We’ve all seen the many viral videos of town hall meetings during which Republican voters are haranguing their elected Republican officials over the gutting of federal programs crucial to American families. As a result, the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has been advising Republicans to stop holding town hall meetings for their […]
Democrats, take this opportunity to engage!
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Local high school students stage Newsies in Santa Maria
Pioneer Valley High School presents its production of Newsies, with performances at the school’s Performing Arts Center—aka the SMJUHSD Performing Arts Center—in Santa Maria through Saturday, March 15 (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 7 p.m. each evening). Inspired by the Newsboys’ Strike of 1899 in New York City, the plot of this Broadway sensation centers […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Artisan natural perfumer Susan Farber guides CalNAM visitors in building transportive scents from the ground up
Follow your nose Sol Aromatics founder Susan Farber will host natural perfume-making workshops at the California Nature Art Museum in Solvang on Sunday, March 16, and Sunday, April 13, from 1 to 4 p.m. on both days. Register in advance at calnatureartmuseum.org. Admission is $130 for museum members and $140 for nonmembers. The museum is […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
High Potential turns the police procedural on its ear
High Potential What’s it rated? TV-14 When? 2024-present Where’s it showing? Hulu Kaitlin Olson stars in this comedy series that follows single mom of three Morgan Gillory as she navigates a new career with the LAPD after the department learns of her high IQ and knack for solving crime. Olson is always funny, in that […]
Posted inMusic, Arts & Culture
Mickey 17 broadly satirizes capitalism and cult of personality
Mickey 17 What’s it rated? R What’s it worth, Anna? Full price What’s it worth, Glen? Full price Where’s it showing? Regal Edwards RPX Santa Maria, Movies Lompoc, Regal Edwards Arroyo Grande Writer-director Bong Joon-ho (Parasite, Snowpiercer, The Host) adapts Ashton Edward’s 2022 sci-fi novel Mickey7 to the big screen, with Robert Pattinson as Mickey […]
Posted inOpinion
A coastal assault
Here are some questions that probably aren’t keeping you up at night: Why isn’t the Hearst Ranch a golf resort? Why aren’t we still arguing about whether Los Osos should have a sewer system and how it should work? Why wasn’t a seismic survey allowed to devastate our local fisheries and marine wildlife with underwater […]
Posted inOpinion
A closer look at the county supervisors, farmworkers, pay raises, and hypocrisy
I admire the Santa Maria Sun Canary. Truly! The Canary is one straight-from-the-hip-shooting commentator, heavy on the acerbic humor. The bird’s bite definitely hurts more than its chirp. And I am flattered the Canary referred to me in the bird’s commentary about the Santa Barbara County supervisors giving themselves a raise—which I support (“Eyebrow Raise,” […]
Posted inOpinion
Cry fowl
Our North County Supervisors are looking to my waterfowl cousins for wisdom these days, drawing upon the adage, “What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.” Instead of benefitting the area’s feathered friends, 5th District Supervisor Steve Lavagnino is crying fowl, I mean foul, about battery energy storage system (BESS) facilities being subjected […]
Posted inNews
Santa Maria High School’s Future Farmers of America chapter ranked No. 1 in California
Out of more than 360 chapters across California, Santa Maria High School’s Future Farmers of America (FFA) was ranked No. 1 in the state for 2024. According to Santa Maria High School FFA Chapter President Kayce Van Horn, students involved in the high school’s FFA chapter build a variety of life and leadership skills through […]
Posted inNews
Political Watch: March 13, 2024
• U.S. Sens. Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla (D-California) sent a letter to the Department of the Interior on March 6 asking it to ensure that there are no more cuts to the Bureau of Reclamation, which is set to lose about 100 employees in California. That’s about 10 percent of its regional staff, according […]
Posted inNews
North County supervisors say renewable projects should get same treatment as oil and gas
From 2018 to 2023, incidents at battery energy storage system (BESS) facilities dropped by 97 percent. That’s not just for fire. It’s for all emergency responses to BESS facilities, Central Coast Community Energy CEO Robert Shaw told the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors on March 11. The number came from a 2024 Electric Power […]
Posted inNews
Lompoc moves to ban homeless encampments, keeping personal belongings on public property
Leaving personal belongings or camping on public property will soon be a no-no in Lompoc, thanks to a unanimous decision by the City Council on March 4. A 2024 U.S. Supreme Court decision paved the way for the city to enforce against those kinds of things, according to City Attorney Jeff Malawy. Last year, the […]