blogHOUSTON - THE STREAM

Harris County Almanac: The Bill White-a-Palooza

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:43:13 -0600

CORY CROW comments on The Bill White-a-Palooza.

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

You can't have your cake and...

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:53:15 -0600

BEST EXCUSE FOR A CRASH we've seen in a while: "'She told the officer and the officer relayed to me that she was coming home and was eating cake and that she lost control of her car,' said Stidham" (KTRK-13 News).

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

"Sources" tell KPRC Locke tax returns coming soon; campaign still won't respond to Texas Watchdog

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:24:54 -0600

TEXAS WATCHDOG can't get a response from the Gene Locke campaign about the candidate's tax returns, but apparently "sources" have told KPRC-2's Mary Benton that they will be released in a few days.

We're expecting them to come out about 4:30 pm next Wednesday, just before Thanksgiving. But that's okay -- it will give watchdogs a nice long holiday to comb through them.

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

Humor files: Locke powerbrokers try not to beg (too much) for Morales endorsement

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:17:14 -0600

KTRK-13'S MIYA SHAY blogs about the big meeting between Roy Morales, Allen Blakemore, and Christian Archer.

We LOVE reading stories about Gene Locke power brokers groveling for the support of the guy who finished fourth AND loaned his campaign money at usurious interest rates. More of the same, please!

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

BAR: Still not ready for primetime

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:05:54 -0600

DAVID BENZION blogs that Texas voters should not allow Houston's Barbara Ann Radnofsky "anywhere near the AG's office."

We don't expect there's much chance of that.

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

Speaking of disconnects...

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:04:53 -0600

THE CHRON'S "SCIGUY" blogs about the "disconnect between TV meteorologists and climate scientists on the issue of global warming."

For our part, we are frequently amused by the disconnect between faith-based global-warming enthusiasts who play meteorologists on their blogs, and... actual trained meteorologists.

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

Chron Caucasian Think Tank: "Backlash" mellows to "fears"

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:03:47 -0600

THE CHRON (and other media outlets) love the "Muslim backlash" meme.

When the backlash never materializes, the natural followup is "[LATEST NEWS EVENT] raised fears."

Why does the newspaper waste its ever-shrinking print space with this?

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

One Texas Monthly column that should count as a political contribution

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:02:00 -0600

If you like your storytelling exaggerated and are a fan of Mayor Bill White, then you're probably going to love the latest Texas Monthly tribute to the man.

On the other hand, fans of high-quality Texas journalism may question the outright, unbalanced cheerleading. Maybe Texas Monthly is aiming to be the new Mrs. White?

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

A Casey clone on the political beat? Whee!

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:57:25 -0600

NEW CHRON POLITICAL WRITER JOE HOLLEY blogs about... speculation that Mayor Bill White might run for governor instead of Senate.

Count us underwhelmed by this sort of thing. If the Chron is even going to bother with a "political writer" when the newsroom is so depleted, surely it would be nice to get beyond lazy Rick Casey-style rehashes of the obvious.

UPDATE: This appears to be his first column for the big newspaper, on that [sarcasm] little-covered topic of Mayor White's run for a Senate seat that isn't yet open [/sarcasm].

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net

Who cares if the city's broke so long as there's a Bill White boondoggle to approve?

_@_ (Kevin Whited) — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:41:20 -0600

THE CHRON'S BRADLEY OLSON reports on Mayor Bill White's latest boondoggle: a $600,000 payoff to developers to build 10 single-family homes as part of the "Houston Hope" program. The story has slightly more balance than the Chron's more typical cheerleading/reporting on such urban boondoggles, so that's an improvement we suppose.

UPDATE: Cory Crow astutely points out that the same Mayor Bill White who is promoting this spending boondoggle recently warned the current mayoral candidates about the dangers of spending. Or maybe that was Senate Candidate White trying to sound good for rural Texas folks. It's so hard to keep straight!

Thanks for reading. You can find more content like this at blogHOUSTON.net