Cover Story
Survey says: Cuesta College faculty push for change after campus climate survey reveals dissatisfaction with leadership
Retaliation. High turnover. Lack of support. Cuesta College employees are fed up with administration—at least that’s what some faculty members said after the college released the results of its campus climate survey. Former Engineering and Technology Division Chair John Stokes told New Times he decided to retire early in 2023 due to issues with Cuesta…
CJ’s BBQ offers Southern comfort food with a SLO twist
Fill your soul CJ’s BBQ Smokehouse, located at 1005 Monterey St., is open Tuesday to Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Check out its extensive menu at cjsbbqsmokehouse.com. Barbecue that feeds the soul—that’s what CJ’s BBQ Smokehouse is all about, according to owner Christopher Patterson. Even though he grew up in California, Patterson said…
Hear Pokey LaFarge’s upbeat sounds March 16 at Rod & Hammer Rock
Pokey LaFarge has found his happy place, and it’s making music that will put a smile on your face, like “So Long Chicago,” his tribute to snowbird Midwesterners escaping the winter cold. “Who’s the man with the farmer’s tan/ Hotel slippers, margarita in his hand, uh huh, un huh// Lots of juice, lots of spice/Me…
California’s AB 1468 undermines ethnic studies instead of strengthening it
California’s Assembly Bill 1468 (AB 1468) is being touted as a necessary step to standardize and safeguard ethnic studies curricula in public schools. It is proposed by Assemblymembers Rick Chavez Zbur (D-Los Angeles) and Dawn Addis (D-Morro Bay) and state Sen. Josh Becker (D-San Mateo), who say it is intended to combat rising antisemitism in…
It’s time to fight back for the future
How many of you know what ecosystem services are? How many of you can describe the carbon cycle? What about mRNA? If you don’t know, then why are you so confident in your stance against science? Why support deforestation, water contamination, and the dismissal of climate change when you can’t even explain its most basic…
3CE hasn’t lived up to promises, but it’s better than PG&E
The recent article, “Promises, Promises” (March 6), about 3CE, our community choice provider, is right on target. Unfortunately, despite performing a little better than PG&E, it is not one of the better community choice aggregators (CCAs). Other CCAs provide lower prices, cleaner energy, encourage energy conservation, and more. When 3CE changed its true-up date for…
The outrage machine
Follow today’s media, and you will encounter pieces functioning as “outrage porn,” whipping an easily manipulated and excitable readership into agitated indignation. All it takes is a sympathetic “victim,” add a few heartwarming details or pictures to further humanize them, throw in a villain, and then just omit any information which might “confuse” the chosen…
Information underload
I hope CalCoastNews owner and “reporter” Karen Velie has her copy of Britney Spears “Oops! … I Did It Again” cued up, because she’s once again being sued for defamation. It’s a pretty sad and sordid tale involving alleged aliases, very important pickleball tournaments, and an Arizona community called Surprise. No foolin’! The short version…
CalCoastNews’ Karen Velie faces a defamation lawsuit stemming from alias accusations
Arizona pickleball politics leached into the San Luis Obispo Superior Court through twin defamation lawsuits aimed at CalCoastNews owner Karen Velie and an alleged faulty news source. “The statements made were intended to and actually did expose Jody Bernat to hatred, contempt, shunning from the Grand Pickleball Club and elsewhere in Arizona pickleball circles as…
Mickey 17 broadly satirizes capitalism and cult of personality
MICKEY 17 What’s it rated? RWhat’s it worth, Anna? Full priceWhat’s it worth, Glen? Full priceWhere’s it showing? Bay, Colony, Downtown Centre, Palm, Park, Stadium 10, Sunset Drive-In Writer-director Bong Joon-ho (Parasite, Snowpiercer, The Host) adapts Ashton Edward’s 2022 sci-fi novel Mickey7 to the big screen, with Robert Pattinson as Mickey 17, an “expendable” clone…
The Tribune is suing Paso Robles and Councilmember Chris Bausch, alleging violation under the Public Records Act
The Tribune sued the city of Paso Robles and City Councilmember Chris Bausch over what it said are unfulfilled Public Records Act requests. The state law allows public access to government records, and The Tribune argued that both the city and Bausch violated that law by either not producing the records or not providing them…
High Potential turns the police procedural on its ear
What’s it rated? TV-14 When? 2024-present Where’s it showing? Hulu Kaitlin Olson helms this comedy series that follows single mom of three Morgan Gillory as she navigates a new career with the LAPD after the department learns of her high IQ and knack for solving crime. Olson is always funny, in that sharp-tongued, eye-rolling signature…
Paso Robles joins joint authority for water basin usage despite public opposition
Despite heated opposition from residents, the Paso Robles City Council voted to opt in to a collaborative effort that aims to keep the Paso Robles Groundwater Basin from potentially going dry. At a meeting on March 4, the council heard from Public Works Director Christopher Alakel, who urged the city to join a joint powers…
The Silent Hour is a tense cat-and-mouse cop thriller
What’s it rated? R When? 2024 Where’s it showing? Hulu Brad Anderson (The Machinist, Fractured) directs Dan Hall’s debut script about reckless but effective Boston Detective Frank Shaw (Joel Kinnaman), who was seriously injured on the job, leading to increasing hearing loss. Sixteen months after the accident, Shaw is beginning to question his ability to…
SLO County’s meditation pod report shows promising results for people in justice system
A two-year progress report on San Luis Obispo County’s first meditation pod, originally meant to reduce stressors for its jail diversion population, revealed the device was source of relief for its users. “Through the sound, through the vibrations, through the lights, and through this personalized, individualized space, we recognized that we weren’t really getting people…
Indigenous painter Esteban Cabeza de Baca presents Memories of the Future at the SLOMA through June 22
See the exhibition Memories of the Future is a collection of 11 large-scale paintings by indigenous artist Esteban Cabeza de Baca hanging at the San Luis Museum of Art through June 22. According to the SLOMA, “Esteban Cabeza de Baca’s paintings dance between histories, landscapes, and time—speaking to his ancestry and inviting visitors to consider…
Touring Australian physical theater company ARC Circus Dance Theatre present A Bee Story in Spanos Theatre on March 15
ARC Circus: A Bee Story comes to Cal Poly’s Spanos Theatre on Saturday, March 15 (2 to 2:45 p.m.; all ages; $34 at calpolyarts.org). Weather permitting, attendees are invited to join in pre-show family-friendly activities outside the theater before the performance. “A Bee Story is a uniquely Australian physical theater show for children and families…
Fine art photographer Teresa Ferguson is one of Gallery at Marina Square’s monthly featured artists
Central Coast photographer Teresa Ferguson is showing a collection of her photographs in Upper Gallery II in Morro Bay’s Gallery on Marina Square (601 Embarcadero, suite 10), and they’re utterly gorgeous: beautiful sunsets, lovely flowers, a ladybug adorning a garden Buddha statue, sunlight streaming through pier pylons. Her artist statement notes that she’s originally a…
