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click on this to watch the Vista Ridge slide show It’s time to call your rep now, y’all! This is no April Fool’s prank. Though perhaps we are fools for trying to stop this completely unnecessary manmade disaster on groundwater depletion. We’re also beginning to wonder if the Republican Party of Texas is preparing to throw those who elected them — rural Texans — under the bus. We need your calls today and tomorrow to get State Representatives of all political persuasions, rural and urban, to vote NO on HB 1066. Also, for you San Antonians, we’ll be at the SAWS meeting tomorrow at 9 am.  Their meetings are also streamed on their site . HB 1066 is supposed to come to the floor of the Texas House tomorrow, Tuesday, April 2. (Note: Bills scheduled for the floor sometimes take a few days, so calls tomorrow may be timely as well.) HB 1066 is a handoff to the woefully mistaken $3.4B, 143-mile Vista Ridge San Antone Hose. Not even the Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District, which issued the permit for Vista Ridge, supports it! HB 1066 is the work of the SAWS Buzz Saw lobby machine. We recently wrote to you here about HB 1066. The author, Rep. Trent Ashby (R-Lufkin), who has previously been judicious in the past on groundwater grabs, has refused to amend this legislation. Do you live in the “forced donor” Simsboro communities? Call your Rep!!! Rep. John Cyrier for Bastrop & Lee counties at 512) 463-0682Rep. Terry Wilson for Milam County at (512) 463-0309Rep. Ben Leman for Burleson County at (512) 463-0600 Otherwise, you big city pals in San Antonio & Austin go to this link to find your Rep . What’s wrong with Vista Ridge? Click on Jack Nicholson in “The Shining” to watch our new Vista Ridge slide show presented in San Antonio last Saturday at the “Cross Community Alliances” event. Thanks so much to candidates and community for showing up or watching the stream. San Antonians, join us tomorrow at SAWS . Come a little before the meeting starts at 9:00 am and look for Ellen Berky pictured here. Our next SA event in is on April 22 . Bring yourself and petitions — print them out from our brand new San Antonio page under construction here . In the “forced donor” communities in counties east of Austin, we’ll be lending SAWDF a hand at the Smithville Garage Sale this coming Saturday, April 6th. SAWDF can use more items and volunteers! Reply if you can help out or call Linda at LIV. Independently yours, Texas! #HB1066 #TerryWilson #SAWS #TrentAshby #Austin #VistaRidge #SanAntonio #BenLeman #Smithville #JohnCyrier

Watch your water! After you watch our “David (us) v. Goliath (Vista Ridge)” 1-minute video, share it and read the rest of this message. WATCH YOUR WATER! ►Tomorrow, Monday, March 25, at 3:30 pm., join us at the Capitol for the SB606 Water and Rural Affairs Committee hearing or watch the stream from here . This Saturday, join us in San Antonio or watch the stream from our Facebook page – while you’re at it, like us ! And, please make some phone calls to your legislators. Action Items at the end of this message. SB 606 , authored by Sen. Kirk Watson (D-Austin) will be heard before the Senate Water and Rural Affairs Committee. SB 606 is a slap on the wrist to LCRA (Lower Colorado River Authority.), only adding some transparency, training and public engagement reform to an agency that just joined the privateering groundwater conveyance business – in denial of their own mission to protect the Colorado River. We oppose SB606 unless it contains an amendment to keep the LCRA out of the dirty business of groundwater conveyance for real estate development in dry areas aka “The California Water Model.”   The substance of that amendment would be the third page of James Murphy’s testimony to the Sunset Commission on December 17. ( See here ) (Note: Murphy, thankfully, just joined LIV’s Advisory Committee — see here .) Sen. Watson, who also sits on the powerful Sunset Commission, also represents all of Bastrop County. However, he sat silent in front of constituents who asked him for action last December to stop the LCRA water grab in Bastrop. To be fair, a number of Republican officials who represent the besieged Simsboro communities (the targeted Simsboro is part of the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer) — Bastrop, Lee, Milam and Burleson counties: Rep. John Cyrier (R-Lockhart), Rep. Terry Wilson (R-Georgetown), Sen. Charles Schwertner (R-Bryan) and Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham) have yet to step up us for this session. City of San Antonio officials are talking about climate change while allowing the $3.4B Vista Ridge 142-mile water conveyance pipeline to proceed. Meanwhile, SAWS lobbyists continue to make Vista Ridge a “game changer.” California here we come, as California struggles mightily to recover after decades of over-pumping. Don’t let our land, our water and our democracy get caught in the legislative sausage grinder. This is why LIV is calling for an investigation of Vista Ridge. See the Vista Ridge Resolution HERE just delivered to the San Antonio City Council. Please help us get folks out next Saturday in San Antonio. Watch the stream on our Facebook page if you can’t make it. Here’s what you can do to hit Goliath in the right spot! Find your State Representative and State Senator here . CALL to ask them to put a stop to the siege on groundwater and to step up for rural Texas where land and water belong together. Ask them to work with LIV and we’ll come right on over! Share from here our “Cross Community Alliances” San Antonio event this Saturday, March 30, 10 to noon at Tripoint Event Center . Or use our Facebook Event page here — like our page, first, please. Can’t get there? Our region belongs together! Help the non-profit 501c4 LIV pay our bills by becoming a dues paying member. Share all of this, won’t you? Thank you, independent Texas! #TerryWilson #watergrab #SimsboroAquifer #LoisKolkhorst #KirkWatson #SAWS #DavidandGoliath #VistaRidge #CharlesSchwertner #BenLeman #LCRA #JohnCyrier

SAWS got a well deserved spanking yesterday at the Natural Resources Committee hearing, using public dollars for water and wallet grabs. SAWS got a spanking yesterday at the Natural Resources Committee hearing using public dollars lobbying for water and wallet grabs URGENT calls needed through Friday! Both public (@SAWS) and private partners of the Vista Ridge/San Antone Hose got a wake up call yesterday at the Natural Resources Committee hearing on House Bill 1066. Judith McGeary, Milam County landowner and Executive Director of the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance (FARFA), came to ask for these modest amendments in the bill to prevent the rules from being changed midstream, and to guarantee what Gov. Abbott’s veto in 2017 of the very same bill asked for — a public process. And despite claims that the bill is for the benefit of groundwater districts, the Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District, which permitted Vista Ridge years ago, sent this letter opposing it! HB 1066 provides that export permits must be extended without a public hearing in order to match up to the permittee’s operating permit.  For Vista Ridge, that would mean a 10-year extension – which Vista Ridge has been asking happen immediately .  Texas Legislature Online’s description of 1066 is: “Relating to extensions of an expired permit for the transfer of groundwater from a groundwater conservation district.”  Follow this link for more: TLO on HB 1066 LIV volunteer representative, James Murphy, Esq., a self-described 30-year Texas water bureaucrat, lambasted the “consultants” (lobbyists) at SAWS pushing for a handout to the private partners of Vista Ridge through HB 1066. Murphy’s 3-minute testimony is well worth reading here . Here’s but one choice Murphy quote: The harsh reality is that planning for environmentally sustainable sources of regional water supply has taken a back seat to the need of private investors for a source of long-term tax and ratepayer backed revenue to add to their portfolios. The Conservation Amendment (to the Texas Constitution) is ignored and buried while Austin based consultants, many of whom I’ve known personally for decades, have hijacked the State Water Plan and replaced with a plan predicated on diverting fresh groundwater from rural and agricultural uses employing as many separate well fields and pipelines as local municipalities can be persuaded to pay for. HERE’S WHAT YOU CAN DO TODAY — by THIS Friday, March 8!!! Don’t get screwed! Make your calls, y’all! Find your reps here . Call your state rep and state senator no later than 5 pm Friday! Ask them to file these two groundwater reform bills; The Sustainable Groundwater Development Act and The LCRA Reform bill. Visit our new Water Bills 2019 page here . Ask your legislators to reach Natural Resource Committee Chairman, Rep. Lyle Larson, to urge amendments to HB 1066 already suggested at the hearing by McGeary and Murphy. Watch the video of 35-minutes of testimony here starting at 1:24:27 . LIV San Antonio Board Member, Ellen Berky, helped continue the spanking for SAWS ratepayers. Stan Mitchell of San Antonio Making Bureaucracies Accountable (SAMBA) was allowed to submit this testimony and back up information into the record, though not allowed to speak. BTW, first termer, Rep. Ramos (D-Dallas) asked great questions. Thanks to you all who came, watched and are catching up today on the Our Land, Our Water, Our Democracy Lobby Day yesterday! Make those calls, y’all. Gridzilla is no conspiracy, she’s just a cartoon to make our point about water grabbing lobbyists, public and private. #GovGregAbbott #SanAntonioWaterSystem #watergrabs #SAWS #Californiawatermodel

Thank you, Mark Cuban, shark for democracy, who retweeted Texans for Voter Choice’s tweet about Our Land, Our Water , Our Democracy Lobby Day tomorrow (Tuesday, March 5th) to 7.7 million Americans! Cuban, a business shark for democracy, provided a stark contrast to industry testimony at the eminent domain hearing today. Start watching at about 2 hours and 24 minutes and you’ll see. We hope to SEE you tomorrow (Tues., Mar. 5), but if you cannot make it, it’s being streamed from 9:30 to 11:30 am from our Facebook page here . We’ll be visiting legislators OR calling their offices to ask them to support all that we lay out in this nifty little flier. Meanwhile, we will be saving the videos of presentations at the Lobby Day for you to watch later so you can take action anytime this week. Please do! See ya! #MarkCuban

As luck would have it, our friend, Judith McGeary of Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, just gave us all one more reason to be in Austin this Tuesday at the LIV 2019 Lobby Day this Tuesday, March 5th ! HB 1066 and HB 726 help usher the California Water Model (Gridzilla) — mass movement of groundwater for real estate development — and they’re up for an early hearing this Tuesday. Hearing notice here . On Tuesday, the House Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing on a bill, HB 1066, that would allow Vista Ridge (for our readers, aka the “San Antone Hose” — see 17″ video here ) to apply for a 10-year extension to its transport permit immediately – before any pumping even begins – and to get the extension without any public hearing. The same provision is included in a larger groundwater regulation bill, HB 726, that is being heard the same day, Don’t let our land, our water and our democracy get caught in the legislative sausage grinder. PLEASE TAKE ACTION: Call your State Representative and Senator. Find them here . Ask them to protect Texas groundwater — no California Water Model — and to oppose HB 1600 and SB 800 (the companion bill in the Senate). and HB 726. Then, tell them you’re asking them to do something positive for groundwater, the aquifers and landowners — ask them all to sponsor the Sustainable Groundwater Development Act and legislati Don’t let Gridzilla bring the California Water Model to Texas. on to keep LCRA out of groundwater. When you call in, ask to speak with a staffer that deals with water issues. If you get their attention, LIV will send a representative to meet with legislator’s staffers on any of the above. Report back to us — come to our Lobby Day! Special note for the Simsboro counties! For Milam County, that’s Rep. Terry Wilson (512-463-0309) and Senator Charles Schwertner (512-463-0105). For Burleson County, that’s Rep. Ben Leman (512-463- 0600) and Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (512-463-0118). For Bastrop County, that’s Rep. John Cyrier (512-463–0682) and Sen. Kirk Watson (512-463-0114. For Lee County, that’s Rep. Cyrier and Sen. Kolkhorst. The call can be very short, just a couple of minutes. Introduce yourself, mention that you are a constituent, let them know the House bills are up for a hearing on Tuesday, and ask them to oppose the bill. It can be that simple. If you want to add your reasons, focus on: It doesn’t make sense to extend permits before pumping has even begun, since we don’t really know the impacts on the desired future conditions. The bills block public participation – which is why the Governor vetoed this approach last session. MORE DETAILED INSTRUCTIONS: Come to the Capitol on Tuesday morning and register in opposition to the bill.  This is much easier than it sounds and really has an impact!  The hearing starts at 10:30 am “or upon adjournment”.  In practical terms, that means you could come register to testify anytime between 9:30 am and noon (and possibly later, but that gets iffy). You just come to the Capitol, park, and enter the building.  If you have an Ipad, you can register on that once you are connected to the Capitol’s public wireless network. Otherwise, take the elevators down to floor E1.  Go down the main hall, and then turn down one of the side halls on your left. Where there used to be pay phones, you’ll see little kiosks.  Just follow the instructions to register.  Make sure the kiosk says it’s for House Witness Registration (not the Senate, which is in the hallways on the other side). Committee: Natural Resources Bill: HB 1066 by Ashby  (go back through the process to also register against HB 726 by Larson) Position: AGAINST.   You can see more instructions and a video on how to register at https://mytxlegis.capitol.texas.gov//hwrspublic/about.aspx You can choose whether or not you want to testify. If you want to stay and speak, great – plan what you want to say in 2-3 minutes.  If not, you can simply register your opposition. Your name and opposition will be listed in the official record, and we promise you, legislators truly do look at that list when they are considering how to vote on a bill. Then, come on over to our Lobby Day at the Reagan Building — go outside and look just to the north of the Capitol. We’re in Room 140. Got questions? Give us a call or reply to this message. #Gridzilla #groundwater #JudithMcGeary #Simsboro

A water grid for mass movement of groundwater for real estate development is all kinda wrong for Texas! She’s baaack! Action please! You think California was a disaster? Texas here I come” — Gridzilla Share this 40-sec video starring Griddy from our Facebook page here ! A Texas water grid to move masses of groundwater to fuel growth in areas without their own water supply — is all kinda wrong for Texas. The California water model is a proven disaster, so why are some legislators ushering the grid to Texas, while others do little to stop it? Only we Texans — together across all party lines — can stop Gridzilla. Do this, won’t you? 1. Watch and share our Gridzilla 40-sec video. Then donate to the non- profit Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund at GoFundMe here . (If you’re in Bastrop today — Sat., March 2, from 12-4, you’ll see SAWDF with these yard & fence signs at the frontage road at Tractor Supply!) 2. Call your state rep and state senator ( find them here ) and ask them to pass groundwater and eminent domain reforms urged by the League of Independent Voters of Texas and our friends. Hearing on Eminent Domain is Monday (details here) & Tuesday on Water ( hearing notice here ). Note that Rep. Ashby’s HB 1066 could help the Vista Ridge – San Antone Hose — aka Gridzilla! 3. We’ll prep you on all of this at LIV Lobby Day here . Make a reservation — it’s free and we need to see your smiling faces in the flesh! If you can’t make it, watch the stream and make your calls! Got questions? Reply or give us a call at 512-213-4511. Tell Griddy to get on down the road, y’all. It’s YOUR water for now and for the next generation! #SAWDF #SimsboroAquiferWaterDefenseFund

The Quest to End Two-Party Rule: Part 4 “The essence of strategy is choosing what not to do.” ― Michael Porter, What Is Strategy? In a prior blog , I suggested that there were three aspects that we should be considering as we engage in our quest to end two-party political rule: 1) an elaboration on the nature of The Opportunity (Part 2) that lies before us, 2) an identification of The Barriers (Part 3) to change that stand in our way, and 3) a list of potential Strategies that might be considered as we develop plans for successfully bringing about change. In this final installment … Strategies It may not surprise you that this final installment has been a challenge. I thought that perhaps I could propose a few clever ideas to put forward for consideration. But finding a chink in the duopoly’s armor is difficult. As discussed in a prior blog ( The Barriers ), what stands in our way are a combination of intense inertia, apathy, and structural impediments long baked into our elections statutes and even the media’s coverage of politics. There are some on-going efforts that obviously should continue. The Texans for Voter Choice coalition plans to continue their work to relax statutory barriers to ballot access for independent candidates and alternative parties. And, of course, the Libertarian and Green Parties have managed to largely retain minor-party ballot access (though the Greens failed to maintain their access for 2018), therefore providing at least a modicum of alternative choice. But as a recent article in the Economist points out, Americans are much more likely to change their religious denomination than their political party. And except for a few high-profile candidates ( e.g ., Ross Perot), alternatives to the duopoly are basically ignored – both by voters and by the media. For there to be a significant change in voting patterns and media coverage, both voters and media outlets will likely need to see something significant to begin to occur. Somehow, and in some way, the task ahead should be to find ways to garner enough voter and media attention to establish a toehold from which to build future success. A modest toehold might be enough. Imagine if alternatives to duopoly candidates regularly garnered 10-20% of votes or 10-20% of serious voter and media attention. This continuing level of attention would maintain duopoly alternatives as a part of our regular political discourse. Diffusion of Innovation Theory suggests how innovations generally propagate through a population. Adoption of new ideas does not happen simultaneously, but rather progresses through different categories of the population (see figure below). “Innovators” are those who have already signed on. They’re already listening to and even promoting alternative parties and/or independent candidates. Little needs to be done to address this population, other than to keep them on board. Getting to the 10-20% range, though, will require bringing on what Diffusion of Innovation Theory calls “Early Adopters”, those who are aware of the need for change and are willing to embrace it given the opportunity. They’re comfortable with new ideas and are often opinion leaders. They’re swayable. The first question, of course is, who exactly are the Early Adopters? And secondly, how can they be convinced to regularly and actively engage in non-duopoly politics? They’re certainly not to be found among the Democratic or Republican faithful or their respective political classes. These populations are too invested in the status quo. Although there might be exceptions, members of this population are unlikely to jump ship. It’s not at all clear (at least to me) who the Early Adopters are. Perhaps they’re discouraged non-voters. Perhaps they’re some portion of those who are increasingly disassociated from the duopoly parties. Perhaps they’re reporters for major news outlets that are looking for ways to expand the political conversation. Perhaps they’re news executives looking for niche markets. What is clear, though, is that the Early Adopters must be able to visualize some reward for their efforts. They must be able to see that stepping outside of duopoly politics will make a difference – even short of winning elections. This is our challenge. Ideas anyone? Mark Miller Dripping Springs, TX Mark serves on the LIV Advisory Committee. Read his bio here . #EarlyAdopters #TheEconomist #twopartysystem #MichaelPorter #Innovators #TexansforVoterChoice #MarkMiller

The war between the two parties is putting our democracy at risk — not to mention fundamentals like our land and water. If you agree with us, please accept this invitation to join the independent movement to do something about it! Democracy is not a game, Babe. Our Land, Our Water, Our Democracy Lobby Day Tuesday, March 5, 9 am to 5 pm John H. Reagan Building, Room 140, 105 W. 15th Street, Austin, TX Here’s what we’ll be talking about with our legislators: Democracy is not a game: Most voters agree the gamesmanship between the two parties is not only stifling innovation, it is harming small “d” democracy – the ability to build consensus in our country. In Texas, ballot access petition reform would allow independent, non-aligned candidate and minor party competition. It’s called the Texas Voter Choice Act . ►We must also defend the right to petition for municipal voter referenda – real local control – currently under attack by municipal lobby machines — this news piece tipped their hand . If you live in Austin, San Antonio, Houston, Plano or any municality where citizens collected signatures this year, you really need to be at this Lobby Day! If you cherish democracy come to the Capitol on March 5th! ► Saying NO to the California Water Model: Private water speculators are hijacking the State Water Plan via “Gridzilla,” a water grid mimicking California’s over-pumping and costly transfer of groundwater from distant locations for real estate development. Pass the Sustainable Groundwater Development Act to protect our aquifers, landowners, ratepayers and future generations. ► Curbing Eminent Domain Abuse: The newly organized Texas Landowners for Eminent Domain Reform is working this session to level the playing field in an unfair process that favors condemnors over landowners. What you can do right now! ► Call your state senator and state representative to urge they visit with League of Independent Voters representatives. Find them at: fyi.capitol.texas.gov ► Go to our website or call us to make a free reservation to attend the March 5th Lobby Day. ► Share this message from here, sign up to get our email alerts and bring other Texans with you on March 5th. LIV is developing and cultivating the independent, non-aligned voter. We’re in the tool-kit business. Pay your dues to become a member today! Happy Valentines Day, y’all! #LeagueofIndependentVoters #Gridzilla #localcontrol #Californiawatermodel #IndependentTexans #ballotaccessreform #Independentpolitics

The Grinch of the year is surely the LCRA. The Lower Colorado River Authority is pushing hard for a redundant and massive water grab of Simsboro water 8 days before Christmas. The move is bad news for all Texans given its potential impact on water policy. In essence, “The California Water Model”, an already proven disaster is proceeding in Texas at the behest of the real estate lobby and their minions on public office. The ancient Simsboro formation of the Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer underlying Bastrop, Lee, Burleson and Milam counties does not recharge in human terms. But this hasn’t stopped privateering Recharge (aka End Op), the San Antonio Water System (Vista Ridge aka the San Antone Hose) and now the LCRA, a quasi-governmental agency. LCRA lawyers pushed for a legal hearing tomorrow — December 19, starting at 10 am at the Bastrop Convention Center. You can reach Sen. Watson and ask him what he is going to do to stop LCRA at 512-463-1114. Watson sits on the Sunset Commission, represents Austin and all of Bastrop County and has been silent on the LCRA grab. We share this message from the non-profit Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund with additional details. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation online to SAWDF or come to the hearing tomorrow and grab some home-baked goodies to die for. That’s right. Landowners are facing Goliath with a bake sale – the spirit so fitting for this pre-Christmas occasion! Come get some tomorrow! MORE:  It’s Christmas time but for whom we might be asking. This Sunset Advisory Commission, whose charge is to review state agencies, just conducted a limited review of LCRA. They held a hearing on December 12. There were 20 witnesses who spoke at the top of the hearing. They were Bastrop landowners, Austin environmentalists, Highland Lakes protectors and one 30-year water professional, James Murphy, singing a very similar song — protect us, LCRA, do your job like you did during the recent flood. Stay out of groundwater. Truthfully, James Murphy stuck out like a sore thumb. He is a Bexar County resident, who has been making the rounds, stirring the pot by lending his impressive expertise to the good fortune of Texas water policy. He is the Christmas gift to the Simsboro. We lift this quote from Murphy’s testimony: Texas groundwater policy has been hijacked by private speculators bent on manipulating local governments to the tune of billions of dollars in unnecessary and duplicative groundwater projects.  Governor Abbott has warned Texas not to follow the “California model”, yet it seems LCRA is intent on doing so.  Ironically, California is now investing billions in an effort to undo the damage to both the economy and environment caused by unrestricted groundwater mining at the very time LCRA is leading Texas down the same path with no regard for the costly ruin that lies ahead. Watch the LCRA testimony here Murphy is at 1:32:35 followed by a telling interchange with respected Houston State Rep. Senfronia Thompson. For the many of you who want to know what our plans are. We’re working on it. Should we continue building new alliances (across party lines and across the state) uniting voters outside the parties for the common good of all? The answer to that question lies with you. You can help by: Becoming a dues paying member of the LIV or simply donating . Stepping up to get active in LIV. We’re headed for lots of activity in the upcoming legislative session on election, water and land reform. (Reply if you’re interested in details.) Building an LIV chapter in you area. We’re holding a meeting on January 12, shooting for Caldwell County (likely Lockhart.) We wish you all the very best holiday ever and a peaceful – unifying — New Year! Please join us to build a 36-member geographically representative Board across Texas in 2019! #JamesMurphy #KirkWatson #SenfroniaThompson #SimsboroAquiferWaterDefenseFund

The press conference scheduled for noon today in San Antonio is canceled due to weather. We hope to reschedule it soon. Watch our video for tonight’s event here. In the meantime, the Debate on Prop A and Vista Ridge is still on! Join us at a civil and fair debate moderated by Brendan Gibbons of the Rivard Report. “Yes or No on Prop A Debate on Vista Ridge” ( Read our release here .) Tuesday, October 16, 7 to 8 pm, followed by a Cruz/O’Rourke Debate Watch 2300 Avenue B, San Antonio 78215 * Pan American Golf Association Clubhouse Due to limited seating, we suggest you show up early. Event details here . Invite your Facebook friends from here. If you need to reach LIV, call or text 512.657.2089. Hoping to see you — people and media tonight!

Ron Nirenberg’s disaster might be overstated just a tad when he calls reasonable petition requirements for citizens to call for a public vote (Prop A), a disaster. With or without the foot dragging by the No campaign, this debate will go on. Watch this video and see our response and please do share! ==> Well, maybe the Mayor of San Antonio is right in a way. Without suppressing the right to petition, San Antonio’s high rollers in real estate and their friends in public office, couldn’t have forced the disastrous Vista Ridge (San Antone Hose) on SAWS ratepayers and landowners along its 142-mile path. Does it ever cease to amaze you what large sums of money dangling in the balance can do to basically good people? We hope you already received notice of a Debate on Proposition A and Vista Ridge to be held THIS Tuesday night. See flier here . Here’s our Facebook Event Page . See flier here . Here’s our Facebook Event Page . Not on Facebook? Use our Event page . Join us THIS Tuesday night, October 16th from 7 to 8 pm Pan American Golf Association Clubhouse at 2300 B, San Antonio 78215.Please do stay for the Cruz/O’Rourke debate from 8 to 9 pm, or come late if you can’t make the Prop A debate from 7 to 8. We can agree to disagree, have a laugh and beer together. United we stand, divided we fall, y’all! #BertoGuerra #ORourke #PropsA #SAWS #VistaRidge #RonNirenberg #debate #Cruz #Unitedwestand #BandC

New LIV Board Member, San Antonio architect, Ellen Berky, is hilarious. This is what she said about the debate going on in San Antonio on citizen propositions A, B and C: “The real estate lobby and its henchmen in the public realm have the city so thoroughly divided it’s like Chinatown (the movie) except without the sex and mayhem. Actually, strike half of that. We have got the mayhem – just not intelligent and informed debate.” What is happening in San Antonio politics is actually a little closer to the movie, The Shining. The City Hall political establishment — you know, the same guys and gals who rammed the Vista Ridge/San Antone Hose on all of Central Texas — is aflame to stop three measures placed on the ballot through petitions led by the Firefighters. Props A, B and C ( Details Here ). The League of Independent Voters is really keen on Prop A — fair petition requirements. Prop A is truly a gift by the San Antonio Firefighters to the community. If San Antonio citizens had fair petition requirements in 2014, we could have petitioned for a public vote on a $3.4B, 142-mile pipeline mega-water and wallet grab. Instead, SAWS (San Antonio’s water utility) ratepayers are faced with a rate hikes for an unnecessary project while SAWS ushers in the California Water Model. Guess what, Texans. California continues to reel in self-induced water crisis and now struggles to reverse 50-years of failed groundwater policy. Join us at a civil and fair debate moderated by Brendan Gibbons of the Rivard Report. “Yes or No on Prop A Debate on Vista Ridge” ( Read our release here .) Tuesday, October 16, 7 to 8 pm, followed by a Cruz/O’Rourke Debate Watch 2300 Avenue B, San Antonio 78215 * Pan American Golf Association Clubhouse Due to limited seating, we suggest you show up early. Event details here . Invite your Facebook friends from here. AND EARLIER ON THE 16TH JOIN OUR TUESDAY NOON PRESS CONFERENCE! In front of SAWS. Bring your own homemade sign. Noon sharp! 2800 U.S. Hwy 281 North, San Antonio, Texas 78212 (At the Customer Service Center… see map here ) We hope to see you this coming Tuesday at either or both of these important events. Read our media release here. We also just received LIV Advisory Committee member Mark Miller’s third and final installment of “ The Question to End Two Party Rule. ” Nice work, as usual, professor! PS Though it might seem that the San Antonio election is like Chinatown (the movie), it’s probably much closer to the movie, The Shining. Ya think? #RonNiremberg #EllenBerky #SanAntonioFirefighters #BrendanGibbons #PropsA #SAWS #JamesMurphy #BandC #MarkMiller