Wall Street screwed us over

The banksters and the crony capitalists rule our country with their money. Too many elected politicians cater to crony capitalists over the citizens. A few, like Bernie Sanders, are heroes. What heroes there are, are all Democrats. In this FireDogLake post, 'The many successes of Occupy Wall Street' are laid out. Good job. Many are saying we're not going to take it anymore!

Perry didn't realize that firing teachers adds to Texas unemployment numbers

Nobody ever said Perry was good at math. Or, science.

The $4 billion in cuts to Texas public schools this summer might be starting to hit Gov. Rick Perry where it hurts most — his record on creating jobs.

Maybe, the teachers that should have been fired, taught Perry. Nah. Those teachers did the best that they could.

Higher percentage of Hispanic children living in poverty

We can do better. Lets stop paying attention to the mean, batsh*t crazy crowd and get down to business.

More Hispanic children live in poverty than children of any other racial or ethnic group in the U.S., a finding that may ripple through Texas for years to come.

"It's really bad news," Luis Salinas, a University of Houston sociologist, said of the report released Thursday by the Pew Hispanic Center. "If 6 million kids are being brought up in poverty, that doesn't give them much hope for the future. They are likely to end up in poverty for the rest of their lives."

How Rick Perry failed the batsh*t crazy test

Goodness knows Perry tried to sail through the crazy line. He aced the religious nuts' test. The HPV crony capitalism caper slowed him down, but didn't mortally wound him. Nope. Perry failed the racist test with a straight up F- in the Florida debate.  See, the crony capitalists want cheap labor. They crave cheap labor. Witness the killing of labor unions. But, the whipped up frenzy for racism sometimes contradicts crony capitalism positions.

Perry deep down is a crony capitalist with a batsh*t crazy veneer. Perry let his bs veneer slip with his improvised "heartless" statement. What a gaff. The bs crowd would have been delighted with plausible deniability on any issue. Batsh*t crazy people are used to believing what you tell them instead of believing their lyin' eyes.

Here's composite scorecard as I see it.

Candidate	Greedy Corporate Bastards	Religious Nuts	Racists	Unibombers	Comments
Rick Perry	A+	A	F-	B	Can he recover?
Mitt Romney	B	D	D	F	How can this guy win?
Ron Paul	D	C	A	A+	The unibombers are persistent. Updated
Michele Backmann	B-	A+	A	A	Look for a comeback.
Hermain Cain	A	B	B	B	Yes, he is black, but he hates those brown people.
Rick Santorum	B	A	A	A	Is Google hurting little Rickie?
Newt Gingrich	A+	B	A	B+	Newt looks good on paper.  In reality?  Not so much.
Jon Huntsman	A	D	C	F	This guy is in the wrong party.

Letting school districts pick books diminishes SBOE power

Bad news for textbook cronies. Bad news for power hungry State Board of Education members.

A new state law that decentralizes the selection and purchase of instructional materials for public school students has sparked significant discussion about how it will affect the power of the politically charged State Board of Education to control what’s taught in Texas classrooms.

But its most dramatic impact may be on the state’s relationship to the textbook industry, since companies must now compete for bids from individual districts instead of being able to rely on a single big and largely guaranteed state contract. School districts are also using the same money to support technological hardware like iPads and salaries for technology training and support staff.

Yeah for the Kemp's ridley turtles

Lets not celebrate too soon.

Not so long ago, the Kemp's ridley sea turtle appeared to be on the path of the dodo bird, to extinction. The Kemp's ridley has been on the endangered list since 1970. But thanks to human intervention and teamwork between the United States and Mexico, the Kemp's ridley's current trajectory is a bit more like the once-threatened, now-thriving brown pelican. The turtle's protectors, who announced a new recovery plan last week, now are optimistic that the turtle can be removed from the endangered list in the not terribly distant future.

The Kemp's ridley's numbers shrank from hunting and from being snared unintentionally in commercial fishing nets. The nets now have design features to protect turtles but still are the turtle's main threat.

State not funding school districts fairly

republicans are trying their darnedest to kill public education.  Poorer school districts should fare worse in a republican world view, anyway.

Several Coastal Bend school districts want to share a lesson with state legislators: Fund districts equally or some won't be able to educate students adequately.

That message soon could move to the courtroom. More than 100 Texas districts, including Banquete, Gregory-Portland, Mathis and Pettus, have agreed to join and pay for litigation against the state. A total of 122 districts had signed on as of Wednesday afternoon, said Lauren Cook, communications director at the Austin-based nonprofit Equity Center. Calallen, Corpus Christi, Sinton and West Oso independent school districts also are considering joining the litigation, which is expected to be filed in October.

Rick Perry's stooge for the Willingham case may have convicted another Innocent man

While the murder victim's husband sat in jail, another woman was murdered in her bed.

It could also have potentially serious ramifications for Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley, the former head of the Texas Forensic Science Commission. Appointed to the panel by Gov. Rick Perry, Bradley was critical of efforts to examine questions about the arson science used to convict Cameron Todd Willingham in the 1991 deaths of his three daughters. Willingham was executed in 2004.

Michael Morton was convicted in 1987 of killing his wife on Aug. 13, 1986, and was sentenced to life in prison. Like Debra Jan Baker, Christine Morton was found bludgeoned to death in her bed [in 1988]. Last year, a court forced the Williamson County District Attorney’s office to turn over a blue bandana found near the Mortons' home for DNA testing.

This summer, Michael Morton’s lawyers received the results of the genetic analysis that showed the bandana was stained with Christine’s blood and DNA from a man who was not her husband. That DNA, in turn, was matched to the profile of a felon with a criminal history in California.

At a court hearing in the Morton case on Monday, Bexar County Judge Sid Harle revealed that the Travis County District Attorney’s office had contacted him with information about a pending investigation that its investigators believed was connected to Morton’s murder.

Making outrageous claim to militarize our border

Sounds just like a republican tactic. Lies? No problem. Does a republican even know how to tell the truth. Hate against Hispanics? No problem. Even Rick Perry found that out. Using thuggery at every possible turn? That's why we're in two harmful wars.

U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes, a former Border Patrol sector chief, has blasted a new report on border security, saying it makes outrageous claims in order to militarize the border.

The report, titled ‘Texas Border Security: A Strategic Military Assessment,’ was conducted by General Barry McCaffrey (Ret.) and Major-General Robert Scales (Ret.) and commissioned jointly by the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Department of Agriculture.

“During yesterday’s press conference, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples and others released a report that makes outrageous claims to promote reactionary measures, such militarizing the border, that are not grounded on validity and reason,” said Reyes, D-El Paso, ranking member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces.

“This is yet another example of how Republicans continue to distort the facts and manipulate crime statistics to mischaracterize the border as out-of-control.”

I have a simple solution to the drug war violence: legalize drugs. Take away the profit motive. So simple. So smart. republicans hate that.

Weslaco superintendent resigns

Rivera got teachers a raise in this environment. Rivera moved ahead of board action to fire him.

More than 100 schoolteachers, administrators, parents and students waited in line to hug and shake hands with longtime Superintendent Richard Rivera after he shocked them with news of his retirement Tuesday night. The 15-year district head announced his retirement – effective July 1 – during a closed-door negotiation, heading off a school board vote to possibly suspend or non-renew his contract at a nearly three-hour special board meeting, said Rivera’s attorney, Jacques Treviño.

Another ding against WalMart

Now we've gone from low, low wages to no wages.

There are three new Walmarts set to open in the area next month, but some of the crews who worked to build them say they haven't been paid.

"All of the guys who worked for Firecheck down here in Corpus to get the new Walmarts open busted our butts," said Rudy Rojas, who worked on the sprinkler systems in the buildings.

Maybe they'll get their money. Later. Some of it. What are they living on right now? Will somebody go to jail? Not if you're a bankster or you steal from workers. Rich and powerful people are above the law in America.

Nueces County schools would be devasted by Perry bots' giveaway to refineries

What a joy to have refineries in your backyard.  You get to breathe all sorts of interesting stuff and get shafted all at the same time.

County governments and school districts continue to closely monitor almost $200 million in pending property tax rebates from state energy production companies, applied for under a 1993 voter-approved constitutional amendment allowing tax breaks for certain types of pollution control equipment.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has yet to rule on 16 applications that could leave counties and school districts liable to pay back more than $135 million in ad valorem tax calculations, including about $10 million in Nueces County and $6.2 million from the Corpus Christi Independent School District, according to an Associated Press analysis.

Government by the cronies for the cronies. That's today's America.

David Dewhurst decides it's better to run as a racist for the senate

Cause, as you all know, the republican base is racist..

But, in the Republican primary, red meat issues like illegal immigration are also critical. In a break with Perry, Dewhurst said he does not support the state law Perry signed allowing children of illegal immigrants to pay in-state tuition. He said it's a matter of fairness.

"If we're not going to give fellow Americans who live in Louisiana or Oklahoma or New Mexico the ability to come into Texas and have in-state tuition and save, then is it fair to give that break to people who are not citizens here?" he said. "So, I would not have signed that law."

One thing I have learned about republicans, they all do the same batsh*t crazy thing. Whatever it is. If racism is a tenet of their republican religion, then by their God, racism it is. No deviations. Does David Dewhurst have some sanity? I think he does. Integrity? Not a bit.

Progressive bloggers have noticed the Texas Tribune bias

We noticed the pushing of the propaganda on Social Security and State Board of Education (sic) last week  Brains and Eggs, Texas Sharon, Eye on Williamson County and McBlogger noticed the sell out, too.

Will Kay Bailey Hutchison save Ag research center?

I don't expect any republican to do the right thing, but KB is leaving office.

The only hope of saving the Kika de la Garza Subtropical Agriculture Center from closure probably rests with U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, local civil leaders believe.

The Weslaco-based research center employs 113 full time staff and has a $27 million economic impact on the Rio Grande Valley, according to a study by Texas A&M University.

Rick Perry bots poised to give oil refineries $135M while schools starve

We told you Perry was a crony capitalist. Got to love those polluters and hate those students.

Three commissioners appointed by Gov. Rick Perry may grant some of the nation's largest refineries a tax refund of more than $135 million money Texas' cash-strapped schools and other local governments have been counting on to help pay teachers and provide other public services.
The refund would mean more pain for some communities after a year in which state lawmakers had to grapple with a $27 billion shortfall and slashed spending on public schools by more than $4 billion. Nearly half the refund would be taken from public schools, and those in cities where the refineries are based would be hurt the most.

Hidalgo courtroom airing former rep's dirty laundry

Bad publicity for Jim Solis.

The relationship between former state Rep. Jim Solis and attorney Marc G. Rosenthal had been severed long before the two were indicted in connection with former 404th state District Judge Abel C. Limas’ racketeering scheme.

The two high-profile personalities have an ongoing dispute over referral and co-counsel fees which they have been airing in the 197th District Court in Willacy County, public records show.

Solis, of Harlingen, maintains that Rosenthal, based out of Austin, did not pay him $750,000 that Solis says was his 50 percent share of referral fees recovered from a joint venture case.

It's TPA blog roundup!

The Texas Progressive Alliance thinks Alec Baldwin's hair does a pretty decent impersonation of our Governor as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff discusses the latest Texas polling data and what a Rick Perry candidacy might mean for downballot Democrats.

On a night during which both Georgia and Texas put men to death, Letters From Texas visits the moral and practical implications.

Amy Price, the progressive running for Houston's city council at large #4 seat, had a great week of news coverage. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs collected the stories, audio, and video.

WCNews at Eye On Williamson shows how state Sen. Steve Ogden's retirement announcement this week has shaken up the county's politics, The changing election landscape in Williamson County, creating opportunities.

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme notes that Rick Perry is having a bad week. Boo hoo.

This week on Left of College Station, Teddy asks how do you support reproductive rights? Left of College Station focuses on reproductive rights all these week as the anti-choice 40 Days for Life Protest begins. From the state of Texas funding so-called crisis pregnancy centers, to the defunding of Planned Parenthood in Texas.

At McBlogger, we take a sniff around LCRA's decision to privatize some of their assets and don't like the smell.

Neil at Texas Liberal noted a new phone app that will show the amount of forced labor used in many of the everyday things that we buy.

Libby Shaw over at TexasKaos brings us up to date on Rick Perry's limelight moment. Called upon to demonstrate his cool under fire before a national audience at the last Republican debate, he showed his true mettle. He melted down. See all the details here: Rick Perry Bombs Presidential Debate.

republican officials in Texas like polluters more than you and your children

Texas Seeks To Block Enforcement Of EPA Rules

Nate Silver says Perry is doing worse among the saner crowd

How long does it take a sane person to look at Rick Perry before that run screaming?

Whether Mitt Romney has gained ground on Rick Perry in the Republican primary race is questionable. Polls released since Mr. Perry’s first debate on Sept. 7 show him leading Mr. Romney by an average of 8 percentage points. By contrast, Mr. Perry led Mr. Romney by 11 points in polls released between the announcement of his candidacy on Aug. 13 and the Sept. 7 debate.
There is some clearer evidence, however, that Mr. Perry’s numbers have worsened some among general election voters.

Meanwhile, Rick Perry tries to assure republican donors, aka greedy corporate b*st*rds, that he can attract sane voters.

Major donors said in interviews that Perry expects to easily raise $10 million to $15 million by the end of this month, with a long-term goal of at least $45 million by the end of the first major primaries in March.

republicans in Congress kill wildfire aid

Poison pill cuts that echo the debt ceiling fight killed the bill. republicans are mean, greedy thugs. But, you knew that.

The bill's failure in the House foils the GOP's effort to jam the Senate, which recently passed stand alone legislation to provide FEMA significantly more emergency funds, without a partisan budget cut to offset it.

Isn't it nice to have an ag research station in Weslaco?

Jobs and service to the people. What an idea. republicans will have none of that.

The odds don’t look good for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Kika de la Garza Subtropical Agricultural Research Center, city leaders reported amid last-ditch efforts to keep the center open.

The research center, which opened its doors at 2413 E. Business 83 in 1931, is one of 10 nationwide to be eliminated after being cut from congressional agricultural appropriations.

republicans say Bachmann is crazy

Well, don't these words describe all of them?

As with the Republican candidates tested previously -- Rick Perry and Mitt Romney -- we first asked respondents to use one word to describe their impression of Bachmann. Unlike with the two frontrunners, nearly half the words (48 percent) to describe Bachmann were negative, including "inexperienced," "crazy," "lightweight" and "scary."

republicans still want to kill all forms of public education

Will a Texas Legislative group slow down the efforts of the crony capitalists?

Before today's inaugural hearing of the Joint Oversight Committee on Higher Education Governance, Excellence and Transparency, one of the co-chairs — state Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo — said it was important to remember why the group was formed in the first place.

"It was created because there was a controversy," she said in an interview with The Texas Tribune.

That was back in May, when a number of legislators were concerned about the direction the regents appointed by Gov. Rick Perry — who had promoted a controversial set of "seven breakthrough solutions" for higher education published by the Texas Public Policy Foundation — might take the state's university systems. The uproar has quieted down somewhat in the intervening months.

"Though the controversy is not roiling at this point, we want to ensure that something like that will not happen again," Zaffirini said. She hopes the much-anticipated hearing will set a "constructive and optimistic" tone.

republicans want people who run BP or Enron to take over all public services. That way, republican cronies make money, there is no transparency, and you can't vote out a CEO, even if you are a stock holder.

Calhoun County commissioner sued over hidden camera

Who was the fellow employee who warned her?

A Port Lavaca woman is suing a Calhoun County commissioner over claims that she was wrongfully fired after reporting his alleged voyeurism.

Amanda Guillen filed the lawsuit in federal court earlier this month.

In her lawsuit, Guillen claims defendant Calhoun County Precinct 2 Commissioner Vern Lyssy invaded her privacy and violated her civil rights when he fired her after she made a harassment complaint about an alleged hidden camera.

Former Scientologist provoked in Port Aransas

Sounds like Rathbun has been through a lot just to tell his story.

[Mark] Rathbun, a former high ranking official of the Church of Scientology, admits taking the sunglasses and throwing them on the ground but said he didn't injure the crew member, Norman James Moore. Rathbun believes Moore's complaint was in retaliation for Rathbun's recent trip to Germany, where he spoke publicly about abuses in the church.

Moore could not be reached for comment.

County Attorney David Aken said the case is under review. He rejected a previous case from the film crew when Rathbun snatched a microphone. Aken said he didn't believe a county jury would convict Rathbun after seeing how much provocation he had endured.

Who owns all the water in Texas?

What water is that?

While most of Texas and the Southwest are under moderate to extreme drought conditions, agricultural water rationing and curtailment proposals are becoming more widespread, even affecting parts of the Deep South.

"We know that the scope of the situation is huge," said Matt Herrick, a spokesman for the United States Department of Agriculture.

In Texas, the board of directors for the LCRA, which manages the southern part of the massive river, is considering a proposal that could cut off water to about 250 farmers in the state's three biggest rice-producing counties - Matagorda, Wharton and Colorado.

They say it's an emergency measure to protect the water that's left. Several Central Texas communities, including Austin, depend on the reservoirs for drinking and other utilities.

republicans may try to get us to believe that climate change isn't real, but the consequences are already manifest.

Democratic Party says Aaron Peña lied

I just want to know if Aaron Peña opened his mouth.

Texas Democratic Party officials are accusing state Rep. Aaron Peña, R-Edinburg, of lying about his involvement in a controversial redrawing of the county’s House district maps that left the veteran legislator in a seat fortified for a conservative. Democratic Party officials said Monday that Peña lied when he “emphatically and repeatedly” stated he was not involved with drawing the lines that gave him the conservative seat only months after he switched allegiances to the Republican Party. But Peña responded by arguing that the Democratic Party broadened his previous statements on the House floor when he said he did not physically draw the map.

Does anybody doubt that Peña cares only about himself?

Another headline you don't want to see

'Aransas Pass police chief under scrutiny amid complaints'

The Aransas Pass police chief talked to the City Council behind closed doors Monday night amid allegations that his officers beat two men and wrongly arrested one of them in separate incidents. Police Chief Darrell Jones said before the meeting that council members wanted to be briefed on the allegations. No formal written complaints have been filed against the department, but a lawyer who represents the families lodging the complaints said he intends to take legal action.

Another headline you don't want to see

'San Juan police: State trooper assaulted wife'

Aristeo Nereo Deleon Cantu, who has been with the Texas Department of Public Safety for 16 years, was charged with assault causing bodily injury.

What Bay Area Houston said

Texas is the crony capitalism state. Government for the rich and powerful, not for you.

With the passing of the TWIA reform bill, with the enthusiastic support of the insurance industry cheerleader, Larry Taylor, Texas has become the nanny state of TWIA, coddling them when they commit fraud, protecting them from being held accountable, and protecting them from legal action when all the homeowner has left is legal action.

The Texas Tribune uses propaganda framing on the SS issue

Here are some examples: 5th sentence in we get this gem.

“It shouldn’t be a pay-as-you-go system, where children and grandchildren are paying for your Social Security,” said Ray Holbrook, a former Galveston County judge who led the charge to opt out of Social Security during his 28-year tenure. “That’s why it’s bankrupt, and that’s why Rick Perry says it’s a Ponzi scheme, which I agree with.”

No 'neutral' article on Social Security would be complete without the 'Almost everyone agrees' canard.

Almost everyone agrees Social Security will need to be changed in some way to remain solvent. Under the current structure, the Social Security Administration projects that by 2036 the program will be able to meet only 77 percent of scheduled benefits.

Give me a break!! This program is 100% SOLVENT until 2036 people!!!! What other popular program can say that? Sure, some tweaks are in order. Does anyone think that this congress is the one to do the tweaking? Should the entire, highly successful, program be gutted because in almost a quarter of century there is a predicted shortfall?

This is the killer gem.

But proponents of the Alternate Plan say individual ownership of retirement benefits offers employees more security.

Really? Letting Wall Street have access to your retirement fund is a good idea? Ask Enron employees about that. Letting a private company, whose sole motive is profit, manage your account is a good idea? Really? Ask Bernie Madoff's customers.

Trouble for Harlingen Mayor

We all wonder what is going on.

City Attorney Roxann Cotroneo on Friday said she will assign the investigation of an ethics complaint against Mayor Chris Boswell to a third party, which is consistent with how previous ethics complaints have been handled by her office.

Cotroneo said her goal is to conduct a “full and fair” investigation and to “determine whether or not criminal offense(s) were committed.”

The city’s ethics ordinance allows for the complaint to be investigated by “any law enforcement agency or any other investigative agency or individual to assist in the investigation,” Cotroneo wrote in an email, adding that the Harlingen Police Department will not be asked to investigate the complaint.

The Corpus Christi Caller Times says HPV vaccine flap is good for Perry

You have got to be kidding me!  It was only a side effect, not a goal, for the vaccine to save lives.  The primary purpose seems obvious to me: 'pay to play' politics.  Rick 'I can't be bought for $5K'  Perry is the ultimate crony capitalist. 

I can save the 'Secure our Texas Border' people a LOT of time

Legalize drugs. take away the profit motive. It is just that simple.

The U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary will have a border security forum in Brownsville that will focus on crime and violence on the Texas-Mexico Border. The “Secure our Texas Border Forum” begins at 10 a.m. Monday and will be held at the Arts Center at the University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College. The forum is open to the public.

Since the ultimate partisan group, known as the republicans in the US House, are holding this event, you know that the primary, secondary and tertiary reason for the forum is political advantage. republicans gave up offering solutions when Nixon left office in disgrace.

Here's a headline you don't want to see

'Former mayor's son accused of murder'

Officers arrested the primary resident at the house, a 28-year-old man expected to face murder, aggravated assault and unlawful restraint charges at an arraignment on Monday. Police declined to identify the suspect, but neighbors identified him as Carlos Ochoa. Sources close to the investigation said he is the son of former Edinburg Mayor Joe Ochoa.

It's TPA blog roundup time

The Texas Progressive Alliance is still wondering what this wet stuff falling from the sky is as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff noted that even the state's own expert thought that the redistricted Congressional map was bad.

There's a difference between what Michele Bachmann is calling 'PerryCare' and actual peri-care, but there's not as much difference as you might think. PDiddie at Brains and Eggs elaborates.

Austin Energy’s Proposed Rate Increases Hurt Austin’s Residential Consumers and Continues the City’s Corporate Welfare Program, and you can tell the city how you feel about it. Visit TexasVox for more info.  

CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme notes that Republicans' plan to make us ignorant and poor is going great.  

WCNews at Eye On Williamson on the latest legal action on school finance, Taylor and Hutto ISDs join lawsuit .

Neil at Texas Liberal noted the high poverty level in the United States.

This week on Left of College Station, Teddy asks if the battle over collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin is coming to Texas? Left of College Station also takes a look at the most misleading chart of the week, and covers the week in headlines.

Libby Shaw points out the sad pattern: "Tea Party Republican candidates seem to bring out the very worst of their base." Check out the details at TexasKaos.

No need to teach basic science in Texas

Physics smysics. Who needs to know?

Physicist Carlos Handy moved from Georgia to Texas in 2005, excited about building a physics program at Texas Southern University. But after serving as chairman of the department for six years, he may soon have to oversee its dismantling. State budget cuts have placed a premium on efficiency-boosting measures in higher education. This year, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, the agency that approves and disapproves degree programs, implemented a more stringent annual review system for eliminating those with low enrollment. Programs that fail to graduate an average of five students per year over five years face being cut (current students would be allowed to graduate, but new enrollment would be halted). Institutions had the opportunity to request a temporary exemption, which could last two or four years, or permission to combine their underenrolled programs with more robust ones. Any appeals of the 94 requests that were denied — like Handy’s — are due Friday, with final decisions to be made at a board meeting in October.

republican puppet masters get their wish - you're poor and they're not

republicans and the crony capitalist puppet masters are smiling broadly at this report.

The U.S. Census Bureau recently released its 2010 report on Income, Poverty and Health Insurance coverage. For the United States, 2010 real (inflation-adjusted) median income per household was $49,445, some 2.3 percent below the 2009 median. This was the third year in a row the median household income level decreased and the first time since 1996 that the figure was below $50,000. (The median is the level at which half of households have incomes higher and half lower.) Recent peaks in real median household income occurred in 1999 and 2000, topping $53,000 both years. The official poverty rate (percent of persons living in poverty) for the United States increased for the third year in a row in 2010 to 15.1 percent, up from 14.3 percent in 2009. The threshold for poverty is $22,314 in household income per year for a family of four ($17,374 for a family of three). There were 46.2 million people in poverty, up from 43.6 million in 2009. This represents the fourth consecutive annual increase and the largest number of people in poverty in the 52 years for which poverty estimates have been published.

Pain and poverty for you, champagne and caviar for them.

Red tide comes to Brownsville Ship Channel

Not good news.

Texas Parks and Wildlife is reporting it found red tide in the Brownsville Ship Channel. The agency says on Wednesday it sent biologist to the channel after receiving reports of stressed and/or dead fish in the area

State arson investigators lost credibility for covering Perry's ass

State agencies are supposed to be working for the people of Texas, not Rick Perry.

When the Forensic Science Commission reconvenes next month to continue its discussion of arson science used to convict and execute Cameron Todd Willingham, it is expected to finalize a long-sought agreement with the state fire marshal to launch a comprehensive review of other cases that used similarly problematic arson evidence. There’s one big problem with that plan, says Stephen Saloom, policy director at the New York-based Innocence Project — State Fire Marshal Paul Maldonado doesn’t believe the evidence in the Willingham case was faulty.

Doesn't 'believe' or was told what to 'believe?' Rick Perry appointees know for whom they work.

Nueces County republicans want more than their share of seats

republicans do no believe in democracy. Really. They don't.

Nueces County could sue the federal government to defend redistricting of commissioners' precincts under a split decision Wednesday by the Commissioners Court. The court's two Democrats, Joe A. Gonzalez and Oscar Ortiz, opposed the move, with Ortiz assailing it as a potentially costly attempt to shut out opposition to the new redistricting map. But County Judge Loyd Neal said the court in its 3-2 vote is acting on the advice and expertise of the law firm the county hired to help with redistricting.

State senator to hold meeting on impact of that d*mn fence

Stupid, stupid fence. Just legalize drugs.

A public meeting on the impact of the border wall is set for Saturday, organized by State Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr. The meeting will take place from 11 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. at the Fort Brown Memorial Golf Course Clubhouse, 300 River Levee Road in Brownsville. "We will hear presentations from our law enforcement agencies regarding public safety and then open the discussion to the public," Lucio said. "I sincerely hope people will join in and share their stories."

How much does it cost to buy Rick Perry?

At the Tea Party debate in Florida, Perry said he was insulted that Bachmann thought he could be bought for $5K. Anita Perry's $60K salary is made up of many donations. Maybe some even smaller than $5K

Much of Texas first lady Anita Perry's $60,000-a-year salary at an Austin nonprofit comes indirectly from Gov. Rick Perry's political donors, state contractors and companies that do business with the state or have issues before the Legislature. Of 37 major donors to the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault during Anita Perry's tenure as a fundraiser for the group, only three have no ties to the governor or state business. Anita Perry is paid out of the nonprofit's pool of money that includes these contributions. The group also receives grants from state agencies, including the governor's office.

DWI arrest for Starr County commissioner candidate

Well, at least it's publicity.

A candidate for Starr County Commissioners Court was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in July. Jesus Maria “Chuy” Alvarez was pulled over at 2:50 a.m. July 30 on U.S. 83 by a Highway Patrol officer with the Texas Department of Public Safety, according to jail booking records and the arrest report. Alvarez refused to take a breath test, which in Texas gives a suspect an automatic DWI charge.

State Farm does it again

You know republicans across the state will be happy.

State Farm Insurance has filed notice seeking an average 10 percent increase in Texas homeowner rates.

republicans are crony capitalists. Government for the cronies and for the cronies.

USDA wants to feed kids

Today's republicans are appalled. You can hear them yell "Let them die." The republican debate audiences would cheer wildly for child starvation.

Food can be scarce around the Mendoza household during the summer. School food service worker Alina Mendoza loses most of her hours and pay at the same time her daughter stops getting free meals at school. That's why Mendoza was excited this summer when a federal grant provided money for her daughter and other children to pick up backpacks full of food each Friday from a local elementary school.

Police called out to Brownsville Commissioner's home many times

Sounds like somebody should be filing for a divorce.

Brownsville police have documented five disturbances involving District 2 City Commissioner Jessica Tetreau Kalifa since her election in mid-May. The incidents are among eight reports filed with the police department since 2006. They include disturbances, arguments, assaults and assault/family violence. The latest incident occurred Saturday, when police arrested the 28-year-old commissioner for allegedly assaulting her husband, 58-year-old Arturo O. Kalifa.

republicans cheer Texas executions and the uninsured dying

There is no doubt that the batsh*t crazy crowd is a cruel bunch. Pro-life? Don't make me laugh.

Perry wants Federal funds for Texas wild fires

Rick Perry is not embarrassed to be a giant hypocrite. After all, he is a republican.

In a state where more than 3.6 million acres have been scorched since December by some of the worst wildfires in state history, Texas’ volunteer fire departments saw their state funding slashed this year to a third of 2010 levels. In a state strapped with a large budget shortfall, Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed off on a budget that cut the volunteer fire department grant program from $23 million to $7 million for the fiscal year beginning Sept. 1. But as the fires raged on, Perry insisted that the Obama administration declare Texas a disaster area so the Lone Star State could receive federal emergency funds. “I full well expect the federal government to come in to do their part,” Perry said last week after surveying the central Texas wildfires via helicopter.

Even rapist-enabler John Cornyn thinks the Texas border is safe

Rick Perry is playing the 'fear Mexicans at the border' card. Racism is served so much better hot.

How safe is the southwest border region? Gov. Rick Perry and U.S. Sen. John Cornyn disagree on the issue. Perry says the border region is not a safe place to live. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn says it is clearly not safe on the Mexican side but it is “very safe” on the Texas side.

No Riverwalk for McAllen

Sometimes it doesn't pay to be connected.

McAllen’s City Commission unanimously rejected a proposed amusement park and River Walk-style development Monday night, voting 6-0 against the idea. Commissioners said they were concerned Mayor Richard Cortez’s connection to the project — his sons Jaime and Ricardo are key players in McAllen Attractions Inc., which submitted the detailed proposal last month — and the developer’s uncertain track record contributed to their decision.

Brownsville City Commissioner arrested

Jessica Tetreau Kalifa won with a write in vote.

Officers arrested the 28-year-old city commissioner [Jessica Tetreau Kalifa] on a charge of assault, stemming from family violence, public records show. She allegedly assaulted her 58-year-old husband after she overheard him say what he thought about a girl.

TCU reports 3 rapes in just over a week

This is not good news.

Fort Worth police are investigating a string of reported sexual assaults in and around the Texas Christian University campus.

At least these rapes are being reported and given some attention.

It's time for the TPA blog roundup

The Texas Progressive Alliance joins the rest of the country in honoring our first responders as it brings you this week's roundup.

Off the Kuff discusses how many votes it will take to have a shot at winning citywide office in Houston this year.

Eric "Illegal Signs" Dick gets nailed to a utility pole the wall once more, and PDiddie at Brains and Eggs laughs and points.

Bay Area Houston notices that a new flavor of ice cream has been created for the Tea Party. Schwetty Balls.

Don't use 9/11 to promote Bush or Cheney.  CouldBeTrue of South Texas Chisme is appalled at the thought that anyone would give them credit for good actions.

Neil at Texas Liberal made note of his growing appreciation for Rick Perry. With the Governor's lack of any second-guessing over all the people who have been executed while he has been Governor, at least Mr. Perry embraces our culture of violence and death with open arms. The Governor offers voters a clear choice. We'll see what people want in 2012 and we'll move ahead from that point.  

WCNews at Eye On Williamson, a picture is worth a thousand words, Perry/Texas GOP budget cuts already proving costly for Texas.

At TexasKaos, lightseeker ponders the relationship between Perry, Wildfires and Cultism. Give it a read.

Did you watch the Republican Debate? So did McBlogger...

Does anybody think Bush was competent BEFORE 9/11?

Think about it. How did Bush act during Katrina. Bush didn't care about New Orleans when Katrina was bearing down. All his actions after were motivated by politics not for the concern for the people. Terrorists threats were no different. Bush didn't pay attention then either. Afterwards, it was all about whatever political advantage Bush could take out of the situation. Remember Bush flying all over the country hiding like a little baby for days. How long it take before Bush made it to ground zero? To what? To make a speech. Big. Deal.

Radiation in Texas drinking water

This is scary.

With these latest discoveries, KHOU 11 News is presenting Investigative Reporter Mark Greenblatt’s findings in a comprehensive one-hour special. In the program (seen in the five parts below), you'll find out how state scientists found some of Texas’ water could pose a 1 in 400 cancer risk.

republicans have a solution for this. Bring in nuclear waste. Who cares about you. Let the 'free market' decide. When people see other people dying in several years, they will know that they shouldn't have been drinking the local water. That's republican logic for you. Bunch of lizard brains.

Here's a headline you don't want to see

'Mission mayor: Police chief shouldn't be punished for pistol's theft'

Mayor Norberto Salinas said Thursday that police Chief Leo Longoria shouldn’t be punished for leaving his department-issued pistol inside a police vehicle, where someone apparently stole the .40-caliber Glock.

Really?

Can wind turbines and birds coexist?

Don't put the turbines in migration corridors.

A group of wind power developers and federal wildlife officials are grappling with an unfortunate coincidence: The Great Plains, the nation's windiest corridor, happens to be the preferred path of the endangered whooping crane and other migrating birds. A Thursday meeting addressing the problem drew birders, wind developers and landowners eager to capitalize on the growth of wind power to the American Bank Center. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service had the forum as an initial step in creating a plan to protect threatened and endangered birds from wind turbines across a 200-mile wide corridor from the Coastal Bend to Canada. The corridor follows the whooping crane migration path.

How does a false security scare mean you need to make the same mistake again?

Two young men on a plane wore ill fighting athletic clothes, didn't look like athletes and were carrying some sort of electronic device. An IPad? The article doesn't say. The flight was aborted, and all passengers were screened again. Congressional rep, Blake Farenthold, who was on the plane learned this lesson:

He said it was a lesson in the importance of passenger awareness, a tenet regularly espoused by Homeland Security officials.

Because we need to harass more people for looking or acting different? Were there other 'clues' that the article left out? Like the race of the young men. There's a republican for you.

'American exceptionalism' is code for New Jerusalem

Whenever I hear that commercial with Tweety touting American exceptionalism because a black man is president, I am reminded what a lazy thinker that man is. The republican party is a religious cult. The constitution was divinely inspired, and like the bible, only chosen prophets are allowed to interpret the true meaning. Jews aren't the true chosen, evangelicals are. The Jews were just poor place holders. The message? Feel special while those men behind the curtain rule our world.

Hidalgo Sheriff's deputy fired, arrested

Don't you wonder about the good old days when sexual assault was ok for good old boys?

An eight-year veteran at the Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office faced criminal charges Wednesday after a 19-year-old Donna woman told authorities the deputy made unwanted sexual advances at her last month during a traffic stop.

Mauricio Celis' conviction stands

Mikal Watts' friend loses.

An appeal by a former law firm operator on a conviction of impersonating a lawyer was denied, the 13th Court of Appeals announced. Mauricio Celis was convicted in February 2009 of 14 counts of falsely holding oneself out as a lawyer. He appealed the conviction on 18 points, including that the trial judge was biased against him.

Will Cameron County voters approve collective bargaining?

republicans are attacking public employee unions. Like fire fighter unions, police unions and teacher unions. Would central Texas voters go against fire fighters right now?

The Cameron County Commissioners Court agreed Wednesday to send to the voters a decision on whether to allow col-lective bargaining for employees of the Sheriff’s Department. The Cameron County Sheriff’s Officers Association had sought the vote, which will take place during the general elec-tion on Nov. 8.

In Rick Perry's world, your house just burns down

Maybe you bought insurance at a high price. Maybe you couldn't afford insurance. Too, bad.

Under Gov. Rick Perry (R) this year, Texas slashed state funding for the volunteer fire departments that protect most of the state from wildfires like the ones that have recently destroyed more than 700 homes.

In a corporate welfare run state, regular people are on their own.

La Joya ISD workers sue

Patronage political machine allegations surface against Kino Flores.

A group of workers who say they were either transferred, suspended, demoted and/or terminated from their employment with La Joya ISD have filed a lawsuit alleging they were targeted for their political beliefs. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of 16 workers by the Law Office of Ramon Garcia. It was filed against La Joya Independent School District, former state Rep. Ismael “Kino” Flores, Adriana Villarreal, Ricardo Villarreal, and Irene M. Garcia, the school board’s president.

Yes, they will arrest you for not turning off your cell phone

Have you ever wondered?

Texas, police arrested a Southwest Airlines passenger on a flight from Phoenix after he refused to turn off his cell phone.

Why does Four Bluff have pieces of the World Trade Center?

I'd really like to know.

NBC Nightly News interviewed students and staff at Flour Bluff ISD, which has obtained three pieces of the fallen World Trade Center towers, for a special feature honoring the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Comparing the republican presidential candidates

If the republican party wasn't the batsh*t crazy party, comparing candidates would make sense.  But, every republican is almost exactly the same:  Toe the line for the greedy corporate b*st*rds and pay homage to the homophobic, racist, sexist, theocratic batsh*t crazy base.  The only differences I see are in Ron Paul and Michelle Bachmann.  They track largely to the batsh*t crazy line and slightly away from the greed corporate b*st*rds.

Nonetheless, the Texas Tribune tries it's hand at comparisons.

Here's a headline that hurts the head

'Hispanic Tea Party clarifies DREAM Act position'

Why would any non-Anglo person join the racist, batsh*t crazy Tea Party?

A flurry of criticism from his national counterparts pushed Rev. Armando Vera, founder of the nation’s first Hispanic Tea Party, to modify his previous statements in support of a divisive immigration bill. In July, the Pharr pastor told The Monitor his organization tries to protect the Hispanic perspectives that the more established, "Anglo" tea party might unintentionally ignore.

Ok. He's part of the religious batsh*t crazy contingent. Got that. Now he's feeling the heat for the non-racist, help the poor ideas he has.

Brownsville schools care about their students

How can I tell?  This year all students can get a nutritious breakfast across the district.

BISD is feeding breakfast to every possible student, paying heed to tons of research that shows breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

Everyone, rich, poor and in between can use a good start to the day.

AT&T helps Rick Perry by buying 700 copies of his book

We can all tell AT&T what we think of them by not buying THEIR products. Buying AT&T products allows AT&T to funnel money directly into Rick Perry's pockets.

Last December, the Dallas-based telecommunications firm bought 700 copies of the Texas governor's book "Fed Up!" as a gift to a gathering of Lone Star State lawmakers, activists and lobbyists, The Dallas Morning News reported at the time. Total cost? $13,000.

Rick Perry is the perfect Tea Party candidate

The astroturf gin up of the Tea Party run by greedy corporate b*st*rds herding the angry gullible is made for Rick Perry. Rick Perry is nothing more than a puppet run by greedy corporate b*st*rds who know how to herd the angry gullible. What could be more perfect?