Emily's Post: McDonald's settlement, Ron Johnson outspends Russ Feingold Emily Mills on Thursday 09/02/2010 1:32 pm What piques my curiosity is the fact that McD's waited two years between the city's initial payment of $56,000 in 2006 before filing a complaint that claimed $408,900 in damages. The difference between the two numbers is, quite frankly, startling. All of it stems from the fast food chain's contention that construction of the bridge disrupted the flow of drive-thru traffic and obstructed the view from the road of its big ol' golden arches. >More
Wisconsin Republican U.S. House candidate Chad Lee lets Republicans off the hook Dean Robbins on Thursday 09/02/2010 Chad Lee is a Republican running for U.S. Representative in Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District, and he's incensed by the 2008 Emergency Economic Stabilization Act. "Congress gave $700 billion of our tax dollars to Wall Street while they allowed 90,000 small businesses to go bankrupt!" intones the narrator for his ad "Time for a Change in Washington." >More
Cookbook cues: Fiesta at Rick's by Rick Bayless with Deann Groen Bayless Erin Hanusa on Wednesday 09/01/2010 2:00 pm Remembering the fact that chef Rick Bayless is riding a career crest in the last couple of years -- first winner of Top Chef Masters, honorary chef at a White House state dinner -- you might understand why the man is in the mood for a party. Happily for us, we're invited. >More
The Sconz on the Dan Potacke Show! Jack Craver on Wednesday 09/01/2010 1:48 pm, (1) Comment The Sconz is hitting up the number one live bar talk show in Madison. Come listen on Monday, 6:30 p.m. at the Frequency. >More
Attention Madison geeks: Geek.kon 2010 is here! Amanda Lanyon-LeSage on Wednesday 09/01/2010 12:01 pm, (2) Likes Attention geeks! Geek.Kon, Madison's own anime, gaming, and science fiction convention, comes to the Marriott West hotel in Middleton Friday, September 3. Geeks of all stripes will find something to do at this three-day event. >More
Wilmington on DVD: Me & Orson Welles, Ludwig: Requiem for a Virgin King, Pandora and the Flying Dutchman, Harry Brown, Marmaduke on Wednesday 09/01/2010 10:00 am In Me and Orson Welles, Richard Linklater takes on a highly ambitious subject that really, really appeals to me -- a portrayal of the astonishing youthful theatrical triumphs of the 22-year-old Welles, his adroit and urbane (and long-suffering) producer John Houseman, and of their ingenious, experimental 1937 Mercury Theater production of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. >More
Brunch Links: September 1 Jack Craver on Wednesday 09/01/2010 8:35 am A delicious daily round-up of local and state political news items for your mid-morning current events fix. >More
Wisconsin Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett tries to win with jokes Dean Robbins on Tuesday 08/31/2010, (9) Comments In his ad "Madison on a Diet," Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett tries to take a humorous approach to government spending in Wisconsin. "We all know that when it comes to spending, the politicians in Madison aren't counting their calories," he says, sitting in a diner. >More
Fringe Foods: Cuitlacoche from Las Cazuelas For everything, there is a season -- including corn smut Kyle Nabilcy on Tuesday 08/31/2010 2:00 pm, (2) Comments, (2) Likes This is another one of those foods that forces you to wonder what exactly the first daring eater was thinking; infected ears of corn puff up, turn purplish-black, and grow fuzz. The Aztec name for this freaky-looking cob is cuitlacoche (also frequently spelled "huitlacoche"), which likely meant "sleeping shit." Wrapped in the husk, cuitlacoche does look a bit like a swaddled turd. So, naturally, it’s what’s for dinner. >More
Win tickets to Christian Finnegan, Mark Olson, and more! on Tuesday 08/31/2010 1:00 pm The Isthmus Guest List is back with another round of free tickets to amazing concerts, shows and more fun events around Madison. This week's contests include tickets to: Last Summer at Bluefish Cove by StageQ; the Chocolate Chase in Middleton; Christian Finnegan at the Majestic; Mark Olson, Michelle Shocked, and Menomena at the High Noon; and more! >More
Emily's Post: Scott Walker's new ad, Brenda Konkel's burden Emily Mills on Tuesday 08/31/2010 9:32 am, (1) Comment Whoa hey, when did it get to be the last day of August already? Summer ain’t officially over, of course (I won’t let it be, dammit!) but change is definitely in the air. Herds of students wander the downtown area, at turns looking both confused and expectant. The slightest hint of a chill hangs behind the still warm air. People all across the state suddenly find themselves scrambling to pack in as much outdoor fun in the next couple of months as possible. >More
Blaska's Blog speaks loudly for the hard of thinking David Blaska on Tuesday 08/31/2010 8:42 am, (55) Comments, (2) Likes Blaska’s Blog thanks his many readers for placing the Squire of the Stately Manor among the award winners again this year in the Isthmus Annual Manual. The people of Greater Madison, in their infinite wisdom, have named yours truly as one of Madison’s favorite "Vociferous Speakers." >More
The Week: August 30-September 2, 2010 on Monday 08/30/2010 6:00 am One season ebbs into another during this transitional week in Madison, when schools are getting into session but before the last big holiday hurray of summer. The calendar includes: book readings by Jean Reynolds Page, and Jeff Deck with Benjamin Herson; and, a healthy dose of live music care of The Civil Wars, Funky Mondays, Jazz at Five, and Chick Singer Night. >More
2010 Token Creek Chamber Music Festival commences with wonderful all-Beethoven program John W. Barker on Sunday 08/29/2010 9:24 am Under a bit of a cloud of uncertainty over its future, the Token Creek Chamber Music Festival opened its 2010 season on Aug. 28 with a wonderful all-Beethoven program, anchored by a favorite visitor, pianist Robert Levin. The concert took place at the Token Creek Festival Barn, in DeForest. >More
Vinyl Cave: Early tunes by Don Gibson Bob Koch on Saturday 08/28/2010 8:00 am, (1) Like Singer/songwriter Don Gibson made his first huge splash with "Oh Lonesome Me" in 1958, a crossover hit on both the country (No. 1 for eight weeks) and pop charts. Unbeknownst to country music fans outside his Tennessee stomping grounds, and probably some folks in his native North Carolina, he had actually been recording fairly prolifically since 1949. >More
Beer Here: Devil's Lake Red Lager from the Great Dane Downtown Robin Shepard on Friday 08/27/2010 3:00 pm, (3) Likes I've hit that point in the summer where I start looking for a beer that will act as a transition into the fall brews. I'm not quite ready for Oktoberfests or the fresh hop-harvested beers that are just beginning to turn up. For me, the red and amber lagers offer unequaled session beer qualities for late summer, and the Great Dane's Devil's Lake Red Lager is my current session beer of choice. >More
Follow Friday with Laurie Stark: @your_overcoat Amanda Lanyon-LeSage on Friday 08/27/2010 2:39 pm, (1) Comment, (2) Likes Originally from Tampa, Florida, Laurie moved to Madison in 2005 to work for Epic Systems. Her Twitter feed is refreshing and a little sassy. She tweets about how to use social media effectively, blog posts she's written, recipes and observations on life. >More
MadTracks: 'Reconnaissance' by Mirrors for Windows Jessica Steinhoff on Friday 08/27/2010 1:00 pm, (2) Likes Madison indie-rock trio Mirrors for Windows has been around for about a year, waiting for the perfect moment to pierce the public consciousness. It looks like the band is ready, armed with a sharp new track named "Reconnaissance" and a debut EP named Avoidance Conditioning. >More
Music Theatre of Madison's Yours, Anne entertains despite problematic book and score Emily Mills on Friday 08/27/2010 10:14 am When you think of topics for musicals, I don't imagine that the Holocaust springs to mind. Other than the over-the-top satire of Mel Brooks' Springtime for Hitler from The Producers, few shows have succeeded at putting the absurdity and atrociousness of World War II to song. Yet that's just what Enid Futterman and Michael Cohen did when they wrote Yours, Anne, a musical originally staged in 1985 and based on the famous diary of Anne Frank. >More
Emily's Post: McDonald's settlement, Ron Johnson outspends Russ Feingold Emily Mills on Thursday 09/02/2010 1:32 pm What piques my curiosity is the fact that McD's waited two years between the city's initial payment of $56,000 in 2006 before filing a complaint that claimed $408,900 in damages. The difference between the two numbers is, quite frankly, startling. All of it stems from the fast food chain's contention that construction of the bridge disrupted the flow of drive-thru traffic and obstructed the view from the road of its big ol' golden arches. >MoreEmily's Post: Scott Walker's new ad, Brenda Konkel's burden Emily Mills on Tuesday 08/31/2010 9:32 am, (1) Comment Whoa hey, when did it get to be the last day of August already? Summer ain’t officially over, of course (I won’t let it be, dammit!) but change is definitely in the air. Herds of students wander the downtown area, at turns looking both confused and expectant. The slightest hint of a chill hangs behind the still warm air. People all across the state suddenly find themselves scrambling to pack in as much outdoor fun in the next couple of months as possible. >MoreEmily's Post: Willy on Jenifer and RoJo on religious freedom Emily Mills on Thursday 08/26/2010 1:07 pm, (7) Comments, (1) Like I fully support the addition of the driveway onto Jenifer Street -- as long as it's accompanied by further traffic easement plans and safety measures. I'm a little disappointed at how heated opposition to the plan has become by some neighbors, especially since I worry that any sustained stonewalling of co-op improvement plans could lead to the notion of it needing to relocate. >More> MORE FROM EMILY
BLASKA'S BLOG
Blaska's Blog speaks loudly for the hard of thinking David Blaska on Tuesday 08/31/2010 8:42 am, (55) Comments, (2) Likes Blaska’s Blog thanks his many readers for placing the Squire of the Stately Manor among the award winners again this year in the Isthmus Annual Manual. The people of Greater Madison, in their infinite wisdom, have named yours truly as one of Madison’s favorite "Vociferous Speakers." >MoreBlaska's Blog warns of the Leftist threat to free speech David Blaska on Friday 08/27/2010 1:00 am, (50) Comments, (3) Likes When did America's political Left become the sworn enemy of free speech? Was it in the 1990s, when UW-Madison, having fended off Joe McCarthy, then succumbed to the enemy within, its liberal professoriate, by enacting a politically correct faculty speech code that punished unpopular opinions? >MoreBlaska's Blog: Accept no RTA referendum substitutes David Blaska on Monday 08/23/2010 8:58 pm, (13) Comments, (4) Likes Even Matt Veldran can't ignore the people forever. After an intensive grass roots campaign to shame this arrogant county board supervisor, Veldran has finally placed the RTA commuter rail referendum on the Public Works Committee agenda. That committee meets Tuesday, August 24, at 5:30 p.m. in Room 351 of the City County Building. >More> MORE FROM BLASKA
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