Thanks to artist Christoph Niemann, via New York Times Abstract Sunday blog, we now have a handful of additional gestures to add to the Rock, Paper, Scissors game. Although, as Niemann points out, these gestures are geared more towards politicians in Washington than school kids. In addition to the Double Dip Recession gesture, get a load of some the other moves: Liar, Pants, Fire, Gold, Bear, Treasury Funds, Hammer and Sickle, Hatchet, Budget Cuts, Tea, Triple-C Rating, State of the Union, Somebody Get a Grip, and Pretty Please With a Cherry on Top. Hopefully, with the addition of these added hand gestures, we'll hear less barking from politicos.

Click here to view more of Niemann's work.

When I hear concerns over the local barbecue situation my mind often drifts to Bubb’s Grub in Catalina. The place serves some really good barbecue, and the menu is enormous. Rita Connelly, the Tucson Weekly’s awesome restaurant reviewer, also gave it the thumbs-up when she reviewed it back in 2005.

We made the drive up there just the other day and had a killer meal. From the samples of prime rib offered by the waitress to the smoky chicken, it was all tender and delicious. The gigantic portions and margaritas didn’t hurt, either.

The waitress told us her relaxing summer is about over and that she was already bracing herself for the return of the retirees to the nearby Saddlebrooke community, when business jumps to lines-out-the-door busy. She said the Wisconsin fish frys on Fridays — the owner is from Wisconsin and special orders his walleye and other fish from his home state — are especially busy.

There’s more information about the restaurant over here.

• The brisket sandwich rocks the party.

Attention Wildcats, et al: The UA Student Unions—The Student Union Memorial Center and Park Student Union—both have some new restaurants, opening on or before August 22. From Sabor, a Mexican restaurant, to the The Mesa Room, dubbed as UA's only upscale restaurant, there are plenty of places over at The Student Union Memorial Center that are sure to tantalize your tongue. Over at the Park Student Union, there will be smaller shops like Park Avenue Market, a convenience store, and also a cute cafe called La Petite, with French-inspired fare, including made-to-order crepes, pastries, smoothies and coffee.

I've had trouble with mass-produced chocolate for awhile, ever since I heard a presentation about the extent that child slavery is a part of cocoa harvesting in West Africa, but Hershey is apparently trying to scare me away from the delicious stuff forever:

For 400 foreign students, working at a Hershey's chocolate packing plant in Palmyra, Pa., may be less sweet than it sounds.

The National Guestworker Alliance filed a complaint Wednesday on behalf of 400 international students who had apparently paid $3,000 to $6,000 to participate in a U.S.-certified cultural exchange program. The complaint, sent to the U.S. Department of State, says the students were exploited by Hershey Co. and that the company takes unfair advantage of the program.

[...]

The students, who hail from countries such as China, Turkey, Ukraine, Moldova, Mongolia, Ghana and Thailand, were recruited at their universities to participate in the U.S. State Department J-1 visa program, described on a U.S. State Department website as an Exchange Visitor Program. The program leads to a three-month visa that allows students to work in the United States while learning about American culture and improving their English skills.

The goal of the program, according to the State Department's site, is to foster "global understanding through educational and cultural exchange."

Instead, says a representative of the National Guestworker Alliance, students who wound up at the Hershey's plant were living in "economic captivity," forced to pay for mandatory company housing that left them with $40 to $140 a week for 40 hours of work.

[...]

According to the complaint, conveniently made available to media, when the students complained about the violations of U.S. law, "they were threatened with deportation and other long term immigration consequences to remain quiet about the violations."

Details to follow.

Zinburger wants to give its cow icon a name, and needs your help. If they pick your suggestion, you could win free lunch for a year. From Valerie Vinyard, the former Arizona Daily Star writer who now handles public relations for Zinburger and other local eateries:

Zinburger Wine and Burger Bar just opened its second location on Grant near Wilmot and needs a name for The Zinburger Cow. You could win free lunch for a year at the new location. Text “BURGER” and your Zinburger cow name to 68683 or visit KIIM FM and type in keyword “BURGER”!

In similar news, Brushfire BBQ is also holding a contest to name its new private meeting room. You could win $100 worth of gift certificates if they choose your suggestion. More on that over on their Facebook page.

Four witnesses testified during the first day of the three-part administrative hearing on the Tucson Unified School District’s appeal of Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal’s findings that the district’s Mexican American Studies classes defy the state’s anti-ethnic studies law.

However, it was the testimony of TUSD board president Mark Stegeman that offered another perspective the controversial board member has never shared with the public — his personal observations of the Mexican American Studies classes and how they remind him of cult-like behaviors he studied in a book.

Looking distressed, uncomfortable and sometimes pained as he sat on the dais offering testimony as an expert witness for the state, Stegeman was first asked if he was familiar with the MAS program and that all the governing board is required to approve the curriculum and books.

Stegeman said yes, and then the attorney for the state reminded Stegeman of his action last year when he requested the board staff to find out all board actions on the program, and the result was that there were no actions, but books approved on consent agenda. “But no formal approval of the classes.”

The attorney asked Stegeman if he has experience with critical race theory. He said yes, from his college days. Then Stegeman is asked to discuss notes he took after visiting two MAS classes — Curtis Acosta’s Chicano literature class at Tucson Magnet High School and Jose Gonzalez’s social justice American government perspectives class at Rincon High School.

Also included in his notes, given to the state as part of a record request prior to the hearing, was a photo of a statement or artwork hanging outside an ethnic studies classroom — exactly what it is isn’t shown or specifically described by the attorney or Stegeman.

The attorney wanted to know who the teacher was who gave him the photo. Stegeman squirmed in this seat, hesitates and looks down at a notebook in front of him. He answered that it was given to him by Travis Kline, a teacher at Pueblo High School. Later in the testimony, Stegeman uncomfortably described the photo — a statement about the Arizona flag's star and that it is now a Nazi symbol post-SB 1070.

Back to discussing the classes he visited, Stegeman said Gonzalez had a picture of a political cartoon up and was asking the students to write about it and then breakout into small groups to discuss. During the discussion period, Stegeman says he stepped away and then happened to notice a power point presentation on Gonzalez's laptop that made references to segregating students, among other things that made the board president uncomfortable.

Stegeman noted that Gonzalez asked his students at the end of the class what made the class special, and students answered social activism or social justice. Stegeman said he speculated the teacher changed his class for Stegeman’s benefit.

During his visit to Acosta’s classes, Stegeman made notes that the class was mostly Latino, although one student mentioned that they were half-Anglo and half-Mexican.

But what troubled Stegeman more than the racial make-up of the class was the traditional clapping and chanting each MAS class begins with.

In Stegeman’s notes he described it as ritualized. “I guess I had an epiphany,” Stegeman told the attorney. He instantly thought about a book he read a long time ago that described different facets and the social dynamics of cult psychology.

That cult-like behavior he observed out of the classroom, too, and he found it troubling that classes had a social justice frame. “My overall impression is that what happens in class is collective identity."

Head’s up, sports fans! Ever wanted to throw out the first pitch at a Tucson Padres game? Hopefully, you'll fare a little better than Mariah Carey does above, but regardless, the Tucson Weekly will award one lucky reader the chance to do just that at the final Thirsty Thursday of the season—and all you have to do is dazzle us with your mad throwing skills!

That’s right: You can be on the mound at Kino Stadium on Thursday, Aug. 25 if you’re the winner of our first-ever “Show Us The Pitch” Contest.

Here’s how it works: You make a short video of yourself throwing something as a demonstration of your technique and send it to [email protected]. Our judges will review your video and pick one fan to throw out the pitch on Thursday.

The winner will also get four Home Plate Reserved Seats (a $42 value!). Second place will get two Dugout Reserved seats (worth $17, so still pretty cool).

We'll be judging the videos based on largely absurd and arbitrary standards, but basically, we're looking to be entertained. It's YouTube. We could be watching a monkey riding a dog herding sheep. Your video needs to be fun in some manner, whether you're throwing something interesting, throwing somewhere interesting, wearing a costume of some sort, or by adding high quality production values and an original song by power rock band Europe playing in the background. Get out your phone and shoot something. Get creative, for the sake of us who have to watch these things.

A few rules:

Entries must be received by noon on Wednesday, Aug. 24.

All entries become property of Tucson Weekly and Wick Communications and may be used for promotional purposes.

No throwing of any animals, whether cats or snails. Be kind to your fellow living creatures. (No throwing of anything at living animals, either.) I feel like we shouldn't have to say it, but don't throw a baby.

The judges’ decision will be final.

Good luck!

Gov. Jan Brewer is such a rebel! She's over on her Facebook page sticking it the man - well, Facebook at least - for taking down the picture she posted depicting her as Rosie the Riveter in some sort of theatrical protest to President Obama's plan to let some illegal immigrants stay in the country.

My first thought is STOP PLAYING ON FACEBOOK AND DO SOMETHING TO FIX THE STATE CRAZY! My second thought is that I should probably leave this sort of criticism up to Jim Nintzel, who does a much better job of it.

That is all.

• Flickr
• These children are dying. And you can't do a damned thing about it.

Some time in the mid-'90s, universally-beloved AM radio personality Rush Limbaugh had an ongoing bit regarding SUVs. Essentially, Limbaugh would read, word-for-word, an article from the Marxist lamestream media about how a sport utility vehicle drove off a cliff, or ran over a pedestrian. Limbaugh's goal was to point out how the media framed these accidents: the stories were worded as if the vehicle itself had caused the accident like a modern-day version of Christine, not the vehicle's driver.