Max Powers

David Crowder Tries Really Hard

El Paso Inc.'s David Crowder has an article about Uber and alcohol.

Per Crowder:

"El Paso Police Department figures show that alcohol-related deaths have declined since Uber’s arrival in mid 2014 and are down by half since 2011.  That’s good news. But in El Paso as elsewhere, there is nothing that actually links that drop to Uber." (Emphasis added)

Hmm.

Nothing. 

That's pretty absolute. 

Well, if Uber has NOTHING to do with the cause of that drop, let me propose something else: El Pasoans are drinking less than ever.

I mean that is more plausible, right?  

"There has been a drop in alcohol-related deaths because El Pasoans are sobering up!"

Not even David Crowder would believe that because that would be phucking stupid. 

I know Crowder wants to be objective, but he seems to be more concerned about appearing objective, than actually being objective. 

Speaking of Uber, enjoy:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two-Face Veronica Escobar...SAD!

It seems like it was only yesterday when your Two-Face Veronica Escobar would email dirt on Oscar Leeser and Aliana Apodaca to yours truly.

But God forbid having a difference of opinion, for example regarding the creation of the County Administrator. 

She turned on me.

She gives, but she cannot take it...much like someone else I know.

Sad! Very sad! 

 

But it is okay.

I forgive you Veronica.

 

...and you're gonna hear me roar....err..meow...

"If you say anything about my friend's fiancé, I am going to do a blog post!!!"

"If I ever see you I will fight you, even though I get winded walking from my friend's car into the Whataburger."

Why Does Veronica Escobar Hate Women

Oh, I forgot something.

There is a run-off a next Tuesday.

And there is a chance that a couple of Latinas can be elected to office in El Paso.

But one Latina - County Judge Veronica Escobar - is doing anything and everything to stop them, including buying Jaime Abeytia Whataburger.

So I have taken upon myself to see why Escobar hates women:

 

When she responds I will certainly let you know.

But it is about time that women in El Paso stick up for other women. 

Or maybe it is that Escobar hates Latinas, but is intimidated by non-Latinas...cough...Susie Byrd.  Hence the reason why she picks on some, but not all.

 

 

Things and Stuff

Posting will be light. 

 
Max's view of Monterrey from Cerro de la Silla

This past weekend I was in glorious Monterrey, Nuevo Leon.  Right now I am in glorious Houston, U.S.A.  And sometime next week, I plan on being in the City formerly known as "D.F." 

That being said, here are couple of things:

• Ysleta ISD Ethics Complaint - A while back, yours truly filed an ethics complaint against YISD Superintendent Xavi De La Douchebag with the Texas Ethics Commission.  I received a letter recently from the Commission that the matter is still pending. 
• Texas Rangers and Mary Gonzalez - I got a letter from the Texas Rangers - Download PIU Doc. 5-13-16.  Worse part is that it was not signed by Yu Darvish.  But we will see what the next group of folks have to say

Y'all kiss Jaime for me.

 

The El Paso Whataburger Story

My best friend and part-time lover, David K, is not hot on the fact the El Paso Times ran the story about the City Representative Claudia Ordaz, County Commissioner Vince Perez and "Jose Corona" run-in with the cops. 

He thinks the paper should focus on policy.

Phuck that.

The El Paso Times has NEVER been about policy.

This is the same paper that ran a story about a text message from my then-boss Norma Chavez. 

Oh, and there was a couple of other stories about Chavez's "run-in with the cops" that resulted in...nothing. 

But did that stop the paper?

Nope.

Never mind the fact that even before those stories were published there was the Gary Scharrer gossip column. 

You think Gary was interested in a policy discussion with Norma?

Did Norma have her faults?  Sure, but it did not help that the only local paper in town was focused on blowing-up those faults.

So the El Paso Times covers Perez's own drunk run-in with cops.

Good.

But like anything else in El Paso this probably has less to do with the El Paso Times and more to do with Shapleigh and Co.  And Shapleigh and Co. have probably been looking for a reason to cut Ordaz and Perez loose, and now they got it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lower Voter Turnout

Everybody complains about lower voter turnout...like in the most recent city council election.

But I do not know why. 

Perhaps there is nothing more uniquely American than low participation in politics.

We all have these romantic versions of the American Revolutionary War, but even then, there was a significant part of the population that really did not care to express an opinion one way or the other. Some folks were probably too busy trying to avoid small pox, or survive a winter, or plant crops, to really care about what some guy in a palace faraway or a bunch of well-off drunks in Philadelphia thought about governance. 

"But Max, you are talking about white guys, and not la Raza! And El Paso is the capital of la Razalandia!"

Fine let's talk about la Raza.

Speaking for myself, my maternal grandparents did not immigrant to the US because they wanted to participate in politics.  They had a much more practical reason for coming...job opportunity.  At that time, Chicago was the land of opportunity. 

Yes, there are many who come here for political reasons, but more still come here for economic opportunities. 

It was politics that destroyed the economies of their native lands. 

Even though we have federalism and separation of powers which acts like an insurance policy against such political destruction, some folks quite frankly rather not test out that insurance policy.

So do not blame people who are too busy to participate in politics.  If anything we should blame people who have nothing better to do other than politics.

But let us also be honest when we bemoan low participation.  We complain about low participation when our sides loses, not when it wins. 

I am sure City Representative-elect Jim Tolbert probably wished more people participated the first time he ran, this time...probably not so much. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Because you just can't have one.

Okay. 

So the City of El Paso found more money to put towards the proposed Hispanic cultural center that will be located in the giant sombrero.

Which fine. 

But help me out here.

El Paso will have one Hispanic cultural center downtown and another Hispanic cultural center underneath the Spaghetti Bowl?

You remember the petri dish of a building by the Spaghetti Bowl. 

The City went out of its way to sue TxDOT to save the Lincoln Park Center. 

For what?

Isn't the Lincoln Park Center aka  The Miguel Juarez Employment Center, much like the proposed Hispanic Cultural Center, suppose to glorify the modest achievements of El Paso Democrats?

Maybe those plans have been shelved, and if that is the case, let's hope they stayed shelved.

You guys would not want to pay twice for the same thing, right? 

Or maybe you do. 

I don't know. 

Just follow your heart. 

 

 

 

Things and Stuff

Max is busy with things and stuff, but here are a few observations:

District 2 Race - Candidate Cemelli de Aztlan might be one hot mess, but her campaign operation seems to be a lot slicker than candidate Jim Tolbert's.  Just go to de Aztlan's website and facebook page, and compare with what Tolbert has going.  And Tolbert is supposed to be the guy with the money.  And filing a campaign finance report late? People try to make hay of that, but it really gets no traction if only because people are usually late with a lot of things thus they are forgiving.

Shapleigh vs Shapleigh - Carmen Rodriguez, also known as the real State Senator, endorsed de Aztlan.  Now, Tolbert is trying to give the impression that County Judge Veronica Escobar has endorsed him.  Which would be odd  given that both Escobar and Rodriguez are part of Team Shapleigh.  Or maybe Tolbert is being naïve about Escobar's "support".  Remember, when Tania Chozet....mmmmmm....ran for office? Escobar was out there in her pajamas stumping for Chozet.  Is she doing the same with Tolbert?  Not that this would be the first time Tolbert has been played. 

Where's Blanco? - Apparently you will not find State Representative Cesar Blanco in Austin, or in his adopted hometowns of San Antonio and El Paso.  These days Blanco is in DC because of his "job".  Should you be concerned? Not really unless you plan on replacing Congressman Beto O'Rourke.   By the time you announce, Blanco will have already won.

Sexual Harassment - My impression from my colleague, Martin Paredes, most recent post is that City Representative Claudia Ordaz must have the thinnest skin of all elected officials.  First of all, Ordaz is supposed to be  Ms. "Doesn't she know I don't give a phuck."  I guess not.   But even then, nobody wants to see Ordaz in a G-string.  If they did, they could go outside and put a G-string on a twig.  Look, you are an elected official.  You will be pooped on...figuratively, unless you are really into that sort of thing...Mary?   But maybe that is the thing.   With Ordaz having so many minders she does not see herself an elected official, rather she sees herself as an employee.