The Goldberg Standard

A respected television reporter for CBS News for a generation, Bernard Goldberg wrote about a perceived liberal bias in the media in his best-seller Bias. Although the book included several compelling anecdotes that corroborated parts of his premise, Bias read more like a collection of rants to bring up in…

Slow Out the Gate

Last fall, Willis Johnson, a radio personality and political consultant, kept on running into city council member Don Hill. Johnson saw his friend playing golf, socializing at a banquet and working at City Hall. Each time, Johnson asked Hill the same question, “Don, what are you going to do?” The…

Don’t You Wish Your Mayor Was Hot Like Me

On June 26, 2005, on a Sunday morning after church, attorney John Barr called 80 of his firm’s lawyers to a meeting at his office in Oak Cliff. Everyone was invited except Don Hill, who was unaware his colleagues were gathering to discuss his future. A few years earlier, Barr…

The Hits Keep Comin’

Mike Dupree, the Dallas County constable already accused of sexually harassing Hispanic men and deporting his Honduran lover in a jealous pique, is now the subject of a sworn statement that says he conspired to frame his political rivals on false drug charges. Last week, Leslie Glenn Willie, a deputy…

Failure to Communicate

In a way, Celso Martinez was the perfect public face of the Dallas Independent School District. Martinez ignored local reporters as long as he could, until they made him the unflattering subject of a series of stories on how he was in open violation of board residency policy by living…

Oh, My Papa

Oh, my papa: It was strange the first time we heard it; now we’re kind of getting used to it. In January, Dallas County Constable Mike Dupree told us that he ended a sexual relationship with teenager Angel Martinez because they both preferred more of a father-son relationship. Now, Leo…

Go Shrimpin’

John Ash, a respected chef and wine expert, will be leading a class on how to prepare shrimp at Central Market. It should be a long class. Because apparently, with shrimp, you can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, sauté it. There’s, um, shrimp kebabs, shrimp creole, shrimp…

More Trouble for Dupree

On Tuesday, February 27, Constable Mike Dupree abruptly left for vacation just hours after Dallas County commissioners ordered an outside investigation of his office after three employees said that the openly gay elected official was a little too openly gay, claiming that he came on to the younger Hispanics on…

Go West

Last year was a good one for Royce West. In May 2006, the large and imposing state senator from southern Dallas helped break a deadlocked state Legislature, playing a vital role in passing a landmark school finance law, a measure that had the surprising advantage of pleasing all sides in…

Getting Randy

On his AllMusic Web page, Randy Travis is compared to the Beatles. Seriously. Something about how his 1986 album Storms of Life marked a “generational shift” in country music. I’m not entirely sure how an album with a title that sounds like a Lifetime Movie about menopausal sisters could possibly…

Gone Daddy Gone

Gone daddy gone: Constable Mike Dupree, who became the subject of scorn and ridicule after this paper reported his own loopy story of how he had his ex-boyfriend deported to Honduras, is mired in another sex scandal that seems to have cost him his job. Three of Dupree’s deputies have…

Khaki Blues

Even if Eric Clapton’s post-1989 offerings include such lowlights as “My Father’s Eyes” and “Tears in Heaven,” the guitar legend has earned the right to sing all the adult contemporary fare he wants. He could cover Toby Keith’s “Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue,” fuse it into John Lennon’s…

Membership Has Privileges

Earlier this month, attorney Anthony Lyons persuaded a Dallas County prosecutor to drop a misdemeanor case against his client, ex-cop Deanna Hammond, because she had already been punished when the Dallas Police Department fired her after her legal problems arose. What Lyons failed to mention was that Hammond had already…

With A Paddle

Kayaking is one of those outdoor sports in which you can become reasonably competent after one session. At the Colony Aquatic Park, you can learn the basics in a three-hour class, including paddling skills and safety tips. They’ll have you paddling down the Colorado in no time. Classes are tailored…

Caveman Strike

“I’m not 100 percent in love with your tone right now,” he said to me after I tossed out a rather off-handed remark. Spending my Saturday night at a bowling alley with a few friends, I had just nailed my fifth strike in a row. “This is so easy a…

Conflict? What Conflict?

Hector Flores isn’t someone you’d expect to be apathetic about segregation. The immediate past national president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, Flores often serves as the voice of indignation on civil rights debates. In Farmers Branch, where the city council recently passed legislation making it harder for…

Angel of Honduras

Although he’s been ordered to leave the country, the supposed ex-lover of Constable Mike Dupree may be of interest to the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office. Last week, Dallas County Commissioner Ken Mayfield asked new District Attorney Craig Watkins to investigate the bizarre plight of Angel Martinez, the friend and…

Mavs Men Win

The Cowboys may be America’s Team, but is there a doubt that the Mavericks are Dallas’ team? The overwhelming favorite to return to the finals, if not win it all, the Mavs are sporting the best record in the NBA, and here’s what’s really scary: They’re not even kicking on…

Will Wonders Never Cease

Will wonders never cease: On Tuesday, Buzz was a part of a miracle. Or at least a new world order. We had a question for new District Attorney Craig Watkins and spoke to his friendly spokeswoman, Trista Allen. She didn’t know the answer to our query but quickly found out…

Green-Eyed Monster

Mike Dupree’s story was strange enough. Earlier this month, (“Cold as ICE,” January 4) the Dallas County constable told us how he arranged to have his ex-lover arrested and deported to Honduras because the young man was on the run from a deadly gang. Dupree said that Angel Martinez, his…

Split Decision

On a sunny September morning in 2005, Preston Hollow Elementary School hosted Bike to School Day. Dozens of grinning children with fair skin played and talked outside in the courtyard, relaxing happily after rides through their North Dallas neighborhood of garish mansions and stately brick homes. Parents shared tea and…

New Resolutions

As a former college runner and current disdainer of cookie-cutter cities, I am going to have an unusual dilemma next week. Ordinarily, I’d love to race the Resolution Run, but as luck would have it, it will be held in Addison, the home of every chain restaurant known to man…