Jan 21-27, 2010

Vol. 17, No. 15

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Local News

Where the Sidewalk Ends

River Park Square has had a testy relationship with street musicians — but is the mall itself violating city noise ordinances?

By Daniel Walters
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

The Decade When Spokane Grew Up (Again)

Cleaning up the park in the ’70s was great, but Spokane finally became a real city in the 2000s

By Joel Smith
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

The Felon Vote

How Gonzaga law students helped refine a legal case poised to change Washington prisons dramatically

By Daniel Walters
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

To Market

The search for a spot for the Spokane Public Market may have ended — in an unlikely location

By Daniel Walters
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

R-71, Hession and the Public Library

The controversy of Referendum 71 heads to the Supreme Court; plus, former Mayor Dennis Hession and a run on library books

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Amber's Alert

Spokane’s youngest-ever councilwoman on block watches, light bulbs and the Fightin’ First

By Joel Smith
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

Ka-Boom

A Spokane Valley man was arrested for possessing bomb-making materials last week, but what exactly did he have?

By Joel Smith
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Bad Medicine

Forget meth, cocaine and heroin: Prescription drugs are the No. 1 killer in the Inland Northwest. And the epidemic shows no end.

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Language Barriers

Inside an English Language Development classroom where students hail from Nepal, Russia, Thailand, Cuba and Afghanistan

By Don Gronning
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

Reefer Lawfulness

How budget troubles in Olympia might make marijuana legit

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Fine Line

With his district to the right of him and Pelosi to the left, Congressman Walt Minnick has walked a tightrope through his first year in office

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

French and the Clunkers

An ethics committee clears Al French; plus a new, local Cash for Clunkers program

By Joel Smith, Nicholas Deshais and Kevin Taylor
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Winter Readiness?

Spokane’s new snow strategy; plus, a ban on surface parking and an election challenge in Coeur d’Alene

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

Roping the Budget

Lassoing a steer may be more fun than wrestling a budget into balance for Idaho’s governor

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Chamber Cleaning

The new Spokane Valley City Council starts its 2010 term with a boom

By Daniel Walters
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

Something's Fishy

Two respected biologists say President Obama must make good on his vow to “restore science” to salmon restoration

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

No P on Grass

Limits on phosphorus lawn fertilizers is the latest wrinkle in meeting water-quality targets

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 21, 2010
Local News

What Are The Chances…

We asked those in the know what to expect in the next decade

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 20, 2010
Local News

The Demon Rum

A fired officer’s $4 million claim about alcoholism is a 100-proof insult to protesters

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 21, 2010
Columns & Letters

Thank a Reporter

Journalists keep an eye on the prize, reporting on humanity’s contextualized struggle

By Paul K. Haeder
Jan 20, 2010
Columns & Letters

Damn Gub'ment, Damn Taxes

Why we should kill sales tax and consolidate government services

By Robert Herold
Jan 21, 2010
Columns & Letters

System Failure

Before we criticize Obama vs. terrorism, let’s remember “Brownie” vs. Katrina

By Robert Herold
Jan 20, 2010
Columns & Letters

College, the Last Refuge

Just when more people want to attend college, state governments are slicing higher-education budgets

By Paul K. Haeder
Jan 21, 2010
Columns & Letters

Obstructionism

We ought to reach into the crybaby Republicans’ pram and throw away their filibuster toy

By Robert Herold
Jan 20, 2010

Arts & Culture

"I See Rude People," Amy Alkon

Hard-bound lessons from our own advice goddess

By Tammy Marshall
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

Of 40s and Facebook

Whoa, Spokane pretty much looks the same in the new age of social networking

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

Bang the Drums Quickly

The Spokane Symphony’s timpanist discusses pop-bottle plastic, dental floss and what he thinks about during those long, long rests

By Michael Bowen
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

Edible Taxidermy

Colleges are starting to think about sustainability in food service. For one night at NIC, this includes locally sourced wild animals

By Carrie Scozzaro
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

From Brahms to "A-Punk"

Forget the BBC’s Desert Island Discs. Let’s have Spokane Symphony musicians pick their favorites in Palouse Valley Playbacks

By Robert Herold
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

The Decade On-Screen

We watched TVs become more like theaters and computer screens become more like TVs. Nobody watched commercials …

By Marty Demarest
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

The Decade in Arts & Culture

The Oughts transformed Spokane from a place that felt like a big town to what’s feeling more like a vibrant small city.

By Luke Baumgarten
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

German Efficiency

If you’re sloppy defending Gonzaga’s Elias Harris, he’ll organize a dunk in your face

By Howie Stalwick
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

"Love and Summer," William Trevor

By Michael Bowen
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

Big Birds

Embracing the earth without being a jerk about it

By Jeff Echert
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

Bearded

Facial hair is cool again. What’s a guy to do?

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

"A Common Pornography," Kevin Sampsell

Former Spokanite Kevin Sampsell pieced together his memoir the same way he pieced together his childhood porn collection

By Luke Baumgarten
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

In Defense of Michael Pollan

The Omnivore — in Pullman this week — wants an immediate ceasefire in the war on food

By Molly Templeton
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

Motive, Method, Opportunity

Curtains is an insult to critics everywhere. This critic is out for revenge.

By Michael Bowen
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

"Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman," Jon Krakauer

Open this book to page 152 and grasp it firmly. Now rip it half in and throw away the chunk in your left hand.

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

"How to Teach Physics to Your Dog," Chad Orzel

You think you understand the Heisenberg uncertainty principle? You don’t. But now Bowser does.

By Michael Bowen
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

Vandals Go Bowling

Who would have imagined University of Idaho going to a bowl? Robb Akey, for one.

By Howie Stalwick
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

Kid Dynamite

Hedonistic, unrepentant, childlike: Ruben Villarreal is his own kind of Renaissance Man

By Leah Sottile
Jan 20, 2010
Arts & Culture

Solitary Man

He’s done the rock thing, but now A.A. Bondy is trying to make music that makes him happy

By Alan Sculley
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

Made-up Macbeth

Do you remember the plot of Shakespeare’s Macbeth? Apparently, neither does anybody else

By Michael Bowen
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

For the Birds

Funding is problematic for Saranac Art Projects, and they’ve come up with a real chicken-shit solution

By Carrie Scozzaro
Jan 21, 2010
Arts & Culture

A Boy and His Dog

Two Spokane teenagers with a brainy game concept competed against a bunch of grownups who just wanted to kill people

By Luke Baumgarten
Jan 21, 2010

Food News

Nuclear Family

Your clan will probably go ballistic over Mission Bistro’s comfort food

By Luke Baumgarten
Jan 21, 2010
Food News

The Decade in Food

Locally, we became a much more adventurous area. Nationally, things got scary and voyeuristic

By Luke Baumgarten
Jan 20, 2010

Movie Reviews

Deduce and Pummel

Sherlock Holmes was always smarter than you. Now he can kick your ass, too.

By Ed Symkus
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Assassin’s Creed II

Sluggish and simplistic, Assassin’s Creed II may be the most artless work of art ever to emerge from the Renaissance.

By Marty Demarest
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Surreally Disappointing

Terry Gilliam’s new film is nothing but cunning

By Maryann Johanson
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

American Dad

It only took two episodes of American Dad to dismiss the show as a Family Guy re-hash. But it's long since surpassed its predecessor.

By Daniel Walters
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

50 Dead Men Walking

An Irish Catholic in '80s Belfast walks the line between the IRA and the British police

By Jacob H. Fries
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

The Cove

A documentary that tried to film dolphin slaughter the legal way

By Kevin Taylor
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

(500) Days of Summer

I’m a girl, but every moral I cherish is opposed to romantic comedies. Then a movie like this comes along and gets me.

By Leah Sottile
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men

A lesser directorial virgin would've chosen an easy movie. The Office's John Krasinski took on a David Foster Wallace book.

By Joel Smith
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Psychic Kids: Children of the Paranormal

All that kid from The Sixth Sense had was a psychiatrist. Today's gifted child has infrared gear and paranormal research teams.

By Lisa Fairbanks-Rossi
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

Ratchet & Clank Future: A Crack in Time

Equal parts zany and conventional, Ratchet & Clank needs to get past the overdone Future series

By Marty Demarest
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Not Quite Ready To Wear

Despite beautiful performances, Tom Ford’s first film looks like a fashion designer made it

By Maryann Johanson
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

Red Dawn

Everything’s been all Twilight for so long, we’re thanking God for Daybreakers

By Ed Symkus
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Modern Warfare 2

Modern Warfare 2 is the multiplayer shooter of the future.

By Marty Demarest
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Pan Apocalypticon

Soon we’ll tire of genre films that mash up every convention to create something new the way Book of Eli does, but we’re not there yet

By Ed Symkus
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

Give It a 10

You know the Madonna/ whore dichotomy? Nine has that and several other stereotypes

By Ed Symkus
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Left 4 Dead 2

Left 4 Dead has been left 2 die

By Marty Demarest
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

Jimmy Kimmel Live

Jimmy Kimmel stands up to the popular kid in late-night television

By Daniel Walters
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

The Daily Show

Sure, speaking truth to power can be funny — but not nearly as funny as making fun of the powerless and crazy.

By Daniel Walters
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Family Guy Presents: Something, Something, Something Darkside

The second installment in Seth MacFarlane's Star Wars parodies

By Daniel Walters
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

Frequent Liar

Jason Reitman’s directing George Clooney’s acting = the best Great Recession movie yet

By Ed Symkus
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

Mouldering

Peter Jackson turns a novel about a girl’s murder and ascent to heaven into a psychedelic special-effects bonanza. Bad idea.

By Ed Symkus
Jan 21, 2010
Movie Reviews

Deliver Us From "Nice Guys"

Michael Cera offers a young man’s vision of what young women want. Memo to Michael: You got it all wrong, buddy

By Maryann Johanson
Jan 20, 2010
Movie Reviews

The Saboteur

Paris is burning. Who cares?

By Marty Demarest
Jan 21, 2010

Music News

Top Albums of the 2000s

Our music team took a stab at picking their Top 10 best records of the decade

By Leah Sottile
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

"Contra," Vampire Weekend

Vampire Weekend takes a cue from the Clash on their sophomore record

By Jeff Echert
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

"If You Hear Birds Chirping it’s Going to Be Clear," One Gun Galleria

Halfway through this record, Elijah Mink's talent doesn't just shine — it gleams

By Leah Sottile
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

"Echo Party," Edan

Edan retains his spaced-out style and his twisting, complex ethos, but the result is nowhere near as compelling as his previous efforts.

By Jeff Echert
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

Out on a Limb

After nine years, local extreme metal outit Doom Lit Sky is calling it quits

By Leah Sottile
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

Shake, Rattle, Roll

Ain’t nothing gonna get Sammy Eubanks down

By Jordy Byrd
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

's/t,' pe-rad

It's pronounced "parade."

By Leah Sottile
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

What's in a Place?

The indelible mark left by Spokane’s Empyrean

By Joel Smith
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

'When the Devil's Loose,' A.A. Bondy

Sad music for sad people

By Leah Sottile
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

Rites of Punk

Ceremony is making new punk rock with an old-school mindset

By Dustin Carroll
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

"Scrambles," Bomb the Music Industry!

Scrambles blazes through 13 tracks and uses nearly as many musicians — on everything from drum machines to Game Boys.

By Chris Dreyer
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

Heart in Your Mouth

Katie Herzig may be nervous, but she isn’t scared

By Jeff Echert
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

Sealed Deal

James Pants passes up the Big Apple to play a New Year’s gig at the Swamp

By Leah Sottile
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

Breaking the Monotony

Liberty Lake’s Le Train Train Quotidien is just trying to make life a little more interesting

By Leah Sottile
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

The Decade in Music

There’s a lot of things Spokane’s music scene doesn’t have, but let’s talk about all the things it has become in the last decade

By Leah Sottile
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

"Dark Side of the Moon," The Flaming Lips

When the Flaming Lips announced that they'd recorded the Pink Floyd classic in its entirety, a man in the audience blurted out: “Whaaaat the f---?! Yeah!”

By Nicholas Deshais
Jan 20, 2010
Music News

The Good Word

Whiskey Dick Mountain preaches — just not about the usual church stuff

By Jordy Byrd
Jan 21, 2010
Music News

Midnight Music

Saturday nights on KYRS are a psychedelic Land of the Lost

By Jon Brown
Jan 20, 2010