Waiting is torture
Oceano finally got what it wanted—deserved? Well, some Oceano Community Services District (OCSD) board members didn’t want it, but residents spoke up with their votes against increasing taxes to pay for the town’s portion of Five Cities Fire Authority services and bing, bang, boom, no more fire services! The irony of it all is that…
Mission monarch: As numbers dwindle in places like Pismo Beach, U.S. Fish and Wildlife proposes the monarch for the endangered species list
A few visitors shielded their eyes from the sun on a warm December day as they peered into the eucalyptus trees at Pismo State Beach Monarch Butterfly Grove trying to spot a cluster of orange and black wings. But the trees and sky were fairly empty. Two monarchs fluttered around at about eye level by…
LAFCO approves SLO County’s takeover of Oceano fire services
San Luis Obispo County is officially responsible for delivering Oceano’s fire services now that the Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) approved divestiture of those services from the Oceano Community Services District (OCSD). Following LAFCO’s Dec. 19, 2024, approval, the county, which has partnered with Five Cities Fire Authority (FCFA), took over fire services on Jan.…
SLO County voted to reject the end of forced prison labor amid reported voter confusion
More than 53 percent of voters across California in the Nov. 5 general election upheld continuing involuntary servitude for incarcerated people. That’s more than 7.8 million people who rejected Proposition 6, which aimed to bar slavery in any form and repeal the provision in the state Constitution allowing jails and prisons to force incarcerated people…
Paso Robles School District faces a $5 million budget deficit for the 2024–25 school year
Paso Robles Joint Unified School District (PRUJSD) intends to continue investing in its infrastructure despite the $5 million budget deficit projected for the next academic year. “Over the next couple of months, you may begin to hear about budget cuts and staffing reductions being made by the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District,” Superintendent Jennifer…
Juror #2 explores the moral implications of a conflict of interest
JUROR #2 What’s it rated? PG-13What’s it worth, Anna? Full priceWhat’s it worth, Glen? Full priceWhere’s it showing? Max Clint Eastwood (Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, Gran Torino) directs this legal thriller written by Jonathan A. Abrams about journalist Justin Kemp (Nicholas Hoult), who’s selected to serve on the jury of a high-profile murder trial. As…
Pismo Beach keeps same City Council and approves new sales tax
Pismo Beach residents decided to stick to what’s reliable when it comes to who’s sitting on the City Council, with all three incumbents winning reelection. Mayor Ed Waage and Councilmembers Scott Newton and Marcia Guthrie were sworn in to continue their time on the dais during a Dec. 17 Pismo Beach City Council meeting. Waage,…
The Madness
What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2024 Where’s it showing? Netflix Created by Stephen Belber (Tape, Drifting Elegant), this gripping thriller explores race relations, social and mainstream media, wealth distribution, big tech, political influence, and ultimately conspiracy. Colman Domingo stars as Muncie Daniels, an on-the-rise CNN pundit on the cusp of getting his own show. He…
Atascadero’s new special enforcement team aims to dig a little deeper
The Atascadero Police Department is taking a multi-faceted approach when it comes to addressing the city’s deeper issues by adding another resource to its toolbox. Police Chief Daniel Suttles told New Times that the special enforcement team is brand new to the police department as of late November, and it intends to investigate the city’s…
The Six Triple Eight
What’s it rated? PG-13 When? 2024 Where’s it showing? Netflix Writer-director Tyler Perry (Madea’s Family Reunion, Dairy of a Mad Black Woman) helms this World War II drama based on Kevin M. Hymel’s 2019 WWII History magazine article, “Fighting a Two-Front War,” about the 855 Black women of the 6888th Central Post Directory Battalion, who…
StoryLabs brings connection to those working remotely in Atascadero
With remote work becoming increasingly common, StoryLabs decided to offer a “co-working space” on the Central Coast for those who need it. Based in Atascadero, StoryLabs gives remote workers an opportunity to rent desks or office spaces within the same building as a way to give people a neutral environment where they can get work…
A Central Coast transplant’s deep dive into Utah’s soda culture
I grew up in Utah’s soda culture, so Diet Coke is basically in my blood. But I was surprised when I moved to the Central Coast to find that “dirty soda” wasn’t a thing—in fact, multiple people have asked me if Utah’s soda obsession is real. I can tell you it is real, and it’s…
Learn about monarch butterflies in Mission Plaza
A native flower garden and educational panels about the Western monarch butterfly recently flew into San Luis Obispo’s Mission Plaza. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service recently proposed listing the butterfly as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, as this year’s Western monarch numbers are signaling one of the lowest population counts since the count’s…
See Bay Love’s Joan Baez tribute on Jan. 12 in Cambria
Joan Baez is a folk icon, arguably the most famous American folk singer of the 20th century, praised for her distinctive style, her commitment to social justice, and preternatural ability to interpret other writers’ songs. Next week, local acoustic duo Bay Love, featuring Linda Martin and Kevin Termunde, will present The Lady From The House…
SLO REP presents Shakespearean comedy Twelfth Night
San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre’s Academy of Creative Theatre presents its production of Twelfth Night from Jan. 10 to 19. The ensemble of local students offers a fresh interpretation of one of Shakespeare’s classic comedies, SLO REP said in a press release. Set in Illyria, the comedy about love, identity, and mischief tells the story…
Morro Bay Bird Festival, Art Center Morro Bay celebrate local avians
Grab your binoculars For more information on gallery times or how to submit art for Art Center Morro Bay’s show For the Birds, visit their website at artcentermorrobay.org. For more information about the Morro Bay Bird Festival, check out morrobaybirdfestival.org. Every January, Morro Bay becomes a connecting hub for bird lovers from around the world.…
The smell of Musk
Elon Musk. It sounds like the name of a fine Italian fragrance. But don’t be fooled, as it really reeks of roadkill skunk. This gazillionaire, who just bought a presidency, is not interested in the welfare of “the people,” rather in furthering his own enormous wealth and ego. Constitution be damned, the combination of Trump…
Murder endorsed by Americans is dangerous
Recently, certain segments of our society have elevated two murderers to the status of champions of their causes. Daniel Penny killed a homeless, mentally ill man with a choke hold and Luigi Mangione killed an executive of a health insurance company. This occurs in the context of polls taken over the last few years finding…
Dear overly enthusiastic SLO church bell ringer,
I’m glad you love your religion. Good for you! But did it ever occur to you that maybe all that clanging and banging is annoying to others? And why in God’s name did you start doing it at 7 a.m.? What precedent are you trying to set? What if the nice Muslim people decide to…
We prefer to be entertained rather than learn from history
The movie Gladiator II entertains hugely. However, it does not educate people about how vengeance came to be the ruling principle of civic and international life in ancient Rome. That rogue philosophy resulted from the drying up of Rome’s system of civics education and from the unregulated accumulation of money and power. Yes, characters in…
Put new protein on the public research agenda
Any state or federal politician who claims to care about animal welfare should support public funding for cultivated-meat research. For those who don’t know, cultivated meat is grown from livestock cells, without slaughter. There is nothing elected officials could do that has the potential reduce more nonhuman suffering and premature death than accelerating development of…
