I'm back from the San Diego Comic-Con, so I can finally watch and read everything I missed from the event. Last year, the Mad Max vehicles were displayed at Petco Park also known as Nerd HQ. It's nice to finally see the giant cars in action in this first look that was revealed over the weekend.


I can't wait to see Charlize Theron and Tom Hardy in action when the film debuts in 2015.

John Huppenthal wants the furor over his anonymous internet scribblings to just go away. He publicly renounced his online comments. He repudiated them. He apologized for them. He even said, cryptically, he "sought counsel about it." (Could be psychological, religious or legal counsel he sought. He didn't specify.) But he hasn't said if he commented on sites beyond the list we've read about or if he's used pseudonyms (pronounced "sway-do-nyms according to Huppenthal) other than Falcon9 and Thucydides.

Huppenthal has been asked if there are internet comments out there we don't know about. Blog for Arizona's Bob Lord, who uncovered the Falcon9/Thucydides/Huppenthal connection and exposed it in his blog posts, contacted Huppenthal but has yet to receive a response.

It’s now two weeks since I requested additional information about the aliases John Huppenthal used and the sites at which he commented. A week ago, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. Now, it seems, he may be ignoring my questions.

I’ll go out on a limb here. I think Huppenthal’s aliases went beyond Falcon9 and Thucydides. On our blog, we had one comment from a Socrates that tracked to the same location as Thucydides and Falcon9, and was made after the last Falcon9 comment and before the first Thucydides comment.

Earthlight is a documentary produced by the University of Arizona College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and filmmaker Cody Sheehy. It poses the question: Is learning to live on the Moon the key to sustainability on Earth? The documentary aired recently on PBS but is now available online for viewing. Viewers can also purchase the documentary by clicking the shopping cart icon at http://cals.arizona.edu/earthlight.

Film synopsis:

When Apollo astronauts stood on the Moon and looked back at the Earth, they were the first humans to see our planet as a completely isolated system, bounded on all sides by black. Now, 45 years later, a new documentary produced by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at the University of Arizona (UA), “Earthlight,” explores the challenges facing the human race and how the technology we are designing to return to the Moon might be extremely useful here on Earth as well.

This 30-minute documentary leads the audience into a story about the current food challenges our civilization faces through the lens of UA Scientists who are building a greenhouse food production system that may someday be used on the Moon.

Tucson's Modern Streetcar opening day launch on Friday, July 25, saw over 17,000 passengers hop on board the much-anticipated transit system, according to the City of Tucson and the Regional Transportation Authority. 107-degree weather didn't slow down locals as eight Sun Link cars continuously took crowds of all ages down its 3.9-mile path from Friday at 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 a.m. early Saturday morning. Tucson City Manager Ricard Miranda declared the launch a "historic day for the City of Tucson."

Sun Link Project Manager Shellie Ginn said, "The Sun Link streetcar system had a great first day of service. We were able to provide a comfortable, cool ride for thousands of people and the streetcars were consistently overflowing with passengers." The cars were so full that many Sun Tran buses were used to accommodate the overflow.

As ridership slowed later into the evening, eight cars were reduced to six along the Sun Link route, which connects West Side of downtown from Mercado San Agustin to the lively heart of downtown on Congress St. and Broadway Blvd; the historical, cultural soul of Tucson, Fourth Avenue; and the University of Arizona campus. Sun Link service was free on Friday and will continue to be so through Sunday evening at 8:00 p.m., taking passengers to a series of five separate district celebrations along the route.

A jovial mood was omnipresent Friday, and could be seen on full display at the streetcar stop on Broadway and 6th Ave. as late as 1:30 a.m., as downtown bar-hopping regulars waited for their all-electric, made-in-America, thirty-ton designated driver to take them home. The streetcars will continue to run until 2:00 a.m. early Sunday morning to accommodate passengers taking advantage of several special events planned Saturday night along the route, including the Wet Hot American Block Party on the pop-up beach party MLK lot and Hotel Congress.

A fire erupted early Saturday morning at the Guadalajara Fiesta Grill on 705 N. Kolb, and was in the process of being contained by the Tucson Fire Department by 6:00 a.m., according to TFD's Facebook page.

Though Guadalajara Fiesta Grill changed its name and became an independently owned business in November of 2011, this fire comes just months after a small fire at the Guadalajara Original Grill on May 29, 2014, closed down that restaurant. The original location on 1202 E. Prince Rd. opened in 2002 and is currently under renovation.

Guadalajara Original Grill held a fundraiser at Sullivan's Steakhouse just this past Wednesday to help aid families of the workers who were displaced by its fire. On Thursday via its Facebook page, the Guadalajara Original thanked those who attended the event, saying, "Thank you to everyone that attended the benefit dinner on Wednesday night! It was a huge success. It was great seeing everyone and catching up! Pictures will follow soon. A special thanks to Sullivan's and Tom Jones for all their hard work to make it possible!"

More details to come, but TFD has announced that all firefighters made it out safely after its units went into a defensive transition. Though still battling the fierce blaze at the building on Kolb, just south of Speedway, TFD reminded, "life safety is our first priority."

UPDATE 2:40PM: Guadalajara Fiesta Grill posted this Facebook status update:

UPDATE 8:45AM: TFD has declared the building a total loss in the following statement:

FT: FC Tucson 1-0 @Whitecaps U23s. FC Tucson is in the final! pic.twitter.com/6IMWRi7uDh
— FC Tucson (@FCTucson) July 26, 2014

FC Tucson has extended their incredible season at least another night, beating the Vancouver Whitecaps U23 team 1-0 on an incredible last minute stoppage-time goal by Juan De Rada.

No rest for the winners, however, as the final is set for Saturday night at 7:30 against the Kitsap Pumas. More info and tickets available at fctucson.com.

I was on Metro Week tonight, clearly because most local journalists were busy trying to get a table at Pizzeria Bianco and I was the only person available, discussing the streetcar, medical marijuana, the death penalty and some other stuff with AZPM's Andrea Kelly and Zac Ziegler, plus my Tucson Local Media pal Thelma Grimes.

On Saturday, July 26 (tomorrow), from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., sponsored by the Tucson Police Foundation:


Check out these exhibitors:

-UAMC and Diamond Children's Center will provide pediatric and Health info and services
-Arizona Oncology will offer sun and skincare safety items
-Free school supplies will be given out, while supplies last
-Tucson Police Department will have officers on hand from the K9 Unit, SWAT Team, Internet Crimes Unit and Bicycle and Motorcycle Units to answer questions
-Representatives from The Safe Teen Accident Reduction Training program will provide advice on safe driving practices
-Tucson Police Officers Association will provide free fingerprinting for children
-Other organizations will give info and tips on bicycle and helmet safety, pool safety, seatbelt safety, anti-bullying and more

Arguably the best-named burlesque show:

Bringing their own brand of opulence and Texan sass, the performers of the Austin-based Jigglewatts Burlesque Revue will return to Tucson on their Texas Tease 'Em Tour at 10:00 p.m. Thursday, August 7, 2014 at the Surly Wench Pub located at 424 North 4th Avenue in Tucson, Arizona. Tickets are $10 general admission/$30 VIP reserved seating and available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/773158. For more information visit the official website at www.thejigglewattsburlesque.com or call 512-680-1867.

Hosted by singer/comedian Jade Esteban Estrada (Comedy Central, Bravo TV), the Jigglewatts Burlesque Revue embark on their 4th annual summer tour with dates in Phoenix, Tucson, San Diego, Los Angeles and Las Vegas. The cast features Estrada, Coco Lectric, Ruby Joule, Jolie Goodnight, Layna D'Luna, Pretty Boy Rock and Something Blue. Special appearances by local artists Stormy Leigh and Natasha Noir.

The Huffington Post calls their show "sassy and sexy...classy entertainment." The Dallas Morning News calls Estrada “funny and irreverent.”

Founded in 2006, the Jigglewatts Burlesque Revue has been entertaining audiences with their re-imaginings of classic burlesque and original forays into the art of neo-burlesque. Members of the troupe have headlined internationally and feature classically trained dancers, vocalists, comedians and entertainers whose brand of burlesque has won them a string of standing ovations among male and female adult audiences of all ages.

Congratulations to our own Jim Nintzel who is back on the TV-sphere, albeit up north so we're still out on if Maricopa County really counts. However, he did a nice job talking Tucson on Ted Simons' Arizona Horizon show on ASU's PBS station.

The termination of UA assistant professor Sue Sisley came up (minute 14:47) in the "what's happening in Tucson convo," and in response to Nintzel and Simons' comments that critics continue to say the psychiatrist-researcher was dismissed because of her own bias and not political pressure, Sisley communicated with the Weekly that she finds it frustrating that the idea she has a greater agenda or bias has merit.

"This is so deeply frustrating to me because I've never even tried marijuana so I don't have any preconceived notions about it. I've always simply felt that it deserved to be studied rigorously given the mountain of anecdotal evidence from patients, particularly suffering veterans. But I don't have any vested interest: I'm not an owner of a marijuana dispensary, I'm not a doctor who writes marijuana certifications etc. I'm not trying to create research that will guarantee marijuana is viewed in a positive light," Sisley wrote.

"That's never even crossed my mind. My sole focus has been to collect truly objective data on whole planet marijuana for the FDA to evaluate both the good and the bad. And then put all of that rigorous data into the public domain for their scrutiny."

She's a blinded independent investigator which is what makes this different that a scientist that does have an agenda—"there would be no capacity to implement or thwart the data with so many internal and external controls in place. It's an FDA approved study and will be audited constantly throughout" with both FDA monitors and IRB oversight. But I have no agenda except to conduct the most rigorous research possible to shed some light on this subject for our veterans (and data might be generalizable for patients with PTSD of all causes)."

The deadline for the UA to respond to Sisley's appeal is Monday, Aug. 14.