice. Last year’s Miss Texas is entering another competition where she’ll be judged on her talents, leadership abilities and appearance. But this time it won’t be a beauty pageant. Averie Bishop became the first Asian American winner of the Miss … Continue reading →

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Yet even more Paxton revelations

Posted on August 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

It’s been awhile since I last said Wow, but here I am again saying it. Drew Wicker did not like what he was hearing. The personal assistant to Attorney General Ken Paxton stood in his boss’s kitchen in summer 2020 … Continue reading →

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Texas takes another shot at Planned Parenthood

Posted on August 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

They have a cheat code available, so they use it. For more than a decade, the state has been trying and failing to chase Planned Parenthood out of Texas. Texas restricted and then banned abortion. The state removed Planned Parenthood … Continue reading →

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Dispatches from Dallas, August 19 edition

Posted on August 19, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This is a weekly feature produced by my friend Ginger. Let us know what you think. This week, in news from Dallas-Fort Worth, it’s another grab bag. We have followups to the Southwest Airlines religious liberty case, the ransomware attack … Continue reading →

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The lawsuit over the gender affirming care ban had its hearing

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Hoping for a quick ruling in favor of the plaintiffs. Medical experts pushed back against Texas lawmakers’ assertions that puberty blockers and hormone therapies are experimental and put young transgender patients at risk as they testified Tuesday in a hearing … Continue reading →

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

Harris Health bond officially on the ballot

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Harris County voters will be asked to approve a $2.5 billion bond issue from the Harris Health System to fund the rebuilding and upgrading of several hospital district facilities, including an expansion of Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital. Harris County … Continue reading →

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It’s going to be a challenge tracking changes in the maternal mortality rate

Posted on August 18, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We expect maternal deaths to rise post-Dobbs, especially in states that have effectively banned abortions. But collecting the data to document what’s happening will not be easy. Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last year, doctors have warned … Continue reading →

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Still more Paxton revelations

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. In new allegations revealed Wednesday, Texas House investigators accused suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton of engaging in a complex cover-up to hide his relationship with real estate investor Nate Paul as senior … Continue reading →

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Fifth Circuit rejects some mifepristone restrictions, upholds others

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Typical. A Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals panel handed down a decision Wednesday batting down challenges to the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) initial approval of abortion drug mifepristone, but reinstituting restrictions that the agency has lifted in recent years. … Continue reading →

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New frontiers in bad ideas

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Private dams. No, seriosuly. A private dam proposed on the South Llano River, a major tributary to the Highland Lakes, is the center of a debate in the Hill Country this week as a public hearing set for Thursday evening … Continue reading →

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Texas blog roundup for the week of August 14

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

The Texas Progressive Alliance is now also waiting to see what a grand jury in San Antonio does to rid us all of a political crook as it brings you this week’s roundup. On a more serious note, the TPA … Continue reading →

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Judge temporarily blocks law abolishing Harris County Elections Administrator

Posted on August 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

A good first step, but we’re far from finished here. The Texas Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday appealed the decision of a judge to temporarily block a new law passed by Republicans to abolish Harris County’s elections chief position. The … Continue reading →

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

Wildfire disaster declared

Posted on August 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Stay safe, y’all. Gov. Greg Abbott has issued a wildfire disaster declaration for about 75% of Texas counties, allowing them to use all available state resources to respond to any new fires as the state continues to bake under triple-digit … Continue reading →

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Todd Interests rejects “final offer” by TPWD for Fairfield State Park

Posted on August 16, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Off to court next, I guess. The developer who purchased the site of a now-former state park has rejected the state’s final offer to purchase the property. Dallas-based Todd Interests became the owner of the Fairfield Lake State Park property, … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

More on the shitty people who prop up Ken Paxton

Posted on August 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

There’s no end to these assholes, part 2. In late June, about a dozen conservative Gen Z influencers converged on Fort Worth for a few days of right-wing networking. They hit local night spots, posed for group photos and met … Continue reading →

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Allred and Gutierrez talk issues

Posted on August 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

They mostly agree on things. They have some different priorities and some differences in approach, and in some cases one would go farther than the other, but in the end they’re quite similar. U.S. Rep. Colin Allred of Dallas and … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2024 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Printed menus are back

Posted on August 15, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Those QR code menus that we all either got to experience or had to put up with (as one sees it) from the pandemic are on their way out. Like many ambitious restaurants around town, the newly opened Pastore leaves … Continue reading →

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Galveston redistricting lawsuit gets underway

Posted on August 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

This could be a big one. n the home of Juneteenth, the culmination of Galveston County’s decade-long effort to undermine the political power of Black and Latino voters is on trial. In the only county-level redistricting case which the federal … Continue reading →

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

Too many bicyclists are dying in traffic this year

Posted on August 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

We’ve got to do better. A fatal crash [in late July] cemented what cycling advocates had been warning about for months – Houston is going backwards when it comes to erasing roadway deaths of bicycle riders. “With few exceptions, trying … Continue reading →

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Another data point on ransomware

Posted on August 14, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

And other cybersecurity incidents, from the FBI. A series of cyberattacks across Texas, including some in the Houston region, are part of a growing statewide and national trend of increasingly sophisticated groups working through computers to steal money and information, … Continue reading →

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Weekend link dump for August 13

Posted on August 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

“In short, hand-counting ballots isn’t as easy as it sounds.” “A successful prosecution does not hinge on what Trump BELIEVED about the 2020 election. If Trump is convicted, it will be based on his ACTIONS.” “America’s worst gerrymander may soon … Continue reading →

Posted in Blog stuff | Tagged | 1 Comment

One losing Republican drops his sore loser lawsuit

Posted on August 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting. A Harris County GOP judicial candidate dropped his lawsuit challenging his November election results, one of 21 similar pending lawsuits brought by defeated Republican candidates. Dan Spjut lost the race for the Harris County Criminal Court at Law No. … Continue reading →

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Harris Health moves closer to a bond issue

Posted on August 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Almost certainly coming soon to a ballot near you. Harris County Commissioners on Tuesday briefly discussed a $2.5 billion bond proposal from the Harris Health System to fund the rebuilding and upgrading of several hospital district facilities, including the replacement … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The Astros meet the President

Posted on August 13, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Bill Kelly, Director of Government Relations for Mayor Sylvester Turner, got to visit the White House with the Astros to celebrate their winning the World Series last year. Here’s his report on what that’s like. For anyone who has ever … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Sore loser election contest lawsuit trial concludes

Posted on August 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Up to the judge now. Attorneys made their closing arguments Thursday in a case aimed at throwing out Harris County’s November election results, the first to go to trial out of 21 pending lawsuits brought by defeated Republican candidates in … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2022, Legal matters | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Fair For Houston gets its item on the ballot

Posted on August 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Glad to see it. The city of Houston is one step closer to potentially reshaping its relationship with the influential Houston-Galveston Area Council after officials verified Thursday that a charter amendment campaign had met the threshold for appearing on the … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Amtrak seeks partnership with Texas Central

Posted on August 12, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Hey look, a sign of life! The largely stalled initiative to construct a high-speed railway between Houston and Dallas is up and running again. Amtrak and Texas Central, the Dallas-based company behind the long-planned project, announced Wednesday they are exploring … Continue reading →

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Grand jury empaneled in Paxton case

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Well, well, well. Federal prosecutors have seated a grand jury in San Antonio and called witnesses close to suspended Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to testify, two sources with knowledge of the investigation told the American-Statesman. The purpose of the … Continue reading →

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

Jack Christie enters the Mayor’s race

Posted on August 11, 2023 by Charles Kuffner

Sure, why not? Former At-Large Councilmember Jack Christie launched a campaign for Houston mayor on Wednesday, making a late entry into an increasingly crowded race to lead the city for the next four years. Christie, a Republican, launched a website … Continue reading →

Posted in Election 2023 | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments