Sen. John Carona, R-Dallas, pulled his "Choose Life" license plate bill (Senate Bill 1098) from the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee on April 8 out of "respect" for his colleagues, he said -- more to the point, he noted, he simply didn't have the votes there to move the bill. Instead, Carona has had the bill moved to the presumably more "Life"-plate friendly Health and Human Services Committee. This is the sixth time lawmakers have sought to create a Choose Life vanity plate. Gov. Rick Perry announced in December that he would back the latest incarnation of the bill, which he said would give Texans a "means to tell the world in a subtle but meaningful way" that they "believe in the sanctity of life." While lawmakers -- including Perry and Carona -- say that the plate is supposed to support adoption as a preferable option for an unwanted or "crisis" pregnancy, the plate has been controversial, in part, because of the language chosen to get that supposed message across.

Knowing that someone's already made their mind up about you is a great incentive to cut the bullshit. That's what Lee Leffingwell did in a recent email exchange with Alberta Phillips, who, along with David Lowery, Bruce Hight and Arnold Garcia Jr. comprise the four horsemen of the Austin American-Statesman editorial page. The set up is familiar: the Statesman is aghast at the public safety unions, and steamed by their support for Leffingwell. We'll let the letter, couched in a Q&A format, take it from here:

3. Public safety costs make up two-thirds of general fund spending. Would you support freezing or cutting the pay of police officers, firefighters and EMS employees? How would you control costs? At this point, no one in city government, other than one of my opponents, has proposed freezing or cutting wages for city employees. However, I have said many times that if our budget situation ever does require freezing or cutting wages for any city employee – which I hope it does not - I would support pay cuts for top city management, including the City Council, first. I have also said many times that if it ever becomes necessary to freeze or cut the pay of any non-contract city employees, I would support asking city employees working under a negotiated contract – meaning our police, fire and EMS employees – to also accept freezes or cuts. Indeed, despite the Statesman’s string of fact-free editorials in recent weeks, I have never said “hands off public safety.” I have never said that police, fire or EMS should be “last in line for budget cuts.” I have never said that our public safety departments should be “exempt from trimming.” I have never said that I want “to hold the police and fire departments exempt from budget cuts.” I have never said I “would rather ask companies to sacrifice their tax incentives than have police officers and firefighters give up their raises.” I have never said I want public safety employees “to have their millions of dollars in raises and overtime at any cost.” Yet week after week, the Statesman editorial board mysteriously continues to advance these fictions. As far as I know, I’ve only been “criticized as beholden to the powerful public safety unions” by the Statesman editorial board itself (which, as you’ll no doubt recall, dubbed me “a longtime union leader” even though I’ve never been any kind of union leader), and by people actively supporting another candidate for mayor in this election.

Who says mass live theatre is dead? The WWE, the firm that invented the term sports entertainment, played out their particular form of physical drama and ring-shaking spectacle in front of an 11,000-strong crowd on Tuesday night at the Frank Erwin Center. For those that missed it, there's always the TV broadcast of Smackdown tonight. It was a night of two recordings, so if you missed the ECW main event when it was broadcast on Tuesday, don't panic, it's available online at WWE.com. The main event was that rarest of wrestling phenomena: a fatal four-way that didn't suck. Smoothly laid out, with just the right amount of back and forth, it highlighted the best qualities of all four wrestlers: the determination of Tommy Dreamer (known to fans as the heart and soul of ECW,) the cunning of the freshly-returned Christian, the unmatched experience of veteran Dave "Fit" Finlay, and the unspeakable strength of adopted Austinite Mark Henry. But the big draw was the recording of this week's Smackdown, which airs tonight in Austin on KNVA. Don't worry, no spoilers on the results here.

The next meeting of the House Elections Committee is scheduled for next Wednesday, April 15, and SB 362, the voter ID bill, is not on the agenda. However, this little gem is:

HJR 39 Author: Allen | et al. Post-ratifying Amendment XXIV to the Constitution of the United States prohibiting the denial or abridgment of the right to vote for failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.

Seriously – we still haven't ratified it. Yet more evidence of our not-too-distant past, when Texas still stubbornly clung to its Confederate identity. The timing is great, though – because procuring an identification document invariably involves spending some money, Republican attempts to require a photo ID in addition to one's voter registration certificate to vote has been labeled by opponents as "the new poll tax." We notice Betty "Fu Manchu" Brown isn't listed among the co-authors, so we'll be interested to see how she votes on it.

Have you seen the Gathering Storm ad? It's a dull bit of trashy fear-mongering courtesy of the folks from the National Organization for Marriage. If this what they consider making a case, they should consider investing in some new luggage. The gang at AdLand posted this fabulous drubbing of the ad, debunking NOM's implications that gay marriage will impact the lives and rights of folks across the nation… folks who do have the absolute right to be assholes, homophobes, and even completely stupid – as long as those rights do not infringe upon mine. P.S. That delicate guy with the Friends swoop at the beginning (see pic) who says, "The clouds are dark; the winds are strong!"? If that model/actor is not a total poof, I will eat my gay marriage license. When I get one.

In other documentaries-appearing-as-scripted- narratives news (Remember Pedro?)... Grey Gardens premieres on HBO on April 18. But wait, you say, Grey Gardens? I've heard of that, I even recall in the fog of my memory seeing the documentary some time ago. Was it 1975? Fog of your memory? Why aren't you watching this film every damn week?!? Didn't they teach you about this in the school of queer knocks? Well now, HBO, Drew Barrymore, and Jessica Lange have gone and done it. They've made Grey Gardens THE MOVIE. And it's not even a filmed version of the musical Grey Gardens that swept Broadway a couple years ago! When will the Grey Gardens madness end? Hopefully: Never. Amongst the many things to whet your appetite as the big day approaches: an incredibly moving essay written by Guy Kettelhack about the legacy of Edie Beale following her death in 2002, clips from the Maysles Bros. documentary, how to throw a Grey Gardens party, and of course, a string of blog posts on little Edie's influence on contemporary fashion. Put your sweaters on your heads and enjoy, poodles.

The Round Rock Express start their 10th year as the Houston Astros AAA affiliate tonight vs. the Iowa Cubs. Opening Day also happens to coincide with Thirsty Thursday, which is a nice treat for all the beer-drinking baseball fans out there. The schedule for the homestand vs. Iowa is: Thu.-Sat., April 9-11, 7:05pm; Sun., April 12, 2:05pm. Omaha rides into town Monday for the following games: Mon.-Thu., April 13-16, 7:05pm. Dell Diamond, 3400 E. Palm Valley Blvd., Round Rock, 512/255-2255. $6-13. Here are a few familiar names returning for Round Rock with their 2008 Express stats in parentheses: Lefty pitcher Josh Muecke (8-13, 4.89 ERA and 107 strikeouts in 165.2 innings), right-handed pitcher Chad Paronto (3.08 ERA, with 57 strikeouts in 52.2 innings), catcher J.R. Towles (.304, 7 HR, 28 RBI), outfielder Reggie Abercrombie (.273, 36 RBI, 17 stolen bases), and 2008 Pacific Coast League All-Star Mark Saccomanno (.297, 27 HR, 84 RBI). Hope to see ya at the Dell.

The Score has a few pairs of Toros tickets up for grabs for the first couple fans who hit me up at [email protected]. The game vs. Rio Grande Valley is Friday, April 10, 7:30pm at the Austin Convention Center. Just give me your name and I'll leave a pair of tickets at the front desk for you. We're open till 4pm today and 9am to 6pm tomorrow. For more on the Toros and Marcus Williams, please see this week's "Playing Through" by Thomas Hackett. Williams was called up the Spurs on Wednesday, playing 3 minutes 11 seconds and shooting 2 for 2 with 4 points in the Spurs 95-83 loss to the Trail Blazers. Update: We are currently having issues with our incoming e-mail, so if you have e-mailed about this and not heard back from me, it means I haven't received your message. My apologies.

For more than a decade, Epistrophy Arts has been Austin’s leading voice in free-form and avant garde jazz, consistently bringing the world’s finest in improvised music to local stages (see “Free Jazz, Thin Margin”). This month, Epistrophy continues the streak with two shows at the Victory Grill: "Amsterdam Meets Chicago," featuring the Ab Baars Trio with Ken Vandermark on Friday, followed by the triple threat of Peter Brotzmann, Nasheet Waits, and the Eric Revis Trio on April 30. OTR asked Epistrophy Arts founder Pedro Moreno to help break down the two bills. The Ab Baars Trio with Ken Vandermark: Ab Baars represents the very fertile Dutch scene, which is amazing. We’ve had the pleasure of hosting him with the ICP Orchestra, a 10-piece band from Amsterdam. I love his music. It’s really idiosyncratic and unique in jazz and improvised music. He’s doing something really marvelous with the trio. By adding American Ken Vandermark, who we’ve worked with several times, it’s an absolute thrill. I can’t wait to see those guys play together. This event represents what we’re all about. We want to promote mutual cultural exchange. Peter Brotzmann: He’s one of the pioneers of European free improvisation. For me personally, his integrity and commitment to this music against all odds has made him an icon. He’s been following his vision for close to 40 years. He’s just phenomenal, and live it’s something else – a hundred times as powerful. It’s really something to behold.