Cover Story
LGBT and Latino
When the priest spoke to Oscar Jimenez and the other children in Sunday school, Jimenez felt himself shrink in his seat, certain the priest was looking right at him. Jimenez slowly repeats the words the priest said that day. “‘If you are a homosexual, confess your sin against nature.’ I remember thinking, ‘He’s looking right…
Sorry, Wrong Number
Democrat Rodney Glassman campaigns against Sen. John McCain in Northern California, according to blogger Ed Discroll, who reports: I’ve just gotten robo-calls — on two of the three lines that come into my house — from Rodney Glassman, the Democrat who’s currently trailing John McCain by 34 percentage points in the Arizona senatorial election… You…
CD 7 Debate: Grijalva vs. McClung
If you’re thinking about going to today’s debate between U.S. Congressman Raúl Grijalva and his challenger Ruth McClung (from 3 to 6 p.m. at Pima Community College Desert Vista Campus), you might want to take a look at the voter guide published by the Center for Arizona Policy. You know the organization, led by Cathi…
Beer Ice Cream, Free Cupcakes, Bison Tacos and Other Ways to Make Your Stomach Happy
Boca holds another Exotic Taco Wednesday tonight (Oct. 13). This time, it’s bison tacos from 5 p.m. to close. Past events have featured fried-oyster, rattlesnake, alligator and ostrich tacos, and it’s anybody’s guess what weird meat will land on the eatery’s tortillas next week. 1702 hosts a tasting of beers from Firestone Walker Brewing Company,…
Get Your 1,000 Steps on in Bisbee
The 20th Annual Bisbee 1000 Stair Climb—a blissful exercise in astonishment and exertion that features a 3-mile-or-so run/walk through historic Bisbee interrupted by the climbing of more than 1,000 hillside stairs—will be held Saturday, Oct. 16. The event has become so popular, organizers can no longer take registrations on the day of the race; entrants…
Coughlin: Sorry About That Stuff About Goddard Being Gay. Let’s Talk About Issues
Gov. Jan Brewer’s right-hand man, Chuck Coughlin, says he’s sorry about calling for the media to look into the possibility that Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry Goddard is gay when fielding a question about whether Brewer is too ill to make it through a four-year term. Coughlin explains the gay-baiting episode was meta-criticism of political reporting…
Get Ready to Call in Sick Tomorrow to See Some Live Music Tonight
There’s been a lot of music to see at the venues on Fourth Avenue and Congress in the last few weeks, including a stretch where the Rialto was booked for two weeks straight, with two weekend festivals at Club Congress as bookends. And then, this Saturday night is Club Crawl, a can’t miss event on…
Camp Brewer Wonders: Goddard = Gay?
Tedski has the pathetic details here and here.
Those Valiant Nazis
Every time I think Election 2010 can’t produce crazier candidates (we’re looking your witchy way, Christine O’Donnell), I get proven wrong.
Footage From Beloved: A Multifaith Pride Service at Temple Emanu-El
The second annual Tucson Multifaith Pride Service, hosted by the Wingspan Multifaith Working Group and the LGBT Jewish Inclusion Project, was held at Temple Emanu-El on Country Club celebrating “the love and belovedness of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and two-spirit communities.” The service included prayer, poetry, music and messages focusing on the concept…
Goddard: “Jan Brewer Has Failed To Do the Job”
Riding the wave of recent polls showing him gaining ground on Gov. Jan Brewer, Democrat Terry Goddard drops a press release that pulls the money quote from a report that puts Arizona’s 48th on the list of well-run states: Our writers looked at hundreds of data sets ranging from debt rating agency reports to violent…
Brewer: I’m Not Dead, I Feel Happyyyy
In response to recent claims about her failing health, Gov. Jan Brewer issued the following statement today: “There have been recent outlandish and completely unsubstantiated reports on liberal internet blogs and Twitter citing anonymous sources questioning my health. Before committing to seek election, I had a complete checkup with my doctors and confirmed there is…
The Unfolding Mystery Of The Insane Clown Posse
When I think of the Detroit’s Insane Clown Posse (who performed at Tucson’s Rialto Theatre last year and frequently appear in the Zia Records top ten published in our music section), I’m thankful for two things: that I don’t often have to hear their music and that they’ve been on a roll lately giving interviews…
Arizona Illustrated: Political Face-Off
Republican Bruce Ash and Democrat Paul Eckerstrom stand in as surrogates for Jesse and Gabby on Arizona Illustrated’s Political Face Off.
CD7: Palin Endorses McClung
Sarah Palin endorses Republican Ruth McClung in her campaign to unseat Congressman Raul Grijalva. From Sarah’s Facebook page: Ruth McClung is the smart choice for Congress in southwestern Arizona. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that our country is on the wrong track under the leadership of Obama, Pelosi, and Reid; but Ruth…
CD8: Camp Giffords Rolls Out New Ad Hammering Kelly on Eduction Funding
Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords’ campaign debuted a new TV ad today attacking Republican Jesse Kelly’s promises to reduce support for federal education funding if elected in November. Kelly has said he opposed the stimulus package, which provided money to the state of Arizona for K-12 eduction and university funding. He also opposed more recent legislation that…
Friday Roundtable: Giffords vs. Kelly & Brewer vs Goddard
In case you missed it: Arizona Illustrated’s Friday Roundtable, featuring talk about the race between Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and Republican challenger Jesse Kelly in Congressional District 8; and the race between Gov. Jan Brewer and Democratic challenger Terry Goddard.
Friday Roundtable: City Charter Change Debate
In case you missed it: Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers and former state lawmaker Tom Prezelski debate Prop 401, the proposed city charter changes.
CD8: Nate Silver See Giffords-Kelly Race Tightening
Stats wizard Nate Silver, who has taken his fivethirtyeight.com site to the New York Times, now says the race between Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and Republican challenger Jesse Kelly is neck and neck. You can find details here. In other news: Silver throws cold water on the notion that Congressman Raul Grijalva is in real trouble:…
Politico: Grijalva “In A Dead Heat”
Politico suggests that Congressman Raul Grijalva is facing a real challenge from political newcomer Ruth McClung: Add Rep. Raul Grijalva to the growing list of Democratic worries this election season. Party operatives say there’s increasing concern that the Arizona Democrat’s reelection bid could turn into a “sleeper” race for Republicans after Grijalva — responding to…
McCain: “No One Needs Their Taxes Cut!” Want To Try That Again, Senator?
We’ll have more about the Tucson Tea Party event in this week’s TW, but we wanted to mention that Sen. John McCain had quite a senior moment during his stump speech to the crowd today. “We’ve got make sure we cut no one’s taxes!” McCain roared. “No one needs their taxes cut and we will…
CD8: Kelly’s Q3 Haul: $535K; Cook Political Reports Calls Race a “Toss-Up”
Republican Jesse Kelly, who hopes to unseat Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Congressional District 8, raised about $535,000 between July 1 and Sept. 30, according to campaign spokesman John Ellinwood. The Kelly campaign had raised about $488,000 as of June 30, according to FEC reports. As of Aug. 4, Kelly reported less than $79,000 on hand.…
A Brief Chat With Jeff Fuld of Elle Wine Bistro
We spoke with Jeff Fuld today about Elle Wine Bistro, the new incarnation of Elle Wine Country Restaurant that he’s opening at 2970 N. Campbell Ave., in the Campbell Plaza Shopping Center. Fuld said the new Elle will be “lighter, brighter and a little more intimate.” The new menu hasn’t been finalized, but Fuld said…
Writer’s Block: Local Author is Finalist for Purple Dragonfly Award
Roni Capin Rivera-Ashford, author of the children’s book Hip Hip Hooray, It’s Monsoon Day!, is in the running for the Purple Dragonfly Book Award. The Purple Dragonfly contest recognizes excellence in children’s literature. The finalists will learn the details of which category they placed in and whether they will receive first, second or third place,…
Janos Wilder Announces Opening Date for DOWNTOWN Kitchen + Cocktails, Holds Preview Benefiting the Humane Society and Wants to Feed You a Free Meal
The big news is that Janos Wilder’s new restaurant, DOWNTOWN Kitchen + Cocktails, is set to open Monday, Oct. 18. It will occupy the former Barrio Food and Drink space at 135 S. Sixth Ave., and by all accounts will serve some damn fine food and drinks. The second biggest news is that Wilder wants…
Writer’s Block: Richard Cachor Taylor
Local author Richard Cachor Taylor’s Birds of Southeastern Arizona has been published by R.W. Morse Company ($19.95, 430 pages). Summary (from publisher): Southeastern Arizona is recognized as one of America’s foremost birding destinations with almost half of all the birds of North America seen in this one area. This pocket-sized photographic guide features 640 stunning…
Picture This: Playing With Fire
Playing With Fire from Chen Ziniu on Vimeo. The folks at Philabaum Glass and Studio in downtown Tucson give us a glimpse at the art of making glass sculptures in this audio slideshow made by UA School of Journalism student Ziniu Chen.
Picture This: A Different Way to Roll
Zared Yates royale grinds a rail in Marana, Ariz.
CD7: Republican Ruth McClung Debuts TV Ad
Republican rookie Ruth McClung, who is facing Democratic Congressman Raul Grijalva, debuts a TV ad as early voting begins.
Another McCain Profile Notes That He’s Flipped on Everything He Once Said He Stood For
Vanity Fair delivers a lengthy profile of Sen. John McCain that covers familiar ground: Why has Arizona’s senior senator turned his back on everything that he stood for a few years ago? An excerpt: The prevailing question about John McCain this year is: What happened? What happened to that other John McCain, the refreshingly unpredictable…
The Rialto Turns 90
On Friday, Oct. 8, the Rialto Theatre will celebrate its 90th birthday (!) with one heck of an event. Here are the details from a news release: Join the Rialto Theatre and the Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation for the Rialto’s 90th Birthday Bash! This 1920s Red Carpet Night includes a prohibition parking lot cocktail party…
Tonight: Recycled Bike Furninture from Kenneth Armstrong
Kenneth Armstrong, experienced maker of fine bicycle art over at BICAS, will have some great pieces of recycled bike furniture shown tonight, Thursday, Oct. 7, at Cafe Luce, 943 E. University Blvd. It is a part of the First Thursday Art Walk at Main Gate Square. He will be making more pieces for the upcoming…
Writer’s Block: Graham Brown
Local author Graham Brown’s book Black Sun has been published by Bantam Books ($7.99, 472 pages). Summary (from publisher): In the heart of the Amazon, NRI operative Danielle Laidlaw makes an incredible discovery: a translucent Mayan stone generating massive waves of energy while counting down toward the infamous apocalyptic date: December 21, 2012. And somewhere,…
Arizona Child Health Day?
Did you miss the fanfare on Monday? OK, perhaps it wasn’t fanfare, but more like another potential skit for SNL or more fodder for Comedy Central or Rachel Maddow. Evidently, Gov. Jan Brewer declared Oct. 4 Arizona Child Health Day. According to a story from Capitol Media Services’ Howard Fischer, at the same time Brewer…
Legal Prevention
A recent Los Angeles Times editorial shed light on a survey from the Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center showing that suspected illiegal immigrants held in remote detention facilities have a harder time gaining access to legal services. You can read the study here. From the editorial: Having a lawyer makes a difference. A 2005…
Border Arts Bonanza
Artes Sin Fronteras/Arts Without Borders is a monthlong border arts festival coordinated by Borderlands Theater and The Screening Room. Movies, book discussions and art exhibitions are all on the program, along with the Borderlands play, Arizona: No Roosters in the Desert. For Borderlands events, read our preview in this week’s issue. Below is a sampling…
Making Paper Art With A Mother-Daughter Tucson Meet Yourself Team
In the latest entry of our Tucson Meet Yourself video series, we catch up with Maria de Jesus Robles and Aida Martz, a mother-daughter pair who practice the art of papel picado. You’ve probably seen the banderolas associated with the practice of cutting and folding thin, colorful sheets of tissue paper. The 37th annual Tucson…
Obit: Kitabu, the “Lion of Reid Park Zoo,” Passes
Kitabu, a lion at Reid Park Zoo, has died. The press release: The Reid Park Zoo announces that “Kitabu” an elderly male African Lion,died overnight. A necropsy (postmortem examination) is being performedtoday. Preliminary results will be available tomorrow and finalexamination reports are expected in several weeks. There was anoticeable decline in Kitabu’s health over the…
Writer’s Block: Douglas Wellman
Douglas Wellman’s new book, Boxes: The Secret Life of Howard Hughes has been published by WriteLife ($10.95, 191 pages). Summary (from publisher): Eva McLelland was good at keeping secrets, and she had a big one. Sworn to secrecy for thirty-one years until the death of her husband, Eva was at last able to come forward…
New Vietnamese Restaurant: i luv pho
A new Vietnamese restaurant named i luv pho is coming to 2513 N. Campbell Ave. A banner on the building says the grand opening takes place today, Thursday, Oct. 7, although we’re unable to confirm that. I recently fell in love with Vietnamese food all over again, thanks to the incredible food at Thuan Kieu,…
Mailbag
Tea Partiers Seem Overly Self-Centered Regarding the comment from frdmftr (Mailbag, Sept. 16), I suspect the freedom he’s fighting for is the freedom to not have to contribute anything to the common good. At the risk of generalizing about any group of people, the “tea partiers” appear to be incredibly self-centered people who love America,…
The John Lennon Song Project: Imagined (Red Engine)
John Lennon would be celebrating his 70th birthday this Saturday. In a labor of love, adoration and respect, Rex Fowler of Aztec Two-Step and Tom Dean of Devonsquare have created the John Lennon Song Project, an acoustic montage that not only pulls at our nostalgic heartstrings, but presents Lennon’s music in a way that makes…
Senior Switch
The Great Recession doesn’t have everybody crying the blues. As household debt soars, collection agencies are experiencing a Golden Age. But all too often, their success involves going after folks in their golden years—and these agencies are playing loose with the law to do so. They’re not acting alone: According to watchdog groups, banks routinely…
¡Ask a Mexican!
Dear Mexican: Mexico is truly an amazing, beautiful country—huge oil reserves, mineral deposits second to none, and tourist potential unparalleled! God gave Mexico every possible advantage. And yet the Mexicans, in all their wisdom and intellect, have turned it into a backwater, undeveloped, narco-ruled Third World cesspool of corruption and poverty. How were you able…
The Skinny
Republicans cross the line for Giffords. … Is Ruth McClung a contender? … Frugal Frank Antenori … and more!
School Rule
Four candidates with divergent viewpoints are vying for two seats on the Tucson Unified School District governing board. A two-term incumbent on the five-member board, Adelita Grijalva wants to continue to focus on dropout prevention. (Incumbent Bruce Burke is not running for re-election.) The director of Pima County’s teen court, Grijalva, 38, is a TUSD…
Media Watch
Buckmaster to leave KUAT for radio venture at the jolt
Beg Your Pardon
Billy the Kid was a juvenile delinquent good with a gun. Those traits made him memorable, and Sheriff Pat Garrett made him unforgettable. Garrett killed the buck-toothed outlaw in 1881 in a darkened bedroom in Fort Sumner, N.M., an act of frontier hygiene that probably saved numerous lives. But today, instead of celebrating a brave…
Police Dispatch
Napper with skills; Pissed off, pissed on
A Story With Fangs
If not for remakes, William Shakespeare wouldn’t cast such large a shadow over Western drama. After all, without countless interpretations of his plays, would some of his lesser-known works have survived for 400 years? Adaptations, interpretations, remakes—they’re all cut from the same cloth, whether the treatment is of Macbeth or A Nightmare on Elm Street.…
Endorse This!
There’s a lot of interesting stuff in this week’s paper, including: • Endorsements! Early voting gets underway soon, so it’s time for us to offer our two cents on the candidates and initiatives appearing on this year’s general-election ballot. You can find said endorsements on Page 18. One common question: Why doesn’t the Tucson Weekly…
Weekly Wide Web
World of ‘Minecraft’; The week on The Range; Comment of the week; Best of WWW; and more!
Now Showing at Home
Hard Candy (Blu-ray); Get Him to the Greek: 2-Disc Unrated Collector’s Edition (Blu-ray); Iron Man 2: 3-Disc Combo Pack; Modern Family
Danehy
Friedrich Nietzsche was a physical mess. Sickly as a child, he suffered debilitating injuries in a fall from a horse while a member of the Prussian military. While still in his 30s, he had all but lost the ability to write as bouts of shortsightedness left him unable to focus on a piece of paper.…
The 2010 Tucson Weekly Endorsements
Hey, you’re busy—and even if you weren’t, you wouldn’t have time to waste on the cranks, wackos and clowns that have taken over the political circus. If you’re looking for a little advice from the peanut gallery, here are our selected endorsements of candidates and propositions to help. We decided not to make endorsements in…
Street Food Inside
If you’re a food- or travel-television addict like me, you’ve probably noticed the growing amount of attention given to “street food”—simple, easy-to-carry foods that pack a flavor punch and are often made from inexpensive ingredients. Of course, Tucson has a great street-food tradition, from Sonoran hotdogs to tacos and tamales—and Boca is taking that tradition…
Downing
At last report, Bishop Eddie Long, senior pastor of a megachurch in the Atlanta suburbs and noted righteous homophobe, was being sued by four young men whom he allegedly selected for special spiritual mentoring and blowjobs. Oh. My. God. The man is a hypocrite! He’s like those right-wing Bible-thumping pols who cheat on their wives…
Beyond the Numbers
When you see the number 252 on a page—even if you’re told that’s the number of deaths suffered by migrants over the last year right here in the Arizona desert—it’s still just a number. But when the number (according to a recent Arizona Daily Star article) is unraveled into individual stories, names and faces, suddenly…
Noshing Around
Rhino Pub Returns; Pajamas and Eggs; Chili Cook-Off; World Margarita Championship
Guest Commentary
Mental illnesses are masked—and that mask creates stigma and misunderstanding. They are treatable, biologically based medical illnesses of the brain. They are different than diabetes or hypertension, in that you can’t take a blood test or your blood pressure to see what your brain chemistry is doing. You are diagnosed by behaviors, which are the…
City Week
Premiere of Lonesome Cowgirls; Christine Lavin in concert; Popovich Comedy Pet Theater; Camp Wildcat benefit concert
Goofball Earnestness
Riding high on its critically acclaimed fifth album, High Violet, The National is one of the buzziest alternative-rock acts of 2010. The band has been the subject of fashion shoots, a documentary, a live film and countless articles in mainstream publications and glossy magazines. The National also has appeared on national TV and opened concert…
No Redemption
The meek don’t inherit the Earth in Aaron Michael Morales’ unsettling debut novel, Drowning Tucson. They’d be lucky just to cling to it until it’s shoveled over their faces. Morales, who was born in Tucson in 1976 and teaches writing and literature at Indiana State University, sets this episodic novel in 1980s Tucson, in a…
To Go or to Stay?
A few years back, when Borderlands Theater was looking toward this year’s 25th anniversary season, artistic director Barclay Goldsmith was trying to find a good play about immigration. “For a long time, we wanted to do a play about people crossing the border,” Goldsmith says. The company had looked at plenty of dramas and even…
Soundbites
TFMF Time; Scary on Paper; Great in Reality; Now 6 Members and a Sound; Grand Lake in the Desert; Enigma Time; On the Bandwagon
Top Ten in Books
Antigone Books’ best-sellers for the week ending Oct. 1, 2010
Images Left Behind
An old woman’s toiletries are arrayed on a lace cloth on her dresser. An abandoned black comb sits forgotten in a see-through plastic brush. A pink plastic bottle of Cashmere Bouquet powder stands next to a green jar of Avon face cream. Cocoa butter is in a tan tub. The old-fashioned products are cheap and…
Nine Questions
John Read
We Like This
For many of us these days, our routines include visiting a certain popular website to update our statuses and connect with friends and family. We write notes and clever asides about our allergies and our pets, discuss our likes and dislikes, and reject the friend request from that douchebag who we totally hated in high…
Live
Cocorosie with Brian Lopez: Rialto Theatre, Sunday, Oct. 3
Top Ten in Music
The 17th Street Guitar and World Music Store’s top sales for the week ending Sept. 30, 2010
T Q&A
Laura Binette
Eels: Tomorrow Morning (E Works/Vagrant)
E, the singer/songwriter of Eels, used to be a man of mystery with an impossibly sad backstory who funneled his maladroit feelings into biting pop songs. Now, in the past two years, E has dropped the veil, releasing three on-the-nose albums that should be dubbed the “Midlife Crisis Trilogy.” Ditching the mystery in favor of…
Top Ten in Movies
Casa Video top rentals for the week ending Oct. 3, 2010
The Human Experience
Music has long been a tool used for activism, from the freedom songs of the Civil Rights Movement to punk bands singing in basements about veganism. But how often do you think about pop music as a vehicle for change? In 1992, Sophie B. Hawkins used it as just that with her Top 10 hit…
Sahara Smith: Myth of the Heart (Playing in Traffic)
Just 22, this Texas singer-songwriter creates delicious country-rock, threaded with folk and blues, and it’s a definite plus that she possesses one of the most enchanting voices around. She often sings in the middle range, but when she bends notes in the upper and lower registers, it’ll break your heart. At different points during these…
Grand Re-Opening Tomorrow: La Cocina
They’ve been busy down at La Cocina, the restaurant inside Old Town Artisans at 201 N. Court Ave. The restaurant closed in August for renovations to the dining room and kitchen, and re-opens tomorrow with a new menu and longer hours. (They’ve actually been open since mid-September, but tomorrow is the “official” grand re-opening.) La…
Chess Talk With A 9 Queens Champ
Women’s International Master chess champion and UA student Amanda Mateer talks about her work with 9 Queens, an organization that teaches chess to women, girls and at-risk youth. 9 Queens will hold an event Saturday, Oct. 9 at the Sahuaro Girl Scout Resource Center, 4300 E. Broadway Blvd., from 1 to 5 p.m. The second…
$100K Cage
Democrats in Oro Valley’s Legislative District 26 are raising big bucks in their quest to hold one House seat—and perhaps capture the district’s Senate post. Democrat Cheryl Cage recently broke six figures in her campaign to unseat Republican Senator Al Melvin—and she still has more than $70,000 in the bank, according to the latest round…
Coming Soon: Mama’s Hawaiian Barbecue
A new restaurant named Mama’s Hawaiian Barbecue is setting up shop in the old Yokohama Rice Bowl building at 850 E. Speedway Blvd., just west of the intersection of Park Avenue and Speedway Boulevard. The only information posted is a huge pink banner with the restaurant’s name on it. We’ll let you know when we…
