Articles for June 15th, 2010
Samuell Farm for Sale?
Before most of us were born, Dr. W. W. Samuell officially willed Samuell Farm and other properties to the City of Dallas with the stipulation that the properties were “not to be sold.”
Now, a very small item on page two of today’s “Metro Section” of The Dallas Morning News‘ reports that the city is thinking about selling Samuell Farm.
So, does this mean that when you give something to City of Dallas, the city mothers/fathers don’t have to honor their part of the agreement?
Candy, is there a “For Sale” sign in front of Lee Park yet?
Rick Perry Campaign Reportedly Gets Drowned Out at Own Press Conference
Phillip Martin over at the Burnt Orange Report is live blogging. But why no video?
This American Life’s Ira Glass Assists in Dallas Couple’s Wedding Proposal
I’m sure you all visited FrontRow and read Zac Crain’s terrific review of Ira Glass’ performance at the Eisemann Center in Richardson on Saturday. Now hear from the host of public radio’s This American Life himself about how he helped coordinate one young man’s wedding proposal.
My wife has assured me that my own proposal to her was better. But I think she’s just humoring me.
What to Do in Dallas Today: June 15, 2010
Have you visited the Texas Theatre lately? I recommend heading there tonight. For one thing, they’ve got an awesome sign. For another, they are doing a Classic Movie Series every Tuesday night, and tonight they are showing one of the best movies ever made, Easy Rider. Organizers say the movie is free, but donations are greatly appreciated. They also recommend arriving about 30 minutes early to get a good look at the building’s interior. You might remember that after Lee Harvey Oswald was captured there, and after being thrust into the national spotlight, the theater’s lovely wood railings, false bridges, and intricate designs were covered over with spray-applied plaster. It is much more historically significant than your local movie megaplex, to say the least. And cheaper.
Hungry? Like meatloaf? Head to Norma’s Cafe today for a deal. The restaurant is offering meatloaf and chicken fried steak dinners for $1.79 in honor of its 54th anniversary, but only while supplies last.
The Late John Ware Is Smiling This Morning
For those of you who weren’t paying attention back in 1998, the battle to build a new arena in downtown Dallas was ferocious. Mayor Ron Kirk threw everything he had into getting it passed. Opponents, including one Laura Miller, fought a heated campaign against it. Sharon Boyd’s website, dallasarena.com, was created to air overheated conspiracy theories about it (I see that she has now moved on to newer topics, but you still find most of the juicier material on Google). The bond proposal passed by a tiny margin.
City Manager John Ware, who died on May 2, negotiated the deal with Tom Hicks and Ross Perot, Jr. that gave the city a commanding position in the financial structure of the (now-christened) American Airlines Center. Then he quit the job and went to work for Hicks. “Aha!” said the opponents. “See, it was fixed all along!” “Not so!” cried Hicks. “I hired him because he out-negotiated me!”
That’s the back story on today’s DMN report by Rudy Bush that the bonds the city issued to finance its part of the public-private investment will be paid off years before their 2027 due date.
Garner’s Modern American Usage Goes Online
We’ve talked in this space before about Bryan Garner, the Dallas-based English-language lexicographer. His Garner’s American Usage is a well-fingered volume in our office (even if the magazine might, on occasion, lead you to believe otherwise). The resource is published by Oxford University Press, whose newsletter informs us today that GAU is now available online. When I interviewed Garner for WRR awhile back, we talked about this development. If memory serves, I told Garner that I thought dictionaries like this, when presented online, don’t allow for the possibility of random discoveries, which is a shame. If you look up a word online, you either find it or you don’t. If you look up a word in a book, you might find something you didn’t even know you were looking for. Garner’s take: he just wanted as many people as possible to have access to his work.
Did GOP State Rep. Candidate Stefani Carter Plagiarize Obama?, Ctd.
Let’s hop in our time machine and go back to 2008, when, in the race for House District 101, charges of plagiarism were being bandied about. Back then, Republican incumbent Thomas Latham accused challenger Mike Anderson of stealing words that didn’t come from his own mind grapes. Latham said the words came Angie Chen Button, who was seeking the Republican nomination in House District 112. According to Latham, a mailer that Anderson sent out plagiarized a mailer that Button had sent out. You can read more about the dust-up here.
What you need to know, though, is that the guy accused of plagiarism, Mike Anderson, used a consulting firm out of Austin called Murphy Turner Associates. You can see Anderson’s finance report here. Murphy Turner put together Anderson’s mailer. If there was any plagiarizing going on, it was Murphy Turner doing it. (And you owe it to yourself to look at Murphy Turner’s site, because their angry-elephant logo is inspired.)
Now jump back in our time machine and return to present day. Did Stefani Carter plagiarize Barack Obama in her speech? I don’t know. But it seems the question ought to be directed to the consultants who helped her write that speech. That would be Murphy Turner Associates.
Leading Off (6/15/10): the Tardy Edition
1. Jorge Zamonsett Murillo will not, I assume, receive many awesome ties for Father’s Day, as cops caught him doing a Cheech and Chong routine in his car while his 3-year-old son strapped into a seat in back. According to the DMN’s story, officers “observed a thick cloud of white smoke inside the passenger compartment of the vehicle,” and they could smell weed.
2. Vince young says he’s sorry for that fracas he got into at Club Onyx. (You can check out the surveillance cam video if you’re so inclined.) Young also says he had prayed to God that NFL Commish Roger Goodell doesn’t come down too hard on him. That sound you hear is God laughing.
3. There’s a small chance you’ll get some rain this morning. If you don’t, though, that’s your last chance for a while.
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