Cover Story
‘Not my president’: Protesters on the Central Coast joined demonstrations across the country
Hundreds gathered in San Luis Obispo at the corner of Los Osos Valley Road and Calle Joaquin on Feb. 17, protesting the Trump administration amid slews of White House executive orders issued since taking office. “Smells like fascism,” one protest sign read. “Presidents are not kings,” and “Make dystopia fiction again,” others said. Passing cars…
Must! Charities collaborates with Lumina Alliance to improve services
Nonprofit Lumina Alliance welcomed a bilingual therapist this year to serve Spanish-speaking survivors of sexual and intimate partner violence when they call for help. Increasing access to therapy and support programs with reduced wait times is one of Lumina’s goals. That milestone moved closer to reality thanks to a $963,000 initiative organized by Must! Charities.…
San Luis Coastal saves counselors from deficit-closing layoffs
San Luis Coastal Unified School District’s parents and teachers convinced its board of trustees to save school counselors from the staffing reduction chopping block, but a budget deficit for the 2025-26 school year remains. “Counselors are at the forefront of caring for our students when they are in the most need,” Cal Poly sociology professor…
Complexions Contemporary Ballet presents Star Dust: From Bach to Bowie at Cal Poly’s PAC Feb. 25
Cal Poly Arts presents Complexions Contemporary Ballet’s production of Star Dust: From Bach to Bowie, on Tuesday, Feb. 25 (7:30 p.m.; $47 to $71 at calpolyarts.org), in the Performing Arts Center. “Star Dust is a ballet tribute to the genre-bending innovation of one of the prolific rock stars of our time—David Bowie. This ballet takes…
Cambria’s Cruise Control Contemporary shows Joey Belardi’s cartoon images through March 22
If you haven’t had enough Valentine’s Day joy, then head to Cambria’s Cruise Control Contemporary to see Joey Belardi’s show Romeo and Juliet, which hangs through March 22. The Laguna Beach painter creates “aerosolized acrylic paintings featuring his traditional single cells of animated reverse-painted cartoon characters atop rich backgrounds,” according to the gallery. The 11…
The Greasy Wiener food truck offers SLO County a different type of wiener—locally made, cooked in oil, and full of flavor
Get that dog The Greasy Wiener food truck caters events and delivers Tuesday through Friday. Find out how to order at: greasy-wiener-menu-2.square.site. Wieners! Get your greasy wieners! Yep, you read that right. And what, you might ask, makes a hot dog greasy? Cooking it in oil, of course—New Jersey style. Gourmet food truck The Greasy…
The Counterfeit Kings bring the ’90s to today’s hits to The Siren on Feb. 22
I enjoy hearing new original music as much as anyone, but sometimes familiar feels good, like slipping on your favorite jeans and boots, which is why cover bands are a nightlife essential. Sometimes you want to grab a beer and hear the tunes you know. One local cover act that’s been delivering the songs crowds…
Fight for democracy
On the same day President Donald Trump swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, he moved to violate its 14th Amendment by issuing an order to end birthright citizenship of some children born here. Although the 1868 Amendment declares, “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are…
Why is life so unaffordable?
Why is living not affordable for so many people? I worked all my life from age 13 to retirement at 72. There have been times in my life when I couldn’t afford the things I needed, and there were times, too, when I had extra—although never extravagantly. How much does a person or a family…
Who’s the real chump?
In reading John Donegan’s op-ed, I’m wondering who the chump is (“Trump’s chumps,” Feb. 13). Diversity is the condition of having or including people from different ethnicities or social backgrounds. Equity is the state or quality of being just and fair. Inclusion is the act of including or the state of being included. Why these…
This is not the way to produce an efficient government
I am certainly willing to entertain the proposition that there is inefficiency in our federal government and that money could be saved by reorganization. But the way Mr. Trump and Mr. Musk are handling this task is at best ham-handed and at worst could result in many catastrophes. Instead of moving incredibly rapidly during the…
Let’s get real about the risks—and the promise—of battery energy storage systems
On Thursday, Jan. 16—just as exhausted firefighters were finally getting a handle on the great Los Angeles firestorm—another fire broke out in Monterey County. That fire, however, was very different: It was confined to just a few acres on an industrial site. It didn’t ignite in heavy brush and trees, nor was it driven by…
DICKtators
About 1,500 people took to SLO County’s streets on Feb. 17 as part of the nationwide “Not My President” demonstration against wispy-haired orange-makeup-wearing President Donald J. Trump and his puppeteer bestie, the world’s richest autistic man and involuntary Sieg Heil-saluting unelected head of the made-up Department of Government Efficiency, Elon Musk. My fellow citizens, we…
The Gorge is sci-fi horror rom com-drama action flick
THE GORGE What’s it rated? PG-13What’s it worth, Anna? Stream itWhat’s it worth, Glen? Stream itWhere’s it showing? Apple TV+ Scott Derrickson (Doctor Strange, The Black Phone) directs Zach Dean’s (Deadfall, The Tomorrow War) script about two highly trained snipers—Levi (Miles Teller) and Drasa (Anya Taylor-Joy)—stationed on either side of a vast crevice containing a…
Multi-media artist Daisy Patton’s work is in Cuesta’s art gallery
See the work See Before These Witnesses, a collection of wedding-themed large-scale art pieces created by Massachusetts-based multi-disciplinary artist Daisy Patton, in the Harold J. Miossi Art Gallery at Cuesta College through March 14. You’ll find the gallery in room 7170. More info is available at cuesta.edu or by emailing Gallery Coordinator Timothy Stark at…
Kinda Pregnant is kinda funny
What’s it rated? R When? 2025 Where’s it showing? Netflix Amy Schumer is often thought of as a comedian you either dig or you don’t, and luckily, I personally find her pretty dang funny. This new feature-length offering tells the story of Lainey, a woman who’s been a bit obsessed with pregnancy and motherhood since…
Recent strong storms prompt riverbed rescues, sewage spills
An atmospheric river dumped more than 4 inches of rain in some areas of San Luis Obispo County on Feb. 13 causing a sewage spill in Avila Beach and prompting the rescue of nine from the flooded Salinas Riverbed in Paso Robles. The National Weather Service issued a flood warning effective Thursday, Feb. 13, and…
The Sidney Poitier classic To Sir, with Love screens Feb. 24, at The Bay Theatre
What’s it rated? Not rated When? Monday, Feb. 24, at 5:30 p.m. Where’s it showing? The Bay Theatre In honor of Black History Month, the Bay Theatre is screening writer-director James Clavell’s aspirational 1967 film, To Sir, With Love, based on the autobiographical novel by E. R. Braithwaite. The story deals with important issues of…
Federal funding freeze could delay storm relief, reduce transit for SLO
The city of San Luis Obispo stands to feel the effects of the Trump administration’s executive order that temporarily froze federal grants, loans, and other financial assistance programs. City Finance Director Emily Jackson told the SLO City Council at its Feb. 18 meeting that the biggest concern about the funding pause is the local ability…
Despite enhanced safety features, Nipomo residents are concerned about Caballero battery plant
Unextinguishable fire. Nickel, manganese, and cobalt in the air. Tremors, tight lungs, and itchy skin. These are a few of the results that have emerged after the recent Moss Landing battery plant fire in Monterey County. With the fire heightening concerns about a proposed battery energy storage system in Morro Bay and an already completed…
