What Water Shortage - Part 2

As if to prove our point, the Star-Telegram has an article about water this morning.  Is it about the concerns for our water supply?  Nope, it's a another propaganda piece from none other than Bill Hanna, telling you it's safe to swim in the river.

Even though there have been many reports that the Trinity River in Tarrant County is the most polluted portion of the river, and the article itself points out that a certain percentage of the water testing has been over its limit of pollutants, it's still safe.  It would be funny, if it weren't so serious.

Someone ask Bill Hanna how much of a kick back he gets from the Tarrant Regional Water District and the Trinity River Vision Authority.  Inquiring minds want to know.

Andrew Sansom, the guy who said it's safe also says, "The biggest issues today in water quality are what we call nonpoint sources -- those are parking lots, highways runoff and agricultural sources -- things that are not coming from a pipe," Sansom said. "When it storms, everything just washes into the river or streams and we don't have an adequate means of protecting it."  He also said it should be tested weekly.

On the Clear Fork, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's 2010 Integrated Report showed an average of 116 E. coli colonies per 100 milliliters -- just below the state standard of 126 colonies per 100 milliliters. That was based on 67 samples.


In defending water recreation in the Trinity, city leaders and the water district have said most high bacteria events are triggered by floods or heavy storm-water runoff.

Under the old federal standards, if 25 percent of the samples exceeded the 126 level, that could also trigger regulatory action, Sullivan said. A study for the TCEQ estimated eight in 1,000 swimmers would get sick at the 126 level.

Over a nine-year-period, the City of Fort Worth's monthly sampling at Beach Street found 27 samples out of 120 that exceeded the 126 standard. At its Fourth Street sampling station, 23 out of 120 exceeded it. In the water district's quarterly samples at Beach Street, four of the 34 samples exceeded the state standard, and at Fourth Street, three out of 34 samples were above the 126 threshold.

Public Mutiny...oh wait he said, scrutiny

After the board approved the agreement, board member Hal Sparks said the water district must regularly update the board since the project will be so complex and costly.

"It's a big project, a lot of money, and it deserves a lot of scrutiny," Sparks said.

No, the Tarrant Regional Water District isn't referring to the Trinity River Vision.  Of course not.  The above is in reference to the East Texas pipeline.  Too bad the pet projects don't deserve the same sort of scrutiny.  Read about the pipeline in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

A Streetcar Named Conspire

We were just forwarded this email written by Adrian Murray.  Write on, sir.

The exalted leaders of Fort Worth seemed determined to develop a streetcar line whether the city needs one or not. In fact, they are so determined to get a streetcar they're going to commit to one before they even decide where it should start, where it should end and what, exactly, they will even do with the darn thing. We just got to have it.

Was this on the horizon three or four years ago? Was anyone chomping at the bit to get an electric streetcar? Were Fort Worth citizens saying amomg themeselves over lunch, "What this city really needs is a streetcar?" Did we somehow miss the pickets outside City Hall from angry taxpayers wondering where their streetcar is? Why the sudden panting and moaning for a street car now?

Money. Lot's of it. $25 million in federal grant money, to be precise. With another $25 million in funding confiscated from the citizens of Fort Worth, that's $50 million for the old boy network downtown to divide amongst themselves. $50 million for site preparation, surveys, engineering costs, legal fees, construction. A $50 million jackpot for the legions of corrupt elites sucking the life out of the citizens of this city and a $50 million kick in the groin for those citizens struggling to get by in a city rank in corruption and greed.

Just the other day J.D. Granger, spawn of Kay and General Manager of that ill-conceived, poorly planned quasi-criminal construction project known as the Trinity River Vision, came out publicly stating that streetcars have been an essential part of the TRV plan from the very beginning. Conveniently for Granger, Star Telegram uber-stenographer Bill Hanna merely joted down J.D.'s claim without even a perfunctory follow-up like, maybe, "Hey , J.D., can you cite just one time JUST ONE TIME YOU LIVING BREATHING MOMUNMENT TO NEPOTISM that the subject of freaking STREETCARS ever came up?"

Of course, J.D. now has a bit of a sticky problem. Mama's been funding junior's pet project with earmark money stolen from the American people. But mama had to swear off earmarks when the Republican House leadership committed to ending the process. So Kay Bailey Hutchison had her back and swooped to the rescue by committing to earmarking money for the Trinity boondoggle in the Senate. Now that source is about to dry up as Mitch McConnell vows to end the practice entirely.

Gee, if only the TRV had a streetcar, we could maybe partake ourselves of that glorious $50 million in free money and steer it towards the toxic island being created north of downtown. Streetcars are important, we are told, because they increase density in development. Since people can take the streetcar wherever they want we won't need as many parking places, garages, etc., so that open up land for profitable development. Without streetcars, building can only be three stories tall. With streetcars, they can be over seven stories. All we need is a gullible reporter intellectually vacant enough to write this up in a story without questioning the obvious vacuousness of such a statement and we're off to the races. Someone get me Bill Hanna on the line!

And so on Thursday, just outside the downtown offices of the Trinity River Vision, folks will be invited to see our magnificent new streetcar. Never mind the $77 million budget shortfall. Never mind crumbling infrastructure. Never mind the closing of libraries and parks and pools. Never mind staff and pay cuts. There's $50 million in free money for the folks in River Oaks to divvy among themselves. J.D. has a brand new toy and a new lease on life. Can life get any better than this?

To keep up with all the streetcar mania going on across the country, just google "federal streetcar grants".