I spend a lot of time on my computer, but one of the benefits of reading at least 15 news
websites each day is I learn things. In the past 12 hours, I have learned two things
by reading the Dallas Morning News website. And both are distressing.
First, a group of entrepreneurs is trying to build a
high-speed train route between Dallas and Houston. The plan would use the
Japanese Bullet Train technology to zip people between these cities. You can
read about the plan itself on various sites. Just Google “Texashigh speed rail” and follow the threads down the rabbit holes. Some legislators
want to derail this plan, which is privately funded and asks for no public
money. In a Dallas Morning News column,
Steve Blow points out, “Opponents of the train are using the boogeyman of
eminent domain to try to kill it. A bill passed out of the Senate
Transportation Committee would strip that right from the project.”
One of those voting to remove the power of eminent domain
for this company is Sen. Bob Hall, R-Canton, who, according to Blow, said eminent
domain is “probably the most horrific power that the government has.” More than
capital punishment.
So, what are the lessons here? One is that Hall doesn’t know
the difference between taking a life and taking property, which raises the
question of whether he, and those who would agree with him, are smart enough to
handle public policy issues. Another is that some people in the Legislature
would take from the Texas Central Railway the same power they have given over
the years to other private firms. A third lesson is that capitalist hypocrisy trumps
free market rhetoric. One thing I haven’t learned is whether Southwest Airlines
is repeating its opposition to competition and using the easily influenced
state government to profit from its oligopoly.
The second trouble lesson came Sunday morning when the DMN
published Dave Lieber’s investigation
that showed the state is selling our private information to firms so they can
market their wares to us.
“The Texas Department of Public Safety sells your name and
address off your driver’s license to data mining companies, insurers,
tax-collecting law firms and electricity companies, to name a few,” Lieber
writes, noting that private companies are required to notify us of their
information sharing policies. The state government, not so much.
So, now you know from where that junk mail and those
robocalls originate. What’s to be done about it? Well, in true public service
fashion, Lieber gives the names of two Texas lawmakers who want to rein in this
practice. Here they are:
Rep. Gary Elkins — Email: Gary.Elkins@house.state.tx.us
Address: Room 4N.3, P.O. Box 2910, Austin, TX 78768
Rep. Jodie Laubenberg — Email: Jodie.Laubenberg@house.state.tx.us
Address: Room 1N.7, P.O. Box 2910, Austin, TX 76768
If you want to contact any other state official about either
of these issues, here is a fulldirectory, courtesy of the Texas Tribune.
