April 1, 2014

LGBT students say they were verbally, physically assaulted by members of anti-gay fraternity at UTSA

LGBT college students in San Antonio say they were verbally and physically assaulted when they tried to stage a silent protest of an anti-gay Christian fraternity on the campus of the University of Texas at San Antonio.

The Paisano, UTSA’s student newspaper, reports that members of the Christian fraternity Chi Alpha were preaching against homosexuality recently when members of GLBTQ of UTSA decided to stage a silent protest and wave a rainbow flag.

As Chi Alpha members approached the LGBT students and began debating them, the crowd grew larger and police were summoned.

“Today was the first time I truly felt unsafe on campus,” GLBTQ President Gisselle Loredo told the newspaper. “I should feel safe when I’m walking through campus. I should feel safe when I’m walking to class. I should feel safe, period.”

More at http://www.lonestarq.com/lgbt-students-say-verbally-physically-assaulted-members-anti-gay-fraternity-utsa/ .

Cross-posted in the Texas Group.

April 1, 2014

Dallas museum exhibits Islamic art, objects

DALLAS (AP) — A new exhibit in Dallas showcases 150 rare Islamic works of art and scientific objects that explore the use and meaning of light.

The exhibit titled "Nur: Light in Art and Science from the Islamic World" opened over the weekend at the Dallas Museum of Art. Nur is the Arabic word for light.

The Dallas Museum of Art will be the only venue outside of Europe to host the exhibit, which premiered in Spain in October. It runs in Dallas through June 29.

The works on display come from public and private collections around the world. Objects on display include manuscripts illuminated with gold and color pigments and objects made from precious and semi-precious stones in addition to scientific objects including sundials and astrolabes.

http://www.theeagle.com/news/texas/article_ec4201f6-7487-5b6f-bc87-6c516f1f48bc.html

[font color=green]And it's all Obama's fault![/font]

April 1, 2014

Decades later, feds still chasing $81M judgment in State Savings crash

More than 20 years later, federal banking regulators are still trying to get money out of a central character in the crash of two financial institutions in Lubbock and Brownfield.

U.S District Judge Sam R. Cummings last week approved a request from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to renew an $81.4 million default judgment against Tyrell G. “Terry” Barker over fraudulent deals he was involved in when he was sole shareholder of now-defunct State Savings & Loan of Lubbock in the mid-1980s.

The judgment arose from an April 1987 lawsuit filed against Barker and 18 other people along with 19 businesses.

The $583 million lawsuit, filed by the now-defunct Federal Savings & Loan Insurance Corp., accused the defendants of wrecking the institution through a combination of fraudulent loans and diverting money.

More at http://lubbockonline.com/crime-and-courts/courts/2014-03-31/decades-later-feds-still-chasing-81m-judgment-state-savings-crash .

April 1, 2014

Rangers fans turn memorial statue into garbage can on opening day

Did Texas Rangers fans use the statue of tragically deceased fan Shannon Stone and his son Cooper as their opening day trash can? It sure looks like, and if so, we have a winner for the most disgusting photo from an MLB ballpark on baseball's first day.

If you've forgotten the story of the Stones, it's a horribly sad one: Shannon Stone fell to his death at a Rangers game in 2011, trying to catch a ball for his 6-year-old son, Cooper. Former Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton tossed the ball toward the Stones, who were in the left-field stands, and Shannon lost his balance, landing headfirst. The Rangers honored Shannon, a firefighter of 18 years in Brownwood, Tx., with a statue unveiled in April 2012.

Two years later, it looks like that? How quickly Rangers fans forget.

It's opening day, people of the right age have every right to guzzle a few before hitting their seats. Can't blame anyone for that — heck, it was Budweiser that wanted to make opening day a holiday, so obviously beer is a part of the fan experience. But having a good time at a baseball game shouldn't mean common decency goes out the window. Finding an actual trash can couldn't have been that hard, could it, Rangers fans?

More at http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-league-stew/rangers-fans-turn-memorial-statue-into-garbage-can-on-opening-day-004803475.html .

April 1, 2014

Gov. Rick Perry encourages support of high-level radioactive waste storage in Texas

Gov. Rick Perry has thrown his support behind an effort to make Texas the repository for highly radioactive waste from around the nation.

In a March 28 letter to Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Speaker Joe Straus, he unveiled a state environmental agency report — ordered by Perry — that finds Texas is a suitable spot for the waste, typically associated with spent fuel rods at nuclear power plants.

More at http://www.statesman.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/gov-rick-perry-encourages-support-of-high-level-ra/nfPgr/ .

[font color=green]I suggest that his N****rhead ranch would be a suitable repository.[/font]

April 1, 2014

Texas Windstorm Insurance Association sued for $600M for charging policyholders for Hurricane Ike

The beleaguered — and oft-sued — insurer of last resort for coastal Texas was presented with yet another multi-million-dollar lawsuit on Monday.

Ramiro Gamboa of Corpus Christi is suing the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, or TWIA, for hundreds of millions of dollars because, he said, it improperly passed on costs to its policyholders, like him.

More at http://www.statesman.com/news/news/twia-sued-for-charging-policyholders-for-hurricane/nfPhh/ (subscription required).

[font color=green]I read another abbreviated article that stated that the lawsuit was for $600 million. In these circumstances, any shortfall that the association incurred paying claims should have been assessed against insurance companies writing property insurance (personal and commercial) statewide on a pro-rata basis determined by their written premiums.[/font]