Friday, March 18, 2016
Well UA sports fans, now that basketball season is over (sorry), it's time to switch gears and start cheering for our Wildcats on the baseball field.
We've got tickets to four games next week, and you could take 'em home! We've for four tickets to each of the following games:
- Tuesday, March 22 against Utah Valley at 6 p.m.
- Thursday, March 24 against UCLA at 6 p.m.
- Friday, March 25 against UCLA at 6 p.m.
- Saturday, March 26 against UCLA at 1 p.m.
Thursday, March 17, 2016
Jake Allen (the UA fan pictured above) resigns himself to the No. 6 seed Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team's inevitable fate on the second floor of Gentle Ben's Brewing Company in Tucson.
The Wildcats lost 65-55 to No. 11 seed Wichita State in the first round of the 2016 men's basketball NCAA Tournament
"I did not think we would win tonight—our team is too soft," Allen lamented during the final few minutes of the game. Allen, born and raised in Tucson, UA alumni, junior varsity football coach at Ironwood Ridge High School and self-proclaimed "sports guy," has been following the Arizona Wildcats for "literally my whole life" and cites previous point guard TJ McConnell's career with Arizona as his favorite memory of the team.
According to Allen, "the story of the season is that no one stepped up as that clutch, go-to guy. Last year, TJ was clutch in tournament play, but this year we haven't that player." Allen continue to theorize that, "you're going to see a lot of people jump on the 'Screw Sean Miller' bandwagon. I don't think it was him. He did the best he could with what he had," acknowledging the inherent weaknesses of the 2015-2016 team and the numerous injuries that plagued the Arizona bench. Allen simply described the night's game as both a "rough" and "emotional" experience, but remains a diehard Arizona fan eagerly awaiting next season.
Tags: arizona basketball , wildcats , university of arizona , UA , U of A , tucson , NCAA tournament , march madness , sports , basketball , sean miller , providence , Dunkin Donuts Center , wichita state , shockers , loss
Bernie Sanders is coming back to Tucson for a campaign stop Friday evening. He was the first presidential hopeful in the two leading political parties to pay a visit to the Old Pueblo.
The progressive Democrat dropped by back in October, where he attracted approximately 11,000 to Reid Park.
Sanders was in Phoenix Tuesday night, ahead of the Arizona primary election on Tuesday, March 22. Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton will be in Phoenix on Monday for a get-out-the-vote event.
Republican presidential hopefuls Donald Trump and Ted Cruz will also make their way to Phoenix. Trump is planning a gathering in Fountain Hills on Saturday. Cruz is attending "An American Rally" at Arizona Christian University on Friday, with former Texas Gov. Rick Perry and conservative TV and radio host Glenn Beck by his side.
Last week, Green Party candidates Jill Stein and Kent Mesplay were in Tucson. Stein paid a visit to Oak Flat and the U.S.-Mexico borderlands.
The Sanders rally is at the Tucson Convention Center and is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. It is free, but organizers are encouraging people to RSVP. Doors open at 4:30 p.m. Organizers also ask attendees to only bring small personal items, such as keys and cell phones, for security reasons. Weapons, sharp objects, chairs, and signs or banners on sticks will not be allowed.
(Added after publication):
Trump is coming to Tucson on Saturday at 2 p.m. He'll also appear at the TCC. Admission and other specifics haven't been released yet.
Tags: bernie sanders , donald trump , hillary clinton , ted cruz , tucson convention center , primaries , phoenix , tucson , arizona , election 2016 , #freechrischristie , Video
Wednesday was great night out last night at SXSW, beginning with the incomparable Charles Bradley at the annual NPR Music Showcase at Stubb’s Barbecue. The 67-year-old Bradley belted out a set of horn-heavy soul music and told the crowd: “All I want to do on my journey back to my father’s house is show all my brothers and sisters that I am for real.” You are, Mr. Bradley. You most certainly are.
Bradley was followed by Chicano Batman. Like Tucson’s own Sergio Mendoza with his indie mambo act, Chicano Batman has found a way to mix traditional Latino sound with something else: In this case, rthe L.A. band does some kind of psychedelic Chicano soul music accented with a rare dash of polka. Que bueno! Hear what they're all about here.
Up next was Mitski, a simple three-piece led by Mitski Miyawaki, who led the crowd at Stubb’s straight into the uncanny valley with her otherworldly and occasionally on-the-edge-of-creepy vocals that felt like emo punk straight out of Twin Peaks. Get a taste here.
And then there was Margo Price, who brought a lot of rock to the country-rock spectrum she’s on. She sings a lot about tough times on the farm and such, but lights up those country tropes with a band that delivers sizzling guitar licks. If you want to check it out, Price’s new album, Midwest Farmer's Daughter, is streaming on NPR music starting today.
I set off from Stubbs for a change in scenery and found myself catching a little bit of Astronauts, Etc. and Yuck before finally landing at an absolutely explosive set by Diarrhea Planet, which was everything rock and roll was, is and should ever be—loud, in-your-face screeching electric guitars and booming drumbeats that had the audience—and the occasional band member—crowdsurfing atop the dancing masses. Zounds, it was a good way to finish out the night.
Sacha Baron Cohen delivers his first bona fide bomb with The Brothers Grimsby, a tired action comedy with no comedic nuance to speak of.
In the past, Cohen has thrived with his mockumentary format, or simply in the service of a good comedic director (most notably, Adam McKay on Talladega Nights). Now, he’s penned a screenplay for director Louis Leterrier, a man mostly known for action fare like The Incredible Hulk and Clash of the Titans, although his lousy Now You See Me was more of a drama.
This colossal mess has Cohen playing a football-loving idiot in search of his long lost brother (Mark Strong). It turns out the brother is a spy, and when the two get together, they are a regular old odd couple.
The plot is nothing but a setup for scenes like Cohen and Strong stuck in an elephant’s vagina, resulting in them getting fucked by many large elephant penises. Sorry folks, there was really no delicate way to describe that scene to you. In fact, I cleaned it up a bit, for what actually happens in the movie is far more disgusting and raunchy than my description.
Now, I do believe there’s a director somewhere who could’ve made the sight of Cohen and Strong covered in elephant cum hilarious. Leterrier isn’t that man, and most, if not all, of the jokes in this movie bomb big time. I’ve been a Cohen fan in the past, but if this is a sign of things to come, I’m renouncing my admiration as of this date.
Tags: The Brothers Grimsby , Sacha Baron Cohen , Louis Leterrier , elephant cum , Video
Ben Carson published an op ed on February 26 about the patriotism of "our brothers and sisters in the Territories of American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.” Trump used the same wording in an op ed he published on March 9. And that's only the beginning. The two columns share about half of their language. Clearly, without any room for doubt, the Trump column lifted specific wording and the general concept from Carson's column. You can see the two columns side by side here.
I'm sure neither Trump nor Carson penned their op eds. I don't know if either of them even bothered to look at what was published under their names. Someone in the campaigns probably decided it was a good idea to pen a column, and some staffer wrote it. Trump picked up Carson staffers when he left the race, so one of them might have done the cut-and-paste from what was already on the Carson hard drive, with a few variations.
Trump's not the first political or academic plagiarist, and he won't be the last. Still, when Joe Biden didn't bother to attribute part of a speech he gave to the original speaker awhile ago, it cost him big time. It might have even cost him a chance at the presidency. Rand Paul got caught copying stuff straight from Wikipedia and other online sources without attribution, but he never got far enough in his presidential bid for it to come back to haunt him. Authors get their hands slapped for this kind of thing and lose prestige and credence which they have to earn back, if they can.
Will the Trump campaign word theft matter? Of course not. Next to the stuff he's gotten away with so far, this is like taking an extra M&M out of a candy bowl without asking first. The guy is good enough, he might even work it into his speeches and get cheers for his efficiency. "Who has time to make sure every word I say is mine? How PC can you get? There's just not enough time. I'm too busy Making America Great Again. U.S.A. U.S.A. U.S.A." (The crowd goes wild.)
Tags: Donald Trump , Ben Carson , plagiarism
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Tomorrow is the big day— St. Patrick's Day! The day to celebrate Irish heritage (honorary or not,) learn a jig, eat good food, and drink good beer!
Wondering where to celebrate? Don't worry. There are plenty of options for bar hoppers and families alike.
Bar Festivals
The Hotel Congress
311 E. Congress St.
$3 at door if you're not wearing green
Party 'till 2 a.m. at Hotel Congress! The celebration begins at 11 a.m. when the Cup Café begins serving special Irish menu items. Club Congress doors open at 8 p.m. and your cover is free with green clothing! Drink specials begin after 4 p.m. The Great Guinness Toast will be at 10 p.m. in the hotel plaza.
O'Malley's on Fourth
247 N. 4th Ave.
Presale tickets $10
Green beer and whiskey will be flowing at O'Malley's! Doors open at 8 a.m., live music starts at 11 a.m. and traditional Irish food is served all day.
Auld Dubliner on University
800 E. University Blvd. #104
Celebrate a true Irish St. Patrick’s Day from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. at the Auld Dubliner, Tucson’s authentic Irish restaurant and bar. The pub will open at 6 a.m. The Beer Garden in Geronimo Plaza will open at 11 a.m. Food and beverages will be available in both areas.
Tags: St. Patrick's day , St. Patrick , festival , beer , booze , drinks , drink specials , over 21 , fun , celebrate , holiday , green
• In 1996-97, UHS had 624 students. In 2013-14, it had 992 students.
• In 1996-97, 431 UHS students were Anglo (69.1 percent) and 111 were Hispanic (17.8 percent). In 2013-14, 493 were Anglo (49.7 percent) and 322 were Hispanic (32.5 percent).
No question, the total number of students at UHS went up over the years, even as the total TUSD student population dropped. The percentage of Hispanic students increased as well. But the district has a far larger percentage of Hispanic students now than in 1996. At the same time, more out-of-district students are attending UHS than previously. That's where the numbers start getting complicated. Basically, the ethnic balance at UHS has changed in pretty much the same way as the ethnic balance in the district, but the number of students who have come to UHS from outside the district has increased. I'll sort the various factors out as well as I can below.
By the way, none of what I'm writing is about the quality of UHS, its curriculum or anything like that. It's only about crunching enrollment numbers to see what I would find.
Tags: University High School , TUSD , Enrollment numbers , Anglo , Hispanic
When you’re working on something on the scale of SXSW, there will be the occasional technical difficulty—and so it was at the SXSW Music Opening Party at Maggie’s May, where all the tangles of wires and machinery malfunctioned and a visibly furious Har Mar Superstar tried to get it all straightened out, to no avail.
Har Mar told the crowd he wasn’t going to be able to play the set he’d prepared, “which sucks some big fat dick.”
He did blaze through one song before he and his band stormed off stage. Hey, he’s got a few more sets on the schedule, so perhaps our paths will intersect again before the week is out.
To switch things up, my crew headed over to Hideout to check out comedian Nate Bargatze, who presented a hilarious set about raising kids, why he quit drinking. He closed with a tale about a visit to North Carolina’s Cape Fear Serpentarium, which concluded with the escape of a crocodile and a mass panic among the tour group. (Check out this one-star review from Trip Adviser from June 14, 2015 for the horrifying yet hilarious details.)
Not much else to report from night one—a few long lines, a lot of wandering downtown Austin’s streets and a decision to call it a night around midnight because of my own technical difficulties. Looking forward to a lot more music today.
