Casa Maria mission was part of the lay Catholic worker movement founded in the 1930s. Liberty, Social Justice and Peace—just words? Sure, but with each year they become more important to the health of a city and its residents and those visiting or just passing though. Like many of you, I used to see Brian Flagg on television in a role that was and is uniquely his. I liked his gentle yet direct voice on the radio, defining issues for the poor, for minorities, for those whose very life is affected by the smallest increase in the bus fare, the closing of vital neighborhood schools, and always to feed the hungry—the Casa Maria Soup Kitchen. He's been an advocate on our streets for thirty some years. This is a week for gratitude, with Thanksgiving just around the corner.

Gabriel Sullivan is a Tucsonan, a very gifted one at that. A few years back, following a brief tour, he left me in Austria to fly myself home while he headed on to Denmark to make what would be a very different record—JVPITER with Desoto Caucus for the most part. On arriving home, he played me a track called "Mr. Flagg." When it was through, I asked to hear it again. A few days ago I asked Gabe about the song. He thought and said that he took inspiration from Brian—a man who walks his talk, a man who has given so much to others. The song is a lullaby, comfort in its words, the chorus a mantra (Where do you find the will/Where do you find the will, Mr. Flagg/To hold the hands of all these good men). By its end, it transcends a song and become reassurance of those who love and those who struggle to be loved.

This Monday, Nov. 21, is the annual Thanksgiving benefit for Casa Maria Soup Kitchen. a tradition that has been kept alive for the last 13 years thanks to Rich Hopkins. The event will be held at Hotel Congress (311 E. Congress). Doors 7 p.m., show starts at 7:30. A $10 donation is suggested, and please bring some cans of food if you can spare them. I would like to ask you all to come down and join us for this event, and if you can't make it, please consider taking a moment to visit the Casa Maria website for instructions on how to make a donation.

Cesar Aguirre will begin the show, RIch Hopkins and the Luminarios will kick up the decibels as always and I am looking forward to sharing a couple songs with Gabriel Sullivan and his band who will close out this beautiful night. Hope to see a lot of folks 'there who don't usually make it out. God Bless.

A post-election shot across the bow of the First Amendment.

Kellyanne Conway:

"I find Harry Reid's public comments and insults about Donald Trump and other Republicans to be beyond the pale. . . . And he should be very careful about characterizing somebody in a legal sense. He thinks — he thinks he's just being some kind of political pundit there, but I would say be very careful about the way you characterize it." [boldface added for emphasis]

Throughout the campaign, Trump claimed Hillary should be in jail, that if he were elected, he would appoint a special prosecutor to go after "crooked Hillary." Gleeful crowds responded, "Lock her up! Lock her up!" Trump called the women who accused him of sexual assault liars and threatened to sue them. His antagonism toward the media led him to say he would "open up our libel laws" so the press could be sued for what is now legally protected speech. But all that was before the election, when Trump was only a candidate. It was just idle talk—vicious, dangerous, but idle talk.

The election is over, and Trump is president-elect. Nothing he or his closest advisors says is idle talk anymore. Kellyanne Conway made the statement above five days after the election, so it means something. It was Conway letting everyone know that outgoing Senate minority leader Harry Reid better be damn careful about the way he criticizes Trump, or else. Of course, she wasn't just addressing her comment to Reid. She was telling everyone who was listening, politician, pundit or private citizen, to watch what they say about Trump, or his administration just might come after them with the full force of the U.S. government.

OK, we’re just gonna say it: If we possessed the financial means to have gourmet chefs cook a scrumptious, high-end, three-course meal for us this Thanksgiving, especially in an incredibly luxurious setting like a breezy, second-story patio overlooking Tucson from the foothills, or a spacious, wood-paneled, indoor dining room with high, painted ceilings—we’d, um, do it.

Yes, we admit it: If we could, we’d forgo the tradition of spending all day cooking with our loved ones because, while it’s a sweet idea, well, preparing all that food (or for us, even one dish) is a lot of work.

Oh, and the football? The parade? We could frankly take or leave that bourgeois TV stuff.

If you feel the same way (and have the means) this Thanksgiving, head over to Five Palms Steak & Seafood, a big, gorgeous restaurant featuring the aforementioned patio and painted-ceiling dining room, plus of course the five-star eats. This year, the menu will include amuse-bouche appetizers, followed by a butter lettuce salad or sweet cream of potato soup (first course); herb-infused turkey with pork ciabatta stuffing, green beans and mashed potatoes with gravy (main course); and for dessert, your choice of pumpkin pie panna cotta and ginger-snap streusel, chocolate fund decadence or deconstructed pecan pie. Alternate main-courses are also available: prime rib, pan-seared salmon or wild mushroom linguini (for vegetarians, of course).

Enjoy the “piano bar”—how posh!—before and/or after your delicious Turkey Day meal. (Is “Turkey Day” too vulgar to use in a blurb about such a fancy restaurant? Oops.)

The dinner will take place at 4 p.m., Thurs., Nov. 24, at Five Palms Steak & Seafood, 3500 E. Sunrise Dr. The dinner is $60 per person; make reservations by calling 615-5555.

In the last month, a spike in distemper and parvo cases constituted an outbreak in Tucson and a warning for Marana. Both of the diseases are highly contagious and possibly fatal for dogs who contract either illness.

Last week, the Pima Animal Care Center halted all voluntary owner surrenders after the spike in distemper and strep zoo, another fatal dog illness, killed at least four dogs and sickened 10 others at the shelter, according to the Arizona Daily Star. 

That a parvo outbreak struck the northwest side of Tucson that killed more pets within the past several weeks. Dogs that were treated for the disease visited the Crossroads at Silverbell Dog Park.

To keep your dog safe from contracting parvo or distemper, make sure to understand the illnesses and to look out for the sign and symptoms of the diseases.

What is distemper?

Distemper is a virus that attacks the respiratory, gastrointestinal and nervous system.

How does it spread?

The virus spreads through contact with droplets from an infected animal's cough, sneeze, eye or nasal discharge.

Signs and symptoms:

Typically begins with signs of a respiratory illness like fever, cough, eye and nasal discharge. Gastrointestinal symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, lack of appetite, weight loss — these usually occur in the early stages. Neurological symptoms include tremors of the legs, head and neck, stumbling, seizures and paralysis. Some dogs also experience an overgrowth and hardening of the foot pads.

What is parvo?

Parvo is a potentially deadly virus that attacks a dog's gastrointestinal tract and, occasionally, heart tissue.

How does it spread?

Parvo shed in the excrement of infected dogs and can live on surfaces for months in extreme conditions. The virus can also e transmitted from contaminated surfaces like clothing, shoes and floors.

Signs and symptoms:

Most common signs of the virus is vomiting and diarrhea. Depression, fever, loss of appetite, weight, activity and water intake are also symptoms of the disease. One hallmark symptom is bloody vomit and diarrhea which can mean serious damage to internal organs.

What you can do to to keep you pet healthy

Both parvo and distemper are serious diseases that need immediate medical attention once contracted, but there are ways to keep your pet from getting sick. It is recommended owners keep their dogs from dog parks, pet stores and other areas where viruses have a high risk of transmission, according to the American Society of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Also be sure to get pets vaccinated against the virus, especially young dogs that are more susceptible to disease.  

Your Weekly guide to keeping busy in the Old Pueblo.

Pick of the Week: Slut Walk

Slut Walk: Fight rape culture, victim blaming and street harassment at the annual Slut Walk! Curious about the name? As organizers put it on their Facebook event, "In using the word 'slut,' we are not dehumanizing ourselves, but rather humanizing a label, showing the wide variety of people slut pertains to, whether embraced or prescribed to by the outside world." SlutWalk is a movement that fights sexism, classism, racism, ableism, fatphobia, homophobia and transphobia, and is sex worker inclusive. What more could we ask for out of a community event? It all goes down this Saturday, Nov. 19. The fun starts with a resource fair at the UA Women's Plaza of Honor. At 5 p.m., march down University Boulevard and down Fourth Avenue, ending at Cafe Passé (415 N. 4th Ave.) for some speakers and free food.

Food & Booze

Wobble Gobble Bar Crawl: Ever feel as though you don't have enough time to celebrate November's turkey themed festivities. Join the Tucson Holiday Bar Crawl for a fun night out on the town in celebration of Thanksgiving. Don't forget to dress up in your favorite holiday-themed costumes to participate in the holiday costume contest. 9 p.m.-midnight. Saturday, Nov. 19. Hotel Congress, 311 E. Congress St. Bring money for booze.

Sweet Charity Dessert and Cocktail Challenge: Enjoy more than 40 desserts representing Tucson's creative culinary arts from local chefs. There will be cocktails, beer and wine samplings, a silent auction, merchant specials and entertainment and all proceeds go to support arts education. 6:30 PM Friday, Nov. 18. Loews Ventana Canyon Resort, 7000 N. Resort Drive. $45.

Tuesday Tastings: Celebrate Thanksgiving in the booziest way possible! Tap and Bottle's Tuesday Tasting will feature Thanksgiving inspired beers. The event is open to the general public ages 21 and up. 5 - 9 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 22. Tap and Bottle, 403 N. Sixth Ave. Bring money for booze.  

Thanksgiving at Cup Cafe: Enjoy holiday specials for three days in a row leading up to the nation's favorite turkey day. The downtown restaurant will feature special menu items like Virginia eggs benedict, coffee cured Virginia ham and even a turkey dinner. Don't forget to satisfy your sweet tooth with the cafe's by-the-slice holiday pies. Nov. 24-25 Cup Cafe, 311 E. Congress St.

Performance

Ballet Tucson Opening Night Gala: Enjoy a night of fine dance from Tucson's own professional ballet company. Ballet Tucson will old it's annual opening day gala. The gala will feature a pre-performance wine and buffet reception, silent auction and a post-performance champagne reception with the cast. The company will premiere two new ballets: Spirit Garden and Perseus and Andromeda at this one-night-only event. Gala Reception at 6:30 p.m., Performance at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18. Temple of Music and Art, 330 S. Scott Ave. $100 per person.

Estampas Porteñas: Deseos: This Argentinian tango company will take to the UA's Cenntenial Hall to present their new dance production, Deseos: Stories of Longing and Desire told through Argentine Tango and Music. The set will include 25 dancers moving to show the "heart and soul" of Argentina. The performance will also include on-stage 3D projections to take to audience across Argentina. 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 18. Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. $20-$55.

UA Presents-Vocalocity: Experience Pitch Perfect in real life, join UA Presents as they host the a cappella group, Vocalocity. The production is brought to you by the creative mind of Deke Sharon who not only arranges and coaches on the singing show the Sing Off, but also is the music director of the cult film Pitch Perfect. Vocoalocity will bring you arrangements from every genre of music and will keep you on your toes the entire show. Don't miss out on this aca-exciting event! 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20. Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. $15-$40. music, entertainment

The Sound of Music comes to Tucson: This musical classic will take to the UA's Centennial Hall for six days only presented by Broadway in Tucson in conjunction with UA Presents. The musical is under the direction of Tony Award winner Jack O'Brien with music by Richard Rodgers and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II. times vary Nov. 29-Dec. 4 Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. $19 - $100.

Pabst Blue Ribbon flowed with the steady stream of drunken humanity that moved through Tucson's Che’s Lounge last Saturday night. Others stood close to the band to watch and listen, and some danced. It was a birthday party for storied Tucson musician and treasure Joey Peña (his 50th!). Spirits were high.

The even more storied Naked Prey kicked things off. (The band, you’ll recall, formed in back in ’82 by former Green on Red trapsman Van Christian, earned a Euro fanbase and have seven albums to their credit.) Christian’s brand of “Hard Roots” was tonight backed by guitarist Loren Dirks, bassist Brian Green, multi-instrumentalist Bill Elm and Peña himself on drums.

The crack combo, which frontman Christian hilariously referred to as “boot camp” for local aspiring musicians, played tunes that spanned their history. But it was the song “Push Comes to Shove,” from Christian’s 2013 solo album Party of One that stung most. The quieter studio version boiled over live into a booze-addled rock ’n’ roll frenzy. Local guitar-hero Clif Taylor sat in on the finale. 

Afterwards, on the sidewalk outside of Che’s, Peña seemed ecstatic, pausing to catch his breath before gushing, “Dude, I fucking love playing the drums.”  

Now, you no longer have to adore your local library in private. You can send a love letter to the your favorite library about anything that swoons you—the old book smell, the never-ending shelves or the cool librarian that always helps you out. 

After four years of Love Letters to Tucson, a project started by local blogger Rachel Miller, Pima County libraries is now starting their own version of the project called Love Letters to My Library. This new project started on Oct. 21 in collaboration with local libraries and Miller herself.

Local libraries will take in new entries every month on the libraries' website and on the official website for Love Letters to Tucson. If you've got some love to share to your library or any questions about the program you can email [email protected].

I'm a day late writing about the rally against Trump on the UA Mall Monday night, and four decades too old to be an age-appropriate witness to the student-organized, student-led and student-centered gathering, but that won't stop me from saying a few words about the event which, for me, ranged from positive to inspiring.

I arrived around 4:30pm when there were a few dozen people milling around on the grass and a handful of organizers setting up the stage. By the time the rally began at 5, the numbers had grown to a few hundred. I was near the front, so I couldn't get an accurate read on the size of the crowd, except that I saw the arc of bodies surrounding the front of the stage swelling as the event progressed. The Star, which isn't known for exaggerating numbers at events, wrote that there were thousands of people. I'd say that's about right.

The vast majority of the crowd was college-aged. There was nothing "professional" about the organizers or the crowd, contrary to the accusation from Trump that the people on the streets since he was elected have been "professional" protesters. Seven UA students planned the event and got all the necessary permissions from the university, and the crowd was dominated by young-adult faces with younger and older folks mixed in. I'm guessing many of the participants haven't attended a whole lot of protests before this rally.

The rally on the Mall lasted two hours before the crowd headed to Catalina Park. Mostly, people took turns talking onstage. That's a long time to listen to speaker after speaker, time enough for people to get bored and drift away. But the crowd stayed, and grew. I was surprised to feel its energy increase with each speaker.

The early speakers embodied the youthful idealism of Love, Peace and Righteous Pain and Anger. I enjoyed being in the midst of all that energy—it took me back to my college protest days—but I have to admit I'm too old and jaded to feel like I was a part of it. But as more people came to center stage and spoke, something gripped me which was more important and visceral than a condemnation of Trump and a celebration of the speakers' values. The people who came to center stage one by one or in twos and threes represented a rich tapestry of races, ethnic groups, religions and sexual orientations. If I remember correctly, most of them were female, with straight, white females in the minority. Many spoke of their fears. They felt targeted directly or indirectly by Trump and his followers. They felt unsafe. A country that seemed to be leaning in the direction of tolerance and acceptance over the past eight years was threatening to turn angry and vicious, with Trump and his allies who will soon run the country leading the way.

Tucson DJ and hip hop enthusiast Pike Romero has been doing a lot with Tucson’s hip hop community, focusing on local artists and for some time. From B-Boys and B-Girls to producers and DJs, Romero likes to curate interesting, and at times off beat, events and hip hop shows in Tucson. Romero is also creator of WeAreBugginOut and director of the Tucson Hip Hop Festival.

What was the first concert you attended?

It was my friends band but I can’t remember my friends band name. Ummmmm, I’m just gonna say the first major show that I went to, but now I can’t remember the name of the tour…. Oh, it was at the Rialto and it was De La Soul, Biz Markie, The Pharcyde and it was the… nope, I can say that one because I went to a jam, a b-boy jam at the downtown Y and it was before this.

What was the first album you owned?

In my mind, I remember getting a Fat Boys tape. I think I was four and I got it at the swap meet and now I’m trying to remember the name of that Fat Boys tape, I think it’s just Fat Boys. I use to play it over and over and I remember specifically getting it at the swap meet with my dad. It was Crushin'.

What are you listening to these days?

The latest thing I’ve been listening to is SNOH AALEGRA. The new Common. On my way here I was listening to Public Enemy’s "It Takes a Nation." I mean everything! I’ve been listening to "Black Beatles" a lot by Rae Sremmurd it's a good song.

What artist, genre or musical trend does everyone seem to love, but you just don't get?

That’s a tough one man, 'cause I’m really open and I really don't  judge others opinions of their art. I’m just trying to think of something that really annoys me but I don't think I have something!

What musical act, current or defunct, would you most like to see perform live?

I would’ve like to have seen Public Enemy in the heyday, late '80s early '90s. Nirvana as a whole I would’ve like to have seen.

What is your favorite guilty pleasure?

I think until I heard about SoundCloud rappers or SoundCloud rap, I didn’t know anything about it and now it has grown so much that it’s kinda the popular music to listen to so, cloud rap or SoundCloud rap.

What song would you like to have played at your funeral?

“Always and Forever” by Heatwave. That’s just my favorite song ever, of all time.

What artist changed your life and how?

Tupac is first artist that stands in my mind, but I don't really don't know how. Granted he was pretty vulgar and misogynistic with his lyrics but he also had a sense of being human and I related to him for some reason at the age of 12 and 13 you know.

Figurative gun to your head, what is your favorite album of all time?

Madvillain’s “Madvillainy.” That did a lot for me in my early 20s and during college and me really branching out to do hip hop. That would be the one.

Mel Gibson directs his first movie in a decade and—surprise—the sucker bleeds. It bleeds a lot.

As a director, Gibson stands alongside the likes of Sam Raimi, David Cronenberg and Peter Jackson as a master of body horror. Yes, I will go so far as to say his latest, Hacksaw Ridge, is an all out horror film in parts. His depiction of a World War II battle makes George Romero’s Dawn of the Dead look like Zootopia.

The movie tells the true story of Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield), a battlefield medic and the first of three conscientious objectors in U.S. warfare history to receive the Medal of Honor. The dude refused to pick up a gun, or any weapon for that matter, during his time served in Okinawa. That didn’t stop him from braving the battlefields with comrades, eventually saving the lives of 75 men during horrendously bloody battles.

Much of the film’s first half is devoted to Doss’s backstory, a troubled childhood with his alcoholic World War I veteran father (a good Hugo Weaving) and an eventual romance with future wife Dorothy Schutte (Teresa Palmer). The early goings in the film are handled well, although they are a little schmaltzy at times. Gibson isn’t at his best when he’s handling the romance stuff.

When Doss goes to boot camp and faces off against commanding officers like Captain Glover (Sam Worthington) and Sgt. Howell (Vince Vaughn), the film starts to get very interesting. Due to his Seventh Day Adventist beliefs, Doss refuses to pick up a rifle, and this gets him into all sorts of jams on the training field and in the barracks. After a detour for a court-martial hearing, Doss and his infantry mates are deployed to Japan.

When the action switches to the scaling of the Maeda Escarpment a.k.a. Hacksaw Ridge, the movie becomes perhaps the most grueling war movie experience ever made.