Reef Madness

It looks like the upscale restaurant Reef in Midtown stepped into a mess for their role in the cancellation of a local Planned Parenthood reception that was to be held on their roof.   Why?  They cratered to the zealots.   I kind of have news for them.  Those zealots don’t eat at Reef.  The only time they visit Midtown is too protest.

Here is a Houston Press story on the Reef deal.

The Chron’s Lisa Falkenberg has a more detailed piece that for now you can only check out if you are a subscriber or have a hard copy of the Chron.  Here is a bit:

Tempers flared and jaws dropped Tuesday when Reef canceled a small Planned Parenthood donor reception two and half hours before it was scheduled to begin. The bar, Proof, had earlier canceled a large cocktail event that was to follow featuring Sandra Fluke, the young lawyer who became a feminist folk hero of sorts when she drew Rush Limbaugh’s ire, and later his apology, in her advocating for insurance companies to cover birth control.
It is Reefer Madness if you ask me.  My good friend Planned Parenthood CEO Melaney Linton has a take on the deal and the Reef co-owner has a different take of sorts.  I’ll side with Mel.

I’m betting some Planned Parenthood supporters will look elsewhere for their sliders.   If you are at The Yard you may want to avoid Reef related El Real, L’il Bigs, and the Freddy Fender and Caz Grand Slam grub if you know what I mean.

FYI:  The Roundtable hangs out at Reef. 

Angels skipper Mike Scioscia filed a protest last night at The Yard.  How man World Serious rings does Scioscia own as a player?

Let me give Guv Dude his due for greeting The President yesterday and not making it his own photo op by trying to hand over a letter or something like that.  

The Mayor has her campaign kickoff tomorrow at a park down the street.  Hope it doesn’t rain.

MLB.com columnist Richard Justice has a piece today on diversity in the MLB.  Here are parts:

In his 21 years atop Major League Baseball, (Commissioner Bud) Selig has used his platform and power to make the sport an institution committed to racial and gender fairness. His leadership has resulted in a historic period of growth and innovation, but he has remained true to his core values and his belief that baseball is a social institution and a force for change in the world.

And:

As part of that effort, the MLB Diversity Business Summit, to be held June 18-19 in Houston, will allow job seekers and entrepreneurs to meet teams at both the Major League and Minor League level, as well as an array of sponsorship partners.

Selig will head a list of speakers that includes MLB’s chief financial officer, Jonathan Mariner; Brewers owner Mark Attanasio; and D-backs president Derrick Hall.

Baseball has gotten high marks through the years for bringing men and women of color into the game at every level. In his most recent report, Dr. Richard Lapchick, director of the Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport at the University of Central Florida, wrote:

"MLB once again recorded an A for racial hiring practices."

Here is all of the Justice piece.

My pal Rosi Hernandez used to be a VP over at The Yard.  I wonder if Justice has checked to see if there is Latino/Latina VP under the new ownership.

The H-Town area will be getting a new area code – 346.  Who cares?  We don’t have to remember phone numbers these days.

Mike Scioscia won World Serious rings as a player wearing the Dodger blue in 1981 over the Yankees and in 1988 over the A’s of course.

The Rangers are in for three this weekend.  This is the second visit to The Yard for the Rangers this season.  I’m sure there will be plenty of Rangers fans at the games.  We’re 11 1/2 out and hope it isn’t 14 1/2 by Sunday evening.

Happy Mothers Day!

 

Technorati Tags: Marc Campos,Campos Communications,Major League Baseball,Houston Astros,Planned Parenthood,Houston City Hall,Houston Politics,Governor Rick Perry,President Obama,Texas Politics,Houston Latino Politics,Texas Latino Politics,Racial and Gender fairness,Diversity in Major league baseball

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Living off Lists

Commentary was watching The Mayor on TV the other day talking about her reelection campaign and she touted H-Town being on all these national best this and best that list – you know – Best City for Economic Growth, Best and Brightest Employers, Best Businesses and Careers, best food, best restaurants, best bike lanes, best margaritas  – you get the picture.  Here is from the Chron:

(Mayor) Parker referenced a lengthy list of Top 10 rankings that recently have included Houston, and she noted successful sporting events hosted and international flights added on her watch.

Heck, the City of H-Town puts these lists on the City’s website.  If you live by the list you can also get hurt by the list.  Here is one that came out yesterday that won’t get on the City’s website.  H-Town has a couple of neighborhoods on the Best Neighborhoods to Get Mugged In.  Check this from the Chron today:

First, the terrible news: Two Houston communities are ranked among the nation’s 25 most dangerous neighborhoods, according a new study by NeighborhoodScout.com.

The website analyzed FBI data from 17,000 local law enforcement agencies to find specific neighborhoods in America with the highest predicted rates of crime, MSN Money reports.

Coming in at No. 15 in the U.S. is a Houston neighborhood centered at the intersection of Dowling and McGowen Streets, located in Houston’s historic Third Ward – a broad geographical area that includes stately mansions, the University of Houston and Texas Southern University.

The community "stands out to NeighborhoodScout partly because it has more sales and service workers than nearly any other neighborhood in the country," according to MSN Money. "The area also has a very high concentration of studio apartments and other small living areas."

The violent crime rate (per 1,000) is reported as 75.89, and residents there have a 1 in 13 chance of becoming a victim of crime in one year.

The sixth-most dangerous neighborhood in America is Sunnyside, a historically black community located off Texas 288 south of downtown Houston.

The violent crime rate (per 1,000) is reported as 91.27, and residents have a 1 in 11 chance of becoming a victim of crime in one year.

One thing about the Best List business is that we don’t control them and don’t know when they are coming out and a burg like H-Town is likely to have its share of Best and Worst.

In head-to-head record all time against AL clubs, who do we have the best record against? 

Commentary didn’t have any intention of talking about the Sacramento Bee cartoon on the West explosion that got Guv Dude all hopped up.  Now I changed my tune.  Wayne Slater of the Dallas Morning News was on CNN a couple of days ago and he said he wasn’t offended by the cartoon.  My pal Nick Anderson of the Chron has one today referencing the Bee cartoon that will probably get under Guv Dude’s skin.

Check it out here.

Here is the one from the Bee.

Here is an earlier one from Anderson on West.

Like Slater, I wasn’t offended but I can understand if someone was.  I can also understand if some folks were offended when Guv Dude said we don’t need any more steeenkeeen regulations.

Next time you see a HISD big shot, give them a high five for keeping the NRA out of our schools.

Check out the Chron story here.

We’re 5-1 all time over the Jays at a .833 clip of course.

We lost 7-4 last night at Yankee Stadium and go for the series win this evening then finally come home.

 

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Embarrassing Legislative Mulligan

The big news to come out of Austin yesterday was the Texas House taking a mulligan and reversing itself on continuing the Texas Lottery.  First they voted 81-65 to not authorize it then they came back with a 92-53 vote to continue it.  Now that is embarrassing!

Didn’t the sponsors of the bill bother to count votes before they put it on the floor?  Don’t they have whips or floor leaders for this stuff?  Didn’t the high paid lottery lobbyists put together a vote count?  Somebody dropped the ball big time. 

This also sends a message to the public that the Texas Legislature doesn’t have a lot of confidence in the lottery so don’t plunk down your dollars on the lotto, or power ball, or scratch-off.

As I recall the voters approved the lottery back in 1991.  Don’t you think the voters ought to have a say in continuing the lottery?  Way to go!

The Mariners are in town.  How many AL West titles do the Mariners own?

Burkablog has a take on what Guv Dude said the other day about regulating fertilizer facilities.  Here is from a Chron story on Dude:

Gov. Rick Perry on Monday defended the state’s inspections process regarding the West fertilizer plant where a fire and explosion last week killed 14 people and devastated the small Central Texas town while officials began offering theories on a cause.

Perry said he remains comfortable with the level of state oversight following the West Fertilizer Co. blast that leveled several blocks of homes, schools and buildings. The governor added that Texas residents have sent the same message about regulation through their elected officials.

Here is Burkablog:

Gov. Rick Perry said Monday that spending more state money on inspections would not have prevented the deadly explosion at the West Fertilizer Co. plant that was last investigated by Texas environmental regulators in 2006. Excuse me for asking, but … how would Perry know? You can’t prove a negative.
The governor told the Associated Press that he remains comfortable with the state’s level of oversight following last week’s massive blast that killed 14 people and injured 200. It’s so nice to hear that Perry is comfortable with the state’s level of oversight, but perhaps the people who lost their loved ones and property in West might have a different idea. Perry also suggested in his interview that "the majority of Texas residents agree with him." And he knows this because . . . why, exactly? Does that include the survivors in West? Who conducted that poll? This is just Rick Perry engaging in desperate CYA tactics. That isn’t leadership–it is an embarrassingly lame response.

The Mariners won the AL West in 1995, 1997, and 2001 of course.

At the fan focus group the other evening a few fans griped about the nine non-holiday weekday games.  There is one today as the ‘Stros wrap up the homie with the Mariners and only 13,000 and changed showed up last night.

 

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Great Expectations

The H-Town Mayor is kicking off her campaign at 11 am Saturday, May 11 down the street at Stude Park off of Studemont and White Oak.  If you are coming from south of I-10 avoid coming down Studemont/Studewood.  You will definitely get frustrated at the congestion.  Explore other routes. 

When you don’t spend money on the team, you can’t expect much so the following doesn’t surprise me.  Check this from the Chron sports page today:

About an hour after general manager Jeff Luhnow said Monday the Astros’ paper-thin early-season pitching situation was the worst he’s seen in his baseball career, his transparent statement received more depth.

A statistic from the Elias Sports Bureau appeared on Twitter timelines: Astros starting pitchers had combined for just 15 1/3 innings the last six games, heading into Monday night’s matchup against the Mariners at Minute Maid Park. The mark was tied with the 1986 White Sox for the fewest innings in a six-game span during the last 35 years.

“We’re going through an extremely rough time,” Luhnow said. “This is an unusual situation. Never in my career have I seen anything even remotely close to it.”

I got news for the GM.  A lot of us are not surprised. We are not dumbarses.  We know enough about the game to figure out what is happening.

Check out the rest of the story here.

What are the most runs the ‘Stros have ever scored in an inning?

Did you know that including The Mayor there are five women (Wanda Adams, Helena Brown, Ellen Cohen, Annise Parker, and Melissa Noriega) on the current 17 member H-Town City Council? 

Did you know that the 2006/2007 City Council had eight women (Carol Alvarado, Anne Clutterbuck, Ada Edwards, Pam Holm, Toni Lawrence, Sue Lovell, Shelley Sekula-Gibbs/Melissa Noriega, and Addie Wiseman) on the 15 member H-Town City Council?  That’s the only City Council that has had a women’s majority.

Did you know that the last Latinas to serve on the H-Town City Council were Alvarado and Wiseman back in 2007?

Well now you know!

This is from a Chron story only available to subscribers for now.  Guv Dude needs to sit tight and wait and see what happened.  Check this:

Gov. Rick Perry on Monday defended the state’s inspections process regarding the West fertilizer plant where a fire and explosion last week killed 14 people and devastated the small Central Texas town while officials began offering theories on a cause.

Perry said he remains comfortable with the level of state oversight following the West Fertilizer Co. blast that leveled several blocks of homes, schools and buildings. The governor added that Texas residents have sent the same message about regulation through their elected officials.

Slow down, Dude! 

Yesterday evening Commentary participated in a ‘Stros fan forum or focus group session at The Yard.  The front office had ten of us regulars there to talk about our Yard experiences.  There were some serious hard core fans there.  They started the session by asking all of us to relate a foul ball story.  I told them I could relate about 100 foul ball stories.  I don’t think they believed me.

Things that were discussed included The Yard grub, service, where we get info on the team, our attitudes about the team, and our positive and negative experiences at The Yard.  Some fella complained about the owner’s politics.  A couple complained about the homeless badgering them on their way in to The Yard.  A few complained about the TV and radio deal. 

We got a sandwich, cookie, drink, and a couple of T-shirts for our participation.

On May 31, 1975 in Philly, the ‘Stros scored 12 runs in the eighth inning of course in a game we won 15-3.

Jose Altuve is batting .377.   With the exception of Marwin Gonzalez, everyone else isn’t. 

 

Technorati Tags: Marc Campos,Campos Communications,Mayor Annise Parker,Governor Rick Perry,Texas Politics,Houston Politics,Houston Astros,Major League Baseball,Texas Latino Politics,Houston Latino Politics,Houston City Hall,Houston Mayoral Race

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A Waste of Time and Space

Commentary is not going to be spending a whole lot of time talking about 2016 right now and I’m certainly not going to spend a lot of time talking about Guv Dude running in 2016 because I don’t do fantasy politics.   Burkablog says this:

We’ve been through this before, so permit me to ask the question: Can anyone make the case that Rick Perry has a realistic shot at the Republican nomination for president? Okay, the National Journal did (sort of), but I can’t. The race for the 2016 nomination will take place in two brackets. Call one the establishment bracket, which includes Jeb Bush, Chris Christie, Jon Huntsman, Bobby Jindal, Scott Walker, and Bob McDonnell. The other bracket is the tea party bracket, where the contenders include Marco Rubio, Rand Paul, and, yes, Ted Cruz. This is the bracket where Perry would compete, but he has no chance to win it. Rubio, Paul, and Cruz all have substantial followings; Perry does not.

Dude is definitely not a bracket buster.

Everybody knows that B-G-O’s last Opening Day start was in 2007.  Name the Opening Day starter at second base for the ‘Stros in 2008?

Lately there have been a few articles, posts, and takes about Texas turning blue or purple and when it is going to happen.  Some of the chatter involves the growing Latino vote.  MariGirl made an interesting observation yesterday that got me to thinking.   She said that if serious immigration reform is enacted with the help of the GOP some Latino voters might start looking favorably again at the GOP. 

I have said in the past that immigration is a filter issue for many Latino voters.  We won’t listen to you on other stuff if you can’t handle immigration.  If the immigration filter is removed then who knows what might happen.  Immigration reform is getting a ton of press coverage these days.  Last week Sen. Rand Paul came out for a pathway to citizenship.  The growing Latino vote is the reason immigration reform is on the front burner and the Latino voter is paying attention to what is going on.

I kind of have to agree with MariGirl.  MariGirl was at the forefront the last couple of years on The DREAM Act debate so she knows what is going on.  If the GOP helps deliver immigration reform turning Texas purple or blue may take a little longer.  If they don’t, the 71% Latino vote for Dems may grow.  Stay tuned!!

Congrats to Tiger!

Mark Loretta of course started at second base for the ‘Stros on Opening Day in 2008 – Mark who?

The team is finalizing the Opening Day roster.

 

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Dude’s Outrageries

I guess Guv Dude still has his eye on 2016.  He went to CPAC 13 yesterday and continued with his right wing rant outrageries.  The Chron gave it front page coverage in the hard copy.  Here is a taste:

Sounding very much like a presidential candidate, Gov. Rick Perry told the Conservative Political Action Conference meeting outside Washington that the Obama administration was engaging in “bribery” by offering states substantial sums to expand Medicaid to low-income adults.

And:

Perry criticized fellow Republican governors who have agreed to Medicaid expansion, decrying “allies in the conservative movement who folded in the face of federal bribery.”

While some in the GOP are trying to figure out how to expand their base, Dude is set on a course of pandering.  Stay tuned.

Here is the entire piece on Dude’s rant.

How many MLB Hall of Fame greats have been in a ‘Stros Opening Day starting line-up?

Here is what Burkablog said about Dude and Medicaid politics:

Rick Perry has now maneuvered himself into a position where CEOs from every major employer in the state, and their lobbyists, will be on his doorstep. The state’s hospitals, nursing homes, and health care providers are next in line. This is just another case of how Perry’s ideological blinders have damaged this state for the past thirteen years.

Mitt Romney will finally come out of hiding and address CPAC 13 today.

The sad thing about Texas GOP leaders and Medicaid politics is that they don’t want to be part of Obamacare but they want the money.

Hall of Fame greats Nellie Fox, Joe Morgan, Robin Roberts, and Nolan Ryan of course have been ‘Stros Opening Day starters.

I have no idea what the Opening Day line-up will look like. 

 

Technorati Tags: Marc Campos,Campos Communications,Governor Rick Perry,Republican Presidential Primary,Texas Politics,U.S. Politics,Houston Astros,Major League Baseball,Mitt Romney,Houston Latino Politics,Texas Latino Politics,Houston Politics

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The Ads, The Show, The Game

This Sunday at around 5 pm, most stuff shuts down and folks start to watch the big game.  I heard this morning that 1.4 billion wings will be consumed in the U.S. of A. this weekend.  That’s a lot of dead chickens.  For Commentary, the ads are the best part of the game.  I want to know if companies are getting their $2.4 million worth.  Some Arab Americans are apparently upset at the Coca Cola ad with the camel.  Some folks think the VW ad is sort of racist because a white dude talks like a Jamaican – maun.

I also want to watch Beyonce. 

As for the game, both teams are from blue states and both states have Dem governors.  I guess I’ll root for the Ravens because the Texans beat them pretty bad earlier in the season and if they win we can at least say we beat the Super Bowl champs.  I am also partial to the color purple these days if you know what I mean.  Go Ravens!

Joe Niekro who is no longer with us has the ‘Stros record for most pitching wins with 144.  How many times was he selected to the MLB All Star team?

The GOP is trying to figure out what to do on immigration reform.  Here is from a piece:

Republicans face a delicate balancing act as they embrace an unprecedented shift in their views on immigration reform – and no one better exemplifies the potential risks and rewards than Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.

And:

Other Republicans are moving on the issue. A bipartisan group in the House is working on a similar proposal. Last week in Charlotte, N.C., most members of the Republican National Committee agreed that the GOP must improve its tone and message on immigration. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, an influential party member, used an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal to urge the nation to "seize the moment" on bipartisan reform.

But here is pushback:

"Rubio’s bill is nothing but amnesty," wrote conservative columnist Ann Coulter, referring to it as "a wolf in wolf’s clothing."

Republican Sen. David Vitter of Louisiana told radio host Laura Ingraham on Wednesday that his Republican colleague was "amazingly naive on this issue. This is the same old formula that we’ve dealt with before."

I guess they can’t accept this:

Latino voters accounted for 10 percent of the electorate and their numbers are growing, particularly in swing states such as Nevada, Colorado and Florida.

That new reality has led the GOP establishment to embrace immigration reform as a way to reintroduce its candidates to Latinos and eliminate a wedge issue before the next presidential race. Some Republicans have formed a super political action committee, called Republicans for Immigration Reform, to provide money and political cover to pro-reform GOP lawmakers.

"A lot of Hispanics don’t feel welcome and we need to change that," said Ricardo Aponte, executive director of the Puerto Rico GOP.

The hard right still won’t budge:

But Republicans who support the changes risk primary challenges and the ire of some conservatives who say an immigration overhaul will take jobs away from citizens at a time of high unemployment.

"Until the borders are secure, I think all this other chatter is a waste of time," said Tea Party Express Chair Amy Kremer. "Conservatives are not happy."

Here is the entire article.

Let us know when ya’ll decide.

Maybe they ought to listen to what the Chron E-Board said the other day:

We need a law that reflects the facts on the ground, where the term illegal immigrant applies to folks who have lived here for years and are part of our communities. We could no more remove them than cut out squares from a quilt and expect it to stay whole.

Now is the time. And if Republicans can find any silver lining in Gov. Mitt Romney’s loss, it is the incentive to stop whipping up an anti-immigration fury and actually try to win votes from a growing Hispanic voter base.

There will be negotiations. The end result will be different than any current proposal. But every generation has its wave of newcomers, and it is time to welcome 11 million people into our nation of immigrants. As President Obama said in his speech yesterday, "All those folks, before they were us, they were them."

Now is the time to help 11 million them become us. And Texas should be leading the way.

Here is the entire Chron E-Board take.

Now I know why Guv Dude didn’t go red meat in his state of the state.  When you’re getting beat by Hillary in the latest PPP poll, you have to kind of tone it down.

Here is to Guv Dude from the Chron E-Board the other day:

Our state’s fastest growing ethnic group, Hispanics, is vastly underrepresented in Austin. Be their champion, governor.

You’ve already made a strong start with your backing of Dream Act-style legislation that creates educational opportunities for the sons and daughters of illegal immigrant parents brought here as minors. On Tuesday, you called for South Texas institutions to be given a piece of the proceeds from the Permanent University Fund. It’s an idea worthy of serious consideration.

Your natural instincts about non-Hispanic Texans are right, too: There isn’t the animus toward Hispanics, whether immigrant or sixth-generation Texan, in this state that there is in, say, California. It’s a point of state pride and a strength.

Your political instincts are also true: Many Hispanics are conservatives culturally and economically. As George W. Bush proved, they are natural candidates for recruitment into the state Republican Party. Who better than you to do that job?

Here is the entire advice to Guv Dude.

Joe Niekro was selected to play in the MLB All Star Game once of course  n 1979 when he went 21-11.

I don’t have anything from The Yard today. 

 

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Junior Leads Senior

Burkablog has a good take today about the Senior Senator from the Lone Star State following the Junior Senator’s lead.  Here is part:

The emergence of Ted Cruz has made life miserable for Minority Whip John Cornyn. Cruz constantly has the senior senator for Texas looking over his right shoulder. Cornyn voted against Kerry as secretary of state, as did Cruz, but it’s likely that he did so only to inoculate himself against further doubts being cast on his conservative bona fides.

Here is all of Burkablog.

The PPP poll says two thirds of the GOPers in the Lone Star State want to impeach The President.  So the Junior Senator will play to his base and red meat it for a while.  The Senior Senator will have to go along with Junior and won’t play much of a role in working out deals and agreements with the administration.  When two thirds of the state’s GOP want to impeach The President, it is probably not a good idea for a state GOPer to be seen working with the administration.  So much for statesmanship!

Speaking of GOPers:  How many times was Hall of Fame great Nolan Ryan selected to the MLB All Star Game?

Guv Dude had this to say yesterday:

Gov. Rick Perry said Wednesday that Attorney General Greg Abbott has agreed not to challenge him in the 2014 Republican primary if Perry chooses to seek re-election.

In an interview after a taping of "Inside Texas Politics" at the WFAA-TV studios in Dallas, Perry said he and his fellow Republican have a deal.

"Greg is a dear friend. He has said clearly that if I ran again he’s not going to be running against me, but that’s beside the point," he told the station and The Dallas Morning News.

Here is the entire Chron take on Guv Dude.

I am finally starting to believe that he won’t run again in 2014 but he wants to continue to be relevant of sorts.  He has seen the latest PPP poll numbers and can finally see a little bit of the handwriting that is starting to show up on the wall.

Hall of Fame great Nolan Ryan was selected to play in eight MLB All Star games of course.  Nolan is 66 today.  Happy Birthday Nolan Ryan!  We will see you two months from today on Opening Day at The Yard!

I wonder if Nelson Cruz will be in uniform for the Rangers that evening at The Yard.

 

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Out of Touch!

It is a known fact that Traci Jensen’s opponent for State Board of Education (SBOE), District 6 supports abstinence-based-only education programs. 

The lead story in today’s Chronicle starts off like this:

Some Houston-area school districts are shifting away from traditional abstinence-only sex education classes this school year, part of a statewide trend that has prompted concern among some parents that kids are learning too much, too soon about sex.

The Spring Branch and Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District are the latest in the area to adopt an "abstinence-plus" program. Seventh-graders will take the 12-lesson program created by the University of Texas Prevention Research Center in Houston that teaches about contraception, unplanned pregnancy and condom use, in addition to abstinence.

Most of Spring Branch ISD and Cy-Fair ISD fall within SBOE, Dist. 6.  Traci’s opponent, Donna Bahorich, is clearly advancing her political ideology over the interests of the children of  SBOE 6.

Here is the entire Chron piece.

Who says this race isn’t important?

Kuffer has a good take on the SBOE 6 race.  He responded to the campaign memo we sent out earlier this week.  Here is how he sums it up:

There’s no question that Jensen is a strong, well-qualified candidate. There’s no question that her opponent is a wacko ideologue who will make the SBOE a worse place than it already is. Unfortunately, there’s also no question that this district was drawn to elect a Republican. To have a shot at winning, Jensen is going to need to convince a fair number of Republicans to vote for her instead. How many? Well, take a look at the 2008 numbers for the redrawn district. Assuming roughly the same conditions, Democratic candidates face a gap of about 100,000 votes, meaning that some 50,000 Republicans need to be flipped. That’s a tall order. Now, it’s entirely possible that the district has moved in a Democratic direction since 2008 – the comparable gap for a Democrat in the 2004 election would have been closer to 150,000 votes – but there’s still going to be a gap. This is the challenge Jensen faces.

I don’t want to be a buzzkill. I do believe this race can be won, and I think it’s vitally important to work on it. Boosting turnout in this growing and dynamic area is a key component in addition to winning converts. This is an important race, and Traci Jensen deserves your support in it.

Here is the entire Kuffer.

At The Yard last night, ‘the ‘Stros won their 46^th game.  When is the earliest date the team has ever won 46 – guessing the year will be good enough?

Don’t forget Traci’s reception next Wednesday!

Here in Harris County, are we now going to refer to election night as the night of the living dead?  The Chron E-Board gets into the dead man voting issue.

Check it out here.

I wonder when Guv Dude will be calling a special election to fill the vacancy in HD 128.  According to the Chron’s Patti Hart, HD 128 State Rep. Wayne Smith got a letter saying he was a goner.

Check out Hart’s piece here.

Speaking of Dude, he put out a press release on the Libya attack.  Doesn’t Dude know that nobody gives a rat’s arse what he thinks about foreign affairs?

HISD Board of Trustees got around to passing an ethics policy last night.  The vote was unanimous.  Now let’s see if it is going to work or see if some folks will try to game the system.

Here is Ericka Mellon’s article.

On June 21, 1998, the ‘Stros beat the Reds 3-1 at the Dome to go 46-28 of course.

Only 13,000 and change were at The Yard to see the ‘Stros come from behind and beat the Phillies.  A line shot foul ball was hit in Commentary’s direction and I reached up for it with my lid and snagged it but it ripped the lid out of my hand.   A nurse from Stonewall County sitting behind me picked it up.  That’s cool.  They are handing out blankets tonight, Los Astros T-Shirts tomorrow, and posters on Sunday.

Junction Jack is a goner but they are letting him stay for the rest of the season.  That’s what we call dead wabbit walking!

 

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Voting Rights 2, Lone Star State 0

Scoreboard!   Oops!  Guv Dude and AG Abbott just can’t handle the truth.  They are also very sore losers.  Here is what Dude said yesterday after the Voter I.D. law went down the toilet like all t__ds are supposed to go:

Chalk up another victory for fraud. Today, federal judges subverted the will of the people of Texas and undermined our effort to ensure fair and accurate elections. The Obama Administration’s claim that it’s a burden to present a photo ID to vote simply defies common sense. I will continue to work with Attorney General Abbott to fight for the same right that other states already have to protect their elections.”

Dude, as soon as you get your arse home from Tampa, why don’t you invite Commentary and a few others over and show us the fraud!   Show me the victories that fraud can claim?  Dude won a number of elections and I don’t consider that fraud – just a mistake.  Where is the fraud?  More Latinos being added to the voter rolls doesn’t constitute fraud.  Shifting demographics is not fraud. 

Quit crying!  Oops!  Never mind!  Keep crying so all those folks that you tried to deny the right to vote can be reminded to vote against GOP candidates from September 23 through November 6!

I’m sure Dude, AG Abbott, and others will be huddling soon to figure out another way to keep Latinos and African Americans from voting.   Stay tuned, stay alert, and be on the lookout!

OK, after last night, I have to do the obligatory review of Dirty Harry’s performance.  For a fistful of dollars – heck – for few dollars more he could have hired better writers and had a sudden impact, instead, he looked like the rookie.  Walking on stage a la high plains drifter, wanting to throw down the gauntlet, and stepping into the line of fire, just about every talking head said it was unforgiven that he would attempt to be the enforcer any which way you can.  It was obvious that the Romney folks gave him absolute power to use magnum force to make it look like it is a true crime to vote for The President’s reelection.  The media talking heads kind of suggested that this pale rider might need a little blood work because Romney folks said he would be arriving looking like a million dollar baby in a pink cadillac instead it looked more like a gran torino hauling two mules for Sister Sara on the bridges of Madison County.

Former ‘Stro pitcher Shane Reynolds will throw out the first pitch tonight at The Yard.  Shane played 11 seasons with the ‘Stros – 1992-2002.  What were the most number of wins in a season that Shane had and what numero was on his jersey?

The only thing I’m going to say about Romney’s speech last night is that it was thin on specifics.  He also only devoted a couple of minutes to foreign affairs.  There was no mention of immigration reform or securing the border or DREAMers so I guess he is going to leave chasing after the Latino vote to surrogates like Marco Rubio, New Mexico’s Governor, and P.  I’m thinking that they are just hoping that Latinos won’t show up to vote.

Now it is on to Charlotte where diversity will rule!

Today the Chron E-Board also has a take on AG Abbott and his futile efforts to deny Latinos political participation.  Here is how it ends:

In Texas, of all places, does Abbott really want to defend a redistricting map that dilutes the electoral strength of Hispanics, even as his party scrambles to cultivate them? Or to argue that the few, scattered incidences of voter ID fraud are worth disenfranchising many Hispanics?

It’s time to drop these cases.

Check out the entire E-Board take here.

Shane Reynolds went 19-8 in 1998 of course and wore the numero 38 in 1992 and from 1993-2002 he wore the numero 37.

Only 12,835 showed up last night at The Yard – the lowest turnout at The Yard ever.  We lost again.  Commentary wasn’t there but my tickets were.  Jeff Kent Bobbleheads on Saturday and Milo Bobbleheads on Sunday as the NL Central first place Reds come in for three.

Have a nice Labor Day!

 

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