Saturday, Jan. 25 marks the end of the Loft Cinema’s Hitchcock Blondes series with my personal favorite Hitchcock flick, the 1958 schizoid shocker Vertigo. The film stars James Stewart as a retired police officer with a case of bad shakes when it comes to heights, Kim Novak as the diabolical blonde who may or may not be who she says she is, and the city of San Francisco, which never looked better or more sinister depending on your viewpoint. Get ready for some dizzying heights, a primo Bernard Herrmann score, and the illustrious “Vertigo shot.” The film starts at 7:00 p.m. Tickets are general admission.

Remember Bull, the lovable lunkhead from TV’s Night Court? Did you know he starred in a hilarious 1980’s cheesefest linking Dungeons & Dragons and computer-whizzery? It’s called The Dungeonmaster (aka Ragewar), and it’s playing on Monday, Jan. 27 at 8:00 p.m. as part of the Loft’s always entertaining Mondo Monday film series. It’s a whopping $3 for general admission, and $2 for Loft members.

On Wednesday, Jan. 29, the Loft presents Half the Road, a new documentary that takes a look at women in professional cycling. After the doc, there will be a Q&A with writer/director Kathryn Bertine, Olympian Inga Thompson, US National Champions Robin Farina & Addy Albershardt, and US National Team Members Amber Pierce & Lauren Hall. Remember, the Loft has plenty of bike racks to suit your cycling needs! The doc starts at 7:00 p.m., and tickets are general admission. For more info, contact the Loft at loftcinema.com or call 795-0844.

I'm reporting from Phoenix, Ariz., because I'm covering the Amazing Arizona Comic-Con at the Phoenix convention center this weekend. So, I'm really hoping to see some Stormtrooper cosplayers twerking like in this video that was posted five days ago. This Stormtrooper twerking video is better than Episode I,II and III combined.

Speaking of Star Wars: Episode VII, Carrie Fisher told TV Guide that she should start filming with her old castmates Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford in March or April.

"I'd like to wear my old [cinnamon buns] hairstyle again — but with white hair," she says. "I think that would be funny."

At the Tucson Weekly, with the help of the fine folks at Club Congress, the Rialto Theatre and Stateside Presents, we're proud to announce March Radness, a great night of music taking over the east end of Congress on March 8.

For just $15 (and there's a limited number of presale tickets at that price, it'll go up to $20 eventually), you get two venues AND OMG ALL THIS MUSIC.

Co-headlining...you might know him from having a posse on Broadway or his affection for asses, SIR MIX-A-LOT:

Also, they're from San Diego and they're know for their indie-rock magic, PINBACK:

Plus, all these excellent music acts that would probably be worth paying $15 (or $20) for anyhow:

Murs
IAMSU!
Nite Jewel
Painted Palms
PigPen Theatre
Casket Girls
Wild Ones
Stargazer Lily

Plus, more to come.

Tickets are on sale now and we'll be giving some away before this big-ass show.

Get your tickets, mark your calendars and we'll see you there.

On Tuesday morning, John Arnold, director of the Governor’s Office of Strategic Planning and Budgeting, presented Brewer’s budget to a joint House and Senate Appropriations Committee. Rep. Chad Campbell [D-24] grilled Arnold about a provision to have K-12 public-school students pay a $15 fee to get a broadband connection, whether or not their school already has one. Sen. Rick Murphy, [R-21st], of Peoria, also demurred: “Why should the taxpayers in Peoria have to pay twice, when they already, on their own, brought their schools up to this level?”

Tuesday also was “Indian Nations and Tribes Legislative Day.” Terry Rambler, chairman of the San Carlos Apache tribe, spoke about the environment and the looming water crisis: “I am left asking, how come water is not a priority for this legislature and for Gov. Brewer?”

Meanwhile, in the House, Rep. Victoria Steele [D-9th] introduced a bill to ban texting while driving. The fine: $50 for a driver texting; $200 if a driver gets in an accident while texting. “They’re behind the wheel of a two-ton machine going 45 to 75 miles an hour and they’re texting. Their eyes are not on the road; their mind is not on the road,” Steele said. The Governors Highway Safety Association says that 41 states and the District of Columbia have already banned texting while driving.

Yale Law Information Society Project Fellow and native Tucsonan Sam Kleiner looks at options to federal immigration reform:

As immigration reform is stalled in Congress, progressives should look to the states and cities to take action to help incorporate immigrants into our the fabric of American society. Ultimately, we need an integrated system with federal, state and local action on immigration. But we can’t wait for Congress to take the lead.

In October, California Governor Jerry Brown signed the TRUST Act, which barred California police officers from turning over undocumented aliens arrested for non-violent crimes to federal authorities. Brown said that he “not waiting” for Washington to act, an argument that was strikingly similar to Governor Brewer’s claim in enacting SB1070 that Washington’s “decades of inaction” necessitated local policy. Our political leaders of all stripes have characterized local immigration policy as a necessity in light of federal inaction. The Supreme Court ruled in 1979 in DeCanas v. Bica that the “power to regulate immigration is unquestionably exclusively a federal power.” By and large, states have only sought to justify their action in immigration as a necessity stemming from the failure of the federal government.

While SB1070 certainly left a sour aftertaste for thinking about the role of immigration localism, its Constitutional problems are not inherent to immigration localism. SB1070 was enacted in 2010 during a period of hyperbolic media alarmism about the growth of illegal immigration. These types of anti-immigrant measures are the aberration; the high legal bills and the blow to business triggered a backlash that pushed its architect, State Senator Russell Pearce, out of office. With that chapter behind the state, it is time to think about a more constructive path forward for immigration localism.

The Republicans who support the law evidently believe voters will agree to these changes in election law (and they certainly don't want to campaign in support of something that's going to be called the "Voter Suppression Act" in TV ads all through the fall), so they now want to repeal the law. It's not that they have realized they have over-reached; instead, they just plan to pass the provisions separately in order to thwart the referendum drive but still get their way.

Step one is HB 2196, which was scheduled for a hearing yesterday in the House Judiciary Committee. But the bill's sponsor, Rep. Eddie Farnsworth, postponed the hearing after a crowd of angry citizens and hungry TV journalists showed up at the hearing.

Stay tuned. Farnsworth said he'd be bringing the bill back next week.

Several Pima County education, child welfare, behavioral health and judicial agencies joined with the National Center for Youth Law yesterday to launch an educational pilot project called FosterEd, which is part of the national FosterEd Initiative to improve the educational outcomes of thousands of school-age foster children living in Pima County.

Backers hope it will serve as the model for a statewide program that will support the educational success of all Arizona foster children:

“Improving the educational outcomes of students in foster care cannot be accomplished by any one agency alone,” said Pauline Machiche, Program Manager, DES, CPS, Region 2. “It requires increased collaboration and communication, and increased commitment to ensuring foster children receive the educational opportunities they need. I am delighted to be working with FosterEd, the Juvenile Courts, Pima County education agencies, Pima County behavioral health providers and Pima County community organizations to implement new practices that will help our foster children succeed in school.”

At any given time, there are approximately 4,000 foster children in Pima County and approximately 14,000 in Arizona.

FosterEd improves the educational outcomes of children and youth in foster care by ensuring each is supported by an educational champion and strengthened by an education team. Educational champions improve school success by setting high expectations, making sure homework is completed, and ensuring the child is enrolled in appropriate classes. Education teams identify educational strengths and needs, ensure the student receives appropriate opportunities, and monitors educational progress. FosterEd currently operates in Arizona, California, and Indiana. The Initiative has helped thousands of foster children receive needed educational services and supports and was recently recognized by the Center for the Study of Social Policy as one of 15 exemplary programs that help foster youth thrive.

“The educational outcomes of children and youth in the foster care system are heartbreakingly poor,” said Cathleen Fitzgerald, Education Coordinator at Pima County Juvenile Court. “By partnering with other agencies through the FosterEd Initiative, we can ensure children are paired with educational champions and help ensure they succeed in school.”

At yesterday's press conference, former state lawmaker Pete Hershberger discussed national statistics that make it clear children in the welfare system face a number of challenges:

I didn't know porcupines talked this much, if at all. I don't know what he's saying, except maybe, "Help, this lady is crazy! Need more bananas."

• Photo courtesy of shutterstock.com
• New York Mayor Bill de Blasio.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo are arguing like a couple of kids on the playground, and I'm loving it. We could use a little more — actually a lot more — of this kind of fight here in Arizona.

Here's kind of what they said. I may have altered the language a bit.

de Blasio: I don’t care what you say, I’m gonna tax the rich to raise enough money so every kid can go to pre-K classes.

Cuomo: Oh yeah? Well, I’m not gonna let you tax people. I’m gonna give you $1.5 billion to pay for it.

de Blasio: Cheapskate! I need more money than that. I’m still gonna tax all those people who make the most money so little kids can go to school.

Cuomo: Oh no you’re not! I’m gonna give you and everyone in the state as much money as it takes. So there!

de Blasio: Yeah, well, I don’t know . . .

Boys, boys, boys, please don’t fight. You’re both right. Let’s go inside and have some milk and cookies. I’m sure we can work this out.

Chinese New Year Festival Teaser Trailer from Julian Ybarra on Vimeo.

If you are looking for something to do on Saturday, be sure to check out the Chinese New Year Festival at the University of Arizona's Centennial Hall.

The Confucius Institute at the University of Arizona and the Tucson Sino Choir presents a festival that boasts music, dancing, performances and martial arts (shameless self promotion).

Chinese New Year is on January 31st and it is the Year of the Horse.