31 January 2005
Rumbo pushes smart, local, Spanish angles
Tom Kirkendall points to a New York Times article on Rumbo, the new Spanish-language daily newspaper that has been launched in four regions of Texas, including Houston.
At a time when the Chronicle has been redesigned and in some ways simplified for readers, Rumbo is betting that a smart newspaper with local focus will sell:
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/31/05 09:37 PM | Houston Media | Technorati | Comments (2)
Our MSM blogger can kick your MSM blogger's @#$%
Over the weekend, we called out Washington Post blogger Joel Achenbach for disrespecting Houston.
Today, the Chronicle's blogger Kyrie O'Connor storms into the middle of the fray:
Look, it's not my job to defend Houston. More to the point, I am defending open eyes. Your first editor at your first job should have explained to you how important it is to go into a situation with your senses poised and your mind alert. You can go in with a hypothesis, as my friend David Fink used to say, as long as you're willing to have your hypothesis overturned. I'm on the side of reporting, not on the side of Houston. You took the "easy figure" with your talk of Houston as an undifferentiated cell. It's just lazy, and if you worked for me, you'd be covering the sewer board meetings in the Virginia 'burbs for a while until you recalled why you got into this line of work in the first place -- to be the eyes and ears of the reader, not the spouter of preconceived notions.
Ouch! Bigtime brawl in MSM blogland! Round, O'Connor. Easily.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/31/05 08:51 PM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (16)
KHOU-11 takes its turn at toilet issue
Concern over downtown toilets seems to be a recurring theme among various Houston media outlets.
Today, KHOU-11's Doug Miller reports on the issue:
Seattle is one of the cities that recently installed public toilets. But unlike Seattle, Houston officials figure the cost is so high, the Bayou City's public bathrooms would have to become pay toilets.
Another big question: Where to put the public toilets? After all, if you own a restaurant or a bar downtown, do you really want your customers looking out of the window at a public toilet?
Until downtown boosters find the money for public restrooms, downtown pedestrians will have no relief in sight.
The Chronicle took up the pressing problem of inadequate public toilet facilities downtown back in July 2004, as highlighted on my personal blog.
The status of the story seems unchanged, so it appears that someone, somewhere finds the issue of downtown public toilets one that needs attention every six months or so.
At blogHOUSTON, we're sensitive to what appears to be an important issue to local media, so we'll do our part to boost downtown toilet development by suggesting Mayor White funnel revenues from his Loading Zone Tax into it. Given some of the expletives truck drivers have used for yet another of Mayor White's "new revenue streams," it seems appropriate for this one to fund downtown public toilets.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/31/05 07:31 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
Saavedra's challenge: which tests are necessary?
Today's Chronicle has a story about how difficult it will be for HISD superintendent Abe Saavedra to choose which tests to get rid of, in his quest to reduce the amount of time spent testing students.
A good part of the article is spent debating the merits of the Stanford Achievement Test and includes these quotes from a couple of experts:
"Testing is just a way to get information about students' learning, and we have far too much testing going on," said Thomas Haladyna, an Arizona State University professor specializing in standardized test research. "When it comes down to which tests are most useful, that would be the TAKS. The Stanford would be the least useful because it's not aligned with Texas' standards."
[snip]
It could be the Stanford has outlived its usefulness for Houston schools, said Dworkin, the UH researcher. School ratings in both the state and federal systems are based on TAKS performance, he said.
"As we move toward No Child Left Behind, TAKS becomes the measuring stick for Texas, and it may be feasible to drop some of the norm-referenced testing — Stanford is one — especially as TAKS becomes more rigorous," he said.
Any school district that receives federal money, for example through a program like Title I, must administer a nationally-normed test, and that is what the Stanford Achievement Test is. Saavedra often points out that 80% of HISD students qualify for federally subsidized, low income school meals. That means HISD probably gets a sizable chunk of Title I money and must adminster a test like the Stanford. It's not just about school ratings. HISD needs to keep Title I money flowing and must follow the rules to do so. Unless Saavedra can work out some special arrangement with the Feds, there's little he can do to get out of the Stanford.
The story also talks, generally, about the other tests HISD adminsters:
Most of the 22 standardized tests used by HISD would be difficult to discard. Some, such as the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, are state-mandated. Others measure college-readiness, such as the PSAT, or identify gifted students, such as the Naglieri.
The story doesn't list all of the 22 standardized tests, but aside from TAKS and the Stanford test, most other testing is voluntary; some tests are not conducted every year; and some are specifically targeted, to identify gifted students or special education students. They aren't given to every student.
Gayle Fallon, president of the Houston Federation of Teachers, said this:
"If you teach the curriculum," she said, "they should do all right on the test."
Yes, if the basics are taught, the testing wouldn't be as big a problem. Which leads to this excellent observation by a former HISD school board member:
[Don] McAdams agrees it's time for a re-evaluation of the tests taken by Houston's 209,000 students
"But I would not want to see the public fall into the trap of thinking that teaching and testing are somehow opposed to each other," he said.
If decision-makers in Houston and elsewhere are concerned with freeing up more instructional time, "The place to start is movies, field trips and other activities that aren't involved in supporting the curriculum and the learning process."
Hoo boy! As a parent, I am continually amazed at the amount of time spent on everything but learning!
Saavedra has a good idea, but no one said it was going to be easy. If it was easy, someone else would have already done it.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/31/05 05:51 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
Define cooperate
Here's an interesting excerpt from Mayor White's State of the City speech:
And I told you last year at my first State of the City Address that we had to get the stalled and wrecked vehicles off of our freeways faster, to relieve congestion and improve safety. And at that time I said that it would be a fight. Boy, was that right! Now our SafeClear Program is unclogging our freeways and making them safer. Drivers already have begun noticing a difference. And we are able to provide additional services at affordable prices, in cooperation with the MAP Program and with more efficient and accountable towing industry. Sure, it's been a fight to bring some order out of chaos, and we will improve the program based on performance, but Houston's future is worth that fight. You know we just can't build ourselves out of gridlock, so we must manage traffic better.
You have to admit he's a fine city cheerleader, but the part that caught my eye was where he says the city is working "in cooperation with the MAP program." I wonder how the mayor defines cooperate? A recent Chronicle story might have a partial answer:
Walter Wainwright, president of the Houston Automobile Dealers Association and one of the organizers of MAP, said Houston police showed no interest when invited to join in the fledgling effort in 1986.
Since then, he said, the city has cooperated with the program but has not helped to staff it or pay for its expansion.
Maybe "cooperation" means the city isn't using $AFEclear wreckers to run MAP trucks off the road.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/31/05 10:16 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (4)
We probably need a task force, right?
We certainly can't call Mayor White "Hop on a Flight White," because he is firmly planted in Houston, taking on yet another project to better the lives of city residents -- and I am not talking about his drive to get Houstonians in better physical shape. No, I'm talking about his "Flex Plan":
Could flexible working hours at your job ease the traffic nightmare?
According to the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, Houston is fourth in the nation for the longest delays per person spent in traffic.
Mayor White has long said he wants to get the city moving again and one idea, known as the Flex Plan, may add some muscle to that goal.
[snip]
"The reality is we want to continue to grow as a city. We aren't going to be able to widen and double the size of every major street and thoroughfare in town, so we have to manage the traffic on the existing streets and freeways better," says Mayor White.
The mayor will not talk specifics about how he plans to do that, but says he plans to meet with the major corporations and talk about a flexible work schedule.
Uh oh. If recent events ($AFEclear) are any indicator, we'd like to see some specifics.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/31/05 09:01 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (5)
Iraq: An editorial page survey
Although we've urged the Chronicle to focus its editorial pages -- and focus them on local issues - we were nonetheless surprised this morning not to find a mention of Iraq's elections on the editorial pages.
Elsewhere in the state, the two major newspapers that tend to maintain a worldly focus did editorialize on those elections (see the Austin American-Statesman and the Dallas Morning News).
True to form, two major state newspapers that tend to maintain a more parochial focus (the Fort Worth Star Telegram and the San Antonio Express-News) chose not to editorialize on those elections today.
Here in town, the Chronicle, whose editorials range from the politics of Swaziland to the efforts of one editorial member to give away her leftovers, chose to editorialize on the Heflin/Vo race and on a recent State Department alert regarding the Mexican border. It's disappointing that a newspaper that has covered Iraq with such interest -- often quite critically -- decided that Iraq's elections were not the news of the weekend, and worthy of Monday commentary.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/31/05 08:46 AM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (4)
30 January 2005
GM's Sequel will not appear at Houston auto show
Moving on from Washington Post columnists who criticize Houston, how about major automakers disrespecting Houston by declining to show some of their more innovative offerings at the Houston auto show?
John C. Roper reports that GM's hydrogen-powered Sequel will appear at several "major" auto shows, but not Houston's:
The 2005 concept car generating the most buzz in the auto industry, the hydrogen-powered Sequel from General Motors, is not appearing at the Houston Auto Show.
But in the not-too-distant future, it could have a dramatic effect on the energy capital of the world.
The car, which emits clean water vapor from its exhaust pipe, first appeared at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January and will make several stops at major shows in coming months.
GM won't say where it will appear, but the Houston show didn't make the cut.
I haven't been to the Houston auto show in years, but past experience has been that companies rarely rolled out their most innovative offerings for it -- which is why I haven't been in years. That seems unlikely to change this time.
Thanks to Laurence Simon for alerting me to this news.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/30/05 09:03 PM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (9)
WaPo blogger regurgitates tired Houston cliches
Washington Post blogger Joel Achenbach takes some shots at Houston in a recent post.
Criticism of Houston has become such a cliche that it's surprising to me that self-important national-media types even take the time these days.
Still, if they're going to do it, surely they can do better this:
Houston is the least vertical city in America. The land is flat, the buildings are flat, even the food is flat.
The land IS flat (he'll have to take that one up with the Almighty). The buildings are NOT flat (maybe he's heard of that guy who recently passed away, Philip Johnson, who had so much to do with Houston's beautiful skyline). And this is a GREAT restaurant town, not flat at all. Sorry, one for three is good in baseball, but not so good when it comes to blogging.
What's unfortunate about these sorts of columns/posts is that one great unstated reason we built a crash-prone light rail line down a busy, already dangerous Main Street corridor was so that we could impress national media types who came to visit (especially for the Super Bowl).
Obviously, it hasn't worked out that way.
Thanks to Eric Siegmund for calling attention to this one.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/30/05 08:40 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (11)
Katy Freeway reopens
The Katy Freeway has reopened after this weekend's construction closure:
Interstate 10 east- and westbound between Silber and Washington has been reopened after weekend construction crews shut it down.
The I-10 and Loop 610 connector ramps have also reopened.
The Katy Freeway Public Information Office announced the reopening about 1:30 p.m. today.
Closure of eastbound traffic, which began at 9 p.m. Friday, was reopened Saturday night.
Westbound traffic, which also shut down at 9 p.m. Friday, reopened ahead of its 3 p.m. deadline today.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/30/05 02:19 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (0)
Ken Hoffman gets to the point
In his column today, Ken Hoffman tackles a pressing $AFEclear issue:
If keeping the freeways clear of stopped vehicles is such a priority, the city needs to prevent cars from parking on the freeway shoulders during fireworks celebrations.
I hope that the Safe Clear program would address this potentially very dangerous issue. It would make no sense to pass laws clearing the freeways while whole families are allowed to line up on the shoulder of the freeways on what is often the highest drunk-driving day of the year.
I like celebrations as much as the next guy, but freeways are for driving, not parking.
Vernon Guy, Houston
Just put some traffic cops holding ticket books on the freeway. That will keep the cars moving.
And helps a reader rate Houston's mayor:
I have lived in Houston since 1978 and have seen quite a few mayors come and go. As far as I'm concerned, our current mayor works 24/7 on the city's business. I admire and respect him, and though I don't always agree with everything he promotes, at least he is doing something. For that, the citizens of Houston will be better off down the road. I might add, I did not vote for him when he ran for mayor.
Tim S. Dupy, Houston
Then again, it's not like he had big shoes to fill.
The editors continue to under-utilize Hoffman. He's much better than any of the dinosaurs writing columns for that paper, and we can guess he would make a terrific blogger.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/30/05 12:14 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (1)
Do recent events signal McLane's desire to sell the Astros?
Tom Kirkendall has some thoughts about the future of Drayton McLane:
[...]I have suspected for awhile that Drayton is preparing to sell the Stros. Given that Drayton is the best owner in Stros' history, I have not heretofore considered rumors of him thinking about selling the club to be particularly good news. But based on developments over this past off-season, I am beginning to think that it may be time for Drayton to sell the club.
I, for one, greatly appreciate Kirkendall's ability to make the ins and outs of Houston's professional baseball team understandable and interesting.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/30/05 08:34 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (5)
Chronicle publishes Saddam Hussein apologist on Iraq election day
Here's an eye-opening op-ed choice to run on the day when the people of Iraq are voting -- freely voting:
In defense of Saddam Hussein: Iraqi dictator has been demonized
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/30/05 07:44 AM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (8)
29 January 2005
Chronicle covers $AFEclear loophole
In typical Chronicle fashion, today we get some local "olds":
The city will try to revoke the permits of 30 wrecker drivers licensed under the Safe Clear mandatory towing ordinance after discovering that they have criminal records but will have to strengthen the ordinance to do so, officials said this week.
The city licenses about 250 drivers under the program, which gives 11 towing companies exclusive contracts to tow cars from freeways.
City Councilman Michael Berry said a summary of the 30 drivers' backgrounds by Houston police discovered crimes such as forgeries and drug offenses. Berry said he did not see any "hard-core violent offenders" or sex offenders on the list.
KPRC-2 covered this story last Tuesday, and we posted on it then.
One thing of interest is that the KPRC story said this:
Sources told Local 2 that a preliminary check uncovered drivers with criminal convictions, including a serial rapist and those with a history of other violent crimes. It also found a large number of drivers with convictions for DWI, drugs, fraud and theft, officials said.
And Councilman Berry says he didn't "see any 'hardcore violent offenders' or sex offenders on the list."
Hmmmm.
But to the Chronicle's credit, the reporter did include this important point:
In touting the ordinance, Mayor Bill White has said that by requiring background checks of contract drivers, it would help keep criminals in tow trucks from preying on stranded motorists.
He did not disclose until this week that the ordinance doesn't have the teeth to do that.
White said he recently became aware of a 1994 federal law designed to deregulate the interstate trucking industry that inadvertently weakened the power of cities to regulate the towing industry. Because of this law, White said the city needs an ordinance giving it power to deny permits to tow-truck drivers who don't pass criminal background checks.
It's not clear what "recently became aware of" means. Did the mayor become aware of the loophole last week or last month? I would argue that implementing such a devastatingly heavy-handed program, when some very important facts were not considered or known, doesn't put the mayor or his advisors in a very good light. How many other far-reaching programs (eminent domain, red light cameras, tasers, smoking ban) is the mayor undertaking where he doesn't have all the facts before him?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/29/05 11:40 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (1)
28 January 2005
PDA-Friendly option added
We've finally set up a PDA friendly skin of the main page of the site.
It's also available on the main menu in the sidebar, under PDA Friendly.
The page contains a link to simplify setting up a custom AvantGo page, for those who use that service.
Please let us know if you experience any difficulties with the option.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/05 10:58 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (5)
Dan Patrick comments on programming philosophy, recent ratings
The Brazosport News regularly posts updates on Houston radio ratings, and that recently prompted some discussion in our comments, including a request for blogHOUSTON commenter and KSEV-700 guru David Benzion to elaborate on their meaning.
Today, Dan Patrick himself takes up our request, in a blog post that attempts to shed some light on his programming philosophy at KSEV and how he views the ratings in that context.
Curiously, the original post contained links to both the original Brazosport News post and the discussion that ensued here, but those links are no longer in the post. Perhaps the LST crew is having technical difficulties.
Substantively, the post is an interesting glimpse at programming philosophy, but it would be even more interesting if Patrick had pasted in some raw ratings data excerpts for certain time slots. For whatever reason, that raw data seems closely held by programmers. Of course, that's the data of most interest to us laymen.
With format changes and people moving around the dial, the next few ratings periods ought to be entertaining for local media watchers. Here's hoping that Patrick -- and maybe someone from Clear Channel -- will offer further thoughts as new ratings are available.
UPDATE (01-29-2005): Banjo Jones weighs in with Talk radio slap fight.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/05 10:54 PM | Houston Media | Technorati | Comments (10)
Where's the $AFEclear wrecker going to leave a stranded driver?
Here are some $AFEclear questions: if a wrecker tows your car, how do you know that the driver is going to leave you in a safe place? What if you are in an unfamiliar part of town? Will you be able to call for help? Well, one Houston business owner is trying to provide answers to some of those questions:
For 25 years now, a family-owned business on the North Freeway has made signs. But of all the signs they've ever made, they've never made one advertising this. Atlas Signs has rolled out the welcome mat for stranded drivers towed off the freeway under the new Safe Clear program.
"We're just trying to give them a safe place. They'll have four hours to fix their car. They don't have to worry about it getting towed or somebody messing with their car," said Chad Foreman, the Sign Store manager. "They can go get gas if they need gas. If they need to borrow a gas can, we'll let them borrow a gas can."
Houston's controversial new freeway towing plan requires wreckers to haul stranded motorists off the road and leave the both the vehicle and its occupants in a safe place.
Now a council member wants police to draw up a list of specific places where wrecker drivers can drop off stranded drivers.
"My goal is to make sure that the spots that they are left at have been cleared by the police as a place that's safe for an individual to be," said Gordon Quan, Houston City Councilmember. "That there's adequate lighting, that there's a telephone so they can call for help, preferably restrooms."
The councilman says he's already found about 350 spots that could be designated as what he calls "safe drop" locations.
Again, can anyone think of a more poorly designed city policy? Goodness, this program is so bad, on so many levels. I still like Kevin's idea of keeping the Motorist Assistance Program's phone number handy, preferably on speed dial.
The very last sentence in this KHOU-11 story made me laugh, though:
Houston councilmembers are scheduled to vote next week on proposed changes to the Safe Clear program.
Right. We're not holding our breath anymore.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/28/05 07:30 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (2)
Katy Freeway closure
KHOU-11 provides details of the Katy Freeway closure this weekend and how to get around it:
According to TXDOT, the main lanes of I-10 eastbound and westbound, including the HOV lanes, between Silber and Washington will be closed. The direct connectors from I-610 northbound and southbound to I-10 West will be closed from Friday 9 p.m. until Saturday 6 p.m.
I-10 Eastbound Traffic
Traffic will be detoured via the I-610 north and south direct connectors. Eastbound drivers can go south, exit Woodway and make a U-turn to access I-10 east by way of the I-610 northbound to I-10 east connector. Or, north on I-610 and exit 18th Street, make a U-turn to access I-610 southbound to the I-10 east connector.
I-10 Westbound Traffic
There will be four options for I-10 westbound travelers.
1. Exit Washington Ave. to Old Katy Road to re-enter I-10 westbound via the Silber entrance ramp.
2. Take I-610 north, exit 18th Street, make a U-turn to access Old Katy Road, re-enter I-10 westbound via the Silber entrance ramp.
3. I-610 southbound traffic destined for I-10 west will be detoured to Old Katy Road. Re-enter I-10 westbound via the Silber entrance ramp.
4. I-610 northbound traffic destined for I-10 west will be detoured to I-10 eastbound. Exit Washington and follow the detour to Old Katy Road to re-enter I-10 west using the Silber entrance ramp.
Once the mainlanes of I-10 eastbound are clean, the lanes will be reopened to traffic at or before 6 p.m. on Saturday.
RELATED: KTRK-13 coverage
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/28/05 03:53 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (3)
Chron byline policy draws more criticism
The Chronicle's policy of uninformative bylines is attracting attention from a couple of prominent blogs.
National Review's Corner links to Little Green Footballs, which criticizes the following byline from a recent op-ed:
Zappala is a part-time teacher in Los Angeles.
As Charles Johnson notes, that's not really the entire story:
A Google Search on Mr. Zappala’s name, however, reveals that although he may indeed be a part time teacher, he is also a full time peace activist from a full time peace activist family; in addition to the Houston Chronicle, Salon, and the Star Tribune, his articles appear regularly at sites such as “Occupation Watch,” Counterpunch, and the openly communist People’s Weekly World newspaper. He’s been callously exploiting the death of his brother to argue his anti-war agenda for months now, in many articles. Google has more than 3,000 hits for this guy.
That seems like useful background information that Chronicle readers might like to know.
We've been calling attention to the Chronicle's byline practices for a while now, and have been unsuccessful at getting an explanation for them. Perhaps the scrutiny of some prominent, high-traffic blogs will prompt a response from 801 Texas Avenue, although I'm not holding my breath.
Matt Bramanti previously criticized the op-ed in question on Lone Star Times.
RELATED: Can anyone explain the editorial policy?, The policy of uninformative bylines, Chron byline policy: anything goes!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/05 02:25 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (0)
DMN, Chron updates on Southwest's IAH decision
Yesterday, Anne Linehan noted the Chronicle's coverage of Southwest Airlines' decision to end its operations at Bush Intercontinental Airport.
Today, Dallas Morning News columnist Suzanne Marta provides the sort of detailed coverage that we'd like to see from the Chronicle on local stories.
NOTE: The Chronicle has updated its coverage from yesterday.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/05 10:20 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (0)
Do red light cameras reduce accidents or generate revenue?
Recently, Mayor Bill White convinced City Council to approve red light traffic cameras, ostensibly to improve safety. However, some of us think it's more likely a new way to generate revenue, kind of like $AFEclear.
With that in mind, here are the results of a study performed by the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Transportation that shows injury accidents actually increased at intersections where red light cameras were installed:
Despite a distinct sympathy in favor of camera enforcement, the researchers found a "definite" increase in rear-end accidents and only a "possible" decrease in angle accidents. Most importantly, the net effect was that more injuries happened after cameras are installed. Camera proponents explain this away by asserting angle accidents are more serious, but this claim has not been scientifically studied according to this report. The rear end collisions caused by the cameras still produce injuries -- the original promise of camera proponents was that they would reduce accidents and injuries, not rearrange them.
This study agrees with long-term findings in Australia and North Carolina.
If this were truly about safety, the city might try to lengthen yellow light times first, to see if that helps reduce red light violations. Or how about the idea of programming the lights so all lights in an intersection stay red for one to two seconds? Or take some police officers off $AFEclear taxi duty and have them monitor the worst intersections? But, those ideas won't generate revenue.
Also on the subject of red light cameras, a Houston attorney writes that large municipalities are turning traffic tickets into civil cases, which he says is a revenue-generator:
A more recent example is the City of Houston's aggressive attempt to decriminalize red light tickets. Running a red light under Texas State law is a Class C Misdemeanor, a criminal offense. As such, it carries all the protections due an accused in a criminal case. In what many consider an unconstitutional move, the City of Houston passed an ordinance on December 21, 2004 to decriminalize some red light tickets at intersections where the City of Houston will be installing cameras to monitor traffic. The City of Houston, a political subdivision of the State of Texas, has usurped the power of the Texas State Legislature and changed running a red light from a criminal violation to a civil violation.
There will be two different standards in Houston for the same offense. Those accused of running a red light at an intersection without a camera will be charged criminally and those accused of running a red light at an intersection with a camera will be cited civilly. Under Houston's ordinance, the owner of a car cited with running a red light at an intersection monitored by a camera will be presumed guilty and owe a fine of $75 ($150 for a third or subsequent violations). To fight these tickets, the owner of the car will now have to go before an administrative hearing officer, not a judge or jury, and prove that he or she did not run the red light.
That's pretty enlightening, I think.
Mayor White is a shrewd guy. He knows that people are fed up with new taxes, so he masks these revenue-generating ideas in the guise of safety. Some members of the Texas Legislature have promised to deal with Houston's red light camera ordinance so maybe the mayor will get the chance to try out some of those alternative solutions really to reduce the number of red light runners in a safe manner.
KEVIN WHITED (SNARKILY) ADDS: I get the idea Anne purposely avoided using that term favored by those who like to expand government, "new revenue stream." Between the expanded downtown parking meters, red light cameras, and SAFEclear wrecker-oligopoly franchise fees, Mayor White has indeed created "new revenue streams."
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/28/05 08:35 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (8)
Dan Lovett to host new weekly tv sports show
David Barron reports that Dan Lovett will be returning to Houston television:
Veteran Houston broadcaster Dan Lovett returns to the airwaves with The Point After, premiering at 10:30 p.m. Saturday on KPXB (Ch. 49). Dan Pastorini appears on the first show.
Back before Dan Patrick decided to expand the Chronically Biased site into Lone Star Times, one of my "fun" duties as one of the editor guys over there was getting a sneak preview of Dan Lovett columns to edit and post. Lovett has a wealth of knowledge, and interesting stories to tell. I'm glad he'll be getting a bigger audience for them.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/05 08:04 AM | Houston Media | Technorati | Comments (3)
Rock radio returns to Houston
Those of us who were missing KLOL have something to smile about:
At noon Thursday, Cumulus Media flipped the former KRWP-FM Power 97.5 urban contemporary station to Rock 97.5. The first song played was AC/DC's For Those About to Rock (We Salute You).
The station is led by radio veteran Pat Fant, who managed KLOL in its heyday from 1983 until 1995, when he introduced the Buzz alternative music format at KTBZ-FM (94.5).
"This town is too big, too fast, too fantastic not to have a real rock station," Fant told an excited crowd at a launch party at the Fox Sports Grill.
Former KLOL personalities Jim Pruett and Dayna Steele Justiz were among those in the audience. Pruett said he is negotiating with the new station to helm a midday show.
Rumors were flying that the station hopes to sign former KLOL disc jockeys Outlaw Dave and the morning duo of Walton & Johnson when their non-compete clauses expire in the next few months.
Fant said no contact has taken place with the former KLOL DJs, but "when this talent is free to negotiate, my phone is always open, and I'm eager to talk."
[snip]
While the rock format is not nearly as popular as it was 20 years ago, it does well among men between the ages of 25-54, a hard-to-reach demographic.
"Why do you think beer companies pay so much to be on Monday Night Football?" Taylor said.
The first advertiser on Rock 97.5 was Budweiser.
All's right with the world again.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/28/05 06:59 AM | Houston Media | Technorati | Comments (9)
Food and drink roundup (01-28-2005 edition)
Houston's food and drink reviewers put out a fair amount of copy this week.
Robb Walsh continues his ongoing quest for Houston's best dim sum.
Alison Cook is off this week, but Dai Huynh returns to the Chronicle (after an absence) with various restaurant news, and an article on Indian chaat.
Ken Hoffman has the scoop on Pizza Hut's new dippin' pizza (among other things).
And Gracie Ochoa checks in on the Galleria's Fox Sports Grill, a bar with a fine decor that is, unfortunately, not enhanced by the uncomfortable couches, slow service, and expensive drinks.
That's it for another week. Enjoy your food and drink this weekend!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/05 12:19 AM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (0)
27 January 2005
Chron proposes remedial education as solution to prison crowding
The Chronicle weighed in today with a typical soft-on-crime editorial:
Texas prisons are filling up faster than state officials had estimated, with more than 150,000 inmates behind bars and capacity only a whisker away from a maximum 97.5 percent of beds filled. Because of the crunch, Texas Department of Criminal Justice officials are asking legislators to make an emergency appropriation of $62 million to provide more inmate housing, including contracting for space in county jails. With education funding reform and a revamping of the child and adult protective services system high on the legislative agenda, it's money lawmakers simply do not have.
It's also a crisis that didn't need to happen. Of the 77,000 offenders entering state prison in fiscal 2004, nearly half were incarcerated, not because they committed a new crime, but because of parole or probation violations. Such technical violations include missing a mandated meeting with supervisory officers.
[snip]
The system should work to make communities safer. Instead, it sets up arbitrary obstacles that block petty criminals' re-entry into productive society, all at an unduly high price to law-abiding taxpayers. Returning former offenders to a cell for minor technical violations wastes money that could be better spent on real anticrime solutions, such as substance-abuse treatment and remedial education.
Remedial education as a real anticrime solution? Ah, it's like a '70s progressive flashback.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/27/05 11:58 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (10)
Covering those wacky Republican lawbreakers
Chris Elam, blogHOUSTON's favorite safety expert, finds a strange headline on some AP copy in the Chronicle.
No doubt the first paragraph appealed to the editor who selected it for publication.
With Tom DeLay on best behavior of late, the Chron is apparently having to reach a bit to keep up that hard hitting coverage of those wacky Republican lawbreakers.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/27/05 10:27 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (2)
HISD institutes hiring freeze
HISD Superintendent Abe Saavedra has ordered a hiring freeze for all non-teaching positions:
HISD’s budget has been cut more than $100 million in the past four years.
Dr. Saavedra’s order requires Texas’ largest school district to freeze hiring for all administrative, support, technical and other positions.
[snip]
HISD and other Texas school districts sued the state over the school finance system and won a judgment declaring the Texas system of finance unconstitutional. School districts are urging the Legislature to take action to replace the old finance system with a new one that is equitable and increases funding for schools.
The next fiscal year won’t begin until July 1, but HISD already is making plans for millions of dollars in additional cuts as it awaits action from the Legislature. Dr. Saavedra said he ordered the hiring freeze to stop any additional non-teacher hiring at a time when the district is planning to eliminate more jobs. The hiring freeze can only be lifted for a critical situation and only by the order of Dr. Saavedra.
“It wouldn’t be right for us to hire new people right now when we are probably going to have to eliminate jobs again this year,” Dr. Saavedra said. “That isn’t fair to our employees, and it doesn’t make good business sense.”
HISD, America’s seventh largest school district, has about 30,000 full and part-time employees. HISD’s budget has been cut from $1.4 billion in 2001 to $1.3 billion this year. The district has eliminated more than 500 jobs in the central administration in the last two years alone. For the most part, school budgets have not been cut.
In any large school district -- and HISD is a big one -- there are plenty of people who can be moved around, to fill needs. With that many schools, there are undoubtedly many jobs that are redundant and could be consolidated, even if only temporarily. But it would be nice to see HISD take this opportunity to become leaner, in some administrative and support areas.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/27/05 06:16 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
Southwest leaving Bush Intercontinental
Southwest Airlines will discontinue flights at Bush Intercontinental Airport in April:
Flights will continue as scheduled through April 2, and passengers with reservations after that will be offered flights out of Houston's Hobby Airport .
Southwest only operates half a dozen flights out of Bush Airport currently-- all to Dallas Love Field.
Houston Hobby, on the other hand, is Southwest's fifth-busiest airport, with 139 daily departures, including 29 daily flights to Dallas Love Field.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/27/05 11:11 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (4)
Packin' heat on the Danger Train
The Chronicle is reporting that Metro will allow riders to carry licensed handguns on board its trains and buses:
Metro board members are expected to vote this afternoon to repeal the restriction, which has been in effect since 1995 after the Legislature voted to allow licensed owners to carry concealed handguns in most public places.
State Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson, who wrote the legislation as a state senator, has been a vocal critic of bans such as those adopted by Metro and many other government entities in Texas in response to the "right-to-carry" law.
He, the Texas State Rifle Association and four licensed Harris County gun owners sued Metro in 2003, seeking to overturn the ban. Now that Metro is dropping its policy, he said, he plans to challenge similar restrictions in other cities, probably starting with Austin's Capital Metro.
"They implemented these when there was collective hysteria from detractors, who said there would be blood in the streets and shootouts at every four-way stop," Patterson said. "None of that proved true."
[snip]
Patterson said the ban was essentially unenforceable and that many Metro riders already carry pistols.
"It was a prohibition against undetectable conduct because, by law, it is required for it to be concealed, to begin with," he said. "I have carried my handgun on Metro buses on at least three occasions because I knew it to be an unlawful restriction."
Metro doesn't even check to see if every passenger on the train has paid the fare, so it's not surprising Metro police haven't been checking for weapons.
I wonder if the "collective hysteria from detractors" included local media? Maybe we should keep our eyes peeled for a Chronicle editorial on this, although it is a local topic, so we'll need to give the editors at least a week to write one up.
("Danger Train" is what Kevin Whited has long called the light rail train on his PubliusTX blog.)
UPDATE: The Chronicle story now notes that the Metro board unanimously approved the policy change.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/27/05 07:26 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (28)
26 January 2005
Philip Johnson, RIP
Noted architect Philip Johnson has passed away.
Johnson was responsible for designing many of Houston's landmark buildings.
KHOU-11's Carolyn Mungo has a good report on Johnson, with links some of his notable buildings.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/26/05 11:24 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (1)
Cause of light rail crash under investigation
KPRC-2 has updated an earlier story on this morning's light rail crash, and is running the ominous headline "Police Not Sure Who To Blame For METRORail Crash"
The driver contends that he entered an intersection on a green light, only to be sideswiped by the tram.
After previous collisions, Metro police rushed to the scene and lectured Houston drivers on safety.
This time, police aren't assigning blame so quickly:
[Motorist Robert] Oden said the cameras at the intersection and on the train would show what really happened.
"They have cameras up and down this route strictly for something like this," Oden said.
The cause of the accident remains under investigation. If Oden is ticketed for the accident, he will also be responsible for repairing the damaged train.
METRO told Local 2 that since the light-rail system began operating in November 2003, there have been about 70 accidents. They also said that out of those 70 accidents, only one train operator has been held responsible for the collision.
That would be 75, for those scoring at home.
UPDATE (01-27-2005): A Chronicle blurb indicates Metro is now blaming the motorist:
Two MetroRail passengers were taken to St. Joseph's Hospital complaining of minor injuries after a car crashed into the train they were riding in the Museum District Wednesday morning. Metro spokesman Ken Connaughton said the car was eastbound on Hermann just after 10 a.m. when it ran a red light and struck the southbound train on Fannin. It was the third collision on the Main Street light rail line this year.
It seems clear from other reports that the train hit the car, although it is unclear whether the car was in the intersection legally. Even if it were in the intersection illegally, writing that the car "crashed into the train" seems purposely backwards. The newspaper should not bend factual descriptions to fit its pro-rail agenda.
KHOU-11 posts a story and video of the crash here.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/26/05 02:15 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (8)
Chronicle talks style vs. substance
This is the headline across the top of today's "star" section:
Style Vs. Substance
At first I thought it was going to be a story about the Chronicle's redesign, which aimed for an easier-to-read format without actually improving the paper's content.
But, I quickly realized it was a story about the Oscar nominations announced yesterday. (The headline for the online story is not the same as what's in today's paper.)
It was a fun thought, for a brief moment.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/26/05 10:09 AM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (5)
Poe to observe elections in Iraq
While reading the Fort Worth Star Telegram, Rob Booth found the news that new U.S. Representative Ted Poe (R) will be in Iraq observing elections.
"For some reason," Booth deadpans, "the Chronicle didn't pick up the story."
The newspaper did, however, pick up three different "Chron Eye" AP dispatches on yesterday's execution of convicted murderer Troy Kunkle.
The editors do have their priorities.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/26/05 08:53 AM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (11)
25 January 2005
Chron byline policy: anything goes!
The Chronicle ran an op-ed on air pollution by Jane Dale Owen today.
Unfortunately, the newspaper apparently still has not solved its old problem with bylines.
Here is how Jane Dale Owen is described:
Owen, a Houstonian, is president of Citizens League for Environmental Action Now (CLEAN). She is granddaughter of Robert Lee Blaffer, co-founder of Humble Oil, and the only nonscientist member of the Federation of American Scientists.
While it's understandable that Owen might want to embellish her environmental credentials with something more substantive than her family's affluence, there's just one little problem with the bolded part of that byline: anybody who wants to spend $50 can join the Federation of American Scientists.
While we have not called to verify this, I think it's fairly safe to conclude Owen is NOT the only nonscientist member of the organization (since it counts "scientists and informed citizens" among its 2,000 members).
We've previously noted the Chronicle's policy (or lack of same) on uninformative bylines. Leaving out useful information is one thing, but at the very least, the newspaper should refrain from printing factually incorrect bylines.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/25/05 09:43 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (6)
$AFEclear loophole allows serial rapist to be tow truck driver
One thing I remember Mayor White saying when he was trying to sell $AFEclear, was that all tow truck drivers in the $AFEclear program would have to pass background checks. You know, since the city was basically forcing anyone with a broken down car to get in a tow truck with a stranger. Well, it sounds like that didn't go according to plan:
Sources told Local 2 that a preliminary check uncovered drivers with criminal convictions, including a serial rapist and those with a history of other violent crimes. It also found a large number of drivers with convictions for DWI, drugs, fraud and theft, officials said.
Wow! But don't worry, city officials are on the job:
Some council members said they still have a lot of unanswered questions about the Safe Clear ordinance. The city leaders also said they want to make sure the public is safe when dealing with the tow truck operators.
"Safe Clear is going to set the standard for what we insist on in tow truck operators," Houston Mayor Bill White said.
White said he will ask City Council next week to pass an ordinance tightening up a possible loophole in the background checks of wrecker drivers.
Why in the world would there be a loophole in these background checks? And now it is being addressed? The mayor says, "$AFEclear is going to set the standard for what we insist on in tow truck operators." I will assume the mayor is aiming for a high standard and not the standard that says a serial rapist is okay, but why didn't we have the high standard in place on January 1st? And next week (next week?) the mayor is going to ask City Council to close the loophole -- the same City Council that has been ignoring him for two weeks on $AFEclear changes.
The city needs to make available some other form of transportation for people subjected to forced towing. This concern was brought up again and again when $AFEclear was first being hashed out. People were very nervous about, for example, women and teenage girls being forced to get into tow trucks with men they didn't know. The mayor repeatedly gave assurances that there was no reason to be concerned, that every driver would have to pass a background check.
This is a big failure on the city's part.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/25/05 07:58 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (2)
Is the Toll Road Authority taking control of the Grand Parkway?
Spring residents have lost a battle in the fight over the Grand Parkway:
Despite pleas from a group of Spring residents who oppose the road, Commissioners Court gave the Harris County Toll Road Authority permission today to spend $5.6 million to plot out a 52-mile section of the Grand Parkway in north Houston.
The county has yet to commit to building the section of the Grand Parkway, a 182-mile super loop around Houston that has been planned for decades. The Texas Department of Transportation will make final decisions on expansion of the Grand Parkway, and the county would need TxDot's approval before it could build the section.
The Spring residents say one proposed route for the toll road would divide subdivisions in their town, cut across a high school baseball field and provide no relief to congestion on local roads.
"The more I know, the less I like," said Connie O'Donnell, a member of United to Save Our Spring. "I think it is and always has been a developer's dream of a highway."
Commissioner Jerry Eversole, whose Precinct 4 includes Spring and most of the other areas where the section would be built, said the road is needed to provide solutions to the area's current and future traffic needs.
"It still goes back to I think it's the right thing to do. It has nothing to do with selling homes or building shopping centers," Eversole said. "The solution will be to build the road, to take the consequences and, if it means my defeat, then it means my defeat."
I am suspicious of Eversole's assertion that the Grand Parkway has nothing to do with new developments. (I should also disclose, again, that I live in the area that would be impacted by this segment of the Grand Parkway, and I am opposed to the project. Also, this topic is being discussed more in our forum.) It would appear that this project has quite a lot to do with selling homes and building shopping centers. Otherwise, why would State Sen. Jon Lindsay, a big proponent of the parkway, have held a private meeting with developers to discuss Grand Parkway plans?
Recently there was a rumor that a toll road might be built through the Heights area. The outrage that immediately followed had Harris County Judge Robert Eckels running for media outlets to declare his opposition to that idea. It is interesting to note that Judge Eckels is in full support of the Grand Parkway project. Spring residents and business owners are not getting the same consideration from Judge Eckels that Heights residents received.
It's clear that if the Harris County Toll Road Authority takes control of the project, no more public input will have to be considered and no more environmental impact reports will be done. The HCTRA does not have to meet the same requirements as TxDOT.
UPDATE: The Chronicle has a new story posted with more details, including some information about State Sen. Jon Lindsay that demonstrates not just his support of the project, but his efforts to get the project completed:
County officials rejected state Sen. Jon Lindsay's offer to work for the county as a consultant who would try to persuade north Harris County developers to donate land for the project.
Lindsay, a Republican who represents much of the area where the segment would be built, has long supported the Grand Parkway.
He said he met last year with 14 developers who own land between Texas 249 and I-45. About 10 of the developers agreed to donate land to the county for the toll road, Lindsay said.
With that land, the toll road could have been built without traversing as many Spring residential areas as called for under TxDOT plans, he said.
Lindsay said he met with Eversole and other officials in the fall and tried to sell them on hiring him as a consultant.
He would have asked the county to pay him about $5,000 or $6,000 a month for his services, Lindsay said.
"I told them I was not going to do it gratis. It was too much work," he said.
County officials balked at the proposal, saying it could appear to be improper for the county to hire a state senator to lobby developers who were his business acquaintances or friends and who would benefit from the highway's construction, Lindsay said. "I did not understand where the conflict of interest was, just because I was a senator," he said.
Phew! He's something.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/25/05 07:02 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (10)
Be wary of eminent domain
Following up on Mayor White's State of the City address yesterday, Owen Courreges has some thoughts on gentrification and Mayor White's plan to foreclose on tax-delinquent properties, and even use eminent domain if necessary, in order to build more affordable housing in six areas near downtown.
After our experience with $AFEclear, I think it's safe to say this is something to keep an eye on. A sharp eye.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/25/05 04:20 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (10)
City Council delays vote on $AFEclear changes -- again
City Council has again delayed a vote on Mayor White's proposed $AFEclear changes and, in fact, six councilors have offered their own plans, according to a KTRH-740 newsbreak.
(Kevin Whited foresaw this development.)
Once again, this means the original program is still in place. If you break down on the freeway, you will be towed -- for a minimum of $75.
I don't know what the problem is, or how many weeks the councilors feel they need to get a grasp of the problem, but they need to either pass the changes or shelve the program. This exercise in endless debating is costing Houston area drivers a whole lot of money.
KEVIN WHITED ADDS: Anne is exactly right that the obstructionist members of council either need to get on board with the proposed improvements or come up with the votes to kill this program. Mayor White has played VERY nice with council so far, working to build coalitions and trying hard to avoid the acrimony that surrounded the last mayor. However, I suspect if he decides to go public and blame the current, unacceptable towing mess on the obstructionists, they're going to suffer politically, not him.
UPDATE: Here's the Chronicle's story.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/25/05 03:15 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (2)
Improving safety on Westheimer (and it's not about towing cars)
According to KHOU-11, left-turn cut-thrus are being eliminated on a section of Westheimer:
Westheimer's numbers help tell the story. They show the eastern section -- from the Loop to the Beltway -- had 2.5 times the number of wrecks per mile as the state average.
Even so, an improvement project under way since last summer was never about safety -- it was about mobility. Texans, it seems, don't mind dying. they just want to do it in a hurry.
The state, though, now believes it's found ways to speed up traffic and make it safer by getting rid of the cut-thrus.
"They're called conflict points," said John Bobo, who ran a study of Westheimer's problems.
He said the cut-thrus are the worst of the problems. They are the openings in the median for left-hand turns or U-turns. They often cause cars to back up into traffic which leads to collisions when people try to get past.
Most of those cut-thru's will now be disappearing and, some say, not a minute too soon.
The project is expected to be completed by the summer.
At least it's not a project to make Westheimer one-way.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/25/05 10:43 AM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (2)
LULAC opposes $AFEclear: now the mayor is in trouble!
Back before $AFEclear became such a hot topic, I did a post on the upcoming forced towing program and a very smart commenter saw a potential problem.
He was almost right, because today's Chronicle has the details of LULAC heading to Austin, with a group of tow truck drivers, to complain about $AFEclear:
"We've been at it since March," said Patricia Gonzales of the Houston-area chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens. "Mayor (Bill) White didn't hear us out."
That confuses me. The media usually hops to attention when LULAC heads to a microphone, so I don't know how we could have all missed LULAC's concern, beginning last March.
City Council is expected to consider White's proposed changes today.
But LULAC and the Houston Professional Towing Association are circulating petitions denouncing the ordinance. The groups claim to have collected 20,000 signatures from people who say the ordinance unfairly hurts low-income drivers and small wrecker companies.
The ordinance grants exclusive towing authority in 29 freeway zones divided among 11 wrecker companies, which together pay the city about $1 million a year for the contracts.
And that is one big reason the mayor is doing everything he can to salvage this program and get the public on his side: He does not want to give back the $1 million in franchise fee money.
Later in the story, Councilman Michael Berry provides some $AFEclear spin:
But Councilman Michael Berry, who chairs the transportation committee, said Safe Clear is a rare example of public policy that wasn't driven by industry, special interest, or even a true constituency.
He said the ordinance emerged from the need to address Houston's congested freeways and that the protesting drivers are unhappy that they didn't get contracts.
That's a bit of a whopper when Berry says $AFEclear "wasn't driven by industry, special interest, or even a true constituency," because there absolutely was "a very special" interest involved here: the city's coffers. And everyone, from drivers using Houston freeways to area tow truck drivers, have had to learn a new set of rules in order to make the city coffers happy.
The mayor said in his speech yesterday that he is hearing from drivers that the congestion problem is better and people are getting to their destinations faster. But anecdotal evidence does not prove anything. Show us the studies! Every day on the local traffic reports we hear of traffic backups related to things $AFEclear does not address. Do $AFEclear supporters have a plan for those problems, too? When a big rig breaks down, we know $AFEclear can't do anything about it, and what about road construction that ties up everything? And then there's the problem of debris on the road. Last Friday during rush hour it was a load of manure that overturned on a freeway. I'll bet that didn't get cleaned up in six minutes. But it did make for a great Debris Game!
KEVIN WHITED ADDS: At least the Chronicle is reporting the $1 million in fees, which is a fairly crucial part of the story that had been omitted from their reporting, until Bob Stein let it slip and a certain blog jumped all over it.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/25/05 08:54 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (4)
Local radio host secures supplies for troops in Iraq
KHOU-11's Doug Miller checks in on KSEV-700 morning host Edd Hendee, who has been reporting from Iraq as an embed.
Hendee apparently found troops lacking some machine parts, got in touch with a local Houston business, and said parts are now on their way.
Hendee has been checking in regularly on the radio, and his dispatches from Iraq can also be found on KSEV-affiliated Lone Star Times.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/25/05 08:15 AM | Houston People | Technorati | Comments (0)
24 January 2005
A disappointing Chron eye
The Chron Eye for the Death Row Killer Guy has gotten off to a very disappointing start in 2005.
The newspaper, which was formulaic in its coverage of death row through the end of 2004, has been willing so far in 2005 to run AP coverage.
Still, today's AP story follows the Chron eye formula pretty well.
There's the attempt to highlight some redeeming quality of the killer:
One of his lawyers, Danalynn Recer, told the Corpus Christi Caller-Times that Kunkle is remorseful for the crime and is "anguished by the effect this is having on his family, particularly his mother."
"He's very concerned about how devastating it's going to be for her," Recer said. "And he's scared."
Then there's the troubled childhood:
Defense lawyers said Kunkle, born in Nuremberg, Germany, where his father was stationed in the military, was raised in a troubled home and left mentally scarred by parents who had been treated for depression.
There's no reference to the HPD crime lab and no cheap shots taken at the Harris County DA, since the original case was tried in Corpus Christi.
Maybe that's the key -- the Chronicle only dispatches its own reporters for the Chron Eye when it's a case that somehow attaches to the HPD crime lab and/or the Harris County DA. Or maybe the Chron just loses track of the executions. Who knows exactly how decisions are made at 801 Texas Avenue?
Mr. Kunkle's departure is scheduled for Tuesday. The execution of George Alarick Jones is scheduled for Thursday (his crime was in Dallas, so we may not get a staff Chron Eye for that one either).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/24/05 10:32 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (2)
Still thinking about the Astrodome
The Dallas Morning News ran an article by Bruce Nichols on the fate of the Astrodome over the weekend.
The article breaks no new ground, but maybe Dallasites are as used to reading "olds" in their newspaper as Houstonians.
Nichols closed with this:
Taxpayers still owe about $50 million for Dome renovations in the 1980s and, so far, no one has talked seriously about demolishing what many still see as an asset.
But no one talked seriously about new baseball and football stadiums until Oilers owner Bud Adams told Houston it was time and hit the city with a symbolic two-by-four by moving his team to Nashville, Tenn.
He should read more blogs.
UPDATE: A very gracious reader (the author!) emailed that I cut off the end of the article, which I had done (inadvertently). I've pasted in the last sentence of the article, which should have been there from the start! Mea culpa.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/24/05 10:07 PM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (0)
Casey's SAFEclear solution: a new tax
Talk radio and blogs have done a really good job picking apart the SAFEclear program, examining alternatives, and critiquing various proposals to change the program.
However, Chronicle columnist Rick Casey, who seems to have missed most of the blog and talk radio discussion, did manage to come up with a new proposal in his Sunday column:
How could the Legislature help? It could authorize cities or counties to pass a vehicle-license fee to cover such traffic-control problems. To cover their political backsides, legislators could require that it be approved by voters.
[snip]
I'm not arguing for a new fee. I'm just putting this thing in perspective.
Perspective indeed! Leave it to reliable lefty Rick Casey to try to change the discussion from the Mayor's proposed revisions to the SAFEclear program (which will still leave the city ahead by $700,000 if the mayor's cost estimates are correct) to advocacy for a new tax.
City Council will take up the proposed changes to SAFEclear on Tuesday. The proposed changes were tagged by various councilmembers last week, keeping the current system in place.
RELATED: Houston wrecker drivers take their fight to Austin (KHOU-11).
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/24/05 08:51 PM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (0)
State of the City
Mayor Bill White will give his State of the City address today at a Greater Houston Partnership luncheon.
KHOU-11's blurb says one of the topics the mayor will likely discuss is the $AFEclear program.
UPDATE 1: The City of Houston website posts the text of Mayor White's address.
UPDATE 2: The Chronicle has posted a story focusing on one part of the mayor's address: tax foreclosures.
UPDATE 3: Matt Bramanti has helpfully translated the mayor's speech for us.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/24/05 10:25 AM | Houston Politics | Technorati | Comments (6)
An IQ test that fails
Lucas Wall must have been light on material for his "Move It!"column this week because he wrote what he calls a MetroRail IQ test. It's a multiple choice test, basically, and he explains his reason for making this a column:
Our city recently marked the first anniversary of passenger service on the Main Street light rail line. It's time to test your knowledge of the trains that many Houstonians either love or hate. Most of the questions deal with our nationally publicized crash problem, which the Metropolitan Transit Authority won't be happy to see. But hey, I worked all year keeping this collision database. I gotta put it to use!
I don't know. Since Wall manages to squeeze in some Metro propaganda (the crashes are all stupid Houston drivers' fault; no one has been killed), I don't think Metro officials will be too unhappy. He also continues with this farce of saying there have been 63 collisions, when there were 67 (that we know of) in 2004. He justifies this by using the state of Texas' definition that says a collision can only be counted if there was at least $1,000 property damage or an injury. That's convenient for Metro, but John Gaver's Action America site doesn't look for handy excuses for Metro -- Gaver reports ALL collisions. What good is a watchdog media if it is the one providing the cover?
And if Wall is unable to find material for his column, he might want to get up from his desk and mingle with Houstonians, or listen to talk radio, or watch the local TV newscasts. There is plenty of transportation talk, all around.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/24/05 08:37 AM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (5)
23 January 2005
Planners map Upper Kirby/Montrose traffic improvements
Anna Marie Kilday has some interesting coverage of recent Upper Kirby/Montrose traffic planning developments.
As she notes in the Chronicle's "This Week" section, everything from returning West Alabama to four lanes to providing center-median barriers along Kirby is being discussed.
Here's one guess -- the Metro "trolley" being proposed for the Upper Kirby area won't be happening anytime soon -- not with Metro running a fiscal deficit and trying to cut costs right and left.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/23/05 10:43 PM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (0)
Agenda trumps fact in recent Chron editorial
The Chronicle ran such a stunningly erroneous and misleading editorial last Tuesday that it's taken a while to prepare an adequate, careful critique.
The editorial and critique are so convoluted as to require something of a special approach. Rather than excerpt problematic sentences and correct them one at a time, I'm going to post the relevant portion of the editorial, with sections that are bolded and numbered (my numbering will be in brackets). I'll follow with numbered comments on each bracketed point below the excerpt.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/23/05 09:50 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (3)
A "forum for new ideas" or a platform for strawman attacks?
Last Wednesday, the Chronicle's cultural blogger Kyrie O'Connor responded to recent comments by Harvard president Larry Summers:
It's just not possible to have to go through this again. It's not possible that the president of Harvard would say this, is it? Oh, sure it is. The oldest trick in the book: Criticize a man for what he does, but criticize a woman for who she is. Anatomy is destiny? Apparently it still is.
The blogosphere had already been discussing the story, which appeared in Monday editions of the Boston Globe, for several days at that point. We speculated among ourselves that O'Connor's (liberal) conventional wisdom would probably find its way into a staff editorial, since the story had finally registered with the New York Times and had thus made its way onto one Chron editor's radar.
We were not disappointed by the Chronicle editorial page, which weighed in on the matter yesterday in just the manner we expected:
The offense comes this time from the man at Harvard's helm, University President Lawrence H. Summers, who served as Treasury secretary during Bill Clinton's administration. At an academic conference titled "Diversifying the Science and Engineering Workforce: Women, Underrepresented Minorities, and their S&E Careers," Summers suggested that there are fewer women than men on the engineering, math and science faculties at top research universities because of biological differences that give men enhanced math and science capabilities.
[snip]
Summers said his remarks were an exploration of theories besides discrimination to explain why there were fewer women in the physical sciences departments at the best schools. But there is a large irony in offering innate biological inferiority in lieu of discrimination as an explanation for the underrepresentation of women.
Studies do not bear out Summers' biological explanation, and his proposing it suggests he believes the very biased thinking he claims to reject.
Here, the Chronicle editorialists deploy a favorite tactic of twisting facts into a convenient straw man, and then knocking down that straw man.
The first bolded portion is where the Chronicle's misleading attack on Summers falls apart. Although no transcript has been released (since the seminar was supposed to be "off the record"), various reports seem to concur that Summers pointed to research on biological differences in men and women that might well be one factor in some discrepancies. He did not say it was the only possible factor, and he most certainly did not offer it "in lieu" of discrimination as a possible explanatory variable, as the Chronicle editorial asserts. As an economist, Summers is familiar enough with econometrics NOT to suggest a bivariate model to explain such a complicated social phenomenon (if only the Chron's editors were so familiar with quantitative methods of social science!). The Chronicle's attack on Summers is, therefore, rendered inaccurate and impotent. As for the last bolded portion in the editorial -- Summers reportedly did refer to specific studies. Can the Chronicle editorial board provide citations to back up their assertion that "studies" don't support Summers?
As we frequently concede, the Chronicle is welcome to adopt whatever position it would like for its editorial pages. However, we do not consider inaccurate, strawman attacks to be indicative of editorials "in their ideal state" (a standard that interim editorial page editor James Howard Gibbons has established).
Further, we would note that the Chronicle is running quite a few radio ads proclaiming that the newspaper "provides a forum for new ideas and debate." Since even the online version of the newspaper isn't particularly interactive, we don't see how it's much of a forum. And this editorial is hardly an example of new ideas.
For those who are interested in something besides the liberal conventional wisdom on the Summers affair (as told by the Chron editorial board and cultural blogger), here is additional reading from around the web: Sex ed at Harvard (Charles Murray, New York Times), Summers is right (Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz, Boston Globe), Gender Fender-Bender (Ruth R. Wisse, Wall Street Journal), Summers storm (Ruth Marcus, Washington Post), The truth about men and women is too hot to handle (Andrew Sullivan, Times of London), Don't worry your pretty little head (William Saletan, Slate), Mathematical virtues (Linda Chavez, Washington Times), Socializing Summers (George Neumayr, American Spectator), The First Amendment fights for its life (R. Emmett Tyrrell, Town Hall)
Further discussion is encouraged in OUR forum for ideas and debate. Just click on the handy "discuss" link below.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/23/05 02:26 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (8)
Saavedra proposes big changes for HISD
HISD superintendent Abe Saavedra has outlined some changes that would focus on whittling away at administrative bureaucracy and cutting back on standardized testing. As with any new proposal, it's the details that matter: the changes sound good in theory, but implementing them so the benefits are seen is often the biggest challenge.
Let's start with his proposed administrative shake-up:
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/23/05 11:35 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (2)
22 January 2005
Trying to preserve that rural feeling in Spring
Here are a couple of stories from far North Harris County. The first is an update on the Grand Parkway, which may become a county project through the Toll Road Authority. Some residents in Spring who oppose this segment of the Grand Parkway, have fought TxDOT over where this section should be built. The current placement would put it through a rural area of Spring populated with family farms and older subdivisions that could literally be cut in half by the parkway.
State Sen. Jon Lindsay is in favor of the project along with Harris County and some developers, while state Rep. Debbie Riddle is working on behalf of residents to fight the current placement of the parkway. But if the county takes over the project from the state, then residents who oppose the project will be out of luck, because the county does not have the same requirements, as the state does, to do environmental impact studies or to hold public meetings to discuss projects, as this recent KHOU-11 story pointed out:
What many may not know is the Harris County Toll Road Authority, unlike TxDOT, can build a toll road anywhere it wants without public approval.
[snip]
The Toll Road Authority said even though it doesn't have open forums, it has never gone against public outcry to build a project.
Grand Parkway opponents may test the Toll Road Authority on that.
Full disclosure time: I live in this area and I am not in favor of the Grand Parkway, if it runs through our little community. But, the realist in me believes the parkway will be built, right through our quiet little area and we will say goodbye to that nice sleepy quality that makes this community so enjoyable. After it is built, commuters from The Woodlands will flood Gosling Rd. and Kuykendahl Rd. to get to the parkway and both roads will have to be widened. Then new businesses and housing developments will spring up all along those feeder roads and the parkway itself. Ahhh, progress.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/22/05 05:35 PM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (28)
Developers should make an effort to save trees
KHOU-11 has a story about developers leveling large areas of trees to build new developments and how Harris County might address the problem:
Trees don't stand a chance against progress, and they continue to be toppled by the thousands.
In many cases, acres of forests are being clear-cut to make way for new houses or strip malls.
In almost any development, some trees must die. But all of them? Out in the county, there are no rules whatsoever when it comes to destroying trees. But that may be about to change.
Harris County is in the process of drafting what could be its first-ever landscape regulation.
Officials say it likely will not prevent developers from cutting down existing trees, but will require them to replant a certain number of new trees.
But why do developers destroy perfectly good trees in the first place?
"Developers would like to save trees if we could," says Ed Taravella.
Taravella is a developer who's working with the county on the new regulation.
"What we've found is while we'd like to save the trees, it's just about impossible to do it when you're doing affordable or entry level housing," he says.
Why?
Developers explain that because Harris County is so flat, most new developments have to be built up a least a little bit, and that new soil, when heaped around old trees, usually kills them. They say saving trees is only affordable in high-dollar developments.
For example, there is a Kroger parking lot where great care was taken to save big, old trees by leaving the soil around them untouched, while building up the rest of the parking lot.
Kathy Lord wishes more developers did that.
"It's very depressing to think about how long it takes a tree to grow," says Lord, of Trees of Houston, a non-profit group that has already planted thousands of trees along streets and freeways.
I am with Kathy Lord, of Trees for Houston, on this. Developers should make more of an effort to save existing trees, which would add to the value of a home. I live out where lots of acreage is being clear cut for new housing and businesses, and it is heartbreaking. All those tall pines and oaks and whatever else are just bulldozed right over, then put in a big pile and burned. It's hard to watch.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/22/05 09:50 AM | Houston Miscellany | Technorati | Comments (17)
21 January 2005
Clear Channel takes top spot in latest Arbitrons
The latest Arbitron radio ratings for Houston are out, and Banjo Jones analyzes them over at the Brazosport News.
The talkers at Clear Channel seemed mighty happy earlier. As it turns out, Clear Channel took the top spot in Houston radio, and their news/talk stations performed well also.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/21/05 11:43 PM | Houston Media | Technorati | Comments (4)
Food and drink roundup (1-21-2005 edition)
Houston's food and drink reviewers report on mostly good experiences this week.
Alison Cook seems to like Velio Deplano's Antica Osteria, located in the two-story structure that once housed the Detering Book Gallery.
Robb Walsh reports on hits and misses (some literal) at Le Fendee Mediterranean Grill in Montrose.
Gracie Ochoa visits the bar at Canyon Cafe.
And finally, Ken Hoffman checks out Dairy Queen's chocolate dipped strawberries blizzard, and its whopping 900 calories, 40 grams of fat, and 119 grams of carbs.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/21/05 11:30 PM | Houston Life | Technorati | Comments (4)
Municipal politics beat needs a boost
In December of last year, a California court ruled that Los Angeles city council members must pay attention during testimony by parties appearing before council.
The Chronicle's Kristen Mack, assigned to the municipal politics beat once covered by John Williams, devotes her column today to considering how that ruling might apply in Houston:
The California court has no authority over City Council behavior in Houston. And granted, the council is not always weighing heavy matters during its weekly public session, in which residents can discuss issues of their choosing, though speakers often comment about items on the council agenda.
But the City Charter requires "citizens of the city shall have a reasonable opportunity to be heard at any such meetings in regard to any matter to be considered."
It doesn't say how attentive members should be.
It's true that Houston's city council is not always as attentive as common courtesy ought to require, but this ranks pretty low in the universe of important political topics in this town right now. A good blogger probably would have knocked out a few sentences on the matter and moved on.
Last week, Mack devoted part of her column to this bit of Democratic politics:
New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer held a fund-raiser in Houston on Thursday for his 2006 New York gubernatorial race. Houston attorney Mike Gallagher and others hosted the reception at Damian's. Spitzer, a Democrat, also raised money in Austin at the home of former Lt. Gov. Ben Barnes, who hosted a Wednesday event with Houston lawyer Joe Jamail, among others. With Democrats now shut out of much of the Texas political power structure, party faithful in the state are becoming major donors to Democratic candidates elsewhere.
Again, this seems more like fare for local Democrat bloggers than material for an engaged (and engaging) weekly column on local politics.
A newspaper serious about local coverage -- or a newspaper pushed by a more vigorous New Times weekly (which seems to have lost its own local punch with the departure of Tim Fleck) -- ought to strive for harder hitting material in its municipal politics column.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/21/05 11:04 PM | Houston Chronicle | Technorati | Comments (0)
Another Park and Ride bites the dust
Metro is closing another Park and Ride lot:
Due to low usage, METRO will close the Alief Park & Ride Lot at 8901 Boone Road and discontinue the Alief portion of the 262 Alief/Westwood route after Friday, Jan. 21.
The 1,373-space Alief Park & Ride lot has been underutilized since it was built in 1981. Based on parking space usage counts over the past nine years, the lot's highest average daily occupancy was 230 vehicles in Fiscal Year 1995, but usage has declined to its lowest occupancy of 120 vehicles in FY 2004 (less than 10 percent of capacity).
That's one less Park and Ride that will require surveillance cameras. And that's not all the good news:
In addition to the money METRO will earn on the sale of the property itself, the closure will provide an estimated savings of more than $100,000 in annual operating costs.
That should help with Metro's debt. What about those 120 or so drivers who were using the Alief lot? Metro lists some alternatives:
METRO patrons of the Alief lot still have at least four other Park & Ride lots in the vicinity from which to choose:
* Gessner, 9925 Westpark at Gessner;
* West Bellfort, 11415 Roark Road at West Bellfort;
* Westchase, 11050 Harwin at Rogerdale; and
* Westwood, 9990 Southwest Freeway (south of Bissonnet).
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/21/05 09:28 AM | Houston Transit | Technorati | Comments (1)
Counter-inaugural parade fashion disaster
Rob Booth points out that the Chronicle covered a counter-inaugural parade in downtown Houston but failed to provide pictures. Courageous Rob dove into Houston's IndyMedia website to give us links (and a warning!) to pictures from the event.
The parade dress code was rather, uh, unique.
Posted by Anne Linehan @