Running a gas station is a tough business, but during price spikes like the one that recently sent fuel prices to record highs, it becomes all but impossible for independents to make money selling gas. SN&R's Jeff Kearns reports on how the oil giants are tightening their grip on the gas market, squeezing small retailers out of business, and charging everyone more at the pump.
Jessica Lyons delves into the heart and soul of Monterey County's Census Track 7, one of the most densely populated districts in the United States, a gang-ridden neighborhood filled with vibrant life and deep despair. She rides with a councilman in search of a park in the impoverished neighborhood. They never find it, but they find a place where they can look out over a lush golf course in the affluent part of town. "It's got to be so goddamn depressing," the councilman tells her. "You live in the ghetto, but you can see out.
The AAN Admissions Committee's often barbed recommendation report to the members will be released during the June 5-8 AAN Convention, giving thumbs up or down to the 12 papers applying for admission this year. Last year's report, which included such memorable digs as "this paper should be taken out back and shot," is still causing a stir a year later. Several members tell AAN News they plan to temper their written remarks this year.
Hold on to your liver! Riverfront Times salutes the coolest watering holes you've never heard of. Randall Roberts and Mike Seely pull the hard duty of checking out the VFW and American Legion bars of St. Louis, where no one recalls how it became law that "no beer shall cost more than a buck and a quarter or that a majority of bartenders be named Rita." Seely tells AAN News, "This is the real cheese when it comes to getting to the nit-grit of the current military state."
