John McCain

The 5 Dumbest West Fertilizer-Plant Explosion Conspiracy Theories On The Web

Investigators are nowhere near declaring what caused the explosion of the fertilizer factory in West April 17. Other investigators, however, have come to their own conclusions, or raised their own questions. Their own nutty, farcical, inane conclusions and questions. They are the West Truthers on ... More >>

NFL Free Agency 2013: Your Texans Cheat Sheet (Cap Numbers, Restructure Candidates, and More!)

Back in the day, when I used to have oodles and oodles of idle time on my hands during prime game-show watching hours (that's code for "back in college"), Wheel of Fortune was a staple of my game-show dance card. (For the record, Tic Tac Dough, Joker's Wild and Price is Right -- the Sopranos of game ... More >>

Ted Cruz, Texas' New Senator, Gets Schooled Over His Chuck Hagel Campaign

There are few Senatorial chapters more infamous than Joe McCarthy's months-long screed against the purported communists infiltrating the American government during the 1950s. The man's grating, acidic line of questions and insinuations have long stood as the apogee of paranoia within Washington. In ... More >>

For Once, the 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Got It Right

Despite being sick and hacking up more different colors of phlegm than there are Power Rangers, I needed to certify that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame wasn't completely mad for its incoming inductees. Rewind: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Set To Induct Rush, Heart, Donna Summer, and Public Enemy Y ... More >>

Making a Killing in Obama's America

Killing Them Softly argues crime is just business.

It Ain't Racial, It's Just That Almost 80 Percent Of White Texans Support Mitt Romney

There hasn't been much presidential polling in Texas for good reason this cycle -- with Rick Perry disastrously out of the race, why bother? But the good folks at WPA Opinion Research have filled the void with a new post-Dem-convention survey, and no one should be surprised that it shows President ... More >>

5 Treehugging Tunes By Conservative Country Artists

​Today is the Girl Scouts of America's annual World Thinking Day, which they celebrate each year by dedicating 24 hours of contemplation on the world and the people in it. Now, Rocks Off isn't a Girl Scout, but we keep a close eye on them because we've proven in the past they are in fact our o ... More >>

Capsule Art Reviews: "Crafting Live(s): 10 Years of Artists-In-Residence," "Emily Halbardier: Deep Green," "Hayden Fosdick: Paper Compounds," Marc Swanson: The Second Story, "Project Row Houses: 2011 Summer Studios"

Capsule Art Reviews: "Collections: Annual HSPVA Juried Show," "Crafting Live(s): 10 Years of Artists-In-Residence," "Hayden Fosdick: Paper Compounds," Marc Swanson: The Second Story, "Mitch Dobrowner: New Work," "R.W. Northcutt: Indigenous Genius"

Capsule Art Reviews: "Collections: Annual HSPVA Juried Show" "Crafting Live(s): 10 Years of Artists-In-Residence" "Hayden Fosdick: Paper Compounds" Marc Swanson: The Second Story "Mitch Dobrowner: New Work" "R.W. Northcutt: Indigenous Genius" "Use Your Il

Would Mexico Have Been Better Off if the American Southwest Remained Mexico?

And why the American Immigration Council is Great!

Rebecca Black Pulls "Friday" Vid, Heralds The Apocalypse

Mason Lankford said, "There will come a day when we forget the Rapture ever even happened," but Rocks Off is keeping an eye out for signs of our impending Armageddon. We were wrong last time, but we're totally right this time! ​Rebecca Black shot into... fame? Notoriety? Is there even a word ... More >>

Obama Shirt: Can't Vote. Reagan Shirt? Vote Away

The fashion police are everywhere​Shirts are fast becoming the new weapon of choice in Harris County's 2010 polling places.One woman told KHOU she was not allowed to vote because she was wearing an Obama shirt. The county issued an official warning against people wearing Obama shirts (or, if anyon ... More >>

Grinding Justice

Operation Streamline costs millions, tramples the Constitution, treats migrants like cattle and doesn't work.

National Blog Goes Nuclear On Dan Patrick's Looks

​The national political website Wonkette has got ahold of the story of Dan Patrick's new independent-ish party. And the commenters are sparing little in roasting our favorite state senator.There's lots of stuff about Texans, conservatives, etc. -- Wonkette is not generally a tea-partyin' place -- ... More >>

No Justice

We've bailed out the banks. When do we go after the crooks behind our financial collapse?

Rocks Off Checks Out Corpus Christi

Photos by Craig Hlavaty This past weekend, Rocks Off took a respite from sweltering H-Town to visit family in our equallly sweltering, ball-sweat-inducing neighbor to the south. Corpus Christi is rather small compared the teeming ant farm we have here, topping just over a quarter of a million beachi ... More >>

Tennessee Pushers

Old Crow Medicine Show's new CD of original material as rough-edged as their traditional covers

The Stimulus Package And The McCain-est County In Texas

Photo by MyEyeSeesWe wrote after the election about King County, the Texas county that gave John McCain his biggest percentage margin in the presidential race.Fully 93 percent of King County's voters went for the Republican, even though the county clerk told us the county is "pretty Democratic."Eigh ... More >>

Texas Is Doing Great -- In The Hate-Group Rankings

Photo by foxtongueThe count is in, and the number of hate groups in the U.S. exploded to 926 in 2008, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center's totally non-fearmongerishly titled "Year in Hate" issue of the Intelligence Report. And Texas can proudly boast the second-highest hate group count, at ... More >>

Remembering Martin Luther King Jr. in Song

In the Name of Love

Hitsville: The Year in Music, by the Numbers

You don't need a half-wit music critic to tell you it's been a remarkable year for America, one historians will be discussing and researching for centuries to come. War, financial collapse, politics, technology: All have been dinner-table topics for many Americans. Racial barriers in 2008 were demol ... More >>

Morrissey Will Take Miami and the Points

"Every Day Is Like Sunday" If you haven't read "Songs from the Heart of a Marketing Plan," Jon Pareles' essay outlining how, basically, the only way for artists to sell their music these days is by licensing it to sell something else, in the New York Times, go ahead and check it out. Ballz detects ... More >>

Morrissey Will Take Miami and the Points

"Every Day Is Like Sunday" If you haven't read "Songs from the Heart of a Marketing Plan," Jon Pareles' essay outlining how, basically, the only way for artists to sell their music these days is by licensing it to sell something else, in the New York Times, go ahead and check it out. Ballz detects ... More >>

Morrissey Will Take Miami and the Points

"Every Day Is Like Sunday" If you haven't read "Songs from the Heart of a Marketing Plan," Jon Pareles' essay outlining how, basically, the only way for artists to sell their music these days is by licensing it to sell something else, in yesterday's New York Times, go ahead and check it out. Rocks ... More >>

Tonight: Eugene Chadbourne and Walter Daniels at Rudyard's

The willfully weird Eugene Chadbourne stops by Rudyard's this evening with Walter Daniels, harmonicist (as far as I can tell that is, in fact, a word) for 1980s Austin punk bands the Hickoids and Jack O'Fire, in tow. Chadbourne's music is a mishmash of folk, blues, bluegrass, count ... More >>

Five Other Rock-Star Presidents

A Country Requiem for the GOP

GOP Party -- Not So Much

Houston Aeros Are Scoring Like Crazy. Opponents Are Too.

Trails to Terror

2008 Halloween Guide

Obama Accuser NOT An Aggie, Aggies Thankfully Discover

Book Review: Doomed Queens

Houston Aeros: Halloween Costumes and Bobbleheads, But No Dildos

The Straight-Ticket Voting E-Mails: Ignore Them

Fanfare For The Area Man

Ask Joe The Plumber

Aftermath: Citizen Cope at Verizon Wireless Theater

Four Lost Neil Diamond Covers

UT Students Disciplined Over Obama Signs (Updated: Victory!)

So Long, Opus

Bill Maher Makes an Adolescent Case against Religion in Religulous

Oh, God! You Devil's Advocate

Rappers and Republicans: Still the Same?

ASK A MEXICAN

SPECIAL LA RAZA EDICIÓN

What Do Shepard Smith and Soulja Boy have in common?

Wack's here to tell you: more than you might expect

Ron Paul, the Jason Voorhees of Presidential Candidates

Rockets-76ers: Night of the Living Dead

Now That's What We Call a Political Party

Dem Blues

The left, turning right, was plain wrong to attack pop culture

Red Light, Green Light

With billboards of windmills promising gentle, nonpolluting energy, Green Mountain offers Texans a new power avenue. Will they take it? Should they?