Articles for November, 2011
Leading Off (11/8/11)
Oklahoma Still Rocking. Last night another earthquake in Oklahoma was strong enough to be felt in Dallas. I’m sure it has nothing at all and whatsoever to do with fracking.
Occupy Dallas Protesters Get Hosed. With two big downtown events coming up (a Veteran’s Day Parade and the grand opening of the Dallas Omni Hotel), the city is reconsidering the permit that allows the Occupy Dallas folks to camp outside City Hall, in light of the fact that eight of the protesters were arrested over the weekend. Two things about this story. Those folks were arrested for improper use of a sidewalk. That’s the most made-up charge I’ve ever heard of. Second, Councilman Tennell Atkins was wondering what the protesters might try to pull during the two big upcoming events. He said: “And my deal is, are we going to have a scrimmage, or whatever?” I’ll take the whatever option and go with skirmish.
Yes on Arts District Signs, No on Greenville Avenue Bowling. Two items of note (sub. req.) out of the Dallas City Council. Craig Hall is going to be able to put commercial signs on the building that will go up over what is now the Arts District parking garage. And that proposed enormous bowling alley isn’t going to happen. Now you know.
Things To Do In Dallas Tonight: Nov. 7
I don’t spend tons of time on Facebook, much to the despair and confusion of some of my friends. But on Saturday, I just so happened to see a former roommate’s status update that said, “not my chair, not my problem.” Which, of course, is from the old Dan Deacon video, “Drinking Out of Cups.” It was really hilarious at the time we discovered it, back when there were six of us crammed into a two bedroom apartment and none of us wanted to clean out the refrigerator because the important stuff (beer) was in the mini fridge, anyway. Not my scuzzy produce, not my problem.
This ends up being relevant, since Dan Deacon is actually here tonight with Wham City, his comedy troupe, at Dan’s Silverleaf in Denton. I have attended a Dan Deacon concert. I’ve never made it to a Dan Deacon comedy hour. I imagine the two might be similar, maybe minus the forced stranger-touching, but I’ve been wrong before. At the concert, he made the audience hold hands and do some sort of touchy-feely train thing. I was legitimately horrified, and the evening soured after I refused to participate and angered my friendlier companions. I’ve potentially mellowed since then, which is good. Wham City’s variety show sounds bonkers, which sounds like great fun on a Monday night. Especially since it’s pretty gloomy and gross out.
And not only is it Monday night, it’s the first Monday of November. As such, it’s my duty to remind you of Screen Door’s First Monday tasting, which offers a choice of two free small plates not featured on the regular menu. I always have a great time at this. Tonight you get to decide between buffalo quail wings wings with blue cheese slaw, Brunswick stew pot pie, or an end of summer berry trifle. Reservations are required, though, so go make one ASAP. If you’re looking for something similar-ish but you’re less interested in hanging around the Arts District, Chef Gorji hosts a wine and fancy pizza tasting at Canary by Gorji in Addison.
For more to do tonight, go here.
Family Sued Over Inflammatory Highland Park Middle School Novel Responds
For the November issue of D Magazine, I wrote about a lawsuit filed over a 362-page novel published by an eighth-grader at Highland Park Middle School. The book tells the story of a sweet, pretty, popular girl and her circle of drinking, drugging, sex-crazed peers. The main character — whose mother filed the lawsuit — is eventually drugged and date raped. She ends up prostituting herself before her friends realize that she’s been victimized and make her homecoming queen.
Neither family wanted to comment on the record, but last week, attorneys for the parents of the young author responded to the lawsuit, filing a motion for summary judgment that requests the case be dismissed completely. Details after the jump.
JFK Nephew to Dallas: Assassination Not Your Fault
While Dallas anguishes over marking the 50th anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s assassination in
2013, the president’s nephew has a message for the city: Get over the collective angst, already. “The people here loved him,” Anthony Kennedy Shriver, the son of JFK’s sister Eunice and Sargent Shriver, said in Dallas Saturday. “I spoke with a man who saw him 20 minutes before he died, and he said he still gets chills, thinking about that day. It’s not the fault of the people of Dallas.
“What the community did with the [Sixth Floor Museum] was fantastic,” Shriver (pictured in photo by Jeanne Prejean) went on. “I took my daughter and my mom there a couple of years before she died. She was really moved by it. … [The assassination] was not the city’s fault … just as I’m not responsible if one of my family members … is a drug addict; that’s not a reflection on me. Nobody in my family has ever spoken in anything but a loving way about the people of Dallas.”
Shriver, who was in town raising money for his Best Buddies nonprofit for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has often been mentioned as a potential Democratic candidate for governor of Florida, where he lives. He said he prays every day and is “open” to the possibility of running in 2014, if that turns out to be God’s plan for him.
Ron Washington’s Leaked Explicit Game 7 Speech
His team was coming off one of the most dramatic, heart-breaking losses in World Series history. He never thought anyone outside of that room would ever hear the speech. And as we know, the team in this audio sadly went on to lose. Now, listen to Ron Washington give a pre-game speech like only Ron Washington could. (Warning: This is all sorts of explicit and not safe for work or children or Cardinals fans.)
My New Measurement for Governors
Want to know how good a governor is? (Yes, I’m looking at you, Rick Perry.) Make a visit to the state’s Department of Motor Vehicles.
In Texas, you’d better take a book, a crossword, and two or three past issues of the New Yorker. I recently spent 4.5 hours waiting there with Allisonette #4, and we still didn’t get the problem resolved (one guy said one thing, another guy said, sorry, what the first guy said is not right, etc.).
In Indiana, on the other hand, visits to the DMV take an average of six minutes and forty seconds. They know it because they clock it. Mitch Daniels, Indiana’s governor, mentioned it kind of offhandedly in a small luncheon a couple of weeks ago in Dallas, and the executives around the table nearly exploded in appreciative laughter. In Texas, such a thing is unimaginable. (But then again, so was the fall of the Soviet Union, which the DMV so much resembles.) In his new book, Keeping the Republic, he explains how he did it. Basically, it came down to collecting and analyzing data about the problem, figuring out where technology could help, then applying some intelligent scrutiny to where it couldn’t.
Yes, I know. I mentioned the word “intelligent.” Poor Texas.
Leading Off (11/7/11)
Did Fracking Cause Oklahoma Earthquakes? The largest earthquake ever recorded in Oklahoma stuck Saturday night, registering a 5.6 magnitude, with tremors felt as far south as Plano, Frisco, and Irving. That initial quake was then followed by ten aftershocks. And while gas companies claim there is no proof of a connection between drilling and and earthquakes, a position backed up (sort of) by the Oklahoma Geological Survey, there’s this: earthquakes in Oklahoma have spiked from 50 in 2009 to 1,047 in 2010; and this report on natural gas drilling in the United Kingdom did find an connection between earthquakes and fracking.
Eight Occupy Dallas Protesters Arrested, City To Investigate Confrontation: Video seems to show a police officer trying to rip a flag away from an Occupy Dallas protester, and when the protester resists (rather eagerly), the two tumble to the ground. That’s when hell broke loose: pepper spray and multiple arrests. Now the city is investigating the incident.
Tyson Chandler Won’t Return to Mavericks: That’s because of the new collective-bargaining agreement (still under-negotiation) that is increasingly likely to be the product of the ongoing NBA negotiations. “For years, the Lakers have been able to win championships and re-sign their players and keep them there so they can go out for another title,” Chandler says. “Now, to put that deal in place after we win ours, I don’t like it one bit.”
Tim Cowlishaw Does Very Bad Star Trek Impressions
On what looks like a commercial break from ESPN’s “Around the Horn” yesterday, Tim Cowlishaw showed the world a series of not-great impressions from Star Trek. Notice the other panelists are not amused. (This comes just one day after the entire show gangs up on his new mustache-less Monday-Night-Football look.) What is amusing, however, is this very impressive “Around the Horn” Goodfellas tribute.
Random Photo From Tom Leppert’s Facebook Page of the Day
"Oh, this? I got it at Mervyns. Uh-huh, yeah, the slacks, too. No, they shut them all down a few years back. I know, right? I know. Listen, if you vote for me -- what? Oh, sorry. Yeah, I'm running for the senate. No! U.S. Senate! What? Tom Leppert. LEH. PERT. L-e-p-p-e-r-t. I know. Oh, thanks, but I don't think it's that much of a long shot. Anyway, if you vote for me, I promise to bring back Mervyns to its rightful place atop America's middle scale department stores, or at least make sure the company responsible for these handsome polos gets a hand-up loan so we can get more of these into the hands of solid Americans such as yourself. Yes, Leppert. That's it. What? Yeah, these are Oakleys. Thanks."
Things To Do In Dallas This Weekend: Nov. 4-6
Everyone who came out to FrontRow Live, thank you. It was awesome. We loved seeing you.
Friday
Everything I know about Romania I learned from Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein. Kidding. Everything I know about Romania I learned from Dracula. The not-so-sparkly vamp hails from there, and apparently, so do all sorts of delectable dishes that he is unable to appreciate on account of dietary restrictions. And unless you count yourself among the undead, you have no such limitations.The Romanian Food Festival kicks off this evening and lasts through Sunday. It’s a bit of drive from downtown, but worth it for all the cheese pastries and gingerbread. Try the sarmale (minced meat wrapped in grape or cabbage leaves) while you watch a folk dance demonstration or a live boxing match. There’s a kids corner with activities and petting zoo, too, so no one need feel left out.
Mark Cuban Beats Ross Perot Jr.
Remember when Mark Cuban filed that legal brief featuring a picture of Dirk holding aloft the Larry O’Brien Trophy as a way to flip the bird at Ross Perot Jr. and his claims that Cuban was mismanaging the team? It worked. A judge last week denied all claims made by Perot. Thomas Melsheimer, Cuban’s attorney with the sense of humor, said, “We are extremely pleased with the ruling, which puts the Mavericks in the win column before the season has even started.” Well played, Mr. Melsheimer.
Louis C.K. Joins George W. Bush’s Motorcade
Since the former president lives here, that is good enough reason to post this.
Family Drags ESD Back Into Court
As she usually does, Claire St. Amant has all the details over on the Preston Hollow People blog.
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