Daily Archives: December 26, 2005

That sinking Galveston feeling

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galveston.gifDon’t allow the publication on Christmas Day of this important Eric Berger/Chronicle story entitled “Rising Growth, Sinking Fortunes” about erosion on Galveston Island. Berger, who is the Chronicle’s SciGuy, consistently generates many of the local newspaper’s most insightful research articles:

GALVESTON – Geology has aligned its forces against this narrow strip of land, causing it to sink a few inches more every decade.
Though subsidence has caused much of the sinking in recent decades, it’s not the only culprit. If oceans continue to warm as expected, sea-level rise could cripple much of the island by century’s end. And as the waters rise, waves, tides and especially tropical storms will wash ever more sand away.
This might be little more than an academic exercise for geologists and conservationists but for one fact: Galveston Island, with 60,000 residents, is booming. It’s impossible to drive along the island’s West End without passing construction trucks. Six developers have planned or begun building residential communities.
Unfortunately, this low-lying West End, beyond the reach of the protective seawall, will feel the problems of subsidence, sea-level rise and coastal erosion soonest.

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Comparing urban boondoggles

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boondoggle logo.jpgTory Gattis asks the right questions regarding Houston’s latest proposed urban boondoggle, but it’s at least somewhat comforting to know that other cities are pondering even bigger boondoggles.
In Chicago, Mayor Richard Daley is floating a plan to build a new $1 billion dollar domed stadium to attract a second NFL team, the Super Bowl, the 2016 Olympic Games, the NCAA Final Four, and perhaps an unending string of monster truck shows to the Windy City. Brad Humphreys over at the Sports Economist comments on the absurdity of this proposal:

For those with short attention spans, Soldier Field, home of the NFL’s Chicago Bears, underwent a $365 million dollar publicly financed renovation in 2002. But someone forgot to enlarge Soldier Field and build a roof during the renovation. Its 61,500 seat capacity is second smallest in the NFL, and too small to host the opening and closing ceremonies at the Olympics.

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What’s the deal with Richard Justice?

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richard justice2.gifChronicle sportswriter Richard Justice — who still has a difficult time accepting Stros owner Drayton McLane’s decision of over a year ago not to retain former Stros GM Gerry Hunsicker — rarely misses an opportunity to slam McLane and current Stros GM Tim Purpura, even during the Christmas season.
In today’s broadside, Justice castigates McLane and Purpura for everything from raising ticket prices to firing former Stros broadcaster Alan Ashby, and then levels the following criticism about the Stros’ off-season personnel decisions:

If people keep reminding Tim Purpura he has been on the job 14 months without acquiring a player of consequence, he’s going to feel compelled to do something stupid.
Maybe that’s why he offered Nomar Garciaparra $6 million. That’s a lot of money for a player out much of the last two seasons with injuries. Truth is, a left-field platoon of Luke Scott and Chris Burke might be as productive as Garciaparra.
Maybe that’s also why there are reports Purpura would be willing to trade Brad Lidge.
If Purpura had signed Garciaparra, the next move should have been docking him a month’s pay. If he trades Lidge, he should be fired.
Money is too tight to throw at a player with a history of breaking down. And trading Lidge would be so monumentally stupid, it’s almost beyond discussion.

H’mm, a platoon of the 28 year-old Luke Scott and the 26 year-old Chris Burke might be as productive as the 32 year-old Garciaparra? Let’s take a look at their respective career statistics to date:

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2005 Weekly local football review

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Texans.jpgJaguars 38 Texans 20

The 2-13 Texans got a leg up on the 3-12 49er’s in next weekend’s Reggie Bush Bowl in San Francisco as the Jags scorched them for 21 points in the final quarter to put this one on ice. The local media was agog over Texans QB David Carr throwing for 295 yards on 29 attempts with a couple of reasonably long TD passes, but he also threw his obligatory tipped-pass-at-the-line-of-scrimmage (largely the result of Carr’s defective throwing motion) for an interception, which set up one of the Jags’ fourth quarter TD’s. Assuming that the Texans don’t blow the first pick in the 2006 NFL Draft by beating the 49er’s on New Year’s Day, the team not only has to decide whether to draft Bush (an easy decision, in my view), but whether to pick up what appears to be a fairly expensive $8 million option on Carr. My sense is that the Texans will probably do so, although the market for free agent QB’s will likely have an impact on the decision. Nevertheless, two things remain clear about Carr — the Texans made a mistake in making him the no. 1 draft pick in team history and he is not good enough to make an offense with a deficient line even average in the NFL.

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