Should College Station Bars Quit Smoking?
Although some will argue otherwise, this is not an issue of civil liberties; this is an issue of public health. The amendment to the ordinance that would ban smoking in public restaurants and bars does not infringe on someone’s right to smoke in the same way that not allowing someone to protest in the middle of University Drive does not infringe on someone’s First Amendment rights. There are already regulations in place to protect the public’s health in restaurants and bars, public health codes prevent unsanitary conditions and protect the public; this regulation will extend the protection of the public health to include protection from second hand smoke.
Searching for Gorbachev
Possibly one of largest mistakes, among many, in Iraq was not fully understanding the culture and the politics of the Iraqis. This mistake was probably the largest contributing factor to the quagmire that the United States military was imbedded in after the invasion and subsequent fall of the Iraqi regime. If we want to successful deal with our enemies then we must first understand them, and we must not look to conventional wisdom. If we can successful deal with Iran then it opens many doors for the United States in foreign policy, on of which could be a resolution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Protecting Dogma Over Life
“Life must always be protected.” Except if that life happens to be a pregnant girl, a pregnant nine year old girl, a pregnant nine year old girl carrying twins, a pregnant nine year old girl that will probably die if she carries the twins to term, a pregnant nine year old girl that will probably die if she carries the twins to term who was raped by her father. A nine year old girl in Brazil was raped by, by some accounts perhaps since she was six years old, and was impregnated by her father. The girl recently underwent an abortion to terminate the pregnancy, and the Catholic Church has expressed outrage over the incident; not that the girl was raped but that she had an abortion.
President Obama to Continue Con-Missions
What this really says is that there is a lack of trust in the United States justice system, and it also suggests that the commissions may be the only way to actually convict many of the detainees of anything. Despite the fact that the Bush Administration has done anything and everything possible to make it difficult to impossible to prosecute terrorist under United States law, it is important that terrorist be brought to justice in a real court room, not a con-mission. Congressman Peter King suggested that the very idea of having a terrorist standing trial within walking distance of the September 11th terrorist attacks is “offensive” and “dangerous.” When it concerns prosecuting the detainees that were involved in terrorist activities; there is no more fitting place than in the shadow of ground zero.
Beginning of the End of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell?
Perhaps one of the most disappointed constituencies of President Barack Obama has been the GLBT community, and a specific point of contention has been the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Obama made a campaign promise to the GLBT community to repeal DADT, and many have felt that the Administration has not moved fast enough on the issue. At the end of June, Obama met with GLBT community leaders at the White House and told them that he hopes “to be judged not by words, not by promises I've made, but by the promises that my administration keeps.” It was at this even that Lieutenant Colonel Victor Fehrenbach, a decorated Air Force pilot who is being discharged under DADT, told the President that he needed his help. “We’re going to get this done,” is the answer that Obama gave Fehrenbach. Perhaps Murphy is just the person to get this done, and give open gay and lesbian people the same opportunity to serve that I had.
Undercurrent of Violence Against Reproductive Health Care Providers
Why should we worry about a doctor having to wear a bullet proof vest, and patients having to drive from a time zone away only to have to walk through protesters and doors of bullet proof glass? Because what those that are against reproductive rights will not tell you are the stories of the women who are grateful for those doctors and who sometimes owe their lives to those doctors. The protesters who stand outside the gates of reproductive health clinics will tell you the stories of women who regret their abortions, but they will not tell you the stories of the women who do not regret the care that was given to them after making one of the most difficult decisions of their life. This is not about pro-choice, or anti-choice, pro-abortion, or anti-abortion. This is about life; the life of women that do not see this debate in rhetorical platitudes but in real life colors that paint their lives with painful choices that they can make because of the brave souls like Doctor Tiller.
Why Progressives Should Be Calling for a Town Hall with Chet Edwards
Congressman Edwards is a conservative Democrat, and any attempt to paint him as a liberal is disingenuous at best. While there are issues that Edwards supports that progressives have agreed with, progressives that have support Edwards becuase he is better than the alternative. However, the alternative now seems to be not too far away from an obstructionist Republican, which will be plentiful in this year’s Republican primary in the 17th Congressional District. What Edwards needs to realize is that while his moderate record garners him bipartisan support in a conservative district, the people that knock on doors and make phones calls for his campaign are the same people that have the most legitimate concerns.
The Forgotten Flags
Almost three thousand American flags surround the Freedom from Terrorism Memorial on the campus of Texas A&M University, each of the flags represent an American that died during the September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks. However, in our quest to “never forget” we have already forgotten: Americans were not the only victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks. We have forgotten that among the American flags there should also be 221 flags of 40 other countries. We have forgotten that the September 11, 2001 terrorists attacks did not just touch Americans; it has touched people throughout the world.
The Coalition for Life Lies to Women
Every day during 40 Days for Life protesters stand in front of the fence at the Planned Parenthood in Bryan, and every day they spread misinformation and lies to the patients that utilize the clinic for reproductive health care. The protesters regularly attempt to pass information to the clients of Planned Parenthood both verbally and in written form. However, much of the information that the protesters try and give the clients is both intellectually dishonest and factually incorrect. Often false information is given about the services provided at Planned Parenthood and the facts about abortion and reproductive health care.
Young, Conservative, and Intolerant
Universities are places that are designed to foster debate, but in many ways it seems like the Young Conservatives are not interested in debate. From the rhetoric that is expressed it seems much more like they are more interested in telling anyone who holds a different point of view that their views are wrong. It is this type of political discourse that has become indicative of the larger national political discussion, the idea that concessions on any issue or compromise on any level is out of the question. The Young Conservative have never seemed interested in meaningful debate or an attempt to reach consensus, they are much more interested in engaging in political combat. Some of us, on both sides of the ideological isle, are more interested in actually making meaningful contributions to the larger political discussion. Some of us understand the irony in shouting “No more taxes!” while attending a public university. Some of us still believe that public service is not something that should be mocked, but something that should be encouraged. Some of believe that it is what you believe in that should define you, not just what you are against.
Conversion of Convenience: The Revealing Truth Behind Why the Director of a Planned Parenthood Joined the Coalition for Life
From several interviews with confidential sources it has become clear that Johnson conversion is one of convenience and that the entire story that she has promoting in the media is a fabrication. This spiritual conversion is nothing more than a disgruntled employee who saw an opportunity to seek revenge against her former employer and benefit financially in the process. It is unlikely that this will affect her future career as a spokeswoman for the anti-choice community, but the media should take this into account and actually ask critical questions. There is more to this story than a “change of heart.”
Obama’s War: Choosing Escalation and Occupation
The President spoke about the number of terrorist that are recruited and trained in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and that attacks are being planned there. However, terrorist are recruited and trained throughout the world, and the terrorist attacks on western countries where planned throughout the world. The root of terrorism cannot be fought with soldiers and tanks, but with construction workers and bulldozers. Foreign aid, not foreign invasion, is the best weapon against terrorism. When I voted for President Obama I voted for a President that would end, rather than extended, two wars.
Thursday, December 31, 2009
Texas Progressive Alliance - Texas of the Year 2009
The Texas Progressive Alliance announced on Wednesday, December 30th that Houston Mayor-Elect Annise Parker is its "Texan of the Year" for 2009.
"Annise Parker’s win is a testament to the power of grassroots campaigning," said Texas Progressive Alliance Chair Vince Leibowitz. "Key Houston progressive bloggers endorsed Parker and contributed to her win, with hard hitting stories contrasting her strengths with her opponent’s weaknesses," he continued.
Annise Parker is the Alliance's fifth recipient of its "Texan of the Year Award." Parker joins former State Representative Carter Casteel of New Braunfels, who won the award in 2005; Carolyn Boyle of Texas Parent PAC in 2006; State Representatives Garnet Coleman, Jim Dunnam, and Pete Gallego who shared the honor in 2007; and the Harris County Democratic Party’s Coordinated Campaign in 2008.
The Texan of the Year Award is voted on annually by the members of the Texas Progressive Alliance, the largest state-level organization of bloggers, blogs, and netroots activists in the United States.
Also earning recognition from the Alliance were Ramey Ko, Hank Gilbert, Calvin Tillman, Texas Watchdog, and State Representative Elliott Naishtat, who were each recognized as "Gold Star Texans" for 2009.
With the election of Annise Parker as mayor of Houston, the fourth largest city in the United States signaled that they pay more attention to qualifications than to sexual orientation. This news reverberated around the globe, and brought positive attention to Texas. National Democratic groups took note of a more progressive Houston than they assumed, and the talk and speculation turned to the possibilities of Texas turning blue sooner rather than later.
The Parker win was no accident. She put together a talented campaign team that ran on the strength of the grassroots, rather than City Hall insiders. Key Houston area progressive bloggers aligned themselves with Parker, and were embraced by the campaign. Blogs became an effective messaging strategy, emphasizing Parker’s qualifications, and her opponent’s weaknesses.
In the runoff, several third parties, including one longtime right wing operative who endorsed Parker's opponent, launched a series of homophobic attacks against her, but they failed to do her any serious damage because voters recognized her distinguished service as a member of Council and City Controller, and valued her experience and financial acumen. Voters knew who she was and what she was about because she had always been open and honest about it, and that was more important than anything some agitator could say.
For her historic victory, for making the rest of the world re-evaluate its opinion of Texas, and for running a truly modern grassroots campaign, the Texas Progressive Alliance is proud to name Houston's Mayor-Elect Annise Parker its Texan of the Year for 2009.
Ramey Ko - Ramey Ko is an attorney and activist in Austin. He should be best known for his work in Asian Americans for Obama, but Republican stupidity assured us he will be best known as "the guy who held his cool while on the receiving end of a massive dose of both ignorance and racism from Betty Brown." With extreme professionalism, he tried to help Brown understand why it would behoove her and all Texans that voting rights for Asian Texans and all Texans not fall prey to bureaucratic errors creating name mismatches. Brown's ignorance/racism and Ko's cool reasonableness drew worldwide media attention. Watch the video of their exchange.
Calvin Tillman - Calvin is mayor of a tiny town at the epicenter of the Barnett Shale. Several industry giants seized DISH land and installed a several huge compressor stations and processing plants right next to neighborhoods. They built a crisscross of pipelines all through the town and on private property. He has taken a hard line with industry, crafting a strategy to get the most bang for his press releases.
Calvin and the DISH City Council spent @ 10% of their yearly budget for a private ambient air study. This is the first such study where the results were made public so that all citizens in the Barnett Shale area might benefit. The levels of toxins were amazingly high and many DISH residents are seriously ill but they are poor and do not have health insurance. Calvin worked with TDSHS and finally got them to agree to test DISH residents. This is the first time a state agency has tested residents for drilling toxins. Calvin travels to other areas and speaks about these issues. He has offered to speak and assist others and refuses any compensation for travel or time.
Calvin is largely responsible for TCEQ's changed policy, announced today, in responses to Barnett Shale air emissions. Also, he is a blogger.
State Rep. Elliott Naishtat and his Capitol Staff - While he may not be a native Texan, the work that Representative Naishtat has done for the State of Texas earns him a spot on the Texans of the Year List for 2009. Even with Voter ID putting a choke-hold on progress, Naishtat and his Capitol staff worked diligently to pass more legislation than any other member of the House during the 81st session. The Representative from Queens, who just completed his 10th session, has consistently proven himself to be an advocate for the sick and elderly, passing legislation that will create the Legislative Committee on Aging and ensuring Texas receives $15.2 million in Violence Against Women Act grants. We would be remiss in acknowledging Elliott Naishtat -- as the Representative is always quick to remind people -- without also recognizing his longtime staffers (Dorothy Browne, Nancy Walker and Judy Dale) who work tirelessly behind the scenes to help make Texas a better, safer place to live.
Texas Watchdog - Texas Watchdog had a role in breaking stories in the just completed Houston city elections. Though their work can, at times, be controversial, we welcome another online news organization to the Texas media landscape with our nomination of the group.
Hank Gilbert - For his continuing work to defeat infrastructure privatization schemes and working with Democrats and more than a few Republicans, he helped put a stop to CDA's this past session and handed Governor Perry and Commissioner Todd Staples a rare defeat.
"Annise Parker’s win is a testament to the power of grassroots campaigning," said Texas Progressive Alliance Chair Vince Leibowitz. "Key Houston progressive bloggers endorsed Parker and contributed to her win, with hard hitting stories contrasting her strengths with her opponent’s weaknesses," he continued.
Annise Parker is the Alliance's fifth recipient of its "Texan of the Year Award." Parker joins former State Representative Carter Casteel of New Braunfels, who won the award in 2005; Carolyn Boyle of Texas Parent PAC in 2006; State Representatives Garnet Coleman, Jim Dunnam, and Pete Gallego who shared the honor in 2007; and the Harris County Democratic Party’s Coordinated Campaign in 2008.
The Texan of the Year Award is voted on annually by the members of the Texas Progressive Alliance, the largest state-level organization of bloggers, blogs, and netroots activists in the United States.
Also earning recognition from the Alliance were Ramey Ko, Hank Gilbert, Calvin Tillman, Texas Watchdog, and State Representative Elliott Naishtat, who were each recognized as "Gold Star Texans" for 2009.
Annise Parker
The Parker win was no accident. She put together a talented campaign team that ran on the strength of the grassroots, rather than City Hall insiders. Key Houston area progressive bloggers aligned themselves with Parker, and were embraced by the campaign. Blogs became an effective messaging strategy, emphasizing Parker’s qualifications, and her opponent’s weaknesses.
In the runoff, several third parties, including one longtime right wing operative who endorsed Parker's opponent, launched a series of homophobic attacks against her, but they failed to do her any serious damage because voters recognized her distinguished service as a member of Council and City Controller, and valued her experience and financial acumen. Voters knew who she was and what she was about because she had always been open and honest about it, and that was more important than anything some agitator could say.
For her historic victory, for making the rest of the world re-evaluate its opinion of Texas, and for running a truly modern grassroots campaign, the Texas Progressive Alliance is proud to name Houston's Mayor-Elect Annise Parker its Texan of the Year for 2009.
“Gold Star Texans” for 2009
Calvin Tillman - Calvin is mayor of a tiny town at the epicenter of the Barnett Shale. Several industry giants seized DISH land and installed a several huge compressor stations and processing plants right next to neighborhoods. They built a crisscross of pipelines all through the town and on private property. He has taken a hard line with industry, crafting a strategy to get the most bang for his press releases.
Calvin and the DISH City Council spent @ 10% of their yearly budget for a private ambient air study. This is the first such study where the results were made public so that all citizens in the Barnett Shale area might benefit. The levels of toxins were amazingly high and many DISH residents are seriously ill but they are poor and do not have health insurance. Calvin worked with TDSHS and finally got them to agree to test DISH residents. This is the first time a state agency has tested residents for drilling toxins. Calvin travels to other areas and speaks about these issues. He has offered to speak and assist others and refuses any compensation for travel or time.
Calvin is largely responsible for TCEQ's changed policy, announced today, in responses to Barnett Shale air emissions. Also, he is a blogger.
State Rep. Elliott Naishtat and his Capitol Staff - While he may not be a native Texan, the work that Representative Naishtat has done for the State of Texas earns him a spot on the Texans of the Year List for 2009. Even with Voter ID putting a choke-hold on progress, Naishtat and his Capitol staff worked diligently to pass more legislation than any other member of the House during the 81st session. The Representative from Queens, who just completed his 10th session, has consistently proven himself to be an advocate for the sick and elderly, passing legislation that will create the Legislative Committee on Aging and ensuring Texas receives $15.2 million in Violence Against Women Act grants. We would be remiss in acknowledging Elliott Naishtat -- as the Representative is always quick to remind people -- without also recognizing his longtime staffers (Dorothy Browne, Nancy Walker and Judy Dale) who work tirelessly behind the scenes to help make Texas a better, safer place to live.
Texas Watchdog - Texas Watchdog had a role in breaking stories in the just completed Houston city elections. Though their work can, at times, be controversial, we welcome another online news organization to the Texas media landscape with our nomination of the group.
Hank Gilbert - For his continuing work to defeat infrastructure privatization schemes and working with Democrats and more than a few Republicans, he helped put a stop to CDA's this past session and handed Governor Perry and Commissioner Todd Staples a rare defeat.
Local News: Turbulent Year for Bryan and College Station
Year Meant Tight Funds in Bryan-College Station
By Cassie Smith
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Bryan and College Station budgets and water supplies came in lower than expected this year. Smokers can no longer light up in College Station bars, and Bryan's mayor repaid a bar tab after using a city credit card to purchase alcohol. Red light cameras spawned a political movement, and officials from both cities settled a long-running feud over their joint management of landfills.
In all, 2009 was a year full of activity across both cities.
* College Station residents with no political experience entered the arena with a successful grassroots challenge of the city's red light camera program.
Resident Jim Ash began collecting signatures in May for a petition to put the cameras to a vote. In November, the vote was in, and the cameras came down, despite a challenge and subsequent court ruling that the election was held in violation of the city's charter.
The City Council has since repealed the original ordinance authorizing photo enforcement of red light violations.
* In Bryan, Mayor Mark Conlee said a language barrier played a role in creating a misunderstanding that led to him using a city procurement card to pay a nearly $400 bar tab in September. City policy prohibits the purchase of alcohol with taxpayer funds.
Conlee said he originally planned to pay for the alcohol with his personal credit card and purchase the food from a meeting with developers with the city's card. Between the bar owner's German accent and his own Texas accent, Conlee said, confusion ensued.
The mayor paid the city back for the purchase after The Eagle filed an open records request seeking the credit card receipts. He said he intended to pay the money back all along but hadn't gotten to it before the newspaper asked for the information.
* For more than a year, the cities have been at odds over the management of the Brazos Valley Solid Waste Management Agency, a partnership that runs landfill operations for the twin cities. The city of Bryan sued College Station in 2008, saying it had been left out of major decisions in the agency's operation and in the construction of the Twin Oaks Landfill in Grimes County. The landfill will replace the Rock Prairie Road landfill.
In October, the cities agreed to create a new entity to take over.
The dispute has strained relationships between the neighboring governments and put a dent in their pocketbooks. In September, College Station officials said they had spent more than $330,800 in legal fees related to the matter, and Bryan officials said they had doled out $216,500.
* The controversy over the landfills and the lawsuits between the cities prompted one College Station resident to take action. Katy-Marie Lyles, then 24 and a political newcomer, ran for a City Council seat, campaigning on the need for a change from the political status quo.
The race for the three-year, unpaid Place 4 seat went to a runoff in which Lyles defeated incumbent Lynn McIlhaney by nearly 500 votes.
City officials have said they believe she is the youngest person to serve on the council.
* Over the course of 2009, Bryan and College Station officials explored ways to conserve water. For Bryan officials, it's an effort to be good stewards of the environment, but in College Station, it's more urgent.
The city of Bryan said in April that it has enough water to meet expected needs for the next 50 years. College Station officials say if residents don't start conserving, water could run out in as early as 20 years. Brazos and Robertson counties rely on the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer, which extends from the Rio Grande Valley into parts of Arkansas and Louisiana. College Station pumps an average of 10 million gallons of water a day, but on a peak day, that number can reach 20 million. The city is planning to build two wastewater treatment plants in 2010 to process water for irrigation to reduce the demand on the aquifer and to avoid water shortages.
Officials in Bryan have said the city's water supply is in better shape. They credit that to the fact that the population isn't expanding as quickly as College Station's and the lower use per capita.
* The College Station City Council tackled three hot-topic ordinances that brought people out to meetings in large numbers this year. Ordinances expanding the smoking ban, enforcing landlord registration and requiring at least one tree on new single-family homes and townhomes were all passed by the City Council.
The expanded smoking ban in public places took effect Feb. 1, and police officers began enforcing it in March. The ordinance prohibits anyone from smoking in a bar or restaurant or within 10 feet of entryways to those businesses.
Several bar owners spoke up at the meetings on both sides of the issue, but one continued to fight. In November, the City Council made an allowance for the Hookah Station by adding an exception to the ordinance for smoking the flavored tobacco from a water pipe. The vote defined a hookah bar as a business that receives at least 30 percent of its revenues from the sale or rental of hookah tobacco products, allowing customers to continue using hookah while prohibiting cigarettes.
College Station landlords also faced a new regulation. All owners of single-family and duplex rental units must register annually or face a fine. Officials said registering the landlords would create a better understanding of how many homes in the city are rented and provide officials with contact information for emergencies. Each out-of-area landlord is required to have a local contact person.
While landlords were registering, the City Council also decided College Station needed more trees. A requirement was passed to ensure every new single-family home or townhouse had at least one tree on the property. The City Council voted unanimously in December to amend the landscape and tree-protection ordinance to require developers to include two trees at least 2 inches in diameter or one tree at least 4 inches in diameter. The new rule didn't apply to existing subdivisions, and the change also gave developers more credit for preserving trees during construction and additional credit for landscape plans prepared by qualified professionals.
* On the other side of town, downtown Bryan saw a few changes to its landscape.
The city-owned LaSalle Hotel came under new management. Magnolia Hotels took charge of the seven-story landmark in October. The Denver-based hotel management and development company signed a five-year contract to spruce up the downtown property in hopes of making it attractive enough for a buyer. The 55-room hotel at 120 S. Main St. originally opened in 1928 and saw a name change with the takeover, from the LaSalle Hotel and Café to the LaSalle Hotel by Magnolia Hotels.
Twin City Mission moved out of downtown, and the Longhorn Tavern Steak House moved in, and a new music festival, called Rock the Republic, brought together artists and musicians for a weekend extravaganza.
* In College Station, officials continued to plan for a convention center. City leaders have discussed building such a center for about two decades, and this year, officials said a combination of bad information circulating about the project and a poor public information campaign cast a negative image on the proposal. The city wants to build a $48 million facility that could be open for business by late 2015. The city spent $9.6 million last year to buy the Chimney Hill shopping center on University Drive, where officials plan to build the facility with an exhibition hall, banquet space and 667 parking spaces. In July, the council approved a financing plan for the 50,000-square-foot center that called for about 86 percent of the overall funding to come from the hotel occupancy tax, meaning visitors to the area would pay for the bulk of construction costs. Officials recently established a Web site dedicated to the project, www.cstx.gov/conventioncenter.
* Despite all the projects and new ordinances, both cities were looking for ways to make up for budget shortfalls.
Each city handled the issue differently. College Station addressed its $1 million general fund shortfall by holding vacant positions open, cutting travel and training costs, reducing maintenance at parks and city facilities and holding off on replacing old equipment.
Bryan officials decided to lay off eight employees and eliminate two positions in an effort to make up for a $1.3 million budget shortfall. Officials said the rest of the shortfall would be recovered through a change in the way the city offers insurance to retirees and through a reduction in the number of times city parks are mowed each year.
Published on Thursday, December 31, 2009
ATR9X63DW6DY
By Cassie Smith
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Bryan and College Station budgets and water supplies came in lower than expected this year. Smokers can no longer light up in College Station bars, and Bryan's mayor repaid a bar tab after using a city credit card to purchase alcohol. Red light cameras spawned a political movement, and officials from both cities settled a long-running feud over their joint management of landfills.
In all, 2009 was a year full of activity across both cities.
* College Station residents with no political experience entered the arena with a successful grassroots challenge of the city's red light camera program.
Resident Jim Ash began collecting signatures in May for a petition to put the cameras to a vote. In November, the vote was in, and the cameras came down, despite a challenge and subsequent court ruling that the election was held in violation of the city's charter.
The City Council has since repealed the original ordinance authorizing photo enforcement of red light violations.
* In Bryan, Mayor Mark Conlee said a language barrier played a role in creating a misunderstanding that led to him using a city procurement card to pay a nearly $400 bar tab in September. City policy prohibits the purchase of alcohol with taxpayer funds.
Conlee said he originally planned to pay for the alcohol with his personal credit card and purchase the food from a meeting with developers with the city's card. Between the bar owner's German accent and his own Texas accent, Conlee said, confusion ensued.
The mayor paid the city back for the purchase after The Eagle filed an open records request seeking the credit card receipts. He said he intended to pay the money back all along but hadn't gotten to it before the newspaper asked for the information.
* For more than a year, the cities have been at odds over the management of the Brazos Valley Solid Waste Management Agency, a partnership that runs landfill operations for the twin cities. The city of Bryan sued College Station in 2008, saying it had been left out of major decisions in the agency's operation and in the construction of the Twin Oaks Landfill in Grimes County. The landfill will replace the Rock Prairie Road landfill.
In October, the cities agreed to create a new entity to take over.
The dispute has strained relationships between the neighboring governments and put a dent in their pocketbooks. In September, College Station officials said they had spent more than $330,800 in legal fees related to the matter, and Bryan officials said they had doled out $216,500.
* The controversy over the landfills and the lawsuits between the cities prompted one College Station resident to take action. Katy-Marie Lyles, then 24 and a political newcomer, ran for a City Council seat, campaigning on the need for a change from the political status quo.
The race for the three-year, unpaid Place 4 seat went to a runoff in which Lyles defeated incumbent Lynn McIlhaney by nearly 500 votes.
City officials have said they believe she is the youngest person to serve on the council.
* Over the course of 2009, Bryan and College Station officials explored ways to conserve water. For Bryan officials, it's an effort to be good stewards of the environment, but in College Station, it's more urgent.
The city of Bryan said in April that it has enough water to meet expected needs for the next 50 years. College Station officials say if residents don't start conserving, water could run out in as early as 20 years. Brazos and Robertson counties rely on the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer, which extends from the Rio Grande Valley into parts of Arkansas and Louisiana. College Station pumps an average of 10 million gallons of water a day, but on a peak day, that number can reach 20 million. The city is planning to build two wastewater treatment plants in 2010 to process water for irrigation to reduce the demand on the aquifer and to avoid water shortages.
Officials in Bryan have said the city's water supply is in better shape. They credit that to the fact that the population isn't expanding as quickly as College Station's and the lower use per capita.
* The College Station City Council tackled three hot-topic ordinances that brought people out to meetings in large numbers this year. Ordinances expanding the smoking ban, enforcing landlord registration and requiring at least one tree on new single-family homes and townhomes were all passed by the City Council.
The expanded smoking ban in public places took effect Feb. 1, and police officers began enforcing it in March. The ordinance prohibits anyone from smoking in a bar or restaurant or within 10 feet of entryways to those businesses.
Several bar owners spoke up at the meetings on both sides of the issue, but one continued to fight. In November, the City Council made an allowance for the Hookah Station by adding an exception to the ordinance for smoking the flavored tobacco from a water pipe. The vote defined a hookah bar as a business that receives at least 30 percent of its revenues from the sale or rental of hookah tobacco products, allowing customers to continue using hookah while prohibiting cigarettes.
College Station landlords also faced a new regulation. All owners of single-family and duplex rental units must register annually or face a fine. Officials said registering the landlords would create a better understanding of how many homes in the city are rented and provide officials with contact information for emergencies. Each out-of-area landlord is required to have a local contact person.
While landlords were registering, the City Council also decided College Station needed more trees. A requirement was passed to ensure every new single-family home or townhouse had at least one tree on the property. The City Council voted unanimously in December to amend the landscape and tree-protection ordinance to require developers to include two trees at least 2 inches in diameter or one tree at least 4 inches in diameter. The new rule didn't apply to existing subdivisions, and the change also gave developers more credit for preserving trees during construction and additional credit for landscape plans prepared by qualified professionals.
* On the other side of town, downtown Bryan saw a few changes to its landscape.
The city-owned LaSalle Hotel came under new management. Magnolia Hotels took charge of the seven-story landmark in October. The Denver-based hotel management and development company signed a five-year contract to spruce up the downtown property in hopes of making it attractive enough for a buyer. The 55-room hotel at 120 S. Main St. originally opened in 1928 and saw a name change with the takeover, from the LaSalle Hotel and Café to the LaSalle Hotel by Magnolia Hotels.
Twin City Mission moved out of downtown, and the Longhorn Tavern Steak House moved in, and a new music festival, called Rock the Republic, brought together artists and musicians for a weekend extravaganza.
* In College Station, officials continued to plan for a convention center. City leaders have discussed building such a center for about two decades, and this year, officials said a combination of bad information circulating about the project and a poor public information campaign cast a negative image on the proposal. The city wants to build a $48 million facility that could be open for business by late 2015. The city spent $9.6 million last year to buy the Chimney Hill shopping center on University Drive, where officials plan to build the facility with an exhibition hall, banquet space and 667 parking spaces. In July, the council approved a financing plan for the 50,000-square-foot center that called for about 86 percent of the overall funding to come from the hotel occupancy tax, meaning visitors to the area would pay for the bulk of construction costs. Officials recently established a Web site dedicated to the project, www.cstx.gov/conventioncenter.
* Despite all the projects and new ordinances, both cities were looking for ways to make up for budget shortfalls.
Each city handled the issue differently. College Station addressed its $1 million general fund shortfall by holding vacant positions open, cutting travel and training costs, reducing maintenance at parks and city facilities and holding off on replacing old equipment.
Bryan officials decided to lay off eight employees and eliminate two positions in an effort to make up for a $1.3 million budget shortfall. Officials said the rest of the shortfall would be recovered through a change in the way the city offers insurance to retirees and through a reduction in the number of times city parks are mowed each year.
Published on Thursday, December 31, 2009
ATR9X63DW6DY
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Video Lunch: Is war necessary for progress?
From the Real News Network:
Robert Pollin: It's not war that creates technological development, it's the state investment.
Local News: Texas A&M to Name New President in Early 2010
A&M Presidential Search On Pace for Early 2010 Finalist
Reporter: Steve Fullhart
From KBTX Channel 3
The Texas A&M campus may be quiet, but the search for the new president of the university rolls on.
The search committee is right now working with a short list of candidates. Just a few weeks ago, they were down to eight, but committee chairman Richard Box says they've whittled it down a bit.
A larger than originally planned group of faculty, students and former students are getting the chance to interview those candidates. Confidentiality agreements have been put in place to keep the list a secret.
The goal remains to have three or four top picks to be sent to the Regents at the January 21 meeting, with a possible finalist being chosen in February.
Box says all the current candidates are from academic backgrounds.
Bowen Loftin currently serves as the interim president of the university. He was placed in the role following the June resignation of Elsa Murano.
Published on Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Reporter: Steve Fullhart
From KBTX Channel 3
The Texas A&M campus may be quiet, but the search for the new president of the university rolls on.
The search committee is right now working with a short list of candidates. Just a few weeks ago, they were down to eight, but committee chairman Richard Box says they've whittled it down a bit.
A larger than originally planned group of faculty, students and former students are getting the chance to interview those candidates. Confidentiality agreements have been put in place to keep the list a secret.
The goal remains to have three or four top picks to be sent to the Regents at the January 21 meeting, with a possible finalist being chosen in February.
Box says all the current candidates are from academic backgrounds.
Bowen Loftin currently serves as the interim president of the university. He was placed in the role following the June resignation of Elsa Murano.
Published on Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Left of College Station Video Lunch: Is war the answer to a depression?
From the Real News Network:
Robert Pollin: It wasn't war that ended the 1930s Depression, it was massive government spending.
Local News: Another Candidate Files for Brazos County Constable
Republican to Run For Brazos Constable
Eagle Staff Report
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Retired Department of Public Safety Trooper Rick Starnes said Monday that he has filed to run for Precinct 3 Brazos County constable.
The Republican will face Deputy Constable Steve Emert and former Constable Phil Sikes in the March primary.
Starnes worked for the Department of Public Safety for 20 years before retiring in 2000. He moved to Brazos County in 2004, and has worked as a private investigator ever since.
He said he would use the office to track down fugitives, a skill he learned as a private investigator when hired by bail bond companies to find people who skipped bail.
Incumbent Wayne Thompson has not filed for re-election.
Also filing Monday was Louis Garcia Jr., a candidate for Pct. 4 County Commissioner. Garcia, a Republican, is the sole Republican to file for the seat. Incumbent Irma Cauley and Bryan city councilman Paul Madison have filed as Democrats
Published on Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Eagle Staff Report
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Retired Department of Public Safety Trooper Rick Starnes said Monday that he has filed to run for Precinct 3 Brazos County constable.
The Republican will face Deputy Constable Steve Emert and former Constable Phil Sikes in the March primary.
Starnes worked for the Department of Public Safety for 20 years before retiring in 2000. He moved to Brazos County in 2004, and has worked as a private investigator ever since.
He said he would use the office to track down fugitives, a skill he learned as a private investigator when hired by bail bond companies to find people who skipped bail.
Incumbent Wayne Thompson has not filed for re-election.
Also filing Monday was Louis Garcia Jr., a candidate for Pct. 4 County Commissioner. Garcia, a Republican, is the sole Republican to file for the seat. Incumbent Irma Cauley and Bryan city councilman Paul Madison have filed as Democrats
Published on Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Monday, December 28, 2009
Texas Progressive Alliance Roundup - December 28, 2009
The Texas Progressive Alliance would like to thank everyone for reading all of the weekly blog roundups this year. This is the last roundup of 2009, and we are all looking forward to 2010.
CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme wants everyone to be afraid of drug cartels buying our politicians. We've all seen what money and power did to health care reform. Imagine all that drug money buying power here. It's time to legalize drugs and take away the profit.
You can't make this stuff up at Bay Area Houston. GOP "Bubba" white supremacist wanted for murder.
Barnett Shale Communities can breathe easier after a VICTORY last week when TCEQ issued a new emission policy following the release of Texas OGAP's Study: Shale Gas Threatens Human Health. Read the study and view documents TCEQ will use to record odor complaints and take necessary enforcement action.
WhosPlayin picked up on the TCEQ policy change, and also weighed in on strange comments by a Flower Mound Councilman explaining his vote not to impose an oil and gas moratorium. Speaking of councilmen, Lewisville has a teabagger councilman who wants to turn down a $913,000 stimulus grant from the federal government.
The Texas Cloverleaf looks at the potential for a contested party chair race in Dallas County. And, it is among the Democrats.
Xanthippas at Three Wise Men, on Robert George, the conservative Christian "big thinker" who dresses up old prejudices in new rationales.
Justin at Asian American Action Fund Blog is terribly excited that Gordon Quan is running for Harris County Judge.
Off the Kuff writes about Harris County Board of Ed Trustee Michael Wolfe, the silliest officeholder in Harris County.
Escalation in Afghanistan, a healthcare reform bill lacking a public option, and another climate change bust in Copenhagen has left a lot of Obama believers stranded at the intersection of Hope and Change. PDiddie has stepped off the bus; read why at Brains and Eggs.
WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts on the GOP property tax swap has fixed nothing, as most people knew back when it passed, The Texas GOP and the Texas budget.
Neil at Texas Liberal said that all of us in life seek the 60 votes of hope and kindness to defeat the filibusters of despair and anger. The Senate of life is always session so that we can rustle up the needed votes.
Video Lunch: The Life of a Bad Loan
From the Huffington Post Investigative Fund:
Eliseo Guardado came legally to the United States in search of his own American Dream. But after he bought his home in a Maryland suburb in 2006, his dream quickly became a nightmare. Long Beach Mortgage, a subsidiary of Washington Mutual, put him in a loan that he could not afford. The story of this one bad loan helps tell a bigger tale- how fraud in the loan process was at the center of the largest bank failure in American history.
Local News: Two Candidates Compete for McLennan County Democratic Party Chair
Two Vying to Head Local Democratic Party Want to Increase Participation
By Michael W. Shapiro (Tribune-Herald staff writer)
From the Waco Herald-Tribune
Local Democrats Ralph Cooper and Kelvin Williams are vying to become the next McLennan County Democratic Party chairman, a position that’s been held by John Cullar since 1995.
With Cullar’s decision to step down from the position — which entails being part organizational leader and part spokesperson — the two Waco Democrats are preaching a message of expanding the party’s reach through grass-roots efforts and giving rank-and-file Democrats a stake in the local party’s future.
Cooper, 62, a local attorney, said he was approached about running for the position by fellow Democrats after spearheading the Waco school district’s bond campaign. Voters passed the $172.5 million bond package by 60 percent in May 2008.
He laid out a platform of recruiting more precinct chairs, fielding more candidates and making the organization of the Democratic Party more, well, democratic.
“It’s a job I don’t want to do all by myself by any means,” Cooper said. “I want to be sharing the power as broadly as I can and involve others who show commitment.”
Williams, 47, who runs a Waco insurance company, said he’s been involved in Democratic politics and elections since he was a teenager and was disappointed that Democrats couldn’t do more to capitalize on the momentum of the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama.
“It feels like we didn’t do enough as a party,” said Williams, who’s been involved in Obama’s political committee Organizing for America, which is now run by the Democratic National Committee. In recent months, the local Organizing for America chapter has used Williams’ office to conduct phone-bank events encouraging the passage of health care reform.
Williams also said he wanted to beef up the party’s rules and regulations for stability’s sake and increase the number of people involved in the party’s decision-making process.
Both men said they wanted to ramp up efforts to field more Democratic candidates and challenge some of the local Republican officeholders who haven’t drawn Democratic challengers in recent years. Currently, Republicans have a one-seat edge in the 33 elected offices in McLennan County. While U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards and State Rep. Jim Dunnam are Democrats, all three justices on the Waco-based 10th Court of Appeals are Republicans, as are State Sen. Kip Averitt and State Rep. Charles “Doc” Anderson.
Published on Saturday, December 26, 2009
By Michael W. Shapiro (Tribune-Herald staff writer)
From the Waco Herald-Tribune
Local Democrats Ralph Cooper and Kelvin Williams are vying to become the next McLennan County Democratic Party chairman, a position that’s been held by John Cullar since 1995.
With Cullar’s decision to step down from the position — which entails being part organizational leader and part spokesperson — the two Waco Democrats are preaching a message of expanding the party’s reach through grass-roots efforts and giving rank-and-file Democrats a stake in the local party’s future.
Cooper, 62, a local attorney, said he was approached about running for the position by fellow Democrats after spearheading the Waco school district’s bond campaign. Voters passed the $172.5 million bond package by 60 percent in May 2008.
He laid out a platform of recruiting more precinct chairs, fielding more candidates and making the organization of the Democratic Party more, well, democratic.
“It’s a job I don’t want to do all by myself by any means,” Cooper said. “I want to be sharing the power as broadly as I can and involve others who show commitment.”
Williams, 47, who runs a Waco insurance company, said he’s been involved in Democratic politics and elections since he was a teenager and was disappointed that Democrats couldn’t do more to capitalize on the momentum of the presidential candidacy of Barack Obama.
“It feels like we didn’t do enough as a party,” said Williams, who’s been involved in Obama’s political committee Organizing for America, which is now run by the Democratic National Committee. In recent months, the local Organizing for America chapter has used Williams’ office to conduct phone-bank events encouraging the passage of health care reform.
Williams also said he wanted to beef up the party’s rules and regulations for stability’s sake and increase the number of people involved in the party’s decision-making process.
Both men said they wanted to ramp up efforts to field more Democratic candidates and challenge some of the local Republican officeholders who haven’t drawn Democratic challengers in recent years. Currently, Republicans have a one-seat edge in the 33 elected offices in McLennan County. While U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards and State Rep. Jim Dunnam are Democrats, all three justices on the Waco-based 10th Court of Appeals are Republicans, as are State Sen. Kip Averitt and State Rep. Charles “Doc” Anderson.
Published on Saturday, December 26, 2009
Friday, December 25, 2009
Video Lunch: William K. Black's Theory of Corporate Fraud
From the Huffington Post Investigative Fund:
William K. Black is a former senior deputy chief counsel at the federal Office of Thrift Supervision. During the savings and loan crisis of the late 1980s Black investigated accounting fraud. He spoke with Huffington Post Senior Reporter, David Heath, about how fraud can infiltrate entire corporations.
Message from Left of College Station
To all the readers of Left of College Station: Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukah, Festive Solstice, Joyous Kwanza, and a Happy New Year!
-Teddy Wilson
Political and Social Thought…
to the Left of College Station
-Teddy Wilson
Political and Social Thought…
to the Left of College Station
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Local News: Busy Year in Brazos Valley Politics
BV Political Field Packed Full in '10
By Matthew Watkins
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
The year 2010 will be a busy one in Brazos County politics, initial candidate filings for county offices indicate.
There is more than a week left in the filing period, but the primary ballot is full with what appear to be potentially competitive races. Some contests have attracted as many as six candidates, and some long-term incumbents have drawn their first challengers in years.
State Rep. Fred Brown, a Bryan Republican, hadn't drawn a serious challenger to his seat in years until now. In 2010, he faces two challengers -- Buddy Winn and Rick Davis -- who have long histories in Brazos County and haven't lost a Republican primary in their decades of public service.
Blinn administrator Blanche Brick has also filed for Brown's seat.
State Sen. Steve Ogden had also never faced a primary opponent since he was first elected to the District 5 seat in 1997. This year he will face Ben Bius in the Republican primary. Bius filed for election after Ogden announced he wouldn't run in 2010 and stayed in the race when Ogden changed his mind a few months later.
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards didn't field an opponent in 2008 until a few minutes before the filing deadline. This year, six Republicans have already filed for a chance to take on the Democrat in 2010.
Almost all of the incumbents in Brazos County are running for re-election in 2010, and the few open seats drew a slew of candidates.
Precinct 2 County Commissioner Duane Peters has not yet filed for re-election, boosting rumors that he is considering a run for county judge. Candidates are required to resign their current county position if they declare their intent to run for a new position more than a year before their term expires, meaning Peters would have to wait until after the new year to file for judge if he wants to hold on to his commissioner's seat until the election.
If he does run for judge, he would have three other opponents, including two Bryan mayors. Current Mayor Mark Conlee and former Mayor Ernie Wentrcek have both filed for the seat. Twenty-four-year-old College Station resident Brian Alg has also filed for the seat.
Current County Judge Randy Sims has said he won't run for re-election.
On the Democratic side, Bryan City Councilman Paul Madison has filed to run for Precinct 4 County Commiss-ioner. Irma Cauley, a Demo-crat who was appointed to the seat after her husband's death left it vacant, will try to hold on to the position.
Five Democrats are running for Precinct 4 justice of the peace. They are Darrell Booker, Rose Jones, Greg Banks, Manuel Aguilar and Martha Garcia Opersteny. Republican Jim Cashion has also filed for the seat.
Published on Thursday, December 24, 2009
By Matthew Watkins
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
The year 2010 will be a busy one in Brazos County politics, initial candidate filings for county offices indicate.
There is more than a week left in the filing period, but the primary ballot is full with what appear to be potentially competitive races. Some contests have attracted as many as six candidates, and some long-term incumbents have drawn their first challengers in years.
State Rep. Fred Brown, a Bryan Republican, hadn't drawn a serious challenger to his seat in years until now. In 2010, he faces two challengers -- Buddy Winn and Rick Davis -- who have long histories in Brazos County and haven't lost a Republican primary in their decades of public service.
Blinn administrator Blanche Brick has also filed for Brown's seat.
State Sen. Steve Ogden had also never faced a primary opponent since he was first elected to the District 5 seat in 1997. This year he will face Ben Bius in the Republican primary. Bius filed for election after Ogden announced he wouldn't run in 2010 and stayed in the race when Ogden changed his mind a few months later.
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards didn't field an opponent in 2008 until a few minutes before the filing deadline. This year, six Republicans have already filed for a chance to take on the Democrat in 2010.
Almost all of the incumbents in Brazos County are running for re-election in 2010, and the few open seats drew a slew of candidates.
Precinct 2 County Commissioner Duane Peters has not yet filed for re-election, boosting rumors that he is considering a run for county judge. Candidates are required to resign their current county position if they declare their intent to run for a new position more than a year before their term expires, meaning Peters would have to wait until after the new year to file for judge if he wants to hold on to his commissioner's seat until the election.
If he does run for judge, he would have three other opponents, including two Bryan mayors. Current Mayor Mark Conlee and former Mayor Ernie Wentrcek have both filed for the seat. Twenty-four-year-old College Station resident Brian Alg has also filed for the seat.
Current County Judge Randy Sims has said he won't run for re-election.
On the Democratic side, Bryan City Councilman Paul Madison has filed to run for Precinct 4 County Commiss-ioner. Irma Cauley, a Demo-crat who was appointed to the seat after her husband's death left it vacant, will try to hold on to the position.
Five Democrats are running for Precinct 4 justice of the peace. They are Darrell Booker, Rose Jones, Greg Banks, Manuel Aguilar and Martha Garcia Opersteny. Republican Jim Cashion has also filed for the seat.
Published on Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Tonight on Biased Transmission
Tonight on Biased Transmission: Bum Steers of 2009! We review Texas Monthly’s list of Bum Steers and nominate our own Bum Steers for 2009. Who is your pick for Bum Steer of 2009?
Listen to Biased Transmission tonight on 89.1FM KEOS College Station-Bryan from 6-7pm, to hear Danny Yeager, Teddy Wilson, Michael Alvard, and Ann Preston. If you have a question or comment you can post it here, or call the KEOS Bell Studios: 979-779-5367.
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Biased Transmission Online Archive of Shows
Local News: Curnock Attempting Another Campaign for Congress
Curnock Officially Joins Republican Congressional Primary Slate
By Michael W. Shapiro (Tribune-Herald staff writer)
From the Waco Tribune-Herald
Waco businessman Rob Curnock submitted paperwork to run in the GOP primary for the 17th Congressional District, joining four other Republicans who already have filed.
Curnock opted to collect signatures in lieu of a $3,125 filing fee, a move intended to demonstrate the level of support for his campaign and save a little money.
The Texas Republican Party requires candidates to pay the fee or gather 500 signatures. Curnock said in a statement sent out by his campaign that he collected more than 750 signatures.
“I am humbled by the support of so many voters from throughout District 17,” Curnock said.
The statement said the campaign thinks Curnock’s opponents ponied up the filing fee.
Timothy Delasandro, Bill Flores and Dave McIntyre, all from the Bryan-College Station area, already have filed in the race, as has Waco residential developer Chuck Wilson.
Granbury restaurateur Eric Finley said he’s planning to file in the coming days, and the seventh Republican, Fort Worth science teacher J.W. Autem, said Tuesday that he was dropping out of the race.
The last day of Texas’ filing period is Jan. 4.
Published on Wednesday, December 23, 2009
By Michael W. Shapiro (Tribune-Herald staff writer)
From the Waco Tribune-Herald
Waco businessman Rob Curnock submitted paperwork to run in the GOP primary for the 17th Congressional District, joining four other Republicans who already have filed.
Curnock opted to collect signatures in lieu of a $3,125 filing fee, a move intended to demonstrate the level of support for his campaign and save a little money.
The Texas Republican Party requires candidates to pay the fee or gather 500 signatures. Curnock said in a statement sent out by his campaign that he collected more than 750 signatures.
“I am humbled by the support of so many voters from throughout District 17,” Curnock said.
The statement said the campaign thinks Curnock’s opponents ponied up the filing fee.
Timothy Delasandro, Bill Flores and Dave McIntyre, all from the Bryan-College Station area, already have filed in the race, as has Waco residential developer Chuck Wilson.
Granbury restaurateur Eric Finley said he’s planning to file in the coming days, and the seventh Republican, Fort Worth science teacher J.W. Autem, said Tuesday that he was dropping out of the race.
The last day of Texas’ filing period is Jan. 4.
Published on Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
The Cost of Escalation
The Obama Administration has continued the Bush Administration’s foreign policy, and we are paying for it.
President Obama announced that he was escalating the war in Afghanistan, and that along with the new strategy there are going to be 30,000 new troops at a cost of $30 billion for the military this year. Remember when former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said that the entire cost of the war in Iraq was going to be $50 billion? Maybe someone on the White House speach writing staff left out a zero.
The National Priorities Project estimates that the war in Afghanistan has cost over $234 billion. There is also the human cost. According to iCasualties.org, to date 936 United States service members have died in Afghanistan, and twice as many have died this year than in any other of the nine year war. Not to mention the difficult to count thousands of civilians that have died in Afghanistan.
So how much is this war costing? It cost $1 million per service member: $57,077.60 per minute per service member. Of course that is according to the official number. How else could this money be spent?
According to Jo Comerford, Executive Director of the National Priorities Project:
United States already accounts for 45% of total global military spending, the $30 billion surge cost alone would place us in the top-ten for global military spending, sandwiched between Italy and Saudi Arabia. Spent instead on “soft security” measures within Afghanistan, $30 billion could easily build, furnish and equip enough schools for the entire nation.
President Obama announced that he was escalating the war in Afghanistan, and that along with the new strategy there are going to be 30,000 new troops at a cost of $30 billion for the military this year. Remember when former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said that the entire cost of the war in Iraq was going to be $50 billion? Maybe someone on the White House speach writing staff left out a zero.
The National Priorities Project estimates that the war in Afghanistan has cost over $234 billion. There is also the human cost. According to iCasualties.org, to date 936 United States service members have died in Afghanistan, and twice as many have died this year than in any other of the nine year war. Not to mention the difficult to count thousands of civilians that have died in Afghanistan.
So how much is this war costing? It cost $1 million per service member: $57,077.60 per minute per service member. Of course that is according to the official number. How else could this money be spent?
According to Jo Comerford, Executive Director of the National Priorities Project:
United States already accounts for 45% of total global military spending, the $30 billion surge cost alone would place us in the top-ten for global military spending, sandwiched between Italy and Saudi Arabia. Spent instead on “soft security” measures within Afghanistan, $30 billion could easily build, furnish and equip enough schools for the entire nation.
According to Jeremy Scahill’s reporting at the blog Rebel Reports, the Obama Administration has also privatized the war in Afghanistan even more than the Bush Administration. Defense Department contractors in Afghanistan increased 40% between June and September of this year, and private security contractors working for the DOD in Afghanistan doubled from 5,000 to 10,000.
So how many contractors are in Afghanistan? If you include the 104,000 DOD contractors, the 3,600 State Department contractors and 14,000 USAID contractors, then the total number of contractors in Afghanistan stands at 121,000. That number is only going to increase as the escalation of the war in Afghanistan continues. How much is this privatization of the war in Afghanistan costing?
The US has spent more than $23 billion on contracts in Afghanistan since 2002. By next year, the number of contractors will have doubled since 2008 when taxpayers funded over $8 billion in Afghanistan-related contracts.
The cost that America is going to pay in continuing the war in Afghanistan is enormous.
$30 billion isn’t even the real cost of Obama’s surge. It’s just a minimum, through-the-basement estimate. If you were to throw in all the bases being built, private contractors hired, extra civilians sent in, and the staggering costs of training a larger Afghan army and police force (a key goal of the surge), the figure would surely be startlingly higher. In fact, total Afghanistan War spending for 2010 is now expected to exceed $102.9 billion, doubling last year's Afghan spending. Thought of another way, it breaks down to $12 million per hour in taxpayer dollars for one year. That’s equal to total annual U.S. spending on all veteran's benefits, from hospital stays to education.
So how many contractors are in Afghanistan? If you include the 104,000 DOD contractors, the 3,600 State Department contractors and 14,000 USAID contractors, then the total number of contractors in Afghanistan stands at 121,000. That number is only going to increase as the escalation of the war in Afghanistan continues. How much is this privatization of the war in Afghanistan costing?
The US has spent more than $23 billion on contracts in Afghanistan since 2002. By next year, the number of contractors will have doubled since 2008 when taxpayers funded over $8 billion in Afghanistan-related contracts.
The cost that America is going to pay in continuing the war in Afghanistan is enormous.
$30 billion isn’t even the real cost of Obama’s surge. It’s just a minimum, through-the-basement estimate. If you were to throw in all the bases being built, private contractors hired, extra civilians sent in, and the staggering costs of training a larger Afghan army and police force (a key goal of the surge), the figure would surely be startlingly higher. In fact, total Afghanistan War spending for 2010 is now expected to exceed $102.9 billion, doubling last year's Afghan spending. Thought of another way, it breaks down to $12 million per hour in taxpayer dollars for one year. That’s equal to total annual U.S. spending on all veteran's benefits, from hospital stays to education.
Local News: Soldier’s Family Being Denied Entry into United States
Soldier Speaks Out on Family Not Being Allowed Entry into U.S.
Reporter: Kristen Ross
From KBTX Channel 3
He took an oath to defend the Constitution and all the laws of the land. Now a U.S. soldier, and Texas A&M grad says those very rights he fights to protect are not being upheld when it comes to his family.
Back in April we first told you about Captain Cheyne Parham and his Washington County family, who are taking on the government to bring his loved ones to the U.S., after the American Consulate refused them passports.
It's been almost a year since Parham began his fight, and his family is still being denied access into the country despite some new evidence.
Now after months of litigation, the soldier speaks out.
"This would have been one of the most amazing Christmas gifts I could have imagined, to have my family here," Captain Cheyne Parham said.
For Captain Cheyne Parham visiting his parents in Washington County this holiday is bittersweet. What he hoped would be homecoming for his entire family, has now turned into another Christmas without his wife and kids.
"I've missed out on all but about a month of their lives, and that's one month combined," Parham said. "I've got to miss their first step I got to miss their first real word."
For pretty much all of 2009 Captain Parham has been fighting the government to bring his wife and twin daughters to the U.S., after the American Consulate in the Philippines questioned the paternity of the children, and denied them passports and visas.
"The Consulate said, 'I'm just not 100 percent convinced you were exclusive at the time of conception.' Now she based that statement off my wife working at a bar in Korea," Parham said.
Parham produced birth certificates, marriage certificates, insurance forms, and even a court ruling saying the kids are his without any luck. When that didn't work he even recently took a DNA test.
"We sampled my wife, one of my daughters, because the other one was sick at the time, and I got sampled as well. The results came in three to four days later after we got it to the lab, and 99.98 percent of American Caucasian males are excluded from being the father," Parham said, "So it's 99.99 percent I'm father."
But Parham says the Department of State is ignoring this latest piece of evidence and now wants him and his family to submit to another DNA test--this one conducted by the American Consulate in Philippines.
"Someone who has already insulted my wife, that has insulted my children by calling them illegitimate children," Parham said.
Parham is now preparing his wife, and family for another holiday apart...
"The only thing I can tell her is to keep faith," Parham said.
It's faith that keeps them fighting to be together once again.
"I have a responsibility to every other service member who has been through this, and that will be in this situation. Because if I don't fight then the wrong will just happen again," Parham said.
According to the Parham's an initial federal court dismissed their case back in August after the State Department argued that Cheyne had not exhausted all avenues possible--and should have also filed for a certificate for identification.
Since then, Captain Parham has requested that document, but has been told that form hasn't been actively used since the late 80's.
Currently the Parham's are appealing the earlier ruling, citing other cases ruled on by the Supreme Court.
News Three did attempt to contact the U.S. State Department about this latest information, but our calls went unanswered.
In the past though, officials with the department told News Three that the burden of proof always rests with its applicants.
Meanwhile, Parham's wife, and children can not even come to U.S. on an immigration or just temporary visa or passport because of the current probe into the kids citizenship.
Published on Monday, December 21, 2009
Reporter: Kristen Ross
From KBTX Channel 3
He took an oath to defend the Constitution and all the laws of the land. Now a U.S. soldier, and Texas A&M grad says those very rights he fights to protect are not being upheld when it comes to his family.
Back in April we first told you about Captain Cheyne Parham and his Washington County family, who are taking on the government to bring his loved ones to the U.S., after the American Consulate refused them passports.
It's been almost a year since Parham began his fight, and his family is still being denied access into the country despite some new evidence.
Now after months of litigation, the soldier speaks out.
"This would have been one of the most amazing Christmas gifts I could have imagined, to have my family here," Captain Cheyne Parham said.
For Captain Cheyne Parham visiting his parents in Washington County this holiday is bittersweet. What he hoped would be homecoming for his entire family, has now turned into another Christmas without his wife and kids.
"I've missed out on all but about a month of their lives, and that's one month combined," Parham said. "I've got to miss their first step I got to miss their first real word."
For pretty much all of 2009 Captain Parham has been fighting the government to bring his wife and twin daughters to the U.S., after the American Consulate in the Philippines questioned the paternity of the children, and denied them passports and visas.
"The Consulate said, 'I'm just not 100 percent convinced you were exclusive at the time of conception.' Now she based that statement off my wife working at a bar in Korea," Parham said.
Parham produced birth certificates, marriage certificates, insurance forms, and even a court ruling saying the kids are his without any luck. When that didn't work he even recently took a DNA test.
"We sampled my wife, one of my daughters, because the other one was sick at the time, and I got sampled as well. The results came in three to four days later after we got it to the lab, and 99.98 percent of American Caucasian males are excluded from being the father," Parham said, "So it's 99.99 percent I'm father."
But Parham says the Department of State is ignoring this latest piece of evidence and now wants him and his family to submit to another DNA test--this one conducted by the American Consulate in Philippines.
"Someone who has already insulted my wife, that has insulted my children by calling them illegitimate children," Parham said.
Parham is now preparing his wife, and family for another holiday apart...
"The only thing I can tell her is to keep faith," Parham said.
It's faith that keeps them fighting to be together once again.
"I have a responsibility to every other service member who has been through this, and that will be in this situation. Because if I don't fight then the wrong will just happen again," Parham said.
According to the Parham's an initial federal court dismissed their case back in August after the State Department argued that Cheyne had not exhausted all avenues possible--and should have also filed for a certificate for identification.
Since then, Captain Parham has requested that document, but has been told that form hasn't been actively used since the late 80's.
Currently the Parham's are appealing the earlier ruling, citing other cases ruled on by the Supreme Court.
News Three did attempt to contact the U.S. State Department about this latest information, but our calls went unanswered.
In the past though, officials with the department told News Three that the burden of proof always rests with its applicants.
Meanwhile, Parham's wife, and children can not even come to U.S. on an immigration or just temporary visa or passport because of the current probe into the kids citizenship.
Published on Monday, December 21, 2009
Monday, December 21, 2009
Where's the change?
The Brazos Coalition Against War is sponsoring a protest against the Obama Administration’s escalation of the War in Afghanistan and the continued War in Iraq.The Brazos Coalition Against War is sponsoring a major protest on January 20, 2010, which marks a year since Barack Obama’s inauguration as a President who campaigned on ending the foreign policy of President George W. Bush. However, the Obama Administration has continued the foreign policy of the Bush Administration, continuing the occupation of Iraq and escalating the war in Afghanistan.
The purpose of the protest is and to demand that our leaders end the United States occupation of Afghanistan and Iraq, and that all military service members and civilian contractors are brought home. The protest will be held from 5:00pm to 7:00pm at the corner of University Drive and Texas Avenue in College Station, Texas. Members of both community chapter of Brazos Coalition Against War and the Texas A&M student chapter will be in.
The Brazos Coalition Against War, active for over three years in the Bryan-College Station area, includes individuals, students, and community groups opposed to the War in Iraq. The Brazos Coalition Against War can be found on Facebook.
Join the Protest on Facebook
Texas Progressive Alliance Roundup - December 21, 2009
The Texas Progressive Alliance brings you the highlights from the blogs.
As the deadline to file for a place on the 2010 March primary ballot drew near, there was lots of activity on the Democratic side: Kinky Friedman followed Hank Gilbert over to the race for agriculture commissioner, Linda Chavez-Thompson was rumored to be running for lt. governor, and, late on Friday, Ronnie Earle dropped his name in the hat for that same post. There's more on all this news from PDiddie at Brains and Eggs.
BARNETT SHALE GAS THREATENS HUMAN HEALTH !!! TXsharon posted the Final Results of the DISH TX health survey at Bluedaze.
WhosPlayin broke the story about a former Republican County Commissioner who got arrested this week for shoplifting a vacuum cleaner.
CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme wonders why some men in power (here, here, here, here and here) think that abusing women and children is their right? Why does Senator Cornyn choose to enable rapists?
Over at Bay Area Houston, John Coby is bored and thinks Kay Bailey Hutchison's commercial sounds like a Whataburger commercial.
Looking for ways to green up your life? Start by making some thoughtful changes to the way you spend your holiday, and check out Texas Vox' Green Up Your Life: Holiday Edition for tips and tricks!
Neil at Texas Liberal wrote about the fifth anniversary of the terrible Indian Ocean tunami. Five Years Since Terrible Indian Ocean Tsunami—People Are Recovering While many are still suffering from the impact of this killer wave, there are also many who are recovering and getting back their lives.
The folks over at McBlogger are desperate for your help! Find out how you can do them a solid when you help get a planet named for the blog!
Xanthippas at Three Wise Men covers the utter failure of tort "reform" in Texas (with a h/t to John Coby.)
The Texas Cloverleaf highlights the charge against the Denton County District Attorney's office of racial discrimination and harassment in the workplace
WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts on the fact that elected Texas Republicans still have no sensible ideas about how to pay for roads, Dewhurst and transportation funding.
Off the Kuff took a look at precinct data in the Houston Mayor's runoff.
lightseeker has a question for you over at TexasKaos, Is Arnold's California a foretaste of our nations' future? Check out his analysis in Deadlock, facts ,Partisans -Is California a Fore taste of Our Collective Future?.
XicanoPwr reports that anti-immigration grinches are wanting to replace dreams of success with a lumps of coal by filing a lawsuit challenging Texas’ DREAM Act, the statute that allows undocumented students to pay in-state rates, provided, they meet certain criteria. Their grinch-like behavior would rather punish these extremely vulnerable students for the sins of their undocumented parents, instead of rewarding them for wanting to contribute to our society by making college tuition a bit more affordable, since they already are ineligible for financial aid.
Justin at Asian American Action Fund Blog is excited that Houston has one of the first hospital Asian care units in the nation
Video Lunch: Democracy Now! Headlines
From Democracy Now!
UN Climate Talks End in Failure Without Binding Deal * 23 Climate Protesters Arrested in Australian Coal Protest * Key Procedural Healthcare Vote Passes in Senate * Feingold Blasts White House For Not Supporting Public Option * Study: $635 Million Spent on Healthcare Lobbying * Report: Obama Ordered U.S. Military Strike on Yemen * Senate Approves $636 Billion Military Spending Bill * Prominent Iranian Dissident Cleric is Buried * Mother of Detained American Hiker Pleas for Iran to Release Son * Israel Arrests Palestinian Coordinator of Stop the Wall Campaign * Rights Group Urges U.S. To Ratify UN Womens Rights Treaty * Report: White Businesses Received Vast Majority of Stimulus Loans
Local News: Search for Texas A&M President Continues
A&M President Search Advances
By Vimal Patel
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Texas A&M Interim President R. Bowen Loftin appears to be one of about four candidates still in the running for the university's presidency.
"As far as I can tell, I am still being considered," Loftin said during an interview in his office Thursday. "I can't tell you anything more than that."
All in the final pool are from academia and the highest levels of administration of their universities -- either presidents or provosts, said Richard Box, chair of the 16-person search committee looking for the leader.
Box, 69, said the search is "probably down to four or so" candidates, but he left open the possibility of additional applicants.
"I think if there was to be an exceptional candidate, and I don't think I can put a definition on that, we will discuss it as a committee and decide how we want to handle it," Box said.
The advisory committee is expected to forward three or four names to the Board of Regents, the Texas A&M System's nine-member governing authority, at the regents meeting scheduled for Jan. 22, Box said.
Aggies won't know who the new president is until regents decide on a sole finalist. The search is in an "opaque" period in which secrecy is key to protecting the reputations of the candidates, said Box, who also is a regent and a former campaign treasurer for Gov. Rick Perry.
"It's unfortunate that we were unable to bring them to the campus to interface and have an open forum," Box said of the remaining candidates. "That would have been my preference, and the preference of many faculty members and students. ... Had we done that, we would have eliminated some very high-quality people."
In an effort to expand the pool of Aggie community members who meet and interact with the candidates, access to them will be granted to somewhere in the range of about 25 additional students, faculty members and former students, Box said.
Each will sign confidentiality agreements -- as did every member of the search committee -- stating they won't release the names of the candidates, Box said.
Committee member Frank Ashley, vice chancellor for academics for the A&M System, said confidentiality of candidates is typical and has been the case for all seven searches he has been a part of for schools within the A&M System.
"Our philosophy is we're not looking for someone who needs a job," he said. "We're looking for someone who has a job, is happy where they are, where people like them, and we're trying to convince them that this is a better job. We don't want to do anything that would jeopardize their position."
Robert Bednarz, speaker of the Faculty Senate and a member of the advisory committee, said the search has unfolded "about as well as I could have imagined."
"I think there was great consensus on the committee," said Bednarz, who was a strong critic of regents' and McKinney's actions surrounding the departure of Elsa Murano, who resigned amid controversy in June.
Published on Sunday, December 20, 2009
By Vimal Patel
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Texas A&M Interim President R. Bowen Loftin appears to be one of about four candidates still in the running for the university's presidency.
"As far as I can tell, I am still being considered," Loftin said during an interview in his office Thursday. "I can't tell you anything more than that."
All in the final pool are from academia and the highest levels of administration of their universities -- either presidents or provosts, said Richard Box, chair of the 16-person search committee looking for the leader.
Box, 69, said the search is "probably down to four or so" candidates, but he left open the possibility of additional applicants.
"I think if there was to be an exceptional candidate, and I don't think I can put a definition on that, we will discuss it as a committee and decide how we want to handle it," Box said.
The advisory committee is expected to forward three or four names to the Board of Regents, the Texas A&M System's nine-member governing authority, at the regents meeting scheduled for Jan. 22, Box said.
Aggies won't know who the new president is until regents decide on a sole finalist. The search is in an "opaque" period in which secrecy is key to protecting the reputations of the candidates, said Box, who also is a regent and a former campaign treasurer for Gov. Rick Perry.
"It's unfortunate that we were unable to bring them to the campus to interface and have an open forum," Box said of the remaining candidates. "That would have been my preference, and the preference of many faculty members and students. ... Had we done that, we would have eliminated some very high-quality people."
In an effort to expand the pool of Aggie community members who meet and interact with the candidates, access to them will be granted to somewhere in the range of about 25 additional students, faculty members and former students, Box said.
Each will sign confidentiality agreements -- as did every member of the search committee -- stating they won't release the names of the candidates, Box said.
Committee member Frank Ashley, vice chancellor for academics for the A&M System, said confidentiality of candidates is typical and has been the case for all seven searches he has been a part of for schools within the A&M System.
"Our philosophy is we're not looking for someone who needs a job," he said. "We're looking for someone who has a job, is happy where they are, where people like them, and we're trying to convince them that this is a better job. We don't want to do anything that would jeopardize their position."
Robert Bednarz, speaker of the Faculty Senate and a member of the advisory committee, said the search has unfolded "about as well as I could have imagined."
"I think there was great consensus on the committee," said Bednarz, who was a strong critic of regents' and McKinney's actions surrounding the departure of Elsa Murano, who resigned amid controversy in June.
Published on Sunday, December 20, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
Week in Headlines
Media
The Shield after Senate Judiciary
Veterans Issues
Mounting Suicide Rate Prompts an Army Response
War and Peace
Veterans Group Calls on Soldiers to Refuse Orders to Deploy to Afghanistan and Iraq
Economy
State Budget Blues
Environment
Why the Copenhagen Debate Doesn't Make Any Sense
Labor
SEIU’s Civil War
Human Rights
Thousands Are Virtual Slaves in America
Reproductive Rights
Female Soldiers Not Protected by Constitution They Defend
GLBT Issues
D.C. Council Votes Yes on Marriage Equality
Race and Racism
Pennsylvania Police Officers Indicted in Cover-Up of Immigrant’s Killing
From the Blogs
Army of Dude:
The Guns Fall Silent
jobsanger:
Health Care Bill's Poison Pills
Simple Green Frugal:
Wild Type Ranch - Brazos Locavores Fieldtrip
Local News: Village Café Earns Downtown Bryan Impact Award
Cafe, Decorative Center Owners Earn Bryan Awards
By Cassie Smith
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Two downtown Bryan business owners were recognized Thursday for their efforts to revitalize the area.
Kristy Petty, the owner of Village Cafe and Art 979, and Ray Jezisek, the owner of the Brazos Valley Decorative Center, were named the winners of the 10th annual Mayor's Downtown Impact Awards at a ceremony at the Brazos Center.
Mayor Mark Conlee said the pair were chosen out of 35 nominations for nine individuals and businesses. They were selected because of their contributions and enthusiasm for enhancing the area, he said.
"The Downtown Impact Award is very close to my heart," Conlee said. "I am passionate about downtown, and I am extremely grateful to those who go the extra mile to build upon its success."
The award honors efforts by an individual or organization to revitalize downtown. It's sponsored by The Bank and Trust of Bryan, which donates $500 to the Boys & Girls Club of the Brazos Valley in the name of the award winners. The award is provided by The Discount Trophy Group.
Conlee said Village Cafe and Art 979, at 210 W. 26th St., offers a unique combination of art, music, food and wine. In the year since it has been downtown, Conlee said, Petty has helped build momentum for more activity downtown.
Petty said she thought downtown was the only place the business could survive and credited her employees with helping make the place a success. Petty said she visited the area for the first time in the 1990s, when it was a "ghost town," and fell in love with it.
"Coming from a corporate background, it's so nice to love where you work," she said. "What we're doing is different from the rest of the area and is a bit more artsy and liberal, and to be recognized for kind of being a little more out there, that's nice."
Jezisek and his business partner, Josh Ortiz, moved the Brazos Valley Decorative Center to downtown from Lake Street. The potential and nostalgia of the area were big factors in the move, Ortiz said.
The business, which specializes in interior decorating needs, invested more than $300,000 in renovations to the building, at 401 S. Main St. Improvements to the exterior of the site, which were funded partly by a grant from the city, were recognized by the Texas Downtown Association.
While it was a risk to invest so much in the look of the building, Ortiz said, it would have been heartbreaking to see it become an eyesore in a flourishing area.
"It was a risk, but I feel like we've been blessed by this," he said. "We're so thankful for our loyal clients that turn out to be more friends than anything. They really guide us. Even as business owners, you never are your own boss. You always work for your customers."
Published on Friday, December 18, 2009
By Cassie Smith
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Two downtown Bryan business owners were recognized Thursday for their efforts to revitalize the area.
Kristy Petty, the owner of Village Cafe and Art 979, and Ray Jezisek, the owner of the Brazos Valley Decorative Center, were named the winners of the 10th annual Mayor's Downtown Impact Awards at a ceremony at the Brazos Center.
Mayor Mark Conlee said the pair were chosen out of 35 nominations for nine individuals and businesses. They were selected because of their contributions and enthusiasm for enhancing the area, he said.
"The Downtown Impact Award is very close to my heart," Conlee said. "I am passionate about downtown, and I am extremely grateful to those who go the extra mile to build upon its success."
The award honors efforts by an individual or organization to revitalize downtown. It's sponsored by The Bank and Trust of Bryan, which donates $500 to the Boys & Girls Club of the Brazos Valley in the name of the award winners. The award is provided by The Discount Trophy Group.
Conlee said Village Cafe and Art 979, at 210 W. 26th St., offers a unique combination of art, music, food and wine. In the year since it has been downtown, Conlee said, Petty has helped build momentum for more activity downtown.
Petty said she thought downtown was the only place the business could survive and credited her employees with helping make the place a success. Petty said she visited the area for the first time in the 1990s, when it was a "ghost town," and fell in love with it.
"Coming from a corporate background, it's so nice to love where you work," she said. "What we're doing is different from the rest of the area and is a bit more artsy and liberal, and to be recognized for kind of being a little more out there, that's nice."
Jezisek and his business partner, Josh Ortiz, moved the Brazos Valley Decorative Center to downtown from Lake Street. The potential and nostalgia of the area were big factors in the move, Ortiz said.
The business, which specializes in interior decorating needs, invested more than $300,000 in renovations to the building, at 401 S. Main St. Improvements to the exterior of the site, which were funded partly by a grant from the city, were recognized by the Texas Downtown Association.
While it was a risk to invest so much in the look of the building, Ortiz said, it would have been heartbreaking to see it become an eyesore in a flourishing area.
"It was a risk, but I feel like we've been blessed by this," he said. "We're so thankful for our loyal clients that turn out to be more friends than anything. They really guide us. Even as business owners, you never are your own boss. You always work for your customers."
Published on Friday, December 18, 2009
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Video Lunch: New Report on Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy Shows Reasons for Concern
Sarah Brown of The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy and Sari Locker, sex educator, speak with Dr. Nancy Snyderman about a new report that show a rise in teen pregnancy as well as a rise in the lack of knowledge about proper use of birth control.
Local News: Congressman Edwards Secures Local Projects in Defense Bill
Waco U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards Secures $8.6 million for Local Projects in Defense Bill
By Michael W. Shapiro (Tribune-Herald Staff Writer)
From the Waco Tribune-Herald
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, secured $8.6 million for local projects ranging from post-traumatic stress disorder research to a testing lab for spy plane technologies in the $636 billion defense bill that was passed in the House on Wednesday.
The bill funds the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and provides a 3.4 percent pay hike for military personnel. The 395-34 vote on the Pentagon budget was the first of several the House took on must-do bills, including a job-growth package, before it adjourned for the year.
Edwards’ earmarks consist of:
* $2.4 million for a joint Waco Veterans Affairs Hospital/Fort Hood-Texas A&M University research project into underlying causes of PTSD.
* $5 million for a technology-integration lab at L-3, where upgrades for EP-3E spy planes can be tested before installation, thus reducing the time such planes must be pulled away from intelligence-gathering missions.
* $400,000 for a Baylor University project to research poorly understood aspects of PTSD’s impact on the families of soldiers.
* $800,000 for Baylor University to study techniques to extend the life of aviation electronics systems. If successful, the research would allow huge savings for the Department of Defense through deferrals on plane upgrades.
The defense bill includes $128 billion for the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan but leaves for later budgeting for the troop surge in Afghanistan recently ordered by President Barack Obama.
The legislation includes short-term extensions, mainly for two months, of a number of programs that expire at the end of the year that Congress was unable to reauthorize.
Among those were several controversial provisions of the anti-terror USA Patriot Act; an act that shields doctors from a steep cut in Medicare payments; unemployment benefits and health care subsidies for the jobless; and the federal highway and transit program.
The spate of short-term extensions is required because the House and Senate have simply run out of time to iron out Congress’ typical flood of year-end business because the notoriously balky Senate is tied up with the health care overhaul bill.
“In a world of alternatives, that’s the one we have,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., acknowledging that the need to revisit so many controversial items early next year will be a huge headache for Democrats, who control Congress.
Published on Thursday, December 17, 2009
http://www.wacotrib.com/news/content/news/stories/2009/12/17/12172009wacDEFENSE.html
By Michael W. Shapiro (Tribune-Herald Staff Writer)
From the Waco Tribune-Herald
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, secured $8.6 million for local projects ranging from post-traumatic stress disorder research to a testing lab for spy plane technologies in the $636 billion defense bill that was passed in the House on Wednesday.
The bill funds the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan and provides a 3.4 percent pay hike for military personnel. The 395-34 vote on the Pentagon budget was the first of several the House took on must-do bills, including a job-growth package, before it adjourned for the year.
Edwards’ earmarks consist of:
* $2.4 million for a joint Waco Veterans Affairs Hospital/Fort Hood-Texas A&M University research project into underlying causes of PTSD.
* $5 million for a technology-integration lab at L-3, where upgrades for EP-3E spy planes can be tested before installation, thus reducing the time such planes must be pulled away from intelligence-gathering missions.
* $400,000 for a Baylor University project to research poorly understood aspects of PTSD’s impact on the families of soldiers.
* $800,000 for Baylor University to study techniques to extend the life of aviation electronics systems. If successful, the research would allow huge savings for the Department of Defense through deferrals on plane upgrades.
The defense bill includes $128 billion for the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan but leaves for later budgeting for the troop surge in Afghanistan recently ordered by President Barack Obama.
The legislation includes short-term extensions, mainly for two months, of a number of programs that expire at the end of the year that Congress was unable to reauthorize.
Among those were several controversial provisions of the anti-terror USA Patriot Act; an act that shields doctors from a steep cut in Medicare payments; unemployment benefits and health care subsidies for the jobless; and the federal highway and transit program.
The spate of short-term extensions is required because the House and Senate have simply run out of time to iron out Congress’ typical flood of year-end business because the notoriously balky Senate is tied up with the health care overhaul bill.
“In a world of alternatives, that’s the one we have,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., acknowledging that the need to revisit so many controversial items early next year will be a huge headache for Democrats, who control Congress.
Published on Thursday, December 17, 2009
http://www.wacotrib.com/news/content/news/stories/2009/12/17/12172009wacDEFENSE.html
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Local News: Salvation Army Local Donations Down $20,000
200 Kids Still Need Gifts
By Maggie Kiely
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
The local Salvation Army's Red Kettle drive is down about $20,000 in holiday donations compared to last year.
Meanwhile, the organization's popular Angel Tree program faces a Tuesday deadline with 200 children not yet "adopted." The program allows for families or individuals to pick a child's name and then buy a gift for them for Christmas.
Captain John Branscum, who runs the local Salvation Army, said their goal is to raise $120,000 during the five-week donation drive that ends on Christmas, but he's not optimistic about reaching that benchmark.
He attributed the reduction to a slow economy and having fewer volunteers than usual to work the familiar red kettles located outside of many area stores and businesses. The weather has been a factor as well, he said.
"There have been more rainy days than usual," he said. "When it's raining, people aren't thinking about making a donation and some aren't going out at all."
The shortage could mean tough times for the non-profit agency.
"If we don't have that support, I might have to make some tough decisions and start to cut things," he said, trying to remain positive. "We appreciate the public support and understand that things are tough right now, but any more support that they can give would greatly benefit people in our community."
The Salvation Army, which is on Cavitt Street in Bryan, uses the donations given over the holidays to support general operations and local families throughout the year by assisting with food, rent, clothing and other essentials, he said.
Like many agencies trying to help the needy this season, the Salvation Army suffers because while donations are down, the need for their services increases.
Officials said they're even finding it difficult to get enough community members to support about 1,200 children who are a part of the Angel Giving Tree Program.
Children selected for the program qualify according to their economic standing and their families go through an interview process with Salvation Army officials. Once chosen, the children are asked to provide clothing and shoe sizes, then compile a gift wish list so whomever adopts them has an idea of what to buy.
"I think helping parents out with buying shoes and coats benefits them more than a toy," Branscum said. "We have a huge number of broken families that come to us in need. If mom has three kids, she can't really work. Something that was eye-opener to me this year was there was more of a demand for new bedding than in the past."
Salvation Army officials will shop for kids who aren't adopted by the end of Tuesday, he said, adding that a booth is set up until 10 p.m. in front of the food court at Post Oak Mall. The organization had about 10 Angel Trees set up in businesses around the community, but they've already been taken down.
Monetary donations can be made at one of the 15 kettle drive locations outside of Sam's, Kroger's, Wal-Mart and other grocery stores around town. Individuals can also donate online at salvationarmyusa.org.
For about 20 years, Bryan Broadcasting has been sponsoring a similar program called Christmas Angels.
Officials said residents adopted each of the 563 children available by going online or visiting one of two Blue Baker restaurant locations in College Station.
Like the Angel Tree Program, those who adopt through Christmas Angels are provided with clothing size information, as well as a wish list.
Anyone participating in the program has until Wednesday to drop the donated gifts off at one of the Blue Baker locations in College Station or at Bryan Broadcasting.
The Texas Health and Human Services provided officials with Christmas Angels with a list of children who qualify for the program based on socio-economic status, said Allison Meserole, the program's director.
"Some kids just ask for things as small as a warm jacket," she said. "Those are the ones you are really filling a need for and we're happy to make that happen."
Published on Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Today is the deadline to make a donation to the Salvation Army's Angel Tree. Call 361-0618 or drop by Post Oak Mall's food court to learn more.
By Maggie Kiely
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
The local Salvation Army's Red Kettle drive is down about $20,000 in holiday donations compared to last year.
Meanwhile, the organization's popular Angel Tree program faces a Tuesday deadline with 200 children not yet "adopted." The program allows for families or individuals to pick a child's name and then buy a gift for them for Christmas.
Captain John Branscum, who runs the local Salvation Army, said their goal is to raise $120,000 during the five-week donation drive that ends on Christmas, but he's not optimistic about reaching that benchmark.
He attributed the reduction to a slow economy and having fewer volunteers than usual to work the familiar red kettles located outside of many area stores and businesses. The weather has been a factor as well, he said.
"There have been more rainy days than usual," he said. "When it's raining, people aren't thinking about making a donation and some aren't going out at all."
The shortage could mean tough times for the non-profit agency.
"If we don't have that support, I might have to make some tough decisions and start to cut things," he said, trying to remain positive. "We appreciate the public support and understand that things are tough right now, but any more support that they can give would greatly benefit people in our community."
The Salvation Army, which is on Cavitt Street in Bryan, uses the donations given over the holidays to support general operations and local families throughout the year by assisting with food, rent, clothing and other essentials, he said.
Like many agencies trying to help the needy this season, the Salvation Army suffers because while donations are down, the need for their services increases.
Officials said they're even finding it difficult to get enough community members to support about 1,200 children who are a part of the Angel Giving Tree Program.
Children selected for the program qualify according to their economic standing and their families go through an interview process with Salvation Army officials. Once chosen, the children are asked to provide clothing and shoe sizes, then compile a gift wish list so whomever adopts them has an idea of what to buy.
"I think helping parents out with buying shoes and coats benefits them more than a toy," Branscum said. "We have a huge number of broken families that come to us in need. If mom has three kids, she can't really work. Something that was eye-opener to me this year was there was more of a demand for new bedding than in the past."
Salvation Army officials will shop for kids who aren't adopted by the end of Tuesday, he said, adding that a booth is set up until 10 p.m. in front of the food court at Post Oak Mall. The organization had about 10 Angel Trees set up in businesses around the community, but they've already been taken down.
Monetary donations can be made at one of the 15 kettle drive locations outside of Sam's, Kroger's, Wal-Mart and other grocery stores around town. Individuals can also donate online at salvationarmyusa.org.
For about 20 years, Bryan Broadcasting has been sponsoring a similar program called Christmas Angels.
Officials said residents adopted each of the 563 children available by going online or visiting one of two Blue Baker restaurant locations in College Station.
Like the Angel Tree Program, those who adopt through Christmas Angels are provided with clothing size information, as well as a wish list.
Anyone participating in the program has until Wednesday to drop the donated gifts off at one of the Blue Baker locations in College Station or at Bryan Broadcasting.
The Texas Health and Human Services provided officials with Christmas Angels with a list of children who qualify for the program based on socio-economic status, said Allison Meserole, the program's director.
"Some kids just ask for things as small as a warm jacket," she said. "Those are the ones you are really filling a need for and we're happy to make that happen."
Published on Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Today is the deadline to make a donation to the Salvation Army's Angel Tree. Call 361-0618 or drop by Post Oak Mall's food court to learn more.
Monday, December 14, 2009
Texas Progressive Alliance Roundup - December 14, 2009
TXsharon @ Bluedaze: DRILLING REFORM FOR TEXAS helps you follow the money to see why Governor Perry and others want Texans to keep breathing toxic air.
BossKitty at TruthHugger is proud to give a Hat Tip to Houston – Annise Parker inherits a City of Progress.
The Stonewall Democrats of Denton County denounce Rep. Michael Burgess for his recent actions against openly gay Safe Schools Czar Kevin Jennnings, at the Texas Cloverleaf.
This week on Left of College Station Teddy covers the dispute in Waco between the McLennan County Republican Party and the Hispanic Republican Club of McLennan County over whether or not the Republican Party needs to reach out to minority voters. Also on Left of College Station this week, the tradition of homophobia continues at Texas A&M and the Coalition for Life invites anti-choice and anti-woman Jeb Bush to speak at their annual fundraiser. Left of College Station also covers the week in headlines.
While Houstonians took great pride in the election of Annise Parker as mayor, it was discouraging to see -- despite his company's multi-million dollar contracts with the city and his apparent misunderstanding of their value -- that Stephen Costello was elected to city council over a good Democrat, Karen Derr.
CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme hopes Silvestre Reyes gets primaried for his vote against a women's right to choose. Beto O'Rourke may be just the one to do it.
Off the Kuff gave a rundown of the Houston runoffs.
Over at BlueBloggin, guest writer Len Hart of the The Existentialist Cowboy, has been connecting some dots with the CIA Efforts to Control World Distribution of ‘Illicit’ Drugs. If the US/CIA hoped to control this lucrative trade, the Taliban had to go. I wonder how many CIA ‘black ops’ have been financed ‘off the books’ (as was Iran/Contra) with the proceeds of its various drug.
At the very moment that leaders from around the world are meeting to come to an international agreement to save the world from catastrophic global warming, Texas gives the green light to build another mercury-spewing, asthma-inducing, planet choking coal plant. Read more at Texas Vox.
Neil at Texas Liberal does not understand why the Burger King on Houston's Harrisburg Blvd. needs to be open on Christmas Day. Neil is certain that staff at Burger King wants to be off on Christmas and that an Xmas Whopper is a depressing thought. The picture in the post features a rare snowfall in Houston.
WhosPlayin finds that once again Lewisville ISD is trying to shut out citizen involvement. This time, they're trying to supersede state law and charge more for public information requests.
WCNews at Eye On Williamson posts on a discussion about where the Democrats in Texas stand heading into 2010, Pragamatic party building.
Justin at Asian American Action Fund Blog has a guide to the historic Houston runoffs.
Local News: Republican Primary Opponent Criticizes Fred Brown
Brown Defends Online Resume
By Matthew Watkins
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
An online resume posted by State Rep. Fred Brown has a political opponent questioning whether the Bryan Republican is inappropriately using his position to further his career.
And the opponent, Rick Davis, said the posting suggests Brown may not be fully committed to the seat.
The resume was posted on the automotive industry Web site autonews.com. Its existence was first noticed by Davis, who is one of three opponents challenging Brown's re-election bid in the 2010 Republican primary. A copy of the resume was later obtained by The Eagle.
The listing doesn't give Brown's name but describes a "State Representative, District 14 State of Texas" seeking a senior executive position in the auto industry.
It says that Brown would be willing to relocate out of Brazos County and lists two registered auto industry lobbyists as references.
The full resume states that Brown "carried legislation for car dealers and blocked proposed legislation that would hurt the Texas body of car dealers."
It lists four references, including two -- Tom Blanton and Drew Campbell -- who are registered with the Texas Ethics Commission as lobbyists for Texas car dealers. The other two references are former State Speaker of the House Tom Craddick and Texas A&M University System Chancellor Mike McKinney, who is Gov. Rick Perry's former chief of staff.
Brown said that including the two lobbyists as references was "absolutely not" inappropriate. He said he knew the pair from his work for car dealerships in Bryan, Navasota and Killeen before he became a state representative.
But Davis disagreed.
"I think it indicates a lack of genuineness and a motivation by self-interest," Davis said.
Blanton is vice president of government affairs for the Texas Association of Auto Dealers, and Campbell is president of the New Car Dealers Association of Metropolitan Dallas. Campbell has maintained his registration as a lobbyist, but hasn't made any lobbying expenditures since 2005, according to a database maintained by the online public policy publication Texas Tribune.
Blanton has spent $7,637 in the past four years, and said in an e-mail interview Friday that he has lobbied Brown in that time.
"Of course I have," he said. "It's my job to articulate the position of the franchised new car and truck dealers to elected members of the House and the Senate."
He added that Brown has demonstrated "total independence and an instinct for doing what he believes to be the right thing for his district and for Texas, regardless of who might have lobbied him."
Campbell said he had no knowledge of the resume posted on autonews.com, but said that he was friends with Brown long before he joined the Legislature and gave him permission to use his name in any way he chose.
But Davis suggested that the resume gave an appearance of impropriety.
"It suggests that he is beholden to certain groups," he said. "As a selling point in his resume, he advertises that he blocked legislation that was bad for auto dealers."
To ask for a job from the people who benefited from that work is inappropriate, Davis suggested.
Davis, who was a judge and now works as a defense attorney, stressed that he wouldn't be beholden to any group representing lawyers or any other profession.
Davis also stressed that a notice attached to the resume seemed to indicate that Brown was willing to relocate outside Brazos County. Davis questioned whether that showed Brown was not committed to staying in his district.
Texas legislators are part-time lawmakers and most have other careers. Brown says in the resume that he worked in the auto business from the 1980s until 2003, when, he said, he began to focus more closely on his work as a representative.
Brown said that he posted the resume about three months ago while he was still deciding whether to seek re-election. He said he has turned several offers down since deciding to stay in the race.
Davis countered that the Web site indicates the resume was updated two weeks ago.
But Brown said the resume shouldn't be considered a big deal.
"If I were [Davis], I would be more concerned about being admonished by the State Judicial Conduct Commission," Brown said, referring to two separate reprimands Davis faced while he was a judge, including one time when the board found he was using his office to carry out personal vendettas.
The scuffle is the first in what is expected to be a competitive race for the Republican nomination for the District 14 seat. Brown, who has served in the House since 1998, is being challenged by Davis, former Brazos County Tax Assessor-Collector Gerald "Buddy" Winn and Blinn College administrator Blanche Brick.
Winn and Brick stayed out of last week's disagreement.
"I am not going to sit down in that hog pen and get in the mud," Winn said on Friday. "I am going to run on my own merits."
Published on Sunday, December 13, 2009
By Matthew Watkins
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
An online resume posted by State Rep. Fred Brown has a political opponent questioning whether the Bryan Republican is inappropriately using his position to further his career.
And the opponent, Rick Davis, said the posting suggests Brown may not be fully committed to the seat.
The resume was posted on the automotive industry Web site autonews.com. Its existence was first noticed by Davis, who is one of three opponents challenging Brown's re-election bid in the 2010 Republican primary. A copy of the resume was later obtained by The Eagle.
The listing doesn't give Brown's name but describes a "State Representative, District 14 State of Texas" seeking a senior executive position in the auto industry.
It says that Brown would be willing to relocate out of Brazos County and lists two registered auto industry lobbyists as references.
The full resume states that Brown "carried legislation for car dealers and blocked proposed legislation that would hurt the Texas body of car dealers."
It lists four references, including two -- Tom Blanton and Drew Campbell -- who are registered with the Texas Ethics Commission as lobbyists for Texas car dealers. The other two references are former State Speaker of the House Tom Craddick and Texas A&M University System Chancellor Mike McKinney, who is Gov. Rick Perry's former chief of staff.
Brown said that including the two lobbyists as references was "absolutely not" inappropriate. He said he knew the pair from his work for car dealerships in Bryan, Navasota and Killeen before he became a state representative.
But Davis disagreed.
"I think it indicates a lack of genuineness and a motivation by self-interest," Davis said.
Blanton is vice president of government affairs for the Texas Association of Auto Dealers, and Campbell is president of the New Car Dealers Association of Metropolitan Dallas. Campbell has maintained his registration as a lobbyist, but hasn't made any lobbying expenditures since 2005, according to a database maintained by the online public policy publication Texas Tribune.
Blanton has spent $7,637 in the past four years, and said in an e-mail interview Friday that he has lobbied Brown in that time.
"Of course I have," he said. "It's my job to articulate the position of the franchised new car and truck dealers to elected members of the House and the Senate."
He added that Brown has demonstrated "total independence and an instinct for doing what he believes to be the right thing for his district and for Texas, regardless of who might have lobbied him."
Campbell said he had no knowledge of the resume posted on autonews.com, but said that he was friends with Brown long before he joined the Legislature and gave him permission to use his name in any way he chose.
But Davis suggested that the resume gave an appearance of impropriety.
"It suggests that he is beholden to certain groups," he said. "As a selling point in his resume, he advertises that he blocked legislation that was bad for auto dealers."
To ask for a job from the people who benefited from that work is inappropriate, Davis suggested.
Davis, who was a judge and now works as a defense attorney, stressed that he wouldn't be beholden to any group representing lawyers or any other profession.
Davis also stressed that a notice attached to the resume seemed to indicate that Brown was willing to relocate outside Brazos County. Davis questioned whether that showed Brown was not committed to staying in his district.
Texas legislators are part-time lawmakers and most have other careers. Brown says in the resume that he worked in the auto business from the 1980s until 2003, when, he said, he began to focus more closely on his work as a representative.
Brown said that he posted the resume about three months ago while he was still deciding whether to seek re-election. He said he has turned several offers down since deciding to stay in the race.
Davis countered that the Web site indicates the resume was updated two weeks ago.
But Brown said the resume shouldn't be considered a big deal.
"If I were [Davis], I would be more concerned about being admonished by the State Judicial Conduct Commission," Brown said, referring to two separate reprimands Davis faced while he was a judge, including one time when the board found he was using his office to carry out personal vendettas.
The scuffle is the first in what is expected to be a competitive race for the Republican nomination for the District 14 seat. Brown, who has served in the House since 1998, is being challenged by Davis, former Brazos County Tax Assessor-Collector Gerald "Buddy" Winn and Blinn College administrator Blanche Brick.
Winn and Brick stayed out of last week's disagreement.
"I am not going to sit down in that hog pen and get in the mud," Winn said on Friday. "I am going to run on my own merits."
Published on Sunday, December 13, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
Week in Headlines
Activism
Guerrilla Blogging
Media
Forbes Publishes Fiction on Climate Change Debate
War and Peace
The Shame and Folly of Obama's Afghan War
Veterans Issues
Vietnam Vets Battle Bureaucracy for Disability Benefits
Environment
Global Temperature Fifth Warmest on Record
Economy
The Detroit Project
Human Rights
Nigerian Police Killing at Will
Reproductive Rights
Terror in Charlotte
Women’s Issues
U.N. Women's Treaty Weakened by Slew of Reservations
GLBT Issues
Moving Beyond Race on the Gay Rights Debate
From the Blogs
Burnt Orange Report:
Michael McCaul Drops the Ball, Loses 3,000 Texas Jobs
Latina Lista:
Waco Hispanic Republican Group: If the party won't change, they'll do it for them.
Humble Vegan:
Making it Thru the Holidays & NOT Adding to Your Pudge Factor
Guerrilla Blogging
Media
Forbes Publishes Fiction on Climate Change Debate
War and Peace
The Shame and Folly of Obama's Afghan War
Veterans Issues
Vietnam Vets Battle Bureaucracy for Disability Benefits
Environment
Global Temperature Fifth Warmest on Record
Economy
The Detroit Project
Human Rights
Nigerian Police Killing at Will
Reproductive Rights
Terror in Charlotte
Women’s Issues
U.N. Women's Treaty Weakened by Slew of Reservations
GLBT Issues
Moving Beyond Race on the Gay Rights Debate
From the Blogs
Burnt Orange Report:
Michael McCaul Drops the Ball, Loses 3,000 Texas Jobs
Latina Lista:
Waco Hispanic Republican Group: If the party won't change, they'll do it for them.
Humble Vegan:
Making it Thru the Holidays & NOT Adding to Your Pudge Factor
Video Lunch: Interviews with Supporters at Sarah Palin Book Signing
On November 20, 2009, Sarah Palin visited Columbus, OH as part of her book signing tour for "Going Rogue." When her supporters were asked broad questions about why they thought she should be president, the responses were vague: She's "real." She'll "stick up for America."
Local News: College Station City Council Passes Tree Ordinance
CS Approves Tree Rule
By Cassie Smith
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Every new single-family home or townhouse in College Station must have at least one tree on the property, the College Station City Council decided Thursday.
The City Council voted unanimously to amend the city's landscape and tree-protection ordinance to require developers to include two trees at least 2 inches in diameter or one tree at least 4 inches in diameter.
The new rule does not apply to existing subdivisions.
The change also gives developers more credit for preserving trees during construction and additional credit for landscape plans prepared by qualified landscape professionals.
Residents spoke on both sides of the issue at Thursday's public hearing.
Sherry Ellison stressed the importance of protecting mature trees over requiring developers to plant small trees, but Brian Alg said the city should consider that some residents might not be interested in having trees on their property.
"This doesn't allow for people to make their own choices about what they do for their property," he said.
Also at Thursday's meeting, the City Council repealed an ordinance that authorized photo enforcement of red light violations. Under state law, a city can only implement a red light camera program by adopting an ordinance, so the cameras could return if a new ordinance is adopted.
Jess Fields, owner of Texas Avenue Cigars and one of three people to speak during the public hearing about the issue, said he disagreed with the way the council handled the red light camera controversy.
The cameras were turned off last month after residents voted in favor of removing them, but Fields said the city seemed to be lobbying to keep the cameras in the days leading up to the election and offered a weak defense to a legal petition that claimed the Nov. 3 election violated the city's charter.
"I would encourage you to remember that this is the people's government and, I mean, there are issues that tick everyone off," Fields said.
Two College Station residents asked a judge to invalidate the election results, arguing that the election measure was a referendum but wasn't submitted within 20 days after the red light camera ordinance was passed, as required by the city's charter.
Last week, Visiting District Judge Suzanne Stovall agreed that the election shouldn't have been held and declared the vote void.
Councilman Dennis Maloney said the ruling didn't matter because the City Council had already committed itself to carrying out the will of the voters.
"I don't know what the commotion is all about," he said.
Published on Friday, December 11, 2009
By Cassie Smith
From the Bryan-College Station Eagle
Every new single-family home or townhouse in College Station must have at least one tree on the property, the College Station City Council decided Thursday.
The City Council voted unanimously to amend the city's landscape and tree-protection ordinance to require developers to include two trees at least 2 inches in diameter or one tree at least 4 inches in diameter.
The new rule does not apply to existing subdivisions.
The change also gives developers more credit for preserving trees during construction and additional credit for landscape plans prepared by qualified landscape professionals.
Residents spoke on both sides of the issue at Thursday's public hearing.
Sherry Ellison stressed the importance of protecting mature trees over requiring developers to plant small trees, but Brian Alg said the city should consider that some residents might not be interested in having trees on their property.
"This doesn't allow for people to make their own choices about what they do for their property," he said.
Also at Thursday's meeting, the City Council repealed an ordinance that authorized photo enforcement of red light violations. Under state law, a city can only implement a red light camera program by adopting an ordinance, so the cameras could return if a new ordinance is adopted.
Jess Fields, owner of Texas Avenue Cigars and one of three people to speak during the public hearing about the issue, said he disagreed with the way the council handled the red light camera controversy.
The cameras were turned off last month after residents voted in favor of removing them, but Fields said the city seemed to be lobbying to keep the cameras in the days leading up to the election and offered a weak defense to a legal petition that claimed the Nov. 3 election violated the city's charter.
"I would encourage you to remember that this is the people's government and, I mean, there are issues that tick everyone off," Fields said.
Two College Station residents asked a judge to invalidate the election results, arguing that the election measure was a referendum but wasn't submitted within 20 days after the red light camera ordinance was passed, as required by the city's charter.
Last week, Visiting District Judge Suzanne Stovall agreed that the election shouldn't have been held and declared the vote void.
Councilman Dennis Maloney said the ruling didn't matter because the City Council had already committed itself to carrying out the will of the voters.
"I don't know what the commotion is all about," he said.
Published on Friday, December 11, 2009
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