Will his injuries lead to his losing a spot on the roster of the Houston Texans?

Running back Domanick Davis, the Texans' career rushing leader, is in danger of not making the team this season.

Davis, who missed five games in 2005, has not practiced since the first week of preseason because of a bruised left knee that is unrelated to the arthroscopic surgery he underwent on the same knee in December.

Unlike Wali Lundy and Vernand Morency, Davis has been unable to be on the field to impress his new coaching staff, specifically head coach Gary Kubiak and offensive coordinator Troy Calhoun. Kubiak said Monday that if the regular season began today, Lundy would start against Philadelphia.

Each day, Kubiak grows more concerned about Davis' lack of availability. The roster will be reduced to a final 53 on Friday, one day after the Texans close the preseason at home against Tampa Bay.

"I'm very concerned," Kubiak said. "There's not much we can do about it, but I'm very concerned about that situation.

"It'll be a tough decision for the final 53. We'll make the decision based on what's best for Domanick and the team."

The Texans will have several options. They can make Davis, 25, part of the final roster and wait for him to get healthy. They can place him on waivers. They can put him on injured reserve, which means he wouldn't play this season. They also could trade him, which is unlikely because he's damaged goods.

We here in houston -- especially the season ticketholders -- will be waiting to see what happens here.

And for the first time, I wonder if we didn't make a mistake in letting Reggie Bush slip to the number 2 pick in the draft by picking Mario Williams, who has not developed quite as fast as some of us have been hoping.

Posted by: Greg at 10:35 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I missed this story.

KSBJ (89.3 FM) ihas been off the air due to a lightning strike. The Christian music station has long been known in the Houston area for its slogan, "God Listens".

Listeners who have tried to tune in to KSBJ 89.3 in the past couple of days have likely gotten silence. As KHOU-11 reports, that's because lightning hit the Christian station's tower earlier this week:

A Christian radio station was knocked off the air after its tower was hit by lightning earlier this week.
KSBJ-89.3 FM
The station, KSBJ 89.3 FM, has a main tower in Plum Grove, near Cleveland. It was hit at about 8 p.m. Tuesday and is operating at reduced power, the station said.

Typically, the station, which has a contemporary Christian music format, broadcasts at 100,000 watts, but is currently operating at only 50 watts.

The station said that crews are working to repair the problem, but that it will be several days until it will be completely fixed.

The station said that listeners can instead hear programming on their website, at www.ksbj.org.

We presume God is still listening, and doesn't need the full 100,000 watts.

I'll let you fill in your own punchline.

H/T blogHOUSTON

Posted by: Greg at 10:13 PM | Comments (118) | Add Comment
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I know it is just a game and I know it is just Hollywood -- but something just strikes me as wrong about the decision to group Survivor contestants by race.

Get ready for a segregated "Survivor." Race will matter on the upcoming season of the CBS show as contestants will be divided into four tribes by ethnicity. That means blacks, whites, Latinos and Asians in separate groups.

The announcement was made on CBS' Early Show. Host Jeff Probst says the idea "actually came from the criticism that 'Survivor' was not ethnically diverse enough." He says the twist fits in perfectly with what "Survivor" does, saying the show is "a social experiment. And this is adding another layer to that experiment." Probst says contestants had mixed reactions to the racial divisions.

This time the new Survivors are stranded on the Cook Islands in the South Pacific. The castaways include a police officer, a heavy metal guitarist, an attorney and a nail salon manager. The new season of Survivor debuts September 14th.

Posted by: Greg at 10:01 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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No matter how much money Tom Cruise makes for a movie studio, there is still a limit to the odd behavior that studio will take.

Paramount Pictures will end its longstanding relationship with Cruise/Wagner Productions, actor Tom Cruise's production company, citing his erratic behavior, according to a published report.

Sumner Redstone, CEO of Paramount owner Viacom, said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal that appeared in Wednesday's edition that Cruise's controversial behavior over the last year - including advocating for Scientology and denouncing the use of antidepressant drugs - was the cause for the move
The movie company is concerned that Cruise's behavior hurt his most recent film, "Mission: Impossible 3," said the report.

"As much as we like him personally, we thought it was wrong to renew his deal," Redstone was quoted as saying in the Wall Street Journal. "His recent conduct has not been acceptable to Paramount." .

Cruise paints this as a mutual agreement, but it seems petty clear that he was dumped.

Posted by: Greg at 11:15 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Book Meme from Anna Venger.

And just for the record, I will not use the Bible as an answer because, for me, it would feel like trivializing Scripture.

1. One book that changed your life: I'd have to say the first one, whatever that was, back when I was 50 years old. I've not been far from a book since then -- but if I have to select a particular title, it would be The Brethren by Woodward and Armstrong, because it awakened in me a scholarly interest in law and the Constitution that lay dormant just beneath the surface back during my junior year of high school.

2. One book that you've read more than once: Gee, that could cover a lot of territory -- but let's go with something a little off-beat. When I was a high school junior, I bought a paperback during my lunch break one Saturday while working at the base PX. It was L. Neil Smith's The Probability Broach, and I have probably read it at least once every other year since then -- and I still have the original copy I bought in 1979. It awakened me to libertarian political philosophy in a way that my earlier encounters with Heinlein had not, and also opened up the world of alternate history science fiction to me.

3. One book youÂ’d want on a desert island: Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, another favorite that I first encountered as a high school junior (curious, isn't it, that my first three selections would all come from one very specific formative year -- what do you make of that?). If I had a chance to toss a few more books in the lifeboat, I'd want Forester's Hornblower Saga and O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels.

4. One book that made you laugh: The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Don't panic! And, uh, it seems to be another one I read at age 16!

5. One book that made you cry: The Robe -- it is every bit as melodramatic as the epic movie based upon it. When I was 12, my mom and I found her copy (given to her as a gift for her First Communion) in a trunk. I still have it tucked away safely, three decades later.

6. One book that you wish had been written: Well, maybe I should say the one book I wish the author had finished writing. That would be 21: The Final Unfinished Voyage of Jack Aubrey by Patrick O'Brian. The author passed away while working on this, the 21st volume of his epic series of the British Navy in the Age of Nelson. The published version is raw, incomplete, and much of it consists of the author's semi-legible scrawl. There is enough there to make any fan wish that the old man had lived to complete it.

7. One book that you wish had never been written: The Deputy, by Rolf Hochhuth. This blood libel against Pope Pius XII ignores teh historical record and the assessments of his contemporaries (including no less than Golda Meir) to falsely accuse the pontiff of complicity in the Holocaust. Similarly, I would add The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the most pernicious work of anti-Semitism ever published.

8. One book youÂ’re currently reading: Gee, I've read a great deal in the four weeks since this post. I've read all three books in Naomi Novick's Temeraire series, Sarah Vowell's Assassination Vacation, and am currently working on Harry Turtledove's latest "Settling Account's novel, The Grapple.

9. One book youÂ’ve been meaning to read: You may be surprised by this, given my tagline above. I've repeatedly promised myself that I would read David McCullough's biography of John Adams, but have never gotten around to it.

10. Tag five others. This is hard, given that I wanted to tag Dan from Gone Mild, only to find that he has this same meme up. So I'll start with three fellow teachers -- Hube from Colossus of Rhodey, Darren from Right on the Left Coast and EdWonk from The Education Wonks. Then I'll tap my felow CD22 political blogger, Chris from Texas Safety Forum, because despite to all the jokes we make about them, Aggies do know how to read. And to give the list an international flavor, I'll add an Israeli friend, Avi from Tel-Chai Nation. Don't let me down, boys!

Posted by: Greg at 05:28 PM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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Let's remember -- the only folks who censored the Dixie Chicks were tehir former fans, who decided that they would prefer not to direct their dollars to entertainers who clearly despised them and their values. In doing so, they exercised teh same First Amendment rights as the Dixie Chicks, to speak out vocally, in writing, and with their hard-earned dollars to make a political statement of their own. That this has effecively killed the Chicks' career is too bad -- they are a talented group of girls ane I will admit that I like much of their early music.

But the censorship the girls met up with is of the sort that the Founders clearly recognized as legitimate, for the Constitution only forbids GOVERNMENT censorship. No where does the Constitution require that I buy their music or listen to it on the radio -- nor does it require that any radio station play it or any music store stock it. What's more, nothing in the Constitution requires them a recording contract after their album sales trail off and much of their concert tour gets cancelled because of sparse ticket sales.

Which leads us to today's New York Times.

Sitting at a table in early August, Bobby Braddock, the longtime songwriter, lamented the conservatism of the country music industry that was demonstrated when the lead singer of the Dixie Chicks became a target of fury three years ago after saying she was ashamed that her band and President Bush shared the same home state.

Asked whether his recent song “Thou Shalt Not Kill” would have airplay, Mr. Braddock said, “Oh, never.”

“Something political will not get played on country radio unless it’s on the conservative side,” he added. “If you show both sides, it’s not good enough. It’s got to be just on the right.”

Country music, the genre of lonely hearts and highways, lost jobs and blue-collar woes, has become a cultural battleground. Conservatism is widely seen as having the upper hand, a red-state answer to left-leaning Hollywood.

Democrats on Music Row, the country music capital here, have grown frustrated with that reputation. A group of record-company executives, talent managers and artists has released an online compilation of 20 songs, several directly critical of Mr. Bush and the Iraq war.

The price for the set is $20, with most of the proceeds going to the group, which calls itself Music Row Democrats and is using the money to support local and national candidates who share its values.

In other words, this is a political fundraiser, not merely a statement of principle.

So while I admire the folks involved in this project for speaking their mind, please understand that I won't be buying their album or calling my local stations to play the music.

Indeed, I will use the information about the writers and performers to determine my future music purchases -- because as an American, I am free to do so, just as they are free to make asses out of themselves and alienate much of the country music fan base.

Because contrary to the views of these music Row liberals, "Dixie Chicking" an artist is a patriotic act, not an unAmerican one.

And if you disagree, consider this -- how many pro-Bush songs and pro-Bush artists make it on to rap and urban stations?

Posted by: Greg at 09:39 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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No more tax-free freebies just for showing up at awards shows!

Movie stars appearing at the Academy Awards will no longer receive the lavish goody baskets they have come to expect -- worth as much as $100,000 each and including freebies such as iPods, resort vacations, coupons for laser eye surgery, jewelry and high-priced lingerie -- because of a crackdown by the federal tax collector.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences yesterday announced they have reached a settlement on undisclosed taxes owed to the government on the "gifts" received at the Oscars in the last several years, through 2005.

The academy also announced it will no longer give out the bags, saying the board quietly voted last April to end the practice. In recent years, the academy has given the bags -- also known as gift bags or swag -- to as many as 200 hosts, performers and winners on Oscar night. "There's no special red-carpet tax loophole for the stars," IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson said in a prepared statement. "Whether you're popping the popcorn, sitting in the audience or starring on the big screen, you need to respect the law and pay your taxes."

Typically, if the IRS finds someone has failed to pay taxes but no fraud is involved, it assesses back taxes, interest and penalties for only the preceding three years. In this instance, if 200 people received $100,000 baskets in each of the three years through 2005, the taxable non-cash income would be $60 million.

All of which means that these over-privileged buffoons might have to buy their own rhinestone encrusted cellphones and Tempur-Pedic mattresses.

Posted by: Greg at 10:17 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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I guess you can get the Left-nuts to spend %12 to buy a CD, but not shell out $50 a head to go to the concerts.

Several concerts on the Dixie Chicks' ''Accidents & Accusations'' tour have been canceled after slow ticket sales, but the group says it has replaced them with other dates.

Kansas City, Houston, St. Louis, Memphis and Knoxville are among 14 cities no longer on the original schedule released in May, according to a revised itinerary posted Thursday on the Dixie Chick's Web site.

Other shows, including Nashville, Los Angeles, Denver and Phoenix, have been pushed back to later dates.

The North American leg of the tour kicked off July 21 in Detroit. Billboard magazine and other trade publications have reported lackluster sales in some markets, particularly in the South and Midwest.

Group spokeswoman Kathy Allmand said Monday that the total number of North American dates remains the same, with several Canadian cities added in place of the U.S. shows.

Oh, dear -- they are going to focus on the mighty Canadian market! I guess that means that Americans still are unwilling to forgive and forget their continuous insults to their country, their president, and their troops -- and to country music fans, who at one time made the girls a success.

And I just love this statement.

The trio released a statement last week attributing the changes to attempts to ''accommodate demand'' and said more dates might be added next year.

Seems to me that they are attempting to accommodate a lack of demand.

Posted by: Greg at 11:48 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Imagine that -- what goes in their ears impacts kids' thinking and sexual behavior.

Teenagers whose iPods are full of music with raunchy, sexual lyrics start having sex sooner than those who prefer other songs, a study found.

Whether it's pop, rock, hip-hop or rap, much of popular music aimed at teens contains sexual overtones. Its influence on their behavior appears to depend on how the sex is portrayed, researchers found.

Songs depicting men as "sex-driven studs," women as sex objects and with explicit references to sex acts are more likely to trigger early sexual behavior than those where sexual references are more veiled and relationships appear more committed, the study found.

Teens who said they listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities within the following two years as were teens who listened to little or no sexually degrading music.

Exposure to lots of sexually degrading music "gives them a specific message about sex," said lead author Steven Martino, a researcher for Rand Corp. in Pittsburgh.

This is sort of intuitive, if you ask me. We have known for generations that advertising impacts the consumeproductpreferences and purchasing decisions of consumers. That is why so much money is spent on advertising, and why government restricts certain sorts of advertising. Why would the constantly repeated messages oin music not have a similar impact?

Not that there really needed to be this sort of study. Those of us who teach could have supplied researchers with all the anecdotal evidence necessary to reach this conclusion.

Posted by: Greg at 10:57 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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