Author: Randy Slovacek

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Texas’ debt growing faster than the nation’s

Texas Gov. Rick Perry

From ThinkProgress: For all his talk of fiscal conservationism on the national stage, Texas Gov. Rick Perry hasn’t been so parsimonious at home, where his state is racking up debt at a faster rate than the national government and in greater amounts than most other states.

Perry regularly attacks President Obama for engaging in “too much spending” and running up too much debt, but as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram’s Mitchell Schnurman writes, Texas’ refusal to raise taxes has led to its own debt ballooning faster than Washington’s:

From 2001 to 2010, state debt alone grew from $13.4 billion to $37.8 billion, according to the Texas Bond Review Board. That’s an increase of 281 percent. Over the same time, the national debt rose almost 234 percent.

Still, the trend is undeniable. While Texas lawmakers have refused to raise taxes — and often criticize Washington for borrowing and spending — the state has been paying for much of its expansion with borrowed money.

While the state has had to borrow for infrastructure building to keep up with rapid population growth, as Schnurman points out, Texas didn’t have two wars, the budget-busting Bush tax cuts, recession-combating measurs, and other big-ticket national expenditures. And Texas’ “borrowing isn’t slowing.”

The state’s debt belies Perry’s boisterous rhetoric on his economic stewardship. While conservatives boast of Perry’s “Texas miracle,” California, which Perry often bashes as the antithesis of his approach, has seen faster GDP per capita growth than Texas under Perry.

Meanwhile, Texas’ obstinate refusal to raise taxes helped create the largest budget shortfall in the state’s history, leading to devastating cuts to government services — one town had to lay off its entire police force — and Perry using budget gimmicks and federal stimulus dollars to balance his budget.

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Gov. Brown signs CA FAIR Education Act

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a bill that will fairly and accurately portray the LGBT civil rights movement and the historic contributions of the diverse LGBT community in social science instruction.

The Fair, Accurate, Inclusive, and Respectful (FAIR) Education Act (SB 48), by including fair and accurate information about the rich and diverse history of LGBT people in instructional materials, will enrich the learning experiences of all students and promote an atmosphere of safety and respect in California schools.

SB 48 was authored by Sen. Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and co-sponsored by Equality California and Gay-Straight Alliance Network.

Studies have shown that inclusion of LGBT people in instructional materials is linked to greater student safety and lower rates of bullying.

In schools where the contributions of the LGBT community are included in educational instruction, bullying declined by over half and LGBT students were more likely to feel they have an opportunity to make positive contributions at school.

“Today marks a monumental victory for the LGBT civil rights movement as the contributions of diverse LGBT community will no longer be erased from history,” said Roland Palencia, Equality California executive director. “Thanks to the FAIR Education Act, California students, particularly LGBT youth, will find new hope and inspiration and experience a more welcoming learning environment that will embrace them.

Read more here.

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Emmy Nominations 2011

The nominations for the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards were announced at the crack of dawn Thursday and reigning Outstanding Comedy Series champ “Glee” did well in the nominations department.

Last year’s Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series winner Jane Lynch, who is also hosting the ceremony this year, is nominated for a supporting Emmy, as is Golden Globe winner Chris Colfer. 2010 nominee Lea Michele did not garner a nomination this time around. The musical dramedy also won nominations for guest stars Gwyneth Paltrow, Kristin Chenoweth and Dot-Marie Jones.

But no comedy series cast had a better morning than the “Modern Family” ensemble. The show racked up an impressive 17 nominations, just behind cable dramas “Mad Men” (19 nods) and “Boardwalk Empire (18), with the entire cast (well, the adults, anyway) — Julie Bowen, Sofia Vergara, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Ty Burrell, last year’s winner Eric Stonestreet and first-time nominee Ed O’Neill — all nominated in the supporting-actor/actress comedy series categories.

HBO’s “Mildred Pierce” is the most-nominated work for 2011, and HBO is the most nominated network.

Sadly, the wildly popular HBO drama “True Blood” was shut out of all major categories, including Outstanding Drama Series and all major acting races.

The 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards will air live on Fox on Sunday, September 18, at 8:00 p.m. For more info, go to emmys.com

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Judges lining up for marriage equality’s 1st day in NY

From the New York Times: As one of several dozen judges across the state who have volunteered to play an official role in marriage equality’s first day in New York state, Justice Thomas Raffaele is part of one of the most unusual judicial mobilizations in years. From Buffalo to the Bronx and pretty much everywhere else in New York, judges are signing up for rare Sunday duty.

If same-sex couples want to marry that Sunday, only judges would have the authority to dispense with the 24-hour waiting period required by law. And those judges could then officiate on the spot.

Another of the volunteer judges, Sherry Klein Heitler of State Supreme Court in Manhattan, said she was expecting something of a party at the city clerk’s office. “I think there will be a lot of people,” Justice Heitler said. “I think there will be a lot of emotion. I think there will be a lot of happy tears.”

Judge Richard B. Meyer of Essex County Court in Elizabethtown, N.Y., said he felt an obligation to help any couple trying to take advantage of their newly minted right.

“I think it’s important,” Judge Meyer said, “that people who have been waiting a long time to be married and who are anxious to do it have access to someone who is able to perform the ceremony on their time frame.”

In Rochester, Judge Joan S. Kohout said she had been thinking of the legal changes during her 23 years on the bench that enabled same-sex couples to adopt. As ideas about family have changed, she said, the families passing through her court have changed.

Judge Kohout volunteered, she said, because she saw the new marriage law as a further evolution. “I’m a Family Court judge — I’m a judge for families — and I saw this as a way for me to do my job,” she said.

Read more at the New York Times.

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Father & son attend first and last shuttle launch together

From BoingBoing: “Father and Son: STS-1 and STS-135,” a photo by Chris Bray, who is the younger of the two in these side-by-side captures from the very first shuttle launch thirty years ago, and the final one, last Friday. “The picture we waited 30 years to complete.”

How cool is that to have attended both the first and last launches with your father or son?

Click on the picture to see larger.
(via joemygod)

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Poll: Only 20% of voters believe deficit should be addressed by spending cuts alone

According to a new Gallup poll, conducted July 7-10, only 20% of Americans polled believe the federal deficit should be reduced by spending cuts alone, while 69% believes in some mix of cuts and tax increases.

While the majority of Republicans in Congress only support spending cuts to address the deficit issue, the poll shows 67% of those who identify as Republican voters support at least some tax increases to be part of the solution, compared with 77% of Democrats thinking a mix of spending cuts and tax increases are an appropriate solution.

Among those who rate themselves as Independents, 65% support some mix of spending cuts and tax increases.

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Oprah to become CEO and Chief Creative Officer at OWN

Oprah Winfrey will become the chief executive of OWN this fall, according to The Wall Street Journal.

She’ll also become chief creative officer, expanding on her previous role as chairman of the network.

The station has struggled since it launched this spring, bringing in fewer viewers than the Discovery Health channel that it replaced.

The channel fired its original chief executive Christina Norman in May, after ratings at the four-month-old cable channel fell below the expectations of its backers.

The channel has been a disappointment to Discovery. The company had spent $216 million on the channel through March 31, according to filings. Norman failed to deliver the ratings Discovery CEO David Zaslav wanted.

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CNN on Michele Bachmann’s clinic

CNN coverage on Michele Bachmann’s family business that practices reparative or “conversion” therapy to help gays “pray away the gay.”

In addition to denying the clinic uses reparative therapy, Bachmann’s clinic has received over $100,000 annually in the past few years through Medicaid, while at the same time she has said government should stay out of medical care.

This also comes on the heels of questions of a Bachmann family farm receiving nearly $260,000 in farm subsidies from the government while criticizing subsidies to farmers.

It seems there’s a lot of “say one thing, do another” in the Bachmann world.

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Broadway’s Tony Stevens passes away at 63

The Broadway theater mourns the passing of Tony Stevens, who passed away today at the age of 63.

Tony Stevens performed in nine Broadway shows from Hello Dolly to Seesaw. Movie choreography includes “The Great Gatsby” with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow, “The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas” with Bert Reynolds, “She’s Having a Baby” with Kevin Bacon, “Johnny Dangerously” with Michael Keaton and “Where the Boys Are” with Lisa Hartman.

Creator of the workshop that became A Chorus Line, his Broadway choreographer credits include: Gower Champion’s Rockabye Hamlet and Annie Get Your Gun, he was Assistant Choreographer on Chicago (Fosse original production), Perfect Frank, Wind in the Willows with Nathan Lane.

His television choreography credits include specials for Mary Tyler Moore, Cheryl Ladd, Disneyland’s 30th Anniversary, and the People’s Choice Awards. Tony’s regional choreography credits include over 10 original shows and 30 revivals.

Among his favorite director and choreographer credits are for the National tours of Dreamgirls 1997 and 1998, and the 20th Anniversary Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar.

Off-Broadway Tony choreographed Zombie Prom, The Body Shop, and directed and choreographed Sheba. He has also directed and choreographed for famous nightclub acts such as Chita Rivera, Bernadette Peters, Dolly Parton, Liza Minelli, Bette Midler, Debbie Shapiro, and Jane Powell. He is also proud to have choreographed for Gene Kelly.

Tony received a Lucille Lortel nomination for best choreography, The Complete Works of Shakespeare, recreated Bob Fosse’s original choreography for Chita; A Dancers Life on Broadway, staged numbers for Martin Short and Nathan Lane on “LATE NIGHT with David Letterman,” and was recently developing the new musical La Familglia.

I knew Tony as a member of the Broadway theater community.  He had a gift of being able to talk to everyone.  He knew his stuff and his work showed it.  He was warm, gifted, talented and funny.  He made everyone around him better.

After years of dancing in the light, he is the light.

He will be missed.  Gone too soon.