08 February 2009
Does Bill White hate puppies?
There is more bad news about the city's long-problematic animal shelter, BARC, although as usual, it doesn't seem to be a priority for anyone in city government.
At the end of January, the Houston Press' Craig Malisow posted the latest news of BARC's (alleged) mismanagement, animal suffering, and indifference from city leaders.
About the same time, the Chronicle's Bill Murphy reported further instances of (alleged) animal suffering at the hands of a seemingly incompetent veterinarian (David Rundell, since suspended).
Last week, BARC made news again when it terminated part-time veterinarian Gil Costas, whom animal-rights activists have praised as a whistleblower who has called attention to BARC's dismal practices and management. Craig Malisow took apart the city's official reason for the firing of Costas in this blog post. A related blog post from Malisow suggests that there may have been other motivation for the firing:
Costas in 2008 accused Rundell of animal cruelty by neglecting to euthanize a dying puppy in a timely manner, allowing it to sit on a cold cement floor for hours while Rundell performed other duties, such as taking a cigar break. In a subsequent Houston Police Department Inspector General's investigation, Rundell accused Costas of fabricating the complaint as a retaliation for accusations Rundell previously made against Costas. (Those accusations including the falsifaction of medical records.)
Sources for the Houston Press's recent story on problems at BARC described Costas as a compassionate, competent veterinarian.
In his complaint to then-BARC Director Kent Robertson about Rundell's alleged animal cruelty, Costas seemingly foretold his future: "More often than not, employees at BARC tend to not want to be involved. There have been examples in the past where the messenger ends up suffering the consequences."
Unfortunately, attempting to squelch the messenger by firing him probably won't improve the dismal, even inhumane, conditions at BARC. Indeed, from the sounds of things, the facility apparently has now chased a desperately needed caring and capable vet at a time when it is shorthanded.
For reasons we cannot fathom, Mayor White apparently has no interest in fixing the ongoing problems at BARC, even though it seems fairly clear that his 2005 task force that supposedly dealt with the issue hasn't accomplished much. Perhaps he's too busy furthering the interests of Houston's powerful (via The Houston Way) to bother with trivial matters like humane care for animals. Perhaps he's too busy running for Senate. Who knows?
However, we are pretty sure that as Mayor White's Senate campaign cranks up, some opposition researcher/strategist is going to ask the following question: Why in the world does Bill White hate puppies?
If he continues to look the other way as BARC's ongoing problems are documented by local media, maybe it's not such an outrageous question to ask.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 02/08/09 07:06 PM |
07 February 2009
Quanell X and Marvin Driver now on defense
The three Houston Police Officers at the center of the alleged Marvin Driver abuse have filed a lawsuit. They are suing Mr. Driver and Quanell X for false statements made against them during the investigation. Last November Mr. Driver was arrested for open warrants and brought to the HPD southeast jail where he was unresponsive. Mr. Driver went to the hospital where he claimed he was beaten and forced to ingest cocaine (trying to explain the cocaine that was found in his system). Quanell doing what he does best, jumped in front of any news camera to grandstand. Now, Quanell is going to have to defend himself against someone else's allegations. A nice bit of role reversal. Quanell has police-hating ACLU attorney Randall Kallinen representing him. Whenever there is a chance to slam police officers you'll find Mr. Kallinen.
Randall Kallinen, attorney for Quanell X on the defamation case, said the lawsuit is simply retaliation. ''This is another attempt by the police who use whatever means necessary to silence a police critic,'' Kallinen said.Question for Attorney Kallinen: How about police officers' rights to be protected against malicious accusations that cause them harm?
Using his logic, they have no rights.
Posted by Jason @ 02/07/09 12:48 PM |
Chronicle looking for discontent...again
This Saturday's edition of the Chronicle gives us two stories of sour grapes.
First, reporter Dane Schiller apparently went to Fort Bend asking people who think they should be given free money from anonymous donors instead of the deputy sheriffs what they thought of the anonymous gift. That's like asking you how you feel about your annoying neighbor winning the million dollar lottery.
“I just think it is weird. Why are they giving them money?” said Dianna Batres, 21, as she finished getting her hair done at Royal Styles beauty salon. “My boyfriend was like, ‘What if it is a drug dealer?’"Amazing she could be interrupted from her text messaging to offer such analysis.
In the next story, reporter Liz Austin Peterson found 'some' who think new Sheriff Adrian Garcia isn't moving fast enough with his sweeping changes. The man has only been in office for little more than a month. He had no help in transitioning from former Sheriff Tommy Thomas. So Sheriff Garcia has probably spent his first month trying to learn his way around. Patience guys, patience! I wonder if the Harris County deputies were asked about the Fort Bend deputies getting bonuses.
Posted by Jason @ 02/07/09 12:04 PM |
06 February 2009
Suspected virus shuts down Houston municipal courts
Multiple media outlets are reporting the news that a suspected computer virus has led the city to shut down the entire municipal courts computer system (and has led HPD to suspend arrests for outstanding traffic warrants).
Here is an excerpt from Lee McGuire's reporting for KHOU-11, which has been the most detailed so far:
Problems with city government computers first cropped up Wednesday morning at the Municipal Court building at 1400 Lubbock. Gwendolyn Goins, a spokesperson for the court system, said employees noticed the systems were slowing down and denying access to some files.
“On Thursday, the problem seemed to spread to other computers,” she said.
By Thursday night, city officials were scrambling to contain the damage from a computer virus they now suspect is the “Conficker” virus, the latest super virus to spread around the Web. Named after a German pun that means “program that manipulates the configuration,” Conficker infected nearly nine million computers worldwide last month.
Houston’s Information Technology Department authorized an emergency contract with an outside agency late Thursday to help stop the spread of the virus and repair infected computers at a cost of up to $25,000.
On Friday morning, Municipal Court workers had added extra shifts and were conducting court business with pens and paper. Goins said that while the system had slowed down, court business was still being conducted. “We don’t have any significant delays in the courtroom, but some courtrooms are a little bit busier than others simply because the docket is longer,” she said.
Defense attorneys disagreed. Two of them – Kameron Searle and Sid McNeice – approached an 11News crews to say that most judges were simply resetting court cases for a later date, rather than processing them. “The courts are a mess,” Searle said. “Justice ceases, and there’s really nothing going on in the building.”
Mayor Bill White ordered all Municipal Courts across the city to close at 4 p.m. Friday. Those courts would normally be open throughout the evening and weekend. Goins said that all cases that had been scheduled through Monday evening would be automatically postponed for a later date.
Other Municipal Court services, like the payment of tickets and fees, would still be available both in-person and on-line, she said.
According to a spokesman for the Houston Information Technology Department, the virus appears to be contained to the Municipal Court and Parking Management systems within the City of Houston. While the virus has blocked access to most data on computer hard drives, it does not appear to have erased any information.
The Houston office of my employer has been pounded this week with some sort of virus/malware that has been propagating (not affecting my machine thankfully, as I take precautions beyond corporate IT's), but our IT department has not shared details on what they think it is (if they even know at this point).
The Conficker virus has apparently gone crazy in the last few weeks. That's a shame, because Microsoft issued a patch back in October to deal with the threat. That leads to the question -- has the city's IT department been applying such patches faithfully? And if not, why not?
In any case, now might be a good time for readers to make sure their antivirus and operating system software is up to date.
BLOGVERSATION: Houblog.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 02/06/09 06:37 PM |
05 February 2009
HPD: Let's expand red light camera program
In response to the city's questionable red light camera study which concluded that accidents increased at intersections with at least one red light camera, HPD is considering adding more red light cameras:
The Houston Police Department is considering changes — possibly even expansion — to its red-light camera program after a city-commissioned study showed that crashes went up at intersections where the devices have been installed.
“What we’re concerned about is safety, safety, safety at these intersections,” said Executive Assistant Chief Timothy Oettmeier, whose command includes the camera system. “We want fewer injuries, we certainly don’t want any death, and we want a reduction in accidents.”
How about lengthening yellow light times?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 02/05/09 05:03 AM |
Mr. Wilson goes to Washington
With his hat in his hand, begging for some of the "stimulus" pie:
Frank J. Wilson, our president & CEO, was scheduled to host the chat. He had to fly to Washington today for an unexpected trip to meet with Congressional leaders on METRO's funding needs, as part of the proposed economic stimulus package.
And the head of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee says things are looking good for METRO:
Houston Metro is due to receive as much as $180 million over the next 12 months from a huge economic stimulus bill to help jump-start construction of two light rail lines, a House committee chairman said Wednesday.
The long-delayed rail lines on the city’s north and southeast sides are a “very high-rated project,” said Rep. James Oberstar, D-Minn., who heads the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. The project, he said, is ready to go and has cleared all but one step of a federal review.
“I will work with the Houston (congressional) delegation and with the Federal Transit Administration to process this project along,” Oberstar told the Houston Chronicle.
Asked if Metro’s overall request for $410 million from the economic stimulus bill had been realistic, Oberstar replied, “I should think so.”
[snip]
Oberstar’s comments followed an hourlong, closed-door meeting with a delegation that included Frank J. Wilson, the Metropolitan Transit Authority’s president and CEO, and Democratic Reps. Al Green and Sheila Jackson Lee. Also present were Houston Metro board members Burt Ballanfant. George DeMontrond and Jimmy Stewart, and Houston City Council member Sue Lovell.
“We are delighted with what we heard today,” Wilson said after the meeting, adding that Metro has a champion in Oberstar.
Like flies drawn to ... well, you know.
One can only imagine the backflips Mr. Procurement Disaster was doing after his meeting.
Meanwhile, in unrelated news, while METRO continues to scratch its head over declining ridership numbers, a homeless man was killed by a METRO bus after getting "into a scuffle with another man at a METRO bus stop, possibly over food the other man had." Who wouldn't want to ride the bus and witness such events?
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 02/05/09 04:54 AM |
04 February 2009
UH to offer undergraduate program in petroleum engineering
The University of Houston has announced a new undergraduate degree program that will be offered starting this fall:
At the University of Houston, a bachelor's degree plan in petroleum engineering will be offered starting next fall to help replenish the industry's aging workforce.
"Launching a new undergraduate program in petroleum engineering is a significant step toward meeting the workforce needs of the energy industry," said Cullen College of Engineering dean Joseph W. Tedesco. "The demand for petroleum engineers has never been greater, and we are now situated to better serve our energy-centered region as well as our nation."
The Society of Petroleum Engineers projects 40 percent of the industry's workforce will reach retirement age next year. That, coupled with growth in the industry and a national decline in the number of students pursuing degrees in technical fields, has businesses scrambling for talent.
[snip]
Approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board on Thursday, the degree program will combine the fundamentals of petroleum engineering and geosciences with economics, energy law and business. The program, along with a pre-existing master's degree option, aims to fill gaps in the workforce and arm graduates with the skills needed to respond to the evolving industry.
The curriculum was established after consulting extensively with the college's petroleum engineering advisory board, which is made up of industry professionals, and Devon Energy and Marathon Oil have contributed $1.6 million toward the program.
"This unique degree program is highly interdisciplinary and combines fundamentals in petroleum engineering and geosciences with business, economics and energy law - created through collaboration with industry," said Ramanan Krishnamoorti, chair of the college's department of chemical and biomolecular engineering, where the program is housed. "The degree will also include a revolutionary modular curriculum allowing students to focus their degrees in areas of specialization, such as reservoir engineering and petroleum geology."
Ray Flumerfelt, the petroleum program's director, said UH was perfectly positioned to provide a petroleum engineering program. "We are in the center of the industry and, as a university, we couldn't ignore this need," he said.
He might have added, "any longer."
This is a smart move for UH, in terms of the degree offering and the partnership with local industry.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 02/04/09 08:34 AM |
03 February 2009
Bicyclist Stein opines on Houston dining
For a guy who complains about allegedly being misquoted by the press, Bicyclist Bob Stein, Houston's expert on everything, sure does like to give his opinion to the press on, well, pretty much everything.
Here is Stein's latest, from Bloomberg:
Consumers across the U.S. may be tightening their belts during the recession, but Texans are bellying up for more restaurant meals.
Sales at Texas restaurants are projected to rise 4 percent this year, more than in any other state, the National Restaurant Association forecast. That outstrips its 2.4 percent estimate for all U.S. restaurant sales.
Restaurateurs are being encouraged by the Texas economy, said Mike Donohue, spokesman for the Washington-based trade group. The state’s population will increase 1.7 percent this year and disposable incomes will rise 2 percent, according to the group’s estimates. The December jobless rate in Texas was 6 percent, compared with 7.2 percent nationwide.
“We’re certainly glad we’re not opening in a city that revolves around the financial industry,” said Tom Kaplan, senior managing partner for Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, based in Las Vegas, whose grand opening for Five-Sixty, atop Dallas’s Reunion Tower, is next week. “What we’re seeing is instilling confidence in Texas.”
Demographics play a role in big cities such as Houston, said Bob Stein, sociology and political science professor at Rice University. Thirty-seven percent of Houston households include children under 18 years old, he said.“It’s not just about having the money, it’s about juggling the day,” Stein said. “A high population of families with school-age kids and two wage earners is a perfect recipe for eating out a lot.”
We had no idea (from his vita) that Bicyclist Stein had ever researched Houston or urban dining patterns. He truly is a knowledgeable man of the world, and we always enjoy reading his opinions on... well, everything!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 02/03/09 07:47 PM |
METRO: Don't call it a trend!
Tom Bazan sent out an email blast this weekend with METRO's latest ridership figures, and he noted that December's bus ridership declined a whopping 32 percent from the previous December. Add to that the previous three months'-worth of declining bus ridership numbers (a 21 percent decrease for the quarter) and you might think METRO has a trend.
Nope. You'd be wrong, as the Chron's Rosanna Ruiz found out when she decided to write a story on it and called Raequel Roberts for METRO's reaction.
Metro has reported an across-the-board drop in total ridership for a fourth consecutive month, blaming cheaper gas prices and continued blow-back from last year’s fare increases. Officials had predicted that ridership would go down, but not by this much.
In the last three months of 2008, system-wide ridership fell by 12 percent, compared to the same period the year before, to 21 million from 24 million. Metro officials are confident riders will be back after a short cooling-off period.
Although the numbers show a consistent, downward trajectory over four months, Metro spokeswoman Raequel Roberts was reluctant to call it an outright trend.
Which raises the question: At what point does it become a trend? Six months? A year? And what, if anything, should be done about it?
Nothing will happen because it's METRO we are dealing with. Couple lower gas prices with the frustration and inconvenience of having to deal with METRO's scheduling and it's not too hard to figure out why bus ridership has declined. Just read the comments to the Chron's story.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 02/03/09 04:59 AM |
02 February 2009
Congresswoman Jackson Lee tells crime fearing residents they may get help from "stimulus" bill
Residents of the lovely Heights neighborhood are on edge because of recent home invasions. At a meeting, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee instead of addressing the problem tries to plug the pending stimulus (or socialist) bill in Congress. The Houston Chronicle quotes her as saying:
Jackson Lee, a Houston Democrat, said the stimulus bill currently in Congress may include funds for public safety, which could trickle all the way down to more patrol officers for Houston streets, but that local and state officials will have to fight for their share.So, to the residents of the Heights, despite four home invasion burglaries since the start of the year, the hyped "stimulus" bill MAY include funds for public safety (then again it may not). The funds COULD trickle down to Houston (then again, they may not).
Congresswoman Jackson Lee is apparently still out of touch.
Posted by Jason @ 02/02/09 11:16 PM |
Annise Parker kicks off her mayoral campaign
The Chron's Alan Bernstein does a mini-profile of Houston Controller Annise Parker in preparation for her announcement today that she's entering the mayoral race:
“Houstonians want a mayor who can lead the city through tough economic times, and a mayor who can continue our forward progress with jobs and neighborhoods,” she said in an interview last week.
“I have the skill set to do these things,” she added as she prepared her announcement — an e-mail blast referring voters to an online video of her speaking to voters.
Parker, 52, started thinking about running for mayor long before the nation’s economic picture grew dark. But now that, in her words, “the No. 1 issue is going to be the economy and jobs,” Parker is touting the ways she can cut city expenses. She’s also worked as an engineering technologist for an oil company and as co-owner several years ago of a feminist bookstore.
Of the four or five others being mentioned as potential candidates in the Nov. 3 election, Parker easily has the most experience running for and serving in office citywide. After losing two City Council races, she won an at-large seat in 1997, 1999 and 2001. She was elected controller in 2003 and was re-elected with no opponents in 2005 and 2007.
And as mayor what will she focus on?
As mayor, she would foster partnerships among energy companies, government and researchers to put Houston in the forefront of developing alternative energy sources, she said.
She cited neighborhood protection and preservation as a top concern, pointing out that on City Council, she spurred ordinances on minimum lot sizes and setback requirements for buildings.
She's also not in favor of HPD identifying illegal immigrants, same as her presumed opponents.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 02/02/09 05:04 AM |
31 January 2009
$62 million down the drain...
...er, drains. Well, except the drains are clogged up:
Art was the crowning glory of the city-financed Cotswold Project, a $62 million effort to transform a drab section of downtown Houston into a dazzling destination for residents and visitors. But less than a decade after dozens of fountains and artworks were installed, many have fallen victim to tight budgets and vandals.
Meanwhile, plans to restore five Texas Avenue sidewalk mosaics damaged or destroyed during street construction came to a halt when money allocated for the project was spent elsewhere. Although an arts group now is weighing options for restoring the mosaics, the question of how to fund such efforts is unresolved.
A recent stroll through blocks remade in the Cotswold Project revealed at least three of 12 fountains malfunctioning or not operating. Some were choked with leaves and debris or caked with calcium deposits.
But don't worry, the city's on top of it now:
The city’s Convention and Entertainment Facilities Department was assigned responsibility to maintain the Cotswold fountains, spending about $150,000 annually to carry out the task.
After a tour of the fountains Thursday, department spokesman John Harris said two workers, rather than one, will be assigned their upkeep.
Problem solved!
As for the restoration of the mosaics, the money that had been set aside for that was instead used to upgrade sidewalks where future METRO passenger platforms will be located. Maybe someone can ask METRO to open its wallet and fix the mosaics, especially since our local transit agency is on an art kick now.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/31/09 04:34 PM |
30 January 2009
Chron editors demonstrate their timeliness
Two months after the Examiner's Michael Reed reported on the fate of Bolsover Street, after the failure of Lamesa's Sonoma project, the Chronicle's editorial board opines thusly:
What infuriates and puzzles many locals is that a perfectly good, well-traveled street — a valuable commodity in the congested Village — is now lying idle, and could stay that way for the foreseeable future. That’s not a good deal for the public, and points to a serious lack of foresight and prudence on the part of the city.
The 2400 block of Bolsover Street, which bisects the lot, was, in effect, sold to the project’s owner, Lamesa Village, by the city, over the objections of many residents. It was slated to become a pedestrian plaza, accessible to the public, with shade trees and water features.
Today, thanks to a plummeting economy and a strangled credit market, the project is on hold indefinitely. Bolsover is gated shut, and the rest of the property now consists of a bare lot on the north side — with a few piles of dirt and random fence posts — and a shuttered sales office next to a once-bustling, now defunct Walgreens to the south.
Oh, well! If it makes the elitists on the editorial board feel any better, Mayor White promised he'd do better next time.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/30/09 07:06 PM |
Least surprising news of the week (updated with a Bob Stein revision!)
That HPD tried to tweak the city's questionable red light camera study to produce a more favorable conclusion -- one more in line with what MayorWhiteChiefHurtt have been peddling ever since the cameras were first installed:
The Houston Police Department tried to influence the outcome of a controversial city-commissioned study by changing how crashes at intersections with red-light cameras were counted, according to documents included in a lawsuit.
HPD’s request was refused by the study’s authors, however, who concluded the number of accidents at 50 intersections with the cameras had increased, not decreased as city officials expected, documents say.
Attorneys fighting to end Houston’s 2-year-old red-light camera program seized on the documents — released after an open records lawsuit they filed against the city — as evidence the study was tainted by a purposefully skewed methodology.
[snip]
According to an e-mail included in the lawsuit, an HPD official asked Stein in April to rule out accidents if they occurred more than 100 feet from the intersection. Kallinen also said that documents he obtained indicated the department attempted to rule out crashes that did not involve a red-light violation. Either of those steps would be more likely to lead to results showing the cameras reduced crashes, Kallinen said.
Stein, whose involvement has been criticized because his wife works for White, said the study’s other authors rejected HPD’s suggested change because they were using what they believed was the best methodology.
Mayoral spokesman Patrick Trahan said the police had legitimate reasons to consider limiting the crashes that way, as they did not want the study to include collisions that had nothing to do with running red lights or the cameras.
UPDATE: Over at the Houston' Press' Hairballs blog, Houston bicyclist Bob Stein goes on a tear, giving his side of things, including this:
Third, Stein argues that he was misquoted when he reportedly said that "collisions are going up all over the city." This quote appeared in a January Associated Press story as well as elsewhere in the media.
It was "A complete and gross misrepresentation of the quote," says Stein. "I said, 'collisions are going up all over the city at the intersections that we studied,' not that they were going up all over the city. They in fact are going down, which is clearly demonstrated in the emails. Collisions throughout the city are not what we were studying."
Hmmmm, here's what was written in the Chronicle at the end of December:
Study authors said the reason for the increase at "monitored approaches" is actually that the city has seen a major uptick in collisions during the past year, one that they believe red-light cameras helped mitigate. In other words, the study, released today, concludes that there were far fewer collisions at intersections with red-light cameras than there otherwise would have been if the cameras had not been installed.
"Collisions are going up all over the city," said Bob Stein, a Rice University political science professor and one of report's four authors. "But red-light cameras have held back that increase at approaches where they have been installed."
Clear as mud.
Posted by Anne Linehan @ 01/30/09 06:39 PM |
29 January 2009
Chron Froot Loops update, 1/29/09 edition
The Chron.com Froot Loops Bureau posts this update today:
A 14-year-old Magnolia girl remains in critical condition today with injuries suffered after she jumped out of her parents’ car and was hit by a vehicle on the North Freeway, according to KHOU Channel 11.
The incident happened Wednesday night as the parents were driving their daughter to a Tomball hospital. They had picked her up after she had run away and was taken into custody by police, KHOU reported.
As the family drove on Interstate 45, the girl argued with her parents and suddenly jumped out of the car near the West Canino exit, police said.
[snip]
The teenager suffered severe head and internal injuries, and doctors at Memorial Hermann Hospital may have to amputate her legs, KHOU reported.
Here is a link to the KHOU-11 story, since hyperlinks and cereal apparently don't go well together.
UPDATE: And just like that *poof* the story is updated and the KHOU reference is gone.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/29/09 10:06 AM |
Chron teen diarist goes back to basics
The Chron's teen diarist returns to familiar territory today:
From Karl Rove to Bono, everybody’s got advice for the new president.
But if Barack Obama is looking for fresh suggestions, light on cynicism and free of partisan taint, I know of a group that will give it to him straight: Houston-area kids.
Playing to your strengths is good advice for any columnist, but especially a struggling one. Good move today, going back to basics!
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/29/09 10:01 AM |
28 January 2009
Good news and bad news in 2008 crime statistics
Last week, Chief Hurtt held a press conference to discuss 2008 crime statistics.
Most local media outlets only regurgitated his comments, without any detailed reporting on the numbers, but KTRH-740 has helpfully posted a table of the raw numbers.
While there is some good news in these numbers, obviously there is room for improvement.
As candidates gear up for municipal elections, we hope they are preparing for a robust discussion of Houston's crime problem, the leadership at HPD, and proven approaches to crime like CompStat.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/09 11:38 PM |
KHOU: No property tax break for Ike victims
KHOU-11's Lee McGuire reports that Harris County residents whose homes were significantly damaged by Hurricane Ike shouldn't be expecting any property tax breaks:
On the outside, Jim Kaufman’s Nassau Bay home looks like it survived Hurricane Ike, but from the inside, it’s clear, it did not.
“It’s a pretty devastating blow to come back and see this. It’s all gone,” said Kaufman.
Kaufman said that his home is a total loss. But to Harris County tax assessors—it’s worth exactly what it was before the storm.
Taxing jurisdictions have the ability to “reassess” property after a hurricane, reducing home values and, with them, taxes. According to HCAD, after Ike, not one county - school district - or city - did anything of the sort.
“I think it’s unseemly that someone who has lost a house has to pay full appraisal on the house,” said State Senator Dan Patrick.
State Senator Patrick says local governments should have given taxpayers a break. Many considered it—but all rejected it.
Patrick is right. This is an issue he is well positioned to champion, and we hope he charges forward on it.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/09 11:12 PM |
Former KHOU reporter Faxas singing, acting, hawking Miracle Lid
Remember former KHOU-11 reporter Eileen Faxas?
Chron columnist Ken Hoffman saw her in an informercial recently:
So I’m watching Chef Nick use the Miracle Lid to cook pasta with no water, while his sidekick hostess gasps with amazement and gushes over each bite like she hasn’t eaten in a month. You know, it’s the typical infomercial team. The experienced male expert and the wide-eyed female host who can’t believe what amazing events are taking place, all because of this earth-shattering product that could be on my doorstep in 4 to 6 weeks.
Then, as I’m watching, it suddenly hits me …
Hey! I know that woman! The one who can’t believe you can make a delicious pot roast with less fat, less oil, in half the time, from frozen to fabulous in under 30 minutes!
Hey! I know that woman! The one who can’t believe you can make a delicious pot roast with less fat, less oil, in half the time, from frozen to fabulous in under 30 minutes!
That’s Eileen Faxas, the former reporter on Channel 11 News.
She’s doing infomercials now?
“Yes, that’s me, but I’m doing a lot of things now, not just that,” she says. “I live in Miami, and I’m recording my second CD, and I’m about to perform in the first Florida production of Les Mis érables, and later this week I’ll know if I am cast as the lead in another musical,” Faxas says.
Faxas worked on Channel 11 News from 1998 to 2005. She was one of the Defenders, sticking up for the little guy in his daily battle against the world.
When she left, she told Channel 11, simply, “I want to go sing.”
Small world, eh?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/28/09 10:43 PM |
27 January 2009
Houston company gets caught (allegedly) bribing Detroit city official
The Texas Watchdog crew caught this bit of news earlier:
Cash bribes and trips to Las Vegas helped pave the way for a $47-million-a-year contract between the city [of Detroit] and a Texas company that recycles sludge, a former executive said Monday as he pleaded guilty in federal court.
The influence-peddling reached a climax in fall 2007 when a City Council member accepted payments to vote in favor of the deal with Houston-based Synagro Technologies, the government alleges. The contract was approved, 5-4.
Interestingly enough, that "Texas company" happens to be a Houston company that also does business with the City of Houston, as Jennifer Peebles points out:
Synagro Technologies has done business with the city of Houston for some time. The city last February re-inked its contract with the firm, giving city officials a free hand to spend up to $26 million with the firm without needing to return to the City Council for specific approval.
Neat! We can't help but wonder if there are any similar (Houston Way) connections here.
And the Texas Watchdog folks seem interested as well, so if you know of any possible shenanigans involving area government officials and Synagro, do shoot Texas Watchdog an email.
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 01/27/09 10:01 PM |
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