Articles for February 2nd, 2012
Emirates Arrives at DFW Airport, Take Two
Our interns and editors have been busy today. While Glenn was out watching the inaugural flight of Emirates, Karley Osborn was trying to find her way around the airport. She may have struggled figuring out where to go, but it sounds like it all worked out in the end.
Emirates Airlines flight attendants' red chapeaus were a nice touch. Photography by Jeanne Prejean.
The arrival of the first-ever direct flight from Dubai International Airport to DFW is kind of a big deal. And I nearly missed it.
It wasn’t exactly my fault. The Emirates people didn’t seem to know where I should check in, either. Two women wearing the airline’s uniform–a red hat with a cream headscarf and khaki blazer–smiled and motioned for me to wait in an obscure corner until “someone” came for me. But there wasn’t someone coming–a fact I clued in to 20 minutes later when I noticed that I was still the only person documenting the gate attendants’ unceremonious struggle to roll out the inaugural flight poster.
But you know what they say: when in doubt, follow the signs to the red carpet. And act like you know what you’re doing.
Notes From the Hard-Hat Tour of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Resistance is futile. Photo by James Williford
As promised, here is intern James Williford’s dispatch from the Perot Museum of Nature and Science:
The Newest Cube To Come to Dallas
By James Williford
“A large cube floating over a landscaped plinth.” That’s one of the phrases that the public relations folks at the new Perot Museum of Nature and Science chose to describe the building that, over the last two years, has risen out of the ground in downtown Dallas. “Plinth,” the informational packet handed out at today’s media tour helpfully explained, means “roof” — at least, according to whatever dictionary the Perot PR team relies on, that’s what it means. So we’re to imagine this rather severe-looking, 170-foot-high, 180,000-square-foot hexahedron hovering just above its 4.7-acre site next to Victory Park. Yes, hovering.
‘Shower of Affection’ Greets Emirates Flight
The Dallas-Fort Worth drought ended just in time to greet the first Emirates flight from Dubai. Photography by Jeanne Prejean
The Eagle, er, the Emirates, has landed. At Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, at about 8:45 this morning, to great fanfare – as shown in the photo above of the so-called “shower of affection” that was accorded the Boeing 777-200LR aircraft upon touchdown. (“Shower of affection” means something else where I come from, but apparently this is an aviation ritual.) The plane had left Dubai about 16 hours earlier, becoming Emirates Airline’s first-ever daily, non-stop flight to D/FW. It was scheduled to turn around and head back to the United Arab Emirates a couple of hours later.
The Atlantic: Komen Organization Lied
If you’ve been following the Komen story (or even if you haven’t), you need to read this Jeffrey Goldberg post from The Atlantic. The gist:
Komen … says it cut-off Planned Parenthood because of a newly adopted foundation rule prohibiting it from funding any group that is under formal investigation by a government body. (Planned Parenthood is being investigated by Rep. Cliff Stearns, an anti-abortion Florida Republican, who says he is trying to learn if the group spent public money to provide abortions.) But three sources with direct knowledge of the Komen decision-making process told me that the rule was adopted in order to create an excuse to cut-off Planned Parenthood.
Tony Dorsett Is Suing the Cowboys
The Hall of Fame running back is the biggest name to join a large lawsuit filed against the NFL for what essentially amounts to a decades-long cultural indifference to the long-term health of employees (the players). The Associated Press has a lengthy feature about it, in which Dorsett describes games in which he was knocked out cold, then returned to take more pounding, only to find himself running the wrong way. Now 57, he says he’s paying dearly for it. The NFL, for it’s part, is taking out a commercial during the Super Bowl to explain all the things the league has done to fight concussions.
Pics of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Intern James Williford will be along a moment to give us a full account, but here are a couple photos from today’s hard-hat tour of the Perot Museum of Nature and Science. I can tell you two things, though, right here: 1) Construction continues apace. They will have their certificate of occupancy probably sometime in April, and the early 2013 estimate for the official opening is easily within reach. And 2) this place is going to be awesome.
Komen Foundation Website Hacked
Late last night for a brief time, as the Atlantic notes, hackers were able to redirect traffic from the Susan G. Komen Foundation website to a dummy site where this ad:
Was replaced by this ad:
Meanwhile Nancy Brinker posted a YouTube defense of the Komen Foundation’s policy change. Though, of course, she doesn’t say a word about Planned Parenthood:
I Still See You Big German
Dirk Nowitzki has been less than great this season. But don’t give up on him, guys. I’ve already had to talk my son out of using the word “sucks,” because he’s basically a generic sports-talk radio hack in the body of a 7-year-old. ANYWAY. Here are some highlights of Dirk last season. Drink it in. He’ll be back.
Who Is Responsible for the Abysmal Mess Called the Texas DMV? Meet Ada Brown!
The awfulness of the Texas DMV is the topic of the month (catch up here and here or, for more direct experience, Â just try to get a driver’s license).
The DMV falls under the purview of the Public Safety Commission. Its five members can be found here. A glance at the panel reveals the answer to why the DMV is so disasterously managed. Three of the five members are attorneys. One is a private equity type. The fifth is herself a former bureaucrat. In other words, not one member of the commission has run anything in their lives. They have never had to satisfy customers. They have never had to implement processes based on efficiency and performance. The DMV is a mess because its leadership simply doesn’t know how to fix it. It may, in fact, be utterly oblivious to the problem.
The only Dallas member is one Ada Brown, who I am sure is a fine lady and who I know is a brilliant attorney. (I know she is a brilliant attorney because it says right there in her bio that she’s a member of the Mensa Genius Society.)
Ms. Brown practices law at McKool Smith, a very well respected Dallas firm. The next time you’re stuck in a four-hour line at the local DMV, you might want to give her a call at 214-978-4000. As a dedicated public official, she is undoubtedly more responsive to the needs and problems of the average citizen and consumer of DMV services than DMV employees seem to be.
Things To Do In Dallas Tonight: Feb. 2
Here’s the thing. If you see me coming and don’t hold the elevator for me even though I’m close enough to punch the button, force open the doors, and still join you on your descent into the bowels of hell Hall Arts Parking Garage, I will make that elevator ride as uncomfortable for you as possible. I will glare at you until you stammer out an apology about how you “honestly didn’t see me.” And then you will get in your obnoxious black SUV and drive away. All of this is exactly what happened on Tuesday, and it’s not exactly a rare occurrence. Who parks in Hall Arts, besides D staffers? PwC employees? Bankers? Get some manners.
Now that I’ve opened up the complaint department, we can move on to your plans for the evening. If you’ve seen some dude trolling West Dallas with buckets of paint, don’t worry. It’s sanctioned, and the dude is street artist Shepard Fairey, best know for this little painting. What a stud. Fairey’s here at the behest of the Dallas Contemporary, creating a series of murals. (Update: Our wonderful photographer, Elizabeth Lavin, caught him in action.) Head to the Design District this evening to catch a free conversation with the artist, led by Pedro Alonzo, adjunct curator of the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. If you haven’t tried it yet, maybe drop by Oak for dinner or a drink. One of my oldest friends is just beginning to try his hand at cooking, and these folks were kind enough to give him a shot in the kitchen. You can read Nancy’s first take on the restaurant here.
The Other Dallas Woman at the Center of This Planned Parenthood Debate
As Tim pointed out yesterday, this whole Susan G. Komen for Cure-cutting-ties-to-Planned Parenthood thing has put Nancy Brinker is an awkward situation. But there’s another Dallas woman at the center of this controversy too. That would be Dallas product Cecile Richards, daughter of former Texas governor Ann Richards.
Cecile is the president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America, and in this profile in the New Yorker, published in November (after the “investigation” was launched, but before SGKC withdrew funding), she attributes most of her organization’s most recent problems to the Tea Party-dominated mid-term elections in 2010.
Her theory: “when those guys can’t figure out what to do about jobs, and they can’t, their first target is women.” Another quote from the same story sums up how a lot of now former SGKC donors feel: “The fury over Planned Parenthood is two political passions–opposition to abortion and opposition to government programs for the poor–acting as one.”
Dallas-Fort Worth Drought is Over
The latest official drought map, as of Jan. 31. We really do look our most beautiful dressed in white.
So says the U.S. Drought Monitor. Yes, our lake levels have improved over the disaster that they were. Though officials are still warning we remain in a precarious situation.
But the Associated Press notes that Dallas-Fort Worth is the first major metro region of Texas to come out of the most severe year-long drought in the state’s history.
And we’ve got more rain coming tomorrow.
So treat yourself to a cup of DDTW (Delicious Dallas Tap Water).
The rest of the state apparently needs more of Rick Perry’s prayers.
Leading Off (2/2/12)
That Meteor You Thought You Saw Last Night Was a Meteor. Yep.
President Obama Indeed Takes a Look At The Resume of Fort Worth Woman’s Husband. Jennifer Wedel’s fella has been contacted by recruiters, but she’s still on the fence about voting for Obama, unless he cures cancer or delivers the unicorn steak she ordered perfectly medium rare.
Walmart Grocery Store Going Into Old Whole Foods Location On Lower Greenville. Because no one down there has had enough to be cranky about lately.
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