Tag Archives: Texas News

What’s Next – the Official State Capital for Lung Disease?

Leave a reply

Texas cities are hankering to get an “Official State Capital” designation for a variety of reasons.  The Legislature is generally eager to hand these out.  myhighplains.com reports on some of the current efforts to achieve immortal fame for some small Texas towns.  For the curious, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission maintains a list of official state capital designations which have been approved by the Legislature.

Jasper wants to be the official Butterfly Capital of Texas; Hico covets the nod for official Steak Capital; and Jim Hogg County wants to be known as the Vaquero Capital.

Hoping to add Hico to that list, state Rep. J.D. Sheffield, R-Gatesville, told the committee the city of 1,300, is home to the annual Texas Steak Cookoff, which draws about 7,000 people one Saturday every year.

“We depend on tourism. It’s a very integral part of us surviving,” said Mike James, executive director of the Hico Economic Development Board.

Several members of the committee grilled Sheffield on his proposal. State Rep. Lyle Larson, R-San Antonio, asked Sheffield, a physician, if he encouraged patients to consume a lot of red meat. Sheffield said Hico was a “great place to go if you love slices of dead cow in various stages of preparation.”

In the interest of full disclosure, Red fully supports designating Hico as the Official Steak Capital of Texas.  Hico hosts the Texas Steak Cookoff on the third Saturday every May.  Red and family have participated for the last several years – even sporting a 7th Place finish a few years ago.  The Cookoff is a lot of fun and helps boost the Hico economy.

Has Long Has it Been Since We Bashed Ted Cruz? Well that’s too Long!

Leave a reply

Actually this time we will let John McCain do the bashing for us.  On the peripatetic campaign trail, Sen. Cruz claimed that  he had been “pressing” Sen. McCain to hold hearings on gun restrictions on military bases.  McCain responded that Cruz had never mentioned anything about it to him, and then seized the opportunity to make Cruz look foolish – not that difficult a task it seems – but always worth the effort.  The Daily Kos reports on McCain’s take on Cruz’s credibility.

 “I was fascinated to hear that because I haven’t heard a thing about it from him. Nor has my staff heard from his staff,” McCain said of Cruz (R-Texas). “It came as a complete surprise to me that he had been pressing me. Maybe it was some medium that I’m not familiar with.” […]

McCain went to great lengths to ridicule Cruz for suggesting the two had discussed the issue. He joked that perhaps Cruz was bouncing messages off the “ozone layer.”

“Maybe it was through, you know, hand telegraph. Maybe sign language,” McCain said. “Ask him how he communicated with me because I’d be very interested. Because who knows what I’m missing.”

Ted, Ted, Ted. You just don’t piss off crotchety old SOB’s like McCain without expecting some retribution.  But McCain outdid himself with this one.  It takes a special kind of enmity to break out the ridicule stick and smack you around like this with it.  And in Ted’s case it is no doubt well-deserved and keeps him firmly entrenched as the senator most hated by his colleagues.

Finally Some Good News from Falling Oil and Gas Prices

Leave a reply

Scientists claim to have established that the spike in earthquakes in the DFW area can be traced to saltwater injection – a byproduct of drilling and fracking operations.  The Associated Press reports that a study has linked the small earthquakes occurring west of Fort Worth to nearby natural gas wells and wastewater injection.

And the good news?  With reduced fracking activity and the resulting injection of wastewater, it is predicted that there will be fewer earthquakes.

In 84 days from November 2013 to January 2014, the area around Azle, Texas, shook with 27 magnitude 2 or greater earthquakes, while scientists at Southern Methodist University and the U.S. Geological Survey monitored the shaking. It’s an area that had no recorded quakes for 150 years on faults that “have been inactive for hundreds of millions of years,” said SMU geophysicist Matthew Hornbach.

When the volume of injections decreased significantly, so did the shaking.

The scientists concluded that removing saltwater from the wells in the gas production process and then injecting that wastewater back underground “represent the most likely cause” for the swarm of quakes, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal Nature Communications.

The scientists determined this based on where and when the earthquakes happened; computer models that track pressure changes; and company data from nearby wells. Hornbach said the timing and location of the quakes correlates better to the drilling and injection than any other possible reason.

“There appears to be little doubt about the conclusion that the earthquakes were in fact induced,” USGS seismologist Susan Hough, who wasn’t part of the study team, said in an email. “There’s almost an abundance of smoking guns in this case.”

Was Rick Perry’s Texas Miracle Based on Anything Other than High Oil Prices?

1 Reply

Rick Perry may no longer be able to point to the so-called Texas Miracle if he decides to run for President.  It turns out that the miracle may have been nothing more than the result of an oil boom that boosted the entire State’s economy and had nothing to do with Perry’s misguided policies.  The Wall Street Journal reports that Texas continues to lose jobs in the wake of falling oil prices.  JP Morgan Chase economist Michael Feroli had reported in 2014 in that Texas’s economy was in for serious problems  based on his analysis of the effect of rapidly declining oil prices.  Richard Fisher who was then President of the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank likened Feroli’s report to “bull shit.”  But Feroli may be getting the last laugh at Texas’ and Rick Perry’s expense.

Mr. Fisher, who has since retired as Dallas Fed president, argued Texas was no longer tied to the fate of the oil industry. He said the Lone Star State had diversified itself considerably and could withstand the big drop in oil prices and continue to be an engine of growth for the nation.

In a new report, Mr. Feroli was back to say he was right, and Mr. Fisher was wrong. “The only thing dropping in the Texas economy lately is the number of jobs,” he said in a report. The economist said Texas is now seeing the sort of job losses that would normally occur only in a recession.

Mr. Feroli pointed to a report from the Texas Workforce Commission showing the state lost 25,400 jobs in March. He said a proportional loss on the national scale would be if the U.S. lost 304,000 jobs – a recession-like outcome not seen in some time.

Anyone in this state with half a brain (and that would not include most of our politicians) knew that high oil prices were boosting the economy in ways that would not be sustained at say $50 a barrel.  You don’t see 20 new hotels on the loop around Victoria during regular times.  And you don’t pay $269 a night to stay at a Holiday Inn Express in San Angelo just to eat at the Cork and  Pig Tavern.   When Schlumberger and Halliburton are laying off tens of thousands of workers, the ripple effects are just beginning to be felt.  The Texas Miracle was always a bunch of hooey.  Texas leads the nation or is near the top in all the negative categories such as children living in poverty, overall poverty rates, citizens on food stamps, high school dropouts, numbers of uninsured and many other things.  Texas Miracle indeed! Rick Perry can go around the nation touting his right wing, anti-consumer, corporate giveaway nonsense all he wants – but nobody is likely to be listening now.

Blue Bell Expands Recall to All Products

Leave a reply

Texas iconic ice cream maker Blue Bell has recalled all of its products after discovering Listeria in yet another product.  The Brenham-based company had already recalled all products from its Broken Arrow, Oklahoma plant, but now is stripping the shelves of all of its products.  The Dallas Morning News reports that the recall sent grocers scrambling to remove the delicious treats before customers could purchase more.  The recall raises questions about what could have been done to prevent the outbreak.

Kroger spokesman Gary Huddleston said Blue Bell notified the grocer about the recall shortly before 5 p.m. Monday.

“We’ve pulled everything, and now we wait for Blue Bell to tell us what to do with it,” he said. The grocer is calling all its customers who purchased Blue Bell products, asking them to bring the items back to the store for a refund.

The company faces the prospect of trying to get its production on track by Memorial Day, when the peak season for ice cream sales begins. “They say they’re making this right, before then,” Huddleston said.

Food safety attorney Bill Marler said he was “not particularly surprised” by the announcement.

Once tests show Listeria is in a finished product it is likely it is in the manufacturing facility, which is tough to combat, he said.

“Now that it’s expanded, it shows that Listeria is endemic in their plants,” he said.

“What is sad about the Blue Bell situation, had it had more thorough testing of product and more thorough cleaning of its plant and equipment beforehand, an outbreak could have been avoided. The devastation to Blue Bell’s customers and its reputation could have been avoided,” he said.

Image from cookingforengineers.com

Packing Heat

Leave a reply

PBS News reports that Texas is on the verge of passing an open carry law that will allow Texans to pack heat in public.

On Friday, the Texas House of Representatives voted 96-35 in favor of House Bill 910, which extends the rights of citizens who have a concealed handgun license to allow them to openly carry a holstered handgun. A similar bill passed the Texas Senate last month; the two versions must be reconciled before heading to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott for signing.

Abbot is likely to give the measure his approval. During a February press conference, he said, “I will sign whatever legislation reaches my desk that expands Second Amendment rights in Texas.

Red favors sporting a Smith & Wesson 357 Magnum in a custom leather holster worn Matt Dillon style on the right thigh.  Red also favors telling anyone foolish enough to walk around with a pistol openly strapped on to any appendage that they must be suffering from a deep inadequacy complex that packing heat probably isn’t going to cure.

“Unnamed Sources” Claim ISIS Camp is Located 8 miles from El Paso – Red Calls Bull Dog on this One

Leave a reply

Judicial Watch is reporting that Mexican Army and “federal law enforcement officials” have discovered an ISIS camp just outside of Ciudad Juarez close to the U.S. border.  The report is based on unnamed sources and provides extensive details of what would be a large-scale operation to infiltrate the U.S.  Frankly, Red thinks that ISIS has its hands full avoiding an ass-whupping in Iraq and Syria while taking time out to destroy priceless archeological and historic relics.   That coupled with the fact that Judicial Watch is a right-wing advocacy organization well-known for filing frivolous lawsuits to advance its conservative agenda.  But maybe, Red is wrong.  So here is what the good folks at Judicial Watch are claiming.

The exact location where the terrorist group has established its base is around eight miles from the U.S. border in an area known as “Anapra” situated just west of Ciudad Juárez in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. Another ISIS cell to the west of Ciudad Juárez, in Puerto Palomas, targets the New Mexico towns of Columbus and Deming for easy access to the United States, the same knowledgeable sources confirm.

During the course of a joint operation last week, Mexican Army and federal law enforcement officials discovered documents in Arabic and Urdu, as well as “plans” of Fort Bliss – the sprawling military installation that houses the US Army’s 1st Armored Division. Muslim prayer rugs were recovered with the documents during the operation.

Law enforcement and intelligence sources report the area around Anapra is dominated by the Vicente Carrillo Fuentes Cartel (“Juárez Cartel”), La Línea (the enforcement arm of the cartel) and the Barrio Azteca (a gang originally formed in the jails of El Paso). Cartel control of the Anapra area make it an extremely dangerous and hostile operating environment for Mexican Army and Federal Police operations.

According to these same sources, “coyotes” engaged in human smuggling – and working for Juárez Cartel – help move ISIS terrorists through the desert and across the border between Santa Teresa and Sunland Park, New Mexico. To the east of El Paso and Ciudad Juárez, cartel-backed “coyotes” are also smuggling ISIS terrorists through the porous border between Acala and Fort Hancock, Texas. These specific areas were targeted for exploitation by ISIS because of their understaffed municipal and county police forces, and the relative safe-havens the areas provide for the unchecked large-scale drug smuggling that was already ongoing.

Red suggests unleashing kamikaze javelina drones to disrupt the alleged ISIS warriors flooding into the land the free.

Fifth Circuit to Rule on Obama’s Immigration Actions

Leave a reply

The Fifth Circuit is set to hear a motion to lift the district court stay of the President Obama’s recent actions on immigration.  U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen blocked the President’s November executive action which grants relief from deportation and work permits to approximately 5 million undocumented workers including many who currently reside, work and pay taxes in Texas.  Hanen refused to lift the stay while the Administration appeals to the Fifth Circuit.   Off the Kuff reports that the panel hearing the motion may not be too friendly to the Obama Administration’s position. The panel includes Judges Jerry Smith, Jennifer Elrod and Steven Higginson.  In fact according to Kuffner, it may be downright hostile.

Smith’s conservatism is tribal and, at times, belligerent. It would be very surprising if he cast a vote in favor of politically controversial programs spearheaded by Barack Obama.

He is joined on the panel by Judge Jennifer Elrod. Elrod is a George W. Bush appointee, while Smith is a Reagan appointee, so her record is not as thick as Judge Smith’s.

Elrod’s record on immigration suggests that she will take a similarly conservative approach. In Villas at Parkside Partners v. City of Farmers Branch, the full Fifth Circuit voted 9-5 to strike down a local ordinance that effectively made it a crime for undocumented immigrants to rent a home. Elrod dissented from this decision, claiming, somewhat improbably, that the ordinance “does not constitute a regulation of immigration.”

Insurance Industry Attempts to Cut Back on Your Rights

Leave a reply

The Dallas Morning News Watchdog  reports on Sen. Larry Taylor’s (TP-Friendswood) bill to make things even more difficult for Texas consumers to obtain reasonable settlements from their insurers.  Taylor incredibly claims that this bill – carefully crafted by the insurance lobby – is a consumer protection statute.  Taylor obviously works under the “Big Lie” principal.  When questioned about some of the provisions in his bill, Taylor was unable to respond – perhaps because being the bought and paid for tool of the insurance industry does not also make you very smart.

The Texas Supreme Court has essentially written actions for bad faith denial of coverage out of the statutes – so right now it is a winning strategy for an insurance company to just deny coverage.  If 10% of their customers shrug and say “Okay” the impact on the insurer’s  bottom line is tremendous.  But now Taylor wants to make it even easier for Texas insurers to deny claims.  Senate Bill 1628 has been characterized as the “Christmas List for insurance companies.”  Among other things, Taylor’s bill requires insureds to provide a complicated sworn statement to their insurer before filing suit, and cuts back the penalties on insurance companies for failing to pay claims.  Among the brilliantly worded language in the bill is the following:

An insurer knowingly fails to act in compliance with this subchapter only if the insurer is actually aware of the insurer’s failure to pay a claim for which the insurer is liable.

So the insurer is not responsible unless you prove that it knew that it knew that it was denying a viable claim?