OBSCENE!

I admit that I haven't been following the story of the Houston janitor's strike very closely. However, it definately caught my eye that 44 protestors arrested for alleged CLASS B MISDEMEANORS had their bonds set at $888,888 EACH. This is just about the most disgusting, repulsive abuse of the law I have ever seen in my legal career. Accused murderers don't get bonds set this high! The District Attorney who requested this should be immediately fired and then disbarred; the magistrate who granted this abomination should be impeached, removed from office and then disbarred. Pandagon has allegations of abuse, including sexual harassment of the protestors. You can read more about the Houston janitors and their grievances here.

UPDATE: BOR reports the strike is over and the janitors appear to have won. No report yet on the Houston 44...

Life In the Big City

Democrats smashed the nearly 30 year long GOP stranglehold on Dallas County, and may do the same thing in Harris County next election. This is significant, and indicates that the Dallas Massacre was not just the result of demographics (a polite euphemism for "white flight") since Harris County still has a large, predominately white and usually reliably Republican suburban population. It's certainly a big change; I clearly remember a meeting of the venerable Harris County Democrats around Christmastime, 1994, when one speaker described the suburbs as "the idiot belt."