Eyes on Texas: Bat Fights and Brisket Lines in Austin

The Great Gray Lady has finally sunk her teeth into Franklin Barbecue. It took six years to break the story.

On Jan. 27, The New York Times ran a multimedia package, complete with a 2:46-minute video and a 1,500-word story on Austin’s celebrated barbecue joint open since 2009.

The Times was shocked to discover what every Austinite knows: There’s a wait. The only thing longer than the line was the story.

Maybe next week the paper will discover Austin music.

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An Austin road rage incident on Jan. 25 went viral when a bystander Tweeted a video of two drivers engaging in what news site Jalopnik.com called “an epic bat stick fight.”

It happened in gridlock traffic near, of course, Slaughter Lane in South Austin. Two men stopped at a red light got out of their vehicles and battled each other, one with a metal baseball bat and the other with a wooden pole.

While police have not identified the men, Jalopnik described them as “two noble morons.”

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WFAA8 reports that a Dallas County father was acquitted Jan. 26 on charges he stole his daughter’s iPhone.

Ronald Jackson confiscated his then-12-year-old’s phone over a rude text three years ago. The girl’s mom, Michelle Steppe, accused Jackson of stealing the phone. He was later arrested and posted a $1,500 bond.

A Dallas County judge ruled this week that there wasn’t enough evidence to convict him. For what an iPhone 4 is worth, he got to keep it.