Someone better get Dennis Rodman on the phone. The BBC has reported that a North Korean foreign ministry spokesman issued a statement regarding the upcoming action-comedy The Interview that is set to release this fall. In the film, James Franco and Seth Rogen play celebrity talk show personalities that are recruited by the CIA to assassinate Kim Jong-un. The North Korean spokesperson told the The Korean Central News Agency that "Making and releasing a movie on a plot to hurt our top-level leadership is the most blatant act of terrorism and war and will absolutely not be tolerated."

He added that the "reckless US provocative insanity" of mobilising a "gangster filmmaker" to challenge the North's leadership was triggering "a gust of hatred and rage" among North Korean people and soldiers.

"If the US administration allows and defends the showing of the film, a merciless counter-measure will be taken," the spokesman was quoted as saying.

If we do move to war, I believe we should send Franco and Rogan to the front lines.

It's not easy being green. Sing along with Kermit and the rest of the Muppets at The Loft's Muppet Movie Sing-Along at 7 p.m., Saturday, June 28. The Loft is located at 3233 E. Speedway Blvd. Tickets are $8 general, $6 Loft members and children 12 and younger. 

Here's an event description:

Everyone can find the Rainbow Connection at The Loft Cinema when The Muppet Movie Sing-A-Long hits the screen! This totally “gonzo” interactive screening of the one-and-only original Muppet Movie will feature onscreen lyrics to all the film’s classic songs like “The Rainbow Connection,” “Movin’ Right Along,” “Can You Picture That?” and more! Audiences can belt out their favorite tunes in their best Muppet voices and compete in the World’s Biggest Muppet Fan contest before the movie! The person wearing the most Muppet-rageous outfit that proves they are the World’s Biggest Muppet Fan will win a fabulous Muppet-related prize! And everyone will receive a FREE rainbow glow stick to help light up the fun!

Here's a movie description:

In The Muppet Movie, the first of the Muppets’ big screen adventures, Kermit dreams of leaving behind his humble life as a banjo-pickin’ swamp frog to find fame and fortune in glorious Tinseltown! Hitting the road to stardom, he meets his new pals Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, Rowlf, Gonzo and the rest of the gang, and together they embark on a crazy cross-country quest to find the rainbow connection and take Hollywood by storm, hoping to become the big time stars of their very own movie! The only catch is the menacing fast food franchiser Doc Hopper, who follows the Muppets’ every move as he tries to turn Kermit into the unwilling spokes-frog for his new line of fried frogs’ legs! But have no fear – our irrepressible heroes will just keep “Movin’ right along in search of good times and good news,” so the chances are good that everything is going to work out just fine! Featuring an all-star cast of supporting humans including Mel Brooks, Madeline Kahn, Steve Martin, Richard Pryor and Orson Wells, The Muppet Movie is pure movie magic for kids (and adults) of all ages! (Dir. by James Frawley, 1979, USA, 95 mins., Rated G) Digital

True, there's something sleazy about Ed Supe John Huppenthal's internet habits. A public, elected official who writes hundreds and hundreds of anonymous comments on blog posts and articles all over the Arizona blogosphere is the kind of guy who is willing to use his office in deceptive and underhanded ways when it suits him. Regularly defending himself by name while pretending to be someone else is one higher level of sleaze. And altering Wikipedia pages about himself, Slade Meade (who ran against Huppenthal for a state senate seat) and current Secretary of State Ken Bennett — that's more of the same.

But we've become so accustomed to sleaze from people in the political sector, we just consider it part of the territory — unless they leave an obscene photo trail behind, of course. The sleaze factor won't do more than bruise Huppenthal's reputation a little. So let's put that aside.

What's really troubling is what Huppenthal revealed about himself with his comments. His attitudes toward the poor, Hispanics, even the Spanish language itself, indicate that he shouldn't be allowed within a hundred miles of our children's educations.

Lisa Graham Keegan, a Republican who is a former Arizona Superintendent of Public Instruction and an important part of the conservative "education reform" movement, called on Huppenthal to resign. She was concerned about his comment about Obama "rewarding the lazy pigs with food stamps," saying, "His comments are extremely disrespectful of the people the state superintendent serves." She's right. If Huppenthal feels such a deep disrespect for poor children and their parents that they deserve to be called "lazy pigs," how can he be trusted to determine the nature of their educations? But his "lazy pigs" comment is just the beginning.

Huppenthal's comment about people on public assistance pales in comparison to the vile statements he made about Hispanics in his blog comments. Someone with attitudes like his cannot be trusted to make decisions about the education of the state's Hispanic children.

For example, it's one thing to think Che Guevara is a horrible guy and not a hero as some believe. Che is a controversial figure. But it's quite another to write,

"Che Guvera (sp) is not to be afraid of, he is to be despised and his memory should be defecated upon."

What level of disgust must you feel about someone to say you want to defecate on his memory? I've never read a statement by Huppenthal close to that about anyone else, even Adolph Hitler, who he mentioned a number of times. Huppenthal's comment about Guevara was made in the context of TUSD's Mexican American Studies program, because his picture was on an MAS classroom wall. That's what raised Huppenthal's disgust to an excretory level, Guevara's connection to a Hispanic-centered curriculum.

Yesterday, Brian Lopez promised to deliver a new track off his upcoming album Static Noise on his Facebook page. Thankfully, he delivered on that promise and posted "Crossfire Cries" on his Soundcloud page earlier today. The singer/songwriter's response to ULTRA will drop in September, according to Lopez. 

While we didn't get the racist stupidity that Superintendent John Huppenthal pseudonymously posted on Espresso Pundit...

However, we are now going to see the dark side of controlling immigration - fewer jobs for caucasions. In an improving economy, free flowing immigration creates more jobs for caucasions, not fewer. Economic growth is one part productivity growth and 2 parts population growth. Caucasians aren't reproducing themselves, so all population growth has to be immigration.

We are condemning ourselves to a second rate future if we don't reestablish the melting pot with a strong flow of immigrants engaging in economic activity, not crime.

We all need to stomp out balkanization. No spanish radio stations, no spanish billboards, no spanish tv stations, no spanish newspapers. This is America, speak English....

I don't mind them selling Mexican food as long as the menus are mostly in English.

And, I'm not being humorous or racist. A lot is at stake here.

Or on the same site, a defense of Jared Loughner (wait, what?):

Jared Loughner's act was logical once you understand what he was thinking. He just wasnt' very good at articulating his thoughts but those thoughts and the intensity of which he partook of them gave him an incredible sense of superiority over us mere mortals. A nihilist, Loughner feels that we are all so many inconsequential flecks of dust and that his act had no meaning at all. Not much discussion of holding these philosophies accountable for this debacle.

...TucsonWeekly.com did get its share of comments from Falcon9, one of Huppenthal's known online alter-egos. Feel free to look through them yourself, but it is fascinating to see an elected official going to such strange lengths to defend himself.

Also, it's a little depressing to see the man in charge (for now?) of Arizona's public schools basically admitting he doesn't really have a plan to improve the schools most of our children attend. After all, all the ideas have been tried already, right?:

Public schools aren't working at all for a good solid 30% of students. All of your ideas have been tried and failed. Huppenthal is doing what works in America - competition.

Seriously, what's it going to take to get this guy to resign?

In what my R&B-loving wife considers the best news of the year, the Rialto Theatre announced that Chromeo is playing a show here on October 10. Chromeo, a funk-loving Canadian duo, has been cranking out fun and danceable singles for a decade (including the always amusing "Needy Girl"), but they're currently touring to promote their best album yet, White Women, which features a bunch of songs that will likely end up as hummable backgrounds to commercials (like "Jealous" in some cider ad). I've seen these guys twice, including their mainstage performance at this year's Coachella, and they put on a talkbox-heavy dance party that's about as straight-up entertaining as any show I've seen. Good time fun, for sure.

Tickets for the all-ages Chromeo show, with Wave Racer opening, go on sale Friday and range from $25 to $33.

The second Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles trailer features more of the totally tubular characters, and Megan Fox. While you can't have enough Fox, we get a better look at the big baddie Shredder. Unfortunately, the leader of the Foot clan has never looked so one dimensional. But that's Michael Bay for you.

We have to remember, it's Ninja Turtles not Citizen Kane:


TMNT hits theaters on everywhere on Aug. 8th. 

Cyclist Kris Lee Chambers was struck and killed by a car on Wednesday, June 18. Gerardo Cazares ran a red light and hit the 38-year-old cyclist going westbound on Speedway Boulevard, close to Main Avenue, according to the Tucson Police Department.

Bicycle Inter-Community Art & Salvage is hosting a candlelight vigil in remembrance of Chambers tonight at 8 p.m., through the Dunbar Neighborhood.

Kris was an amazingly compassionate and dynamic friend, neighbor, and community member. Her loss is truly devastating, but we can't get through it alone. Let's begin the healing together.

The candlelight vigil will begin starting from the BICAS’ parking lot located at 44 West Sixth Street and ending at the "Bike Church" near North Main Avenue and West Davis Street, according to the BICAS Facebook event page. The Whistle Stop has offered its warehouse for as a "solace space." 

The organizers encourage that you bring bring candles, stories, and any tokens of remembrance. Everyone is welcomed.

Click here for more information.

The Havasu News started to crawl around the internets this morning, and some folks had a laugh or two. It seemed like maybe we could laugh together and then escape the usual national ridicule ... until today when Wonkette picked up the story that published on Friday, and gave it the usual beautiful crazyland treatment.

Maybe it's unfair to describe this state lawmaker, who called for a special meeting with her constituents to talk about chemtrails, as crazyland.

Per usual, folks running the state and working to avoid spending time on economic development, energy or water issues—however, since she's bringing a science person to reassure her people they aren't being mind controlled, maybe that's a good thing.

And maybe they could bring this show to Tucson next. From the Wonkette:

Ward said she has received a lot of communication from constituents who feel they are not being listened to and aren’t confident in the air and water testing being conducted in the area. She said some of her constituents have questioned a connection between the chemtrails and a heightened level of certain minerals in their blood.

“They are concerned because many of them have had blood work, and they are concerned about our air and water, so I want ADEQ (the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality) to come out and reassure them,” Ward said.

Ward said she is confident that the air and water in Mohave County are safe and pointed to naturally occurring minerals that could account for heightened levels of mercury and other minerals in blood tests.

“I have gotten a lot of communications from people who are concerned and there has been a sense that no one has been doing anything for them to address those concerns,” she said. “I can’t do field tests on the water, but I can connect them to the people who do.”

Take a journey to Oz on Sundays through Aug. 17 at Live Theatre Workshop, 5317 E. Speedway Blvd. Show starts a 1 p.m. $7 to $10.

This is an original adaptation by Richard Gremel and Leslie J. Miller with original music and lyrics by David Ragland. Directed by Leslie J. Miller

Featuring Stephen Frankenfield, Amanda Gremel, Cyndi LaFrese & Michael Martinez. To make a reservation call 327-4242. Visit www.livetheatreworkshop.org/shows/att.html for info.