Muhammad Ali Maize Maze

By Jonathan McNamara It’s amazing what people will do with vegetables these days. For the past five years, Schnepf Farms in Queen Creek has been cutting mazes through corn fields in the likenesses of celebrities including Larry King, Oprah Winfrey and Jay Leno. Whose face would be temporarily etched into…

Joe Arpaio’s Thugs Menace Press Conference for MCSA’s Randy Parraz.

MCSA organizer Parraz, at this morning’s press conference. At a press conference this morning in downtown Phoenix, Randy Parraz, an organizer with Maricopa Citizens for Safety and Accountability, described his ordeal of being arrested on bogus trespassing and disorderly conduct charges yesterday after exiting a Maricopa County Board of Supervisors’…

Hot Links: John McCain Gambles and Loses on House Vote, Supes Critic Randy Parraz Arrested, Sarah Palin Attends Debate Camp at McCain Ranch.

By Stephen Lemons House nixes $700 billion bailout. McCain, Wall Street lose. Board of Supervisors critic and MCSA organizer Randy Parraz arrested by MCSO. Local racists attack Native Americans, shooting one. Scottsdale’s Dickie’s Dogs threatened again, this time with fake dynamite. Cards’ Boldin recovering after violent slam by Jets player…

John McCain and Wife Cindy’s Former Mansion for Sale!

By Amy Silverman OK, so after today’s financial news, you might not be in the market for a mansion. But if you are, you’re in luck! An ad in yesterday’s Arizona Republic announced that on October 25, the “former home of Sen. John & Cindy McCain” will be auctioned. It’s…

Love Phoenix Or Leave Phoenix

By Jonathan McNamara Last week we asked why Phoenicians elect to stay in this dusty desert instead of heading out into the world. Check out this first entry from Phoenician and New Times reader Matt Self: I grew up in the East Valley where the land is flat and dry,…

Podcast: Love Phoenix or Leave Phoenix Continued

By Jonathan McNamara Robert Pela revealed on Thursday that the freedom to pass gas without alerting his neighborhood’s gossip hounds makes living in Phoenix a worthwhile venture even if the symphony sucks. Today, two other New Times employees have stepped up to the plate to espouse their love for this…

Hot Links: Tony Alamo Arrested in Flagstaff, Dowling Sues County for $1.75M, Man Videotapes Chupacabra, McCain Says It’s On Like Donkey Kong..

By Stephen Lemons Cultish pastor Tony Alamo nabbed in northern Arizona by FBI. At first McCain was flakin’, now he’s headed for debate. Dowling sues Arpaio and county for $1.75M. Supes not allowing public comment in do-over meeting. Postseason hopes dashed for D-Backs. Citizen’s Denogean finds clergy who oppose gay-marriage…

Has Phoenix Finally Arrived? Feel the Love

In Jason Hill’s Phoenix, the sun never sets. His paintings of the city — a vibrant Valley National Bank framed by a glowing sky; a dazzling Financial Center with a jet jauntily speeding past — are thousand-watt, high-color beacons that send the same, simple, not-so-subliminal message: Phoenix is cool. Come…

Feedback from the Issue of Thursday, September 25, 2008

JOE’S SONG Crackers, gimme a break: The Juan Mendoza Farias case is so typical of what has gone on repeatedly in Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s jails. Somebody gets put inside for a minor crime (in the great scheme of things) — drunk driving, getting high on drugs — and winds up…

New Times Staffers Weigh In on Why They’re Not Leaving Phoenix Anytime Soon

It happens all the time: I’m someplace outside of Arizona, I mention that I live here most of the year, and the Phoenix-bashing commences. “Oh, no! Phoenix!” moaned Dennis, the first time I met him. Dennis owns Parkside Vintage, an amazing antiques store I always visit when I’m in Warren,…

On Anchor Babies and Mexican Penis Sizes

What is an anchor baby? I am a 45-year-old male born in the U.S.A. My mother was born in ex-Yugoslavia (now Serbia), and my father was also born in ex-Yugoslavia (now Croatia). My father arrived to this country via a green card about four years before I was born and…