Materene

Don't think Bob Dylan ever got anyone fired! Although a live subject in the picture it's not meant to represent anyone, just make a good backdrop for the music.

Hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving, drove to MS Sunday to run an errand but I managed to beat the bad weather and got home late that evening.

For your enjoyment

Click Image for mp3

Tragic. The death and outcome.

Some poor fool is going to lose his life over this and the leaders / process responsible will go on producing crappy, unsafe products with stolen technology/ideas.

I think I have a handle on this unsafe building that appears to be rampant in China, they must be using most of the cement supply in the drugs and dog food they ship to the West. This is what happens when you cut corners.....

A couple of other, now largely forgotten, issues about that time. Houston in the '50s may have been great for _some_ white people, but there was a virulent anti-Communist movement which approached hysteria and which considered Joe McCarthy to be a great American. Don Carleton's book _Red Scare!: Right-Wing Hysteria Fifties Fanaticism and Their Legacy in Texas_, relates this story very well. People whose political views were anything other that hard right wing were in jeopardy of job loss and persecution. There were a few people on the Houston School Board back then who seem to have been functionally insane. (I'm not kidding. One of the members was imprisoned for shooting her husband; this was only the last of her crazy shenanigans.)

Another incident which helped to begin the process of ending segregation was the Houston Symphony Orchestra League's refusal to engage the Texas Southern University chorus for a large choral work that then-conductor Leopold Stokowski wanted to program. This was around 1960; Stokowski was one of the most celebrated classical musicians of his era and his biographers point to this episode as the main reason for Stokowski's leaving the Houston Symphony Orchestra.

Heh Heh, he was the forerunner of today's Politicians. This guy changed parties from Democrat to Republican, he dirtied and lied about his opponents, lied about his Military Service, lied about his personal finances etc etc... see where this is going don't ya. In the end the rigid stand on communist and communism was all done to gain popularity and votes for his diminishing popularity. I guess the Congress and Senate Houses are like a mold or virus, ya just can't disinfect them .

Its probably more like in 1950's the upper middle class utopia that everyone thinks of didnt give a DAMN about anything that happened if it happened to a poor a person. Plus they managed to make sure the poor were kept well away from where they lived.

There were few "Poor" people then as we know them today, everyone was working after WWII with the exception of those that didn't want to work. Neighborhoods were mixed and people may or may not have had more money than a family living next door. When I was young a family that had an air conditioner was rich, at least in my mind they were rich.

Most of the crimes were not in the Heights I can say that with a lot of certainty. The Blacks had their own neighborhoods and the crime rates there were very high. This was a time or era before they could even ride the front of the bus so read into that what ever you like. I'm not making judgments here only trying to tell it like it was. If the crime was so bad then why were we kids allowed to ride bikes to the movies and be out after dark. I've walked North Main street at 10pm when I was 11 years old, the Boys Variety Club had events at Christmas and other times of the year and this was how most of us got there, we walked! There wasn't anyone out there trying to molest or kill us, as a matter of fact there wasn't anyone out there at 10pm. The numbers only say how many people died in the 50's , it don't say where they died or how they died, there is no comparison to the 50's and today, at least nothing that would actually confirm it was safer or not. That's the problem with statistics they have no human factor.

From HoustonHistory.com....

These 134 murders occurred in a city of roughly 600,000 residents, making for a homicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000.

For comparison, Houston's homicide rate in 2008 was 13 per 100,000 (294 homicides). It dropped to 12 per 100,000 in 2009 (270 homicides). 2010 is running 9.7% below the total for 2009, a rate of approximately 10.8 per 100,000.

Nice try, though. Lots of old people think the good ole days were idyllic.

Interesting figures, although I think the numbers are probably skewed a bit. 134 in 600,000 is not a bad number, more important is the neighborhoods where all this took place, if anything it was confined. That's not the case now so keep your head on a swivel when walking about. I stand by what I said and would rather be living in the 50's.

There were no drug dealers or gangs or cartels openly operating in the neighborhoods, I'm sure there were bad people out there but not on the scale you see today. There were some very bad areas in Houston in the early years but they stayed in their own territory and I'm sure if you could pin point all that mayhem you will see my point.

How could it be down with the population so much greater, and who decided in the 50's it was higher than now. I'll take the 50's any day of the week opposed to the present.

If you have something in print to support that then please share it, we never saw any of that high crime in my time. The Judges and Courts gave little mercy to criminals back then and there was plenty room for newcomers in Huntsville. Also the Police had much more, shall we say discretion, in handling any crimes.

Pretty photos, every time I hear Long Beach I immediately start singing that jingle "Go See Cal Go See Cal", being Cal Worthington the famous car salesman and dealer for ever.

I worked at his Carlsbad Dodge Dealership in 87, I think at the time he had a Ford Dealership there at Long Beach. If you look at one of my photos on my blog there is a picture taken in 66 at Fort Ord, Cals son is in the picture standing next to the tall Sergeant with the Blue Helmet. One thing I noticed while working out there was how many veterans had purchased property there in the early 70's late 60's and how much they had accumulated because of a simple decision to stay in California after they left the service! Everything I ever purchased dropped like a hammer.

It's a shame we live in times such as this. You know in the 50's we never even locked the doors when we were gone, everyone did the same. That whole area is depressing for me to even look at now. First thing that bothered me was when they widened the street, it just looks unnatural because when I was a kid the sidewalks were all nice and the street was clean. I drove by Eugene Fields and noticed they had taken a lot of the frontage just to make that street wider. It's like being in a foreign city when you've been gone for many years. In 1957 58 and on, there were Japanese Persimmon Trees lined completely around the School Perimeter, large magnolia trees at every corner of the building and I can vividly remember the wonderful smell when they were in bloom. The Persimmons you can have, they were nasty.

Nothing built in China can be considered safe!. That is not in their vocabulary, everyday I see tools, products and goods from China and the Chinese actually think this stuff is quality. Right now there is more criminal activity in commerce in China than has ever been seen in any Country at any period. The desire and greed to make mo money makes us capitalist look like beginners. Now I wish I could say everything we manufacture is safe and of quality but we also know that ain't true! Half the stuff we manufacture here at home has parts or whole assy's made in other Countries and re shipped back to our plants where it is assembled and stamped made in the USA. I don't think we build anything that is actually quality, the old school way of making your customers come back to buy or replace a good product was gone decades ago. Most of the companies well known are living on their past reputations made even 40 or 50 years ago, and the products aren't the same. Now maybe this long post gave that concrete enough Chinese time to set.

Well, the meaning is worthwhile but it seems strange only a small area falls under this special protection. How can that be done legally without someone complaining or making a challenge in court. I thought the law was to be upheld and carried out equally for everyone and every community, not just for a few. Note in the years past public hangings were very instrumental in controlling and preventing crime. I think society will eventually hang themselves trying to appease or not offend anyone. Maybe they should just fence the entire area these known thugs live, without any gates or openings, and insure there are plenty guns and ammunition, then just throw over the fence enough food for one person, eventually you have but one to deal with.

There were a lot of rail lines in the city prior to the 70's, it was around then the rail road started a massive under taking of taking up most lines that were no longer used.

Texas was a major agriculture hot spot with cotton being the most well known crop and every small Texas Town had a spur that actually had a rail depot. Now all those lines were taken up and re used or stored. I predict one of these years you will see them going down again due to fuel cost. The rail road was the most used shipping alternative to bring goods to Houston, not to mention rail travel was used more than any other source. We had a beautiful Rail Station at one time. That line on I-10 was a pain when you hit it just right and sat there for ever, same with the 290 track which was much more used than today.

http://blogs.chron.com/bayoucityhistory/2010/10/sears_in_houston.html

good pics & article about all Houston Sears locations.

I remember going up the escalators in Foley s when I was around 6, scared to death!. The Sears Store is also a special memory since I went in there in aug of 1970 and purchased tools for my first job after the Army. Of course I remember all the store fronts having all glass and it looked or looks just plain eerie, while I was home in 2005 I lived in Spring Branch and I was always driving past the mall on 290, it just seems strange to not see any glass. In reality the idea to replace the glass is a politically correct way of dealing with smash and grabs, I find it hard to believe they spent all that money, and it was a bunch, to make the changes. They can put that out there for the younger people to believe but we older people know better. I would much rather see some sun shine than be in a dark un natural surrounding, maybe that's why people quit shopping there!

1. Further I would say that the only ones voting for him were all Democrats.

2. I can see the large republican vote for White, but don't find it surprising.

Materene, would you care to resolve these two statements, made within 1h 20 mins of each other, for my benefit? I'm having some difficulty.

Cross Party voting does not surprise me, nothing unusual about that. It was pointed out that 90,000 votes were Republican for White, maybe they dislike Perry as much as I do, and I consider myself to be conservative, notice I don't say Republican. I was joking about the all Democrat vote for White, but at the same time I really didn't know how many votes he got from either side. Is that better

Sounds like you haven't read the vote totals. In Harris County, where Republican Ed Emmett garnered 60% of the vote, and the countywide races went almost universally 55-57% Republican, Democrat Bill White actually BEAT Rick Perry. And, that's in spite of a 50,000 vote lead Perry got from straight ticket Republican voters! Lots of Houston Republicans (roughly 90,000) voted for Bill White.

When Bill White was mayor, he routinely got re-elected with 85-90% of the vote. Houstonians universally approved of Bill White.

No, I'm in La so I'm not up on voting in Houston, I can see the large republican vote for White, but don't find it surprising. I've watched Houston since 1970 go from a pretty conservative base to what it now is. My take on it is this, the overall ethnic balance of Houston has drastically shifted in less than 30 years. Not a moral judgment or dislike it's just my age and it really makes no difference to me any longer. What ever is in the cards will be played in the coming years, none of us have a lot of influence in that so why worry. I really don't think any of us have a true vision of what the world or Houston is going to be like in say 40 years.

How on earth do you extrapolate a vote in Houston to a vote across Texas? I'd say he did pretty friggin' well to get the percentage he did.

I would say he still lost! You know the old saying " Close only matters with hand grenades and bombs ". Further I would say that the only ones voting for him were all Democrats.

That's alright I'm not too impressed with Perry, this super highway he's thumping will be his undoing. Surprised not much was talked about this issue during the campaigning.

They're gone for now but the split of the vote indicates they are in a position to make a comeback in the future....

Was it under Bill Whites reign that these cameras were installed? I was only home 2005 to 2008 so I can't remember, but apparently if it was done under his watch then looking at his bid for governor he is not well liked. That incident with his daughter's driving dui had more to do with my disliking him, your only guilty if your old man ain't the mayor, and somehow got turned around to where it was the police officers fault! Sorry that's a bit too much for me to choke down.

Why would a traffic lawyer be losing money on people being cited for red light running? Isn't that just more business opportunities?

I'm sure the Judge didn't waste much time deciding innocent or guilty having looked at the tape, one thing a lawyer don't want is a video of a client committing a crime.

I am asking what will be the effect of posting these officers, not who will be responsible.

I think the presence of more Police patrols have a positive impact on how people conduct their driving, there isn't enough out there to handle the heavy traffic Houston now has. Somewhere I already posted that in 1970 or 71 Houston had about 8 cars patrolling the entire city!, that came from an officers mouth while he was investigating a nice wreck I was involved in going around the circle there at Montrose and Main. Some would argue the complete opposite, example is California, their State Police do not drive the interstates at peak hours because it slows traffic, go figure! You can drive a very long time in Houston North, South, East or West and you will be hard pressed to see a police car anywhere, lot's of idiots passing you at 100 mph on the freeways of course. I just don't like the idea of cameras watching every move we make, we're not robots and already responsible for what we do and were rewarded for it when they gave us the license, we don't need intrusion, it was an attempt to make money and for no other reason. They can twist it spin it or whatever it is they do with, it is an intrusion on your rights and if you continue conceding them a day will come when you have NONE! City workers are basically lazy, and the more they shift their responsibilities to cameras, or any other means the better or softer their jobs, and more money for raises.

The last sentence is tongue in cheek of course, not all of them are lazy

When/where was the fact proven? Red light cameras have been shown to increase rear-end accidents. Does a police presence do this as well?

Why would Houston crime rates go up because thugs, as you call them, move from one part of the city to another? Were they not committing crimes in their old neighborhood or something?

The crime rates go up in areas that had less crime, because the thugs are being forced to relocate. In the past high crime areas were in specific neighborhoods where average people would never venture into, the city is now wide open and those neighborhoods have been slowly absorbed, the thugs as I call them, have to move, so does the crime. I'm also sure in the past people that didn't live in those neighborhoods could have cared less whether crime was rampant there, as long as they were in their own hood! All this development going on in Houston comes with a price, and now you see all of it, traffic, crime, a few other things I would guess. You can't stop it or turn it off because you don't like it, you could move to the country like I did.

As for the rear ending, the person who did the rear end is the person responsible, not the one in front, that's the law! Get off his tail and you won't rear end him, period!

Before voting, shouldn't we determine first whether officers on every street corner will increase different types of accidents or not?

It is a proven fact the mere presence of a Police car causes people to drive safer, no one ever said put one on each street corner, there aren't enough Police to do the job in Houston and haven't been for decades. You now have that rent a cop mentality with less than qualified people riding around in cars they purchased themselves, everything was purchased themselves. I don't know but that don't sound like a very good police force yet just another way to not use tax money to provide a good force. The crime rates in Houston will continue to go up because of many different reasons, one being the forcible relocation of thugs moving from shall we say less favorable neighborhoods, to areas that in the past were basically more secure. All this blending of culture has cut a jugular, just look at Washington Ave with the new condos going up all around and then take a look at the mix on the street!.. All these things I suppose are growing pains of the new society, and that is exactly what it is, there's just not a whole lot of options out there because of the large population and everyone is competing for the same space. Unfortunately the thugs will always be around!

Harris County is as close to being a Houstonian as it gets, Lyle Lovett. These old family films bring back a lot of memories from living in that era

The census from 2009 says there are 2.25 million souls in Houston, how many cars per household is unknown but I don't think Red Lights are the answer at this stage. I was in New York City in 1966 and no one there owned a car, there wasn't any place to park one!. Even if you lived in a place like Queens or Brooklyn there still was no place to park a car. Subways were always the answer for anyone living in New York or the suburbs. Not feasible here of course, I think the ground is too wet, more important the money isn't there and if they started construction of an underground network everyone on this board would already be dead by the time it was finished. Seems to me one of these days licensing of vehicles will take an extreme turn around and there will be severe restrictions on how many a household can have. Sound far fetched? The new freeway system is already out dated, and why did they elect to leave it at one elevation, why not triple tier so traffic passing through Houston can get on the top tier and just go completely through without any stopping. One day you will see the toll roads opened to all traffic which it should have been from the very beginning. Tax me to build it then charge me to use it. For the future I see a Horse for everyone in my crystal ball, buy some open land so you can grow and sell hay, that may be the in thing 20 years down the road, no pun intended.

Houston was at one time known for its gospel, jazz and blues artists. Some were big names, small names, or just local stars.

Archie Bell and the Drells were one of the biggest and specifically mentioned Houston in their most popular song, "Tighten Up." They also had another song called "Showdown" in which they mentioned Market St.

In the 1950s, Sam Cooke sang with The Soul Stirrers and helped them to rise in popularity among gospel groups, which in turn helped him to become a successful secular solo singer in 1959. However, long before Sam Cooke came along, The Soul Stirrers got their start in Houston in September 1929, though they were named the New Pleasant Green Singers before changing their name to The Soul Stirrers in the early 1930s.

There's also Peacock Records. Though their roster of artists were from all around, it's important to note this Houston based record company as it was a heavy hitting company, competing with Chess, Nashboro, and other labels of the like from the late 1940s through the 1970s.

Let's not forget, Billy Preston was born here in Houston.

Archie Bell indeed, I had this link saved for posting later but hey why not now. I remember The Tighten up very well, at the time I first heard it I was at Can Tho Army Airfield, there were a bunch of Black guys walking around carrying these what were called "Short Timer Canes" carved canes with a lot of ornamentation. The most vivid image that implanted in my mind when I hear this song is the shrapnel holes in the mess hall there at Can Tho, it was dangerous eating there! Luckily I left 4 days later and spent my time 40 miles south of there.

A footnote: He was actually born in Henderson Texas, we'll forgive him

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIdug40ZM-M&feature=related

The Late and Great Billy Preston who died much too young

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1loV9_xLF8Q&feature=related