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Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed
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Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes
Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts
Feast! — Food & drink reviews
Feature Stories — Local news & stories
Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore
From the Archives — Spotlight on the past
Golden Dreams — Talk of the town
The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it
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Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites
Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans
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Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated
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SD on the QT — Almost factual news
Sheep and Goats — Places of worship
Special Issues — The best of
Street Style — San Diego streets have style
Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves
Theater — On stage in San Diego this week
Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative
Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work
Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego
Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads
Your Week — Daily event picks
A Lively Senior Moment
1) Heart attacks and other incapacitating ailments can (and do) strike drivers of all ages, without warning. 2) Many more young, aggressive, and careless drivers cause accidents than do older drivers. (Why do you think your insurance is so high?) 3) You'll be old someday too, JoshB--let's see how you like it when someone wants to take your freedom away. Instead of spouting worthless and insensitive comments, why don't we suggest solutions, like require road tests for license renewal every year, for say, those 70 and up? While I may not like the inference that I'm incompetent at any age, most rational folks would understand the need. And maybe cash-strapped Calif. could make a few extra bucks ...— August 8, 2009 7:12 p.m.
Driving Drunk Is Not Easy
After reading this article about yet another drunk driver who was “let off” too many times by the judicial system and finally made one stick with a felony hit-n-and-run, I couldn’t help but think that we’re going about this all wrong. Issuing jail time is another case of treating the symptoms and not the underlying cause of a problem. When someone continues to tempt fate after so many warnings and near misses, their problem that is the cause of the incidents is inherently psychological and not simply a case of bad behavior. Why aren’t we treating the inadequacies, insecurities, or other demon the person is dealing with, to help them eliminate or at least control, the excess of their drinking or dependence on other illegal substances that cause aberrant behavior? Sending them to a generic abuse program is not enough—they're generally not equipped to delve into the deep-seated issues of “problem drinkers,” who use alcohol as a crutch, rather than an aide in relaxation or for light enjoyment. When alcohol or drugs go beyond pleasure, to necessity, it’s acting as a substitute for facing a myriad of societal ills—a slap on the wrist won’t fix it—and jail time, with REAL bad guys will do nothing but exacerbate the problem. But we’re a society built on Easy Street—it’s easier to just throw them in jail and forget about them. There are many “social drinkers” in the world and contrary to the beliefs of many, this can happen to any one of us. It just takes a fateful night of bad judgment and really bad luck. In the meantime, it’s guys (and gals) like this who not only are responsible for many injuries and deaths of others (and themselves), but spoil the fun for responsible drinkers. Should there be punishment? Of course. But it shouldn’t ruin the rest of their lives … and affect ours. Help them fix the problem.— July 30, 2009 7:51 a.m.