Cover Story
Fresh start: Afghan refugees embark on new life in San Luis Obispo with support of local nonprofit
Editor’s note: The refugees in this story were all given pseudonyms to protect their identities. The first Afghan refugees to resettle in San Luis Obispo County since the U.S. war in Afghanistan ended described their past year as both a nightmare and a dream. The nightmare was last summer. Between August and September 2021, the…
The Old Man
What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2022 Where’s it showing? Hulu Developed by Robert Levine and Jonathan E. Steinberg based on Thomas Perry’s 2017 novel of the same name, The Old Man is the perfect showcase for Jeff Bridges, the 72-year-old heartthrob whose charisma hasn’t diminished with age. His Dan Chase is a man with secrets,…
Absurd turds
I’m not sure what’s worse: Someone railing at a local school board meeting about how school was only invented so children could learn to read the Bible or a rat pack of SLO County residents continuing to insist that some thing is wrong with elections. “We do not have fairness and transparency in our elections,”…
The Terminal List
What’s it rated? TV-MA When? 2022 Where’s it showing? Amazon Prime Navy SEAL Lt. Cmdr. James Reece (Christ Pratt) is haunted by his past. He lost his entire platoon on a covert mission gone wrong, leaving him with feelings of culpability and grief. As new evidence about the failed mission comes to light, he begins…
Paso parents and school board push to discuss LGBTQ policy
The culture war continues in one North County school district, and gender is the latest front. An agenda request discussed at the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District’s June 28 meeting dealt with several “culture war topics,” according to board president Chris Arend. He said that while the district wouldn’t be addressing several of them,…
Apples and oranges
The opinion writer of “Bodily autonomy” (June 30) uses a form of argumentation known as “reducto ad absurdum” when equating bodily autonomy regarding vaccines with a woman’s right to choose an abortion. The main difference is contagion and the health and welfare of the public. No woman has ever become pregnant sitting next to a…
Pismo Beach’s handling of its short-term rental ordinance splits permit-holders and neighbors apart
As Pismo Beach residents for more than 30 years, Kim Mistretta and his wife were in for a shock when they came across a social media post on June 21 announcing the Pismo Beach City Council’s discussion to pass a moratorium on short-term rentals [STRs] that very evening. Now working as a part-time lawyer, Mistretta…
Thank you, election workers
With the recent celebration of our county’s 246th Independence Day, we would like to recognize, among those who keep our democracy strong, SLO County Clerk-Recorder Elaina Cano and her staff at the county Elections Office. They worked diligently to run a safe, secure, and fair primary election in our county. It was a difficult election…
Election integrity activist files for hand recount of county supervisor race
An outspoken skeptic of local election integrity requested a hand recount of the San Luis Obispo County 4th District supervisor race on July 12—allegedly without the blessing of the losing candidate. Challenger Jimmy Paulding defeated incumbent Lynn Compton by 639 votes—a 51.5 to 48.5 percent margin—in the heated South County race for supervisor, according to…
My feelings exactly
This message is to commend Jean Burns Slater for this articulate, moving, and honest piece in the most recent issue of New Times (“No longer united,” July 7). Ms. Burns Slater said everything I have felt and wanted to say for a long time. If I were not in my twilight years, I would definitely…
SLO County officials detail homelessness reduction plan
San Luis Obispo County has a plan to put a “big dent in the problem” of homelessness. Named the San Luis Obispo Countywide Plan to Address Homelessness, the blueprint aims to shrink homelessness by 50 percent over five years. And on July 11, the county chapter of the League of Women Voters hosted a panel…
Who will be the truth police?
In defense of her choice to not celebrate the founding of our nation, Ms. Burns Slater does a thorough job of detailing what she sees as the major problems facing this country (“No longer united,” July 7). She makes many accurate points. We still have a lot of work to do trying to ensure that…
Federal ARPA grants go to more local nonprofits after outcry
After a plan to funnel $3 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to a handful of nonprofits drew backlash from dozens of empty-handed applicants, San Luis Obispo County supervisors approved a revised set of allocations on July 12 that includes 35 organizations. Nonprofits that serve local homeless, children, families, and seniors and provide…
In response to ‘Build or preserve?’
These are very very stressful times. Green open spaces are known to make peace with your heart and soul and body. Many scientific studies show that the benefits of open green community space is space well spent for the well-being and happiness of the community. Driving around town, I noticed when I come to an…
FBI files complaint against man who took minor from SLO County to Mexico
The FBI lodged a criminal complaint against a 38-year-old man and his accomplice for transporting a minor from Nipomo to Mexico with the intent to engage in an illicit sexual relationship. According to the charge filed by Special Agent Brian Sullivan on July 11, Daniel Navarro of Victorville posed as a teenager on Instagram and…
Conservatives and guns
Why won’t conservatives agree to what you anti-gun liberals see as “common sense” gun restrictions? In a word: trust. Some of the proposals aren’t that bad, but with your visceral loathing of all guns and gun owners, and your insistence on blaming gun violence on everything but the shooter, we don’t trust you to act…
Head to the heat of Paso Robles for the California Mid-State Fair’s concert series
With the California Mid-State Fair bearing down on Paso Robles from July 20 through 31, the Biggest Little Fair Anywhere’s got music coming up quick, starting with one of the most legendary rock bands of all time. Journey—Grammy Award-winning guitarist and band founder Neal Schon, longtime member Jonathan Cain on the keys, and relative newcomer…
SLO-based Kelpful sustainably sources seaweed for edible education on the California coast
Sea for yourself Kelpful offers seaweed products for eating and for self-care via its website, kelpful.com. The local company also offers a monthly subscription box. Follow them on Instagram, @kelpful.ca, and Facebook, @KelpfulCoop. Kelpful co-founder and CEO Melissa Hanson caught “seaweed fever” when she listened to a Bioneers podcast about kelp farming a few years…
Friends of the Elephant Seal opens new visitors center in San Simeon
Retired biological sciences professor Julie Haugsness first learned about elephant seals during a visit to Año Nuevo in the 1980s. As part of a Scripps College course on coastal environments, she traveled down the coast of California with her classmates, camping and studying near shore habitats, including at Año Nuevo. “It’s just the most unusual…
The hills are alive: PCPA breathes fresh life into Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music
Abbess road The Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) presents its production of The Sound of Music through July 31, at the Marian Theatre, located at Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria. Admission ranges from $15 to $46. Visit pcpa.org or facebook.com/pacificconservatorytheatre for tickets and show times. For more info, call the PCPA box office at (805)…
Los Osos Library presents new photography showcase, Cell Fun Aware
Guests of a new solo exhibition at the Los Osos Library will find a collection of metal and canvas prints by local photographer Kurt Rightmyer. Using only a cellphone and basic photo editing software, Rightmyer created a collection of transfigurative imagery for the exhibit, titled Cell Fun Aware, which debuted at the library in July.…
Outdoor art exhibition in Paso Robles holds upcoming fundraiser
On Sunday, July 24, $20 of each ticket sold to attend Sensorio Gives Back in Paso Robles will be split between two nonprofit organizations. The upcoming fundraiser will benefit Jack’s Helping Hand, a SLO-based group dedicated to creating community programs for children with cancer or special needs, and the Kinship Center, a foster care organization…
Templeton wine bar hosts painting workshop with ArtSocial 805
ArtSocial 805 will host its next Bubbles and Brushes event on Saturday, July 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at the 15 Degrees C Wine Shop and Bar, located at 624 S. Main St., unit 101, Templeton. Participants of the workshop will complete a painting of a dandelion. Tickets to the event are $45.…
Spiderhead is a mixed bug
SPIDERHEAD What’s it rated? R What’s it worth, Bulbul? Skip it What’s it worth, Caleb? Stream it Where’s it showing? Netflix Two prison inmates (Miles Teller and Jurnee Smollett) form a strong bond during their sentences at an experimental penitentiary, run by a suave drug developer (Chris Hemsworth), in this sci-fi thriller. (107 min.) Editor’s…
