RISD Wish List for 2011 Bond Election

The Richardson ISD school board held their first study session reviewing possible items to be included in a bond package to be put before voters in 2011.

Some of the items should be no-brainers, for example, renovating decades-old schools and replacing aging air conditioning units in many more facilities. Other items might need a little more background information, for example, refurbishing high school athletic facilities and providing resources to turn the STEM Academy ("Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics") within Berkner High School into a "New Tech High School".

After the jump, the one item in the proposal that's going to be the toughest sell.

Code of Ethics - Round 2

Monday evening, the Richardson City Council held another work session to thrash out a code of ethics for council members. The least significant change is a title change from Code of Conduct to Code of Ethics. The most significant development is that the council appears to be firmly behind this second draft and will likely approve it on September 27, after another public hearing.

After the jump, the actions taken to address my own concerns.

Wanting Both Teams to Win

From 2010 09 Northwestern vs Rice

How do you watch a football game when you want both teams to win? Other fans look at you funny if you cheer loudly for a first down on one play and then cheer just as loudly for a good defensive stop on the next. That's the situation "L" and I were in Saturday night.

After the jump, the details.

Who Needs a Code of Conduct?

The Richardson City Council has been deliberating a code of conduct for city officials (most recently discussed ). There have been three issues with the proposed draft that have received the most discussion: the statute of limitations, the confidentiality clause and the use of the city attorney as a so-called gatekeeper. But there's another issue that has been raised by more than one member of the public that hasn't gotten attention from the council - yet. That's the question of how far down the ranks of city officials and staff the code of conduct should apply.

After the jump, my thoughts.

Bob Macy Takes Responsibility

It's easy to lampoon Richardson City Council member Bob Macy. If superlatives are ever awarded for the 2009-2011 council, Bob Macy is a lock on the member most likely to say something unintentionally humorous or downright cringe worthy. So, it's only fair, when he stumbles onto a gem of wisdom, to give him credit.

After the jump, an example of both from Monday night's city council meeting.

What Hammurabi Says About Texas Open Meetings

What do you know of the Code of Hammurabi? You know, the set of ancient Babylonian laws dating to the second millennium B.C.? How many can you recite from memory? I'll spot you a few. Here, from Wikipedia, are some examples of the 281 laws that make up the famous code.

• If a man puts out the eye of an equal, his eye shall be put out.
• If a man knocks the teeth out of another man, his own teeth will be knocked out.
• If anyone strikes the body of a man higher in rank than he, he shall receive sixty blows with an ox-whip in public.
• If a son strike his father, his hands shall be hewn off.
• If anyone steals the minor son of another, he shall be put to death.
• If anyone commits a robbery and is caught, he shall be put to death.
• If during an unsuccessful operation a patient dies, the arm of the surgeon must be cut off.
• If a government official actually answers a constituent's question, he shall be smitten.

OK, I made up that last one, but you get the point. Not only does Hammurabi tell us what's forbidden, he gives us a kind of ancient equivalent to the US government's federal sentencing guidelines.

Quiz: Does Hammurabi's Code remind you of any other ancient set of laws? After the jump, the answer.

Does Two of Something Make it Common?

The proposed code of ethics for the City of Richardson has a six month statute of limitations. In Monday's council work session, a city staffer explained to the council why this was included. In a PowerPoint presentation, the number one reason given was:

"The inclusion of a time limitation is a common [emphasis added] feature of other area cities' policies."

After the jump, an analysis of whether the math is compatible with the language.