Texas Gets a D+ in Public Integrity Study
Texas earned a D+ for state integrity, tying with six other states for 27th place, according to a study released Monday by a group of public watchdog agencies.
Texas scored 68 percent, along with Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Montana and West Virginia.
“This study shows it’s time to unshackle Texas’ ethics watchdog and give it some teeth,” said Tom “Smitty” Smith, director of Public Citizen Texas, a watchdog group.
The national report, compiled by the Center for Public Integrity, Public Radio International and Global Integrity, used local reporters in all 50 states to review the laws and practices related to ...
Comments (17)
Steven Kite
I'm actually QUITE surprised that anyone was able to DO studies relating to public integrity or official accountability in Texas - from the way the officials act I'd not have thought they knew the meaning of the words. I'm not surprised that they don't seem to think those concepts apply to them, however.
Kathy Schmidt via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Accountability of the governor and legislators. What a concept.
Ed Rankin via Texas Tribune on Facebook
rick perry needs to go
Ed Rankin via Texas Tribune on Facebook
too many years and too much corruption
Danny Wier via Texas Tribune on Facebook
We're a virtual one-party state. Doesn't matter which party is running things; you're going to get corruption.
Samdavis
With a corrupt governor and an incompetent attorney general it's surprising TX rated this high.
Bea McGuire via Texas Tribune on Facebook
I don't think it's a surprise to anyone that Texas legislative ethics are in the crapper. One look at our schools and healthcare while seeing Slick Rick getting paid twice for one job says it all.
Eric Rodrigue via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Is it just me or is the worst part being mentioned in the same sentence as Arkansas? :-p
Jim Vance
I would have given an F (maybe an F+ at best) in the Ethics category. Yes, there is an Ethics Commission, and there are both statutory and administrative legal requirements over which they have responsibility to administer, but will not so so in a robust or timely manner and the penalties/fines which have been imposed are laughably miniscule in comparison with the underlying offenses. The Commission's membership is appointed by those elected to office with support of the economic and political power brokers who wield the campaign funding and media/propaganda hammers, and once appointed those members are disinclined or completely averse toward serious pursuit of malfeasance or misbehavior in association with those who may have brokered (or supported the system of crony-capitalism which resulted in) their appointment.
Not only are citizens or citizen groups who might file a complaint of ethics violations explicitly not considered a legal party despite their role in the formal initiation of some action, they are completely excluded from any active or passive involvement within the subsequent investigation or adjudication of those same complaints. Even if the allegations in the complaint are well-documented and reflect clear violations of administrative rules or statutory conditions, should those violations represent an embarrassment to the well-connected 'powers-that-be' in this State and its major metropolitan regions neither the Commission nor its non-independent staff undertake quick or assertive action, preferring to let the issue wash out of any public consciousness while the political operatives exposed cover their backsides with high-octane legal representation. Unless or until a citizen complainant actually challenges the Commission with some public demonstration of their dilatory practices in the "citizen communication" part of their monthly meeting agenda (an additional action which then threatens to embarrass their political masters further), the agency drags out the process for such a long time it becomes forgotten and effectively becomes irrelevant. Of course, that is exactly what the Commission and the corrupt crony-capitalist system in this state which it protects hopes will occur.
Ginni Watson Robinson via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Eric, usually we're mentioned in the same sentence with Mississippi.
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Audrey Fisher via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Is anyone really surprised?
Tom Barry via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Nope. Laws without teeth or dedicated enforcing authorities don't work.
Sunny Conditt Williams via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Ha!!!! Ethics?? Someone had better teach Perry about Ethics.....and all the rest of the so-called Legislators....
charles wilson
I wonder what grade they would give obama.
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datwooddisco andeson
?The variations obtained in rugs not to mention kilims around the world are incredible and gorgeous.The colour combinations within a kilim as well as persian rug allow it to become appealing to your eye and then a wonderfully decorative work of art.Each coloration hides some sort of meaning which will contributesto its fascination.<br />
Yellow:weld, vine leaves or perhaps pomegranate remove.produces moderate gold <br />
Brown:walnut shells or pine bark <br />
Green:combination regarding weld in addition to indigo <br />
Purple:hollyhocks <br />
Black:walnuts Larkspur:plant <br />
Henna:leaves and plants <br />
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An observation should be made with regards to slight alters in colour usually noticed in older rugs because of this happens in the event the weaver gets under way weaving by having a yarn originating from a different absorb dyes lot in comparison to the one previously used.This peculiarity is common when working with natural dyes given it is quite difficult to get a definite color fit.Fortunately, this condition does never affect the worth of the actual rug.It may in actuality increase it is really value.<br />
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It is very common concerning tribal rugs to discover this deviation in color which is a specific characteristic of hand painted rugs.The exact "recipe" utilised by a precise rug system was the closely protected secret that passed out of generation to help generation, or many times died with the passage of their time and the actual rug creator.<br />
The nomads so, who made kilims could not produce a big batch associated with dye, therefore sometimes colour would differ from lot in order to lot in that way as effectively.Also the type and good of wool was an aspect in one more color outcome.Long before dyers experienced that for the reason that more wool was dyed in a single dyepot, colors became less strong and lazy.Dyers use this notion connected with depleted dyes on their advantage.The first dyeing yields a deeply, strong coloration.Subsequent dyeings in the same dyepot make lighter, softer colors<br />
<br />
Synthetic Dyes:Aniline Dyes<br />
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Aniline chemical dyes were fast adopted from the carpet industry due to their low expense and easy-to-use attribute.The by using them is not limited for a specific place but spread across the world.In earphones years of your nineteenth millennium aniline chemical dyes were really acidic which will damaged the grade of the green area rug by wrecking the pure oil in your wool inducing the rug to wear off right away.In inclusion, the different shades ran when the kilim was basically washed or even faded should the rug was subjected to sunlight.Because of these issues, aniline dyes usually are not used as much as they once was.Nowadays they are used inside the dyeing with inferior top quality rugs.<br />
If you do not know whether or not your critical kilim and also persian type rug has been aniline dyed.You really should rub your damp cloth above the pile.If all the rug was basically dyed using a good-quality vegetable or substance dye it will not rub apart onto the actual cloth, but if it does then a rug continues to be dyed together with aniline.<br />
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Synthetic Dyes:Chrome Dyes At present, oriental mats are coloured with Internet explorer dyes.In contrast to natural chemical dyes, these are safer to use, quite lower priced and his or her's dye is much easier to fit.Chrome dyes offer a greater array of shades and also colors which can be colorfast.The sebum of the actual wool will not be removed in order that the kilim will not be worn away as fast for an aniline dyed one.<br />
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Although opera dyes are widely used, in days gone by there had been also complaints around with them because their own colors ended up being harsher versus the hues connected with natural fabric dyes.This had been corrected from the implementation of any light chemical substance wash which is certainly done to the majority of rugs previous to being exported to ensure the richness of this rug.<br />
Rugs which might be dyed in this way can by no means achieve your soft hue of any rug which is certainly dyed which includes a natural color.The carpet fades a bit over instance, depending relating to it's contact with the sunshine and basic use, but along with which it again achieves as a result is cozy and unobtainable in a other method.The the next time you have a look at your cherished rug or perhaps kilim, think about how it absolutely was dyed and also appreciate it really is beauty all the more.Kilims and rugs are usually wonderful to make sure you behold!