PACIFIC AVENUE SANTA CRUZ. 1895. `This is just for newcomers and tourists. On the far left now stands Jamba Juice on the far right is an empty lot and Lulu Carpenters coffee house. Yes, those are public streetcar lines right down the center of the street, back when we had more sense. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email photo@brattononline.com

(NEXT WEEK)...HOW TO VOTE...AND WHOM FOR (or FOR WHOM???)

PRT CORRECTION. A group of local environmental/ecological caretakers and friends have been pushing for PRT (Personal Rapid Transit) in Santa Cruz for years now. When I reported here 2 weeks ago that the "PRT" at the Dallas and Tampa airports wasn't working very well...I sure heard about it. After diligent checking I learned that contrary to PRT enthusiasts pitching... airports do NOT have PRT and never have had PRT. Airports have APM's or Airport People Movers, not PRT's. APM's are large cars holding 20 or more standing/sitting passengers. APM's stay on one track and unlike PRT's don't go and stop where people request. Comparing PRT's with APM's is like comparing the Shadowbrook' s railway with Japan's bullet train.

PRT's are small 2 or 4 people cabs that use tracks and have many side cut-offs so through traffic is always possible. Besides that the often malfunctioning APM at Dallas was installed in 1974 and runs a lot better than what that one airport worker told me. Vote for PRT it's the only way to solve our traffic problem. Better yet vote for any candidate that supports PRT...that's more to the point.

SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE. When you get right down to it, the judge campaigns are odd business. We've almost always never heard of the people running and once they're elected you never hear about or see them again...unless you're in trouble. It's not like City Council, or Supervisors, or Assemblyman, or even Sam Farr. Judges just disappear. So I always lean and depend hard on who supports these people.

I asked Steve Wright about that drinking item that keeps coming up when folks mention his campaign. He says and I believe him that drinking is absolutely not a problem and definitely not an issue. He says all of his friends will  say the same thing. He used to drink a lot more than now, and had an earlier reputation for it...but no more. I'm endorsing him all the way. I asked him more stuff he said that he doesn't like the "current witch hunt" that the May Day Pacific Glass Smashing has turned into. He likes the Guerilla Free Movies and said they are a wonderful community event.

Read his list of a few of his supporters Paul Burdick, Kim Allyn, Luis Alejo, Scott Kennedy, Bert Muhly, Mike Rotkin, Austin Comstock, Robert Ludlow, Tom Shanle, Geoffrey Dunn, Daniel Press, Ed Frey, Reed Flocks, Annette Marcum, Christina Scherer, and Joe Henard. More on the website.

Rebecca Connolly supporters. I owe an apology to new comers who don't associate supporters names with issues, jobs, past battles, and reputations but here are some of Rebecca Connolly's supporters...Marc Monte, Jan Beautz, Ellen Pirie, Bob Bosso, David Terrazas, Caleb Baskin, Stan Prolo, Ted Burke, Lynn Robinson, John Burroughs, Tim Morgan, Pat Liberty, Marilyn Liddicoat, Robert Steffen, Doug Liddicoat, and Marq Lipton of the Boardwalk's Seaside Corporation. More at http://www.rebeccaforjudge.org/endorsements.shtml

BEER PONG SHOTS

PEOPLES DEMOCRATIC CLUB MEETING THURSDAY. The PDC meets this Thursday May 27^thin the Democratic Party Headquarters, 740 Front Street, Suite #165 (Galleria) Santa Cruz at 7P.M.. More info: 420-1133.  Former Mayor and City Councilman, campaign strategist and ardent community worker Bruce Van Allen will share some of his knowledge and insight on Santa Cruz politics and answer questions on local races. Issues will be covered, and opinions will definitely be heard. See the PDC newsletter here.

PATTON'S PROGRAM. One thing Gary announces this week is "Tuesday afternoon 5/25, the Santa Cruz City Council will consider a proposed "Water Efficient Landscaping Ordinance." The proposed ordinance is "prospective" only. It will require water use efficiency for new landscaping projects, but won't require anyone to go back and "redo" existing landscaping. In addition, as currently drafted, the ordinance would exempt the biggest single new project on the horizon, the proposed construction of over 3,000,000 square feet of new buildings on the UCSC "North Campus." I'm hoping that this is just an oversight. 

One way to deal with the City's current water supply crisis would be to require water use efficiency measures to apply in general, and not just prospectively. The City's current plan, however, is to meet future water needs by constructing a multi-stage desalination plant. The UCSC expansion project, in particular, is premised on desal, which has major environmental and energy impacts, and can be incredibly costly.
City staff will be talking about desal in a "Water Politics" meeting to be held Wednesday 5/26 with the Santa Cruz Chamber of Commerce (it costs you $25 to get in the door). There's a free and less "political" presentation on Thursday at 6:30, at the Simpkins Swim Center". Gary also talks about Monterey's General plan update and Watsonville's General Plan...

(Gary Patton is "Of Counsel" to the Santa Cruz law firm of Wittwer & Parkin, which specializes in land use and environmental law. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton's.) 

INVISIBLE ROPE PRANK. I get a lot of these from Arts Journal

EAGANS DEEP COVER. Scroll downwards to check out Mr. T's latest take on matters worth taking on....like Freedom, Rush, and ruins in general.

LANDAU'S PROGRES. Saul writes "Washington's national security elite seethe and fume with resentment and frustration. Pakistan receives billions of U.S. aid dollars and remains a training ground for terrorists targeting the United States". Click here for the entire Progresso Weekly article
Saul Landau is an Institute for Policy Studies fellow whose films are on DVD from roundworldproductions@gmail.com   

LISA JENSEN LINKS. This week in Lisa Jensen's Pirate Adventure, Runaways: A Novel of Jonkanoo: Chapter 21: "In Medusa's Web" In which Tory's long, dangerous journey out of the frying pan leads her straight back into the fire, while Jack suffers Hero Interruptus when his valiant rescue scheme comes too late.
Click here to read Chapter 21
or: Click here to begin with Chapter 1
Lisa Jensen has been writing film reviews and a column for Good Times since 1975.

WATERS WEIGHS IN. This week Christina discovers Oswald's cocktails and shares impressions of Cabrillo's exciting culinary artists - plus reveals a few juicy bits of restaurant gossip. All at http://christinawaters.com.

EVENT TICKETS, NEWS ABOUT LIVE STARS/TOURING INFO ETC.
Just in case you think opera prices are steep, or want an update on how rock stars tours are going during these times read this NYTimes piece.

METROPOLITAN OPERA COMING TO THE REGAL 9. True opera fan Bonnie Liebmann worked almost two years to get the Metropolitan Opera to show live broadcasts of the Met Operas here in Santa Cruz. The telecasts surprised everyone including the Met by becoming really popular all across the country in over 400 theatres. Audiences are huge and locals were carpooling to Monterey and Santana Row to see these events. Now they're coming to the big screen at Regal 9. The series opens with "Highlights from Recent Seasons". Wednesday nights at 6:30. These are the full operas
And include Aida 6/16, Romeo & Juliet 6/23, Eugene Onegin 7/7, La Boheme 7/14, Turandot 7/21, and Carmen 7/26. Then in September you can see the 2010-20011  season live! That'll include Rheingold and Die Walkure, and 9 others. Get tickets online right now (print them out!!), here! For more season details, see the website.

Simon Kelly sent this flying eagle shot...amazing

3D COMING TO THE DEL MAR JULY 2^ND. After a long battle and some denial the Del Mar is going 3D. They'll be opening with "The Last Airbender" a dubious movie directed by M. Night Shyamalan who brought us such items as "The Happening", Lady in The Water and "Sixth Sense"(his best yet). Airbender wasn't filmed in 3D but they're adding that dimension as we speak (or read!!). It's about Aang who's an Avatar and how he meets a waterbender and like that, from the children's animated cartoon series.

SHREK, THE FINAL. The first Shrek with Eddie Murphy's great humor was a fine film, now the series has deteriorated into a dark, fuzzy flop with this much hyped closing episode. The 3D was out of focus, plot was ridiculous, and it was boring. Go see Train your Dragon again, that's how animated 3D films should be made. 

THE CITY OF YOUR FINAL DESTINATION. Mr. Merchant of Merchant Ivory Films died as you probably know, and this first film without him sure lacks something. Even a cast with Anthony Hopkins, Laura Linney and Charlotte Gainsbourg doesn't prevent this from being either boring or just plain uninteresting.

SURVIVAL OF THE DEAD by GEORGE ROMERO. What more can be said about zombies, corpses gnawing, and George Romero? More of the same, and there should be a law etc.

HARRY BROWN. All movies with Michael Caine are good movies, and this one's awfully good too. Caine plays a Clint Eastwood/Charles Bronson geezer getting revenge type guy. Except for the Brit accents where you miss a little bit and a dopey Hollywood "walk-into-the-sunset" kind of ending this is fun to watch if you like revenge movies.

EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP. Somebody asked me if the Nick would be showing Exit through the Gift Shop to town. I've heard great things about this maybe-fake-documentary about street art and it'll open at the Nick June 4^th. As per usual because this is an excellently made film you'll have to see it quickly, because they can't afford to run films that aren't well attended...duh!!!

RABBIT HOLE, THE PLAY. The play at the Actor's Theatre is definitely well worth seeing. According to the program notes the director is Victoria Rue who is an ordained Roman Catholic priest!!! There's even an ordained women priests website at www.romancatholicwomenpriests.org and her partner of 20 years marriage Kathryn Poethig was at the Saturday night performance. The play is about grief, death of a child, death of a teenager, and it is flawlessly acted by all involved. It's there until June 6^th. Go to www.santacruzactorstheatre.org for details.

CADENZA CHAMBER ORCHESTRA. Formerly known as The Santa Cruz Chamber Orchestra and now organizing into a full fledged non profit operation Cadenza presents "ILLUMINATED" a concert consisting of works by Britten - Lachrymae - Chad Kaltinger playing viola, then Hindemith - Trauermusik - Chad Kaltinger again playing viola and closing with Britten - Les Illuminations Op. 18 - Joe Raymond Meyers sings tenor. Listen and see a video clip here . Maya Barsacq conductor and director says it's "A vivid and pictorial concert featuring the moving and enthralling Lachrymae of Britten, followed by the gorgeous Trauermusik of Hindemith, and concluding the concert with the glorious Illuminations of Britten -- a song cycle for high voice and strings (set to nine prose poems by Arthur Rimbaud, 1872–73), -- first performed by Britten's partner tenor Sir Peter Pears. Saturday May 29, 2010 @ 8pm
Holy Cross Church 126 High Street, tickets at the door and at Streetlight Records or
By Phone: 1.800.838.3006.

UNIVERSITY GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:30-8:30 p.m. I host University Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer (live only) at  WWW.KZSC.ORG. This Tuesday May 25^th Traci Hukill from Santa Cruz Weekly will tell us late breaking news about that paper. After Traci, Joan and Lou Rose will enlighten us all about The Wetlands Watch. On June 8^th we have the now traditional Bookshop Santa Cruz short story winners all reading their works for the entire hour. Even more traditional County Supervisor Neal Coonerty comes back on June 15^th to celebrate Grapevine's 4^th anniversary. Secular Humanist Dennis Etler follows Neal that night. Any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in and keep listening.

QUOTES. 'This erratum slip has been inserted by mistake",Alisdar Gray." "He is a distinguished man of letters. He works for the post office", Max Kaufmann. "If I should die only think this of me That in some corner of a foreign field There lies a plagiarist", Derek Alder.

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Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.

WRIGLEY'S GAL USHERETTES. April 26, 1955. Imagine that, these "girls" actually took visitors through the Wrigley plant out on our Westside. Note the high heels, left feet all pointing just so....ahh "back in the day". Anyone know any of these employees, anyone have any tour stories? photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email photo@brattononline.com

GARY PATTON WRITES ABOUT THAT CITY/UCSC LAWSUIT. The Community Water Coalition (CWC) has filed a lawsuit that asks the Superior Court to direct LAFCO to follow state law, with respect to the application for extraterritorial water service filed by UCSC. If approved, this application for extraterritorial water service is expected to lead to the construction of over 3 million square feet of new construction on the UCSC North campus area. Jonathan Wittwer of the Wittwer & Parkin law firm is the lead attorney for the CWC.

State law is very clear that this kind of application needs to be filed by a city or water district, not by the property owner who would benefit if the application were it approved. It appears, though, that LAFCO may not have been properly applying this provision of state law in the past. Whether or not that is true, it does make a difference in this case, since if the City has to apply, then the City Council will have to vote on making the application, and so far, the City Council has not voted on any of the water-related provisions in the Comprehensive Settlement Agreement.

IF the City has to vote on whether or not to file the application, the City's own rules and regulations would apply, and the Council would have to listen to the concerns of residents and current customers before taking action. The CWC feels strongly that this is not a "distinction without a difference," but that the residents of the City of Santa Cruz have a right to address the Council on the issue whether the City should apply to provide more water beyond its current service area, when the City is admittedly not able to serve its existing customers during drought periods, and when the City has admittedly been taking surface waters that put endangered species in greater danger of extinction".

Let the voters of Santa Cruz decide if we should give away 1/2 of our water supply.

COVE BRITTON FAILS MISERABLY. I've been emailing 3rd District County Supervisor candidate Cove Britton many times since last Wednesday (5/12) asking him for two items which any voter should know. 1. Who supports him and 2. What's his stand on specific issues? His website states he is endorsed by 100's of county citizens, his website also has "Endorse Cove" on the top line....then he tells me "his campaign is not about endorsements" and refuses to name a single supporter. A complete cop out. I asked him for his position on Widening Hwy 1, growth of UCSC, Cemex Quarry , Coast Hotel, La Bahia, off shore oil drilling, Arana Gulch, Poor Clares and De-sal. Nothing, not a word. I even promised him I'd print a list of his supporters. I reminded him I strongly supported Chris Krohn in the last Supervisor race...nothing. Forget Cove Britton, no guts, no position, no experience, we do NOT need more politicians like him in office.

DARNED STEVE WRIGHT. Funny thing about his campaign for judge, every time I ask people about supporting Steve Wright they all say "he's great but I wish he'd stop drinking". I've only met him once or twice.

HISTORIC TRAIN PHOTO FAULTY. Martin Rice of Scotts Valley sort of gracefully corrected my train photo caption from last week. He said, "Thank you for publishing old pictures of Santa Cruz County. You recently showed the Betsy Jane.  It appears that the locomotive is not operational in the photo.  Note that there is no connecting rod attached to the drivers and that the drivers are at odd angles to each other.  Also, I believe that the "Jupiter", a larger locomotive is featured in the Smithsonian rather than the "Betsy Jane". Your picture piqued my interest and I Googled the subject on the internet and found very little there.  I shall look further. My early experience with railroads began at my grandfather's ranch in Glenwood (off Highway 17) in the 1930s where the SP once ran.  Later I became Chief Draftsman at the Southern Pacific General Shops in the 1950s.  My most recent experience was as a car host and communications manager on the Central Coast Railway Club's excursion pulled by ex Santa Fe steam engine #3751 with 500 happy passengers and an elite Amtrak crew from Los Angeles to San Diego and return May 1 and 2, 2010.  Check YouTube for movies and stills of this event. Because of a repositioning move, the excursion crew also had the honor of riding two private ex California Zephyr dome cars (ex WP and CB&Q) from the bay area to Los Angeles and return behind the Amtrak Coast Starlight. Thanks again for your interest in Santa Cruz history. Martin Rice Scotts Valley

TOM LEHRER ON AGE. Actually this was sent to BrattonOnline as a tribute song for Becky and Michael O'Malley of Berkeley Daily Planet, Rachel O'Malley and Mary Holmes fame. When you get to the Lehrer site at You Tube check out ALL the Tom Lehrer performances.

TOM NODDY ORGANIZING STREET PERFORMERS. Bubble man and Santa Cruz's most famous international performer Tom Noddy last organized the Santa Cruz street performers in the 80's now he's trying to do it again. He's holding a meeting of the regular performers Saturday May 22 at London Nelson Center at 5 p.m. He wants to re-establish the guild which worked out an agreement with Pacific Avenue merchants that worked for many, many years. He and I talked at length about the new addition and strengthening of the police force and hoping the ACLU would step in and defend some obvious attacks on Equal Rights. Tom also noted that "downtown businesses change more often than the performers do". Let's hope that some semblance of peace can be eked out.

GORILLAS VS. GUERILLAS. Wes Modes writes to BrattonOnline.com...I wasn't at Guerilla-Drive-In last week.  As Mayor Rotkin and Vice-Mayor Coonerty told the Downtown Association at their closed meeting on May 5th, they are targeting individuals for their first amendment activities.  So far, I appear to be the only individual they've targeted.  It is likely that if I go to any un-permitted gathering that City Attorney John Barisone will issue a complaint against me and send me to court over it.  This is the city's new strategy:  harassment of community groups.

This is a link to the piece that The Spoon member Aaron wrote about the bust by Santa Cruz Cops of the Guerilla Drive In...is this Santa Cruz? Let's get a new City Council asap! (link expands, click again to collapse).

STACEY VREEKEN IN PLACERVILLE!!! If you've noticed that the entire County is different lately it's because Stacey Vreeken has left the area. Stacey used to be editor at the Pajaronian, Good Times, and lastly The Sentinel. She's in Placerville because as she says, "I'm in Placerville. My Dad has liver cancer and I'm helping him out. I quit the Sentinel and moved up here, but am still keeping the Capitola place. Don Miller was incredible in helping me make the transition. I miss the stories, I miss the town but this is my next chapter. I will now go back and forth, since my son is staying in the Capitola house. I'll probably start freelancing before too long but right now I'm transitioning. Keep in touch.Love, Stacey. She was one of the three best editors I ever had in those hard copy newspaper days 1975-2002.

JOKE TIME. S. K. Tile of Soquel sent this joke...Two young boys walk into a drug store, pick out a box of tampons and go to the checkout counter. The man at the counter asks the older boy, "Son, how old are you?"
"Eight," the boy says.
The man continued, "do you know what these are used for?"
The boy answers, "not exactly, but they aren't for me.  They're for him.  He's my brother. He's four. We saw on TV that if you use these you could swim and ride a bike. Right now, he can't do either."

PATTON'S PROGRAM. Gary talks about Monterey County Historic properties and taxes. He details Soquel's Planning meeting about their future. He then talks about Sphere of Influence and what it means then spends Thursday and Friday talking about LAFCO, UCSC and their growth and using City Water...Don't miss it....you'll sure be hearing all about it, a lot.
(Gary Patton is "Of Counsel" to the Santa Cruz law firm of Wittwer & Parkin, which specializes in land use and environmental law. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton's.)

EAGANS DEEP COVER. Scroll below to catch up on Mr. Eagan's weekly fusillade, better yet... think about it afterwards!!!

LANDAU'S PROGRES. Saul writes in Progreso Weekly..."How can auto and truck sales be good for the country at a time of history when the greenhouse gas effect threatens the future of the world? The massive bailouts of the auto giants saved some jobs at a terrible economic time. But crisis situations -- life or death -- often dictate less than healthy solutions. Beyond getting fooled by GM and Treasury propaganda over loans, we, the public, continue our course of denial about the automobile as a central instrument of the U.S. economy and our daily lives. No matter how many hybrids replace the old gas guzzlers, this country and the world cannot continue to rely on this 20^th Century polluting industry to guide our future. And we leave it to government officials and GM executives to run our affairs?" read the entire thing here.  Saul Landau is an Institute for Policy Studies fellow whose films are on DVD from roundworldproductions@gmail.com   

LISA JENSEN LINKS. This week in Lisa Jensen's Pirate Adventure, Runaways: A Novel of Jonkanoo: Chapter 20: "Shadow Play" A night of skullduggery in Basseterre, in which a crime is committed in the name of freedom, while an officer of the law is menaced by a ghost from his unsavory past. Click here to read Chapter 20  or:
Click here to begin with Chapter 1
Lisa Jensen has been writing film reviews and a column for Good Times since 1975.

VALERIE LANDAU'S TRIP TO CUBA. Saul Landau's daughter Valerie sent this... "I'm planning a trip to Cuba for June 20-30. Forgive the short notice, but the trip should provide lots of fun, adventure and learning experiences. I can help you get you a legal visa IF you are professional AND this itinerary will help you with research in your career. See the itinerary I decided to organize a delegation to Cuba to research sustainability and technology practices: Why: because Cuba has adopted many innovative practices in the areas of organic farming, urban farming, and biodiversity AND they have a unique perspective towards innovation and technology. AND I have traveled to Cuba many times and have deep ties and am fluent in both English and Spanish and for years friends and colleagues have asked me to guide them....SO, now is the time...I hope you can join in. Any questions call 510-749-8234 Valeri Landau

WATERS WEIGHS IN. This week Christina chats up a weekend event at Bargetto's and gets gushy about Iron Man II. All at http://christinawaters.com 

BLACK MEN SKI. A SONG BY STEW AND HIS BAND. It's another worth while racial profiling thought but it includes the typical hype from TED, that conference that happened in Monterey a couple of years ago.

DANNY SCHEIE'S HAIR IS GREAT. Any Santa Cruz theatre enthusiast can imagine and be correct in imagining just how far UCSC's theatre director Danny Scheie could go with a show like the 1967 musical Hair...he does more than that and it's great. Hair shocked audiences than and with Danny's add on's, it still shocks. Hair has always been about war, racial equality, religion, freedom, drugs, community, and of course sex and nudity. This version has more of all of those topics. It runs through May 30^th. Read about it at Wikipedia just to catch up then get tickets quickly, it'll sell out for sure. HAIR is produced by the UCSC Theater Arts Department with additional support from College Nine, College Ten, Cowell College, Crown College, Kresge College, Merrill College, Porter College, and Stevenson College. It plays May 20-21-22-23 and May 27-28-29-30; Thu-Fri-Sat at 7:00 PM.  Sundays at 3:00 PM. Doors open 30 minutes before curtain. General seating. Come early for preferred seats.$14 general, $11 seniors, $11 students
prices *include* ticket service charges. Buy one ticket at full price ($14), get a second ticket FREE on these dates only: THU 5/20 7pm, SUN 5/23 3pm TICKETS: www.santacruztickets.com  UCSC Ticket Office (831) 459-2159

PLAYWRIGHTS, ACTORS & DIRECTORS. From Mill Works Theatre...
An evening devoted to "My Most Favorite / My Current Favorite". Bring in your favorite short work for the June 7th gathering at The Mill Works Theatre A scene, a 10 minute play, a short work by a favorite playwright, or a segment from your own work in progress, bring in your favorite to share with others who love and work in theatre. Bring actors with you or take your chances with those who may be in the audience. A night to enjoy a variety of  short works. To secure a spot on the line up call Debbie Quigg - 247-3857 or Joan Van Antwerp - 475-2854 The Mill Works Theatre June 7th -  7:30-9:30p
131 Front Street The Mill Gallery $6 donation @ the door to cover expenses only

SANTA CRUZ 9^TH FILM FESTIVAL IS BIG SUCCESS. Closing night ceremonies at the Del Mar on Saturday night included the news that more than 45,000 folks attended the films this year. More than that, it was a 15% increase in attendance from last year. Obviously they're doing everything right.

THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES. This magnificent Academy Award winning film has won awards all over the world...if you liked Girl with The Dragon Tattoo you'll love this one. More intelligent, completely unpredictable and of course not drawing enough audiences so it'll be gone soon. Hurry. One of the best murder mysteries I've seen in years.

CASINO JACK AND THE UNITED STATES OF MONEY. Like I always say, you think you know the subject of this documentary but it's worse than that. Money, politicians, corruption...it's Jack Abramoff's blood. Plus it's an excellently made film. 

BABIES. Cuter than penguins, and about the same I.Q. You'll go OOooo, and awwwww, and get all mushy over these four creeper, crawlies that ooze love. The secret of this film is that the poor babies seem happier than the wealthy babies...a message here???

LETTERS TO JULIET. I'm a fan of Amanda Seyfried ,and loved every minute of her in HBO's Big Love where she had a much better chance to act than this cutesy, lovable, go-nowhere, goosey Italian travelogue. And Vanessa Redgrave is up to her usual great acting when she has a chance.

ROBIN HOOD NOT VERY MERRY. Director Ridley Scott and Russell Crowe and some semi-impressive FX people didn't care much about content in this violent mess of a movie. It ends where the old Robin Hood story begins, really. Talky, talky, flying arrows with little dinky cameras, Cate Blanchett wearing a dark wig that looks like it came from Ross clothes for less. You don't even need to rent this one, you've seen it hundreds of times.

HOSTETTERS HOT STUFF. Paul Hostetter's and my calendars are about one week out of synch...so you probably missed the sold out Aashish and Pranesh Khan concert last weekend in SC, it almost equaled The Khan families usual perfection. Paul talks about the Berkeley Old Time Music SPRING FLING thing coming up as well, featuring a glimpse into Jody Stecher and Kate Brislin's new CD, their first in TEN YEARS!! Plus the UCSC annual Spring Opera...All the details here at http://www.lutherie.net/live.music.html Meanwhile, carry on. We'll see spring sometime. chow pH.

UNIVERSITY GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:30-8:30 p.m. I host University Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer (live only) at WWW.KZSC.ORG. Any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in and keep listening. May 18 Dr. and credentialed ecologist and environmentalist Dr.Grey Hayes will talk about Tar Plants and Ohlones and earthy things. Right after Grey Attorney Ed Frey will bring us up to date on Civic law, the homeless and selective enforcement. May 25^th Traci Hukill from Santa Cruz Weekly will tell us late breaking news about that paper. On June 8^th we have the now traditional Bookshop Santa Cruz short story winners all reading their works for the entire hour. Even more traditional County Supervisor Neal Coonerty comes back on June 15^th to celebrate Grapevine's 4^th anniversary. Secular Humanist Dennis Etler follows Neal that night. Any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in and keep listening.

QUOTES.
"Facts are for people who don't have opinions", Bruce Bratton. "A Highly intelligent man should take a primitive woman. Imagine if on top of everything else, I had a woman who interfered with my work", Adolf Hitler. "Colleges are like old-age homes; except for the fact that more people die in colleges than old age homes, there's really no difference", Bob Dylan.

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THE BETSY JANE. This little engine that could-did it!!! On May 7th 1876 this was the first train to run from Watsonville to Santa Cruz. Along the way on that day it picked up the picnicking Druids who were meeting in Aptos and it was a great celebrating day. Now that we have a rail line to think about let's rebuild this engine or find it wherever it's stored (The Smithsonian I think) and make it a genuine exciting ride up and down the county. Having the rail line is like having State park land...even though we can't develop it properly now, think of the kids...and the environment. photo credit: Covello & Covello Historical photo collection. Additional information always welcome: email photo@brattononline.com

CELEBRATING IN SANTA CRUZ. Reading in the Tampa Herald about the mayhem and riots in Santa Cruz while in Plant City, Florida (named after Railroad magnate Henry B. Plant) made me realize even more how important Santa Cruz is to me. The shame and embarrassment over our great city's once again getting negative national press and not having a clue to the real story behind the media coverage was genuinely frustrating. I asked Chris Krohn when I got back for his reactions to THAT NIGHT he wrote this... "I was not present downtown that night, so I did not witness any of the march that evidently occurred between 10-10:45p. The window breaking mayhem is appalling, very disturbing. The half-dozen people I spoke to who were present said that out of the 250-300 people present, not more than 10-15 (less than 5%) appeared to be engaged in property destruction. When that started, many in the gathering immediately left.

It is difficult for elected officials to not try and help remedy business owner feelings and the actual atmosphere of safety when such an incident as this occurs. It is difficult for Electeds not to jump to certain conclusions, no matter how wrong-headed they might be, because the pressure from certain quarters of the public is great. I have to believe it was a terrible coincidence that this particular gathering went so awry. There have been many gatherings like this in downtown Santa Cruz over the years and they have not resulted in this kind of property damage. We must look at history as a partial guide here.

There is something that seems to be bothering many good, civic-minded Santa Cruzans who I talk to: why was there such a delayed police response? And then, after all the mayhem, why then bring out the riot squad? Not yet clear at all".(end of Chris' response).

It sure would be important to know who exactly thought up the idea of adding more cops to the payroll. How many of our councilpersons asked for Dick Wilson's' advice on hiring those cops? Or was it his idea? Maybe we should erect permanent barbed wire fencing all around Pacific Avenue and Maggie Ivy could decorate the wire with little flowers to make it more tourist friendly? How about a guard tower atop Louis Rittenhouse's mausoleum...we must show more strength, armed power, muscle and force if we are going to have peace in our downtown or has that been tried before? Be sure to read Wallace Baine in the Sentinel if you haven't already, as usual he nails down a definite way to think about this. Wallace BAINE'S Kristal Nacht piece titled "The Sound of Broken Glass"

4 YEARS OLD... and this was in 2007. I wonder what this little girl is doing as a 7-year old?

FROM SUB ROSA RE MAY DAY EVENTS. Wes Modes is a great community minded person. Intelligent, funny, extra creative and would make an excellent City Councilperson. I have no idea if this statement has been seen all over everywhere but it bears repeating...Wes wrote, "SubRosa was not involved in the events in downtown Santa Cruz on May Day. SubRosa is a community space that offers literature, art, coffee and performances. Like many businesses downtown, SubRosa provides a public bulletin board for people to post fliers. Jimi Haynes is not and has never been a volunteer at SubRosa.
We know it is a terrible feeling to feel under attack, as some of the downtown business owners and employees must feel right now. We care about the suffering of the people who were affected. The fear of violence and attack is something that many of us, especially women, youth, people of color, political dissidents, and poor people, feel on a regular basis in Santa Cruz and the world at large. None of us, especially anarchists, are working for a world dominated by fear. As an anarchist space, we strive to create a venue for the free association of autonomous people working together as equals to create a world without domination through direct action and mutual support.

### The following is not an official statement, but some ideas of ways that individuals can reach out and support other individuals who are being impacted by these events, and also foster more understanding in our community:

• Call or visit someone you know has been impacted, just to let them know you care and are thinking about them.
• Have nuanced discussions with your friends and neighbors about the atmosphere downtown both before and after May Day, listening to other people's feelings with an open mind.
• Speak with someone who is from a different walk of life than you about how these events are affecting them. Maybe ask them what their experiences being downtown are like.
• Be careful about repeating things that you do not know are true. Rumor and accusation can be very harmful to people.

9/11 CONSPIRACY THEORISTS COMING TO TOWN THIS WEEKEND. I'll bet that these near crazed 9/11 theorists have probably made more money off the 9/11 tragegy than any other assassination or looney theory group in history. They are calling this meeting of the dubious The Understanding Deep Politics Conference. It'll be at the UCSC Conference Center just like it was last time. Why they aren't honest enough to call it a 9/11 Conspiracy Fan Club makes it even more suspicious. I attended the last one believing it was about the future of media. It was a hoax. Check out their website www.understandingdeeppolitics.org

Also check out their speakers...Cynthia McKinney, David Ray Griffin, Peter Dale Scott, Ellen Brown, Ian Crane, Annie Machon, Jim Marrs, Michael Parenti, Peter Phillips, and Barrie Zwicker. All of them are professional Conspiracy Theorists, which is fine if you have nothing else to do with your life. Probably more fun than stamp collecting or folk dancing but if they knock the government for being secretive why aren't they truthful in their publicity? Ask somebody who is going to check out the massive amount of books, videos, tee shirts, and 9/11 paraphernalia for sale. How much profit do you think should be made from the Twin Towers tragedy?

FLORIDA REACTIONS. Speaking of rumor and accusations, everything bad you've heard about Florida is true. I'm trying to forget most of me and my sisters one week visit to our Republican cousins and our baby sitter in Plant City, Dunnellon, and Sanibel Island. Here's what impressed me....One local paper states that Jeb Bush is "still the 800 pound gorilla" in state politics. There's lots of mystery over why and even how Florida Republican Governor Charlie Crist decided to run for U.S. Senate as an Independent, and that was huge news in this Republican state. There's dozens of very big Anti Abortion billboards all over the state. All politician's statements that I read went out of their way to prove how really conservative they are and why Floridians should vote for them. I could not get any reaction from anybody over the Gulf Oil spill and it's still spreading right to their own beaches. Plenty of billboards advertising vasectomies are well hung over the highways. There's plenty of newspace given to billboard companies wanting to put up even more electronic/video billboards (bad idea) Florida freeways are in excellent shape but are more boring than our Inter State 5. Yes, like everyone told me Florida is flat, numbingly flat. It's also green and had just had much unseasonable rain before sis and I got there. The local call them "Snowbirds", they are the rich people who leave Florida every May and go to their other homes in New York and New Jersey. They were leaving when we got there and the heat in Florida is not like California. Walking out of air conditioned autos and homes into Florida heat is like having a giant soaking- wet-hot water- filled-air mattress dropped on you. It's smothering and depressing too. Don't ever go to Florida.

GOLF COURSES AND CUBA. I read in Florida papers that the Cuba tourist industry is hot to build golf courses in Cuba. It seems that Cuba used to have lots of champion golf courses. Fidel closed them all down except one. According to history books Fidel Castro and Che Guevara played golf there and Che won with a 127 strokes to Fidel's 150. That's on a par 70 course!!! One paper said, "Gilberto Avila, a tourism ministry promotional communications officer, stated Cuba solicited foreign companies for proposals to build 10 golf courses across the island, and had received at least 11 such proposals since 2007 — though he offered no explanation on why none has moved forward. Cuba's vacation industry set records for foreign visitors each of the last two years, despite the deep recession. In 2009, more than 2.4 million tourists came, mostly from Europe and Canada. But many stayed fewer days than usual, and tour operators offered deep discounts to keep them coming, meaning revenues slumped nearly 12 per cent". My idea is easy...Give Florida to Cuba. It's the least we can do, who wants Florida anyway, and then Cuba would have all those golf courses and Jeb Bush, alligators, Disney Land and Palmetto Bugs. (Palmetto Bugs are what Floridians call cockroaches only the ones we saw in Sanibel were almost two inches long!!!). Remember...GIVE FLORIDA TO CUBA.

OIL SPILL PHOTOS. We flew back to Victorville via Dallas, (no movies/tv screens on any American Airlines airplane we were on!!) the pilot told us we were over the Gulf Oil spill but due to low clouds we couldn't tell the spill from the natural perpetual mud outflow from the Mississippi into the gulf. Jason Steven was very thoughtful in sending this 18 page document of the most scary, beautiful, haunting photo report of the first 36 hours of the oil spill. Be sure to read page 1 and then go to page 8, 12 and 13 and all the rest of these nearly National Geographic photos. Could it happen here???...you betcha!!

WATER ON AIRPLANE TRAVEL TRIP HINT. You know that they won't let you bring bottled water from outside the security gates on the airplane so what you do instead of paying $3 or $4 or more for Fiji water bottles is carry or put an empty bottle on your carry on luggage and fill it from any fountain after security. I did it, it works great and the water on air lines takes forever and is in tiny plastic glasses. By the way, there are NO movies or any VIDEOS in economy OR First Class (I peeked) even the seat buckle oxygen mask show is live on continental American Airlines planes.

PRT EXPERIENCE IN DALLAS AND TAMPA. Both the Dallas and Tampa airports have PRT.( Personal Rapid Transit ) trains to zoom you to the next terminal. These are no- driver- automated-two car mostly stand up train cars holding about 20 passengers each. Without asking, one airport attendant in Dallas said they were terrible. They break down all the time, strand passengers between terminals and pointed out PRT engineers standing there watching our departure...she said those guys have to always be there to take care of emergencies...there we are???

VALLARTA MARKET IN VICTORVILLE. After my sister showed met the employee owned Winco Market in Victorville I thought all the thrills of visiting Victorville were gone, not so...this time she took me to the Vallarta Market. It is wonderful, exciting, colorful and probably what the once privately owned Trader Joe's tried to copy. Look at their website... you can read their long history there too. It says, "Vallarta Supermarkets has grown to a total of 27 stores 6 Counties in California (Ventura County, of visiting Victorville were gone...not so. This time she took me to the Vallarta Market Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County, Kern County, San Diego County and Fresno County). They employ 4,700 employees. Vallarta Supermarkets intends to positively impact 100 communities by the year 2030. That would be approximately growing 3 new store locations per year over the next 22 years. As the business grows and the customer service and high quality product reputation has shared among patrons throughout the local communities, the Gonzalez family adhered to their ethic of working hard and emphasized to their employees to strive for excellence. Through the decades, Vallarta Supermarkets has maintained its image for the following characteristics: Cleanliness, beautiful interior and facades, pleasant shopping ambiance, availability of product, and a variety of quality and consistency of prepared foods". Don't go to Victorville just for this market but don't miss it IF you're there already.

NEW CAR. As fate would have it after searching and begging all over town for another car to replace my disintegrating but friendly 1998 Pontiac Grand Am vehicle my sister gave me her husband's 1995 Buick Skylark. It's wonderful and made the drive back from Victorville and Mar Vista without a whimper. It was odd that not one tip came in from you guys, not one...usually there's so much response. But no worries.

PATTON'S PROGRAM. Gary Patton states on Monday, "Let's never forget, though, that we can also meet community challenges, and realize our common opportunities, when we act together, and not just individually. That's where policy choices, and may I also say "political" choices, make the difference". He also says later in the week," If we want to achieve what we decide is the "public interest," we need to do it directly, getting together to formulate our public interest objectives, and then getting together to achieve them, in some collective, and ultimately "political," way. "Government" is the way we come together to make community decisions about what we want to do, and "government" is the way we mobilize our common resources to try to achieve our public interest, community goals. This means, as a matter of pure logic, that unless you think that the only thing that makes a difference is what you do, individually, you should find some way to get involved in community level decision making" Read it all here
Gary Patton is "Of Counsel" to the Santa Cruz law firm of Wittwer & Parkin, which specializes in land use and environmental law. The opinions expressed are Mr. Patton's.)

EAGANS DEEP COVER. The omniscient Mr. Eagan teaches us all about global warming, health care and stuff like that...scroll down a few pages.

LANDAU'S PROGRES. Saul Landau in this week's Progreso Weekly column titled "Will the real terrorist please stand up?"... "I propose President Obama end the war against terrorism and admit that the phrase means "Muslims should scare you!" Saul Landau is an Institute for Policy Studies fellow whose films are on DVD from roundworldproductions@gmail.com

LISA JENSEN LINKS. This week in Lisa Jensen's Pirate Adventure, Runaways: A Novel of Jonkanoo: Chapter 19 "Pale Hecate" While Jack and Alphonse race against time in Basseterre, trying to find out which plantation Tory has been sold to, Tory takes charge of her own fate, and escapes into cane country in the dead of night, where a wily, naked marauder becomes her unexpected ally.

Click here to read Chapter 19 http://runaways-jonkanoo.blogspot.com
Click here to begin with Chapter 1 http://runaways-jonkanoo.blogspot.com/2010_01_03_archive.html
Lisa Jensen has been writing film reviews and a column for Good Times since 1975.

CATCH THE CAT. I only feel a little guilt about foisting this online game on you but try it out. It'll take your mind off the Judges races...and the definition of anarchy...yes you can trap the cat within the circles. It took me about an hour to achieve a 1 trapping out of 10 tries.

IRON MAN 2. It seems that part 2 of any comic book film series (Batman, Superman, etc) either gets really far out and almost deeper into the character or bombs completely. Iron Man 2 isn't either one, it's just plain silly. If it weren't for some fine dialogue between Robert Downey and Gweneth Paltrow there'd be no redeeming factors in this children's action toy flick at all. It's just sort of fun, that's all. But Robert Downey does his usual surprising acting job and he's excellent at it. His role as CEO Stark is a combination of Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, Adolph Hitler and goosey John Robbins...and that's worth seeing.

MAY DAY LABOR FILM FESTIVAL. Having missed it entirely reports coming on say it was one of the best ever. Good films, good audiences, good conversations. Everyone's hard work in creating this themed event paid off and the community should give them extra medals.

SANTA CRUZ FILM FESTIVAL. Here's a link to some videos from the Film Fest so far (be patient they take a while to download). The Film Fest tells BrattonOnline, "We've had record online ticket sales due to increased outreach and adventurous programming this year. The reaction to local programming has been stellar, particularly Westsiders and Ride A Wave films about surfing due to the unconventional theme about the reality of the surfer's lives - it's not a surf flick at all. More local this week:

Here I Am: Denny Doherty and The Mamas & The Papas
La Vie en Verte: The WAMM Movie
UCSC Student Film Showcase 2010: The Future in 15 Minutes or Less
There's been Good response to our FREE panel events; there are still three great ones later this week:

1.Thursday, MAY 13 FILM AND RECEPTION: "8: The Mormon Proposition"
The film begins at 6:45 at the Riverfront Twin, a FREE post-film Q&A reception with the film representatives starts at 8:30 a few doors down from the theatre at the Democratic Party HQ, Rm 165 Front Street (in the Galleria.)

Linda and Steve Stay, husbands Tyler Barrick and Spencer Jones, and Brigham Young University graduate Bruce Barton, are featured in 8: The Mormon Proposition and they will be present to take questions. Local LGBT community leaders will also briefly discuss ways to become involved in the ongoing effort to repeal Prop 8. It is hosted by the Diversity Center and GLBT Alliance of Santa Cruz County PAC with Santa Cruz Film Festival. Call 831-515-4101 for details.

2. WEDNESDAY, MAY 12 PANEL: HEALING THROUGH CHINESE MEDICINE
SCFF Filmmaker Hub 1101-F Pacific Avenue (entrance on Cathcart) 3:00 PM
Five Branches University, sponsors of the Locally Grown program and the film, Semshook, will present and discuss healing through Chinese Medicine.

3. FRIDAY, MAY 14 PANEL: LIFE AFTER FILM SCHOOL
Digital Media Factory2809 Mission Street Extension at Swift 12 Noon
Post-School, Real-World Strategy. Filmmakers discuss methods to maintain support networks, develop a resume and bio, hone creativity, and create a reel, while breaking into the industry. Filmmakers will reflect on their early experiences, how they did it, and what they would do differently. Presented by the Digital Media Learning Foundation and the Santa Cruz Film Festival.
The Ellsberg film got good attention and we expect the second showing on FRIDAY to be full of buzzing audience about it.

The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers

There is a whole block of political and international films to focus on this week and Univision is covering the Fest this year for the first time:
Semshook
World Vote Now
American Jihadist (mark claywell will be in town)
Orgasm, Inc.
La Vie en Verte: The WAMM Movie (WAMM and the filmmakers are available)
Do Elephants Pray? (the actress is coming in from Paris)
Northless (Norteado)
Jean Charles
Closing Night will have amazing Award Ceremonies this year; the film was filmed in Santa Cruz. (Etienne!)
Go to http://scfilmfest.org to get everything you need to know.

PASTORS FOR PEACE CARAVAN TO CUBA. Below are the showing times on Santa Cruz Community TV for "People to People" a new 45 minute documentary about the annual Pastors for Peace Caravan to Cuba. Directed by Consuelo Elba, this engaging film mixes archival footage
with video from the 2008 Caravan to Cuba and recent interviews to tell the story of Pastors for Peace and the Latin American School of
Medicine in Havana, Cuba. "People to People" was co-produced in Cuba by ICAIC (the Cuban Institute of Art and Film) and the Cuban Institute
of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP). A number of Caravanistas from Santa Cruz and Watsonville appear in the movie.
+ Mon 05/17/10 06:30 PM Channel 27/71
+ Fri 05/14/10 01:00 PM Channel 27/71
Comcast channel 27/Charter cable channel 73 Santa Cruz County only
For more listings in the future, see their website schedule for channel 27/73.To view the trailer for "People to People," visit the pastors for peace website.

FLOWER FESTIVAL AT INDIA JOZE SUNDAY, MAY 16, 2010.(his press release)
Date and Time: Sunday, May 16 4-8pm
Where: New India Joze, 418 Front Street, Santa Cruz in the spacious dance room
What: Four hours of Performance Art, Culinary Edification, and Festive Feasting. Celebrate our splendid Santa Cruz spring, find yourself bedazzled by beauty, and savor the flavor and fragrance of the India Joze Flower Festival. We'll take a wok in the garden path as chef Jozseph Schultz and his band of merry woksters prepare before your very eyes flower-centric dishes from around the world such as...Elder Flower Fritters, Thai Mushroom-Day Lily in Butter Lettuce Cups, Fresh Flower Pasta with Lemon, Rose Petal Chicken, Lavender Scented Salmon, Fresh Breads and Nasturtium Butter, Date and Lemon Flower Tarts, Lemon Verbena Shortbread, Lavender Sorbet And more...(Non-alcoholic drinks will be served while our license is in process.) Price and Reservations: $45 per person for reservations paid for by Wednesday, May 12, $55 after May 12. Reserve a table of eight for your friends and family or come alone and meet a delightful group of like-minded food lovers and Joze fans. This is a reservations only event and space is limited. Make reservations at Indiajoze.com Contacts and Questions:
Menu, Food, General Jozeness: Jozseph Schultz 831-325-3633 joze@indiajoze.com
Reservations: Kim Beer 408-691-2948 kbeer63@gmail.com
Press and Publicity: Betsy McNair 831-476-9693 jozseph@gmail.com
Hot tip and details soon: MOROCCAN FEZ-TIVAL MAY 30 4-8pm.

UNIVERSITY GRAPEVINE. Each and every Tuesday from 7:30-8:30 p.m. I host University Grapevine on KZSC 88.1 fm. or on your computer (live only ) at WWW.KZSC.ORG. Intrepid Good Times editor Greg Archer leads the show May 11^th and Maya Barsacq talks about Cadenza's May 29^th concert. On June 8^th we have the now traditional Bookshop Santa Cruz short story winners all reading their works for the entire hour. Even more traditional County Supervisor Neal Coonerty comes back on June 15^th to celebrate Grapevine's 4^th anniversary. Secular Humanist Dennis Etler follows Neal that night. Any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in and keep listening. Any and all suggestions for future programs are more than welcome so tune in and keep listening.

QUOTES. "I live in my own little world, but it's ok, everybody knows me here" bumper sticker we saw at the intersection of Florida Highways 50 and 41. "Florida isn't so much a place where one goes to reinvent oneself, as it is a place where one goes if one no longer wished to be found", Doug Coupland . "Florida is a place of unparalleled diversity of backgrounds, experiences and vision. It makes our culture unique, but it can also make it difficult to define a common identity and create a sense of community that reaches beyond our neighborhoods to all corners of our state.
Jeb Bush. "Florida will be gone altogether, the whole damned place, in not too long", James Lovelock

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Bruce critiques films every Friday on KZSC-FM (88.1) on The Bushwhacker Breakfast Club at 8am.

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