FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Margaret Justus
July 22, 2009 281-250-8253
TEXAS LYCEUM RELEASES 2009 “E-JOURNAL”
“The ‘E’ Stands for everything Texans care about:
Economy, Energy, Education, Elections and Environment”
The Texas Lyceum announced today the publication of the 2009 Lyceum Journal, containing sixteen articles focusing on the timeliest and most compelling policy issues facing Texas and the United States. The Journal has been published since 1980.
“Over the past 29 years, the Journal has evolved along with the Lyceum itself, showcasing the ever-changing ideas that challenge the status quo and offer lively, thought-provoking policy discussions,” said Robin Court, Lyceum Journal Executive Editor and Vice President of Publications for the Texas Lyceum.
“We have termed this year’s Texas Lyceum Journal as the E-Journal, with the “E” representing everything that Texans care about from Energy, to the Economy, Education, Elections, and the Environment,” concluded Court.
“This year’s Journal is one of our best ever, not only because these papers come from noted Texas opinion leaders, but also because they represent a variety of viewpoints from a broad political and policy spectrum –a distinct Texas Lyceum hallmark,” said Jay Rutherford, President of the Texas Lyceum. “We want to thank our outstanding contributors, our editor Robin Court and Alumnus Molly Beth Malcolm who worked tirelessly to compile the electronic version (PDF) that is posted on our website and hard copy text that will be delivered to every member of the Texas Legislature.”
2009 Texas Lyceum Journal Contributors
ECONOMY
Honorable Jim Dunnam (D-Waco), State Representative and Chair of the Select Committee on Federal Economic Stabilization Funding;
James K. Galbraith, Lloyd M. Bentsen Chair in Government and Business Relations and Professor of Economics at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin;
Brad Burnett, Constituent Services Coordinator for State Representative Mark Strama;
M. Ray Perryman, President, The Perryman Group, an economic and financial analysis firm
ELECTIONS
Royal Masset, former Texas Republican Party Chair and Political Consultant;
Chandler Davidson, Ph.D. Former Tsanoff Chair of Public Affairs Emeritus Rice University
ENERGY
Honorable Bill White, Mayor of Houston and former Deputy Secretary of Energy of the United States;
Donald R. Birx, Ph.D., Vice Chancellor/Vice President for Research at the University of Houston;
John W. Fainter, Jr., President and CEO of the Association of Electric Companies of Texas;
Tom Standish, President, Regulated Operations of CenterPoint Energy
EDUCATION
Stephan B. Kinslow, Ph.D. President/CEO of the Austin Community College District;
John E. Roueche, Ph.D., Professor and Director of the Community College Leadership Program at The University of Texas at Austin;
Kathleen Ciez-Volz, Ph.D., Director of Program Development for Instruction and Student Services at Florida Community College at Jacksonville;
Rosanne Stripling, Ed.D, Provost and Vice-President for Academic Affairs at Texas A&M University-Texarkana;
Walter G. Bumphus, Ph.D., A.M. Aikin Regents Chair in Junior and Community College Education Leadership at The University of Texas at Austin and Angel M. Royal, Ph.D. Program Director of the University Outreach Center in Dallas, a program of the University of Texas at Austin.
ENVIRONMENT
Cyrus Reed, Ph.D., Conservation Director, Lone Star Sierra Club;
Luke Metzger, Director, Environment Texas
Some excerpts from the 2009 Texas Lyceum Journal
From “The Facts about the Stimulus,” by Representative Jim Dunnam
“Contrary to public pronouncements that the stimulus money came with numerous strings attached and federal mandates that would tie the hands of Texas government, the House Appropriations and Senate Finance Committees were able to make maximum use of the increase in the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) to free up billions in general revenue and write a balanced state budget without using a dime of the state’s Rainy Day Fund “
From “The Causes of the Crisis,” by Professor James K. Galbraith
“I would not be right to blame any single person for these events, but if I had to choose one to name it would be a Texan, our own distinguished former Sen. Phil Gramm. I’d cite specifically the repeal of the Glass-Steagall Act—the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act—in 1999, after which it took less than a decade to reproduce all the pathologies that Glass-Steagall had been enacted to deal with
in 1933”.
From “How did we get into this Mess? The Causes of the Financial Crisis,” by Texas Economic Forecaster M. Ray Perryman, Ph.D
“If you perpetually bet against something with a remote chance of it happening, ultimately you are going to lose. Storms like Katrina are not supposed to happen, but one did. The Amazin’ Mets of 1969 were not supposed to finish any better than last in the National League, much less win the pennant and defeat the seemingly invincible Baltimore Orioles, but they did. It was this type of event that financial engineers ignored. Ironically, some of their own work played a notable part in bringing it about.”
rom “The Historical Context of the Texas Voter ID Proposal,” by Chandler Davidson, Ph.D. “Simply put, it’s not “free” for many Texans to take off work during daytime hours to travel to DPS or other state agency locations that are not always easily accessible, even if they drive, and especially if they don’t. Finally, provisions that would allow voters to present two non-photo ID documents, like a utility bill mailed to the voter’s address, assumes the voter has the utilities in his or her name.”
From “Who is leading Texas?” by Former Texas Republican Party Chair and political consultant Royal Masset
“The big divide in the future will not be conservative/liberal. The political fault lines are between urban and rural voters, with suburban voters trending toward the concerns of urban voters. Suburban voters used to be the backbone of the Republican party. They now expect us to govern and help them with things like education, health care and employment. The idea of limited government is dead.”
From “The State of Community College Education in Texas,” by Stephen Kinslow, Ph.D. “Community colleges represent Texas’ best hope for truly closing the gaps in higher education participation and success. They offer the most affordable and fastest route to an expanded, better educated middle class. They offer the fastest means of expanding tax bases by more equitably distributing them among a larger base, and by reducing social services costs. And, for the most part, they do it without the athletic programs, bands, cheerleaders, and flash that seems to attract the rich and powerful disproportionately to advocate for our four-year sister institutions.”
From “Energy Security in the Next Decade and the Role of the Lone Star Wind Alliance,” by Donald L. Birx, Ph.D.
“Texas is fortunate in that it, in essence, has its own grid, and therefore is better able to take the initiative in transmission issues that face the wind industry.”
The Lyceum has an impressive list of former members who are serving or have served in public office including: President George W. Bush, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, Governor Rick Perry, former Texas Comptroller John Sharp, Texas State Senators Rodney Ellis and Kirk Watson, Houston Mayor Bill White, Texas Supreme Court Justice Don Willett, former Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings, Congressman Pete Olson and current Directors, Texas
Representatives Veronica Gonzalez, Allen Vaught and Marc Veasey. Dr. Daron Shaw and Dr. Jim Henson, who conducted the annual poll, are also Lyceum Alumni.