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October 31, 2005
It's Alito
Third Circuit Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. is President Bush's new nominee to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Larry Ribstein provides an overview of Judge Alito's decisions in business cases, Orin Kerr believes that Judge Alito will ultimately be viewed as being quite similar to Justice Roberts and, thus, easily confirmed, and Doug Berman provides the early analysis of the nomination from a criminal justice standpoint.
Posted by Tom at 7:11 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)
John Keegan on the Dresden firebombing
John Keegan is England's foremost military historian and, for many years, was the Senior Lecturer at the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst. His book -- The Second World War -- is arguably the best single volume book on World War II and his book The Face of Battle is essential reading for anyone seeking an understanding of the history of warfare. His latest book -- The Iraq War -- was published in 2004, and here are prior posts on Mr. Keegan's views on the Iraq War. In short, when John Keegan writes about war, it is wise to take note.
Over this past weekend, over 100,000 Germans celebrated the reopening of Dresden, Germany's beautiful Baroque church -- the Frauenkirche -- which had laid in ruins for almost 60 years as a bleak reminder of the Allied fire-bombing raids of February 1945 that killed 25,000 people and incinerated Dresden's old city. The Dresden firebombing remained largely unnoticed outside of military circles until the early 1970's when it formed the basis of Kurt Vonnegut's haunting novel, Slaughterhouse Five, which in turn formed the basis of the 1972 George Roy Hill movie of the same name.
In this Daily Telegraph op-ed, Mr. Keegan uses the occasion of the Frauenkirche celebration to review the Dresden firebombing and to observe how Allied terror bombing during World War II raises difficult issues in these times of widespread civilian terror bombing against Americans and citizens of Allied countries. As with all of Mr. Keegan's writings, the entire piece is well worth reading, and his conclusion gives you a taste of his special perspective:
In the last, remembering Dresden forces one to recognise that there is nothing nice or admirable about any war, and that victory, even a victory as desirable as that over Nazi Germany, is purchased at the cost of terrible human suffering, the suffering of the completely innocent as well as of their elders and their parents in arms. It is right to remember Dresden, but chiefly as a warning against repetition of the mass warfare that tortured Europe in the 20th century.
Posted by Tom at 6:11 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
An interesting English tradition
As noted earlier here and here, I enjoy the British tradition of witty obituaries, which often provide a hilarious review of the failings, idiosyncracies and peccadilloes of the deceased.
In that regard, this Wall Street Journal ($) article examines the tradition of Cambridge University's King's College in regard to publishing obituaries of its alumni that, as the article puts it, reflect "an anthropological study of the eccentric ways of the British intelligentsia." For example, the Journal describes the obituary of the late novelist Simon Arthur Noel Raven, whose writing was described by some as "smut for its own sake":
At boarding school, "eventually his long-suffering headmaster had enough of his complete disregard for the school moral code and he was expelled in 1945 for what was euphemistically called 'the usual thing.'" Mr. Raven nevertheless secured admission to Cambridge, where, "although his preference was for boys and young men," he dabbled in heterosexuality and sired a child by a fellow student, the alumni report said. "He agreed to marry her to placate her family, on the understanding that he would never have to live with her."They divorced eventually, and he paid for their son's education. "He did not always, however, give [the boy's mother] the help that she needed. Famously, she once wired him when she was desperately short of cash, saying 'Wife and baby starving send money soonest.' He characteristically replied 'Sorry no money suggest eat baby.' "
Enjoy the entire piece.
Posted by Tom at 5:23 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Wal-Mart's health care finance problem
One of the often overlooked historical aspects of America's health care finance crisis is that employer-based medical insurance was largely non-existent until World War II. During the war, governmental wage and price controls prompted employers to offer medical insurance as a means to attract scarce labor without violating the wage controls. Employers quickly realized that such insurance was a cheaper way to attract labor than increasing wages, so the concept of employer-based medical insurance became a standard component of many American employers' compensation plans for employees over the past generation.
Well, as this NY Times article notes, the market distortion of substituting medical insurance for direct employee compensation has generally benefitted employers, but now rising health care costs are making employer-based medical insurance more expensive than simply paying employees direct compensation. The Times article notes the following about Wal-Mart, which employs a large number of low wage earners:
The Wal-Mart work force reflects a growing fear of many employers that the people who work for them are increasingly at risk for health problems. Many of Wal-Mart's employees are obese, the company says, and a result is rapidly rising numbers of cases of diabetes or heart disease. The prevalence of these diseases among Wal-Mart employees is increasing much faster than the national average, it says."The low-income population generally is not as healthy and does not engage as much in preventive care," said Diane Rowland, executive director of the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured. A risk that a company like Wal-Mart faces, especially when it competes with smaller retailers that offer no insurance at all, Ms. Rowland said, is attracting too many workers who want the job primarily for the health coverage.
Inasmuch as Wal-Mart pays its employees relatively low wages but provides a good employee medical insurance plan, the company is experiencing what economists call "adverse selection" -- as the value of the wage component of the Wal-Mart employee compensation package has declined relative to the value of the health insurance component, Wal-Mart is attracting an unhealthier class of workers who apply for job at Wal-Mart primarily for the generous medical insurance. Wal-Mart's management is attempting to reverse this trend by seeking to attract a healthier type of worker who is not seeking the job primarily for the medical insurance.
Nevertheless, the core of Wal-Mart's problem is the market distortion in the employee compensation system that derives from substituting employer-based medical insurance for direct compensation. Couple that market distortion with the equally misleading economic impact of having third-party insurers pay for most health care choices and you have gone a long way towards understanding the basis of America's flawed health care finance system. Alex Tabarrok has more on the issue over at Marginal Revolution.
Posted by Tom at 4:29 AM | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0)
October 30, 2005
2005 Weekly local football review
That's a huge sigh of relief that you are hearing from the South Main area as the Texans (1-6) avoided the real possibility of a 0-16 season with their win over the equally hapless Cleveland Browns (2-5). Amazingly, the Texans were able to pull out this field goal battle with only 237 yards of total offense, including 120 yards passing on David Carr's 10 completions on 20 attempts. Let's just say that I don't think that's a prescription for another victory next week in Jacksonville against the 4-3 Jaguars.
The Cowboys (5-3) continued to get stellar defensive play as they held the Cardinals (2-5) to just over 200 yards total offense in cruising to an easy victory. The Pokes needed a win in this one as they head into their bye week, after which they have to play three games in 11 days, including tough ones at Philadelphia against the Eagles (4-3) and at home against the Broncos (6-2).
Texas Longhorns 47 Oklahoma State 28
The 8-0 Horns fooled around for a half, but then Vince Young ran 80 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the second half and the Horns were off to the races against Okie State (3-5). The next junior varsity games for the Horns are at Waco against Baylor (4-4) and at home against Kansas (4-4). Then, it's the Horns rivalry game against A&M (5-3) on the day after Thanksgiving and hopefully a date in the Rose Bowl against USC for the national championship. Stay tuned.
That sinking sound you hear is coming from College Station, where the Aggies (5-3) were clobbered by an underrated Iowa State (5-3) team and now face games at 7-1 Texas Tech (the current 16.5 point line in favor of Tech is a good bet -- for Tech!), at Oklahoma (5-3), and at home against 8-0 Texas to close out the season. That 5-6 record that the Aggies are staring at is not what the Aggie faithful expected in Year III of the Coach Fran era. By the way, you can read about my experience trolling the sidelines in this game here.
The plucky Owls (0-7) scored three times after UTEP (6-1) turnovers in the second half and moved to the Miners' 3-yard line in the final minute after recovering on onside kick. But the Owls lost 2 yards on fourth down with a minute left and that iced the Owls' 13th straight loss. However, the Owls have a decent chance next Saturday at Dallas against 2-6 SMU, so keep your fingers crossed.
The Houston Cougars (4-3) were off this week and travel to Orlando next Saturday to play Central Florida (5-3). And, after a brief respite, Kevin Whited is back to summarizing all of the Big 12 Conference games from the past week over at PubliusTX.net.
Posted by Tom at 8:48 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
An afternoon on the sidelines at Kyle Field
On Saturday, I spent a beautiful Texas fall afternoon on the sidelines of Kyle Field in College Station to watch the Texas A&M Aggies host the Iowa State Cyclones in a Big 12 Conference football game.
Iowa State head football coach Dan McCarney and I grew up together in Iowa City, Iowa, where we were teammates on a championship high school football team at City High in 1970. We have remained close friends over the years, and so I have tried to attend each game in Texas that Iowa State plays since Coach Mac became head coach at Iowa State in 1994, and Coach Mac always comes through with a sideline pass for me to each of the games. The following are a few photos that I took Saturday afternoon as the 10.5 point underdog Cyclones steamrolled the Aggies 42-14 in front of over 86,000 rather disheartened Aggie fans.
The Corps "Steps Out". One of many fabulous traditions at A&M on gameday is when the A&M Corps of Cadets "Steps Out" of the Corps' dorm about two blocks away from Kyle Field. Precisely one hour and 45 minutes before kick-off, a cannon blast signals that the outstanding Fightin' Aggie Marching Band is beginning to lead the various Corps squadrons out of the dorm area as they parade down a boulevard to Kyle Field. Thousands of Aggie fans stand along the parade route and cheer the Band and the Corps members as they march toward Kyle Field. When they reach Kyle Field, the band and the Corps march into the stadium before the watchful eye of visiting dignitaries on a reviewing stand, which yesterday included former President Bush and Texas Governor Rick Perry. "Step Out," the parade, and "March In" are truly among the great college gameday traditions in all of college football.
Coach Mac chats with Coach Fran. Coach Mac and Texas Aggie Coach Fran (Dennis Franchione) engage in the traditional head coach pre-game chat at mid-field as both teams go through their pre-game warmups.
Coach Mac and Coach Fran are about the same age, but Coach Mac has been coaching in the Big 12 far longer (11 seasons) than Coach Fran, who is in his third season at A&M. Inasmuch as Coach Fran and his squad are going through a tough season, he's probably passing along his troubles to Coach Mac, who has plenty of experience in enduring tough seasons. By the way, that fellow below the two coaches is fixing something on the turf rather than tying Coach Mac's shoe.
An old quarterback shows he can still throw the pigskin. One of Iowa State's associate head coaches is Terry Allen, shown here throwing pregame warmup tosses to the Iowa State receivers. Terry's family lived across the street from my family while we grew up in Iowa City, although Terry is several years younger than Coach Mac and me, so he did not play ball with us in high school. However, Terry was quite a player, and he went on to be the starting quarterback for three seasons in the late 1970's for the University of Northern Iowa, where he eventually became a successful head football coach. Terry parlayed that success into the head coaching job at the University of Kansas during the early part of this decade, but he -- like many other coaches at that football coaching graveyard -- was fired after just a few seasons. Coach Mac hired Terry immediately and he has become a key member of the Iowa State staff.
Kyle Field is a very intimidating place to play. This is a photo of one of Iowa State's first plays during the game, which prompts me to comment on what it's like on the sidelines of Kyle Field when the visiting team has the ball. To put it gently . . .
IT IS VERY LOUD!
One of the A&M traditions is the 12th Man, which means that all students and many other Aggie fans stand during the entire game and make an incredible amount of noise while the visiting team is attempting to call its signals at the line of scrimmage. The effect of this din is disconcerting, to say the least, and most teams end up relying on hand signals to their wide receivers because of their inability to hear the signals that the quarterback is calling at the line of scrimmage. As a result, more illegal procedure penalties are generated from opponents at Kyle Field than any other venue in college football.
A key play in the game. Although I did not realize it when I was taking this picture, this play turned out to be a key one during the game. With A&M trailing 14-7 late in the first half, A&M's talented quarterback Reggie McNeal is dropping back to pass on the play, but is flushed by the Iowa State defensive line. The fleet McNeal took off done the far sideline, then cut back across the field and raced 65 yards for an apparent touchdown, except for those dreaded words . . .
"There was a flag on the play."
As you can see from this photo, directly in front of McNeal, an Aggie offensive lineman is holding Iowa State defensive lineman Nick Leaders, who has beaten the Aggie lineman badly on the play. That indiscretion cost A&M a game-tying touchdown and, frankly, the Ags never recovered.
The Fightin' Aggie Marching Band lines up for its halftime performance. The Aggie Marching Band is one of the great bands in college football, and this picture shows the band lining up for their halftime performance directly under A&M's "Zone" facility that looms over Kyle Field's north end zone. When the opposing team has the ball and is near the "Zone," the noise down on the field is absolutely deafening. A&M's master facility plan projects that a similar facility will eventually be built in the south end zone of Kyle Field, which will raise the stadium's capacity to 110-115,000.
The Aggie Band specializes in precision military marching drills and patriotic music (think John Phillip Sousa on steroids). My favorites -- the theme to the movie Patton, Noble Men of Kyle and the Strategic Air Command March.
The Tuba Pivot. A favorite part of the Aggie precision marching drills is the pivot that the tuba players make while turning during the drills. You have to see the Tuba Pivot to appreciate it fully, but take it from me -- the Aggie Tuba Corps is one precision outfit!
During the days of the now defunct Southwest Conference, the Aggie Band used to come to Houston each season when the Aggie football team played either Rice or the University of Houston. During those days, the Aggie Band and the Corps of Cadets used to parade down Main Street in downtown Houston the morning of their game against either Rice or UH, and the parade was always well-attended. That's a part of Texas football culture that I miss.
The Final Score. The scoreboard tells the story as the Cyclones beat the Aggies for the first time in eight games between the two schools. Inasmuch as it's highly unusual for Iowa State to beat A&M -- and even more unusual to hammer them at Kyle Field -- Coach Mac came over to me as the final seconds on the clock were winding down to commiserate for a moment before he had to rush off at the end of the game for the midfield handshake with Coach Fran, post-game interviews and his many other responsibilities.
It was a heartwarming moment as I embraced my old friend on the sidelines and congratulated him on his first win over the Aggies until . . . the Iowa State players decided to give Coach Mac the traditional celebratory ice-water dousing at that particular moment! As we both got drenched, Coach Mac and I had a good laugh as we parted, and it was all-in-all a satisfying -- albeit wet -- post-game ride back home to The Woodlands.
Posted by Tom at 6:42 PM | Comments (3) | TrackBack (3)
October 29, 2005
Is this all you've got?
This OpinionJournal editorial does an excellent job of sizing up Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald's indictment (pdf here) yesterday of Vice-President Cheney's Chief of Staff, I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby:
Sometime in May 2003, or slightly before, Nicholas Kristof, a columnist for the New York Times, was informed of Joe Wilson's 2002 trip to Niger to investigate claims that Saddam Hussein had attempted to buy yellowcake there. Mr. Kristof wrote a column, and Mr. Libby began to ask around, to determine why a Democratic partisan had been sent on such a sensitive mission in the run-up to the Iraq war. He allegedly learned in the course of his inquiries that Mr. Wilson's wife worked for the CIA.
Mr. Fitzgerald alleges that Mr. Libby informed Judith Miller of the New York Times about Mr. Wilson's wife in June, but she never wrote it up. In the meantime, Mr. Wilson went public with his own account of his mission and its outcome, without reference to his wife's employment or possible involvement in his trip.Mr. Libby also spoke to Mr. Cooper of Time about it, who did write it up, but only after Mr. Novak's column had run. In this same time period, he had a conversation with Mr. Russert, which may or may not have covered Mr. Wilson and his wife, depending on whom you believe.
So, we are left with this. Did Mr. Libby offer the truth about Mr. Wilson to Mr. Cooper "without qualifications," as Mr. Fitzgerald alleges, or did he merely confirm what Mr. Cooper had heard elsewhere? Did he, or did he not, discuss Mr. Wilson with Tim Russert at all?
So, let's review what we have here. Charges based on then innocuous discussions that occurred two years ago. Now, prosecutor Fitzgerald is pursuing a 30-year jail term and $1.25 million in fines against Mr. Libby based upon alleged inconsistencies between Mr. Libby's recollection of those discussions and those of the other participants in them.
Suffice it to say that I've seen stronger cases.
Finally, Ellen Podgor provides this good technical analysis of the perjury charges in the indictment.
Posted by Tom at 8:15 AM | Comments (8) | TrackBack (0)
October 28, 2005
Richard Smalley, R.I.P.
World-renowed Rice University chemistry, physics and astronomy professor, Richard E. Smalley, died today at the age of 62. The Chronicle's Eric Berger provides an excellent obituary of Professor Smalley, who was one of the best of Houston's numerous fine scientists. Among his numerous awards, Professor Smalley won the 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
Eric's obituary passes along a fine anecdote about Professor Smalley's Nobel award banquet that had been passed around Houston professional and business circles for years:
The chairman of Rice's board of governors at the time [that Smalley was awarded the Nobel], William Barnett, recalled Smalley agonizing over whom to give the 10 tickets he had received for the awards banquet in Sweden. Barnett said Smalley gave two to his son, Chad, who later told his father he was bringing his mom, one of Smalley's ex-wives. Smalley had three."I think his reaction was, 'Oh lord, now I've got to ask the other one,'" Barnett said. "The Swedes were so taken with this, the joke going around the banquet was that they were going to tell Rick, if they had only known this in advance, they would have awarded him the peace prize as well."
Posted by Tom at 4:41 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (2)
Protectors of the Krispy Kreme Brand
The travails of Krispy Kreme over the past couple of years have been a common subject of posts here, so it is worth noting that some Southern California-based Krispy Kreme franchisees have started a blog about the company and its problems called Protectors of the Krispy Kreme Brand (introductory post here). Gotta love those Spiderman Krispy Kreme doughnuts! ;^)
Posted by Tom at 11:16 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Hold on to your wallets
Almost on cue with the latest round of energy company earnings announcements, our political leaders in Washington -- both Democrats and Republicans -- signaled their intent to attempt to demonize the energy industry for political gain and, in so doing, make it more difficult for markets to respond to the current limited supplies of oil, natural gas, and refined products.
This really is utterly amazing. Sen. Bill Frist (R., Tenn.), the Senate majority leader, asked the chairmen of three Senate committees to investigate high energy prices and declared that he might support a federal anti-price gouging law.
Meanwhile, Energy Secretary Samuel W. Bodman advised a Senate committee that the Bush administration is considering taking steps to create a stockpile of refined products like gasoline, diesel and jet fuel that would require the industry to set aside stocks of a variety of fuels that could be tapped in future crises. In other words, Secretary Bodman is showing government's usual tendency to make matters worse and more expensive by buying limited supplies of oil products at their currently high price. And this policy is supposed to be a stabilizing force in the energy market?
Mr. Bodman did recommend that the energy industry increase its spending on refining to ease the capacity crunch that has contributed to the recent increase in prices for refined products. However, at almost the same time, Senate Democrats on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee engineered a deadlock on that committee over a Republican proposal to streamline federal and state permit procedures for companies that want to build refineries or expand plants.
Finally, despite the cyclical nature of the energy business and the need for reinvestment of energy company profits into drilling and exploration for new supplies of energy, politicians are already talking about instituting a windfall profits tax on the industry to make such investment even more expensive and difficult.
Hopefully, our pocketbooks can survive all this nonsense.
Posted by Tom at 5:56 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)
Epstein on Bork's Originalism
In this previous post, former Solicitor General and unsuccessful Supreme Court nominee Robert H. Bork provided a handy shorthand description of the judicial philosophy of originalism. In a letter to Wall Street Journal's ($) editor yesterday, Richard A. Epstein -- the James Parker Hall Distinguished Service Professor of Law at the University of Chicago and the Peter and Kirsten Bedford Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution (previous post here) -- provides an equally tidy explanation of the primary criticism of the originalist approach to interpreting the Constitution:
[Mr. Bork] is wrong to assume that his brand of originalism is the preferred form of constitutional interpretation, much less the only means to combat inherent tendency of left-wing judges to improperly expand the scope of judicial power.
First, the best modes of interpretation do not rely on an assortment of secondary texts that detract attention from the text and structure of the Constitution. Why buy into endless disputes over which newspaper said what when standard dictionaries and contemporary usage can often lead to clearer results. The best readings of the Commerce Clause take only the common usage of the term -- trade as opposed to manufacture -- without reliance on the words of a single drafter or ratifier. It was for good reason that the ratification debates were not published when the Constitution was drafted. It had to stand on its own.Second, structural considerations often require us to go beyond the text, but in principled fashion. The Constitution prohibits a tax on imports. Chief Justice Marshall rightly extended that protection to cover taxes on importers designed to circumvent a rule intended to preserve a national market. He was right to do so without any explicit blessing from the Framers.
Finally, there is no necessary reason to think that faithful constitutional interpretation leads to an expansion of legislative power. That is not true with the Commerce Clause, nor should it be true in dealing with such matters as economic regulation or abortion. Mr. Bork is much closer to the mark on abortion in Roe v. Wade because any sensible interpretation of the police power (not found in the written Constitution) would include the protection of innocent life. But he is wrong on the 10-hour work-day in Lochner v. New York, where the police power should not be allowed to advance protectionists' economic regime.
Our Constitution is a charter for economic liberty and limited government. It contains no full-throated endorsement of popular democracy at either the federal or state level.
Thus, in matters of Constitutional interpretation, be wary of labels. A strict originalist approach that overly restricts judicial activism can lead to as much injustice as the opposite extreme. Indeed, a lack of judicial activism has been at the root of the appalling lack of judicial intervention that we have seen over the past several years as numerous judges have failed to uphold the Constitution's balance of power and rein in the executive branch's dubious criminalization of business during the post-Enron era.
Consequently, criticism of judicial activism and advocacy of strict constructionism is often merely a political front for deference to the abusive exercise of state power. For example, the Supreme Court's recent unanimous decision in the Arthur Andersen was judicial activism being used to right an injustice, albeit better late than never. On the other hand, the Supreme Court's recent decision in Kelo v. The City of New London could easily be construed as an example of originalist deference to legislative action where judidial activism was desperately needed to prevent the courts from eviserating the text and purposes of the "Public Use" Clause.
Posted by Tom at 5:21 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Well, at least no one outside Houston and Chicago watched
The White Sox's four-game World Series sweep over the Stros generated the lowest television ratings on record for the Series, and resulted in the Fox television network not meeting its ratings guarantees to sponsors. The World Series averaged about 17.2 million viewers and drew a record low rating of 11.1 (A rating point represents approximately 1.1 million homes), which is a 30% decline from the 25.4 million viewers and 15.8 rating that the Boston Red Sox-St. Louis Cardinals Series averaged last season.
Frankly, the numbers aren't particularly surprising. Neither the White Sox nor the Stros have a national fan base such as Fox enjoyed in last season's Series with the Red Sox. Moreover, the Stros' Roger Clemens -- who pitched a total of two innings -- was the only well-known star in the Series. Finally, comparing ratings from recent Series with those of even more than five years ago can be a bit similar to comparing apples and oranges. The increase in television entertainment choices has diluted ratings for all special programs such as the Series, reflected by the fact that the ratings for this Series were still 50% higher than the prime time average of NBC, CBS and ABC combined this season. Interestingly, Fox was still able to charge $350,000 for each 30-second commercial spot this season, which was up from $330,000 it charged last season.
Posted by Tom at 5:00 AM | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
October 27, 2005
Former Seitel CEO sentenced
The former CEO of Houston-based geophysical seismic company Seitel, Inc. -- 58 year old Paul Frame, Jr. -- was sentenced today in federal court to over five years in federal prison for converting $750,000 from the company to fund a settlement of a civil lawsuit filed by a former fiancee. Here are previous posts on Seitel and Mr. Frame's case, and here is the Chronicle story on the sentencing.
Posted by Tom at 1:39 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Unconstructive criticism
Kevin Whited over at blogHouston.net is one of the most insightful local bloggers on matters relating to football. In this post, he observes that John McClain -- the Chronicle's main beat writer on the National Football League for many years -- is a rarity among Houston media types in now suggesting that Houston Texans owner Bob McNair ought to fire General Manager Charlie Casserly along with Texans Head Coach Dom Capers for the Texans' miserable 0-6 start to the 2005 season. Kevin notes that Mr. McClain's criticism of Mr. Casserly is unusual in comparison to the normally fawning treatment that most local sports media types give to the personable and media-savvy Texans General Manager.
Kevin makes a valid point, but what I would like to know is Mr. McClain's explanation for his sudden turnabout -- as late as the pre-season this year, he was also one of the local media types who was fawning over Mr. Casserly and the Texans. For example, check out the following from Mr. McClain's July 24, 2005 column entitled "Playoffs on minds of Texans: Players to put gear for start of camp:"
For the first time in the four-year history of the franchise, the Texans enter training camp as a playoff contender.While it probably is unfair to expect them to win the AFC South when they never have defeated Indianapolis, it is not too much for fans to expect them to contend for a wild-card berth after the Texans swept Jacksonville and Tennessee last year on the way to a 7-9 record.
This particular article is not unusual. Mr. McClain wrote dozens of similar articles over the past four years in which he breathlessly extolled the virtues of Mr. Casserly and the Texans' front office as he trumpeted the Texans' party line that the team was becoming an NFL playoff contender. Not until the Texans began this season with one of the most devastatingly bad string of performances in recent NFL memory has Mr. McClain began to make the rather obvious point that the Texans do not have enough frontline NFL-quality players and that the players that they do have are not performing well. Ergo the criticism of Mr. Casserly and Coach Capers.
However, what I want to know is this -- how has Mr. Casserly bamboozled experts such as Mr. McClain for all this time? The Texans did not become this bad overnight, although the team did show steady improvement during its first three seasons. Where is Mr. McClain's admission that he and other "experts" at the Chronicle were wrong in gobbling up Mr. Casserly's blather over the past several years that the team was being built "the right way." Rather than taking the easy way out, I would like to read an article by Mr. McClain that is based on thorough research that details the personnel choices of Mr. Casserly, compares those choices to alternatives that were available at the time of such choices, and analyzes why the choices that were made have come together to make the Texans the laughingstock of the NFL.
That type of article is much more difficult to prepare than one that simply observes that Mr. Casserly and Coach Capers ought to be fired. However, it is a much more honest approach to the Texans and one that will contribute something constructive to an otherwise desultory season for Houston's long-suffering supporters of professional football.
Posted by Tom at 7:45 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Reflections on the 2005 World Series
Well, for Stros fans, the end of the 2005 World Series certainly did not turn out not to be as fulfilling as the ride to get there.
Nevertheless, the past two days have been a ton of fun and filled with exciting, nailbiting baseball. This was not your typical World Series sweep as each of the four games went down to the wire and could have literally gone either way. The White Sox are the better team overall and clearly deserve to be World Champions, but the Stros certainly made them earn it.
Interestingly, the first 24 innings of the Series generated more runs than expected from these two relatively weak hitting and strong pitching clubs -- the Sox scored 17 runs and the Stros 13. However, the final innings of the Series reverted to the expected form -- the White Sox scored a total of 3 runs in their final 18 innings, yet won Games 3 and 4 because the Stros scored only 1 run on 6 hits (four singles and two doubles) in their final 19 innings. In the end, the Sox slightly superior bullpen depth and better overall hitting performance in the Series was the difference.
The atmosphere at Minute Maid Park each night was electric and quite an experience. The weather for each game was absolutely perfect, and the capacity crowds both nights stood for a good part of each tantalizing game. There is nothing quite like the concentrated excitement of attending a Major League Baseball playoff game. And, by the way, Houston's own Lyle Lovett performed in his typically classy manner during Game 4 while singing an absolutely superb rendition of "God Bless America" during the 7th inning stretch.
So, now it's on to what will be a busy and eventful off-season for the Stros. The club faces the probable retirement of two of its future Hall of Famers -- Roger Clemens and Jeff Bagwell -- while accomodating the aging veteran Craig Biggio on his quest for 3,000 hits (it will probably take him two more seasons to achieve that record). The club faces big question marks in left field, catcher, and in its starting pitching after Roy O and Andy Pettitte, but Brandon Backe put on another outstanding playoff pitching performance in Game 4 and the Stros have a host of young arms in their minor league system that are close to MLB quality at this point. So, continued solid Stros pitching appears to be a reasonable expectation.
However, the continuation of the downward trend in the Stros' overall hitting remains a knawing problem, so I am hopeful that the club's futility in that area during the World Series will prompt the Stros to be active participants in the trade and free agent markets this off-season. The Berkman-Oswalt-Ensberg nucleus is basically sound, but upgrades in hitting are probably essential if the club is going to contend for another pennant and World Series berth in 2006.
That said, this was an improbable and wonderful season for the Stros organization. I was one of the few who predicted before the season that this club could contend for the playoffs, but even an optimist such as me had no inkling that this club would battle toe-to-toe for the World Series Championship. This Stros club has a big collective heart, and this season has proven that such a heart is every bit as important as the ability it supports.
It was a great run, Stros. Thanks for letting us ride along.
Posted by Tom at 12:14 AM | Comments (9) | TrackBack (0)
October 26, 2005
"Uh, remember that hurricane damage? Never mind"
Given what I endured last night, I'm in the mood for some disaster news.
As noted in this earlier post, BP Global had been going through a difficult stretch earlier this year when Hurricane Dennis (remember that one?) apparently caused the near total collapse of its huge $1 billion Thunder Horse Drilling Platform in the Gulf of Mexico.
Well, never mind about that hurricane excuse.
BP has announced that the collapse was the result of "human error" rather than damage from the hurricane:
"After a thorough investigation, we have concluded that it was not storm-related, but was caused by a design weakness in the ballast system," Lord Browne of Madingley, BP's chief executive, said.
Translation: "Attention insurers! Grab your wallets!"
Posted by Tom at 11:00 AM | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)
Light blogging
Blogging will be on the light side today because I didn't get home last night until quite late, . . er, make that early.
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October 25, 2005
In defense of urban sprawl
Robert Bruegmann is a professor of architecture, art history and urban planning at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he is chair of the art history department. He is also a well-regarded author on the issue of suburban growth and is the author of the recent book Sprawl: A Compact History (UChicago Press 2005). In this LA Times op-ed (free reg required), Professor Bruegmann challenges the conventional wisdom that Los Angeles is the epitome of urban sprawl run amok and that the northeastern metro areas are paragons of sound urban planning:
Los Angeles is not a particularly good example of urban sprawl. Take the part about being unplanned. The truth is that New York, Chicago and most of the older American cities had their greatest growth before there was anything resembling real public planning; the most basic American land planning tool, zoning, did not come into widespread use until the 1920s.L.A., by contrast, was one of the country's zoning pioneers. It has had most of its growth since the 1920s, during a period when planning was already important, and particularly since World War II, when California cities have been subject to more planning than cities virtually anywhere else in the country.
Professor Bruegmann proceeds to point out that the density of the Los Angeles region has increased dramatically in the post World War II era as the density of the northeastern U.S. metro areas has plummeted, and that such increase in density has occurred during a time when Los Angelinos were becoming more automobile dependent rather than less. In fact, Professor Brudgmann notes that the growing congestion in the Los Angeles region is not so much a result of urban sprawl, but of increasing density of population coupled with too few miles of freeway per capita in L.A. compared with most other U.S. urban areas. He concludes by observing why these facts often do not make a dent in the conventional wisdom:
Of course, none of these objections to standard wisdom are likely to sway many highbrow critics of sprawl. Their desire to see L.A. as sprawl and therefore as not truly urban is based less on rational analysis than on subjective aesthetic judgments and class resentment.But there are major problems with their position. First, there is considerable room for doubt that sprawl is necessarily the major problem that many anti-sprawl crusaders believe it to be. But, in any case, Los Angeles is not a good model of sprawl. The urban area of New York or Boston, for example, each surrounded by a huge low-density penumbra, would make a better poster child for sprawl than the dispersed but relatively dense and compact Los Angeles.
Read the entire piece. Hat tip to Peter Gordon for the link to Professor Bruegmann's op-ed.
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The Frasier Lawsuit
In many respects, investment in an entertainment project is similar to investment in an oil and gas well. Often, individuals involved in putting together such a project negotiate "sweat equity" in the form of a "back-in working interest" -- i.e., an interest in the net profits of the project after payment of all expenses of creating and maintaining the project.
The agents involved in putting together the popular Paramount Pictures' television sitcom Frasier cut such a deal with Paramount and, after the show ran for 11 seasons and grossed over $1.5 billion, it looked like they had made a pretty good deal. When the agents demanded an accounting from Paramount regarding their back-in interest, Paramount responded by asserting that the show had never reached profitability and had actually lost $200 million. Lawsuit ensues, as this L.A. Times article reports.
This type of lawsuit is becoming increasingly common in Hollywood, as reflected by this earlier post about Peter Jackson's lawsuit over the Lord of the Rings movies. And you thought the oil and gas business was hard-knuckled?
Hat tip to Craig Newmark for the link to the LA Times article.
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Wilma devastates Cancun
If you were thinking about a holiday vacation in the popular Mexican resorts of Cancun or Cozumel, then you better start considering other alternatives.
As predicted earlier here, reports are now confirming that Hurricane Wilma devastated the Cancun and Cozumel hotels and shopping areas that are at the heart of Mexico's tourism industry. Hotels in the area will not open for the Christmas season because of the extensive damage, and early indications are that the area will not be in a position to take on large numbers of tourists until at least Easter weekend in 2006. Marriott International Inc. closed its three resorts in Cancun until at least the end of December and the Ritz-Carlton Cancun said it was closing and not taking reservations until the New Year. The two Hyatt Regency hotels will also be closed for at least a month. Hotel damage in Quintana Roo state -- where both Cancun and Cozumel are located -- is currently estimated at $1.5 billion.
Posted by Tom at 3:38 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
October 24, 2005
What really happened at Refco?
Those of us who have been following the Refco case are familiar with the allegations that have brought the big securities trader to its knees in bankruptcy -- Refco's former CEO, Phillip R. Bennett, hid ties to the bad debt to improve Refco's balance sheet and mislead investors. The theory of the case against Mr. Bennett is that he assumed about $430 million in bad debts of Refco -- some of which arose years ago -- that let Refco avoid reducing net income and wiping out nearly all of the company's profits for the past three years. The alleged purpose of hiding the losses was to facilitate Refco's recent IPO and an earlier deal in which Thomas H. Lee Partners LP acquired a controlling interest in Refco. For his part, Mr. Bennett has denied wrongdoing, and his lawyer has said that his client will fight the charges.
Despite the superficial allure of criminal charges against crafty businessmen, I remain skeptical of criminal cases against anyone until I truly understand them, and the post-Enron era of the government playing to the public's resentment of wealthy business executives has only reinfored my skepticism. So, I continue to look for a coherent explanation of the details behind the government's above-described theory of the case against Mr. Bennett, and this NY Times article comes closest to date of actually breaking down the transactions on which the government's indictment of Mr. Bennett is based. However, even the Times' explanation is not clear:
At the start of every quarter, Refco Capital Markets would extend loans to several hedge funds, including Liberty Corner Capital Strategies. The hedge funds would pay interest on those loans, which was recorded in Refco's financial documents and whose existence was confirmed, every quarter that it was checked, by Refco's auditor.The next two steps were not apparent to the auditor a few days into the quarter: a loan from the hedge funds to RGHI, Mr. Bennett's company, and effectively a second loan, from Refco to RGHI. Mr. Bennett's company used the loan to repay the hedge funds, plus interest. Before the end of the quarter, the hedge funds would repay the obligation to Refco. The effect of the transaction was to convert, for bookkeeping purposes, an obligation by RGHI to Refco into an obligation by the hedge funds to Refco every time an auditor might look. But during the quarter, RGHI held the obligation to Refco.
O.K., so let's break this down:
RGHI owes money to Refco;Refco makes loan 1 to the hedge fund;
Then, hedge fund makes loan 2 to RGHI;
Refco then makes loan 3 to RGHI;
RGHI uses the proceeds from loan 3 to pay the hedge fund for loan 2; and
Then the hedge fund uses the proceeds from the loan 2 repayment to repay loan 1 to Refco.
Got it?
There's just one big problem with the Times' explanation -- loan 3 from Refco to RGHI remains outstanding. The Times' explanation confuses repayment of loan 1 with repayment of loan 3. Consequently, based upon the Times' explanation of what occurred, Refco had a loan to RGHI -- "Mr. Bennett's company" -- that should have been reflected as a loan to an insider on the company's financial statements.
So, what again is exactly the fraud here? I await further clarification, and the original complaint against Mr. Bennett does not provide much.
By the way, Dale Oesterle, a contract law professor at Ohio State, notes in this post that Refco and Mr. Bennett's fate likely would have been far different had the company not gone public. Similarly, Larry Ribstein points out that, if Mr. Bennett really did commit a fraud at Refco, a loophole in the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation wasn't the reason he was able to do so.
Posted by Tom at 7:08 AM | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)
Hurricane Katrina's real economic impact becoming clearer
The damage from Hurricane Katrina to the Gulf of Mexico's oil and gas production facilities has had a huge impact on national and international oil and gas markets over the past two months. However, from a regional standpoint, the biggest economic impact from Katrina has been the loss of thousands of jobs, particularly in small businesses. A couple of recent articles reporting on the latest governmental statistics and reports from lending institutions provide a clearer picture of the extent of the economic carnage.
Two NY Times articles (here and here) from last week report on the extraordinary job losses in the Gulf Coast region resulting from the hurricane and the effect that such job loss is having on cities and financial institutions in the region. Louisiana and Mississippi lost a combined total of 310,000 jobs in September, which raised their unemployment rates to a United States high of 11.5% and 9.6% respectively. These are staggering job losses for the region, and since most the losses are attributable to small businesses that were either uninsured or underinsured in regard to damage from the hurricane, the restoration of those jobs will be a painfully slow process.
Meanwhile, the double whammy of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita are expected to result in at least $1.3 billion in bad loans for major financial institutions in the Gulf Coast region battered by the storms. While most of the damage came from probably uncollectible loans to now-defunct businesses and consumers who lost their jobs as a result of the storms, the banks also lost substantial revenue from fees and interest that were waived to ease the financial pressure on storm victims.
Hibernia Corp. was the hardest hit as it reported a third-quarter loss of $58.1 million (37 cents a share) compared with year-earlier profit of $76.5 million. Hibernia reported that the two storms cost it almost $200 million in the latest quarter, including a charge of $175 million to boost loan loss reserve. Hibernia also suffered another $35 million in property damage, a quarter of which was uninsured. Similarly, Citigroup Inc., which is the largest U.S. bank by stock-market capitalization, had $3.6 billion in loans in the Gulf Coast region and the bank announced last week that it expects $375 million of those loans -- mostly consumer credit -- not to be repaid.
New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region will slowly regain a portion of its lost jobs over the next 6-12 months as the region's tourist business rebounds with the repair of convention and casino facilities. However, my sense is that a substantial portion of the jobs lost in the New Orleans area are gone forever. As a result, New Orleans business officials need to be concerned much more with promoting policies that will encourage job growth in their city than worrying about costly and unproductive (at least from a jobs standpoint) frivolities.
Posted by Tom at 5:31 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
The economics of deferred obligations
Chronicle business columnist Loren Steffy wrote this interesting column over the weekend that includes excerpts from an old interview with business restructuring expert Steve Miller, who is currently managing the reorganization of Delphi as its CEO.
The reorganization of Delphi is considered a precursor of the almost inevitable larger reorganization of its former parent General Motors and other large American companies -- not to mention the federal government's Social Security and Medicare programs -- that are burdened with huge unfunded pension and retiree health care costs. Mr. Miller sums up the basic problem well in describing the similar problems that he confronted in one of his former reorganization projects, Bethlehem Steel:
In 1960, when [Bethlehem Steel] adopted a lot of its benefit programs, the company had 100,000 workers and about 12,000 retirees. Promising them pensions and health care benefits for life seemed, at best, a distant worry.More than 40 years later, Bethlehem, by then in bankruptcy, had 12,000 employees and 130,000 retirees and dependents. The math no longer worked.
Read the entire article.
Posted by Tom at 5:05 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
2005 Weekly local football review
Texas Longhorns 52 Texas Tech 17
Texas QB Vince Young didn't really have all that good a game, yet Texas (7-0) rolls over formerly undefeated Tech (6-1), anyway. The fact that Tech is arguably the second-best team in the Big 12 this season underscores just how better the Longhorns are than anyone else in the conference. The Horns now have the equivalent of junior varsity games the next three weeks against Oklahoma State, Baylor and Kansas before closing the regular season with its rivalry game against Texas A&M.
Texas Aggies 30 Kansas State 28
Although Kansas State's (4-3) program has trended downward over the past couple of seasons, this was still an important road victory for the Ags, who find themselves at 5-2 even after a disappointing first half of the season. Unfortunately for the Ags, they host a tough Iowa State (4-3) team this week, then go to Tech and Oklahoma before finishing the season at home against the Longhorns. The Ags could lose all of those games, which would not go over well in Aggieland.
Texans QB David Carr was 6 of 9 passing for 48 yards while being sacked 5 times for 42 yards in losses and scrambling for 35 yards on five carries. He also had one interception, which was returned 20 yards. Thus, out of roughly 20 pass plays called in the game, the Texans netted a total of 21 yards. On the other hand, the Texans had 133 yards on 33 running plays. The inescapable conclusion gleaned from this data is that the Texans should simply eschew the innovation of the forward pass altogether and convert to the Wishbone offense. The 0-7 Texans have a rare chance for a victory next Sunday at home against the almost equally hapless Cleveland Browns (2-4).
The Pokes (4-3) lost one like the Stros in this one by giving up 10 points in the last 40 seconds. The Cowboys really got screwed as they dominated the game defensively, but were denied a probable late touchdown that would have put the game away when the referees inexplicably picked up a defensive holding flag on a third down play near the Seattle goal line where the Seahawk defender clearly attempted to tackle Cowboy TE Jason Whitten during his route. The Big Tuna not only chewed out the officiating staff on the field after that call, but also whacked in full view of the television cameras one of his own staff members who attempted to get in his two cents during the rhubarb. Assuming that defense continues playing in such a dominate fashion, the Cowboys should be O.K. as they have their off week in between relatively easy games against Arizona and Detroit, and a tough one at Philadelphia, over the next month.
Houston Cougars 28 Mississippi State 16
Even a win over a bad Southeastern Conference team is a big step forward for the inconsistent Cougars (4-3), who are still hoping for a minor bowl bid this season. The Coogs are off this week before closing at Central Florida (4-3) and then at home against SMU, Southern Mississippi, and Rice.
The Owls (0-7) death march to a possible 0-11 season continued as a very solid Navy team -- led by its colorful coach Paul Johnson -- trampled the Owls at Rice Stadium before 12,000 friends and family members. Mike Price and UTEP get to pad their stats against the Owls next.
Posted by Tom at 3:58 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
October 23, 2005
Longhorn football and Harriet Miers
Here's a good trivia question for your next tailgate party this football season -- What's the connection between Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers and Texas Longhorn football?
Larry Ribstein has the story about Ms. Miers' involvement in her former firm's settlement of claims arising from its representation of former All-American Longhorn placekicker, Russell Erxleben.
Posted by Tom at 8:11 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (1)
October 22, 2005
The Stros' ride to the World Series
As you prepare to watch for Game 1 of the 2005 World Series tonight, take a few minutes to review the previous posts set forth below that chronicle the Stros' improbable and highly enjoyable run to the club's first World Series:
The first off-season moves, including the logic behind letting Jeff Kent go;
After nine years, Stros General Manager Gerry Hunsiker resigns and Mickey Herskowitz provides historical perspective on the Stros' GM's;
The Stros lose out on Carlos Beltran and why they were wise to let him go;
New Stros GM Tim Purpura's first big challenge;
The Stros re-sign the remarkable Roy O to a new contract;
Joe Sheehan of Baseball Prospectus dumps on the Stros at the beginning of spring training;
If you really want to appreciate the Stros, then read this;
The Stros re-sign their main raker, Lance Berkman;
2005 Stros Season Preview -- I go against the grain and predict that the Stros will contend for a playoff spot;
As of May 1st, things are about as expected as the Stros wait for Berkman to return;
Ten days later, things are not looking good;
A week later, things look even worse as Bags opts for shoulder surgery;
By the end of May, glimmers of hope because of the remarkable Rocket;
By mid-June, the Stros are streaking;
Bidg sets another record;
What a difference a year makes -- checking in with the Stros at the halfway point;
By late July, the Stros are hanging in and finishing off another impressive streak;
Morgan Ensberg's remarkable season, why Willy Taveras should not be Rookie of the Year, and Mike Lamb's tough season;
Even as late as September 5th, it's not looking good for the Stros' playoff chances, but Bidg changes the momentum with one mighty yak in Philadelphia;
Remembering former Stros owner, the late John McMullen;
The Stros enter the stretch run, close in and then Whew!
The remarkable Mr. Biggio;
A new Stros fan;
Stros and White Sox are cost-effective winners;
Stros beat the Braves in the NLDS after the longest playoff game in history;
It's not easy being a Stros fan and Houston's legacy of sports disasters;
Peaches, Baby!
The cultural aspects of baseball in Chicago;
and, last, but not least the
The 2005 World Series Preview.
Batter up!
Update: There is no joy in Mudville, but it was one heckuva ride!
Posted by Tom at 11:50 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Wilma devastates Cancun and Cozumel
Hurricane Wilma came ashore yesterday afternoon directly on the popular Mexican resort communities of Cozumel and Cancun as a devastating category 4 storm. Although damage reports are still skimpy because of poor communications to the area, there is high probability that both of these communities and the surrounding area will suffer catastrophic damage that in some cases will take years to rebuild. Suffice it to say that this area will not likely be in a position to accomodate tourists for an extended period of time. Jeff Masters puts the situation in perspective:
Wilma's landfall will bring enormous devastation to the 40 to 70 mile wide section of coast exposed to the intense winds of the hurricane's eyewall. A long period of calm lasting up to seven hours will accompany the passage of the slow-moving eye. During the next two days, Wilma will move very slowly over or just offshore the Yucatan. This will expose structures in the hurricane zone to very long duration hurricane force winds, likely making Wilma Mexico's most expensive hurricane disaster ever. Wilma's rains will add to the misery, reaching 20 inches or more over not just the Yucatan, but the western tip of Cuba as well.
Although the current track of the storm into Florida on Monday is still unclear, the current predictions are that it will not be a major hurricane (cat 3 or above) by the time that it makes landfall in Florida. That's good news for Florida and the U.S., but not much consolation for our friends in Mexico.
Posted by Tom at 4:50 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
Oscar Wyatt indicted in Oil-for-Food scandal
Colorful Houston oilman Oscar Wyatt -- who was once described as a businessman who would not be afraid of dealing with the Devil himself -- was arrested yesterday morning in Houston and charged in New York with bribing Iraqi officials in a scheme to corrupt the United Nations oil-for-food program. Earlier posts on Mr. Wyatt's connection to the scandal are here and here and a copy of the indictment -- which is so poorly written as to be nearly incomprehensible -- is here. Mr. Wyatt has been released after posting bail of $2.5 million.
The indictment against Mr. Wyatt is an expansion of another federal case that was brought in April against David B. Chalmers Jr., president of Houston-based Bay Oil USA Inc. The indictment against Mr. Wyatt also names two Swiss business executives -- Cathy Miguel and Mohameed Saidji, who are accused of conspiring with Wyatt. Under the indictment, the 81 year old Mr. Wyatt faces a potential jail term of at least 60 years and the threat that the Justice Department will attempt to freeze a substantial amount of his assets.
Mr. Wyatt was a controversial supporter of Saddam Hussein and an acerbic critic of President George H.W. Bush's decision to liberate Kuwait and invade Iraq during Operation Desert Storm in 1991. The indictment alleges that Mr. Wyatt arranged for his first Iraqi oil as chairman of Coastal Corporation in 1996 under the U.N. Oil for Food Program, and that Mr. Wyatt allegedly arranged illegal payments over the next four years to front companies and bank accounts that Hussein controlled. In return for the alleged bribes, Mr. Wyatt, who was allegedly aided by the two Swiss businessmen, arranged to receive millions of barrels of oil from Iraq. Mr. Wyatt later engineered the sale of Coastal to El Paso Corporation in 2001.
Posted by Tom at 4:15 AM | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)
October 21, 2005
A truly scary thought -- Metro morphs into real estate developer
The Chronicles Nancy Sarnoff writes in this article about the Metropolitan Transit Authority's latest venture to do something other than what it is chartered to do, which is to provide a flexible and effective mass transit system for citizens of the Houston metropolitan area:
[Metro] has selected Houston-based Transwestern Commercial Services to build [a $105 million building above the transit center on Fannin near the Medical Center], which could include condominiums, a hotel, office and retail space in the Texas Medical Center.
Metro hopes the project will increase ridership, create a neighborhood-friendly sense of place and generate revenue from its real estate assets."We want to do things where people can live, work and play that enhance their quality of life," said Todd Mason, vice president of real estate services for Metro.
The development plan calls for a 175-room hotel, 30 condominiums, 35,000 square feet of shops 168,000 square feet of medical office space and a 15,000-square-foot wellness center.
Transwestern and Metro will spend the next year looking for a hotel operator and tenants to fill the space.
Chip Clarke, president of Transwestern's southern region, said the project details are "fluid" and that its ultimate uses will be driven by the market.
Construction, which could take three years to complete, is expected to begin in the second half of 2006.
The article goes on to describe how Metro plans similar projects for other parts of the light rail line.
H'mm. We already know that Metro does not perform particularly well a