Is there anything more pressing in San Antonio than term limits?

Mayor Phil Hardberger is pushing to put a measure on the ballot to ease term limits for the City Council before asking voters to increase San Antonio's sales tax to either beef up the public library system or put more police officers on the street. Hardberger and other critics say limiting council members to two two-year terms hobbles long-term planning.

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The 210 take: Because who cares about public safety and literacy when politicians can only spend four years on the City Council?

S.A.'s March Madness may get a bit madder

Legal wrangling, rain and construction problems have delayed progress on the city's Convention Center hotel. Crews are working round-the-clock trying to finish the 1,005-room Grand Hyatt San Antonio by Feb. 6. With the NCAA Final Four tournament at the Alamodome looming just weeks later, it could turn into a public relations nightmare. The general contractor has vowed that the hotel will open on time.

The 210 take: “But, just in case, can 2,000 people crash at your place?”

Republican candidates aren't Obama fans

In their latest debate, the GOP presidential hopefuls were more apt to attack Democrats than each other — in particular Sen. Barack Obama. “In one week he went from saying he's going to sit down, you know, for tea, with our enemies, but then he's going to bomb our allies,” said ex-Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. “I mean, he's gone from Jane Fonda to Dr. Strangelove in one week.”

The 210 take: The national security adviser for Obama's campaign, IMDB.com, had no comment on the charge. 
 

Do you remember Windsor Park Mall?

Rackspace Managed Hosting, which has already grown by leaps and bounds since its 1998 inception, has promised to add 3,200 jobs to its payroll in return for incentives as it moves its headquarters to the site of the former Windsor Park Mall. Rackspace would expand to 4,500 jobs, with an average salary of $51,000, by 2012. It has 1,300 local employees now.

The 210 take: Half the growth will be funded by Web sites featuring photos of cats demanding cheezburgers. Isn't technology grand?
 

Surprise! Study finds kids like McDonald's

Anything made by McDonald's tastes better, preschoolers said in a study that powerfully demonstrates how advertising can trick the taste buds of young children. Even carrots, milk and apple juice tasted better to the kids when they were wrapped in the familiar packaging of the Golden Arches, the study found.

The 210 take: Taking a cue from the study, they are now selling pieces of Styrofoam in McDonald's wrappers. They're called “Chicken McNuggets.”

With staff and wire reports