[WB1] The Houston Chronicle reports that median income in Houston has fallen below that of other major cities in Texas. Sort of – their inexperienced scribes do not seem to understand the difference between “median” and “mean” but the rough data is reproduced in the report at least.
It’s surprising that this snippet got past editors:
Houston’s reputation for welcoming large populations of immigrants and refugees is one explanation as to why the Bayou City lags so far behind other cities, according to Bill Fulton, director of Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research.
“Obviously Houston is a city of great wealth but it’s also a city of great income inequality,” Fulton said. “Probably 30 to 40 percent of the households in this city are just barely scraping by…and really have no disposable income. They are not unemployed, but these are often people with lower educational attainment, sometimes immigrants who are working at low-wage jobs — there’s a lot of low-wage service jobs in this city.”
There is, of course, a significant industry in Houston devoted to the importation and settlement of low-skill/low-education immigrants. It is supported by thought leaders (such as the people who publish the Houston Chronicle), public/private charitable groups, the housing industry, etc.
Once, the energy industry tended to push wages upward in Houston, but that industry has been under duress from various forces (market and political) over the past couple of years, even as Houston’s immigration industry continues to do its thing. These numbers are a partial reflection of that reality.
[WB2] Various sources report that the Houston metropolitan statistical area ranked third nationally in terms of growth from 2020 to 2021. blogHOUSTON readers know that the population of the city has actually been declining (despite the surge in immigrants noted above).
[WB3] Houston surged past 100 homicides for the year in mid-March. Unless something changes, the outflow of city residents is likely to continue (and perhaps even accelerate).
[WB4] A Houston billionaire – who incidentally funds a think tank/advocacy group that favors decarceration and bond reform policies – wishes “policymakers and the press spent [more] energy on comprehensive immigration reform.”
The same Houston billionaire is planning to fund a new Houston news startup. It’s not hard to imagine what its perspective is going to be on criminal justice and immigration.
[WB5] This is the sort of person that the billionaire and his colleagues at Arnold Ventures think should be out terrorizing people on the streets with minimal interference from the state. Things like this generally don’t take place in the parts of town where they live (apparently).
[WB6] David Jennings reproduces Harris County DA Kim Ogg’s request of her fellow Democrats to stop defunding law enforcement in Harris County.
[WB7] One of Houston’s illegal after-hours clubs made the news this weekend after a shooting around 3:30 am (the local media chose to highlight that three “nurses” saved the DJ who had been shot).
We live in a city that allows these illegal, crime-incubating clubs to thrive. Nobody seems to care.
Incidentally, the proprietor of this particular illegal, crime-incubating “hookah lounge” (wink) received a PPP loan from the federal government.
It feels like a big joke on us, the taxpayer-residents of Houston.
[WB8] This week, the Democrats who run Harris County refused to fire incompetent elections chief Isabel Longoria before her July resignation takes effect. See concluding sentence above but sub “Harris County” for “Houston.”
[WB9] Local constitutional law professor Josh Blackman posts an interesting interpretation of the Supreme Court’s ruling in Houston Community College v. Wilson.
[WB10] Selfie-loving former councilmember and unsuccessful U.S. Senate candidate Amanda Edwards threw her name into the mayoral race this week.
[WB11] It’s strange that these flyers continue to be distributed, yet not one instance of video (in a highly affluent neighborhood of tech-savvy residents) has surfaced that might identify the perpetrator. That’s generally your cue to think there is more here than meets the eye.
The Weekend Brunch is planning to go on a little spring break hiatus. We’ll see you in a few weeks – stay safe!
