Are Texas parents satisfied with the progress their children are making in the public schools?  Is Cynthia Tyroff's philosophy of education working, or are substantive changes needed?  That is the question before the Texas State Board of Education.

"Cherchez la femme," advised Alexander Dumas in: "When you want to uncover an unspecified secret, look for the woman." In the case of Barack Obama, we have two: his late mother, the went-native anthropologist Ann Dunham, and his rancorous wife Michelle. Obama's women reveal his secret: he hates America.

Your Mayor wants to sell you a 1000 room hotel. It will be located next to the downtown Dallas convention center on a parking lot currently carried on the tax rolls at $7.5 million. But you lucky taxpayer can get it for the amazingly low price of $40 million. He’ll let you know later how much you need to pay for the hotel, but expect it to be around $400 million.

Mayor Leppert’s argument is simple: We built a convention center and not enough people came although it is one of the best convention facilities in America. The reason given is that the center lacks a hotel attached to the center. But the Mayor goes further in making his case for a new hotel. He claims it will be the final, but essential, requirement for the revitalization of all downtown Dallas.

Such a deal. Should you buy? Here is a brief primer that may be helpful:

Q. Do we really need the hotel to attract the big-time conventions?

A. In most cases yes. The big conventions really do demand a large attached hotel (or at least very close) where VIPs, staff, exhibitors and others can stay. Without the hotel Big D is largely out of the big time convention business.

Q. But I thought Dallas ranked sixth among American cities for conventions?

A. That includes seminars and conventions that never get within sight of Dallas’ convention center. Dallas is ranked 8^th in terms of exhibition space with just over 1 million.

Q. The Hyatt is only a few blocks away.

A. As the crow flies that’s true. But the actual pedestrian trek is pretty long and not too pleasant. The Adams-Mark (now a Sheraton) sits on the DART line and is almost more convenient. But the customer is king and the customer says next door.

Q. Is the hotel certain to put Dallas back in the big-time convention business?

A. Certain? We’re talking about a hotel not death or taxes. It will certainly attract some big time conventions. It will help keep Mary Kay in town and the Dallas-based American Heart Association says count it in. But if you were given the choice between Dallas and Las Vegas, Orlando, San Diego, or San Antonio - where would you go? The fact is, for all the improvements, downtown Dallas is still boring.

Q. Will the convention center hotel make money? Will it at least pay its own way?

A. Ah, now there is the rub. I am sure the Mayor and the Convention Bureau will trot out consultants reassuring us that would be the case. However, if so why do taxpayers need to tote the note? If this was a slam dunk winner private developers would be standing in line. The fact no such hotel has been built would seem to indicate the private sector thinks the idea is less than compelling.

Q. In the big picture does Dallas need an additional 1000 hotel rooms?

A. No. Dallas as a whole had a 60.3% occupancy rate in 2007 (barely acceptable) which was near the bottom of the top 25 markets. Downtown Dallas’ occupancy rate is closer to 50% (awful). The old Statler Hilton is sitting across from a new downtown park and it appears its 800 rooms may come back on line within a couple of years. Draw your own conclusions.

Q. Is it possible that with the convention center hotel Dallas will draw enough traffic to drive up occupancy rates for all hotels in or near downtown? You know, a rising tide lifts all boats.

A. Some might gain – especially those within the downtown freeway loop but others would likely go down. Harlan Crow owns the Hilton Anatole whose 1800 rooms sit less than 2 miles from the convention center. If Crow thought his occupancy rate would climb he would be picketing the Council to get on with it. But no one is more opposed than Harlan Crow. Obviously this knowledgeable man, whose father virtually built downtown Dallas, thinks the hotel could bankrupt his property. He also thinks it might bankrupt the city. So there is a moral question here. Should the city be in the business of sinking private developers with taxpayer dollars.

Q. Do conventions make money for cities?

A. I truly don’t pretend to know but the liberal Brookings Institute has studied the matter and you can find their conclusions here.

If hell has a sneak preview, the world probably witnessed it on February 20, 2003.  On that night, rock band Great White, having fallen far from its ‘80s heyday, was playing a gig at The Station, a nightclub in West Warwick, Rhode Island.  The concert included a pyrotechnic display ignited by the band’s tour manager, Daniel Biechele.  Tragically, the pyrotechnics ignited flammable polyurethane foam used as soundproofing in the club.  The resulting inferno swept through the venue, killing 100 people and injuring over 200 others.  It was the fourth-deadliest nightclub fire in U.S. history.