Falkenberg: Houston Still Sucks

Journalists and economists the nation-round have finally noticed that Houston is a good place to do business. Some have even gone so far as to say that economic growth in Texas is one of the factors keeping the USA out of "Recession" status, and Houston is a big part of that.

Enter the Chron's Lisa Falkenberg, brilliantly portrayed by Mindy Cohn as having recently returned from a terrifying personal matter she could not possibly resist forcing upon a scant audience, to say that she doesn't "buy the hype."

What hype? Houston has been panned for years as a sprawling backwater (backwaters don't sprawl) by foreigners, hated by our local journalists who prefer the world-classiness of Dallas transit (you've really got to feel for anyone so little-traveled as to think Dallas exotic), and national journalists have finally noticed that the Fourth Largest City in America is growing? That's a good thing Lisa.

Of course, a cynic might note that Falkenberg has contributed nothing new and merely regurgitated a Sixel column that proved Houston's economic success to be the result of ample boozing, with a predictably contrary view from Barton Smith.

The neat thing about Lisa Falkenberg isn't the stunning narcissism that requires a half-dozen first-person pronouns in every column, but the desperate lack of originality that transforms other journalists' work into her personal discovery (it's the journey). More amazing: Falkenberg has been employed by a major metropolitan daily newspaper for any purpose other than curbside delivery.

While a great many Chron.com commentators complain of liberal bias, the more striking feature of these columns is the total absence of professional standards.

REPLIES: We must harshly disagree with Mr. JD Allen in the comments section. Rick Casey is NOT a "silly little girl." He's a silly old woman.