Public-access TV now profane, still crappy

Here's another example of your tax dollars at "work," but hopefully not for long:

The Houston City Council postponed funding for a cable public-access channel Wednesday amid debate about whether it would be censorship for the city to limit programming that one councilwoman labeled "obscene." The decision delays about $800,000 for the channel -- a public forum allowing anyone to host a show -- until a council committee holds a hearing within two weeks. At issue, Councilwoman Addie Wiseman said, is what she described as a profanity-laced comedy routine that aired during a recent early-morning broadcast on the channel, called Houston MediaSource.

For the record, public-access television is bad. I mean really, really bad. How bad, you ask? So bad that even people who make their living on it refuse to watch it:

Shows aren't viewed before they air, said Patti Garlinghouse, the channel's executive director, because the purpose is to promote and encourage free speech. Garlinghouse said she doesn't know whether any programming includes nudity. She said she doesn't watch because it's not her job to judge the content.

Yep. Public-access television sucks. Except for this show.

Tabloid scumbags nailed on 'ugly' blast

I usually laugh whenever I see a copy of Weekly World News. It's full of ridiculous stories -- the 100-pound baby, UFO abductions of Elvis, and of course, Bat Boy. But this isn't funny at all:

It was an ugly story, purportedly about the 10 ugliest people in the world. One of the listings was Phoenix police Officer Jason Schechterle, who was tragically burned and disfigured four years ago when a taxicab rammed into his police cruiser. On Monday, at a Phoenix City Hall news conference, the parent company of the supermarket tabloid that ran the story offered up an apology and a "significant" donation to the charity of Schechterle's choice to avoid a lawsuit.

Let's hear from the paper's spokesman, who apparently said the following with a straight face:

"American Media stands for quality journalism," Zakim said.

Uh-huh.

Eminent domain comes back, bites Souter

What goes around comes around:

Could a hotel be built on the land owned by Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter? A new ruling by the Supreme Court which was supported by Justice Souter himself itself might allow it. A private developer is seeking to use this very law to build a hotel on Souter's land. Justice Souter's vote in the "Kelo vs. City of New London" decision allows city governments to take land from one private owner and give it to another if the government will generate greater tax revenue or other economic benefits when the land is developed by the new owner. On Monday June 27, Logan Darrow Clements, faxed a request to Chip Meany the code enforcement officer of the Towne of Weare, New Hampshire seeking to start the application process to build a hotel on 34 Cilley Hill Road. This is the present location of Mr. Souter's home. Clements, CEO of Freestar Media, LLC, points out that the City of Weare will certainly gain greater tax revenue and economic benefits with a hotel on 34 Cilley Hill Road than allowing Mr. Souter to own the land. The proposed development, called "The Lost Liberty Hotel" will feature the "Just Desserts Café" and include a museum, open to the public, featuring a permanent exhibit on the loss of freedom in America. Instead of a Gideon's Bible each guest will receive a free copy of Ayn Rand's novel "Atlas Shrugged."

Heh. Also, take a look at the fax Mr. Clements sent to the City of Weare.

T-shirt declares: 'Howard Dean hates me'

He hates me too.

Are you a Republican? If so, Howard Dean hates you. Now your chest can proclaim that message! A website called HowardDeanHatesMe.com is selling t-shirts and bumper stickers emblazoned with the message. Why? I'll let the proprietor explain:

If you're a Republican, that means Howard hates you. If you're a Democrat, it means you have a party leader who is alienating people right and left, and flushing political discourse right down the toilet. Hutus HATE Tutsis. Nazis HATE Jews. Sunnis HATE Shiites. If Democrats now hate Republicans, we're in big trouble. If you're offended that Howard hates you, you should buy some of this stuff and let the world know how you feel. If you're offended that your party's leadership has sunk to this level, you should call Howard and give him a piece of your mind (he could use it).

This should not be confused with ex-XFL player Rod "He Hate Me" Smart. That guy's a Renaissance genius compared to Howard Dean.

Chron pro-rail bias shines through once more

Yet again, the Chronicle's fetish for light rail colors its news reporting. Here's the headline:

Houston rides high in rail, bus contest

Here's the story:

Light rail train operators and maintenance crews from the Metropolitan Transit Authority took sixth place in a June 7 competition in Pittsburgh with those from 13 other cities. Not bad, considering Metro has had less than two years experience with rail transit.

Forgive me if I don't consider a 6th place finish to be "riding high." I would characterize that result as "middling," "mediocre," or "about average." And what's with that "not bad" line, rationalizing Metro's middling performance? Could we leave editorial judgements on the editorial page? It sounds like the contest -- at least the bus portion -- was interesting:

In the agency's bus "Roadeo," which includes fine maneuvering, parking and an obstacle course, plus diagnosing and repairing mechanical problems, Metro's Charlie Kennedy again topped the bus operator competition. Kennedy, who drives the 137 Northshore Express, won the Best Operator in North America title in Las Vegas in 2002.

Congratulations to Mr. Kennedy. Hopefully Metro won't cut your route.

Chron goofs on PhotoBlocker story

Our beloved hometown rag today has a story on PhotoBlocker, a spray that supposedly renders license plates invisible to red light cameras:

But before Phantom Plate Inc. can start counting its money in Houston, it may face a battle in the City Council or the Legislature. Houston Police Department Lt. Robert Manzo said the city may want to consider an ordinance or a state law against PhotoBlocker. "So people are already gearing up to defeat the system, huh?" Manzo asked. "We're not happy to hear this product is available and already being marketed to Houston before the cameras are even installed. This is obviously going to be a concern, and it may be something we have to address with the Legislature."

The gloss, which is unnoticeable to the naked eye, renders photographs useless in identifying plate numbers. The product, offered only on the Internet, is legal here and sells for $29.99 for a can containing enough spray to cover four license plates for life.

As we've seen many times -- like this, this, this and this -- the Chron often fails to get a story's basic facts right. The Photoblocker story is just another example.

Tupac Shakur arts center opens in Atlanta

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the pinnacle of Western civilization:

When rap artist Tupac Shakur was murdered nearly a decade ago, his mother vowed to keep his memory alive.

Shakur-Davis' dream became a reality this month with the opening of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation Center for the Arts on Memorial Drive in DeKalb County. The grand opening of the visitor center and peace garden is the first phase of an anticipated $11 million project that eventually will include a performing arts theater, museum, art gallery, community meeting space and classrooms.

Such a wonderful tribute to a man whose poetry included poignant lines like "F*** the world."

The adjacent 6-acre peace garden is the centerpiece of the arts center, according to Maxie. A bronze statue of Tupac will be installed there in September.

A peace garden? Are you kidding me? The guy -- a convicted rapist -- had "THUG LIFE" and an AK-47 tattooed on his stomach. His mom, who is opening the center, was a violent Black Panther activist who was imprisoned for her attempts to set off a race war. [Hat-tip: Lauren]

Dems prepare to launch AdiosMoFo.com

Gov. Rick Perry's recent "Adios, mofo" gaffe is the gift that keeps on giving. Former ChronicallyBiased contributor Phil Magness reports that Democrat consultant Kelly Fero registered "AdiosMoFo.com" yesterday. No word yet on what the site's content will be, but Fero is expected to work for the state Democrat party or Chris Bell in the upcoming campaign. A quick WHOIS search confirms that Fero, who did a little Dumpster diving for Ann Richards, owns the site. Meanwhile, at least two stores on CafePress are hawking "Adios, MoFo" gear.

Doctors build real six-million-dollar man

Straight out of 70's TV:

Researchers have developed artificial arms that can be moved as it if they were real limbs, simply by thinking about making them move, according to Local 6 News. When Jesse Sullivan's brain tells his arm to do something, it's done in seconds. The world's first bionic man, Jesse Sullivan, 54, accidentally touched live wires while working as a utility lineman in Tennessee. He suffered severe burns, causing him to lose his arms.

Sullivan's hand rotates 360 degrees, according to the report.

A hand that rotates all the way around? In my book, that's better than he was before. How much were the devices? You guessed it:

By the time it's perfected, the cost of manufacturing the bionic arm is expected to be about $6 million, according to the report.

Sweet.

Muslim countries to establish Islamic bank

A coalition of Muslims enters the banking industry.

Apparently prodded by criticism that they're great at destruction but not so adept at building things, the world's Muslim countries are going into business:

Muslim bankers and regulators announced plans Wednesday to set up a global Islamic bank by next year that could rival Western lenders and to chart a 10-year blueprint to bolster growth in the Islamic financial sector.

Wow, that's pretty ambitious. Just how will this bank come to dominate the global financial sphere?

Officials have said the bank will operate in keeping with Islamic laws, which means no interest would be paid or charged on deposits and loans.

Oh. In a similar vein, I'm pleased to announce the formation of Bramanti Motors. We're gonna make cars and give them away. All I have to is find someone to hook me up with a million tons of free steel.

Governor to TV reporter: 'Adios, mofo'

From Channel 13's Ted Oberg:

Governor Rick Perry had some parting words for an Eyewitness News reporter that may raise your eyebrows. It was an innocent enough interview about the special session beginning in Austin. But the way it ended is where the questions begin.

Our questions were not recorded on tape, but in saying goodbye I told the governor, "Try as I may, Governor, I guess I can't win this one." Eleven seconds after he said goodbye, the camera crew was getting ready for the next interview with another station. That's when Gov. Perry repeated what he thought I'd said, and added a few words of his own with his microphone on and tape still rolling. "Try as I may, Governor, I'm not going to wait that long," Gov. Perry said. "Adios, Mofo."

This is the kind of thing I want the Governor to say. But I want him to say it to David Dewhurst. [Hat-tip: IFOC]

Harris County keeps fireworks legal

A sincere "thank you" goes out to Harris County Commissioners Court:

Citing moderate drought conditions that are expected to become severe by July 4, Harris County Commissioners approved rules today prohibiting burning of garbage, limbs and leaves -- but not banning cookouts -- for 90 days or until dry conditions ease. Harris County residents, however, can still enjoy fireworks. Under state law, the deadline to impose fireworks bans was June 15 to give sufficient notice to firework suppliers and the public.

Excellent. Fireworks are just plain fun. There's no better way to celebrate the birth of our nation than by blowing up Chinese stuff. Unfortunately, for those of us within Houston's city limits, fireworks are illegal:

All fireworks are banned in Houston. It is illegal to discharge fireworks or to have fireworks in your possession.

Keep 'em inside, kids. Also unfortunately, Houston's Bravest can't spell worth a lick:

There are inspectors and investigators from the Fire Marshal's office who patrol the City 10 days before (starting June 24) the Forth of July

Yikes. Now let's hear from someone who basically has the coolest job in the world:

''There are still a lot of fireworks that go in the air and are still legal to use," said Russ Rhea, spokesman for the Texas Pyrotechnic Association, the state's largest fireworks association, representing 500 retail outlets.

There's a Texas Pyrotechnic Association? Where do I sign up?

Michael Schaivo promotes self on wife's grave

Unsurprisingly, Michael Schiavo buried his wife yesterday without informing her parents. Unsurprisingly, he buried her in Florida despite his earlier claims that she would lie in her family's plot in Pennsylvania. What is surprising is the inscription on her grave. It reads like a macabre press release by Michael's scumbag lawyer:

But the woman's parents criticized Michael Schiavo for not notifying them about the burial beforehand and by inscribing "I kept my promise" on the bronze marker. Michael Schiavo had said he promised his wife he would not keep her alive artificially -- a critical element of the acrimonious legal battle over her end-of-life wishes.

On the grave marker, Michael Schiavo also listed Feb. 25, 1990, as the date his wife "Departed this Earth." On that date, Terri Schiavo collapsed and fell into what most doctors said was an irreversible vegetative state. Schiavo actually died March 31, nearly two weeks after her feeding tube was removed by court order. The grave marker lists that date as when Schiavo was "at peace."

There's no word yet on whether Michael brought his mistress and illegitimate children to the funeral.

Jack St. Clair Kilby, 1923-2005

Jack Kilby died yesterday:

Nobel laureate Jack Kilby, whose invention of the integrated circuit ushered in the electronics age and made possible the microprocessor, has died after a battle with cancer. He was 81. Kilby died Monday, according to Texas Instruments Inc., where he worked for many years. Before the integrated circuit, electronic devices relied on bulky and fragile circuitry, including glass vacuum tubes. In the late 1950s, there was considerable interest -- especially in the military -- in making devices smaller. Kilby's fingernail-size integrated circuit, a forerunner of the microchip used in today's computers, replaced the bulky and unreliable switches and tubes.

Just think of the impact that the integrated circuit has had on our daily lives. I was awakened this morning by an electronic clock radio, shaved with an chip-equipped electric razor, had a cup of coffee from a microprocessor-controlled coffee pot, set my electronic thermostat, got in my chip-laden car, and drove to work, where I used a fax machine, computer, PDA and cell phone, all made possible and cost-effective because of integrated circuits. In case you're not yet convinced of Kilby's enormous contribution to society, just think where you'd have to get your news if it wasn't for the integrated circuit.

Durbin 'apologizes' for gulag remarks

Wire services are reporting that Sen. Dick Durbin has apologized for his remarks likening U.S. troops to Nazis and gulag guards. Judge for yourself whether he goes far enough:

Under fire from Republicans and some fellow Democrats, Sen. Dick Durbin apologized Tuesday for comparing American interrogators at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp to Nazis and other historically infamous figures. "Some may believe that my remarks crossed the line," the Illinois Democrat said. "To them I extend my heartfelt apologies."

During his apology, which Durbin delivered while looking directly into a TV camera broadcasting the proceedings, the senator said: ``I made reference to Nazis, to Soviets, and other repressive regimes. Mr. President, I've come to understand that's a very poor choice of words.'' He also reached out directly to Holocaust survivors, adding: "I'm sorry if anything that I said caused any offense or pain to those who have such bitter memories of the Holocaust, the greatest moral tragedy of our time. Nothing, nothing should ever be said to demean or diminish that moral tragedy.''

"If" it offended people? There's no if about it, Dick.

Reader responds to abortion debate

LST reader "Mike" responded today to my earlier post regarding the Pope's affirmation of the Catholic Church's stance against procured abortion. Here is Mike's comment, unabridged:

I don't know about you Matt, but I would think that protecting a large number of priests - that molested a large number of children who trusted them - and allowing them to continue to work in new areas (where the people of those churches were not made aware of their past crimes) would also constitute "moral surrender". This issue should be deemed as significant to their leadership as more political orientated ones. Mike

Mike is basically suggesting that the Church should worry about major issues like sexual abuse, while ignoring relatively minor ones, like the legally sanctioned slaughter of innocents. Let's look at some basic facts. You might want to whip out your calculator and follow along.

Pope reinforces Church stance on abortion

The Vatican has released a book of speeches by Pope Benedict XVI, given when he was still a cardinal. He rejects the view that the Church and society should accept abortion as a given, suggesting that such a position would be tantamount to moral surrender:

In one section of the book, the Pope asks rhetorically why the Church should not accept that abortion is legal in many countries. "Why don't we resign ourselves to the fact that we lost that battle and dedicate our energies instead to projects where we can find greater social consensus?" he writes. Because this, he says, would be a superficial and hypocritical solution. "Recognizing the sacred nature of human life and its inviolability without any exceptions is not a small problem or something that can be considered part of the pluralism of opinions in modern society," he writes. "There is no such thing as 'small murders'. Respect for every single life is an essential condition for anything worthy of being called social life."

That pretty much sums it up.

Man suspected in 36,000 molestations

This is absolutely sickening:

A sexual predator accused of molesting two San Jose boys documented in chilling detail more than 36,000 purported sex acts with young boys for three decades in seven states, Brazil and Mexico, police said Thursday in what may be the worst case of abuse they have ever seen. The logs were found on 1,360 pages in seven spiral notebooks that police seized last month at the San Jose home of Dean Arthur Schwartzmiller, 63, who has been charged with seven felony counts of molestation involving two 12-year-old San Jose boys.

In San Jose, police also seized binders containing thousands of pornographic photographs of children, several computers and a 6-foot-tall computer server, which is being analyzed by a forensic lab in Menlo Park.

While investigators said they hadn't confirmed that the coded entries -- which included the letters "F" and "X" after some names -- are sexual acts, some page headings, written in a loopy cursive, categorize boys according to graphically specific sex acts. Headings include "Boys under 12,'' "Blond Boys," "Cute Boys," "Boys who say no," and boys by specific sex act, Cornfield said.

How could he get away with this for so long?

Friedman makes misleading fuel claim

A piece by New York Times columnist Tom Friedman runs in today's Chronicle, claiming that 500-mile-per-gallon cars are just over the horizon:

Imagine, though, if the government encouraged, through tax policy and other incentives, every automaker to offer plug-in hybrids? We would quickly move down the innovation curve and end up with better and cheaper plug-ins for all. Then add to that flexible-fuel cars, which have a special chip and fuel line that enable them to burn alcohol (ethanol or methanol), gasoline or any mixture of the two. Some 4 million U.S. cars already come equipped this way, including from GM. It costs only about $100 a car to make it flex-fuel ready. Brazil hopes to have all its new cars flex-fuel ready by 2008. As Luft notes, if you combined a plug-in hybrid system with a flex-fuel system that burns 80 percent alcohol and 20 percent gasoline, you could end up stretching each gallon of gasoline up to 500 miles.

The extra miles, of course, come from simply replacing gasoline with alcohol. It's not as though each gallon of fuel will get you 500 miles down the road. Here's an analogy: you're running a lemonade stand. Someone tells you, "I can give you 10 gallons of lemonade out of that one lemon." Wow, that'd be cool. How do we do it? "Just squeeze the lemon into a big tub, and add 10 gallons of Country Time Lemonade." Yeah, thanks, Tom. Government mandates in favor of alcohol-based fuels would become a massive subsidy to farmers, who already make their livelihood largely on the taxpayers' nickel.

Dick Durbin is a moron: Part 5,942

Everyone's been talking about Sen. Dick Durbin's (D-Ill.) comments. Here they are:

When you read some of the graphic descriptions of what has occurred here—I almost hesitate to put them in the RECORD, and yet they have to be added to this debate. Let me read to you what one FBI agent saw. And I quote from his report: "One a couple of occasions, i entered interview rooms to find a detainee chained hand and foot in a fetal position to the floor, with no chair, food, or water.

Hey Dick, he's chained to the floor. What does he need a chair for?

On another occasion, the air conditioning had been turned down so far and the temperature was so cold in the room, that the barefooted detainee was shaking with cold.

Wait a damn minute. We're AIR CONDITIONING these violent extremist scumbags?

On another occasion, the [air conditioner] had been turned off, making the temperature in the unventilated room well over 100 degrees.

That's more like it.

On another occasion, not only was the temperature unbearably hot, but extremely loud rap music was being played in the room

To Dick, that's torture. Sounds like high school gym class to me.

If I read this to you and did not tell you that it was an FBI agent describing what Americans had done to prisoners in their control, you would most certainly believe this must have been done by Nazis, Soviets in their gulags, or some mad regime—Pol Pot or others—that had no concern for human beings.

Who knew Soviets, Nazis and Khmer Rouge had rap music and air conditioning?

Fun with Hello

I'm trying out this Hello software, which allows easy posting of images without having to host them elsewhere. We'll see how it works. UPDATE: Hey, that's pretty cool! Too bad Hello doesn't know to center the image, add a title or italicize the caption. Oh well.

Terri Schiavo's autopsy report released

Valued LST reader "bob" left the following comment today:

Funny you guys haven’t commented on the Schiavo case yet. Oh I see, when the medical evidence goes against your rhetoric you cower in a corner…

Whatever you say, "bob." Let's look at the report. Remember the husband's claim that an eating disorder caused her collapse? You can write that one off:

Terri Schiavo's body did not show any signs of trauma or other criminal activity that would explain her brain injury, nor was there evidence to support previous diagnoses of a heart attack or an eating disorder, the Florida medical examiner who conducted her autopsy said Wednesday.

That's interesting, considering Michael's earlier claims:

Her husband, Michael Schiavo, was awarded nearly $2 million in judgments and settlements in a medical malpractice lawsuit claiming that the collapse was caused by a heart attack triggered by a potassium imbalance, caused by an undiagnosed eating disorder, bulimia nervosa.

Is he going to give the $2 million back?

Another Drudge oddity

This is pretty weird:

I'm not really sure what to make of that. That's prosecutor Tom Sneddon, by the way.

Michael Jackson: Not guilty

Here are the verdicts on Michael Jackson.

1. (conspiracy): Not guilty. 2. (lewd act upon a minor): Not guilty. 3. (lewd act upon a minor): Not guilty. 4. (lewd act upon a minor): Not guilty. 5. (lewd act upon a minor): Not guilty. 6. (attempted lewd act upon a minor): Not guilty. 7. (administering an intoxicating agent to assist in a felony): Not guilty. 7a. (providing alcoholic beverages to a person under 21): Not guilty. 8. (administering an intoxicating agent to assist in a felony): Not guilty. 8a. (providing alcoholic beverages to a person under 21): Not guilty. 9. (administering an intoxicating agent to assist in a felony): Not guilty. 9a. (providing alcoholic beverages to a person under 21): Not guilty. 10. (administering an intoxicating agent to assist in a felony): Not guilty. 10a. (providing alcoholic beverages to a person under 21): Not guilty. That's it. He walks.

Drudge breaks out reserve police light

Any regular reader of the Drudge Report is familiar with the infamous police lights Matt Drudge uses to indicate HOLY CRAP A HUGE STORY IS BREAKING RIGHT NOW MUST CREDIT DRUDGE REPORT YEEEEAAAARGH. This humble reader just assumed there was only one police light, hidden away in the Drudge Report Bunker. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that Drudge's engineering corps has secretly constructed a second police light, to be used only in the case of HUGE EARTHSHATTERING NEWS:

Get some decaf, Drudge. For what it's worth, this Lone Star Times legal analyst is predicting a split verdict: guilty on some lesser charges, but not guilty on the molestation. We'll know in about 10 minutes.

'Move It' echoes Houston-is-ugly refrain

File this one in the "World Class" department. Houston is ugly, we have no trees, we need "smart growth" policies, blah blah blah:

In about five years, the Hardy Toll Road will give passengers arriving at Bush Intercontinental Airport a straight shot into downtown. But it may not give them much to look at. Federal Green Ribbon money has helped beautify the part nearest Bush, but from there to the North Loop, where the toll road now stops, the route is mostly undeveloped and industrial.

Which is it, Rad? Mostly undeveloped or mostly industrial? If it's mostly industrial, it's not undeveloped. If it's mostly undeveloped, it's nice and green.

The North and Eastex freeways greet visitors with dense traffic, acres of concrete, miles of neon and the occasional rubber gorilla waving from a strip mall roof.

Oh my gosh! Private industry is tainting the landscape with their jobs, their goods and their services! We'd better cover it up with government-subsidized vegetation, lest a bunch of Euro types think we're not World Class!

One reason why Houston was spurned in its bid to host the 2012 Olympics was the sheer ugliness that spectators and athletic delegations would have to pass through, says attorney Bill Coats of the Quality of Life Coalition, a group of about 80 "green" and civic organizations.

We stuck it to the smart-grown greenies and kept the French away? Sounds like a good day's work.

Coats has a proposal for improving the toll route while there's still time.

Apparently, the toll road is a ticking nuclear bomb, cleverly disguised as infrastructure.

Red light camera update

The lovely and talented Anne Linehan points out a number of intersections that are likely candidates for red light cameras under Mayor Bill White's latest revenue grab safety initiative:

There are plenty of possibilities for the city, but the top ten intersections for red light citations are: •Southwest Freeway feeder at Hillcroft •Federal @ Dorwayne •Southwest Freeway at Bellaire •the feeder at Bellaire and at Beechnut •Beltway 8 at Bellaire •Wayside at Market •Waugh at D'Amico •Jefferson at Chenevert downtown and topping all intersections, with 882 citations issued, •Harwin and Hillcroft in southwest Houston

And:

Here are the most dangerous intersections for the first three months of this year: * Tomball Parkway and FM 1960 * 59 and Beechnut * 59 and Hillcroft * 59 and Chimney Rock * I-10 and Gessner * 59 and Beltway 8 * Westheimer and Highway 6 * Bissonnet and Beltway 8 Topping the list is the Katy Freeway and Highway 6 with 25 accidents just in the last 90 days. Beechnut and Beltway 8 ranks second with 23 accidents there in just the last three months.

One clear problem with red light cameras is that the camera identifies the car, not the driver. Therefore, the fine is assessed against the car's registered owner, not necessarily the person who allegedly committed the offense. The situation could be as simple as letting your kid borrow the car, and junior blows through a red light. Or you could have your car stolen, and get dinged for some scumbag's joyride. Some police departments are even issuing scam tickets to trick vehicle owners into singing. However, with the increasing decriminalization of traffic tickets, the burden of proof is shifting to the defendant -- guilty until proven innocent. That's just not right.

Bill White calls self 'fiscal conservative'

I swear I am not making this up. Our honorable mayor is on the record calling himself a "fiscal conservative."

Mayor Bill White, meanwhile, said he is launching initiatives to help the city -- particularly areas of northeast and southeast Houston that have been "leapfrogged" by new development -- capture a greater share of the single-family housing market. "I don't want, nor do most people in this community want, to tell people where they can and can't live or how long their commute should or shouldn't be," White said. "One person's sprawl is another person's dream house. "On the other hand, as a fiscal conservative, I'll tell you it is much more expensive for us to provide transportation services, water and sewer services and everything else if somebody lives twice as far away."

You've got to be kidding me. First of all, Mayor, these areas aren't even in the city, so it costs the city nothing for those people to get water mains, sewer lines and roads. Now let's take a look at the Mayor's "fiscal conservative" credentials, courtesy of the real fiscal conservatives over at blogHOUSTON: *He's got a fiscally conservative $100,000 budget for outside legal expenses to fight Proposition 2's revenue cap. Yep, this "fiscal conservative" is spending tons of money to fight a tax cap. *Safe Clear, originally designed as a fiscally conservative revenue grab, has become a fiscally conservative money pit, running 600% over the original fiscally conservative budget. *He wanted to drop a fiscally conservative $2 million for a fiscally conservative African-American museum. *He paid Continental Airlines a fiscally conservative $85,000 to teach fiscally conservative telephone manners to other fiscally conservative City employees. *His fiscally conservative police chief wants to spend $700,000 on fiscally conservative police badges. I think they're made of platinum and studded with diamonds or something. Fiscally conservative diamonds.

Column strikes back at 'tyrant' bosses

Today's Chronicle contains the following childish editorial, standing up for the little guy against the most heinous of all evils -- an employer:

Forget for a moment the merits of Bolton's resumé. Forget the seething Senate cauldron of party resentment. Let's be real: Most Americans don't give a hoot in Hades who our U.N. ambassador is. The reason many of us have followed the Bolton hearings with a sort of malicious satisfaction is because it's great to finally see a bully boss get his.

Forget the merits? Um, no thanks.

You know the type: Purple fit-pitching, overbearing browbeaters who hold your paycheck and future in their balled-up fists. And remind you of that fact loudly and often.

Oh, that's rich, considering the Chronicle used its "balled-up fists" to punch 243 people out of their jobs.

The proliferation of toxic boss syndrome is the reason we cheered when Queen of Mean Leona Helmsley, famous for pink-slipping her staff, did an extended stay at the Big Barred Hotel.

Silly me. I thought we cheered her conviction because she was a tax-dodging scumbag. I guess I should "forget the merits." Back to the column:

In another incident, a former government contractor testified that in 1994, Bolton threw a tape dispenser at her, made offensive comments about her weight, shouted threats, chased her down a Moscow hotel hallway, pounded on her door and "generally behave(ed) like a madman."

The writer, Bronwyn Lance Chester, omits a few items about this "former government contractor." To wit: her name is Melody Townsel, she ran an organization called Mothers Opposing Bush, and she changed her story after making those accusations. By the way, she's an admitted serial plagiarist. Yeah, she sounds credible.

Fun with light rail

I am on a shitty MetroRail train and I just got my ticket checked by a cop. Meanwhile, Park and Rides are completely unguarded.

[Hat-Tip: Wes]

Canadian gov't refuses new kidney for hero

Imagine this horrific nightmare. You have a debilitating kidney ailment. Despite dialysis treatments every couple of days, it's getting worse. You'll die without a transplant. Your friends get together, and they find a live donor -- some noble stranger who's willing to save your life. The government-run hospital says no:

But Montreal's Royal Victoria Hospital refuses to do the transplant for what it claims are "ethical" reasons. Dr. Douglas Keith, head of the hospital's living donor transplant program, says the hospital could not be sure there is no "quid pro quo" agreement between Tegegne and Dhar. He also says the donation looks suspicious because the donor is from the Third World and contact was made on the Internet. Dhar has repeatedly stated that his motives are pure, and that he is not looking for money or to immigrate to Canada. He says he is motivated by religious conviction and is moved by Tegegne's story. Dhar also wants to honor his grandfather, an Indian army general who died of kidney disease.

He should just bypass the government health care system and get his transplant from a private doctor, right? No dice:

And under federal law, private clinics are not legally allowed to provide services covered by the Canada Health Act, so there is no competition - and nowhere else to turn for help.

Socialized medicine kills.

HIV, Ebola components to treat cystic fibrosis

This sounds like either a clever, creative way to tackle a terrible disease, or a horrific disaster just waiting to happen:

Scientists believe they can treat cystic fibrosis patients by combining two killer viruses. Tests on monkeys have shown that a safe hybrid of HIV and Ebola delivers corrective genes to the lungs better than any other method. Cystic fibrosis, which affects more than 7,500 people in the UK, causes the lungs to clog up. HIV inserts genes into cells, but does not target the lung lining cells involved in CF. Ebola, on the other hand, binds strongly to these cells.

Cystic fibrosis is one of those diseases that has been on the brink of a cure for quite a while now. Hopefully this will put science over the top.

[Hat-tip: Drudge]

Radical Islamists desecrate U.S. flag in NYC

American Muslims staged a demonstration in New York City where they stomped on and ripped up an American flag, then released a video of the disgusting event. Here's the film, with the clever title "Operation Desecrate American Flag to the Public." Um, okay. At 1:59 into the video, the idiot says:

We disassociate ourselves to represent anything that this flag stands for, represents, or calls for.

Not 10 seconds later, he demands that American law protect his vitriol:

Do not be afraid, we Muslims who are doing this. We have a legal permit.

At 3:09 into the video, another jihadi makes known his wishes for Islam:

to dominate over all other religions, to dominate the United States, to dominate the world, even though the non-Muslims may hate it.

This video is brought to you courtesy of the Religion of Peace.

'Moral retards' prof steps down from chair

Last week, Owen Courrèges reported on a Brooklyn College professor who called religious people an "ugly, violent lot" and "moral retards." He's resigned his position as chairman-elect of the sociology department:

Yesterday, the college's administration, led by the president, Christoph Kimmich, announced that Mr. Shortell declined the appointment but would be consulting on the future leadership of the department. In his e-mail, Mr. Shortell expressed anger at the treatment he received from some members of his department and at what he called the administration's "inadequate" defense of his academic freedom.

Michelle Malkin puts it best:

Boo hoo.

Heh.

Safe Clear: 600% cost overruns and counting

Massive cost overruns on Houston's Safe Clear program will lead to discussion in City Hall today:

Mayor Bill White and City Council members will discuss the cost of the Safe Clear program during a budget meeting Wednesday, Local 2 reported.

The City of Houston expects to spend $2.1 million on the program this year. The city originally projected the cost to be around $300,000. Tow companies that pay to participate in the program and METRO fund the program. The tow companies pay about $900,000 and METRO pays about $442,000, in which the money comes from a 1-cent sales tax allocation that is collected for general mobility issues. "One major trauma accident costs us over $1 million. So, if we spend a million dollars on Safe Clear that benefits the entire city and saves lives -- statistics show it does save lives -- I'm good with that," Council Member Michael Berry told Local 2.

What statistics, Councilman? What statistics can you possibly cite to show that Safe Clear saves lives? I'd also be very interested to know how major wrecks cost the City $1 million a pop. Do Life Flight choppers run on Chanel No. 5, or what? I've contacted Councilman Berry's office for a clarification. This should be good. [Hat-tip: LST reader Bill Howerton]

Are real men turning into Euroweenies?

This story from Paris (where else) almost reads like a caricature of itself:

Macho man is an endangered species, with today's male more likely to opt for a pink flowered shirt and swingers' clubs than the traditional role as family super-hero, fashion industry insiders say. "The masculine ideal is being completely modified. All the traditional male values of authority, infallibility, virility and strength are being completely overturned," said Pierre Francois Le Louet, the agency's managing director.

"We are watching the birth of a hybrid man. ... Why not put on a pink-flowered shirt and try out a partner-swapping club?" asked Le Louet, stressing that the study had focused on men aged between 20 and 35.

Sure, why not? Why not compare sexual deviancy to a change of clothing? By the way, I seem to remember a quote by the often-ridiculed then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger that fits this scene:

"We are moving toward a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one's own ego and one's own desires."

Kerry's Yale grades: lots of Ds, C+ in French

What a stud! It's no wonder he landed Teresa.

Remember the claims that John Kerry was some kind of uberintellectual? Just like the president, the junior senator was a C student who never made an A at Yale:

In 1999, The New Yorker published a transcript indicating that Bush had received a cumulative score of 77 for his first three years at Yale and a roughly similar average under a non-numerical rating system during his senior year. Kerry, who graduated two years before Bush, got a cumulative 76 for his four years, according to a transcript that Kerry sent to the Navy when he was applying for officer training school. He received four D's in his freshman year out of 10 courses, but improved his average in later years.

The transcript shows that Kerry's freshman-year average was 71. He scored a 61 in geology, a 63 and 68 in two history classes, and a 69 in political science. His top score was a 79, in another political science course. Another of his strongest efforts, a 77, came in French class.

Hey, who needs geology and history anyway? If you're going to live the John Kerry life, it's all politics and French. [Hat-tip: Ashley]

Man tries to keep Habitat out of neigborhood

Habitat for Humanity is planning to build several houses in a Baytown neighborhood, and the situation doesn't sit well with one local resident:

In eight years, an empty lot in Stewart Heights in Baytown will look dramatically different. It will be replaced by several Habitat for Humanity homes. The people who move in to those homes will have to put it what's called 'sweat equity' – helping to build the homes hands on. But they may not get a very warm welcome from their neighbors. Gary Mason is reaching out to his neighbors, collecting signatures against a Habitat for Humanity project. "What we're doing is, we're going around to see if we can get people to sign," Mason explained. "What we're afraid's gonna happen is, it's gonna diminish the property value of your house. We're afraid that the type of people it's going to attract, they might sell drugs or stuff."

I can understand his point, in theory. No one wants to live next to something that diminishes property values. But that's not the case in Baytown:

Most Habitat for Humanity homes that have been built in Baytown are valued at about $70,000. That matches home values in this neighborhood.

Secondly, the guy doesn't seem to mind what currently occupies the site:

All that sits on the lot right now is some rusted playground equipment and trash.

Third, who is this guy going to give his petition to? It's not mentioned in the story. It doesn't appear to me as if he's thought this all the way through. But most importantly, we have private property rights. If this guy wants to restrict the use of a lot in his neighborhood, he's free to buy it and build whatever he'd like. Pass the hat and get the neighbors to buy the property together.

Chron blog stable rapidly expands

The Chronicle's blogs are multiplying! Yesterday, Chron business editor Loren Steffy launched his offering, called "Full Disclosure." I really like the name. Here's a quick run-down on our beloved hometown rag's other blogs: TechBlog: Online editor Dwight Silverman talks technology. HandStamp: Music writers Sara Cress and Joey Guerra look at Houston's music scene, complete with a link to the Chron's database of area bands. I really like the name of this blog, too. Lopez@Large: John P. Lopez discusses sports. SportsJustice: Richard Justice on sports. Duh. He focuses on questions from readers; something that's great to see from a major newspaper. MeMo: Kyrie O'Connor dishes out offbeat cultural references. Some are ripped from the headlines, some are completely random. There's always something amusing in there, even if it's her calling me "Matty B." Dead Zone Diary: A now-defunct blog, this one tracked environment writer Dina Cappiello's exploration of a biologically inhospitable area in the Gulf of Mexico. Kevin Whited sees the Chron blog movement as the precursor to the "newspaper of the future." Let's hope he's right. For the time being, it's interesting to note that all these blogs are niche products. They talk about interesting subjects -- business, technology, music, sports, pop culture and science -- but for discussion of local, state, national and global news, Chron readers have to go elsewhere. Like here. Also conspicuously absent, in my opinion, is a real estate blog by columnist Nancy Sarnoff, who told me she's far too busy for that sort of thing. Oh well. She'll come around sooner or later.

Death row killers raise funds for victim's family

This is an interesting story about forgiveness and atonement:

A college student whose younger sister was murdered more than a decade ago was presented Tuesday with a scholarship from an unlikely source -- death row inmates from around the country. Zach Osborne was only 6 years old, and his sister, Natalie, was 4 when she was raped and murdered in 1992. Their mother's boyfriend, Jeff Kandies, is on North Carolina's death row for the crime. On Tuesday, Osborne, 19, received a $5,000 college scholarship from the group of inmates who solicited money through their bimonthly publication "Compassion." Including Osborne's grant, they have given out seven scholarships worth about $27,000.

It's refreshing to know that some people can extract some good from a horrible situation, unlike this guy.

San Fran pot clubs vow to keep smokin'

Well isn't this interesting. It seems some of those pot-smoking San Francisco hippies have found an overreaching federal court ruling they don't like:

About 40 marijuana clubs in the city, which operate without interference from local police, are likely to continue in the wake of the Supreme Court decision that federal drug laws ban use of medical pot.

"I am disappointed with the U.S. Supreme Court's decision today,'' said City Attorney Dennis Herrera. "My office remains committed to working with our clients throughout city government to determine if and to what extent there is any room left for local regulation to facilitate the compassionate use of medical marijuana in accordance with the law approved by California voters.'' Across the bay from San Francisco, Alameda County supervisors are scheduled to consider a proposal today to license marijuana clubs to protect them from prosecution.

At the nonprofit Compassion and Care Center, patients can relax on couches or sit at café tables as they munch on free fruit and other food. To visit the center, located in a storefront building about four blocks from San Francisco City Hall, patients are required to show city-issued medical marijuana identification card and a driver's license before being buzzed in.

I'm not sure where I come down on the legalization of marijuana. I've heard good arguments for and against legalization. But I firmly believe it's not a federal issue. The Constitution (yeah, remember that?) details a laundry list of federal powers: building post offices, raising an army, punishing piracy, things like that. Everything else is up to the states.

Keep an eye on your credit report

Yesterday I reported that CitiFinancial lost customer data on nearly 4 million customers, a potential field day for identity thieves. Fortunately, LST readers are on the case. Commenter JH left the following comment, which I print here in its entirety:

Residents of the South will have the right to order free copies of their credit reports starting Tuesday (01 June 2005). The free access is required under a law enacted by Congress in 2003. Since last year, the law has been gradually phased in throughout different parts of the country, starting in the West. Those living in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas will be able to obtain a free credit report per year from each of the three nationwide credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union. The Federal Trade Commission says the reports can be requested all at once or can be staggered. While consumers will have free, more streamlined access to their credit reports, they must pay to receive their credit score, a separate component. There are three ways to get them: *Click on the Web site www.annualcreditreport.com and fill out a request. *Call 877-322-8228. *Print out the annual credit report request form at www.ftc.gov/credit and mail it to Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. The FTC recommends that if an error is found in a report, consumers should write the reporting company to explain the situation.

I encourage everyone to keep a watchful eye on their credit report, particularly in this age of identity theft and fraud. Thanks for the tip, JH!

Citigroup blames UPS for loss of customer data

If you have an account at Citibank or its affiliated companies -- and millions of us do -- look out. Some brown-clad meathead at UPS lost tapes with some very important information:

Citigroup Inc. Monday said computer tapes containing account and payment history data, including Social Security numbers, on 3.9 million customers were lost by United Parcel Service Inc. The disappearance is the latest in a series of reported data breaches involving U.S. companies, including Bank of America Corp. and Time Warner Inc. New York-based Citigroup said UPS, the world's biggest package carrier, lost the tapes while shipping them to an Experian credit bureau in Texas.

Whoops! Butterfingers! If you're nervous about this little mishap, sign up for credit monitoring:

CitiFinancial is inviting customers to enroll via a toll-free number, 1-888-469-8603, in a free credit monitoring service for 90 days. It said it earlier enrolled the customers in a separate service to help prevent identity theft.

Hopefully the Citi folks won't lose the credit monitoring information, too.

I'm shocked, shocked!

Less than a week ago, Russell Crowe vowed that his brawling days were behind him:

Actor Russell Crowe, known for bar brawls, said he never wants to fight again -- a lesson he learned filming the boxing flick "Cinderella Man." Crowe said three months of getting punched while portraying former U.S. heavyweight boxer James Braddock helped change his view. "I don't want to get myself into a violent situation ever again," Crowe told the London Daily Mirror in an exclusive interview. "I've seen its effect. I've felt its effect. "What I took away from filming 'Cinderella Man' is realizing that getting punched in the head is stupid. It's not something I ever want to do again," Crowe said.

Whoa, not so fast, Maximus. You see, the Aussie tough guy got a shiny set of stainless-steel bracelets this morning, for about the 20,000th time:

Russell Crowe was arrested Monday morning for allegedly throwing a telephone at an employee of the Manhattan hotel where he was staying, police said. Crowe, 41, who plays a boxer in his latest film, "Cinderella Man," threw the phone at the Mercer Hotel employee, striking him in the face, during an argument at around 4:20 a.m., said police spokesman Sgt. Mike Wysokowski. The Australian movie star was taken into custody, fingerprinted and charged with second-degree assault, said police Lieutenant Eugene Whyte.

In all fairness, maybe Crowe stuck to his promise. Lobbing a phone into someone's grill doesn't really count as a fight. Technically, it's a second-degree assault. Nice one, Russ. That'll teach the room-service guy not to run out of whiskey at 4:00 in the morning.

Separated at birth?

Today's Chronicle has a story about Robert Lee McConnell, a death row inmate in Nevada:

A death row inmate awaiting execution on Thursday says his only regret is that he killed his ex-girlfriend's fiance instead of her.

"I wouldn't play around and have feelings like I did the last time," McConnell told the Reno Gazette-Journal in a prison interview. "I wouldn't let her get away. She would be tortured and killed."

Well, good riddance, scumbag. But the most interesting part of this story is the AP photo. It looks like McConnell might have a long-lost twin brother:

Evil.	Slightly less evil.

Krispy Kreme offers free doughnuts

Callie over at blogHOUSTON points out an amazing offer:

Keeping the theme of free eats going, Krispy Kreme wants us to Celebrate Doughnut Day today. Participating Krispy Kreme retail stores will give away one free doughnut of any variety today.

Eat up, folks. We're talking about the best doughnuts in the history of civilization. Don't even start talking about Shipley.

Woman who lost home to HOA gets it back

Remember Pam Bernhardt? She's the woman who lost her home to a homeowner's association foreclosure under questionable circumstances. She got the house back:

About a month ago, Pam Bernhardt said she learned that her home, which she had rented to someone else, had been sold during a foreclosure auction. She found out when someone slipped a notice under the door of the house where she lives. The Briar-Hills Homeowner's Association had foreclosed on the property back in September, saying Bernhardt had not paid $425 in association dues. She says she was never told her dues were late. Her attorney says the agreement will allow her to keep the $275,000 house on Forest Home at Swallowfield in southwest Houston.

blogHOUSTON has more:

In an interview with KTRH-740's Chris Baker earlier, Bernhardt stated that she had obtained her home and a cash settlement, as apparently the parties who took her home from her wanted to avoid court proceedings. That's a pretty good sign they didn't have a legal leg to stand on, and knew it.

Evil Roundup

For those of you skeptical about the existence of evil as a powerful force in the world, think again. Chron via AP: Woman charged with drowning boy in scalding water:

A woman accused of drowning her boyfriend's son in scalding water has been charged with capital murder. Veronica Herrera, 25, was arrested Wednesday after she said 3-year-old Andrew Joshua Fox drowned in the pool of an apartment complex. However, emergency medical responders noticed burns on the boy's face.

Police believe Herrera drowned Fox in the apartment, pushing his face in water, then pouring more hot water on him, said Sgt. Gabe Trevino, spokesman for the San Antonio Police Department. She later told police the child was being fussy. She then threw him into the complex pool and called for EMS, Trevino said.

Kansas City Star via AP: Boy, 7, beat baby to death, police allege:

A 7-year-old boy beat his baby half sister to death with his fists, feet and a two-by-four because he was jealous of her and she would not stop crying, police said Wednesday. The state attorney was deciding whether to file charges against the boy in an attack that rattled even veteran homicide detectives. “The veteran detectives who worked on this case have never seen a case with someone as young as a 7-year-old show so much violence and so little remorse,” Tampa police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said.

Sun-Sentinel: Teen charged in attempted murder of Lake Worth girl was suspended from school:

The 17-year-old charged with trying to rape and kill an 8-year-old Delray Beach girl last month was suspended from high school last summer for allegedly battering a female teacher. Milagro Cunningham was accused of pushing teacher Maria Perez in the girl's bathroom of John I. Leonard High School in Greenacres on Aug. 24, according to a Palm Beach County School District police report. Perez came into the bathroom because she heard noises from a stall. When she called out to the student, Cunningham popped out and began pushing her toward the bathroom entrance, according to the report. She told police she was frightened but not injured.

Cunningham now stands accused of abducting the girl from the Lake Worth home where both were staying on May 22, trying to rape her at a nearby landfill, then molesting her before trying to kill her. He told police he choked the girl until she fell to the ground, threw her into a recycling container, and tossed at least four large rocks on top of her.

Luke 23:34

Reader shot down as Chron bows to my will

LST reader Max Kelly left the following comment earlier today in response to a post about factual errors in the Chronicle:

Title: Overzealous Chron bashing Sure, the Chronicle needs to be fact-checked, but this is ridiculous. First, you’ll notice in the third paragraph, it says "shotgun pellet" – an accurate description. So I imagine "bullet" was used just for simplicity. Second, you criticize the Chron for reporting the boy had been killed, but you ignore the fact that it says "Due to erroneous police reports". I’m sure as the story is breaking, the only information the staff has is from the police reports, and THAT was where the mistake was. Also… THEY CORRECTED IT. If they would’ve corrected the story without the disclaimer, you’d have nothing to complain about. Try and stick with the important stuff and don’t get "nitpicky". It only serves to devalue your other arguments.

Well, Max, I disagree, and so does the Chronicle. You see, the reporter -- Ruth Rendon -- corrected the errors I pointed out. Good for her! Here are the second and third versions of the story:

A 5-year-old Pasadena boy was injured while sleeping in his bedroom today when a bullet fired by a neighbor to break up a wasp’s nest strayed and struck the boy.

A Pasadena man is in jail today after trying to blast away a wasp nest with a shotgun in the middle of the night but instead hitting a 5-year-old neighbor boy asleep in his bed.

Cool, they fixed the bullet goof!

Romeo loaded a 12-gauge shotgun and fired at the wasp’s nest. The shotgun pellet Gonzalez fired entered a first-floor bedroom where David Marban was sleeping, striking him in the thigh, Baird said.

Romeo loaded a 12-gauge shotgun and fired at the nest, but stray pellets entered a first-floor bedroom where David Marban was sleeping, striking him in the thigh, Baird said.

Sweet, they fixed the pellet goof! But the plot thickens on the story's most egregious error. As you may recall, the first version of the story reported that the boy was dead, and blamed cops for the mistake:

Due to erroneous police reports, an earlier online version of this story mistakenly reported the boy had been killed.

But now that blame is gone:

An earlier online version of this story mistakenly reported the boy had been killed.

It's fun to be vindicated. Again.

Dallas ISD trustee: Principals must learn Spanish

Joe May, a trustee on the Dallas ISD school board, is proposing a measure that would force principals to learn Spanish:

Some Hispanic Dallas moms say they're often in the dark about how their children are performing in school because they don't know English, and the principal doesn't know Spanish. A new proposal before the school board would force principals to learn the native language of the majority of students — for 43 percent of pupils at Dallas schools that language is Spanish.

In-depth investigation by LST's research department has revealed a few interesting facts about Mr. May: While sitting on a redistricting commission in 1991, May was instrumental in gerrymandering Dallas City Council districts for the benefit of Democrats. May -- later a Democrat precinct chair -- did a little too well, and the Fifth Circuit Court overturned the new district maps.

In a 2003 redistricting hearing, May lamented:

69.8 percent of all households living in overcrowded conditions in Dallas, Texas are of Hispanic origin.

Incidentally, tax records show that he's a real estate investor. It looks like he specializes in renting out... um... low-income housing. You know, like a 60-year-old frame house with no air conditioning. A common complaint against some Hispanic political groups, particularly LULAC (an organization that May ran in Dallas) and MEChA is that they secretly want to return heavily Hispanic areas of the United States to Mexican control. May's comments don't do much to quell those concerns:

"I'm not pushing any change … bilingual, bicultural way of life has been in this state before the Alamo was here," trustee Joe May said.

Is May suggesting that we go back to pre-Texas Revolution days?

[Hat-tip: LST reader Lee Hopkins]

Chron blows story on bizarre shooting

This gives a whole new meaning to Pasa-Get-Down-Dena:

A 5-year-old Pasadena boy was injured while sleeping in his bedroom today when a bullet fired by a neighbor to break up a wasp's nest strayed and struck the boy. Pasadena police spokesman Sgt. J.M. Baird said Romeo Gonzalez, 18, was in his second-floor apartment at 3637 Shaver shortly after midnight when he decided to shoot at a wasp's nest hanging from a nearby tree. Romeo loaded a 12-gauge shotgun and fired at the wasp's nest. The shotgun pellet Gonzalez fired entered a first-floor bedroom where David Marban was sleeping, striking him in the thigh, Baird said.

But of course, it just wouldn't be a five-sentence Chron story without multiple errors. First of all, a shotgun does not fire a "bullet." In most cases, it fires multiple projectiles called "shot." Hence the clever term "shotgun." If it's loaded with a single projectile, it's called a slug, not "the shotgun pellet." Nitpicky? Maybe. But this sure isn't:

Due to erroneous police reports, an earlier online version of this story mistakenly reported the boy had been killed.

Nice one. To help the Chron produce high-quality news products in the future, I'm offering this handy-dandy rule of thumb I like to call "How to tell whether a shooting victim is dead." It even rhymes:

The meat wagon's doing eighty-five? The lucky victim's still alive. The body's hauled off in a black cargo van? The guy's off to see Mr. Coroner Man.

Feel free to write that on a card and stick it in your wallet for easy reference, intrepid Chron staffers!

City government made me smile!

Every now and then, the City of Houston government does something that makes me grin from ear to ear. Such an event happened last night. I was cruising down the Katy Freeway feeder, when a dangerous predatory scumbag vulture Safe Clear wrecker driver came hurtling down the off-ramp, swerving across multiple lanes of busy traffic, causing several drivers to slam on their brakes, lean on their horns, and emit a cascade of swearing that would make a sailor blush. So, being the dutiful citizen that I am, I whipped out the cellphone and called the 311 Houston Help Line so that I could report the driver of the truck bearing City of Houston license #172. Hopefully they'd send a cop down for a summary execution. After a few transfers, I was finally put in touch with the Auto Dealers Detail of HPD. I told the very helpful, very polite officer what happened, and she told me the following:

You know, that's the second complaint we've gotten from that location today. Oh, I'm mad too. I'm gonna call the dealer right now and chew their butts!

Sweet.

European Union destined to collapse

I was poking around the European Union's website today, looking for a copy of the doomed EU Constitution, when I ran across the following letter from the Europowers that Be to the Europlebians. It struck me as just plain creepy:

Dear new citizens of the European Union, The accession of your countries to the European Union on 1 May 2004 is a major step in the construction of a united Europe. From now on we will work together on an ambitious project - that of living within the same Community.

That introduction reminds me of the scene in Casablanca where the Germans are telling the French how to behave when they come marching in.