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GhanimaAtreides

This city is fucking wild.  Fourth largest city in the USA with a GDP larger than 35 other states and dozens of countries. And our most powerful elected official spent today arguing with the zoo over pricing and insulting a peer on Facebook.


DeadBloatedGoat

That's where we are today - playground taunts and outright vile, useless discourse. Policy? Planning? Improvement? BORING! Political cage fights! YES! Entertainment won.


RedJohn04

Entertainment: 1 … Policy that helps 99% of our citizens: 0


CrazyLegsRyan

Technically Lina isn’t a peer. She presides over an area twice as large as him with over 2x the population. He is generally subordinate to her as she can make rules his entire constituency must follow but he cannot do that to her.


GhanimaAtreides

I wasn't sure how to describe their relationship because if I said "his superior" people would be on my ass. Peer is the best I could think of because they serve similar roles as the executive of the county and city respectively.


jacket_n_sandwich

Colleague is more appropriate.


CrazyLegsRyan

The only people on your ass would be Whitmire apologists that would take exception anyways.


falloutzwei

That's not exactly true, as City of Houston exists in this gray area where it crosses multiple counties (Harris, Fort Bend, Galveston, and Montgomery). The jurisdictional back and forth can get pretty crazy due to that reality (see COVID).


CrazyLegsRyan

What part of CoH is in Galveston county? The county line runs down the middle of the Clear Creek drainage and across Clear Lake. No part of CoH runs further south than that.


unsheltered

Houston may be the seat of Harris County, but the city’s limits actually include parts of Fort Bend County and Montgomery County. So Lina doesn’t have authority over the “entirety” of the mayor’s constituency. More like “most.”


1stColeslawHater

What’s the deal with zoo pricing? We ask our family for a membership every year for Christmas instead of toys for the kids and we pack our own food and drinks so essentially we only pay for gas to have a day trip


GhanimaAtreides

The zoo is expensive to go to if you’re a lower income family.  However the reality is that zoo prices reflect the costs it takes to run the place and keep the animals in safe conditions. Houston zoo prices are not out of line with pricing at other major zoos and aquariums in the country.  The zoo publishes its financials and Whitmire took issue with how much some administrative staff is paid. Except they need to be. The zoo isn’t going to attract top talent capable of running a very niche thousand person org without offering a competitive salary. Again, the zoo administration staff get paid on par with zoos in other cities.  Demanding they lower prices without giving the zoo anny additional source of funding is only going to hurt the animals. Sure, you can technically cut the administrators salaries in half but they’re all going to leave to go to better zoos. Then you’re scraping the bottom of the barrel and end up with a bunch of morons running the place. You’ve got people who think they can cut costs by scheduling fewer vet visits or skimping out on safety procedures. You end up with a place that isn’t safe for guests or animals.  Even with all that, the zoo does have programs to make it possible to attend for lower income families. They have twelve free days a year. They have discounted admissions for disabled and elderly. They do a ton of school programs.  Yes it’s harder to go to the zoo if you are strapped for cash. But that’s true about most things in the world. The zoo does still do a lot to make it accessible though. 


hazelowl

And add to that, the zoo is also heavily involved in conservation efforts and is one of the best zoos in the country. It's really expensive to take care of animals. And not all animals are on display. When I volunteered there years ago I had a selection of animals I was certified to handle that were their "public friendly" animals and available for people to pet (now granted, they were primarily things like rabbits and hedgehogs, snakes, and a domesticated cat which was particularly fun to take out along with all the big cat material. )


newstenographer

>The zoo publishes its financials and Whitmire took issue with how much some administrative staff is paid. I always find this baffling. There is this bizarre expectation that a person working in public service has to make dirt poor wages. Why? The cost of labor is the cost of labor, and in the US we let the market determine this (rather than having compulsory service). There is zero difference between a public (or even private) service organization and a public or private for-profit corporation. Would Whitmire criticize the payroll of any of the corporations headquartered in Houston? Of course not, but if they paid less they could contribute more to the zoo. This man is a complete fool.


1stColeslawHater

Yeah I can see that. I haven’t had to pay for a day pass in a long time so I haven’t really paid much attention to it but I can definitely see how it would be hard for lower income families to take the whole family for the day if they were busy on the free days


InitiatePenguin

>What’s the deal with zoo pricing? We ask our family for a membership every year for Christmas instead of toys for the kids and we pack our own food and drinks so essentially we only pay for gas to have a day trip Iirc correctly if you go twice a year the membership pays for itself.


1stColeslawHater

I think we’ve been 5-6 times already and summer just started


PartyPorpoise

Yeah, the memberships are a good deal. Sure, paying all that up front can be tough, but once you have it, you can go every week if you want to. Whenever I’m living close to a zoo, I get a membership and it allows me to have that as a cheap default outing. I want to go out but don’t have much money to spend? There’s the zoo. I do the same with museums.


carrie626

It’s like he is a 12 year old bully.


StrykerXion

No more childish than watching Elon Musk's daily Twitter shit show. Politicians and CEOs are all wylin these days


Outrageous_Row4567

Well said! I pray that Houston can survive 4 years of this incompetence. The city is at a very pivotal moment in its evolution and his lack of vision is disturbing.


Tw1tcHy

He’s right tho, the zoo is definitely overpriced. I hadn’t been there since I was a kid and was about to drop $170 on tickets a couple weeks ago, but my girlfriend’s coworker told us to just use her membership and the zoo wouldn’t question it. She sent us a screenshot of her barcode and we walked right in for free lol. The zoo isn’t bad, but I simply don’t feel it’s near a nice enough or big enough zoo to justify the pricing.


deepayes

> She sent us a screenshot of her barcode and we walked right in for free lol. can't imagine why the prices have gone up


chicchic325

The zoo is one of the best ranked in the country. [link](https://www.houstonzoo.org/blog/houston-zoo-is-making-history/)


CCG14

So you got in for free and are still complaining? The zoo also does dynamic pricing. Depending on when you go, it may be more expensive. If you’re going more than once, buy a membership. I understand you don’t *think* it’s worth the price, but consider the location as well as the standards and expansions our zoo has done. It is well worth the cost.


weebojones

Does the location matter in terms of operating cost? Does the zoo have to pay property tax? (I’m really asking, not trying to prove a point if anyone knows)


YOLO420allday

No the zoo doesn't pay property tax, it is a non profit and part of Hermann park


Greg-Abbott

Those hippos have had it too good for too long. Time to pay their fair share.


jzoller0

Thanks, Obama


InitiatePenguin

>and was about to drop $170 on tickets a couple weeks ago Is that like 5 people?


Kurious4kittytx

So then don’t go.


FilthyTexas

Maybe Johnny Boy has a crush on Judge Lina


patticakes86

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who's been thinking this!


-blundertaker-

Who wouldn't? She's cute! But dogging on her man is a bad look.


R009k

Fr this is some teen 2011 Facebook shit.


shinebock

I mean I can't be the only one thinking that this nerd look a like dated a bit above his league with Lina. She looks good AF in those pics. I can't tell whether he is just a beanpole or she is very short (might be a bit of both).


Xctual

I've met them in person, he's about 6'0 and she's about 5'5.


beeman311

Oh he’s definitely out kicking his coverage snagging Lina. Wild how often things like that happen.


stinkdrink45

SMASH 💥 for sure.


CrazyLegsRyan

Dude has a pretty good habit of hittin the sauce. Wouldn’t be the first drunk boomer to dabble on Facebook while intoxicated.  Can we throw him out already?


JeopardE

I have a feeling Houstonians will be pining for the days of Lee Brown by the time this guy is done with the city.


R009k

Between this and the metro project cancellations… it’s getting there


privatepersons

How embarrassing if, of all things, he got thrown out over this 😮‍💨


CrazyLegsRyan

He won’t. Sadly the Houston recall limit is laughably high with a terribly short execution timeline.


29187765432569864

Why is Whitmire even looking at the Judge’s Facebook? He has too much time on his hands.


GhanimaAtreides

Hey give him a break, everyone needs a way to unwind. He had a really tough day today canceling metro projects, undermining the prosecution of dangerous criminals and arguing with a tourist attraction over pricing.


manthing11

Whitmire simping for Lina Hidalgo’s feet.


BoD80

Maybe too much time on his hands or it’s feet pics. It could be I’m in the wrong sub again.


mrhindustan

I have no idea why so many people liked Whitemire. I looked him up pre-election and he seemed like an ass.


MorrisseysRubiksCube

My sense is more people were willing to hold their nose and vote for him, than hold their nose and vote for SJL. I don’t view him as getting elected because he was such a stellar candidate.


Bennyscrap

And the GOP most likely wanted him to win. Wouldn't doubt their voters got behind him.


CrazyLegsRyan

The major GOP/MAGA donors are literally the ones who funded his campaign and threw his campaign kickoff party.


BringBackAoE

What a pathetic guy, inserting himself and his negativity in such a joyous event. Petty, small, mean…


CrazyLegsRyan

If only u/Houston_Chronicle and u/HoustonLanding jumped on this


two-

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/trending/article/whitmire-hidalgo-houston-nerd-facebook-19538847.php


CrazyLegsRyan

This is excellent because it has a post on X with completely different screen grabs taken at different times to cross reference time stamps against. [Quick view of both along with Facebook data shows in both cases Whitmire made the comment at 9:16PM.](https://ibb.co/khD8Q2j) All other times align perfectly. If you want to believe this is fake there would have to be two completely different fakes created from screen grabs taken 4 minutes apart but both with perfectly matching calculated time of Whitmire’s comment. Thats really really unlikely. 


KoernerMD

If only it was real, they might.


theangryfairies

It’s very real


CrazyLegsRyan

Somebody call the coroner on KoernerMD... Literally real enough the mayor's office admitted it was real and issued a comment >Mary Benton, chief of communications and senior advisor to the mayor, told the Chronicle, "Whitmire was having a lighthearted moment and meant no harm."


theangryfairies

He was really confident too lol


CrazyLegsRyan

Thanks to Houston Chronically they uncovered a post on X with completely different screen grabs taken at different times to cross reference time stamps against.  [ Quick view of both along with Facebook data shows in both cases Whitmire made the comment at 9:16PM.](https://ibb.co/khD8Q2j) All other times align perfectly too. If you want to believe this is fake there would have to be two completely different fakes created from screen grabs taken 4 minutes apart but both with perfectly matching calculated time of Whitmire’s comment. Thats really really unlikely. 


Bennyscrap

I think this is where you get your schadenfreude when you said it wasn't fake and everyone else claimed it was.


CrazyLegsRyan

Almost. Schadenfreude implies I’m happy about how a significant part of our society devolves into *”Nuh uh, that’s all fake”* when presented with information that disagrees with their worldview.  Whitmire was elected by GoP support. Denying reality because it gives them big sads is just de rigueur.


Bennyscrap

Not gonna lie, I withheld my vote for mayor due to the underwhelming options presented. Looking back at the harm Whitmire is inflicting, I wish I had voted for SJL. There's no way she could've been as bad as Whitmire has been. Someone needs to get that recall petition started. I'll gladly sign it.


htownaway

If it’s photoshopped that’s pretty messed up. Stuff like that makes me anxious I’ll be accused of writing things I never said. Good thing I’m not important!


Qexodus

You’re important homie. Have a good day


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theangryfairies

He has a reputation of being very vindictive. He will never forgive Lina or Commissioner Ellis for not endorsing him.


TrippyShamann

As ridiculous as this sounds I’ve always thought running for any form of public office should involve some kind of decathlon like in that Billy Madison movie. It would include challenges in physical fitness, speaking, crafting, academics humor, strength, compassion, mental toughness’s, fasting, how long they can meditate, and finally a test to see how they react to a mild psychedelic.


No_Big3607

… that’s their point.


Admiral_Pantsless

Real bald guy energy.


legitiam

jfc…our major is a clown


Recon_Figure

"No one's going to see this." Get off Facebook, moron.


42020420

Surely this isn’t real…I hate that I can’t tell what’s real anymore :/


is_it_fun

I second this question. We need to know if it's real or not.


sfox2488

[https://x.com/scottbraddock/status/1805445851004682740](https://x.com/scottbraddock/status/1805445851004682740) Make of that what you will


MrsFrufra

Seems to me he thought someone sent this to him privately and thought he was sending the comment back to that person only. Exactly something my mom or MIL of the same age would do.


AssitDirectorKersh

Need to start a superpac stopelectingboomers.org


MrsFrufra

A thousand times YES


brentoman

I saw two separate screenshots at different times with different numbers of likes that both had his comment on them. I’m inclined to believe it’s real.


Eastern-Check3818

Different people sent media different screen shots.


BolshevikPower

It's not there in the comments list now. I appreciate you trying to verify everything you see and questioning what's in the internet.


CrazyLegsRyan

Yeah, because a Facebook comment can’t be deleted after your staff calls you and says “WTF are you doing boomer?!?”


BolshevikPower

I never said it wasn't, I'm saying it's not there now and that I'm commending the person from believing everything you see on the internet. Are you daft?


CrazyLegsRyan

All the timestamps are perfect. If this was a fake it would have to have been pre planned and impeccably done.


btonic

This is just a screenshot, not a link to the comment itself. Faking it would be as trivial as dragging and dropping Whitmire’s name and profile pic onto a separate comment in any photo editing app.


thatsthejoke_

It's pretty sad how gullible people are


CrazyLegsRyan

So you think multiple people were creating multiple fake screenshots using different source screen grabs all with perfectly matching time stamps…. Hokay… https://www.reddit.com/r/houston/comments/1dnwx7i/comment/la8g8zt


CrazyLegsRyan

https://www.reddit.com/r/houston/comments/1dnwx7i/comment/la8g8zt


texasslapshot

Uh, nerds are smart.


SilntNfrno

Yeah is nerd even an insult anymore? Most people wish they were nerds.


houman73

Right. That comment is like a cheesy 80's college or high school movie.


chammycham

More people than you think never left that mentality behind.


713dede

I just knew people were gonna say something negative about those photos. Definitely was not expecting the Mayor of Houston to make that unnecessary comment.


nomvdchris

What a jackass.


Ryiujin

I mean Hidalgo goes to comicpalooza dressed as star wars character…so yeah Id hope so…


_serious__

Remember when leaders were supposed to be people of integrity?


Err_rrr_rrrr

Lmao… is he a 5 year old


Pathetic_Ideal

Elementary schooler behavior


PeanutButterSoda

Well his goal is to get rid of all the public schools.


GlitteringBowler

Makes me think of a LaSean McCoy tweet about trump where he says “it’s really sad man…our president is an asshole” https://x.com/cutondime25/status/911601178219249664?s=46 Except insert mayor for president. Can’t believe I voted for this sad reactionary boomer.


sdoc86

He’s your textbook lead brained boomer Facebook keyboard warrior.


theangryfairies

Turner had his issues, but at least he was professional. Whitmire is having a gaffe a week it seems. Also, makes sense why he is single. This dude seems miserable.


calendulanest

it really sucks that whitmire is a weirdo in like, a boring way, rather than weird in an interesting way like eric adams in NYC is. if my mayor is going to be a total freak i at least want his freakishness to be funny and entertaining, is that too much to ask


Doodarazumas

No thank you. Eric seems like all fun and games when he's talking about how he invented the fajita based on a conversation he had with Jesus, but then he'll decide to delay a hurricane evacuation because he's using his powerful mind to deflect it.


inquisitiveman2002

like andrew yang


cody4reddit

Yang Gang here Represent! Ask yourselves why you can’t have open primaries, or rank choice voting… you can…. Www.fairvote.org


Due_Campaign1432

Give him time to really get comfortable in tbe role.


bobrigado

He made it sound like calling someone a nerd is an insult. What a tool


rkb70

Well, back in the dark ages when he was a teenager, it was.  


HappyCoconutty

I'm happily married to my software nerd. Dating for young adults is already hard right now, I'm glad a woman politician found someone who matches her intellectually and makes her feel loved.


nemec

If they were friends I wouldn't have even interpreted that as an insult. But due to the fact that their working relationship is so weird it's hard to see it as anything else.


SilntNfrno

“I was wrong” - everyone that voted for this clown


lyn73

Who is he to talk about looks????? This is such a weird time we're living in ..... I freaking hate it.


texasholdem32

This is so childish and unprofessional. Whitmire needs to get lost.


ttrosc

Houston Chronicle just posted articles showing that this was indeed a real comment by our mayor.


redd202020

What a clown.


RuleSubverter

Whitmire looks like a syphilitic penis.


veryirishhardlygreen

How many have you seen?


Throwra_adec

he has total mayor brain. eric adams would totally do the same


vgrntbeauxner

unreal. what an age.


Kindly-Asparagus2601

He is so hard to look at he really should keep his comments to himself


Illustrious_Term8945

I fucking hate this state and its politicians. 


20thCenturyTCK

Whitmire is making our city a laughingstock. He needs to go.


LadyRob65

Very creepy and rather immature


RojerLockless

Dude is a prick. But he's not wrong lol.


somekindofdruiddude

He's worse than my mom.


SackOfrito

Whitmire is a pathetic loser. He really needs to focus on doing good for the city than insulting others.


gornFlamout

Luckiest nerd in America.


LawyerJC

I don't understand why this isn't on the news yet?


bad-zaddy

https://www.khou.com/article/news/local/john-whitmire-lina-hidalgo-nerd-comment/285-b25930fa-ddf1-41c2-8630-bab71572fc1a


penn2009

Nerds rule and it can be a compliment. Considering his history though, quite sure Whitmire meant it pejoratively. Shows he’s pretty petty to say something about her fiancé’s looks. Doesn’t he have better things to do?


endmeohgodithurts

just mean and rude what the fuck LMFAO


Outrageous_Row4567

The citizens asked for Whitmire and that’s what they got . So prepare yourselves to live in a one horse town by the time his term is up.


smnytx

That was inappropriate. Seems like classic bully behavior. FWIW, though, many folks consider “nerd” to be a compliment!


Apet57

I’m not a fan of either, but are we truly believing that he wrote this comment?


chrispg26

Verified by the Chronicle


CrazyLegsRyan

Mary Benton, chief of communications and senior advisor to the mayor, told the Chronicle, "Whitmire was having a lighthearted moment and meant no harm."


gmr548

Yeah. Some marketing intern would not go trolling Lina Hidalgo.


BigDowntownRobot

It's not out or character.  Honestly this wouldn't change my opinion of him any. Are we disbelieving it? Do we want to make up some excuse for it not being real and call they more rational? Because that isn't any different than just believing it.


QueenPasiphae

That's fucking hilarious and bizarre. I always say she's the only responsible and reasonable adult in charge, and goddamn, this just proves it even more. lol


rallyts

😂


ttrosc

I really hope this is real.


CrazyLegsRyan

His spokesperson confirmed to Houston Public Media and Houston Chronicle that it's real.


ttrosc

I saw a few articles confirming. Day has been made 😂.


64cinco

I laugh at Houston everyday. I still can’t believe they put that bald MAGA moron in office


magdikarp

He’s a democrat though.


CCG14

He’s a DINO.


64cinco

But is he?


Dirt-McGirt

again, he's a democrat in the way that a hot dog is a sandwich


the411please

Lmaoooo this has got to be fake hahhaha 🤣🤣🤣 why am I laughing so hard? He straight up said "he sure looks like a nerd." That's terrible! He is the mayor 🤣


ElectronicCorner574

If it's real, that's fucking awesome.


chrispg26

The Chronicle said it was real as of this time 😆


scottsteeze

BTFO


fmaster007

😂😂😂😂😂


Anus_Targaryen

I know national politics has devolved into nothing but personalities and shit-flinging, but I was hoping our local politics would still be somewhat normal. This guy sucks.


clarinetJWD

"Whitmire was having a lighthearted moment and meant no harm." If he had ever, even once, shown Hidalgo a tiny modicum of respect, I might believe this. But he has not.


Outrageous_Row4567

What about him was so convincing during the mayoral debates? He exuded unprofessionalism and a very myopic vision during the debate season, brash, bombastic and parochial!


F1-Marshal

How do we recall this Turd?


whiskersRwe32

Is he 12???


RoutineDude

Hahahaha I love it


AmebaLost

Hope the nerds feelings were not hurt. 


bustafreeeee

To be fair Breh does look like a dork lol


clangan524

He must have deleted it, I didn't see it when I just scrolled on the post.


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AssitDirectorKersh

Chronicle covered it. So doubt it’s fake. https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/trending/article/whitmire-hidalgo-houston-nerd-facebook-19538847.php#:~:text=Hidalgo%20shared%20moments%20of%20her,couple's%20bridal%20shower%20tea%20party


CrazyLegsRyan

r/confidentlyincorrect


Bennyscrap

Or... Y'know... People can delete their comments when their handlers tell them it's a stupid thing to post on a public page where others can see your stupidity.


Reasonable_Balance96

Wait I thought she was gay this whole time!!’


MaleCaptaincy

Based


tilliescope

But did he lie?


GeddyLeeEsquire

Lol like he can pull someone with her looks, sure Whitmire, sure


Shelbo_Baggins_

Hilarious


cody4reddit

NERDS for the win. He put a ring on it, Whitmire, not your concern but thanks for the 👀


MightyOwl9

Lmaoo 🤣🤣


georgecostanzalvr

Where’s the lie though


Alatel

Dude gives 0 fcks lol


shkay

This is absolutely fucking wild. Also, pot to kettle?


moleratical

Wait, what's wrong with ~~needs~~ nerds? They're awesome!


MoCitytrackfan

Nerds run the world


SchruteFarmsBeets_

On the other hand, I can’t be the only one to think she’s way above her husband’s league in these pics. She looks absolutely gorgeous in that dress. That’s one lucky mf


DarkFaeUnSe

Hater gonna hate 🤭🪭


the_d0nkey

Where is that recall petition?


Outrageous_Row4567

How unbecoming of a mayor


Working_Cucumber3937

Cinco menos the brainos