Posted on 07/10/2011 3:47:00 AM PDT by Cincinatus' Wife
I hear you. It really seems that Perry is convinced that he’s bullet-proof. Considering that Obama even wants him to run (aka, that death penalty thing this week), there must be some weaknesses in his armor.
“I don’t know that Perry wanted another Jimmy Carter. Texas was still a Democratic state when Perry entered politics, and Perry has always been a climber and an opportunist. “
On this it really doesn’t matter what Perry wanted...if Al Gore had won in 1988, with the huge Democrat majorities, this whole Obama socialism would be 20 years further down the road. I got to live out much of my adult life in a still relatively free country...but not if Perry had gotten his way.
I’m not planning to support Slick Perry.
I find it interesting that you chose to pick out one comment of my post, stating only that Perry didn't mention the issue of tollroads, to question why I had a problem with them while at the same time ignoring the other comments and the direct question to you. Regardless, here goes:
Roads can get built the way they always have - floating bonds, tax money, etc. T This push for toll-roads, run by foreign interests, is a relatively new phenomena. The "public private partnerships" being used are nothing more than state sanctioned monopolies, often referred to as soft fascism. Governors have gone along with these schemes because they are offered big cash advances that help erase their deficits and cover up fiscal mismanagement. How many highways have been converted to toll-roads in the past decade? Highways that were already paid for by taxpayer money; highways that were supposed to be maintained and expanded using additional "gas taxes" imposed on the citizens. Instead, those existing dollars have been squandered on other government programs leaving the well dry for transportation. In essence, toll roads and PPPs are being used to raid state assets, increase the size of government, and enrich foreign interests like Cintra and McQuarie. If you have no problem with that, so be it. But it cannot be ignored.
Forgive me. I had thought you wanted comments on Perry's interview and to carry on an adult-like conversation.
I can see by dishonesty of the above comment that you had no such intention.
I'll leave you to spin your propaganda, alone.
I suggest you do a bit more research on that. Houston does not come near the ranks of L.A. ports (about 12 million container capacity) or N.Y. (about 5 million capacity). Houston (less than 2 million) is closer to that of Savannah or Charleston or Oakland, but smaller.
They do want to expand to take advantage of the Panama Canal expansion so Walmart can import even more cheaply. But that is some years away.
Oops - typo. That was supposed to be 15 million.
I just pinged you because of the TTC discussion on Hedgecock’s radio interview with Perry. The interview was a whole new spin, I think.
The Port of Houston
The Port of Houston is a 25-mile-long complex of diversified public and private facilities located just a few hours’ sailing time from the Gulf of Mexico. The port is ranked first in the United States in foreign waterborne tonnage (14 consecutive years); first in U.S. imports (19 consecutive years); second in U.S. export tonnage and second in the U.S. in total tonnage (19 consecutive years).
The Port of Houston is made up of the Port of Houston Authority and the 150-plus private industrial companies along the Houston Ship Channel. All together, the port authority and its neighbors along the ship channel are a large and vibrant component of the regional economy.
More than 220 million tons of cargo moved through the Port of Houston in 2009. More than 7,700 vessel calls were recorded at the Port of Houston during the year 2009. The Houston Pilots navigate each vessel through the Houston Ship Channel.
The Port of Houston has an impressive listing of firsts, from unloading the world’s first container ship to becoming the country’s first port to receive ISO 14001 compliance.
The Houston Ship Channel
The Houston Ship Channel has been a catalyst for growth in Harris County since the first journey of a steamship up Buffalo Bayou in 1837. The ship channel plays a critical role in today’s community as well. It generates jobs and opportunities that allow businesses to flourish.
A 2007 study by Martin Associates says ship channel-related businesses contribute to more than 785,000 jobs throughout Texas while generating nearly $118 billion of statewide economic impact. Additionally, more than $3.7 billion in state and local tax revenues are generated by business activities related to the port. It is projected that the Port of Houston will continue to be an important factor as north-south trade expands.
2008 Port of Houston Ranking:
• 1st in the U.S. in foreign tonnage for 13 consecutive years;
• 1st in imports for 18 consecutive years and
• 2nd in U.S. in total tonnage for 18 consecutive years;
• 7th largest U.S. Container port
http://www.portofhouston.com/geninfo/overview1.html
May 2, 2011 - The Best Cities For Jobs
..........”Once again the best places for jobs tended to be smaller communities where incremental improvements can have a relatively large impact. Eighteen of the top 20 cities on our list were either small (under 150,000 nonfarm jobs) or mid-sized areas (less than 450,000 jobs).
But no place displayed more vibrancy than Texas. The Lone Star State dominated the three size categories, with the No. 1 mid-sized city, El Paso (No. 3 overall, up 22 places from last year) and No.1 large metropolitan area Austin (No. 6 overall), joining Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood (the No. 1 small city) atop their respective lists.
Texas also produced three other of the top 10 smallest regions, including energy-dominated No. 4 Midland, which gained 41 places overall, and No. 10 Odessa, whose economy jumped a remarkable 57 places. It also added two other mid-size cities to its belt: No. 2 Corpus Christi and No. 4 McAllen-Edinburgh-Mission.
Whatever they are drinking in Texas, other states may want to imbibe. California–which boasted zero regions in the top 150–is a prime example. Indeed, a group of California officials, led by Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, recently trekked to the Lone Star State to learn possible lessons about what drives job creation. Gov. Jerry Brown and others in California’s hierarchy may not be ready to listen, despite the fact that the city Brown formerly ran, Oakland, ranked absolute last, No. 65, among the big metros in our survey, two places behind perennial also-ran No. 63 Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Mich.
One lesson that green-centric California may have trouble learning is that, however attractive the long-term promise of alternative energy, fossil fuels pay the bills and create strong economies, at least for now. Even outside of Texas, oil capitals did well across the board, not surprising given the surging price of gas. Our No. 2 small metro, Bismarck, N.D., which also No. 2 overall, is the emerging capital of the expanding Dakota energy belt. Also faring well are Alaska’s two oil-fire cities, Fairbanks (No. 10 on our small list) and Anchorage (No. 3 on the medium-sized list)....
http://blogs.forbes.com/joelkotkin/2011/05/02/the-best-cities-for-jobs/
July 6, 2011 - The Next Big Boom Towns In The U.S.
..........”Many of our top performers are not surprising. No. 1 Austin, Texas, and No. 2 Raleigh, N.C., have it all demographically: high rates of immigration and migration of educated workers and healthy increases in population and number of children. They are also economic superstars, with job-creation records among the best in the nation.
Perhaps less expected is the No. 3 ranking for Nashville, Tenn. The country music capital, with its low housing prices and pro-business environment, has experienced rapid growth in educated migrants, where it ranks an impressive fourth in terms of percentage growth. New ethnic groups, such as Latinos and Asians, have doubled in size over the past decade.
Two advantages Nashville and other rising Southern cities like No. 8 Charlotte, N.C., possess are a mild climate and smaller scale. Even with population growth, they do not suffer the persistent transportation bottlenecks that strangle the older growth hubs. At the same time, these cities are building the infrastructure — roads, cultural institutions and airports — critical to future growth. Charlotte’s bustling airport may never be as big as Atlanta’s Hartsfield, but it serves both major national and international routes.
Of course, Texas metropolitan areas feature prominently on our list of future boom towns, including No. 4 San Antonio, No. 5 Houston and No. 7 Dallas, which over the past years boasted the biggest jump in new jobs, over 83,000. Aided by relatively low housing prices and buoyant economies, these Lone Star cities have become major hubs for jobs and families.
And there’s more growth to come. With its strategically located airport, Dallas is emerging as the ideal place for corporate relocations. And Houston, with its burgeoning port and dominance of the world energy business, seems destined to become ever more influential in the coming decade. Both cities have emerged as major immigrant hubs, attracting on newcomers at a rate far higher than old immigrant hubs like Chicago, Boston and Seattle.”........
http://blogs.forbes.com/joelkotkin/2011/07/06/the-next-big-boom-towns-in-the-u-s/
I’m genuinely curious why you feel the need to constantly post feel-good stories about Texas that have nothing to do with Rick Perry. The conditions that exist for a favorable business client in Texas were created decades before Rick Perry ever entered politics, and in some cases before Rick Perry was even born.
If it even matters to you....
“Calcowgirl” and I were discussing the Port of Houston and the need in Texas for infrastructure to move goods and services.
Why are you coming in here to make comments to me for no other reason than to be annoying?
Sorry, I thought that was another attempt on your part to give Perry credit for something that had nothing to do with him. My apologies.
You didn’t have to ping me — I saw your post to BobL
Rick Perry really has you worried.
For you to take so much time trying to get your “talking points” on these Perry threads — even up to adding something after Post #100...when no one has written a comment to you....is truly telling about how unsure you are of your own candidate — that you feel it’s doing some good to try to cut Perry down.
Good luck with that.
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