Tx House bill will strip your Constitutional rights to trial by jury

What's the old saying "Elections have consequences"? Everyone might want to review the 7th Amendment of the Constitution:

In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury, shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

HB272 will override the Constitution and allow the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA) to create a private justice system (arbitration) to handle all claims against them for non-payment. After hurricane Ike, TWIA was sued for non-payment of claims and lost. Homeowners who had paid their insurance premiums had to take legal action to force TWIA to pay for services they purchased.

The State, led by State Representative Larry Taylor, an insurance salesman, led the way to investigate the lawsuits against his industry buddies and found little if anything to help. So HB272 was created to simply not allow lawsuits in the future. Taylor makes money from selling TWIA policies.

Homeowners who cannot find coverage from any insurance companies will resort to TWIA and will be required to give up their Constitutional rights to a civil trial (7th Amendment) if TWIA decides not to pay. And it gets worse. There are bills in the House that will also strip your rights from homeowners insurance, and auto insurance. The Texas House, owned by the Insurance Industry, is giving them all the protection they could possibly get.

At the hearing, there was only 1 person speaking in favor of the bill and over 100 against. The bill passed.

God's open letter to Governor Perry

Dear Rick,

As you probably know, I am all knowing and am well aware of your pleas for prayers asking Me to rain upon the great state of Texas in your time of need. Unfortunately even though my prayer lines were flooded I must decline.

It is very common for individuals to come crying to Me when they are in need. The person diagnosed with lung cancer finds the time to put out the cigarette and learns to pray as does someone who commits a crime then asks for forgiveness promising never to do it again. In My line of work, I hear it all the time. And I heard it from you last week, but you are different.

Calling you a hypocrite is an insult to the hypocrites I know, and I know alot of them, in fact, I know all of them. You asked for prayers to save your state from fire but what have you done for those who asked for help from you? What have you done for the elderly who just want to live their last few days in dignity? What have you done for those who lost their jobs asking for help just to keep their families together in their home? What have you done for Hispanic kids asking that you not single them out for deportation because of their skin color? What have you done Governor,  besides giving your buddies tax breaks they don't need or government handouts while kicking the poor in the teeth?

And now you want help from Me? I don't think so.  If it rains, it's probably  because of the upper air patterns, the humidity in the air, and the formation of what I called "clouds",  not because you are groveling to Me for a few seconds in front of the cameras. Your request has been denied.

God.

Congressman Pete Olson, lost in space

You have to wonder what Congressman Pete Olson is up to.

First he volunteers to leave the Science Committee, the one that provides oversight to NASA/JSC, the largest NASA facility in the world. Imagine that, our own Congressman is not on the Committee. It is as if he quit on NASA and left it to another Congressman outside of the district.

Then there is the op-ed in the Houston Chronicle about Houston not getting a shuttle. It was written by Congressman Gene Green and John Culberson, again outside of the district. (Culberson was the only Republican to speak out against Bush's trip to Mars because of the lack of funding, but that was another story.)

I guess the NASA community can't depend upon Olson anymore. Maybe that is a good thing.

Please save our children!

God hates Rick Perry

Governor Rick Perry is rolling the holy dice with an official state proclamation:

I urge Texans of all faiths and traditions to offer prayers on that day for the healing of our land, the rebuilding of our communities and the restoration of our normal and robust way of life.

Much like the people who formed a prayer circle during the fire at Gallery Furniture (which by the way must have worked since the fire was out the next day) Perry is banking on God looking favorable upon Texas and bring rain to put out the fires.

So Perry has groveled to the Feds for help and now is groveling to the Almighty for rain. Perry has a habit in spitting in someones face then asking for help. Perry has done his best to cut funding for those who need it most, the poor, the hungry, the elderly and the mentally ill while giving tax breaks to those who need it the least. Unlike what religion teaches, Perry has little if any compassion for anyone except those who donate the most to his campaign.

And now Perry is asking God for help? Come Monday, we will see if God hates Rick Perry, the *&^damn hypocrite. Here is Perry's suggested prayer:

Oh lord, let us prey.

Let us prey on the weak

For they cannot fight us

Let us prey on the poor

For they cannot buy us

Let us prey on the elderly

As we strip them of their dignity

And let us prey on the less fortunate

As we show them no pity.

This is Texas. Our Texas.

It’s not for the poor, or the weak,

The elderly or the meek.

In your name we will prey.

Oh, and bring rain *&^damit.

To the Houston Chronicle: Do you think we are stupid?

The recent op-ed by former Department of Energy Secretary, Frederico Pena, “Texas a model for electricity competition”, begs the very blunt question to the editorial staff of the Houston Chronicle: “Do you think we're stupid?”

Mr. Pena was speaking to a crowd in San Antonio claiming electricity deregulation in Texas has been a huge success. Ironically San Antonio is one of the few cities that did not fall for the deregulation scam of 1999. Their citizens, governments, and business enjoy low rates of 6-7 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) while, according to the Department of Energy (DOE), the rest of the unregulated, “free market driven” areas of Texas average over 12 cents per kWh.

Prior to deregulation, the Houston area was adequately served by Houston Lighting & Power (HL&P). Rates were approximately 8 cents per kWh. The service was reliable resulting in few if any rolling brownouts, or disruption in service. The citizens of Houston, government, and business also benefited from long-term contracts and predictable rates over time.

Today, after a decade of the free market takeover of our energy resources, disruption in service has become frequent during the heat of the summer, and even during the coldest days of the winter, as was the case in January of 2011. According to the DOE, rates in Texas averaged 7 cents per kWh prior to deregulation. At the time Texas ranked #4 in electricity affordability. Now the average is 12 cents and Texas is number #37. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize how electricity deregulation has failed the taxpayer, the homeowner, and the business owners of Houston.

Deregulation has been such a failure, Texas State Senator Eltife and Texas Representative Hughes filed and passed SB547/HB870 in 2009 that put a halt to deregulation scheduled for 2011 in East Texas. The bill cited the failure of deregulation and the free market to lower the cost of electricity, one of the many promises made to the public. The areas represented by Eltife, and Hughes continue to enjoy low cost, long term, reliable, electricity while the rest of us in the deregulated areas are stuck with higher rates, constantly changing plans, and less reliable services.

Mr. Pena in his op-ed claimed that Texans are now able to “choose” their electricity providers and have access to new innovative products and services, while neglecting to cite the cost for these so-called privileges. It is hard to understand why anyone would want innovative products when all they are concerned about is staying cool in the summer or having reliable service that doesn’t power cycle their computers, and expensive electronic gadgets. Deregulation was sold as a cost savings to consumers through the power of the “free market” to create competition and ultimately drive down the cost of electricity. Instead we were sold to the highest bidder.

Mr. Pena claims the rest of the country could learn from the Texas model of electricity deregulation. As the old saying goes, “Stupid is as stupid does”. Take Mr. Pena’s advice and don’t be stupid. Use Texas as a model of what not to do.

Emergency surgery for State Representative Larry Taylor

Couldn't have happened to a better guy:

State Representative Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood) underwent emergency surgery after a long hearing into the early morning ended abruptly. Taylor, an insurance salesman, was in vigorous defense of the insurance industry when he suddenly stopped talking and collapsed.

According to Dr. Alma De Los Santos of the Austin Medical Center "The surgery was a success, although the condition most probably will return. It took incredible dedication by the operating room staff to surgically remove his lips from the ass of the insurance industry."

Taylor was defending a bill to allow mandatory binding arbitration in home and auto insurance policies a move that would kill any future lawsuits to the insurance industry.

 Taylor was speechless. Literally.

Another embarrassment in Clear Lake

Thanks to Juanita's Jeans for this tidbit:


Just when you think our area could not be embarrassed more than what it is, here comes our State Representative John Davis. Davis is well known in the capitol for blending in with the furniture and filing obscure bills relating to turkey farming (as if we have farms in our district) and changing the names of historic streets (NASA Rd 1 to NASA Parkway). But as Juanita points out there is more:

Yes, today a House committee discussed giving a tax break to wealthy yacht-buyers. Under House Bill 2187, by Rep. John Davis, a Houston Republican, the tax on sales of boats over $250,000 would be capped at $15,625. For a $20 million yacht, this would work out to a tax reduction of 99 percent. Those buying smaller, cheaper boats would continue to pay the current 6.25 percent sales tax.

It is bad enough that Davis has turned his back on the teachers of the state, allowing his party to plunge the state into a $27 Billion budget hole, but now he has to give his buddies in Bay Oaks a tax break for selling their yachts.

We have teachers looking for employment, and Davis is giving away our money. It is hard to determine if Davis is just plain stupid, or brilliant.

Stealing a man's land, par for the course for the GOP

This is what happens when you wake up at 3 in the morning and start surfing the tube. You think the the gop in Texas is bad about stealing land for their Trans Texas Corridor or for their buddies gas pipelines, think again. In Michigan they stole a park, created from land donated to the city in 1917, for a golf course. From Rachel Maddow:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Texas Governor asks for federal welfare

Governor Rick Perry will have to put aside his hatred for Obama and the federal government, at least for a while. From CNN:

Authorities have responded to 7,807 fires across more than 1.5 million acres since this year's wildfire season began, Gov. Rick Perry wrote in a letter late Saturday to President Barack Obama requesting that the federal government declare Texas a disaster area. 

This would be a perfect time for the President to tell Perry to pick his state up by his conservative bootstraps or to just piss off. (my vote is for piss off) Rick Perry is a typical republican. They bitch and moan about the government until they need the help of the government. I see it everyday at work. So called "conservatives" yelling and screaming about tax cuts then being the first in line to cash their government paychecks.

Republicans aren't really against welfare, just as long as it is their welfare. If Obama was as mean spirited as Rick Perry is, he would wait for a few weeks before responding and let Perry grovel a bit. Lucky for Rick, Obama's not a dick.

From the Houston Chronicle: Just how stupid are Texans?

Texans will believe anything. It reminds me of a joke:

A Texan took his Boston customer to the border to show how stupid Mexicans can be. He found a little Mexican kid and offered him a choice between a dollar and a quarter. The kid grabbed the quarter and ran away while the Texan hoot and hollered "Look how stupid they are!". Every day the Texan did the same thing with the same boy just to prove the point. After an entire week, the customer finally caught the little boy and asked "Every day you are given the choice between a dollar and a quarter and you take the quarter. Why?" The boy responded, "Because if I took the dollar, he would never come back."

Texans have become the new Aggie joke. The Houston Chronicle published an op-ed from the former Secretary of Energy, Frederico Pena, on how Texas electricity deregulation has become the "model" for the country. Pena was speaking in San Antonio, one of the few cities that opted out of the deregulation experiment gone bad. Their citizens and businesses pay about 6 cents a kWh, 7 cents during the summers while the rest of us pay out our back ends.

Under regulation, Texas was ranked #4 in electricity affordability with an average of 7.5 cents per kWh. We are now 37th with a 12 cent average. Luckily for industry if you keep coming back day after day, telling Texans how wonderful deregulation of the insurance industry, electricity, and college tuition has spurred competition, innovation, and led to lower rates, they will eventually believe it.

And they will come back for more.

Yet another racist teabagger.

It just doesn't stop with these racist teabag pigs:

An email allegedly sent by party central committee member Marilyn Davenport depicts a family portrait-style image of apes with Obama's face artificially superimposed on one of them. Text beneath the photo reads, "Now you know why no birth certificate."

Well, I guess it is true when they say the tea party represents the common, every day, trailer park, trash of the GOP.

Barry Bonds should have lied about WMDs

After years of investigation by the Federal Government, Barry Bonds, the home run king, was convicted of obstruction of justice. The jury was hung on three other counts. Bonds should have learned from the previous administration. If you are going to lie to Congress about something, lie about weapons of mass destruction not steroids.

In the end, the people who lied about Iraq having WMDs, Condoleezza Rice, Colin Powell, Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, etc, etc, all got off scott free, but Barry Bonds?  Not a chance. Barry's lie will probably results in probation, a sporty ankle bracelet, and an asterisk by his home run record. The lies by Cheney and the gang of three resulted in a $trillion unpaid bill, over 4400 dead soldiers, 32,000 wounded, and the lives of over 49,000 Iraqi citizens.

So, for those of you who are thinking of lying to congress, remember to lie about WMDs. It will guarantee you a free pass.

Thanks Pete Olson! No shuttle for Houston.

Well the efforts of Bring the Shuttle Home resulted in the retiring Space Shuttle fleet going where no Shuttle has gone before, like New York, and not Houston. Former Johnson Space Center Director George Abbey said it best:

"We're the ones who came up with the concept. We designed it. We tested it. We operated it. Certainly Houston ought to be number one on the list." 

He's got that right. The article from the Houston Chronicle put a one sentence blame on Bring the Shuttle Home for being late to the game in politicking for a Shuttle. I don't think they deserve this one sentence, maybe a full paragraph, or a page of blame might be more appropriate.

Seriously, the first I have heard of Bring the Shuttle Home was the day after the Shuttle went somewhere else. I can't remember a rally here in Clear Lake, or a fundraiser, or any event in support of the effort. And our local Congressman, Pete Olson, didn't do much to promote the idea either. Olson gave up his seat on the Science Committee which provides oversight to the Agency. He gave up on NASA and hs constituents at JSC. Instead he took every cheap political shot he could at the Administration then complains about not receiving a retired Shuttle with a cheap twitter "“Disappointment doesn't begin to describe this news,”

Much like kicking someone in the nuts then asking to shake hands and be friends. As the saying goes, Homey don't play dat.

White Wing Radio Rednecks

I really enjoy listening to classic rock. The Doors, Journey, ZZ Top, and more can be found on the air in Houston. Unfortunately I  made the mistake of turning into 93.7 FM one weekday morning. It is bad enough that Houston's AM airwaves are filled with white wing radio spewing enough hatred to last anyone a lifetime, but now it spills over into the morning show on 93.7.

If I wanted to hear a couple of ignorant rednecks bashing the President every chance they could get with information that was incorrect or just made up, I have that opportunity the entire day on KTRH. (Keep The Rednecks Here) Here in Houston, white wing radio sells. Ignorance sells. Stupidity sells.

Not much more to say about that crap. 93.7 was my classic rock station of choice, but it is now The Eagle, 107.5. And as always there is Stephanie Miller and Ed Schultz streaming on the internets and on XM radio.

The power of ignorance: Planned Parenthood

The gop's extreme attempt at defunding Planned Parenthood shows how incredibly ignorant they are of the services provided by PP for women and men. Unlike the gop who believes the solution to teen pregnancy is duct tape and a $50,000 speaking engagement by Bristol Palin, PP actually provides education services, family planning services, and low cost birth control.

Something the members of the gop might benefit from. For instance, Rep. Sean Duffy (R) who complained that his government salary of $174,000 and free healthcare was not enough to feed his 6 kids. Duffy might consider contacting Planned Parenthood for an affordable and safe vasectomy.

But, like the way they run their party and elections, the gop will keep their low income, lowbrow, ignorant base from learning the truth about Planned Parenthood. From the President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast:



Statement from Peter J. Durkin, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast On Potential Government Shutdown Over Women’s Health

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Rochelle Tafolla
April 8, 2011
(713)831-6573 CELL: (713)775-8099

Houston, TX — Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast (PPGC) released the following statement today after Congressional budget negotiations stall over women’s health.

“Shutting down the United States government over extremist ideology is an outrage,” said Peter J. Durkin, President & CEO of Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast. “This extreme proposal would deny millions of women preventive health care including well woman exams, lifesaving cancer screenings, birth control, HIV tests and more.”

“Attacking Planned Parenthood’s preventive health care hurts women, does not cut the deficit or fix the economy, and must be stopped.” ###

BACKGROUND: More than 90 percent of the health care Planned Parenthood provides is preventive.

Last year, PPGC provided:

• · 110,471 preventive health care visits
• · 104,179 tests for sexually transmitted infections
• · 51,430 people received family planning services
• · 23,929 HIV prevention counseling and testing visits
• · 17,489 Pap tests (cervical cancer screenings)

Nationwide, every year, Planned Parenthood doctors and nurses nationwide provide:

• · nearly one million screenings for cervical cancer
• · 830,000 breast exams
• · affordable birth control to nearly 2.5 million patients
• · nearly four million tests and treatments for sexually transmittedinfections, including HIV testing

Read fact sheet on Planned Parenthood health services here:
http://www.google.com/url?sa=D&q=http://www.plannedparenthood.org/files/PPFA/Planned_Parenthood_Who_We_Are.pdf

Rochelle Tafolla
Vice President, Communications & Marketing
Planned Parenthood
4600 Gulf Freeway
Houston, TX 77023
Ph: 713.831.6573 Fax: 713.535.2573

The next after shock in the housing market

These are the people the teabaggers are protecting.

FoxTV Series: American Idiots

My daughter got me hooked on American Idol. Lots of great talent. This year I predicted a win by Pia Toscano. Her performances were absolutely solid and yet she was voted off of American Idol by a bunch of American Idiots. If you have been keeping up with American Idol, you probably are just as shocked as I am. Here she is:

Your GOP to privatize Medicare

I remembered the signs "Don't touch my Medicare" when the teabaggers were confronting Democratic members of Congress last summer. A few months later, they swept in the people who are now going to not only cut their Medicare but privatize it for the rest of us. From the Galveston County Daily News:

The fiscal blueprint would put people now 54 and younger in a different kind of health care program when they retire, unlike the Medicare that their parents and grandparents have known. Instead of coverage for a set of benefits prescribed from Washington, they'd get a federal payment to buy private insurance from a choice of government-regulated plans.

The power of ignorance is overwhelming. The gop played the teabaggers for the ignorant fools they are.  And now they are going to pay for it. The overhead for Medicare is only about 4%. It is not perfect, but it works. Now the elderly will be able to "shop around" for private insurance, which has 30% overhead, and hopefully find one that would cover their elderly ailments, and won't drop them when they get cancer.

Privatizing Medicare with the insurance industry is about as stupid as privatizing Social Security with Wall Street. It's like trusting a convicted child molester with a key to a daycare.

Railroad Commission new name: Commission for Railroads And Pertroleum

Today the Texas Senate has voted to rename the Texas Railroad Commission. Senator Dan Patrick (R-Houston) proudly announce the name at a press conference:

Today the Texas Railroad Commission will grease the bowels for the Commission on Railroads And Petroleum, or CRAP. CRAP, led by republicans, will show what Texas is made of. With CRAP we will stomp out the flaming bags of bureaucracy and wipe the CRAP from our partners in the Petroleum industry. Today, I am proud to be associated with CRAP.

Yep. CRAP. Dan Patrick is full of CRAP. And I am still full of wit.

GOP job posting.

Wanted. Young well connected individual to manage Wisconsin Department of Commerce. Experience not necessary. Connections to the home building industry a must. No college degree required. Multiple DUIs are acceptable, as is a strange desire to hang around school grounds during recess. Starting salary $68,000, topping out at $81,000 within 2 months. Contact Governor Scott Walker through your father.

Besides hanging around the school grounds, this could actually be a job posting that was filled by Brian Deschane, the son of a lobbyist for the Wisconsin Builders Association and a major Walker donor. Imagine that! He dropped out of college. Has run a failed republican campaign, has no job experience,  has been convicted twice for DUI, and yet he scores an $81,000/year government job. From Raw Story:

And lucky him: In Brian's first two months on the job, he even landed a 26 percent pay raise, according to The Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. It's a very generous percentage too -- unlike Wisconsin teachers, who typically make about half of Deschane's salary and see their pay increase only 21 percent every 10 years.

What a deal. What a score. What a bunch of frickin hypocrites.

Progress of the republican party so far.

Unions

Teachers

Muslims

Hispanics

Blacks

The elderly

The poor

The sick

Jews

Asian Americans

NPR

Planned Parenthood

Medicare

Social Security

Government Employees

State Employees

Police

Fireman

You have nothing to worry about as long as you are White, Christian, healthy, young, and well off.

Mickey Mouse waves finger at Port of Houston

Remember what they said when the Port of Houston cruise ship terminal was built?

"The cruise business will be a highly appealing aspect of Bayport because of its close location to several popular Mexican and Caribbean vacation destinations," Pasadena City Councilman Bill Welch said... 

"With the addition of the Bayport cruise terminals, we can sail to more glamorous and colorful locales," Councilman Welch said. "Many people who cruise from Houston live in this area and drive into town on Friday night. They stay in a Pasadena hotel, eat at local restaurants, perhaps even take in attractions such as NASA or the Kemah boardwalk.

Wasn't going to happen. In fact Disney has decided to set sail from Galveston. From the Houston Chronicle:

Disney Cruise Line will announce Wednesday morning that its vessel, the Disney Magic, will sail 12 seven-night cruises from the Port of Galveston to the Western Caribbean beginning Sept. 22, 2012. Ports of call include Grand Cayman and Mexico's Costa Maya and Cozumel.

Well, at least they mentioned the $81 Million vacant cruise terminal:

Meanwhile, the Port of Houston Authority's $71 million Bayport Cruise Terminal still doesn't have a ship regularly calling on the facility that was built in 2009.

Cruise lines are more interested in sailing out of Galveston because its downtown shopping, hotels and Schlitterbahn Galveston Island Waterpark appeal to travelers while the closest major tourist attractions to Bayport are Kemah and NASA, said Cosgrove.

Ouch.

Any idiot in the Texas House can cut spending

Any idiot could steer the Titanic and any idiot could cut spending in Texas. In fact, many just did. From State Representative Garnett Coleman:

The Texas House of Representatives today passed House Bill 1, the budget bill for the state of Texas for the 2012-2013 biennium. I voted "no" on this bill because in my 20 years as a state legislator, I've never seen a budget so devastating to children and seniors. All we've done today is move around the deck chairs as the Titanic sinks.

Unlike the Captain of the Titanic, who took responsibility for his mistake, Governor Rick Perry and the members of the Texas House will call this massive budget cut a success, something they should be praised for. And like the Titanic, this $27 Billion budget gap, created by lack of attention to what is coming ahead, will cost lives due to cuts in health care, mental health care, and senior services.

Governor Perry had an opportunity to save many from this sinking ship by using our lifeboat, the Texas Rainy Day Fund, but  decided to use it to preserve the tax cuts to corporations and his personal slush fund, the Texas Enterprise Fund. Unlike the Captain of the Titanic, Perry has pushed the sick, the poor, the hungry, the mentally ill, and the elderly off the lifeboats, to save a seat for his own ass. Perry and his party are truly a bunch of cowards.

Any idiot, any coward, can cut a budget, but it does take leadership to prevent the need to. Leadership Texas has not had in many years.

Suggestions for GOP Congressman who can't live off of $174,000/year

Rep. Sean Duffy (R) was caught on camera complaining about his $174,000/year salary. From Raw Story:

Talking Points Memo reposted the clip Wednesday.
“I can guarantee you, or most of you, I guarantee that I have more debt than all of you,” Duffy said. “With 6 kids, I still pay off my student loans. I still pay my mortgage. I drive a used minivan. If you think I’m living high on the hog, I’ve got one paycheck. So I struggle to meet my bills right now. Would it be easier for me if I get more paychecks? Maybe, but at this point I’m not living high on the hog.”

Besides receiving a tax funded salary of $174,000/year, Duffy gets outstanding medical insurance for his entire family as well as a medical services available at the capitol 24/7. If Duffy can't seem to make ends meet, here are some ideas to help him in his time of financial need:

1. Get a job. Quit sucking off the tit of the government and go get a real job with real medical insurance from the private sector. Pick yourself up by your gold plated boot straps.
2. Get your wife a job. Most American families have both parents in the workforce especially those who can't pay their bills. You fall into this category so tell your lazy ass wife to apply at McDonalds.
3. Get a financial adviser. Obviously you know how to manage money like a paroled child molester knows how to manage his sex drive. It aint workin' fer ya, is it?
4. Get a rubber. You already have 6 mouths to feed, clothe and send to school. At the very least take some of that $174,000 and buy a pack of lubricated Trojans for comfort as well as protection. By the way, Planned Parenthood provides low cost vasectomy services.