PUSH POLL?

From the Department of Election Shenanigans.

I think the term is push poll - but I was just surveyed by the Oakley campaign. Questions like did I know that Tom Lepperts construction company used tainted dirt at a New Jersey elementary school, etc. Would this make a difference in how I voted?

There was a long list of those type questions - that made Tom Leppert out to be the boogie man. I told the interviewer that this sort of nonsense was an insult to my intelligence. He died laughing and said they were getting alot of that.

“SURE, I’VE GOT $5 FOR EACH OF YOU”

Thanks to State Sen. Royce West, the Texas Senate has passed one of its more asinine taxes in history — a $5 admission fee for strip club patrons. The money extorted raised will go to sexual assault prevention services, indigent health care and some other damn thing. There was a day when stuff like this would get a politician tarred and feathered.

SMU STUDENT DIED OF ACUTE ALCOHOL POISONING

The SMU Daily Campus reports that first-year student Jordan Crist had a blood-alcohol level of .4. That’s five times the legal limit. Crist’s death was after that of Jacob “Jake” Stiles, who died from “a lethal cocktail of expensive prescription pain killer fentanyl, cocaine and alcohol, according to a report from the Dallas County Medical Examiner.” And then there was the recent death of Meaghan Bosch, which is still under investigation. I say this as unsnarkily as possible: be careful out there, kids.

TOBY SHOOK IS A MAN OF LETTERS

I forgot to post this earlier. Anyway, I was at Discount Tires this past Saturday, getting ready to roll on some 22s. (Actually, I wasn’t. I’m much lamer than that. I was just getting a tire to replace my flat.) And as I stood in line, the mechanic/tire specialist called out, “Toby Shook.” And sure enough, sitting in one of the hard plastic chairs behind me was the man that ran for DA. He wore a red baseball cap pulled low over his forehead and clothes no more or less scuzzy than my own, which were rather scuzzy. Well, Toby’s car was gonna take a few more minutes, so he returned to his seat. And that’s when I noticed the book. At first I thought it was the Bible. It was that thick. But, no, upon closer inspection, I couldn’t see the words “Holy” or “Bible.” This was something else. But what, I couldn’t make out. And I couldn’t get over how thick it was. I mean, this is what the man brings for some light reading at a tire shop?

The low-slung baseball cap, the scuzzy clothes, in all likelihood The Brothers Karamazov in tow. I’ll admit it, Toby Shook. You intrigue me.

RE: FINGERS OF FURY

Paul, I love Captain Fingers, too. But as I mentioned, I’d e-mailed those haughty UTA boys after finding the same paper yesterday. I didn’t post said paper (from 2003) because their 10 percent conclusions (which were really just a summary of conclusions other economists had reached) had been mentioned (although not by name) in the DMN story I linked to. So, we should mock the News when needed, but give it credit for bringing that up and getting reaction to it right away after the announcement. (And the DMN story was posted by, like, 2 p.m. yesterday.) I. J. S.

FINGERS OF FURY READS ACADEMIC PAPERS SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO

I love Big Bob. Really I do. (You hear that, Big Bob? Because I haven’t received your RSVP for my wedding reception. Get on that.) Today, FoF tracks down a paper Craig Depken wrote, Depken being a sports econ prof at UTA, titled, “What is the economic impact of hosting a Super Bowl?” The short answer, and there are few short answers with FoF, is “Not a whole lot.” It’s about one-tenth of what a city promises.

RE: VICTORY PLAZA

Now back at the office, after having spent enough time in the sun to feel slightly unfresh. They’ve got themselves something down there at Victory. You go down there. You watch something on those humongous screens. You hang out with a thousand people or so. You’re gonna feel like you’re in a real city.

Some of those people Eric and I hung out with happened to be from Hicks Holdings. They sat at the table next to ours. One thirtysomething fellow I talked to who helped put together the purchase of Liverpool said he’d hoped for a spot on the jet to Greece to watch the match. Sadly, it didn’t happen for him. He played soccer at the collegiate level and said he’s helped Tom Hicks acquaint himself with the European leagues and the play of the game itself. He said Hicks is a fast learner.

There was a comely lass sitting at his side. My favorite part was when one of the AC Milan players got a yellow card, which the ref held aloft. She turned to the Hicks Holdings fellow and asked, “Is that a red card?”

RE: LEGISLATURE FALSELY ACCUSES DALLAS OF WATER-HOGGING

A media-working FBvian isn’t happy with the anti-Dallas drift of the Texas House, either:

Thank you for taking the time to set the record straight on Dallas water usage. Interestingly, the spokesman for the Farm Bureau claims Dallas uses more water per capita than any other U-S city. Of course, he could not source it; but it has become nevertheless a part of the specious arguments advanced by those opposed to SB3. Conservation is critical to the future of the state, no doubt, but this angry and inaccurate portrayal of Dallas As All Things Evil is way over the top and underscores a deepening rift between the state’s urban and rural residents. It’s a damned sad thing to see.

Another FBvian reminds us of this commentary on SB 3, the water bill, by a relatively uknown anchor at CBS11 last week.

Back to you, Dallas and Fort Worth legislative delegation.

HARRY’S LATEST

I just got the advance proofs yesterday for Harry Hunsicker’s latest Lee Henry Oswald mystery, Crosshairs. It’s a little alarming that two of the early reviewers use almost the same sentence, though: “as raw and as mean as the east streets of Dallas that even Lee is reluctant to visit but with a fine line of humor shot through,” says Ken Bruen. James O. Born puts it this way: “Lee Henry Oswald walks the mean streets of Dallas with humor and style.” Hmm.

Tim and Eric, be careful out there.

THE PERFECT TOMATO?

Seeing Eric sunning at Victory Park just now reminded me that we finally have the answer to why it took 16 hours to shoot a tomato for our June cover. Tim? Kyle? Why not put it on FrontBurner for the folks to see the result. I say it was worth it. (Also, it would move the m.e. studmuffin previously mentioned down from the top of the queue.)

VICTORY PLAZA 1:44 P.M.

Eric has questionable taste in headgear.

VICTORY PLAZA 1:39 P.M.

Rockin’ the free wi-fi at Victory Plaza. Gearing up for a Liverpool victory. The singing of “You’ll Never Walk Alone” has already begun. I wonder if Tom Hicks knows the words yet.

MATT MOSLEY NOW UP AND BLOGGING

We told you some time ago that Matt Mosley was going to ESPN. Now his blog, Hashmarks, is live and in color. Lots of news of local interest already posted, including that former Cowboys WR Keyshawn Johnson will be announcing his future plans this afternoon. Read it with your eyes if you’re so inclined.

CHAMPIONSHIP GAMING SERIES TAKES SHAPE

The CGS is a gaming league, with six start-up teams in six cities. Not surprisingly, Dallas is one of them. But the news today is the announcement of the General Managers for the teams. Noted gamer (or so I’m led to believe) Alex Conroy will do the drafting for Dallas. The bigger news today? That draft will be June 12 at the Playboy Mansion. Yep. America’s top computer gamers will be at the Playboy Mansion. Oh, to be a fly on that wall.

WHERE I’M GOING TO BE IN ABOUT, OH, TWO HOURS AND 14 MINUTES

Watching the UEFA Champions League Final at the AAC. If you, too, are a soccer nerd, you should be there, too. It’s free (except for the parking). I imagine there will be a lot of Liverpool fans there, but I doubt the scene will compare to what happened at the Londoner two years ago, when Liverpool and AC Milan squared off for the title. That game still ranks as the greatest soccer comeback I’ve ever witnessed and/or blogged about. But who knows? Maybe the underdog Reds will pull out another one.

CONGRATS TO JOSH BENTON

Eric’s new best blogging buddy nails a Nieman. Too bad he’ll have to come back to the Snooze. If there is a Snooze.

NANCY NICHOLS HAS A VIVID DREAM

Shortly before Nancy posted those images she took of her bird friends, she sent a note to Eric and me saying she’d be late for work today. Going in to see her monkey paw doctor for a checkup. She also sent along a description of a dream she had last night. Goes like this:

We had an edit meeting, and I was wearing a long black dress. I’d written a cover story on China. I was talking about my research and Wick asked me to act out some interaction I’d had with a Chinese official. Somehow I ended up lying on the conference room table and Tall Paul said, “Let’s do it.” Then the whole edit staff started cutting my stomach open and pulling my insides out. I was awake during the ordeal and crying. Then Rod said, “Wait, she’s the only one on staff that knows anything about China.” Wick agreed and told everyone to sew me back up.

I’m speechless. And a little turned on.

LET’S TAKE A LITTLE NATURE BREAK

My backyard is a McDonald’s play station for baby birdies. Grackle, cardinal, downy woodpecker, starling, and blue jay parents are teaching their young how to maneuver around the various feeders and birdbaths. It’s quite a show. Sid, with one of his two young girls, Nanette, was such a huge hit yesterday with my small group of FrontBurnervian Birders, that I’ve posted another picture of the loving father. Debuting today, Junior, the new downy trying to hold on to the suet feeder. Tra la, enjoy.

GO SEE FAYE DUNAWAY TOMORROW

You’ll no doubt recall that the film version of the V.C. Andrews’ novel Rain was shot here in Dallas and produced by homeboys Big Headz Entertainment. It stars Faye Dunaway and Robert Loggia. Well, tomorrow at 7 p.m. you can attend the USA Film Festival’s screening of the movie. There will also be a Q&A session following the film. If you’d like to attend, just call the Big Headz production office to RSVP: 214-749-7767.

MARK CUBAN’S LATEST GENIUS IDEA

Donald Trump replaces Rosie on The View. He has other suggestions for him, given that The Donald’s show was canceled.

LEGISLATURE FALSELY ACCUSES DALLAS OF WATER-HOGGING

The version of a new state water plan approved by the Texas House (but subject to amendments or the killing it deserves) is outright punitive of the Dallas-Fort Worth region, and falsely so on at least one point. East Texas legislators are quoted as saying Dallas uses 264 gallons per capita of water daily. That’s badly outdated, if not a flat-out lie, as we pointed out last September in our cover story, “Hard Truth, Dry Times.” Here’s what we wrote:

Nobody quarrels with the need to conserve. And nobody honest would dispute that North Texans have little sense of the worth of their water. But to be fair, Dallas is wrongly tagged with being a water hog. The city’s use of 198 gallons per capita daily (gpcd) is down from 260 gpcd in 1998. If residential is separated from commercial use, it’s only about 100 gpcd, according to DWU estimates. Dallas thus compares increasingly favorable to San Antonio’s 132 gpcd and El Paso’s 140 — both dramatically lowered in recent years, too.

What’s really amazing about this is that the East Texas delegation, which advances its “environmental” stance (and shame on the environmental groups that are lying about Dallas, also) while being little more than a pawn for powerful timber, paper mill, and other commercial and property interests, has completely outflanked the North Texas representatives, who ought to be much more powerful. Cowboy up down there. Right now.

And hey, Jody Puckett, DWU director, how ’bout calling Rep. Rafael Anchia and anybody else you know in Austin to at least get the real numbers in play? Send ‘em a copy of the September issue while you’re at it.

LEADING OFF

1. Not sure how I missed this scathing Jim Reeves column yesterday, but if you want to know why the Rangers are awful, read it.

2. A House water bill is getting bad marks from North Texas lawmakers, who say it has a decided anti-Dallas bias. Perhaps Rod will have something to say about it. OWW. What’s that weight on my head? Oh. It’s Rod’s post about it. Go read it.

3. There’s long been a debate about just how much economic impact a Super Bowl has. There are actually two experts on this at the University of Texas at Arlington, and I’ve e-mailed them for their take.