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Who Wants to Be a Teacher?
It was one of those “You’ve got to be freakin’ kidding me!” moments that happen all too frequently when listening to political talk radio. Former Arizona State Senator Frank Antenori was on the air talking about how his son’s teacher had been in education, but had left because he couldn’t make a decent living at…
Omar’s Comin’ Back Remastered (Patience Required)
When it comes to most TV offerings, I’m always behind schedule. Just ask my coworkers. It’s rare when I start to watch something from the beginning and really get into it. I’m always late, and really, I don’t care. Even everyone kept chiding me for not watching HBO’s “The Wire,” and after reading amazing reviews…
May’s Counter Co-Owner Learns a Lesson About the Social Media Age
Just before the Labor Day holiday the internets exploded, OK, just a little, after all it was just the Arizona Daily Star’s Facebook page. Reaction to a post on the child who was missing after an Aug. 27 carjacking, turned interesting when local restaurant owner John Foster of May’s Counter made that mistake many out…
Grab a Beer for Good Cause Tonight at Borderlands
Shawn Hillman works with beer distributor Pitcher of Nectar and helps get the local beer of Borderlands on to taps up in Phoenix, which is a noble venture indeed. However, his son Gavin was born in July with a series of complications, including hydrocephalus and corneal issues. To support their friend in an incredibly difficult…
Dem David Garcia Gets GOP Support in State Schools Chief Bid
Democrat David Garcia, who is facing Republican Diane Douglas in the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction, has landed the support of two former Republicans who held the post, Lisa Graham Keegan and Jaime Molera. The press release from Team Garcia: Former Republican and Democratic Superintendents of Public Instruction announced their endorsement of Dr.…
Why Is the Star Using “Suicide Methods” As a Tag?
We use tags on the Range for a few reasons. Theoretically, they’re part of a SEO strategy, but mostly, we use them to either organize posts over time (all the posts about food trucks are under “food trucks,” naturally) and also to make an extra stupid joke (all our posts about ASU are tagged “girls…
Hero for the Week: Emma Sulkowicz
Emma Sulkowicz is one of 23 students who filed a complaint against Columbia University in April for mishandling their sexual-assault cases. Sulkowicz and two other students claimed they were assulted by the same student, but nothing happened and that student was allowed to continue hist studies at Columbia. In response—Sulkowicz at times has seen her…
CD1: Tobin vs. Kirkpatrick Air War Begins
After a week of counting votes, House Speaker Andy Tobin has finally prevailed in the Congressional District 1 primary race, with rancher Gary Kiehne conceding the race. Tobin will face Congresswoman Ann Kirkpatrick, a Democrat who won election to Congress in 2008, lost in 2010 and won again in 2012. Tobin thanked his supporters, as…
Strange Political Bedfellows In The TUSD Board Election
Why would a Democratic member of the TUSD school board support one, or maybe two, Republicans for the two board seats coming up for a vote in November? The Democrat is Mark Stegeman, and the Republican candidates are Debe Campos‐Fleenor and Michael Hicks. True, it’s a nonpartisan race, but a Democrat supporting Republicans over Democrats…
The Militant Baker Wants Your Help to Do Body Love Advocacy Full-Time
Sometimes I feel blessed we got to sit down with Jes Baker in what may seem like her early days now, but really it was just the very beginning of her revolution as her Militant Baker blog gained a record-breaking following, right before she took on the Abercrombie & Fitch CEO in an open letter…
There’s a Craft Brewery/Strip Club Now, Because of Course There Is
I suppose it was inevitable, considering strip clubs generally serve beer and craft beer seems to be running its more commercial cousins off taps all over the place these days, but hey, there’s a gentlemen’s club making its own beer. What is somewhat surprising is that this isn’t happening in Portland, Oregon (a place with…
Let’s Watch Laura Jane Grace’s Documentary Series on Gender Dysphoria
I’ve been a fan of the Florida punk act Against Me! for some time, so the last few years since frontwoman Laura Jane Grace came out as transgender in a Rolling Stone article in 2012 have been an interesting look at how an artist evolves, including the band’s latest album Transgender Dysphoria Blues which discussed…
MALDEF’s Latino State of the State to Focus on Education, Desegregation
This isn’t the first Latino State of the State the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund has done in Arizona. According to MALDEF president and general counsel Thomas A. Saenz, the last one was in Phoenix in 2012, but as Tucson Unified School District continues to delay implementation of its court-ordered desegregation plan and…
Columnist Joe Nocera Is Just Not That Into “Education Reform”
Maybe this is wishful thinking, but I’m beginning to sense that the reform/privatization movement is losing some of its momentum. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still going strong. The Billionaire Boys Club continues to spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year promoting it. State legislatures, Congress, even Obama and his Ed Sec Arne Duncan…
Author Charles Bowden Dies in New Mexico
The Range does not have many details, but we learned this morning that author and journalist Charles Bowden passed away yesterday at his home in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Bowden had been feeling poorly in recent weeks and had been visiting doctors, who were trying to get to the bottom of what ailed him, according…
Here’s the New Movies to Stream on Netflix in September
With the extended (for some people) weekend and the continued temperatures over 100 degrees, you might decide to stay in for a bit and stream something on Netflix. However, as the page turns on the calendar, some movies leave the streaming service, with new ones coming in as replacements. Here’s our top three you should…
Let’s Learn More about Medical Marijuana Tomorrow
If you’re a medical marijuana patient or you’re interested in becoming one, check out the MMJ for Tucson event at Whistle Stop Depot (127 W. 5th St.) tomorrow from 6 to 9 p.m. (partially sponsored by the Weekly). Somewhat dated pop culture reference, but it works. Like Stefon sort of says above, this event’s got…
Let’s Listen to Prince and Michael Jackson Mixtapes
Northfoto / Shutterstock.com In this week’s Soundbites, I mentioned tonight’s Michael Jackson vs. Prince show at the Flycatcher: The Flycatcher is having an “official grand opening party” on Friday, Aug. 29 (a little late, but sure, OK) and for the occasion Dan Hernandez and the Keep Tucson Party posse are revisiting their Prince vs. Michael…
Should We (Sort of) Admire Bigots?
Image courtesy of Shutterstock Neil Steinberg’s column in the Chicago Sun-Times today is a fascinating and interesting read on the subject of intolerance, making that point that he’d prefer people just get their terrible, ignorant thoughts out there instead of hiding behind made-up facts and odd logic: You know what I admire about bigots? And…
Trailer for Jon Stewart’s “Rosewater” Debuts
It’s Jon Stewart’s directorial debut, you know, the one he took a sabbatical for from the Daily Show leaving many of us going through J-Stew withdrawals. All for good reason. A beautiful film with that amazing Gael Garcia Bernal out in theaters on November 7. H/T Vanity Fair, who happened to give it some film…
Namoli Brennet Launched a Kickstarter Campaign (And We Miss Her)
Although Namoli Brennet no longer calls Tucson home (she’s missed and I hope she misses us too), that’s no reason to not throw some love her way. The popular singer/songwriter just launched a Kickstarter campaign to help her record a new album: One of my absolute *favorite* things in the world is being in the…
Here’s the Analysis of the End of “Ghostbusters” You Never Knew You Needed
Ghostbusters is coming back to theaters this week for the film’s 30th anniversary, remastered for the occasion, so, of course, someone asked the question: What are the logistics involved in [SPOILERS AHEAD, IF THAT’S ACTUALLY A THING WHEN YOU’RE TALKING ABOUT A 30 YEAR OLD MOVIE] a giant marshmallow man wandering around Manhattan? On the…
A Lovely Evening of Punk and More with Tucson’s Psygoat this Weekend
The burly, bearded men of Tucson’s Psygoat are performing this weekend, Saturday, Aug. 30 at the District. The show with headliner Rikk Agnew Band (Yes, Andrew of Adolescents, DI, and Christian Death fame) and DeSade is suppose to start at 10, but bet those Psygoats bring their self-described “fun-core, psychedelic dirt rock,” on around midnight.…
Mercer Calls for Grijalva’s Excommunication and the Congressman Suggests She Listen to the Pope
Oh Gabby (Mercer, not the other famous Tucsonan with that same nickname), you’re such a card. In Facebook news today, the tea-bagger congressional perma-candidate had this to say on her page in a thread that was all about congratulating Ducey, but turned into a call to have her forever opponent excommunicated from the Catholic church:…
(Common) Core Wars
Image courtesy of shutterstock.com According to recent polling, the biggest issues in the Arizona election will be education and the economy. It would be foolish to underestimate the power of immigrant bashing, but that could come in the guise of education and the economy as well. The education debates can go in all kinds of…
NEON EON Have a Video, Play Tonight With Blackberry Smoke
Thanks to the folks from NEON EON for sending over their video for the live version of “Laffin'” (which conveniently enough features some laughing and call-and-response action). If you’re interested in seeing their southern rock influenced brand of party rock life, they’re opening for Blueberry Smoke tonight at the Rialto. Doors are at 7 p.m.…
Kid Goes Off on His Mom for Getting Pregnant, Again
A wise man once hosted a show called Kids Say The Darndest Things, but the Internet killed it with parents and their smart phones. This mother uploaded this video of her son getting upset at her for getting pregnant with her third child. Obviously, he didn’t want another child around to steal the attention, but…
Media Watch: The New Face of Lotus; McNamara New Host of “Arizona Illustrated”
[Editor’s note: We didn’t have room in the print edition for Media Watch this week, so here’s John’s column for your digital enjoyment.] KWILOSZ WANTS TO IMPROVE LOTUS VISIBILITY Tucson’s radio clusters are made up of three behemoth media conglomerates. Clear Channel and Cumulus probably get the most press, but comparisons between the rivals go…
Police Dispatch
HANDs off FOOTHILLS AREA AUGUST 3, 7:57 P.M. A physically disabled man couldn’t keep his hands off his penis while in front of his paid female caregiver, according to a Pima County Sheriff’s Department report. The woman told sheriff’s deputies that earlier that day, a wheelchair-bound man—who’d been assigned to her through a commercial caregiving…
Zackey Force Funk: “Money Green Viper”
Former Tucsonan Zackey Force Funk’s profile has risen exponentially since “Exorcise Tape,” his 2013 album with Black Moth Super Rainbow mastermind Tobacco, under the name Demon Queen. “Exorcise Tape” was a stunning record, and topped this writer’s best of 2013 year-end list. It highlighted Tobacco’s streamlined, grimy production and Zackey’s most concise lyrics and singing…
Editor’s Note
For some reason, there’s been a rush of people calling and emailing to ask if they can write for the Weekly lately, something I appreciate because I guess that means we’re something worth being a part of, but as I wrote in this space back in January of 2013, it’s not quite so simple. So,…
Live
The Erudites, JJCNV, Chariots of Failure; The Flycatcher, Friday, Aug. 22 While far from breaking news, and not even necessarily the news at all, it never ceases to surprise me—in the most pleasant way possible—how a little 40-year-old sub-genre of rock ‘n’ roll called punk has grown to be a world just as large as…
Ask A Mexican!
Dear Mexican: I see lots of Mexican-Americans struggling in grade school and high school. Many Mexican-American activists claim it’s because they don’t speak English at home or the schools don’t teach them well. But I see lots of Asian-Americans in the same schools who do really well. Many of them also don’t speak English at…
Adventures in Edibles
While most people associate marijuana with smoking, with the rise of medical marijuana culture in recent years, marijuana-infused products, more commonly referred to as edibles, now come in more forms than you could count, from hot sauces to gummy bears. Some patients choose these products to avoid exposure to smoke, some because edibles can be…
Growing Their Own
Bloom Dispensaries is growing in more ways than one. With two locations —one in Phoenix and one in Tucson—Bloom Dispensaries continue to set the standard in the medical marijuana industry and cardholders have taken notice. Much of Bloom Dispensaries’ success has come from the fact it operates with an on-site grow, which ensures product quality…
Definition Dilemmas
Like all new bands in the mid-to-late 2000s, The Soft White Sixties were faced with a particular dilemma: describing their music according to the MySpace format. The band’s word choice, tossed off at the time, not only had a certain prescience, but cuts to the essence of the music they’ve been playing ever since: World…
Higher Profile
As the ’90s became the 2000s, a lot of second and third generation Tucson punk bands started to stretch out stylistically. Lockstep hardcore evolved into swinging garage while pop-oriented punk got weirder. As national acts like Green Day made the full transition into bloated arena rock, the American underground, including that in Tucson, thrived, free…
Deli Dilemma
As it so happens, I’m currently reading a book called “Save the Deli” by David Sax, an award-winning food writer out of Toronto. The book centers on how time and tide have changed the definition of exactly what deli means and how corporate America, generational values, an aging population and a migration to the suburbs…
Nine on The Line
Austin Counts may sound like a vampire, but he’s actually the owner of the 4th Avenue Delicatessen. On the Tucson cooking scene since 1998, Counts spent nearly a decade working as kitchen manager for Nimbus Brewing Company before moving on to manage the B-Line’s kitchen in 2012. In June 2013, Counts noticed a small space…
Behind the Music (and the Mask)
Anybody who has ever struggled to create something, be it a song or a painting or a Popsicle stick castle, will find something to love in “Frank.” Director Lenny Abrahamson has made a profound and silly film about the soul-sucking madness that can be the creation of art and the perils of celebrity pursuit. Jon…
Noshing Around
BETTER THAN A BUCKET OF ICE For those that do not know, everyone is dumping buckets of ice water on their heads and posting it on the Internet, to raise awareness and money for the ALS Association. However, I have a better idea to help fight Lou Gehrig’s disease, Bite Nite. Bite Nite is a…
Charm Over Substance
We’re all getting older, but when are we officially old? Is it an age thing or a health thing or a cultural thing? Howard Stern, Denzel Washington and Jerry Seinfeld all turn 60 this year. Old? Perhaps it’s that some of us are born old, while others achieve oldness and others still have oldness thrust…
Primer
WHO IS HE The denim-clad outlaw king of modern country music, Dwight Yoakam’s almost 30 years as a recording artist have been defined by a stubborn originality as much as his long string of hits. Born in Kentucky, raised in Ohio and spit out by a glossy Nashville scene that prized anything but pure country…
Arizona Cannabis Nurses Association vs. Humble
Back in July, folks with the Arizona Cannabis Nurses Association were undeniably happy with an administrative judge’s recommendation that the state allow post-traumatic stress disorder on the list of qualifying conditions for those who apply for a medical marijuana patient card. Well, that was July. Last week, the AZCNA filed an appeal in Maricopa County…
Soundbites
STICK AROUND Clearly we’re excited for HoCo Fest this weekend, considering the number of references to the event in this week’s issue (see: City Week, The Soft White Sixties feature, Rhythm & Views) and there are a bunch of shows worth seeing elsewhere this week, but here’s one more plug: You should go to at…
Tucson Is Burning
There isn’t another event in town that brings together some of Tucson’s best drag queen and king talent and some well-intentioned volunteers happy to sing their hearts out to help the Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network. TIHAN, which brings Tucson’s religious communities together to help those affected by HIV/AIDS, brought in a record crowd of 400…
Cinema Showdown!
DOGS AND CATS LIVING TOGETHER Not that you can’t see “Ghostbusters” every other weekend on cable, but hey, it’s probably still a better choice than several films in theaters this week, so why not check out the one-week-only 30th Anniversary re-release at Century Park Place, Century El Con, Century Oro Valley Marketplace or Harkins Spectrum?…
HoCo Fest: 10 Year Anniversary
This week, Club Congress celebrates the 10 year anniversary of HoCo Fest—a four-day Labor Day weekend music festival with 37 local, national and international acts indoors and outdoors at 311 E Congress St. However, it’s the last night on Sunday, Aug. 31, 7 p.m. when HOCO gets its Latin on with indie-cumbia and mariachi from…
The Skinny
Empty Charges More Ally-Gations turn out to be unfounded as AG’s Office says it “cannot substantiate a violation.” The Arizona Attorney General’s Office has cleared four members of the Pima County Board of Supervisors of allegations that they violated the state’s open-meeting law. Republican Supervisor Ally Miller leveled charges that the other four members of…
Get Your Cardboard On
It’s less than a month before the Cardboard Ball, the annual fundraiser for the All Souls Procession Workshops organized each year by All Souls co-founder and Tucson artist Mykl Wells. So the countdown has begun for you to get your cardboard on, Tucson. Prepare yourself: Gather ye cardboard, create some art and build your cardboard…
Sense of Place, Superbly
Jeff Smith likes the borderlands best at night. “When people think of the desert, they think about the brightness,” he writes. “When I think of desert, I think about the deep nights I have spent there, looking for light.” Smith is a photographer who chases lightning, searching for the jagged bolts that pierce the monsoon…
Danehy
I recently stumbled across an academic paper that is stunningly counterintuitive. One of the most widely held beliefs in America—one held by virtually all Republicans and even a fair amount of Democrats—is that the Republican Party is the party better capable of dealing with the economy. This, apparently, is not only false, it’s absolutely, 100…
Serraglio
Imagine that you are a jaguar, roaming the rugged canyons and forests of the Arizona-Mexico borderlands. You eat what you please and drink from hidden springs and remote mountain pools. No other animal dares to challenge you, and most of the million humans in the region don’t even know you’re here. You prefer it that…
Media Watch
KWILOSZ WANTS TO IMPROVE LOTUS VISIBILITY Tucson’s radio clusters are made up of three behemoth media conglomerates. Clear Channel and Cumulus probably get the most press, but comparisons between the rivals go further. They have more in common than just general proximity along the Oracle corridor. Both organizations (Clear Channel operates seven Tucson frequencies, Cumulus…
