Annie Karundethu, Proud Momma of Local Euphoria

Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we get to know the people behind the scenes in Dallas/Fort Worth music. Annie Karundethu runs a small but passionate organization called Local Euphoria, comprised of a couple folks who want to expose local talent and contribute to charity at the same time. She’s…

To Save the Trees, Start by Saving Poor People

Maybe we need some context for this week’s debate on Wal-Mart Stores Inc. vs. the tree canopy. After a not-very-uplifting debate yesterday including the line, “Trees do not vote,” our esteemed city council voted to allow a developer to decimate a vast swath of the urban forest for a new…

Cartels and conquistadors — who are worse?

Dear Mexican: Much has been said about the terrible things happening to the United States and its citizens at the hands of Mexican drug cartels. But what’s the difference between the modern-day cartels and the Big Four of the period between 1492 and 1775? I refer you to the kings…

The Black Police Association’s Disappearing Money

Dallas Police Sergeant Preston Gilstrap, recent former president of the Black Police Association of Dallas, has made serious allegations of financial wrongdoing against his own organization in reports he has taken to the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service, the Texas Attorney General’s Office and the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office…

Yo, Barkeep: Keep Your Straw Out Of My Drink

You walk into a dark cocktail den and take a seat at the bar. A bartender hands you a small, leather-bound menu featuring drinks from 1930s with some wild modern flavor combinations mixed in, to keep the staff from getting bored. You’re a classicist, though, so you settle on an…

Vince and Dawn Barnhill Have Seen a Million Faces, Rocked Them All

Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we get to know the people behind the scenes in Dallas/Fort Worth music. Vince and Dawn Barnhill have been running Universal Rehearsal since 1987, five years before they tied the knot. Over that time, they’ve hosted rehearsals by Erykah Badu, The Dixie Chicks, Miranda…

Dangers on a Train: Crime Goes Down Everywhere Except on DART

Wait a minute. The Dallas Morning News today publishes a story in which the top cop in the local transit agency gets away with blaming the economy and too much bling for a sharp increase in robberies and other crimes on the light rail system. Did anybody think to point…

Is Mexico’s Narco War a Revolution?

Dear Mexican: I read in your book that Mexico is due for a revolution about every 100 years or so. Do you think the drug war presently being fought between the cartels and the Mexican government is actually just a revolution being funded by drug money? —The Ugly American Dear…

Why is Drought-Hit Dallas Selling Water?

Here are some things I never ever thought I would hear myself saying. In fact, I’m having a hard time spitting it out. But truth is truth. Sometimes even I have to face that. Of all the people in this country who live in cities where per capita water-consumption is…

Drue Mitchell Rides the Airwaves From DFW to L.A.

Welcome to Local Music ‘Mericans, where we get to know the people behind the scenes in Dallas/Fort Worth music. Drue Mitchell has worked for 97.1 KEGL in promotions, as on-air jock at (old frequency) 94.5 KDGE and 89.7 KVRK, and now does television for a Christian music network in Los…