Cover Story
The Solar Wall: An excerpt from The Beloved Border: Humanity and Hope in a Contested Land
Ethnobotanist, nature writer and sustainable agriculture advocate Gary Nabhan was another Mexican-identified, Anglo border person with a vision for the future. Founder of Native Seeds/SEARCH, Nabhan held the Kellogg Endowed Chair in Food and Water Security for the Borderlands at the University of Arizona Southwest Center. He lived with his wife, a nurse practitioner, on…
Tucson lawmaker asks court to reject Jan. 6 defamation case from Gosar, Finchem, Kern
Tucson Democratic Rep. Charlene Fernandez is asking a court to dismiss a defamation case brought against her by two Republican state legislators and a GOP congressman because statements Fernandez made to the FBI about the two GOP legislators are privileged. The case stems from a letter sent by Fernandez and other Democratic lawmakers asking the FBI…
Title Fight In Jeopardy after WBC Champ Tests Positive For Banned Substance
Local WBC super featherweight champion Oscar Valdez tested positive for the banned substance Phentermine, putting his first title defense against Robson Conceicao on Sept. 10 at Casino Del Sol’s AVA Amphitheater in jeopardy. The Nogales-born boxer found out about his positive test result on Monday after recently submitting to a random drug test by the…
The results are in: Standardized test scores fell during pandemic year
WASHINGTON – Standardized test scores in Arizona fell across the board last school year, as COVID-19 upended learning through the year and led to a sharp drop in the number of students taking the tests, the Arizona Department of Education said. Results released by the department Friday showed that 38% of students got “satisfactory” grades…
40 Million People Rely on the Colorado River. It’s Drying Up Fast
ProPublica is a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative newsroom. Sign up for The Big Story newsletter to receive stories like this one in your inbox. This story was originally published by ProPublica and the New York Times. On a 110-degree day several years ago, surrounded by piles of sand and rock in the desert outside of Las Vegas, I…
Essential but ignored: How day care powered the pandemic workforce
Access to child care became increasingly limited across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic. Programs closed and building capacities were restricted, straining caregivers and the economy, which relied heavily on child care to get Americans back to work. It was a crisis before COVID-19 emerged in early 2020. The Center for American Progress reported that…
Collateral damage: Supreme Court ruling jeopardizes another $600 million in school funding
When the Arizona Supreme Court ruled against an income tax hike that voters approved last year, it illuminated another K-12 funding issue that could strip $600 million a year out of Arizona schools. Funding from the legislature’s 2018 extension of an expiring sales tax is likely to count against an education spending limit that voters imposed…
Pima Animal Care Center offering deals for pet adoption to make room at shelter
Pima Animal Care Center is looking to pair furry friends with loving humans during a month of “Clear the Shelters” events. PACC is offering an adoption promotion every week until Sept. 19 to free space at the shelter. “We are very excited to have this adoption event happening at PACC!” said Monica Dangler, director of…
Spirited Cinema: The Night House is a haunting film
Hey, there’s a movie called the night House playing at your local movie theater. It’s a psychological horror movie, it’s pretty good with a solid Rebecca Hall in the central role, and you probably have no idea it exists. This is one of those films that’s sort of going in and out of theaters unnoticed…
Bits and Spaces: Pollution Salute explores a new world of electronics on Heavy Meadow
The isolation of the past year gave many musicians time to hone their craft, but allowed Michael Fay the time to dive into a world entirely new. Fay, who has recorded with several Tucson bands including Prom Body, took the time to explore the capabilities of modular synthesizers: complex electronic instruments that can be custom-built…
Capacity Crowds: Hospitals report limited bed space as COVID numbers climb
Arizona hospitals are seeing more COVID patients as the state faces its third wave of coronavirus cases. Last week, the number of ICU patients in Banner Health Care’s Arizona hospitals, for both COVID and non-COVID patients, reached the peak numbers of those seen in the summer 2020 surge, said Banner Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Marjorie…
Editor’s Note: Cast Your Ballot, Dammit!
It’s your last chance to vote in Best of Tucson®: Legends of the West! The polls close at noon on Sept. 1, so head over to TucsonWeekly.com and cast your ballot in our annual competition to determine the very best of everything in our dusty cowtown. We’ll be bringing you the results on Oct. 21.…
High and Low: UA doctor set to study how stress, pain and depression can drive nurses to medicate with cannabis
Since the start of covid-19, nurses have been under a lot of pressure as they work long hours in hazardous conditions to care for victims of the novel coronavirus. They’ve been celebrated as heroes by most and targeted for abuse by a smaller group of anti-vaxxers, anti-mask zealots and even some political commentators. There are…
City Week: Weekly Picks
Editor’s Note: While we are delighted to see Tucsonans once again gathering for fun events, we are also aware that the new Delta variant is circulating and case counts in Arizona are on the rise. Please consider getting vaccinated against COVID if you haven’t yet and following CDC guidance, which includes wearing masks at crowded…
Cattle Call: You’ll find some outrageous burgers alongside seafood at The Landing
On my inaugural visit to The Landing last week, the sister restaurant of the nautical-themed Fini’s Landing, it was clear that Chef Ryan Jones values his home on the range as much as his time on the dock of the bay. Jones brings a passion for fishing to his work as the brand chef for…
Sick and Twisted: Cyber Ninja’s election review delayed after key team members come down with COVID
The team that has worked since April reviewing the 2020 general election in Maricopa County submitted a partial draft report to the Arizona Senate on Monday, but the full report will be delayed because several members of the team—including Cyber Ninjas head Doug Logan—have tested positive for COVID-19. Senate President Karen Fann, R-Prescott, announced that…
The Skinny: Hulking Out: Does Ducey have a rage monster inside of him?
Was Gov. Doug Ducey recently belted by gamma rays? Because Ducey has been hulking out a lot lately and smashing whatever efforts at COVID mitigation he can. The most reasonable explanation we can imagine is that our governor unleashes the savage monster inside him when he gets angry and leaves a trail of destruction behind…
