Lisa Falkenberg

A column for a Friday afternoon. They don't all have to be so serious.

Falkenberg: Mosquitoes torture us. An A&M scientist gleefully returns the favor There will be blood. A Texas A&M scientist experiments with gene editing to control deadly mosquito populations -- and finds poking them under the microscope oddly satisfying.

Folks, it was a tough call on whether to support the HISD $4.4 billion bond. The Chronicle editorial board's inclination is to support kids and teachers. But the decision, for us, came down to trust.

Vote no on HISD's $4.4 billion bond. Mike Miles hasn't earned our trust yet. Houston schoolchildren deserve repairs, rebuilds, better security and lead abatement but should voters trust Superintendent Mike Miles with a $4.4 billion bond?

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Who says editorials can't be written in verse? I have to say, we had a lot of fun with this one. Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth was under so much pressure going into the recent elections. A new state law made Harris County elections vulnerable to take over if she messed up and, say, failed to have enough ballot paper at a certain polling place. She didn't mess up. Let's hope she continues her streak next year. Meantime, here's an ode that'll get you in the holiday spirit -- and maybe a patriotic one as well!

'T’was the Night Before Elections,' the ballad of Teneshia Hudspeth (Editorial) We’re so impressed at the lack of fiasco that accompanied the recent Harris County elections that we decided County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth deserved a poem.

Patrick can't stick cities with bill, then blame them for paying it http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/If-Patrick-wants-to-demonize-cities-should-he-11743682.php&cmpid=twitter-premium via Houston Chronicle

Patrick can't stick cities with bill, then blame them for paying it Not at the state level run by Republicans, but in our cities that are mostly controlled by Democrat mayors and Democrat city council men and women. [...] Patrick calls Houston home as well, but I'm guessing as a Republican of the far-right variety, he excludes himself from the shame of urban blame.…

This one was a joy to write. Columnists and reporters don't write the headlines, but I will clarify to say that both mother and son are fighters. It was an honor to meet the Schulz duo in Friendswood and tell their story. Please share with a mother, wife, or other caretaker you know who could use some inspiration.
Purple heart recipient's caretaker, his mother, is the real fighter http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/columnists/falkenberg/article/Purple-heart-recipient-s-caretaker-his-mother-11144328.php?t=f7e1f29ad3438d9cbb&cmpid=twitter-premium via Houston Chronicle

Purple heart recipient's caretaker, his mother, is the real fighter Purple heart recipient's caretaker, his mother, is the real fighter On the morning after her first child was born, Debbie Schulz remembers lying in the hospital bed, trying to breastfeed her son as she suffered through the pain wrought by a brutal 18-hour birth that left her in stitches. Schulz took...

Column: Crimes, not cash, should dictate decisions about bail http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Crimes-not-cash-should-dictate-decisions-about-11126939.php?t=c52ab433eb438d9cbb&cmpid=twitter-premium

Crimes, not cash, should dictate decisions about bail The latest version simply mandates automated risk assessments for criminal defendants who are eligible for bail. In layman's terms, it requires judges to make sure the people we're jailing actually need to be there, either because they're a flight risk or a danger to society or the alleged victim. H...

I'll be on Fox 26 tonight at 10:30. Tune in to see us address so-called bill, , , Miss Teen Texas who some say isn't "black enough," and my column in the works for Wednesday. Just posted behind-the-scenes footage.

Harris County is spending millions in taxpayer dollars to fight FOR injustice, to defend a system of poverty jailing that a federal judge has found unconstitutional. Why? County Judge Ed Emmett says County Attorney Vince Ryan's office has told him the other side doesn't want to settle. The other side, civil rights groups and a local law firm, deny this. To prove it, plaintiff attorney Neal Manne included me in an email just this morning in which he offered yet again to settle with the county, saving taxpayers millions in legal fees, if officials would just follow U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal's ruling. In other words, stop violating the constitution = save money. Seems like a good deal to me. Today's column:
Why won't the county settle the lawsuit over the bail system? http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/columnists/falkenberg/article/Why-won-t-the-county-settle-the-lawsuit-over-the-11116615.php?t=2178c2b21e438d9cbb&cmpid=twitter-premium

Why won't the county settle the lawsuit over the bail system? Why are Harris County officials wasting millions in taxpayer money on high-dollar lawyers to defend a bail system that has now been declared unconstitutional by a federal judge? The county's handling of a class action lawsuit, which is intended to stop criminal court at law judges from jailing peopl...

Should HISD give up the goose or the golden egg? Go vote and have your say. And if you care what I think: Houston voters get a second chance to do the right thing http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/columnists/falkenberg/article/Houston-voters-get-a-second-chance-to-do-the-11098863.php?t=f8582a69a9438d9cbb&cmpid=twitter-premium via Houston Chronicle Life & Entertainment

Houston voters get a second chance to do the right thing If you didn't even know until you read this paragraph that an election is going on right now on a measure that could profoundly affect your property tax bill and the education of more than 200,000 students in the district, join the crowd. At a community meeting the other night, on the first day of e...