tcole

The point was in reference to the US as a whole. Other than that, I do agree with your post.

Agreed.

Natural gas. TX, OK, and LA have enough for decades to come. And there is some talk of another formation UNDER the Barnett Shale which may be even larger.

As reported in the Comical this am. 3 flights/week to start. Daily in Feb. '08. Second US gateway for Emirates after NY.

The runway layout at HOU was based on maximizing use of prevailing wind with the benefit of having crosswind capabilities. Increased traffic loads, not aircraft size or type, have forced the airport to utilize crossing runways simultaneously. That sort of setup spooks a number of pilots in that it introfuces groundspace and runway conflict possibilities. SFO experiences the same conflict as does LGA and MDW. Incidently, about those short field landings, 737's can get off in about that same distance if lightly loaded. I remember 727s carrier landing and gunning it out of STT in the 70's/80's on what was barely a 4000' runway.

I would be willing to wager that those pilots were really referencing the runway layout of HOU causing a number of problems. As it is laid out, there are a lot of land and hold short orders as well as the nervousness of relying on Twr to coordinate landings and takeoffs on crossing runways. It is no wonder that you have to have a squak code just to taxi there. Good luck on your private. and I would highly recommend transitioning directly into an instrument program as soon as you get it. It will make you a significantly better pilot in a shorter amount of time.

The 172 referednce concerns the assertion that approaches at Hobby have to be flown fast. Do I fly approaches there at 80 kts in a 172? No, but even pushing final at 95 kts would seem to pose problems for the big boys at sometimes over 140 kts, yet ATC/Twr seem to have no problems handling the slower traffic. There are no real "challenges" for larger and faster planes at HOU save for the left turns on departure from 12R/L and 21, but seeing that most of those larger and faster planes are equipped with an FMC that has already been programmed prior to start-up, I doubt that the manuever is really all that challenging.

Just which "high speed, steep descent approach" are you referring to? My approach plates show each precision approach to be at the standard 3* gradient, with the "steepest approach being 3.37* on the VOR/DME for Rwy 4. As to high speed, I have flown into and out of Hobby in both severe clear and minimums IMC in a 172 with no problems. The only discernable "lock-ups" occur with instrument releases when alot are filed for very short intervals of time, but that phenomenon is rare and locks up most airports/airspace when it takes place; in fact it often is an airspace issue rather than an airport issue. And as to 747 landing distances, the question is really more of takeoff distance. A 747 can easily land at Hobby. The runways are both long enough, wide enough and strong enough. Further, because AF1 is often not loaded for bear on domestic trips (even on intl trips its GTOW is significantly less than a 747 in a typical airline configuration), HOU should be no problem for both landing and takeoff. The question is thus one of taxiing capacity in that most of HOU's taxiways are probably too narrow and may not be rated to absorb more than 250,000 lbs. Sugar Land's runway is long enough and wide enough for landing although a takeoff might be dicey in that the outboard engines would be dangerously close to overhanging unimproved earth and thus pose the risk of possibly ingesting fod. The runway at SGR is probably not rated to absorb a 747's weight though and its taxiways are woefully inadequate.

Awsome? That is the first time i have encountered that adjective with that locale.

In what respect?

That has certainly been discussed.

Careful. Houston then may claim Austin (145 miles away) and block DFW's expansion claims to the south...

Red: Kindly leave the "FW" off please. The "Dallas" forum claims the western half in name only. And to the originator of the thread, I am in Dallas every other week for business (real estate), and you are exagerating to a slight degree about the development up there relative to Houston, not to mention that Dallas would have to at least double its current space/buildings to match that of Houston. Dallas is a great city and has a great deal going for it (uptown/McKinney/State-Thomas is shaping up very nicely) and it has a very distinctive and recognized skyline. That said, most true architectural critics would counter that Houston's skyline possesess more true representations of great architecture.

I was born in and went to college in Dallas. Grew up in Fort Worth. And now primarily reside in Houston, although I still spend a good chunk of time in Fort Worth and Dallas for business. I have a ranch West Texas. And my girlfriend is from San Antonio. I call myself a Texan.

man; don't move to Houston and then just hang out at a satilite beer hall. Houston has soooo much more to offer. The Saucer is one thing in FW, but you really have to broaden your horizons down here. Take advantage of Houston's size and depth of offerings in relative comparison. Hanging at The Saucer is like moving to Rome and then eating at Pizza Hut.

89 was cold in short concentrated bursts over about three to four nights in December. As a result, that damage was negligable along the coastal areas/s.texas with regard to palms. 83, different story altogether, but Houston plants seem to not have suffered as greatly as those even farther down the coast. One explanation may be radiant heat in the city but certainly the plants benefited from being "wetter", not as stressed. South Texas was pretty dry that year going into that freeze/frost and the palms would already be somewhat stressed. Also, a number of those that died were of weaker genetic strains. As to radiant heat, as Houston continues to grow and infill, you are starting to see more cold intoleratnt specimens planted and surviving. Houston's official temp measurements are from Bush, which on some winter nights can vary as much as ten degrees from inner loop neighborhoods. I have even noticed a 2 to 3 degree difference bewteen River Oaks and Montrose due to RO's canopy and lack of heat absorbent surfaces. It sort of reminds me of how you will find citrus gardens and even dwarf phoenix specimens in London in spite of its latitude and cold suseptability; the central city stays warm even when the "official" measurements show otherwise.

Your filifera is Houston averse due to its preference for better soil drainage than Houston necessarily affords. That variety is really going to do better in San Antonio and points west and southwest, although there are a few very nice specimens in San Angelo. Same with your Blue Hester. Fan palms do quite well in Houston. My neighbor accross the street has a very nice 18 foot specimen curbside.Also, the very tall trees in Southern California tend to be dactylifera rather tha canariensis, although a good number of the latter variety do exist. Red; Be sure that you get the arborist to warrant that the specimen you purchase is "male". The "female" flowering trees cause awful messes this time of year.

You will be just fine. Houston is a much larger cousin to Fort Worth. Finding something like you have in Berkeley Place is going to be harder in that the neighborhoods in Houston with similarly aged/styled homes are a good bit pricier. I split my time between the two (in FW now for a seminar).

Grotto or La Griglia. But it is "off the menu". Bice and Vincent's. Bice's is a little better.

An Abilene columnist did not pen that. Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, Stanford University But I will agree with you that some of the reasoning is a bit simplistic. A little further investigation into how he arrives at his conclusions couldn't hurt.

I concur. I have heard some pretty incredible stories from my best friend who is an assistant DA in Tarrant County (Fort Worth) regarding specifically DWI cases. He has told me that he has warned officers numerous times that he would not hesitate to slap a perjury charge on them if they misrepresented the facts in either court or a deposition. And he shares your skepticism on the acuracy of breatalizers.

I have recently been informed that soon to be former Dallas Mayor Laura Miller has volunteered to contribute her skills to finding a compromise solution. In essense, I have heard that a Culberson Ammendment will be filed to the 2006 Omnibus Transportation Bill that would allow for the construction of the Richmond line (through Afton Oaks), but that its ridership would be limited to residents of the four adjoining states to Texas as well as Alabama, Kansas, and Missouri.

Hey Red; Correct me if I am wrong, but isn't this verdict only in connection with the charge that she killed three of her children? If so, could the prosecution still try her for murder of the other two concurrently or separately? In essence, she may not necessarily be out of jeopardy yet.

With a "y". Now THAT is "old school".

As would my Godparents.