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Or it simultaneously rolling out to the entire city limits. Nimbys didn't kill the rail initiative as much as the inner ring suburbs did. Central voted for it. Lone star rail is looking promising though.
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Jan 20, 2015 22:58
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Shifty Pony posted:Lone star rail is looking promising though. How would they get the money for the freight realignment?
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Jan 20, 2015 23:01
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It's beginning...quote:Oil services company Baker Hughes Inc. says it will lay off about 7,000 workers as it prepares for a downturn in orders.
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Jan 20, 2015 23:03
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Doom Rooster posted:This is so weird to me. I grew up in Dallas, and Austin. I went to public schools both places. I went to college is Dallas. I was never forced to do a Texas Pledge, and until this discussion, I literally did not know that such a pledge existed. The real question might be: when did you attend school? I never saw that garbage in college either, but it definitely existed in high school. However, there was a significant difference in frequency pre- and post-9/11. Before 9/11, they might do pledges 2-3 times a year. After 9/11, it became more like 2-3 times a week.
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Jan 20, 2015 23:30
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Shifty Pony posted:Or it simultaneously rolling out to the entire city limits. Nimbys didn't kill the rail initiative as much as the inner ring suburbs did. Central voted for it. Honestly I kind of doubt the suburbs would vote for it even if it went out there. They might be afraid of it bringing the "criminal element" like in Atlanta.
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Jan 20, 2015 23:32
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thefncrow posted:The real question might be: when did you attend school? I never saw that garbage in college either, but it definitely existed in high school. However, there was a significant difference in frequency pre- and post-9/11. Before 9/11, they might do pledges 2-3 times a year. After 9/11, it became more like 2-3 times a week. In Georgetown we did the pledges every single day. That's 5 times a week. When I lived in California we did the pledge on Monday only.
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Jan 20, 2015 23:41
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thefncrow posted:The real question might be: when did you attend school? I never saw that garbage in college either, but it definitely existed in high school. However, there was a significant difference in frequency pre- and post-9/11. Before 9/11, they might do pledges 2-3 times a year. After 9/11, it became more like 2-3 times a week. It became mandatory* under state law in I think 2003. *For the school, students could get waivers.
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Jan 20, 2015 23:54
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I didn't realize there was so much variation. In NEISD in San Antonio we had to do both pledges every morning since at least 1999.
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Jan 21, 2015 00:21
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computer parts posted:Michigan does and it's worse. Much better.
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Jan 21, 2015 01:14
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A group of conservatives is suing Dallas County under the Voting Rights Act claiming that not enough white people, I mean Republicans, are elected to the Commissioners Court.quote:"Like something out of the bad old days, a southern electoral body plays naked racial politics, intentionally using its power to minimize a dissenting race’s political sway," according to the lawsuit, filed last week in federal court by the Equal Voting Rights Institute on behalf of individual white plaintiffs.
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Jan 21, 2015 02:00
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Two thirds rule in the Senate is gone, it's now 3/5s, or 19 members (there are 20 R's) I think it's more of a symbolic change rather than a practical one because basically the GOP has gotten everything they wanted in specials where there is no 2/3s rule. Basically it's saying, oh we are going to pass this poo poo during regular y'all, but in terms of what actually becomes law, I think it will be more or less the same.
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Jan 21, 2015 22:53
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The Texas Observer did an amazing article about how companies are using property tax appraisal appeals systematically to drop their tax burdens and as a side effect gently caress over school districts:quote:There are basically two ways to challenge a tax appraisal—on value and on unequal appraisal. The first claims that a property has been appraised above market value. The second claims that while a property may be appraised at market value, others like it are appraised for much less. Before 1997, an unequal appraisal claim required an expensive property analysis called a ratio study, and it was seldom used. It is fairly obvious that this is a recipe for tax appraisals that ratchet downward. The highest appraised company appeals, wins a reduction, the others appeal because the average appraisal has dropped (as described in the article the juries and companies are effectively using the mean, not the median), win, repeat. That's if they even wait for long enough: it seems now that everyone appeals because you can have your experts come up with myriad reasons to adjust the value of your property downward with regard to comparable properties. We really need sales price disclosure. There is no logical reason why the appraisal shouldn't reset to the sales price when a sale happens.
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Jan 22, 2015 17:47
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Oooh fun stuff.quote:HB 138 by Rep. Dan Flynn, R-Canton, would prevent school districts from prohibiting posting a copy of the Ten Commandments in a classroom. With the same flavor, House Concurrent Resolution 30 by state Rep. Phil Stephenson, R-Wharton, supports prayers, including the use of the word "God," at public gatherings, and displays of the Ten Commandments in public educational institutions and other government buildings. Reminder that these are all filed bills and not laws yet, and may not even get a hearing so keep some perspective.
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Jan 23, 2015 16:16
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The SCOTX extended the filing deadline for briefs in the school finance suit to August 11, meaning the earliest they could hear arguments is September with a possible decision in March '16. The take away from this that the Legislature will not be taking up school finance this session and depending on the ruling might not even look at it until '17. Here's an interesting graphic on how many times the state has had to change policy because of court order. 
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Jan 23, 2015 20:18
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Lt. Gov. Patrick made the Senate committee appointments, cutting down the Democratic leaders from 6 of 18 to 2 of 14. Notably, Patrick paid back some political poo poo by cutting the one Republican who didn't vote for the 3/5ths rule from his leadership post and adding the one Democrat who did vote for it to a leadership post. Also, the Senate Natural Resources Committee is now the Senate Natural Resources and Economic Development Committee, so let that just tell you where this session is going.
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Jan 24, 2015 08:24
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thefncrow posted:The real question might be: when did you attend school? I never saw that garbage in college either, but it definitely existed in high school. However, there was a significant difference in frequency pre- and post-9/11. Before 9/11, they might do pledges 2-3 times a year. After 9/11, it became more like 2-3 times a week. I watched the second tower get hit live on the TV in my 10th grade geometry class. So graduating class of '03 in Farmers Branch, the suburb of Dallas. I guess if it became mandatory for the fall semester of '03, that would explain it.
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Jan 25, 2015 01:44
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I moved to Frisco from New Jersey in summer of 2002 and my 9th grade class did the Texas Pledge every morning along with the US Pledge though I never stood up for it and nobody cared. Kids who didn't give a poo poo about the Texas Pledge didn't have to stand and recite it. I made a point of doing the US Pledge and then sitting for Texas... by sitting down we stood out like sore thumbs yeah, but it was an easy way for me as a new kid in school to find like-minded potential friends. And fall into drugs and eventually drop out but that's a whole other thing.
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Jan 25, 2015 08:50
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Randandal posted:I moved to Frisco from New Jersey in summer of 2002 and my 9th grade class did the Texas Pledge every morning along with the US Pledge though I never stood up for it and nobody cared. Kids who didn't give a poo poo about the Texas Pledge didn't have to stand and recite it. I made a point of doing the US Pledge and then sitting for Texas... by sitting down we stood out like sore thumbs yeah, but it was an easy way for me as a new kid in school to find like-minded potential friends. And fall into drugs and eventually drop out but that's a whole other thing.  Sounds like proof to me not reciting the Texas pledge has Texas God smitin y'all down. 
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Jan 25, 2015 09:11
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Why blame God when you can blame His government?
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Jan 25, 2015 09:13
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Doom Rooster posted:I watched the second tower get hit live on the TV in my 10th grade geometry class. So graduating class of '03 in Farmers Branch, the suburb of Dallas. I guess if it became mandatory for the fall semester of '03, that would explain it. You're actually slightly behind me then (graduated '02). I didn't even know about the mandatory thing, it was just my high school noticeably changed their attitude afterwards.
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Jan 25, 2015 13:00
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thefncrow posted:You're actually slightly behind me then (graduated '02). I didn't even know about the mandatory thing, it was just my high school noticeably changed their attitude afterwards. '04 here. We did both Federal and state every day with the announcements. Nobody stood for either and the teachers seemed more annoyed at the interruption to their class.
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Jan 25, 2015 16:18
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So the open-carry activists have a new thing to push. They're rallying tomorrow foropen carrying handguns WITHOUT a license. Also in that story, something I didn't know before now, the Texas Legislature isn't allowed to pass bills for the first 60 days of session unless the governor tells them there's an urgent budgetary matter. What the gently caress is up with the Texas Constitution? Legislature only meets every other year and then they have to sit on their hands for 60 of their 140 days?
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Jan 26, 2015 09:54
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PostNouveau posted:So the open-carry activists have a new thing to push. They're rallying tomorrow foropen carrying handguns WITHOUT a license. A lot of it has to do with Reconstruction era reforms, and some populism. The legislature is actually expected to have day jobs. Since they only meet up a few weeks every two years, it encourages legislators to actually have their poo poo together when it comes time to getting a bill passed. Instead of just putting out fake bills that have a snowballs chance in hell. thrakkorzog fucked around with this message at 11:30 on Jan 26, 2015 |
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Jan 26, 2015 11:11
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PostNouveau posted:So the open-carry activists have a new thing to push. They're rallying tomorrow foropen carrying handguns WITHOUT a license. I think a majority of state legislatures aren't actually full time.
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Jan 26, 2015 13:35
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computer parts posted:I think a majority of state legislatures aren't actually full time. Ours is notoriously part-time, though. That said, it leaves a lot of the actual governing in the hands of agency bureaucrats from Austin, and that has probably saved the state from our own dumb election choices. Also, for capital staffers it's a nice situation, because they work so much while the lege is in session (12+ hour days basically every day of the week) that they end up with lots of comp time they get to use on nice vacations during the years the lege isn't in session.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:05
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Do y'all really want the Legislature to pass more laws?
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Jan 26, 2015 17:07
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Yes! I've got a whole book of laws I'd love to see the legislature pass!
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Jan 26, 2015 17:09
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Ok do you want to see this Legislature pass more laws? I get most of my news from following #txlege and the number of people going "UH WE PAY YOUR SALARIES SO" and not realizing that legislators make $600 annually for their duties is hilarious.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:10
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drat it.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:11
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zoux posted:Ok do you want to see this Legislature pass more laws? Uh what? I mean it's poo poo pay at around 25,000 per year but you are way off with 600. Plus don't forget those bennies, when Tom Craddick retires he will be pulling a pension of over a 100,000 per year.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:31
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Oh sorry it's $600 a month also if you include the per diem. I doubt many of them rely on it as a source of income. It's also not like the US Congress where they make almost $200k a year.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:34
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Nearly everyone in the capital is well off through outside means, state government pay is poo poo because it's assumed you're coming in with other sources.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:36
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Tatum Girlparts posted:Nearly everyone in the capital is well off through outside means, state government pay is poo poo because it's assumed you're coming in with other sources. That's the problem. Nearly everyone in the legislature is there on behalf of their real employers.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:43
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Oh yea absolutely. Low pay for politics serves only to either get the rich in power who can afford the salary drop or serves to make lobbyist 'contributions' all the more powerful. Like, no I don't think politicians should be getting RICH doing their job but the big kabuki "WE PAY OURSELVES LITTLE TO SHOW WE'RE OF THE PEOPLE (while taking in massive profits in other sources)" is absurd.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:51
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Unlike the US Congress where the members only serve the will of the people. Both approaches have their problems, the Texas approach was intended to instill a "citizen legislature" as opposed to one made up of career politicians, but the practical effect was that only the rich can afford to serve. One of the special elections for a Senate seat last year, one of the guys spent a million bucks of his own money in the primary and lost.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:54
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I think Texas is better off because the businesses are more powerful than the politicians.
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Jan 26, 2015 17:57
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Trabisnikof posted:I think Texas is better off because the businesses are more powerful than the politicians. I was listening to TribCast the other day and they were shocked (shocked!) that Dan Patrick's business advisory group or whatever was made up of traditional big businesses with issues before the state. The Tea Party was supposed to be opposed to crony capitalism!
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Jan 26, 2015 18:05
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Badger of Basra posted:I was listening to TribCast the other day and they were shocked (shocked!) that Dan Patrick's business advisory group or whatever was made up of traditional big businesses with issues before the state. The Tea Party was supposed to be opposed to crony capitalism! What's funny is all it's doing is making the relationship between industry and government more transparent. It's just what's been happening, it's just now it's out in the open! Also related to lege pay and corruption. Oh and look who's back. 
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Jan 26, 2015 18:06
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Those people realize that they did indeed come and take it, right?
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Jan 26, 2015 18:16
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I'm more disturbed by the fact that the guy on the left is wearing some sort of cargo jeans.
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Jan 26, 2015 18:17
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