The small group of incoming high-school freshmen probably didn’t know exactly what they were in for when they attended today’s Houston City Council members. What they got was an excellent example of the debate of competing ideas and democracy in action.
September 24, 2016
Houston prides itself, quite rightly, on the diversity of its population. It’s often said that the Bayou City is the most diverse big city in the United States. That diversity extends to its international population — as I was reminded at a recent event, Houston has perhaps the largest number of foreign consulates in the country.
May 17, 2015
In a recent talk, Houston Mayor Annise Parker Annise Parker discussed some of the legacy issues of her time as mayor, but gave only the slightest hint of her intentions after leaving the office.
May 11, 2015
I’ll just put this out there right away: I’ve never been what you’d call a huge opera fan.
May 4, 2015
Dr. Steven Chu, who served as U.S. Energy Secretary in President Obama’s first term, recently visited the “Energy Capital of the World” to discuss changes in the energy sector and its impact on the global environment.
April 26, 2015
Are tiny houses the next big thing in Houston? In a city famous for sprawl and ever-expanding square footage, perhaps not. But if the attendance and enthusiasm displayed a a recent forum are any indication, the idea may be about to take hold.
May 29, 2014
Maya Angelou died yesterday. I wasn’t able to read much of the coverage since I spent most of the day at Houston City Council, which after several hours of public comment resoundingly passed, 11-6, an ordinance which outlaws discrimination against, among all manner of groups, gay people.
May 8, 2014
Could they still do it? Could Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, four decades (more or less) in, still bring their legendary intensity and joyousness to a live concert? As a fan — perhaps acolyte is more like it — of long standing, I’ll admit I did have some small measure of concern Tuesday as I made the drive to the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands.
I needn’t have worried.
May 5, 2014
Yesterday, Houston held the second interation of its “Sunday Streets” pilot project, where large stretches of a major thoroughfare are closed to vehicular traffic for several hours to encourage folks to get out and walk or bike, meet their neighbors, and just plain get to know the city at ground level.
August 24, 2013
How will Houston and the Texas Gulf Coast fare in the next quarter-century as the impacts of climate change interact with an economy built largely around the petrochemical industry? A panel of experts addressed many of the questions around that conundrum this week in the first of two public forums.
Fountain's Pen 
June 21, 2017
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