AltWeeklies Wire
Canada's Most Picturesque Province is Also the Center of an Underground Pot Explosionnew
Prince Edward Island is still largely a bastion of clean-cut, yesteryear values. A number of island communities remain defiantly dry. But it is also home to a thriving cottage industry that includes both indoor hydroponic pot production, and a more daring coterie of growers who take advantage of the island's perfect summer climate and endless fields of spuds, soybeans, and corn to pursue small-scale cultivation en plein air.
Boston Phoenix |
Alan R. Earls |
08-14-2008 |
Drugs
Femicide: New York City is Safer than Ever ... Unless You're a Womannew
In a city that is touted as one of the safest in the country, domestic-partner homicides persist. Last year, NYC's homicides numbered 496, which is a commendable number, especially compared to the early 1990s when the number was well over 2,200. Since the late '90s, however, the number of women killed by their partners hasn’t declined; it's difficult to make headway in preventing this type of killing.
New York Press |
Kimberly Thorpe |
08-14-2008 |
Crime & Justice
Boise Streetcar Plans Trump State Transit Inactionnew
Boise is joining the medium-sized city streetcar boom with plans to put in a short line downtown in the next four or five years.
Boise Weekly |
Nathaniel Hoffman |
08-13-2008 |
Transportation
An Ex-Scientologist and Online Pranksters Try to Bring Down the Controversial Religionnew
Before January, no one dreamed that Tommy Gorman would be backed up by the most unlikely of allies: an army of internet geeks pissed about a censored Tom Cruise video. The troops call themselves Anonymous, the president of the San Francisco Church of Scientology calls them the "electric Klan," and they have stepped out of cyberspace in masks to bring down Scientology, too.
New Report Casts Bad Light on Popular Sunscreensnew
The nonpartisan, nonprofit Environmental Working Group studied 952 sunscreens with a SPF of 15 or higher and discovered that 80 percent contain harmful chemicals and didn't really protect skin from the most damaging rays of the sun.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Amanda Witherell |
08-13-2008 |
Science
After 36 Years Without, Some Residents of La Presa, Texas, Finally Get Electricitynew
For 36 years, the people in this dusty, sweltering colonia south of Laredo, have lived without electricity, potable water, or an adequate sewage system. Now an innovative experiment is bringing power to a dozen lucky residents. While the wheels of bureaucracy turned slowly or not at all, residents suffered, despite many applications for assistance from state and local government.
The Texas Observer |
Forrest Wilder |
08-13-2008 |
Housing & Development
Canvassers, Telemarketers and Parking Officials Talk About Doing Work People Hatenew
They call during dinner time. They interrupt your picnic at the park. They write parking tickets. We talk to some of these people, to find out not only just how badly they're treated, but also why they continue to show up for work, day after day.
San Francisco Bay Guardian |
Phil Eil |
08-13-2008 |
Business & Labor
Here's the Drill: The Sticky Truths About Offshore Oilnew
Approving drilling now would mean that oil reaches our gas tanks in a decade, under the best estimates, and the small quantity relative to global production would do little to alleviate prices. Still, advocates argue, anything that reduces American dependence on foreign oil is worth pursuing. That pursuit becomes sticky, however, when weighed with drilling's definable risks to the environment and public health.
Charleston City Paper |
Stratton Lawrence |
08-13-2008 |
Environment
There Are No Honest Players Among Human Smugglersnew
Illegal immigrants are subject to pain and death at the hands of their "rescuers" if they don't pay up in full.
Houston Press |
Chris Vogel |
08-12-2008 |
Immigration
Bob Beaumont Recalls His Past Creating and Selling Electric Carsnew
In 1974 the CitiCar -- an electric car modeled on an golf cart -- began rolling out of the factory, and Beaumont's Sebring Vanguard Motors became the sixth-largest car manufacturer in the country.
Baltimore City Paper |
Chris Landers |
08-12-2008 |
Transportation
Do Pay Phones Do More Harm Than Good?new
As fewer and fewer people use pay phones, some city governments and neighborhood groups increasingly see them as invitations to crime. Still, removing pay phones from city property is one thing; getting rid of those on private property is another.
Philadelphia City Paper |
Isaiah Thompson |
08-12-2008 |
Crime & Justice
Black Out at the Belle Meade Country Clubnew
Even after drawing national scrutiny for its lily-white membership, the Belle Meade Country Club can't lend a brother a hand.
Nashville Scene |
Matt Pulle |
08-11-2008 |
Race & Class
South Ossetia Was a Monumental Miscalculation by Georgianew
This was Georgia's second attempt in 18 years to conquer the breakaway territory by force, and now that option is gone for good. So are the country's hopes of joining NATO. Yet sections of the Western media are carrying on as if the Russians started it, and are now threatening to invade Georgia itself.
The Georgia Straight |
Gwynne Dyer |
08-11-2008 |
International
Though Potentially Helpful, Osteopathic Medicine is Still Accessible to Only a Fewnew
It is also possible that more people could reap the benefits of osteopathic medicine if insurance companies made them more readily available. Although in practice most DOs are indistinguishable from MDs, their philosophy will always be inherently different from that of a typical MD, an allopathic physician.
Pasadena Weekly |
Liz Hedrick |
08-11-2008 |
Science
Medical Marijuana Dealer Convicted on Federal Trafficking Chargesnew
Charles Lynch was found guilty in federal court on five charges related to growing and distributing marijuana, despite California law that authorized his business, and testimony by local officials who welcomed the dispensary.
San Luis Obispo New Times |
Kylie Mendonca |
08-11-2008 |
Drugs
