Former state lawmaker Jonathan Paton and Phoenix City Council member Tom Simplot push back against Rob Robb's concerns about Prop 111:

If proposition 111 is approved by the citizens of Arizona, the state constitution would be amended to change the position of secretary of state to lieutenant governor. The name change would be authorized at the 2010 election, and the first lieutenant governor would be elected in 2014. This is a two step process. In the ensuing four years, the duties of the office would be formally established by an act of the legislature and the statutes conformed to assure the feasibility of independent and minor party candidates.

The state constitution is not the vehicle to write a job description. All but one of the election responsibilities of the current secretary of state were proscribed over the years by acts of the Legislature.

Had Robert Robb followed the debate on this proposition through the deliberative process, he'd know there was a lively discussion in both houses about the duties of such an office, and a clear understanding that statutory modifications would be required after passage of the constitution change.

While we’re on the subject of the recently renovated and renamed Jasper Food and Mixology (formerly Cafe Jasper at 6370 N. Campbell Ave., Suite 160), we must also mention the Peruvian-inspired tapas and drink specials available starting at 4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday.

LaRue and mixologist Jonas Black have also come up with a “fresh-press” menu that works like this: Pick from a list of flavors and the bartender fashions a custom cocktail based on your choices. It’s like a choose-your-own-adventure novel, only with alcohol and fresh-squeezed fruit juice. What a stunningly fantastic idea.

There’s also TVs for sports, a patio, dinner specials and breakfast every day starting at 7 a.m. Live music goes down on weekends.

Call 577-0326 for more information

Big Brother and the Holding Company is playing a free concert at 3 p.m., today (Friday, Sept. 17) at the 17th Street Market. More information here.

Joplin's old back-up band still puts on one hell of a show, or at least they did when I saw them play a few years back. They played a benefit at a remote school house in Northern California, and I was one of 30 or so people who showed up. I left with a T-shirt, a CD and the knowledge that rockers from the '60s get down in a most serious fashion.

Big Brother is also playing tonight at the Rialto with opening act Top Dead Center. More information here.

• Tony Abou-Ganim

Hotel Congress and the Tucson Culinary Festival have just announced a cocktail class with Abou-Ganim next month. It’s $50 and includes a copy of Abou-Ganim’s newish book, The Modern Mixologist.

Tickets aren’t on sale yet, but there’s a good chance this one will sell out, as most events associated with the Tucson Culinary Festival typically do.

More information here.

The Dish (3131 E. First St.) is holding its second "A Few of Our Favorite Things" wine dinner this Sunday, Sept. 19, at 6 p.m.

If you like food and wine (and who doesn't?), then I strongly recommend this event. I attended the first "Favorite Things" dinner, and it was amazing. I still have dreams about the potato chips with mussel mayonnaise.

The chips with mussel mayonnaise aren't on this Sunday's seven-course menu (each with a different wine pairing), but lots of other great goodies are, including a salt cod fritter with sauce gribiche and local micro greens, paired with the Mont Marcel Brut Reserva; veal bockwurst with potato rosti, garlic greens and a mustard demi, paired with the Marc Kreydenweiss Andlau Riesling; and rabbit rillettes, with roast mushroom and chicory salad and marjoram pesto, paired with a Ponzi Pinot Noir "Tavola."

The complete menu can be viewed on The Dish's Facebook page.

The cost is $85 all-inclusive, and there are still seats available. Call 326-0121 for reservations.

Arizona Republic columnist Rob Robb notes something very disturbing about Prop 111, which would create a new office of lieutenant governor:

Under Proposition 111, the office of secretary of state is abolished. Its duties are transferred to a lieutenant governor.

Candidates for governor and lieutenant governor run separately in the primaries. But the successful nominees of each party would then run as a team in the general election. The candidate getting the most votes for governor automatically gets his party's nominee as lieutenant governor.

But what about an independent who wants to be lieutenant governor? Sorry, out of luck. Only candidates who are part of a political party with a candidate for governor are eligible.

And what about an independent who wants to be governor? No luck for you either.

Proposition 111 says that “each nominee for the office of governor shall run on a ticket as a joint candidate in the general election with the nominee for the office of lieutenant governor from the same political party as the nominee for governor.” So, in addition to establishing the office of lieutenant governor, Proposition 111 sets up a new constitutional requirement to be a general election candidate for governor that, by definition, independents cannot fulfill.

In an era of increasing disenchantment with partisan politics, why would anyone seriously consider a governmental reform that further entrenches political parties, making them the only route to holding elected office?

Read the whole thing here.

Despite all the disgust voters now have with both political parties, it's not like they embrace independent candidates. At the end of the day, they still end up voting for the D or the R. (Although former Democrat Ted Downing is putting that to the test in his state Senate run in Legislative District 28 this year.)

Nonetheless, do we really want to stop from being able to run for office? This is sloppy, sloppy legislation.

"Fuera de Moda," by Rodrigo Moya, is on display in Ojos Bien Abiertos/Eyes Wide Open, continuing through Nov. 6 at Etherton Gallery, 135 S. Sixth Ave.

Big Brothers Big Sisters is opening up a new community donation center at 4650 N. Flowing Wells Road. The center will mainly collect clothing, shoes, towels, bedding and household items. They will take any household item that one person can carry, such as blenders, toasters, glassware, etc.

The grand opening weekend will be held on Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 18 and 19. On Saturday, the center is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; on Sunday, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. To celebrate the opening, Big Brothers Big Sisters will be serving free hot dogs and soda from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will also be a raffle for a $75 gift certificate to Pastiche Modern Eatery for everyone who shows up to the event.

Regular hours after the opening weekend are Monday through Thursday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Sunday from 9 a.m to 2 p.m.

For more information, check out the Big Brothers Big Sisters website.

The performances will be held on the university campus. Kelley James will play from 7:20 to 8:05 p.m., and Shwayze from 8:25 to 9:25 p.m.