The "debasing doctrine of equality"

Last April, Republican Governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia declared April to be "Confederate History Month" in Virginia, neglecting in his proclamation the small detail of slavery. Last December, South Carolina went Virginia one step more blatantly racist. The Sons of Confederate Veterans celebrated the declaration of secession with a ball held in Charleston. I blogged about the shameful sesquicentennial here, and openly wondered whether Texans would have better sense than to celebrate their state's own blatant declaration of racism, which happened exactly 150 years ago today, on February 1, 1861. A day later, Texas published a "declaration of causes". Here's a typical paragraph:

"In all the non-slave-holding States, in violation of that good faith and comity which should exist between entirely distinct nations, the people have formed themselves into a great sectional party, now strong enough in numbers to control the affairs of each of those States, based upon an unnatural feeling of hostility to these Southern States and their beneficent and patriarchal system of African slavery, proclaiming the debasing doctrine of equality of all men, irrespective of race or color - a doctrine at war with nature, in opposition to the experience of mankind, and in violation of the plainest revelations of Divine Law. They demand the abolition of negro slavery throughout the confederacy, the recognition of political equality between the white and negro races, and avow their determination to press on their crusade against us, so long as a negro slave remains in these States."

To their credit, today's Texans judiciously chose to ignore this shameful sesquicentennial, at least officially, at least according to this story in Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Still, Texans could have done even better by commemorating this despicable stain on American history with a day of atonement or at least by a vigil remembering the lives and deaths of those who suffered in slavery or died to end it. We should not celebrate infamous history, but neither should we suppress and forget it.

Winter Crushes an Early Spring

So much for the first daffodils in the Steger garden

From Flowers

After enjoying a sunny and warm weekend with temperatures in the seventies, old man winter came roaring back down the plains, bringing sleet and snow and temperatures in the teens to north Texas. The sub-freezing temperatures are expected to last for three days.

Coincidentally, the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers arrived in town yesterday to prepare for next weekend's Super Bowl. Someone should have told the Packers they didn't need to bring the frozen tundra with them. Unfair.

Speaking of Zoning

Once again, the call is going out to pack the city council chambers to register opposition to rezoning the vacant land around the Bush DART Station. Personally, I'm less interested in how many people speak than in what they say. I'm not interested at all in self-appointed groups with inclusive-sounding names claiming to speak for unnamed others. Reportedly, an email from Richardson City Council member Bob Macy forwards a statement from a Richardson resident that captures my own attitude regarding the Bush Station zoning issue:

"We have lived in the Sherrill Park subdivision for almost 19 years and I am a member of the homeowners association. The board members were not elected to represent me on any zoning issues as it is not their charter. There is also a self appointed neighborhood association which also does not represent me and has no legal standing that I am aware of. I did participate in the election of the Richardson city council. They were elected to represent me on zoning issues."

Regardless where you stand on the issue of zoning around the Bush DART Station, it's important to keep the above in mind. After the jump, where the current discussion has missed that point.

Coterie: I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change

From 2011 01 Coterie I Love You

"Coterie" is an organization of Richardson-area friends who get together three times a year for dinner and entertainment. The theme and activity for each occasion varies. The January 2011 Coterie party was dinner at the Dream Cafe and attendance of "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" at Theatre 3.

For a slide show of the evening, click here.

Oh, the play? Here's my Twitter review:

I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change at Theatre 3: Musical comedy in a small venue. Non-stop fun by a great cast. Perennial favorite. B-

Buzzer Beaters

That plural in the headline is correct. Three buzzer beaters in one game, to be exact. In a close game with an exciting finish, the Berkner Rams boys basketball team beat the Jesuit Rangers Friday night 60-58 in overtime to stay unbeaten in District 9-5A play. Here's how The Dallas Morning News reported it.

"Two last-second shots by sophomores kept Richardson Berkner’s boys undefeated in 9-5A with a 60-58 overtime win over Jesuit. Kendal Harris hit a shot at the end of regulation, and Jordan Mickey hit the game-winner for Berkner (22-7, 9-0)."

But that hardly does the game justice. It was a close game throughout with numerous lead switches. Berkner led by three points after one period. Jesuit led by four at the half. Berkner led by four after three periods. Jesuit took a six point lead late in the fourth period. Berkner rallied to tie in the final minute. Jesuit played for the last shot and made a running jumper with 0.79 seconds on the clock to take the lead and with the buzzer beater, probably, the win.

After consulting, the referees put 1.7 seconds back on the clock. Berkner still had one last chance. Regan Lucio made the inbounds pass, a perfect three-quarters of the length of the floor connection to Jordan Mickey who was positioned at the top of the key. Mickey dished the ball to a waiting Kendal Harris who drove to the basket for the tying layup as regulation time expired. The refs consulted again and agreed that the shot was in time. Berkner had its own buzzer beater. Overtime.

The game-winner in overtime was a more traditional buzzer beater. With the score tied again, it was Berkner playing for the last shot. As the seconds wound down, Berkner worked the ball in to Jordan Mickey under the basket who made the basket with only a couple of seconds on the clock. Jesuit, out of timeouts, couldn't call time out to set up their own attempt at last second heroics. Instead, the clock expired as Jesuit passed the ball inbounds.

It was a shame that either team had to lose this game. If you enjoy basketball, there's more exciting high school boys basketball like this just down the street from your home. Games twice a week. Affordable. Good seats. Catch a game. You can thank me later. More importantly, the kids will thank you for your support.

To see photos from an earlier Berkner game this year, look here. It's a great time to be a Ram!

Stopping Devious Nuns From Voting

As near as I can follow the logic for needing to spend $2 million to require photo ID to vote in Texas, it has something to do with stopping devious nuns in Indiana from voting. At least, that's what I think the expert called in to testify on the bill's behalf said, according to this story in The Austin American-Statesman.

"Despite the criticism of the Texas bill, Jerry Bonnet, chief legal counsel for the Indiana secretary of state's office, testified that his state's voter ID law has not hampered turnout or prevented legal voters from casting ballots.

Van de Putte questioned Bonnet about reports that some Indiana nuns were not allowed to vote. One group of women from a convent, most in their 80s, were turned away because they did not have required photo IDs, she said. Bonnet said they refused to present valid IDs and hinted that the situation might have been a publicity stunt.

'So they were devious nuns?' Van de Putte asked.
'Yes,' Bonnet responded."

Oh, and that $2 million? Don't worry. The bill's author, Sen. Troy Fraser (R-Horseshoe Bay) says federal money will cover that. You see, federal money is someone else's money. Texas legislators don't have to be good stewards of that.

By the way, the Texas bill won't even catch any 80 year old devious nuns in Texas. You see, there's an exception for people who are older than 70. How they prove they are older than 70 unless they show their photo ID is unexplained.

Vincent: A Life In Color

From 200905 Chicago

The things you learn via Twitter. Idly following suggestions, I came across this tweet:

jwag John Waggenspack
@EbertChicago 's best documentaries of 2010. I have only seen part of the Joan Rivers one. http://bit.ly/gtptlL

I followed the link and discovered I had seen five documentaries on Roger Ebert's list, including "the Joan Rivers one." And a couple more were already in my Netflix queue. That's cool. But what really caught my attention was Ebert's recommendation of "Vincent: A Life In Color."

"You have never heard of Vincent P. Falk, but if you’ve been near Marina City, you may have seen him. He’s the smiling, middle-aged man with a limitless variety of spectacular suits. He stands on the Michigan or Wabash avenue bridges, showing off his latest stupefying suit. He flashes the flamboyant lining, takes the coat off, spins it in great circles above his head, and then does his “spin move,” pivoting first left, then right, while whirling the coat in the air. Then he puts it on again and waves to the tourists on the boat, by now passing under the bridge."

What stopped me in my tracks was the photograph from the movie that accompanied the review. Hey, I thought, I've seen that man. I've taken his picture myself. Sure enough, reviewing my tourist snapshots from a trip to Chicago, I found him, standing on the Michigan Avenue bridge as my tour boat goes under. My photo is above. Serendipity.

Now if I can only get Netflix to carry the documentary so I can order it and watch.

Of Balanced Budgets and Bankruptcies

This was Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) in December, extolling the fiscal responsibility of the states in comparison to the federal government:

"A balanced budget amendment is a good idea, but certainly not a new one. All but one of the 50 states already have some form of a balanced budget amendment in their state constitutions, and we can draw from the experience of the states in drafting an amendment appropriate for the federal government."
-- Senator John Cornyn, December 1, 2010

This was Senator Cornyn this week, explaining what he thinks is needed to rescue those same states:

"Senate Republican leaders said on Tuesday they were considering introducing legislation to allow financially stressed U.S. states to declare bankruptcy ... 'We're exploring that as a responsible option,' Senator John Cornyn, who sits on both the Budget and Finance committees, told reporters."
-- Reuters

After the jump, tying Cornyn's ideas together.

Giving Children a Chance at an Education Costs Money

"If we take these steps -- if we raise expectations for every child, and give them the best possible chance at an education, from the day they're born until the last job they take ... America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world."
-- President Barack Obama, January 25, 2011

Texas will be lucky if we don't dash expectations for every child over the next two years. The state legislature has proposed a budget that slashes expenditures on pre-kindergarten, elementary, secondary and college education. The impact on the Richardson school district (RISD) alone could be as high as $54 million.

Despite the gloomy news from Austin, locally the RISD is doing what it can to continue to provide the superior education that the RISD has been known for. That means, despite the pressure on funding for continuing operations coming from the state, the RISD is planning to continue investing in capital projects.

After the jump, news about the upcoming RISD bond election.

SOTU: Breaking the Back of this Recession

"These steps we've taken over the last two years may have broken the back of this recession, but to win the future, we'll need to take on challenges that have been decades in the making."
-- President Barack Obama, January 25, 2011

What "breaking the back of this recession" looks like in graphic form: