April 2011 Archives

Anthony Graves has some nerve. How dare he prove his innocence and make the so-called law enforcement officials of the great state of Texas look like the racists fools they are for keeping an innocent man in prison for 18 years, and on death row for 12 of those 18. He should have just kept his mouth shut and gone to the execution chamber for a crime he didn't commit. But he didn't, and now...

Perhaps you've heard the phrase before. Gladwell wrote a book about his perspective on tipping points. It's referred to in several ways: crossing the line, the last straw, triggers, the point of no return, the magic moment -- you know the drill. Tipping points are change catalysts. Why are they most notably associated with pain or negativity? Because we only decide to change when it becomes uncomfortable for us to continue doing what we're doing/the way...

President Obama has released his birth certificate. The President was born in Honolulu, Hawaii.(Above---Honolulu from space. Many on the right persist in the far out view that President Obama was born outside the U.S.) I'm not sure why the birth certificate was released. Why not take the political gain offered by folks who never let up on the birth certificate issue?With Donald Trump taking the credit for the release, maybe the intent is to enhance Mr. Trump among...

What Eugene Robinson said:"What is it about the word "jobs" that our nation's leaders fail to understand? How has the most painful economic crisis in decades somehow escaped their notice? Why do they ignore the issues that Americans care most desperately about?Listening to the debate in Washington, you'd think the nation was absorbed by the compelling saga of deficit reduction. You'd get the impression that in households across America, parents put their children to bed...

My regular readers will be barred from this particular game. At least they will be barred from the basic part of the test. As some of you may know, Where's Waldo is a game where Waldo is hidden amongst a sea of chaos. In this case, we are putting Waldo in a place of business. All of these events happened in one day at Waldo's place of work. Your task? Guess where Waldo works. Those...

Late yesterday, the Deepwater Horizon Joint Investigation board issued a preliminary report of its findings related to causes of the Macondo well disaster that come under the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard.  This report focused only on the vessel, its condition, and the actions of the crew that caused the explosions and loss of the rig; it did not focus on the causes of the loss of well control, which will come in the complete...

Texas Governor Rick Perry has declared three days of prayer in response to the drought that is impacting Texas and helping to cause severe wildfires.( Above--It is hot and dry in Texas) These three days run from April 22 to April 24.Here is the link to the official proclamation.From the proclamation---WHEREAS, these dire conditions have caused agricultural crops to fail, lake and reservoir levels to fall and cattle and livestock to struggle under intense stress, imposing...

Rachel Maddow did a story last week about how, despite Rick Perry's anti-government rhetoric, Texas receives more in federal funds than it pays it federal taxes.  Politifact rated her conclusion as mostly true.  Absolutely true since 2003....

Al Franken challenges Steve Jobs on privacy issues....

Today marks the 175th anniversary of the Battle of San Jacinto.  This was the battle in which Texas Independence was won from Mexico.To mark the day, Hamburger Wearing An Astros' Hat is trying to use some Republic of Texas currency to buy a book of Texas history. Hamburger is a member of my Texas Liberal Panel of Experts.While many conservative Texans might wish that this currency was still valid, I may have  to spot Hamburger a...