2010 Census

A census counts every resident in the United States and is required by the Constitution to take place every 10 years. The 2010 Census will help communities to receive federal funds each year for hospitals, job training centers, emergency services, schools, senior centers, bridges, tunnels and other-public works projects. I think the census is a good idea. It is very useful for the community and nice that the government is providing services to the community.

We should have everybody in the states to be counted because we could make our communities whole lot better. I read an article said that in the 2000 Census, “an estimated 373,567 people in Texas were uncounted.” It cost “Texas about $1 billion in lost federal funds, according to a Price Waterhouse Cooper report on the census.” There might a chance that Texas will be the biggest winner since the 2000 Census. The counts might cause to pick up three or four seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. These seats may not result in a huge change of the direction in our electoral college but they are important.

Let just hope that everybody in Texas turn in their census to let the state know the population of your state. We can get enough money to do public works projects, to improve our communities, schools and etc. If some people don’t do it, the state would not provide enough money for the communities to achieve the services in Texas. It is very important to turn in the census. One person being can make a difference in Texas.

Cameras or No Cameras?

On a blog called, " Keeping a closer eye on crime in downtown Austin", Emily Hajovsky. She makes a great point on how the we should have cameras in “high-crime areas”. It would help the Austin Police Department to find that person and arrest them. She also talks about “some owners of their establishment might want to use the video for their own civil law suits or just to treat their curiosity”. She backed her information about “the Austin Police Department is…debating whether or not to install security cameras in high-crime areas around the downtown area” with an article.

I think it is a good idea to have cameras at “high-crimes areas”. I think that will help the owners feel a lot better that he/she knows what going on outside of their place when they are not there. I agree with her that “safety should be there number one concern”.

I also agree that “we have a right to see what’s being videotaped as well as what’s going on in our neighborhoods”. It might or not be useful for a lawsuits or a crime. According to Emily “it wouldn’t be any different if the person pressing charges were to video tape it and use that in their lawsuit”. She gave an example of a case that was in 2007. She said that “they used cameras to catch people who ran red lights” and “people complained about how it was an invasion of privacy”. She makes a great point how people complained about being videotaping but “how is it any different than if there was a cop sitting at that light instead of a camera”. It got me thinking and it is the same thing but they have proof of them doing something.

Does Bill White have a Chance?

On Tuesday, March 2, 2010, the majority of Texas, who are democrats voted for Bill White. He gives the Democrats a faint of hope for the first time in 15 years that they might be able to take back the governor’s office.

For a very long time the Texas Democrats have seen their party stumble and fall in statewide races repeatedly, when the Republican candidate for governor, George W. Bush defeated Ann Richards.

I think that Mr. White has a chance to win this election but still he is going to face a rough battle in a state where big-city mayors have failed to win on a statewide level and where Republicans have been in office since Bill Clements was the first Republican governor in 1979. At the primary, he got about 70 percent of the Democrats votes. I knew that he had the chance to beat Farouk Shami for the Democratic Party. Does Mr. White have a chance to win this election in a Republican state?

In the past, he has cut taxes in Houston and won praise for reducing smog and steering the city through Hurricanes Katrina and Ike. He won re-election twice by large margins. He would probably be re-elected if possible. Does his past accomplishments can make a big difference to win this election?

I think this election this November would be interesting because there is some stuff in the past that made the public to be upset with Rick Perry. If more than, fifty percent of the Republican or the supporters of Rick Perry voted for Bill White. There is chance Texas will be a Democratic state. I know that my generation has never witness a Democrat to be governor of Texas. If Bill White wins, the election this would will go down in history. This election can go both ways. Texas might have given Perry another chance or a Democrat in office. We will see what the outcome will be in November.