The Houston Astros strike out on the Uvalde massacre

August 19, 2022

HOUSTON, TEXAS – AUGUST 14: Members of the community of Uvalde, TX attend the game as the Houston Astros host Uvalde Strong Day before the game against the Oakland Athletics at Minute Maid Park on August 14, 2022 in Houston, Texas. The Astros are busing in 500 members of the Uvalde community and have distributed 2,500 additional tickets. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)

Let’s give credit to the Houston Astros for bussing in 500 members of the Uvalde community for a “Uvalde Strong” baseball game. It was a nice gesture to the grieving community.

I’m probably a minority on this but the Astros could have, and should have done more. The cost of their Uvalde Strong event is a drop in the bucket to the Astros organization. They could do this event after every mass shooting in the United States and still be profitable but it’s not about the money.

The Astros could have used the opportunity to tell the Uvalde community, and all communities across the state that they will do whatever they can to prevent spending another nickel on consoling those affected by gun violence. They could do more than a moment of silence. They could do more than hitting a homerun for a fan.

They could demand action from Greg Abbott and the NRA party. They could hold a moment of silence for 21 minutes before each game to honor those who were killed in Uvalde. Let the fans and the entire Astros organization stand for a full 21 minutes for every single goddamn game until Greg Abbott calls a special session to address gun violence. They could stop donating to candidates that refuse to address the issue. They could use their voice to demand action instead of their wallets to feel good about themselves. They could make a strong stand and truly honor those whose lives have been lost and those whose lives have been changed forever.

Thanks for the baseball game, Houston, but you wiffed on this one.

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Posted by johncoby

Texas Republicans issue threats to election workers…in red districts

August 19, 2022

It’s all fun and games to Greg Abbott until someone gets hurt.

According to KXAN all the election workers in Gillespie County, a county that is gunshot, bleeding red, have resigned due to threats and stalking by Republican MAGAts. Governor Abbott and the entire Republican Party have shown their support of the threats with their deafening silence and constant spewing of conspiracy stupidity. With just three months before the election the county is now scrambling to replace the workers and conduct a safe and secure election.

It should be concerning to the Mexican MAGAts, who think they are republicans, that Latinos are the focus of these threats. It’s typical of the Republican Party to claim they are courting the Latino vote then threaten and stalk Latinas running the elections. According to KXAN:

“The year 2020 was when I got the death threats,” [Gillespie County Elections Administrator Anissa] Herrera told the Post. “It was enough that I reached out to our county attorney, and it was suggested that I forward it to FPD (Fredericksburg Police Department) and the sheriff’s office.”

A Thursday report from the U.S. House Oversight Committee showed similar threats to Tarrant County Elections Administrator Heider Garcia, who sent a letter to representatives about violent threats made to both himself and his children.

Gillespie county is about as red as it gets and includes the cities of Fredericksburg, Stonewall, and Luchenbach (where ain’t nobody feeling no pain). The threats and stalking are coming from the constant lies about voter fraud and rigged elections by Trump and the Republican Party. Eventually someone will get killed, the Republican Party will blame it on someone else, and we will all forget about it without doing something to stop it.

Just like we did after El Paso, Santa Fe, and the Uvalde massacres.

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Posted by johncoby

The last conservative has left the Republican Party

August 16, 2022

The Last Conservative

Congresswoman Liz Cheney, a model Conservative, is out of the Republican Party with her looming defeat in the Wyoming Republican Primary.

Congresswoman Cheney is predicted to be soundly defeated by a MAGAt endorsed by Trump. Cheney was just one of a handful of true Conservatives who voted to impeach Trump after he extorted the President of Ukraine and lead an insurrection against our Country on Jan 6 all while the cowards of the party remained silent.

Cheney is a model Conservative. She truly deserves the title “Honorable”. You won’t hear her calling people names or making racist comments like referring to someone as “Pocahontas” or referring to African nations as shit hole nations. She isn’t an asshole like Congressman Gym Jordon. She isn’t a coward like Senator Ted Cruz or Josh Hawley. She isn’t a liar like Trump. She believes in the rule of law. She has real conservative values and she conducts herself as someone who has earned the title “Honorable”.

She isn’t a republican and the Republican Party isn’t conservative. They are just republicans. Kowards. Korrupt. Khaotic. The KKK. The KKK doesn’t deserve Congresswoman Liz Cheney.

The new GOP.

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Posted by johncoby

I need to do something! How do I get involved?

August 12, 2022

Electricity prices, property taxes, housing costs, college tuition, and home insurance are out the roof in Texas. Gun violence is out of control. Texas ranks 45th in education. Women’s rights have been slashed and you are telling yourself “I need to do something!“. Well you have about 2 months to do something to correct the direction of our State. It’s up to you to get involved. This is how.

Volunteer with a campaign. Find a campaign to work on. Sign up. Volunteer.

Volunteer with our clubs. The Bay Area Democratic Movement, Bay Area New Democrats, and the Bay Area Association of Democratic Women has opened a joint headquarters and will be campaigning for all of our Democrats across the Bay Area including Beto, Lina Hidalgo, and Adrian Garcia. We are located on the corner of Diana and Bay Area Blvd. 1215 Bay Area Blvd. We are open 11-6 Monday – Saturday. Closed Sunday. (Times will change as we get closer to the election.) We will be a one stop shop for signs, phone banking, block walking, rallies, and more. Sign up here to get periodic news on our HQ. Our phone number is 346-384-0387.

Phonebank. Phonebanking will be conducted throughout the day and evening. We will be calling voters in our own neighborhood. Our phonebook system is easy to use and does not require your personal cell phone! We will provide training. Again, join our newsletter to keep informed of when we will have training.

Block Walk/Literature drop. We will have our own door hanger available to leave at a door advocating for all of our candidates. Volunteer to work your own neighborhood. We will train you. It’s easy and great exercise.

Put a sign in your yard. Come by the HQ and get a sign for your candidate. (Donations greatly appreciated!) Show your support and enthusiasm for changing our State. Signs will be available soon. We will also be putting out signs in the district. If you have a business or property we can get a large sign for you. Once again, sign up here to learn when we get Beto signs!

Donate money. If you can’t talk, or walk, then donate! Our headquarters would greatly appreciate a donation to our HQ! The money will be used for rent, utilities, phonebanking, and literature. Donate to the HQ here.

Get involved! After 30 years of republican rule we have an excellent chance of a lifetime to finally put our state on the right track. DO SOMETHING! NOW!

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Posted by johncoby

It’s Back to School! Are CCISD Schools Safe?

August 12, 2022

Don’t blame CCISD, but our schools are no more safer than the day before the Uvalde massacre, or the day before the Santa Fe shooting and it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out why.

It’s been over 4 years since the Santa Fe shooting which took the lives of 8 students and 2 teachers. Governor Abbott and other local Republicans offered endless thoughts and prayers and nothing else. Four years later 19 children and 2 teachers lost their lives in Uvalde and again, Abbott has done nothing to protect your kids or any citizen in Texas from gun violence.

After Santa Fe Abbott signed a number of NRA sponsored bills and declared Texas to be sanctuary city for guns. The bills allows anyone to walk around in public with a loaded assault rifle with a large capacity clip. They allowed the purchase and use of a silencer. The bills do not require any training or licensing. It allows them to dress like GI Joe or a cartel member with bullet proof vests. In Texas anyone over the age of 18 can still buy an assault weapon and ammunition which can blow off body parts and tear bodies to pieces.

What has Abbott done to curb gun violence? Nothing. He refuses to ban open carry, or require background checks or require extensive checks for those wanting to own an assault weapon. He refused to address red flag laws. He refuses to address the massive increase in gun violence in the State. He refuses to even talk about it. He values guns and the gun lobby more than children and their families. At least Abbott and his NRA buddies have even stopped offering useless thoughts and prayers after every mass shooting.

So when you ask if your kids school is safe, the answer is pretty fucking easy.

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Posted by johncoby

BREAKING: Texas DPS to leave 1025 school districts open to assault!

August 11, 2022
From The Austin Chronicle

You simply cannot make this up.

According to Click2Houston, Texas DPS will provide 30 officers to campuses throughout Uvalde ISD.

“As a new school year begins, we must ensure students, parents, and all dedicated school personnel can look forward to new opportunities to learn and grow. Texas will keep working to provide all available support and resources to the Uvalde community as they continue to heal.” — Greg Abbot

So 1 school district out of 1026 districts in Texas are now going to have extended police protection leaving 1025 districts open for assault, a total of 8723 schools. Once again Abbott is using a distraction in order to protect his gun buddies just like he did after the Santa Fe shooting.

After the Santa Fe shooting Governor Abbott and Lt Governor Dan Patrick promised metal detectors at the High School, again after the fact, after 8 kids were killed. Metal detectors at 1 out of 8724 school in Texas did not solve the problem as was the case in Uvalde. These are nothing but knee jerk reactions to distract from the real problem of easy access to military style weapons leading to 8 mass shootings in Texas alone.

This is Greg Abbott. He loves guns more than your kids lives.

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Posted by johncoby

Why campaign finance reform is needed in CCISD

August 11, 2022

There are two real good reasons for campaign finance reform in CCISD. Misty Dawson and Scott Bowen.

In Texas there are no limits on donations and it’s pretty obvious here in the CCISD area. State Representative Money Mayes Middleton spent $2.5 Million of his own money to win a state house seat here in Galveston County and CNN aired a segment called “Deep in the Pockets of Texas” highlighting 2 billionaires donations to candidates.

And now that money is coming to CCISD. It is unlimited. It is unstoppable. These billionaires can donate unlimited amounts of money to put unqualified, extreme white wing, candidates on our ballot for CCISD. They could finance legal challenges after these candidates lose causing chaos and discouraging qualified candidates from running. This is happening right now in CCISD.

Bowen spent over $20,000 on his latest at-large campaign, five times more than his opponent. This does not include the donation by the Harris County Republican Party in the form of a mailer. Dawson spent about $8000 on her campaign in her district only. Most candidates spend a couple of thousand dollars for a school district campaign.

For those who do not know here is what Bowen and his extreme white wing candidates can do in CCISD in the next upcoming election:

  • Candidates can accept unlimited amounts of donations
  • Candidates can accept donations from outside of the district, even out of state
  • Candidates can accept donations from political parties (Bowen and Dawson)
  • Candidates can accept PAC money from billionaires like the ones in the CNN report
  • Wealthy Candidates can loan themselves unlimited amounts of donations

CCISD is not alone in this problem. For decades school boards across Texas did not have the problem of unlimited donations. Unlimited money started to affect our schools about 6 years ago. For the sake of all qualified candidates CCISD needs to do something to curb this abuse for instance:

  • Limit donations from inside the district only
  • Ban PAC donations
  • Curb the amount of personal loans
  • Limit donation amounts to $500

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Posted by johncoby

Blast from the past: The Texas Ethics Commission

August 10, 2022
KHOU Reports

Back in 2009 KHOU did a story about the research a few activists performed concerning how elected officials spent their donors money, specifically hiding expenses behind a credit card. You can watch it here.

NOTE: In this story I made some comments about the Texas Ethics Commission which I do not agree with today. I have gained a much better respect for the Commission, especially the staff, and appreciate what they do.

In 2009 a small group of us looked at every State Representative and State Senator expenditure reports, about 180 of them. We found many were hiding purchases behind credit cards. The rules of the Ethics Commission are clear, report who gave you money and what you bought using their money. We found elected officials spending their donors money on personal items hidden behind a credit card. Converting campaign donations to personal use is against the law. It’s called “stealing”. We eventually filed about 60 ethics complaints with only 2 rejected.

Of the 58 accepted by the Commission, one resulted in the largest fine in the history of the Commission, $75,000. Many resulted in fines and requirements that the official return the money they stole from their donors. The Commission also required a new form to be filled out to identify every purchase made with a credit card. I hope this new form requirement was based upon the research we performed.

We eventually published a report called Don’t Mess With Ethics documenting what we had found. You can read that report here. Enjoy!

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Posted by johncoby

Welcome to Bay Area Houston!

August 10, 2022
Fishing in Mexico

Thank you for visiting Bay Area Houston!

I have been blogging on political and consumer issues for over 15 years and appreciate you stopping by. I hope I can provide information you find interesting, disturbing, or funny at times. Feel free to add your own comments to my posts! I appreciate comments, corrections, or ideas!

On the right side of this page you will find a list categories. You can click on one and look at the posts for that particular topic. For instance if you click on CCISD you will see all my posts about CCISD. The same goes for SATIRE. You might get a laugh at those posts!

And if you scroll to the bottom right of this page you will see a FOLLOW+ button. Click on that button, enter your email address and BAH will email when a new post is published! Share with your friends!

If you want to know a bit more about me click on the ABOUT menu item at the top of the page and if you have the urge to contact me visit the CONTACT page. Again, thanks for reading and enjoy!!!

–John Cobarruvias Bay Area Houston

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Posted by johncoby

Local Representative attends extreme white wing event

August 9, 2022
Dennis Paul
State Representative Dennis Paul

This is disturbing.

Local State Representative Dennis Paul attended a meeting at the Hampton inn in Webster, Texas, by the “True Texas Project” an organization labeled as an extremist anti-government group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. According to the Houston Chronicle this group was banned from a local church:

Leaders of Webster Presbyterian Church, where astronaut Buzz Aldrin is a “ruling elder,” banned far-right political group True Texas Project from holding events in their meeting spaces and removed the group’s events from its calendar last week, according to texts and emails obtained by Chron. Houston Chronicle July 22, 2022

The all white attendees listened to Paul and State Senator Paul Bettencourt talk about “Igniting the spirit of the original Texians”. Who are the Texians? “Texians were Anglo-American residents of Mexican Texas and, later, the Republic of Texas.” Wikipedia. Just an FYI for you white wing history deniers:

Mexico invited white people to come and settle in what later became Texas. All they asked was for them to learn the language and become citizens. Instead they decided to steal the land, with 200 military idiots picking a fight with 1500 well armed Mexican soldiers in San Antonio. They were killed and their bodies burned.

According to True Texas’ website, “We believe in Constitutional government, national sovereignty, fiscal responsibility, personal responsibility, and rule of law.” Paul is an election denier. He doesn’t believe Biden is the duly elected President. He doesn’t take personal responsibility for the COVID response disaster leading to the death of his own friends or the 19 children killed in Uvalde because of easy access to assault weapons. And “the rule of law” is nothing but a punch line to him and his party.

True Texas is mainly funded by the billionaires identified by CNN in “Deep in the Pockets of Texas”, Timothy Dunn, and Defend Texas Liberty PAC funded by Dunn and Wilks. Their top donors Include:

Empower Texans PAC25,000.00
Defend Texas Liberty PAC24,731.97
Defend Texas Liberty PAC21,000.00
Dunn ,Timothy18,000.00
Dunn ,Timothy13,000.00
Middleton ,Mayes13,000.00
Saulsbury ,Dick12,000.00
Empower Texans4,000.00
Texans for Dan Patrick3,000.00
Mason  ,David2,400.00
Mason  ,David2,085.00
Empower Texans2,000.00
Mason  ,David2,000.00
Patrick ,Dan 2,000.00

Why Dennis Paul would attend such as extremist organization says a lot about him. Maybe Paul can arrange a meeting space for them at his own church, St Bernadettes.

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Posted by johncoby

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