Karen Brooks Harper
Karen is a contributing editor and writer for Austonia.com, where she covers criminal justice and social issues. She is a veteran Texas journalist with more than 20 years in newspapers, TV and digital media. Karen studied journalism at the University of Missouri-Columbia and lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, son, and four rescued pets. Twitter: @kbrooksharper
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(Jordan Vonderhaar/ Texas Tribune)
Austin police and city leaders say they are preparing for November protests as the city steels itself for an election that has wrought tension at the highest levels of national government.
<p>The election, which President Donald Trump has warned will be "rigged" and said the outcome may not be clear for "months," comes after <a href="https://www.kut.org/post/gov-abbott-says-texas-wont-be-needing-us-military-respond-protests" target="_blank">a summer marked by near-daily demonstrations,</a> both in downtown Austin and across the nation, over civil rights and police brutality.</p><p><a href="https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2025923?query=featured_home" target="_blank">Nearly two dozen people were hospitalized</a> in late May after clashes with Austin police, whose use of bean bag rounds during protests resulted in <a href="https://austonia.com/gov-abbott-defunding-pledge" target="_blank">sweeping changes ordered by the Austin City Council</a> and a <a href="https://austonia.com/city/austin-police-will-no-longer-use-bean-bag-rounds-at-protests" target="_blank">ban on the use of less-lethal weapons</a> against demonstrators.</p><p>In July, demonstrator <a href="https://austonia.com/tag/garrett-foster" target="_blank">Garrett Foster </a>was shot by a man who said he was unconnected to protests but driving for Uber in the area when his car was attacked by protesters. Daniel Perry, an active duty sergeant with the U.S. Army in Killeen, said he shot Foster in self defense. Charges have not been filed. </p><p>A tense memorial for him brought clashes between those who thought Perry was there to cause trouble, and those who believed Foster threatened him—<a href="https://austonia.com/austin-protesters-clash-with-police-in-the-wake-of-garrett-fosters-death/state-police-in-riot-gear-form-a-line-along-congress-avenue-and-advance-toward-protesters-to-remove-them-from-the-street" target="_blank">with both sides heavily armed</a>, including armed members of the Proud Boys militia, an extremist right-wing group that has made national headlines recently.</p><p>Police said this week that they are getting ready for the protests but declined to specify what their plans will include. An emailed statement suggested that officials are planning for potential unrest beyond the peaceful atmosphere seen in the majority of protests through the last several months.</p><p>"The Austin Police Department will plan and prepare for any large protest or civil unrest events related to the upcoming elections," said police spokesperson Tara Long, in a statement emailed to Austonia. "The goal of such preparations is to ensure the safety of the community, while protecting the rights of people to peacefully exercise their First Amendment Rights."</p><p><strong>Demonstrations a way of life in Austin</strong></p><p>In 2016, on the day after the November election between Trump and Democratic opponent Hillary Clinton, <a href="https://www.statesman.com/NEWS/20161112/How-an-Austin-tweet-about-Trump-protests-became-a-national-conspiracy" target="_blank">demonstrators marched in Austin</a> to protest the fact that Trump had won the election in spite of the fact that Clinton had won the popular vote. </p><p>On the day after Trump's January 2017 inauguration, <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2017/01/21/thousands-expected-participate-texas-womens-marche/" target="_blank">tens of thousands descended on downtown Austin</a> to show solidarity during the Women's March on Washington.</p><p> "Austin has a storied history of large-scale peaceful protests when election results have offended our community's sensibilities," said City Council Member Jimmy Flannigan, chairman of the Council's Committee on Public Safety.</p><p>Home to the state Capitol, Austin has played host to countless demonstrations throughout the years.</p><p>Local and statewide groups have demonstrated on myriad issues including immigration laws, gun control, or demanded higher pay for teachers or the legalization of marijuana or the protection of a woman's right to choose abortion.</p><p> "As a state capital city, we are always prepared and continuously improving our process for peaceful protest," Flannigan said. </p><p>Flannigan said he doesn't anticipate any voting issues on Election Day that might cause clashes at the polls, saying that elections in Williamson and Travis counties, parts of both of which fall within his district, have worked hard to accommodate voters with little incident. </p><p>Even with the recent national tensions over masks and potentially thousands of partisan poll watchers at voting sites, he and others said they don't anticipate clashes on a local level over those issues.</p><p>"Austin has a long history of safe and fair elections, and I have no doubt that Austinites of all political perspectives are eager to vote and will do so responsibly and safely, wearing their masks and taking the necessary precautions," Flannigan said. </p><p>He and others noted, however, that the potential for unrest after the election is fairly high—given the likelihood that the presidential election may not be over on Election Night. </p><p>The appetite for protest in Austin certainly hasn't abated in recent weeks, with groups from all parts of the political spectrum planning protests over voting sites, masks and other issues.</p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="e976f16a8a8706cfb9eff3f07d6ae246" id="94187"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1313680812957724672"><div style="margin:1em 0">PROTESTS MUST HAPPEN NOW. Gov Abbott reduces drop boxes to one per county. Harris County has 4.2 million people. VO… https://t.co/LKm3iOgYjc</div> — Helen Armstrong (@Helen Armstrong)<a href="https://twitter.com/HelenArmstrong5/statuses/1313680812957724672">1602040887.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Austin City Council Member Greg Casar, one of the council's loudest voices for police reform in the wake of the protests, called on Austinites to "continue to raise our voices, exercise our rights, and keep holding officials accountable" after votes are cast.<br/></p><p>"APD, by their own admission, needlessly harmed peaceful protesters this summer, including hurting medics and nearly killing two teenagers, and the entire City Council has made it clear that this is not acceptable," Casar said in a statement to Austonia. "We remain committed to protecting all people's First Amendment rights, and we remain committed to safety for our city employees as well as everyday residents. I will continue to fight for policies that protect Austinites' health, safety, and right to protest, no matter the election results."</p><p>Asked whether downtown businesses were taking any actions in anticipation of rowdy protests, the Downtown Austin Alliance released a statement that did not detail any plans but supported the notion of civic engagement—noting that demonstrations on the Capitol steps and along Congress Avenue are a way of life in Austin and "a foundation of our democracy." </p><p>"For the past several months, there have been peaceful protests and demonstrations almost every day downtown," the statement said. "As stewards of downtown, we remain focused on ensuring that downtown is a vibrant and welcoming place for all who want to engage civically."</p>
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Digital billboard in Michigan.
Up to 85 digital commercial billboards could light up the skies all over nature-loving, small-business-owning Austin after a decades-old ban on the bright, flashy signs was recently found by a court to be unconstitutional.
<p>The billboards, which switch images up to every eight seconds, offer exponentially more affordable ad options for small business owners but create what opponents call "visual blight" along highways in both urban centers and unincorporated areas.</p><p>At least one City Council member, whose district could include up to 20 digitized billboards if the opinion stands, indicates she would fight for the current ban.</p><p>"I believe the City's prohibition of off-premise digital signage stands on solid legal ground, and I will be talking with City legal staff to ensure that this rule remains in place," said Council Member Kathie Tovo, whose <a href="http://www.austintexas.gov/department/district-9" target="_blank">District 9</a> includes much of downtown.</p><p><a href="http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/19/19-50354-CV0.pdf" target="_blank">The opinion</a> is focused on an Austin lawsuit but, if allowed to stand with no appeals, would set a precedent that could have statewide and national implications.</p><p>The signs in question are "off-premise," which means they advertise businesses that are not at the property where the sign is located. "On-premise" signs are more loosely regulated, and digital signs are generally allowed if they are on the business property.</p><p>The two companies who own the analog signs in lawsuit, <a href="http://www.lamar.com/" target="_blank">Lamar Advertising Company </a>and <a href="https://www.reaganoutdoor.com/" target="_blank">Reagan Outdoor Advertising</a>, asked the city of Austin to allow them to digitize their signs in 2017 but were denied based on <a href="https://library.municode.com/tx/austin/codes/land_development_code?nodeId=TIT25LADE_CH25-10SIRE_ART2EN" target="_blank">the city's sign code</a>. </p><p>They sued, arguing, among other things, that the regulations were discriminatory because they allowed some signs to be digital and not others, a distinction they said was content based—and thus violated the First Amendment—because the signs' content is what indicates whether it is off-premise or on-premise. The Fifth Circuit agreed in its Aug. 25 opinion. </p><p>The argument against them is at odds with Austin's culture of supporting small businesses, which would benefit from having access to more sign inventory at lower prices and avoiding costs of production, Bill Reagan, founder, chairman and CEO of Reagan Outdoor Advertising, told Austonia in an interview. </p><p>"We look forward to the ability to avail ourselves of this technology," Reagan said. "Everything in this world is going more and more digital, not less. Billboards shouldn't be excluded from that technological evolution." </p><p>But in a town that loves the soft lights of its historic moon towers and has tried to guard against over-populating the highways with billboards, the idea of digital signs, officially known as "changeable electronic variable message" billboards, blazing against the night sky is a tough one to swallow for opponents. </p><p>"It just doesn't make sense for Austin," said Sarah Tober, executive director for Austin-based Scenic Texas told Austonia. "We are a city that loves our wild, natural beauty, and this is the furthest thing from that." </p><p>In a Sept. 23 letter to Austin Mayor Steve Adler and the City Council, the group asked the city to appeal the ruling. City officials have not yet indicated whether they will appeal. Their deadline is January 2021. </p><p>Tober and other opponents also argue that the signs are <a href="https://www.scenic.org/sign-control/digital-billboards/fhwa-study/" target="_blank">dangerous and distracting</a>, while Reagan pointed to <a href="https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/real_estate/oac/possible_effects/cevms00.cfm" target="_blank">federal studies </a>saying they appeared to be no more a distracting than analog billboards.</p><p><strong>A long history in Austin</strong></p><p>The issue <a href="http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=279588" target="_blank">comes up</a> every few years in Austin. Informal polls typically come back with an <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/pulse/poll/should-austin-allow-off-premise-digital-billboards/20944099" target="_blank">overwhelming "no" response</a> from locals.</p><p>Supporters have also argued that updating analog billboards with the digitized ones is "good for the local economy, will produce less light pollution than floodlights on traditional billboards and can help public safety," according to <a href="https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2015/12/digital-billboards-coming-austin/" target="_blank">a report in the Austin Monitor </a>in 2015, before the city updated the codes the following year. </p><p>Opponents said the tall commercialized digital billboards do more harm than good, stipulating that highway safety messages currently allowed are often lower to the ground and easier to see while driving.</p><p>"The State of Texas has said we do not need to have a digital device in our hands, so why do we need to be looking at a digital device in the sky?" Tober said. "There are health implications, there are mental health health implications, there are physical health implications, and there are physical health implications of having digital billboards. There are also broader environmental implications."</p><p>There's also the potential risk of hackers, she noted, <a href="https://www.metrotimes.com/news-hits/archives/2019/09/30/porn-video-displayed-on-billboard-over-i-75" target="_blank">who in late 2019 broke into a digital billboard over an interstate in Michigan</a> and broadcasted pornography for several minutes.</p><p>At the time, groups like Scenic Texas and its Austin chapter were trying to ban or eliminate billboards altogether. Meanwhile, the supporters were pushing for the codes to further regulate on-premise signs while allowing them to upgrade the technology on existing off-premise billboards to digital. </p><p>Eventually, the city landed here on the issue: Keep the 700 billboards the city already had at the time, only let a new one up when an old one comes down, and maintain the ban on digitized off-premise billboards, with some exceptions. </p>
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(Associated Press)
Former UT tennis coach Michael Center completes his prison sentence and is released from halfway house.
Former University of Texas men's tennis coach Michael Center was released from a Texas halfway house on Friday, where he finished a six-month federal prison sentence for falsely designating a wealthy West Coast student as a Longhorns recruit.
<p>He was among dozens accused of bribery deals cut between officials at prestigious universities around the country and the rich and famous who wanted their children to attend them—all revealed in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_college_admissions_bribery_scandal" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a stunning nationwide college admissions scandal</a> in 2019 that netted coaches and movie stars alike.</p><p>Center, 56, began his sentence in April in a South Texas prison facility, <a href="https://www.bop.gov/mobile/find_inmate/byname.jsp#inmate_results" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.</a> His release date was listed as Oct. 2, according to the bureau, but it was unclear whether he returned to his Austin home before that under a monitored release, for which he was eligible in mid-September.</p><p>Mr. Center was unable to be reached for comment by Austonia on Sunday. </p><p>The bureau website shows that Center spent the last portion of his sentence in custody at the Residential Reentry Management center in San Antonio, which oversees several facilities in Texas. It was unclear from online information where in Texas his specific facility was located. Calls to the bureau by Austonia were not returned.</p><p>RRMs offer employment counseling, job placement services, financial management assistance, other services and some freedoms, according to the bureau.</p><p>It is not clear when Center left the <a href="https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/trv/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Federal Corrections Facility Three Rivers</a>, a medium-to minimum-security men's facility, where he served the first portion of his sentence.</p><p>The nationwide college admissions scandal involved more than 50 people, including actresses <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/01/us/lori-loughlin-not-guilty.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lori Loughlin</a> and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/felicity-huffman-pleads-guilty-college-admissions-scandal-n1005056" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Felicity Huffman</a>, along with coaches from universities such as Yale, Georgetown, several California schools and UT-El Paso.</p><p>Center admitted to accepting $100,000 in 2015 in exchange for helping <a href="https://www.hookem.com/story/20200224/former-texas-tennis-coach-michael-center-sentenced-six-months-college-admissions-scandal/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the son of a Silicon Valley venture capitalist</a> gain admission to UT-Austin as a recruit for the Texas Longhorns tennis team, which he was not.</p><p>He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud and was ordered to serve a year's probation and pay back $60,000 he had pocketed in the deal. The other $40,000 went to the tennis team.</p><p>In February, Center was visibly upset at the sentencing, which his attorney called "harsh," and which started right as the nation was in the early stages of the pandemic shutdowns.</p><p>By comparison, a Stanford sailing coach was sentenced to one day in prison and six months house arrest, along with probation and a fine.</p><p>Huffman was released after two weeks and Loughlin, <a href="https://people.com/tv/lori-loughlin-is-terrified-about-going-to-prison-amid-covid-19-pandemic/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">who told reporters she was "terrified"</a> of going to prison during the pandemic, will start a two-month prison sentence in November. Both were also fined and given community service hours for their role in schemes to bribe college officials to get their kids into certain schools.</p><p>Center was a celebrated and popular coach who spent <a href="https://texassports.com/sports/mens-tennis/roster/coaches/michael-center/187" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">18 seasons at UT-Austin</a> and was awarded the 2007 U.S. Professional Tennis Association's National College Coach of the Year. Each season under his leadership, Longhorns made appearances in the NCAA Championship, including three trips to the Final Four. Then in 2019, <a href="https://texassports.com/news/2019/5/19/mens-tennis-wins-2019-ncaa-national-championship.aspx" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">his team won the national championship.</a></p>
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(YouTube)
It's hard to define where Joe Rogan stands politically, but each week on his podcast he reveals a little more about himself and his ideals that don't seem to align him left or right.
icon·o·clast | \ ī-ˈkä-nə-ˌklast \
Definition: a person who attacks settled beliefs or institutions
When podcaster and comedian Joe Rogan landed his self-styled "Texas podcast spaceship" in Austin this month, he brought with him a host of political and personal complexities that made some wonder if the former Ultimate Fighting Championship commentator would fit into Austin's reputation as a city of far-left social justice warriors.
<p>"Joe Rogan is going to ruin Austin," one local Twitter user wrote.</p><p>Said another: "Your platform could help save this city."</p><p>What his "platform" is, however, is anyone's guess—which is part of the draw for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzQUP1qoWDoEbmsQxvdjxgQ" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Joe Rogan Experience,</a> consistently ranking in the <a href="http://www.itunescharts.net/us/charts/podcasts/comedy/" target="_blank">top podcasts in the U.S.</a> and considered (and now proven) so valuable that Spotify recently paid $100 million for the exclusive rights to it.</p><p>"I think his kind of podcast is the type that's succeeding because it is unpredictable and because it doesn't fall into boxes—and because it can appeal to both sides," said Travis County Republican Party Chairman Matt Mackowiak, an occasional listener. "He'll say things you agree with, he'll say things you don't agree with, but most importantly, he'll say things that make you think. And that's really what podcasts should be about. Most people, if they're seeking out these kinds of podcast episodes, are doing it because they want to learn something, they want to be challenged. That's certainly how I feel."</p><p>Rogan's uncensored style and lack of self-editing has also drawn fire from a contingent of Spotify employees who say they want more accountability from the shoot-from-the-hip commentator.</p><p>The employees want to exclude some past episodes with conservative guests (several, including interviews with Alex Jones and Milo Yiannopoulos, have <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/danidiplacido/2020/09/02/joe-rogans-spotify-debut-sparks-speculation-over-missing-episodes/#5896879b304c" target="_blank">yet to be moved</a> to the new platform) and say they will strike if they are not given editorial control over the episodes. They also want trigger warnings and corrections. A trigger warning is a statement at the start of a piece of commentary that alerts a reader or listener of potentially distressing material. So far, <a href="https://roguerocket.com/2020/09/17/joe-rogan-spotify-jenner/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Spotify CEO Daniel Ek has defended Rogan.</a></p><p><strong>Says he can't vote Biden over Trump</strong></p><p>Taken as a whole, his guest lineup screams "right-wing"—but one would not use that term to describe a man who supports a woman's right to choose abortion and who supported Bernie Sanders in the Democratic presidential primary.</p><p><a href="https://www.insider.com/trump-suggests-joe-rogan-should-moderate-presidential-debate-2020-9" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Yet President Donald Trump supports a movement among his fans to have Rogan moderate a debate </a>between him and Democratic nominee Joe Biden after two weeks ago when <a href="https://austonia.com/joe-rogan-presidential-debate" target="_blank">Rogan said he would host the event</a> if he could. Trump's reaction comes with no surprise at all, given Rogan's current stance that Biden is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suennOHE5Xg" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">in mental decline and unfit </a>for the White House.</p><p>Rogan posted to Instagram late Wednesday that the country doesn't need him to moderate, <a href="https://twitter.com/joerogan/status/1311130129284894725" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"you need @johnmccarthymma,"</a> referencing the former pro-Mixed Martial Arts referee John McCarthy.</p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="ce4e1077d7439977bf8bb7c671f2edb7" id="4197f"><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="4" style=" background:#FFF; border:0;
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</div></blockquote></div><p>"He's a very, very interesting guy," Mackowiak said. "I know the left doesn't like some of the things he's said regarding LGBTQ stuff, but I really don't have any issue with him, and I don't really care about someone's ideologic views. If they want to come to Austin and bring jobs and bring investment and those kinds of things, we should be welcoming people like that."<br/></p><p>And if someone is going to come to liberal Austin and <a href="https://austonia.com/joe-rogan-lakehouse-austin" target="_self">purchase a $14.4 million mansion</a>, then extol the virtues of marijuana while criticizing BLM protests and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mgN8r1mwvM" target="_blank">telling anti-California Texans to "bro, calm down,"</a> it may as well be Rogan—a man with as many contradictions as Austin itself.</p><p>"Honestly, politically, I think he fits right in with Austin," said local journeyman electrician Ryan Pollock, a listener and a liberal union organizer for IBEW Local 520 who has also done work with the Austin chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America.</p><p>"I know Austin votes blue," Pollock said, "but it's way more complicated than that. People have this idea that Austin is more liberal, but I feel like it's more libertarian. And maybe some people have leftist views on things, but then they're anti-abortion or something. They're all over the place."</p><p>"All over the place" is a fitting description for Rogan—both politically, and personally.</p><p>Mixed martial arts fanatic, TV and podcast personality, actor, husband, parent, college dropout, elk hunter, interviewer, comedian, voter, self-styled "psychedelic adventurer" (read: says he gets high, along with his guests, for many of his shows), right-wing, liberal, libertarian, centrist. Rogan is all those things.</p><p>Rogan, 53, recently tweeted that his "inner b----" almost made him skip his daily workout. Around the same time, he apologized for erroneously blaming arsonists for the Oregon wildfires on his show.</p><p>Wrote William Cook of The Guardian: Rogan is "like an idealistic hippy stuck inside the body of a testosterone-pumped US marine."</p><p>"His politics are interesting," Mackowiak said. "He's not really conservative, he's not really liberal. He's kind of an iconoclast."</p><p>Rogan is in favor of same-sex marriage rights but repeatedly makes contradicting comments on transgender issues like "<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzqZzFcmvaY&list=LLU1n-Hf1NKedbUSTS8u3FLQ&index=1465" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">they should be allowed to live as they want</a>" in one podcast—but in another, calling it a <a href="https://www.mediamatters.org/google/joe-rogan-and-abigail-shrier-equate-being-trans-having-anorexia-joining-cult-and-demonic" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"social contagion."</a></p><p>On Sept. 11, he said Caitlyn Jenner may have become transgender after living with the "crazy b------" in the Kardashian household. <a href="https://www.insider.com/caitlyn-jenner-joe-rogan-transphobic-video-after-joke-about-her-2020-9" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">It earned him a "transphobic a--hole" label from Jenner</a> and <a href="https://www.insider.com/joe-rogan-suggests-caitlyn-jenner-is-trans-because-of-kardashians-2020-9" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">strong criticism</a> from the Human Rights Campaign. In a 2019 podcast with comedian and friend Joey Diaz, Rogan said <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzqZzFcmvaY&list=LLU1n-Hf1NKedbUSTS8u3FLQ&index=1465" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">"it only matters to me when it comes to sports."</a></p><p>He wants to legalize marijuana, and in May pointed out a local Austin TV story that said such a move <a href="https://twitter.com/joerogan/status/1265538961847574529?lang=en" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">could help Texas during the pandemic.</a></p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="54e50eac2ce6399a82e5152bea8fa012" id="effb5"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1265538961847574529"><div style="margin:1em 0">Experts say marijuana legalization could alleviate Texas economic losses from shutdown https://t.co/yD3Bu8QLzC</div> — Joe Rogan (@Joe Rogan)<a href="https://twitter.com/joerogan/statuses/1265538961847574529">1590562975.0</a></blockquote></div><p>On the other side of the spectrum, he calls out what he says is <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyA1PZNAmdU&list=PLnkZlJgBLVpWngvsxUa0_ChbnNGaKwzdx&index=45" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">liberal Hollywood hypocrisy on gun control</a>, having once said that "this country has a mental health problem disguised as a gun problem."</p><p>Pollock said that while people who study politics and work in that space are annoyed by a lack of consistency, Rogan is actually like most people in that regard.</p><p>"His politics are really incoherent, but so are most Americans' politics," Pollock said. "They don't think about politics all day, like somebody like me. I think about this stuff constantly."</p><p>Rogan's opinions often trickle out in three-hour conversations over a blunt, not 30-minute ear-assaulting diatribes, and come not from years of research and activism but from his gut.</p><p>The Jenner comment, for example, came during a conversation with Special Forces operator and retired UFC fighter <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDKYSLDq6es" target="_blank">Tim Kennedy in mid-September</a>.</p><p>What Rogan is not—and nor does he pretend to be—is a politician, a pundit, a journalist, an expert, nor an activist. Though his guests, who have included political lightning rods like Sanders and conservative media personality <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/andy-ngo-right-wing-troll-antifa-877914/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Andy Ngo</a>, might suggest otherwise.</p><p>The fact that his political and journalistic credentials are nil gives heartburn to media types who want him to hold his guests' feet to the fire, Anderson Cooper-style. It also annoys people on the left who refuse to come onto his show because they think he gives too much pandering air-time to right-wing, fascist-adjacent guests.</p><p>"What he does is what any other decent interviewer does—he has good guests on, and he lets them talk, and they really show who they are in the conversations that he has," Pollock said. "Regardless of Joe Rogan himself and what he has to say. So I tend to tune in when he's got interesting guests on."</p><p><strong>The road to Austin</strong></p><p>A New Jersey native who was raised in Massachusetts, California and Florida, Rogan wasn't a political type growing up. He was into martial arts, competing as a youngster and eventually teaching after dropping out of the University of Massachusetts.</p><p>He later found comedy, and his career wound through wildly popular standup specials, a stint hosting Fear Factor, a little acting, and time as a UFC commentator.</p><p>The Joe Rogan Experience is rooted in 2003 after Rogan noticed video editor Brian Redban's work with fellow comedian Doug Stanhope.</p><p>Redban was hired to film everything Rogan did, on and off stage, for his YouTube channel. Redban realized that fans were clamoring for more content and, after live streams and interactive events on <a href="http://justin.tv/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">justin.tv</a>, in chatrooms and on Twitter, the first episode aired on Christmas Eve 2009 on Ustream. It was formally named the Joe Rogan Experience (yes, inspired by the Jimi Hendrix Experience) the following summer.</p><p>A decade later, in early 2020, Forbes released its first <a href="https://www.forbes.com/stories/the-highest-earning-podcasters/" target="_blank">highest-earning podcaster list</a> with Rogan sitting at the No. 1 spot, reportedly pulling in $30 million from his various ventures.</p><p>His most popular episode, with <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycPr5-27vSI" target="_blank">Elon Musk in 2018</a>, has more than 36 million views on YouTube. Other episodes regularly garner several million each week.</p><p>Since 2012, the podcast has been run out of a studio in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, but Rogan, saying he was tired of the cost of living and other aspects of living in California, so he <a href="https://austonia.com/joe-rogan-austin-texas" target="_self">moved the studio to Austin this summer</a> and <a href="https://austonia.com/new-joe-rogan-austin-podcast-studio" target="_self">debuted the Texas-based podcast in early September.</a></p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="cb6df3c61aa7f7351990cb9ca7a275e6" id="88905"><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-version="4" style=" background:#FFF; border:0;
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</div></blockquote></div><p>Other than the usual unrest over his content, criticisms of his <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-businesses-behind-the-joe-rogan-studio-2647571718" target="_self">new, bright red, glowing studio</a> and worries that Spotify would censor his shows, the reaction to his move by his listeners and many locals has been largely positive.<br/></p><p>"I think it's great that he's here," said Mackowiak, whose politics are nowhere near Rogan's on several topics. "He's obviously bringing a pretty big operation. He's going to be bringing guests to Austin for these interviews, which is going to create opportunities to do a lot of things with some of these people who come to town."</p><p>Chuckled Pollock: "My wife is irritated."</p><p>In a recent <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mgN8r1mwvM&feature=emb_title" target="_blank">episode with Texas comedian Ron White</a>, an Austin native, the two discussed how Austin is, in White's words, "a liberal stronghold in the middle of a very Republican state" with Republicans still "running the state" from Dallas and Houston.</p><p>"That's what keeps it from going haywire, right?" Rogan responded. "That's what keeps it from going straight-up Portland."</p><p>Pollock says he'd like to see Austin City Councilman Greg Casar—who is gaining <a href="https://www.thenation.com/podcast/politics/greg-casar-texas/" target="_blank">national attention</a> for his stances on police funding and other issues—show up on Rogan's show.</p><p>It is, no doubt, a self-fulfilling prophecy when leftists decline to come on Rogan's show and then <a href="https://theintercept.com/2020/09/22/as-joe-rogans-platform-grows-so-does-the-media-and-liberal-backlash-why/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">complain that he never gets leftists on his show.</a> It is also, Pollock said, a "massive mistake" to avoid a man with tens of millions of listeners, no matter what his personal politics might be.</p><p>"<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jan/24/bernie-sanders-joe-rogan-human-rights-campaign" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">He got backlash for it</a>, but Bernie made the right call," he said referring to when <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2O-iLk1G_ng" target="_blank">Sanders was a guest</a> on the podcast last year.</p><p>Rogan sightings are already popping up on social media, adding his face to the star power already here—like Sandra Bullock and Lance Armstrong and Dan Rather and Matthew McConaughey—and offering a glimpse into what Austin might experience with Joe Rogan as its newest resident.</p><p>And what Rogan might experience in his new hometown.</p><p>A few days ago, a listener posted on <a href="https://twitter.com/joshright17/status/1309663711943102465?s=20" target="_blank">social media</a> that he saw Rogan driving his "cool, noisy little car," a white Porsche, along Lady Bird Lake at sunset.</p><p>"Well I just had my first Joe Rogan sighting in Austin," another local Twitter user wrote on Sept. 27. "This ranks below the time I saw (pre-scandal) Lance Armstrong running around Town Lake but above the time I saw Elijah Wood ripping cigs on 6th St during SXSW… It appears that $100 million from Spotify doesn't make you any better at deciding which color Nalgene bottle you want from REI."</p><p><br/></p><p><strong>More on Joe Rogan:</strong></p>
<h2><a href="https://austonia.com/joe-rogan-lakehouse-austin" target="_self">Joe Rogan's new home is a plush $14 million oasis on Lake Austin</a></h2>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ0MDA3NC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNDEyMjMxOH0.vY9yh9nSBscNfH05wxdtOgnuBcvvwbi5XXbgpRkm0NY/img.jpg?width=980" id="7b167" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7a068446ad0f5a4f9abcb5d2d6bcc668" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Joe Rogan's new home is a plush $14 million oasis on Lake Austin
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(Realtor.com)
The pre-renovated backyard of the Rogan house on Lake Austin.
Austin-based podcast host Joe Rogan, recently called one of the most influential media personalities in the country, paid at least $14.4 million for the luxury lake house he's now living in on Lake Austin, according to local real estate sources and a report by Variety magazine.
<p>It is, reportedly, "one of the biggest transactions in the area's history," and rumors among real estate professionals put the sale price closer to $28 million. </p><p>Rogan's name isn't on the property tax rolls yet, but the house was sold at an undisclosed price—reported at $14.4 million but rumored up to $28 million in real-estate circles. Texas is a non-disclosure state and even appraisers aren't allowed to know selling prices. Variety reports Rogan's purchase was off market.</p><p>Rogan has one of the world's most popular podcasts. His audio-and video-podcast "The Joe Rogan Experience" draws in an estimated 200 million monthly listens and views. It is unclear if Rogan is broadcasting his podcast from his new property. He first teased <a href="https://austonia.com/joe-rogan-austin-texas" target="_self">his new Texas studio in August on social media.</a></p><p>He recently moved to Austin, where he now runs his podcast under a new, $100-million licensing deal with Spotify. His frequent episodes feature various guests—including, recently, former boxing champion Mike Tyson, Texas comic Ron White and pop singer Miley Cyrus—and cover an array of topics.</p><p>With more than 11,000 square feet on nearly four tree-lined acres, the house sits near the lake, a grassy backyard leading to the water's edge, a sundeck over the water, boat slips with a party deck, an expansive lawn and giant circle drive with detached garages. </p><p>From Variety:</p><p>"Several years ago, the stately main structure sported a distinctly early-2000s faux-Mediterranean flare that was popular amongst the well-heeled suburban Hill Country crowds back in the day. However, the property's previous owners — architectural designer <a href="https://www.benjaminwooddesigns.com/" target="_blank">Benjamin Wood</a> and his philanthropic wife <a href="http://archives.mtexpress.com/2003/03-12-17/03-12-17ymca.htm" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Theresa Castellano-Wood</a> — recently gave the whole place an extensive makeover and it now boasts a much sleeker, Texas-inspired modern farmhouse look with just a dash of Mediterranean influence still shining through....</p><p>"Out back, there's a sprawling grassy backyard for Rogan's dog, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/marshallmaerogan/?hl=en" target="_blank">Marshall Mae</a>, to frolic to his heart's content. The recent renovation added a large saltwater pool to the property, and there's a solarium plus lots of covered patio space to lazily chat with friends, safe from the oppressive heat of the Texas sun. And, of course, the estate also features the obligatory party deck — a must-have for any moneyed river rat living along the lake — and two boat slips."</p><p><a href="https://www.dirt.com/entertainers/performers/joe-rogan-house-austin-1203341096/" target="_blank">See current photos here. </a></p><p><strong>More on Joe Rogan:</strong></p>
<h2><a href="https://austonia.com/austin-businesses-behind-the-joe-rogan-studio-2647571718" target="_self">Meet the two names from Austin behind the transformation of the new Joe Rogan podcast studio</a></h2>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yMzkxMTcwMi9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1Nzc0OTU3NX0.lIHFEJjqDmr0u476tRotIOhL-Kd5emDPwZfoKX3J7qc/img.png?width=980" id="0608f" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="60305d20ad9622f1048dd5227fdd75ab" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Meet the two names from Austin behind the transformation of the new Joe Rogan podcast studio
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(Photo courtesy of Marisela Maddox)
Marisela Maddox's two children complete their online schooling from home, a reason she decided she needed to bring in extra help.
Marisela Maddox is no stranger to the nanny game, having hired at-home caregivers in the past to help with her two children, ages 5 and 10.
<p>In the early pandemic days, the Austin family managed without one, working and quarantining from home. But around June, when the national conversation about education started to lean toward online public schools, "I was starting to get very nervous," Maddox said.</p><p>So she looked for someone who could work full time and be ready to help with the education of her fourth-grader, who she assumed would be doing school entirely online.</p><p>That's when she learned that the market, the candidates, the health considerations and—most notably—the cost of hiring someone to be around your kids all day is a lot different now in the days of unpredictable and fast-changing school, work and money situations, than it was in the pre-COVID era. </p><p>When she hired a grad student in his late 20s, she said, the two other finalists were immediately hired by friends—a sign of the tight market that she hadn't seen before.</p><p>Maddox is paying 20% more than she used to—$25 an hour, up from the typical $20 rate—just to make sure the nanny was willing to stick with the family through such uncertain times. While her older child ended up returning to school, Maddox has kept the nanny around in the case that schools shutdown again. </p><p>"I think you have to pay more. I really do," said Maddox, a mediator and small business owner. "You have to incentivize people to want to stay because you really don't want to be doing this every three or four months." </p><p>Several employers and families said that pay has risen for several reasons: the influx of and demand for higher-paid educators into the nanny market, the instability of work and school schedules, the higher demands placed on caregivers and fear of COVID-19 all brought on by the pandemic. </p><p>The need for nannies, the availability of them and the ability to pay for them has risen and fallen as virus conditions and shutdowns have fluctuated throughout the summer, said Amber Mayhew, an Austin mom and nanny, and owner of <a href="https://www.nannypoppinz.com/agency/nanny-childcare-austin-texas.html" target="_blank">Nanny Poppinz,</a> a referral service she has operated in Austin for about a decade.</p><p>"In March, which is usually a very busy time of year for us, business stopped for a couple of months," she said. "And then it kind of picked up for a little bit, and then we kind of had the second flow of everyone panicking it seemed like, and so it slowed down again. And now it's starting to pick up again."</p><p>Along with the unstable market, families whose children are doing online school are looking for people who are more qualified in education or technology, and many of the candidates are now former educators or daycare workers who were laid off or worried about teaching in-person classes at public schools. </p><p>There is also less job stability because pandemic-era shutdowns, quarantines and COVID-19 infections put family needs in flux as schedules shift to accommodate school and work changes. And everything can shut down if a family member or the nanny gets sick and the nanny can't come into the home for weeks or months.</p><p>And the stakes are higher when it comes to health considerations. Families and nannies have to put a lot of trust in each other not to engage in behavior that could put one or both of them at risk. </p><p>"We've been very conservative in how much we've been leaving the house, and canceled all our vacations this summer, no road trips or anything, so the idea of having someone in our house was a little scary," said Austin mom Jeni Putalavage-Ross, who, after a difficult search, hired the daughter of a trusted friend to help with her 8-year-old and twin 6-year-olds.</p><p>All of this not only drives up the price, but it can make the overall experience more trying—both for the parents and for the providers. </p><p>"It can be done, but it requires more resources," Maddox said. "I had to do a lot of self checking. We had a lot of conversations around it. But I think it'll be OK. Everybody's sort of figuring it out right now."</p><p><strong>More on families: </strong></p>
<h2><a href="https://austonia.com/divorce-in-travis-county" target="_self">For better or for worse, for now: Austin divorces down in pandemic</a></h2>
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(Steven Joyner)
A crane collision occurred at the site of 1600 Robert Browning St. in Austin Wednesday morning. This photo of the cranes was taken Sept. 12.
At least 22 people were injured on Wednesday morning when two cranes collided on a construction site in the Mueller area near Dell Children's Hospital. The injuries were not life-threatening, Austin-Travis County emergency services officials said.
<p>Eight ambulances responded to the collapse at 1600 Robert Browning St. at 9:38 a.m., according to updates posted to social media by EMS officials.</p>
<p>All injured people at the scene were employees of the site, officials said. Several people declined treatment at the scene. Responders transported 16 people for treatment, officials said.<br/></p><p>One of the crane's operators was still on a crane two hours later, his foot on the brake as a "secondary safety" measure in case the mechanical lock on the crane—which is currently functioning—didn't work, Austin Fire Department Battalion Chief Mark Bridges said to the press. He was not injured and is not in danger or in need of rescue, but it was not known how long he would be on the crane, Bridges said.</p><p>"If we thought he was in any kind of danger, we would attempt some kind of rescue," Bridges said. "He's not in any danger. Right now he's providing secondary safety." </p><p>Officials are urging people to avoid the area as construction company crane specialists arrive on the scene to inspect the cranes and figure out how to separate the cranes.<br/></p><p>At an 11 a.m. press conference, EMS and fire officials said the cranes were stabilized at their bases but that wires from each crane are tangled together. Officials said they are still investigating whether the tangle caused the collision or whether the cranes hit and caused the wires to tangle. </p><p>A drone unit from the Austin Fire Department was deployed to inspect the tangle and help officials determine how best to separate them.</p><p><em>This story will be updated as more information is released.</em><br/></p>
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Former UT tennis coach released to Texas halfway house after college admissions scandal
15 September
(Associated Press)
Former UT coach Michael Center was part of a string of college admissions scandals last year.
Former University of Texas men's tennis coach Michael Center is in a Texas halfway house and set to be released in October after serving six months in federal prison for falsely designating a wealthy West Coast student as a Longhorns recruit.
<p>He was among dozens of bribery deals cut between officials at prestigious universities around the country and the rich and famous who wanted their children to attend them—all revealed in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_college_admissions_bribery_scandal" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a stunning nationwide college admissions scandal</a> in 2019 that netted coaches and movie stars alike.</p><p>Center, 56, began his sentence in April in a South Texas prison facility, <a href="https://www.bop.gov/mobile/find_inmate/byname.jsp#inmate_results" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.</a> He is set to be released on Oct. 4 but may be eligible for monitored confinement in his Austin-area home up to 18 days before that, according to the bureau.</p><p>The bureau website shows that Center is now in the custody of the Residential Reentry Management center in San Antonio, which oversees several facilities in Texas. It was unclear from online information where in Texas his current facility is located and whether he would be going home early. Calls to the bureau by Austonia were not returned.</p><p>RRMs offer employment counseling, job placement services, financial management assistance, other services and some freedoms, according to the bureau.</p><p>It is not clear when Center left the <a href="https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/trv/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Federal Corrections Facility Three Rivers</a>, a medium-to minimum-security men's facility, where he served a portion of his sentence.</p><p>Multiple attempts by Austonia to reach Center through family members were unsuccessful.</p><p>The nationwide college admissions scandal involved more than 50 people, including actresses <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/01/us/lori-loughlin-not-guilty.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lori Loughlin</a> and <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/felicity-huffman-pleads-guilty-college-admissions-scandal-n1005056" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Felicity Huffman</a>, along with coaches from universities such as Yale, Georgetown, several California schools and UT-El Paso.</p><p>Center admitted to accepting $100,000 in 2015 in exchange for helping <a href="https://www.hookem.com/story/20200224/former-texas-tennis-coach-michael-center-sentenced-six-months-college-admissions-scandal/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the son of a Silicon Valley venture capitalist</a> gain admission to UT-Austin as a recruit for the Texas Longhorns tennis team, which he was not.</p><p>He pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud and was ordered to serve a year's probation and pay back $60,000 he had pocketed in the deal. The other $40,000 went to the tennis team.</p><p>In February, Center was visibly upset at the sentencing, which his attorney called "harsh," and which started right as the nation was in the early stages of the pandemic shutdowns.</p><p>By comparison, a Stanford sailing coach was sentenced to one day in prison and six months house arrest, along with probation and a fine.</p><p>Huffman was released after two weeks and Loughlin, <a href="https://people.com/tv/lori-loughlin-is-terrified-about-going-to-prison-amid-covid-19-pandemic/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">who told reporters she was "terrified"</a> of going to prison during the pandemic, will start a two-month prison sentence in November. Both were also fined and given community service hours for their role in schemes to bribe college officials to get their kids into certain schools.</p><p>Center was a celebrated and popular coach who spent <a href="https://texassports.com/sports/mens-tennis/roster/coaches/michael-center/187" target="_blank">18 seasons at UT-Austin</a> and was awarded the 2007 U.S. Professional Tennis Association's National College Coach of the Year. Each season under his leadership, Longhorns made appearances in the NCAA Championship, including three trips to the Final Four. Then in 2019, <a href="https://texassports.com/news/2019/5/19/mens-tennis-wins-2019-ncaa-national-championship.aspx" target="_blank">his team won the national championship.</a></p><p> The Longhorns achieved their highest final national ranking (No. 3) in 2006 under Center. </p>
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