Tag Archives: Louisiana

A matter of priorities

Compare and contrast. State Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, the outspoken voice of the far right in the Senate, said he will be pushing vouchers that parents of school-age children could use for charter schools, online offerings or additional alternatives to … Continue reading

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 19 Comments

When monkeys are outlawed, only outlaws will have monkeys

Or something like that. Even in their Texas hideout, Jim and Donita Clark are terrified that wildlife agents from their home state of Louisiana will descend on their motorhome and seize the four Capuchin monkeys they’ve reared for 10 years. … Continue reading

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The black bears return to Texas

Very cool. SOMEWHERE IN BLUE ELBOW SWAMP — Hope, sometimes, is based on the strangest things. Here, deep in the near-impenetrable thickets of the Sabine River basin, it rides on sardines and tampons soaked in pastry filling. That exotic bait, … Continue reading

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Outsourcing inmates

We know Sheriff Adrian Garcia has a plan to fix problems with the Harris County jails. He’s been up front about what he wants to do, and he’s helped create the position of “jail czar”, who is tasked with finding … Continue reading

Posted in Crime and Punishment | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Our friend the stimulus package

Jason Embry tells us just how much Texas relied on the stimulus package this year. A new report from the National Conference of State Legislatures shows that federal stimulus dollars played a large role in allowing Texas lawmakers to balance … Continue reading

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How much money would expanded gambling generate?

Throughout this session, every time the subject of expanded gambling in Texas comes up, along with it comes some kind of projection of how much revenue it might generate. Those estimates always come from the proponent of that form of … Continue reading

Posted in Budget ballyhoo | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Two stories about gambling

The Chron’s David Barron talks to some experts about putting slot machines at horse tracks, which is one of several major proposals to expand gambling in Texas this legislative session. William Eadington, an economics professor at the University of Nevada … Continue reading

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