Private Dam in the Suburbs Is a Coal Mine Canary for Us All

Next time somebody wants to charge you 25 percent extra for a house because it’s near a man-made private lake in Texas, ask him to tell you who’s on the hook when the dam blows out. That’s the lesson homeowners are about to learn in Arlington. Prestonwood Lake, about 3.5…

Felder Wins for Now as Council Votes Against MLK Car Wash

Kevin Felder, the Dallas City Council member I have been calling King Cuckoo, cuckooed me big-time Wednesday I guess, winning a 13-2 vote against the South Dallas car wash that I have been defending from time immemorial. Another big winner in the deal — this one really sticks in the…

Today’s City Council Car Wash Vote Is a Vote on Dallas’ Soul

Today the Dallas City Council will be asked to vote to commit a form of public fraud. The council will be asked to launch a process that would shut down a private business as a public nuisance, even though years of extraordinary effort have failed to prove it’s a nuisance. But…

We Hope Our Homeless Will Fade Into Ash, and Soon Enough They Do

Genocide is a tricky, ugly word to trot out in an argument. Comparing something to the brutality and madness of genocide to make a point is likely to blow up in your face. Survivors are justifiably touchy about anything that remotely devalues their suffering. Plus, my editor won’t let me…