According to an article in today's Houston Chronicle by Thomas Korosec Dallas prosecutors have new evidence that police corruption was to blame for the false arrests that sent 30 Mexican immigrants to jail on false cocaine and methamphetamine charges. 

The Chronicle claims a former narcotics officer recently began cooperating with authorities has provided information against his former partner, Mark Delapaz, a street squad detective nominated for officer of the year in 2001 for a series of major drug busts. 

Owen Harries’ "Earth to Intellectuals" commentary in the Dallas Morning News Points section rebuts "10 ideas on the way out" by "10 of the world’s leading thinkers".

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A game like yesterday's debacle will show you a lot more than just a butt-kicking if you know what to look for. A case of deja vu, if you will, after the Marshall (football team) meltdown of a week or so past. The fact that 'The Boys' were getting their's handed to them was fairly obvious early into the game. From there I found my armchair quarterbacking self  digging deeper into the Parcells mindset.

He's been called the "New Jersey Con Man" and "Glorified Gym Teacher" by some of the better known sports journalists in the area. I probably give him a little more cred than that...but not as much  after yesterday's match. There are some things that 'Big Bill' does that just don't make a whole lot of sense. For one...Why keep Bledsoe in the game in the fourth quarter when Wasington is having the clobberfest day of a lifetime against Dallas' O line?...With no chance of winning the game, why risk losing your number one guy to injury when he's the only key we might have to get to post-season play? Also seems like The Tuna enjoys harrassing the hell out of his kickers. Granted, they're having a miserable year, but would changing tactics once in a while be so bad? If nothing else, maybe a word of encouragement from the head coach would change their luck. Plus, his bad vibes seem to be contagious on the sideline.(witness Keyshawn)

No, Tuna Man hasn't got it in him. I think he's satisfied being a irascible, glowering sideline presence complete with the mandatory "F bombs" sprinkled in for good measure. Most would probably consider Parcells a good coach, but win or lose, the guy's  becoming a bore.

Sunday's NYT had an interesting piece on the fast-growing exurb of Frisco.  But the WSJ's Q&A today with Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly was a say-nothing story.  Frisco is exploding with a pop now of 82,000.  What draws residents? More house for the buck. Child-centered opportunities for stay-at-home moms (dads), conservative neighbors, and good schools. The school reputation is amazing, given that Frisco has gone from one elementary a decade ago to 18 today and four more scheduled to open next year, and a second high school already added. The drawbacks? "Life is framed by the hours spent behind the wheel" -- particularly for business commuters to downtown Dallas.  As for the WSJ's Marketplace front interview with SWA's Kelly...LaGuardia next year? Maybe yes, maybe no.  And maybe somebody else gleaned a nugget that I didn't see.  

Bill ParcellsWith regard to yesterday's Cowboy disaster Norm says we need to keep in mind that you are never as good as you appear when things are going well and you are never as bad as you appear when things tank.  But there was one embarrassing moment that said a lot about the team.  Norm says the embarassment was Bill Parcells.

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Dallas GOP leader says President Bush has rediscovered his voice and is well on the way back up the approval ladder again after a several months hiatus.

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George H. HeilmeierThe December 12^th issue of Business Week profiles one of our community’s most prominent individuals in an article entitled "Voices of Innovation". George Heilmeier’s contributions to scientific research over the past four decades have led to major technological breakthroughs in such wide ranging areas as flat screen TVs and stealth bombers.

The Business Week article tells the story about how Heilmeier’s "dissertation on organic semiconductors led to …. a breakthrough discovery at RCA Labs" where George Heilmeier was working at the time. This proved to be the first key to the development of the LCD which would become the future of TV sets. George Heilmeier was only 28 years old.

The sad part of the story is that RCA eventually abandoned its research and development efforts with respect to LCDs. The Japanese picked up the ball and ran with it. Today, according to Business Week, the LCD business is dominated by Japanese, Korea and Taiwanese companies. It is a $39 billion business. The Japanese belatedly honored Heilmeier for his LCD innovations this past November by awarding him the Kyoto Prize which comes with a $425,000 cash award.

George Heilmeier left RCA in 1970 when he was selected to be one of 17 White House Fellows in 1970 and spend a year working in the Executive branch of the federal government. He was assigned to be a special assistant to the Secretary of Defense. That is when I got to know George as I was Associate Director of the White House Fellowship program at the time. In a group of 17 very smart people (including top flight West Point and Naval Academy trained military leaders along with up-and-coming corporate leaders), George Heilmeier was clearly head and shoulders intellectually above the rest of the group. The funny thing about Dr. George Heilmeier then (and, as best I can tell, he hasn’t changed since) is that, while he had (and has) strong views on a wide range of subjects, you never got the sense that George had a big ego. This was somewhat surprising to find in a man with such credentials and achievements. In that way, George reminds me of my old boss Ronald Reagan who combined strong convictions and a quiet self-confidence with personal humility. There was a saying on President Reagan’s desk which is apt of the way both men led others: "There is no telling how far you go if you don’t mind who gets the credit."

George Heilmeier has had a very distinguished career. He stayed on at Defense after his White House Fellowship year was completed and headed the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) from 1975 to 1977. He then went to Texas Instruments where he became Chief Technology Officer in 1983. Heilmeier was named CEO of Bellcore in 1991 and he retired in 1997. He still consults for a number of major companies.

In the Business Week article, here is George’s take on the future of U.S. science: "Heilmeier is generally upbeat about the outlook for U.S. science. But he does have some concerns. ‘There’s more hype in research than ever before,’ he says. ‘A lot more.’ Nanoelectronics is especially guilty, he believes. ‘The hypemeisters may be good at winning funding, but you don’t win by dumping in money. You win with insightful ideas.’"

Let’s just hope there are other 28 year old George Heilmeiers out there somewhere in the U.S. engaged in the kind of research that may one day lead them on a path like Dr. Heilmeier’s which (in the words of the Business Week author) "made him an icon of U.S. innovation in both civilian and military circles."

For the person who says, "When they pay me more ... I'll do more!",  I learned long ago that if if did more than I was paid to do ... I was soon paid more ... or a newer and better opportunity opened up to me. It is like saying to the stove, "when you warm me up stove, I'll put some wood in you" ... the more wood you put in ... the more heat you get out and the person who chops their own wood warms himself twice.

Scientifc research has shown that a dose of laughter is good for the heart, mind and soul, because it makes blood vessels work more efficiently. A separate study found that depression can raise the risk of heart and other vascular diseases. Learn to laugh, love, live and enjoy life. You will live longer and healthier! Keep Laughing ... Keep Living!

Ok so the Boys looked like chumps in getting kicked 35 to 7 by the hated Redskins.  But the fact is the two teams have an identical record and are still in the playoff hunt.  This was a day when the NFL's best got booted and lost their perfect record while the worst, the hapless Houston Texans, doubled their wins to two.  In the NFL everyone is getting squeezed into the middle and everyone in the middle is getting squeezed.  Mike says in this world one game can mean a season.

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