Cover Story
The snails did go quickly
For California’s abalone divers, it was the best of times, at the expense of a seemingly endless resource. A community of pals and partners, the divers had as much catch as they could grab. The daily commercial limit in the 1970s was 20 dozen black abalone per permit, per landing—a bit less for the reds,…
The Shamblers deliver!
To “shamble” means to walk awkwardly, and a “shambles” is a messy scene, but there’s nothing awkward or messy about local trio The Shamblers’ excellent new album, Steps Towards Home. Each of its nine songs are little revelations, starting with the lead track All Good People, which opens with melodic guitar picking and this verse:…
Hungry to be Hitchcock
New Times This is the first year for the SLO Film Festival’s summer workshop for aspiring young filmmakers … Alan Fraser Yes. I’m leading the older group, the 10th- to 12th-graders. We are going to get together as a group and learn a little about movie making, about how to tell a story, how to…
There’s a new gardener in town
Television networks, like celebrities, carefully craft an image for themselves, playing to a target demographic. Lifetime promotes itself as “television for women” or, television for idiots, according to Family Guy. Conversely, Spike TV sets its sights on the young adult male crowd with high-energy programming, like Ultimate Fighting, designed to get the testosterone pumping. For…
Admiring bog?
To call Emma Duncan precocious would be an inaccurate—not to mention, slightly insulting—description of the 17-year-old actress. Well- spoken, and very aware of what she wants might be better descriptive terms. For her senior thesis, Duncan decided to stage and star in a production of The Belle of Amherst, the one-woman show about the life…
Do you think we should resume offshore drilling?
Dylan Dreveskracht Homeless “No. I don’t think we should continue using oil, period. The simple fact is that even if we find alternative sources, the price will still go up.” Diane Smith Registered nurse “No. We should take a closer look at our oil consumption first.” Jim Wooley Retired business owner “Yes, because we need…
The artists behind the labels
During a dinner date with Dan Hardesty at the Park in SLO, we found it difficult to decide on one wine from the long list of excellent Central Coast and international wines. So when owner/chef Maegen Loring, whose taste in food and wine is extraordinary, recommended the McPrice Myers 2005 Grenache we didn’t hesitate to…
Di Fronzo 2006 Pinot Noir Arroyo Grande
Taste this intensely flavored, ripe Pinot and you’ll exactly what wine lovers mean when they call a Pinot Noir a “Syrah-Pinot.” No wonder when it’s made by one of world’s renowned Rhone variety producers, John Alban of Alban Vineyards. It’s ripe and concentrated, yet shows amazing restraint. Forward notes of wild blackberries and black cherry…
Fast Facts
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will host a live disaster preparation Web chat on Thursday, July 10, from 1 to 2 p.m. Eastern time. Diana McClure, director of business protection and vice president at the Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS), will share her knowledge with homeowners, renters, and businesses. Participants can join…
Sun power
Since he was 14 years old, Louis Palmer dreamed of traveling the world in a solar-powered vehicle. Born in Budapest and raised in Switzerland, the 36-year-old substitute schoolteacher has traveled across the world through 60 countries. His globetrotting lifestyle allowed him to view first-hand the widespread damage that climate change has already wrought Palmer regarded…
Clarification
Congressonal candidate Matt Kokkonen offered a few clarifications in regard to the “Meet Matt Kokkonen” article (July 3): “My reference to the fact that there is not a pipleline big enough to move all of the ANWR oil out over six months was a response to the criticism that ANWR oil amounts to only six…
Decade-old Santa Margarita Ranch controversy continues
After hearing hours of testimony both for and against the controversial Santa Margarita Ranch development Monday night, the Planning Commission didn’t make any decisions. But they did develop a strategy they hope will streamline future discussions. The nearly packed supervisors’ chamber first saw a presentation by the applicant, Santa Margarita LLC, which is comprised of…
Surge in gas prices bring surge in train riders
Amtrak officials are crediting higher gas prices with a surge in riders on the Pacific Surfliner train, which runs along the coast between San Luis Obispo and San Diego. The scenic route is one of three California Amtrak trains managed by Caltrans. Caltrans officials said that all three of the California lines are doing well,…
Volunteers upset as distemper outbreak kills cats at shelter
A distemper outbreak at the SLO County Animal Shelter has killed at least 20 cats in recent weeks and reawakened long-simmering distrust between shelter officials and volunteers and supporters. The American Veterinary Medical Association describes feline distemper, known as feline panleukopenia, as a highly contagious viral disease that causes symptoms ranging from severe diarrhea to…
Paso Robles grant writer at center of call for inquiry
A $34.5 million grant application, written by a Paso Robles-based consulting company, has created a storm of controversy in the Palm Springs area, where the money was supposed to benefit low-income students. The grant in question was awarded in November to a nonprofit youth services group called Indio Youth Task Force, but the award was…
Rabenaldt muzzled, Take 2
Pismo Beach City Councilman Bill Rabenaldt is condemning a recent council vote that changes the way items will be added to the council agenda. He describes the move as, at best, a thinly veiled attempt at muzzling him; at worst, Rabenaldt said, it’s an obstruction of democracy. On July 1, the council voted 3-2, in…
Backtracking on Chinatown
Back in 1999, when Jim and Tom Copeland first proposed to SLO city leaders the concept of the Chinatown project, they began by asking and answering one simple question. The question: “What’s in it for the city and its residents?” Their first written answer: “We propose to: Purchase at appraised market value the city property…
A heartfelt thank you to the community
This letter is a response to the generous outpouring of community support at the recent benefit for the Tobin girls. A “Casino Night” at the Holland Ranch was held Saturday, June 28, to a capacity crowd of wonderful people. They came in response to the tragic death of Trent Tobin from pancreatic cancer and the…
We’re so great, except Glen
While having morning coffee in a SLO restaurant, I read Glen Starkey’s “We’re so great!” column (June 23) which showed the height of elitism with the preamble to his article on Fourth of July arts events. He insults our country on this Independence Day with American hatred, much like Reverend Wright’s “God damn America.” He…
Fireworks traffic control backfired
For the first time this year, our family decided to go to the fireworks show in Paso Robles. The reason we have avoided this event in the past, is the fear of getting trapped in the traffic getting out of Barney Schwartz Park. This year the paper claimed the Paso Robles Police Department had it…
Love and let be
It is gay pride week and the ignorant are out and about, parading their Bibles and asking why we queers feel the need to “display” our affection and sexual “preferences.” Let’s get something straight: Preference implies there’s a choice, and allow me to iterate the plain fact that it is not Frankly I didn’t choose…
Promote peace, love, and tolerance
I just read the letter by Jeremy Kincaid (“Unwelcome learning about gay marriage,” July 3). You know what makes me sick? People who believe they have the right to judge others on how they live and love. He and his wife should be grateful to have such a wonderful teacher for their children — gay…
Dreaming the bigger dream
For those who think of the American Dream as owning a house (“Ambition and Mr. Kokkonen,” July 3), I would like to suggest that if it can be bought or sold, it is not a dream. The American Dream can be summed up in five words: liberty and justice for all. Some things just can’t…
Pay more attention to the Chinatown bad deal
It is remarkable that The Tribune seems to want to see this story die. ÜA $9 million gift by a public agency to a private developer would be huge news in Chicago. ÜThe politicians involved would be closely questioned by the press. ÜThey would be asked, for example, why they didn’t just lease the property…
Right on, Mr. Mehl
Perhaps many have been wondering who is paying for the hundreds of millions of dollars of advertisements on TV and elsewhere to convince us to buy a new “what’s it” to fight global warming. Now it seems people are catching on, like Norman Mehl (“Get real! Humans can’t change the climate,” July 3). However, humans…
The icing on the Copeland cake
I am appalled by the City Council 3-2 vote to subsidize the Copeland Chinatown project at taxpayer expense by selling off city-owned property valued at more than $8 million for less than $2 million. The fact that the city has been offered $4 million for the very same property only underscores the audacity of this…
Atascadero newcomers want their say, too
I have been attending many council meetings in Atascadero over the years and now watch them on TV.ÜOld-timers, when addressing the council, often make a point of how many years they have lived here, implying that their opinion should carry more weight than mine or other peoples’ who came here later. I was very pleased…
Have you been receiving these E-MAILS ABOUT BARACK OBAMA!!!?????
I have. People send them in to the paper as letters, as if they wrote them, with their names attached and everything. Except they didn’t write them. They received them in their e-mails from idiot acquaintances and sent them on to our idiot editors, who pass them on to their … columnist. There are variations…
Christian Lander,
NEW TIMES: What inspired to create the website Stuffwhitepeoplelike.com? CHRISTIAN LANDER: I had an IM conversation with my friend Myles about the T.V. show The Wire. We started asking ourselves what white people were doing instead of watching The Wire and we came up with ideas like getting divorced, going to plays, therapy. I thought…
Ride to work
My favorite day of the year is not Christmas, not my birthday, not Halloween, but Ride To Work Day, a day when all motorcyclists should leave their cars in the garage and ride their motorcycles to work. This has become an annual event promoted not by the US Congress, not by Governor Schwarzenegger, but by…
