The last standing member of the Council Oaks, a group of 14 oak trees located in what is now downtown Austin, Texas, the Treaty Oak has stood for more than 500 years. The Treaty Oak got its name from the (probably apocryphal) story of how Stephen F. Austin signed a boundary treaty with local tribes under its branches. In 1927 the Treaty Oak was called "The most perfect specimen of a North American tree". In 1937 the City of Austin (prodded by the Campfire Girls of Port Arthur and other schoolchildren) purchased the quarter acre of land upon which the Treaty Oak stood and believed that this ancient tree, and its 128 foot canopy, was safe. Of course, the did not know that in 1989 someone would dump enough of the herbicide Velpar around its roots to kill 100 trees.
posted on May 12, 2008 - View this thread

Texan judge rules $5 "pole tax" violates First Amendment rights. Further, Judge Scott Jenkins found no evidence to justify the purpose of HB 1751 (PDF), finding the anecdotal link of the patronage of strip clubs with a lack of health insurance and increased sexual assault rates for dancers insufficient, and ordered the state to pay the plaintiffs' legal fees. Activists are already looking to appeal Jenkins' ruling and reenact the tax. (Previously on Metafilter.)
posted on Apr 3, 2008 - View this thread

Giant Concrete Caterpillar. Driving on I35 south out of Dallas to Austin, you pass through Italy, Texas, and on the side of the road is Bruco, the Texas Italian Caterpillar, and the home of the Monolithic Dome Institute, makers of fine homes, restaurants, and churches. These domes are green and disaster resistant. (See previous thread). They also can be visually interesting. These domes are concrete as opposed to R. Buckminster Fuller's Geodesic domes, such as Epcot Center or the incredibly interesting Eden Project.
posted on Oct 10, 2006 - View this thread

96 Minutes... 40 years later. Texas Monthly has an article that, through eyewitness accounts, tells the tale of Charles Whitman. Forty years ago today--before 9/11, Columbine, Oklahoma City, "going postal"--Whitman perpetrated an act of public terror that impacted the national conscience. It all began when he killed his mother. Then he started typing a letter that, after he killed his wife, he finished hand-writing. Then he went to the Tower with a small arsenal and began the slaughter. Over 96 minutes he killed 13 more people and wounded 34 others until off-duty Officer Ray Martinez made it to the top of the tower and killed Whitman. (more inside)
posted on Aug 1, 2006 - View this thread

Art teacher in hot water over topless photos - Meet Tamara, a 29 year old art teacher at Austin High School (notable alumni) in Austin, TX. She's in danger of losing her job with the Austin independent School District over inappropriate photos posted to her Flickr account (may be NSFW). "I'm an artist and I'm going to participate in the arts," Hoover said. "If that's not something they want me to do then I want to be told that. I don't feel as if I was doing anything that was beyond expectations."
posted on Jun 17, 2006 - View this thread

Austin Postcard. Photographs, postcards, history and ephemera related to Austin, Texas.
posted on Aug 29, 2003 - View this thread

"The 9-28-01 Critical Mass bike ride in Austin generated some controversy when a jeep driver intentionally ran over a cyclist and crashed into another car."
posted on Oct 1, 2002 - View this thread

What? The sky isn't falling! It's just an acorn! John Kelso, Austin's foremost professional Texan, writes today about the Austin-California grudge match. (In Austin, it's de rigeur to blame the Cal-dot-commers-cum-Texans for the city's growing pains. It's also a tad accurate.) He also gripes about a silly SF gate Flash site where you can turn the lights out on Austin. The guy's a crank -- and he can't write a column without mentioning Bubbas, chili, or vegetarians -- but this is a perfect example of Texas' head-in-the-sand attitude towards a possible energy crisis. And the rest of the country's, maybe.
posted on Jul 27, 2001 - View this thread

Ain't It Uncool News? Seems like all the film scoopers want to start scooping all over Harry Knowles, Austinite poster boy and all-around huge self-promotion machine. And it ain't about money, it's about credit and credentials. Now the AICNers are hacking and slashing other sites...
posted on Jun 19, 2000 - View this thread