Back Talk Oak Cliff

Around the web: Donating blood, the Yugo, Google and the flu, TV heroes

A regular roundup of stuff that wouldn't necessarily make it on the blog, but is worth noting:

• Had to come to this, given the state of the economy. I saw my first donating blood to make ends meet story, in the Chicago Tribune. Said one person at a plasma donation center: "Instead of sitting at home watching TV, I can spend a couple hours and make some extra gas money. Everything is hard, it's all getting more expensive: gas of course, just the cost of living."

• Those of us a certain age remember the Yugo, quite possibly the worst car ever made. It ended production recently, and to much fanfare. Apparently, in its native Serbia, the Yugo is still well-respected: "This is driving in its most natural form," said one enthusiast. "You feel every bump, squeak and jolt, and one can enjoy the sweet smell of gasoline and exhaust fumes. No car can replace it."

• Want to know if we're having a flu epidemic? Check with Google. Google.org, the search company’s philanthropic unit, says it has a tool that may be able to detect regional outbreaks of the flu 10 days before they're reported by the federal government. The tool tracks hits on flu-related web sites, figuring that someone who is sick will search Google for symptoms, cures, and the like.

• Ed Bark, local TV critic and blogger extraordinaire, rates the toughest TV heroes of all time. Gunsmoke's Matt Dillon is No. 1, which seems a bit high. I'd think NYPD Blue's Andy Sipowicz (No. 7) could take Matt just by sneering at him.

Back Talk’s final day on this site

Starting Monday, the blog’s home will be on our new website. So far, so good -- not too many problems, and we appreciate everyone reporting bugs, oddities, and the like. Please, let us know if something isn't working.

This site will be turned off after today. There will be no new posts, and you won't be able to make comments on previous posts. But you will be able to read old posts. After the jump, everything you need to know as we finalize the transition.

DISD news roundup: No election, new CFO and another investigation

Lots of DISD action this week ... here's a brief summary of some of what went down, along with (of course) a little commentary:

• After its embarrassing financial crisis, DISD is spending $258,000 annually to hire a new chief financial officer. Larry Throm comes via Austin and Lubbock, where he is credited with being a tough watchdog on district finances there. "Dallas is absolutely fixable," Throm told the DMN. "I would not have taken the job if I didn't think I could be successful. They need to install some internal controls, generally accepted accounting principals and some safeguards."

This weekend: Blues, JFK and vegan holiday cooking

For two nights in a row this weekend, neighborhood band Bona Fide Blues will be performing at neighborhood restaurants. Catch the boys at Eno's on Friday night at 9:30 p.m., and at Jack's Backyard and Chill Grill Saturday at 9 p.m.

On Saturday night at 7 p.m., commemorate the 45th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination by heading to the Texas Theater to watch Oliver Stone's "JFK". (Same guy who did the recent "W" movie, but totally different presidents.) Your $5 admission benefits the Oak Cliff Foundation's efforts to restore the theater.

"So you bought your Tofurky, now what?" That's the line Spiral Diner is using to market its "How to Prepare a Holiday Meal" cooking class on Monday, Nov. 24, 7-9 p.m. The 2-hour class costs $40 per person, and includes step-by-step instructions on how to make vegan holiday dishes, plus you get to sample all of them. Sign up at the restaurant or by calling 214.948.4747.

Winnetka Heights fires: Middle school students the culprits

Neighborhood blogger Rob Shearer first mentioned the Winnetka Heights alley fires on Back Talk Oak Cliff Monday morning, but unfortunately, they have continued blazing since then. We saw this story about the fires by WFAA reporter (and Kessler Park resident) Jason Whitely, stating that 12 alley fires have been counted since Monday, and neighbors believe they were intentionally set.

This morning I e-mailed regular Back Talk commenter Meredith Stegall to find out more about what is happening, and she tells me this: "We've learned that the culprits are a group of Greiner Middle School kids that seem to think that lighting fires in our alley ways is a good way to relax before and after school. One family had part of their garage burn and another family lost their fence. Members of the neighborhood are banding together and patrolling the alleys as well as our NOCUPP officer."

DISD board vote may extend trustee terms and delay May election

When Carla Ranger starts looking like the reasonable one on the DISD board, we might have a big problem. But that seems to be the case on the board's possible vote today to delay the currently scheduled spring elections for trustee seats currently held by Edwin Flores, Leigh Ann Ellis and Ron Price.

In a nod to stability, the board is considering extending board terms, which would mean the three trustees wouldn't face re-election until 2010 as opposed to May 2009. The board is relying on a state law that allows school boards to extend trustee terms; DISD's lawyers apparently are giving the board the go-ahead even as Ranger cites other legal opinions saying such a move would be illegal.

Jim Schutze weighs in on the idea in this week's Dallas Observer, and most of his points are dead-on.

Extending trustee terms is a good idea, giving the volunteers we elect a longer period of time to learn the ropes and at least try to keep everything honest on Ross Avenue.

But voting to extend the terms to get around having an election, as opposed to making the term extension effective after the next election cycle, essentially trumps our right as voters to have a say on DISD's ongoing issues. It could very well be in DISD's best interests — and it certainly is in Supt. Michael Hinojosa's best interest — to keep these three supportive board members on the job. But that's just not the way things should be done in a democracy. An election to vote in new board members, if that occurred, might make things even more messy at DISD, while re-electing these three board members would send a message that stability is what voters want.

But that's a decision for voters to make, and it shouldn't be taken away from us by the very people whose actions many are questioning.

Back Talk is moving, Thursday edition

Frankly, I'm a little concerned. Not enough of you have changed your RSS and email subscriptions yet. If you don't do it this week, your subscription will end when the old site goes dark on Monday. It's easy, really -- just click a link or two and some basic typing. If you click the RSS link and get some code and not the form, close the page and click the link again. It should work the second time. We know about this, and we're trying to fix it.

After the jump, everything you need to know to re-subscribe and use the new site.

Back Talk is moving, Wednesday edition

Some shameless self-promotion for the Advocate and the blog as we get ready to switch to the new blog platform. Friday will be our last day at this address.

Karen Blessen, who designed our October 2007 magazine cover, won a Katie award for best magazine cover, beating every other magazine in town (including all the famous ones). That was our Trinity toll road referendum issue. Meanwhile, Outside.in has named Back Talk one of the top blogs in Dallas. That was nothing -- wait until they see what we do next with the new platform.

After the jump, everything you need to know to use the new site.

Wine review: Dufouleur Père & Fils Nuits St. Georges Premier Cru Les Saint Georges 2002

Regular readers know that I don’t put much stock in expensive wine. Even when it’s worthwhile, these wines often fail the 10 times test: Is a typical $100 wine 10 times better than a typical $10 wine?

This red Burgundy (what the French call pinot noir) is from a 400-year French wine family and it does pass the 10 times test. The 2002 vintage, meanwhile, is one of the best in Burgundy in decades. Even better, the wine is only about $30 (available at Goody Goody). This is classic red Burgundy, with zippy tannins and a pleasantly rustic feel and taste. It isn’t especially fruity, so if you drink a lot of New World pinot noir you may be disappointed. Try it anyway.

I drank most of a bottle of this on the porch, enjoying the pleasant fall weather we’ve had lately. The St. Georges will also pair with almost anything you can throw at it for Thanksgiving, and it has lots of aging potential. How often can you say that about a $30 wine?

West Dallas Community Court now in session

Right now, if someone is sleeping on an Oak Cliff street, publicly urinating, in possession of drug paraphernalia, dumping illegally, violating codes, or committing other non-violent, "quality of life" crimes, he is cited and fined. People who commit such crimes often don't have money to pay fines, so they opt to serve jail time instead. Then they end up back on the streets, committing the same offenses.

Community leaders are hoping to break these types of cycles through the West Dallas Community Court, which celebrated its grand opening today. The new court — the second community court in the city (the first is in South Dallas) — is housed in the West Dallas Community Center at Hampton and SIngleton. After being cited, offenders from the city's southwest sector have seven days to appear in community court. If they enter a plea of guilty or no contest (most do, the court's social services coordinator Sarah Pahl told me), then Judge Daniel Solis will asses a punishment to fit the crime — some sort of community service activity in the neighborhood in which the defendant committed the offense.