AltWeeklies Wire
California's Prop. 8 Defeat: A Bungled Campaignnew

The single biggest reason for the Proposition 8 loss was an ineffective and inept campaign strategy by the leadership of the No on 8 campaign.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Terry Leftgoff |
12-08-2008 |
LGBT
The Brief but Violent Life of the Tea Firenew

At least 210 homes -- including 130 within city limits -- were destroyed by the devastating fire, which has been determined to have been caused be a bonfire started by a group of 10 18- to 22-year-olds the previous night.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Chris Meagher |
11-24-2008 |
Disasters
Enter the Allospherenew

Colorful and scientific, the $10-million machine at University of California-Santa Barbara gives glimpses into brain activity and atomic relationships, with much more promised for the future.
Santa Barbara Independent |
D.J. Palladino |
11-10-2008 |
Education
Global Warming in a Time of Economic Meltdownnew

The credit crisis threatens progress on the energy/global warming front, since the needed major research and development on renewable energies, as well as the needed new infrastructure, require credit which has become very scarce. But the world cannot afford a time out.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Walter Kohn, Alan Heeger and Herbert Kroemer |
10-27-2008 |
Environment
Is California's Solar and Clean Energy Act a Critical Tool or Critically Flawed?new

Two environmentalists face off on Proposition 7, which will be voted on by Californians in November.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Tam Hunt and Cliff Chen |
10-20-2008 |
Environment
Learning to Live with Fire in Santa Barbaranew

We love living right on the edge of one of the world's most scenic backdrops, but the privilege brings with it the potential for catastrophic disaster most any time the weather turns hot and the wind blows dry.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Ray Ford |
09-30-2008 |
Disasters
The Dust Bowl Cometh to Californianew

Will we control climate change in time to save California's crops? "There's a lot of different speculation, and I don't think anybody fully knows what's going to happen," says vintner Richard Sanford.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Sam Kornell |
09-30-2008 |
Environment
How to Harvest Rainwater for the Futurenew

In many developing nations, the need for water and the lack of public supplies has forced the population to capture rainwater and save it for use throughout the year, both for irrigating and for drinking. Incredibly, some states in America prohibit such resourcefulness.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Alastair Bland |
09-15-2008 |
Environment
Thinking Twice About the Big Green Revolutionnew

The same corporate mindset that brought us Big Oil, Big Agriculture, Big Auto, and Big Water and Power is now at work to bring us "Big Green." The problem with "big" is that living large is what got us into this mess.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Patrick Veesart |
08-25-2008 |
Environment
Are Sharks Really the Eating Machines We've Made Them Out to Be?new

For people like Dr. Chris Lowe and biologist Terry Lilley, the media's obsession with sharks -- specifically shark attacks -- and pop culture's general view of sharks as human-eating machines, is a grossly misinformed state of affairs.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Ethan Stewart |
08-18-2008 |
Animal Issues
Burned by the Gap: Not Everyone Escaped Goleta Blaze Unscathednew

Much of the community breathed a sigh of relief when the Gap Fire entered its final days, having only claimed a few outbuildings and some lemon and avocado orchards. Not everybody was fortunate, however, as residents of the county's wilderness-adjacent communities can attest.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Ben Preston and Kathleen Zaratzian |
08-05-2008 |
Disasters
Chaos and Competition Cause Santa Barbara Cabbies to Fear for Their Futurenew

Despite the hard work of taxicab drivers to keep the city safe at night and moving during the day, they're complaining that they're being treated as second-class citizens by City Hall, which has approved unprecedented numbers of taxi companies and cabs in recent years yet done little to accommodate the growth.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Matt Kettmann |
07-28-2008 |
Transportation
Union Leaflets for Shoppers Boycott of 'News-Press' Advertisersnew
The Teamsters, unhappy with the glacial pace of News-Press contract negotiations, are urging advertisers to pull their ads and not only that, they are now handing out leaflets outside businesses, asking shoppers to boycott stores so long as they advertise with the News-Press.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Barney Brantingham |
07-14-2008 |
Media
Tags: media
Federal Homeless Official Tours Santa Barbara Housingnew
Philip Mangano, executive director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, is on a multi-city tour of the US touting permanent housing as the solution to homelessness that will relegate it to the dustbin of history.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Martha Sadler |
07-14-2008 |
Housing & Development
Students Connect with Those Touched by the Horrors of Warnew
UCSB Students who sign up for RS-155 find that it’s neither a history class nor a religion class, but an emotional journey through the psyche and experiences of real live veterans.
Santa Barbara Independent |
Ben Preston |
07-08-2008 |
War