A new Pew Research Center survey shows a serious disconnect between what scientists and the public believe about nuclear energy and climate change. Members of the public generally don’t believe climate change is man-made, as scientists do, the poll showed. This is what the news media focused on when the…
A group of Republican Arizona lawmakers are proposing a law that would force police agencies to significantly delay the release the identity of officers involved in deadly shootings. Senate Bill 1445 would keep the officer’s identity under wraps for 90 days following any incident “that involves the use of deadly…
After diagnosing two cases of the measles in one month, the Maricopa County Department of Public Health announced that unimmunized children must stay home from school if they have been exposed to the disease. The county is in the process of contacting the families of about 195 children who were…
A Phoenix-area doctor who’s received national media attention for his stance against vaccinating children, is under investigation by one of the state’s medical boards. Dr. Jack Wolfson, a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, is under investigation by the Arizona Board of Osteopathic Examiners for several recent complaints, the agency confirmed to…
Citing Arizona’s “dangerous, severely deficient foster care system,” today a group led by the Arizona Center for the Law in the Public Interest filled a federal class action lawsuit blaming the Department of Child Safety and Department of Health Services for “structural and operational failures” harming 16,000-plus children in the…
Arizona is one step closer to officially declaring nuclear power a renewable-energy source. (Yes, you read that correctly.) The Senate Committee on Water and Energy narrowly passed SB 1134, a bill that classifies “nuclear energy from sources fueled by uranium fuel rods that include 80 percent or more of recycled…
Governor Doug Ducey is the headliner of an event at the Arizona capitol next week sponsored by the organization behind the state’s infamous Senate Bill 1062. Flyers for the Center for Arizona Policy’s “Day at the Capitol” prominently feature Ducey as the organization’s “special guest.”…
An Arizona lawmaker is again proposing a registry of convicted animal abusers. The bill proposed by Democratic Senator Steve Farley would lead to the creation of a website that would operate similarly to the state’s sex-offender registry, allowing the public to search for convicted animal abusers by name or location…
If you did this Super Bowl thing right, you’re one of the many visitors flying home from the Phoenix metro area in your private jet. The FlightAware website this morning shows what one blogger calls a “swarm” of posh personal airplanes leaving the Valley. Accessing the site’s general-aviation listing for…
Last year, the press and marijuana-legalization opponents gave a lot of attention to a study suggesting that daily marijuana causes abnormalities in the brain. New research, reportedly using better techniques, indicates that claim and other reports of cannabis-caused changes to brain structure simply aren’t true. The authors of the new…
ASU is taking a hit in the news for offering a senior-level English class next semester called U.S. Race Theory and the Problem of Whiteness. The controversial 18-student class will be taught by assistant professor Lee Bebout, whose expertise is critical race theory, American studies, and Chicano studies. Critics of…
Phoenix is often thought of as a land of sunshine, but that’s not always the case. Although Phoenix has better weather than most American cities, here are the less-than-ideal weather conditions we deal with:…
A Romanian citizen who lives in Phoenix smuggled firearms and night-vision scopes over a period of several years from Arizona to his home country, federal authorities say. Florin Ianc, 42, drew attention to himself with a claim that his truck had been stolen after he’d filled it with numerous guns…
With seven confirmed cases of measles in Arizona, and perhaps 1,000 people in the state exposed to the disease, health officials are urging everyone to get vaccinated against the disease if they haven’t already done so. At the same time, other individuals and groups are using the outbreak as an…
Cross Super Bowl XLIX madness with the insanity of the Green Acre dog fanatics, and you’ve got yourself one hothouse loony bin. The canine crazies are online crying for revenge again, riled up this time by the news that New England Patriots’ defensive tackle Alan Branch lost four dogs at…
At the end of the week, we bring you a roundup of visitors to the desert’s own Fourth Avenue Jail. To be considered for our Maricopa County mugshots of the week, get arrested, strike a pose, and we’ll take care of the rest. This week, we found some folks who…
On Monday afternoon, Arizona State University approved a new student-faculty “amorous relationship policy.” Faculty members applauded when the vote was tallied, and Faculty Senate President Helen Ossipov told New Times she was “very glad this passed.” The university called it “an important step” toward “[ensuring] that faculty members and lecturers…
With seven measles cases now identified in Arizona, health officials estimate that more than 1,000 people in the state may have been exposed to the highly contagious disease. Five of those confirmed cases, including a family of four who lives in Pinal County, were linked to the December measles outbreak…
In the future, your Arizona driver’s license could be kept in an app on your smartphone. A bill proposed by Republican Senator Jeff Dial would allow the testing and implementation of an electronic driver’s license system, which is under development already in Iowa. “I think government shouldn’t be in the…
Why is rock en español so mellow? You’d think that with so much injustice, Mexican rock bands would sound angrier. El Gigante de Anaheim You’d think so, right? Back in the Mexican’s rockero days, groups like Maldita Vecindad, Café Tacuba, El Gran Silencio, and so many more were laying down…
A few Republican lawmakers are trying to sneak past the Voter Protection Act with a draconian DUI bill that targets the state’s medical-marijuana users. State Representative Sonny Borrelli, R-Kingman, is the prime sponsor of HB 2273, a bill that could result in DUI convictions for medical-cannabis users who aren’t impaired…
Anyone can tell by looking at Kyle Middlebrooks’ battered practice helmet that the guy has taken some hard knocks. The Arizona State University senior running back sustained several serious injuries during his four-year college football career. Just months after recovering from surgery to repair a dislocated shoulder, Middlebrooks tore his…
