Local nonprofit MAPS makes history with hit conference on psychedelic science
“The Tao Te Ching says, ‘Those who know don’t speak; those who speak don’t know,” psychologist William A. Richards, Ph.D., says to a large and colorful crowd on April 16. “But in science, we do the best we can. We just don’t know any better!”

Richards, whose talk outlined a study of the use of psilocybin for the treatment of end-of-life anxiety in cancer patients, was one of dozens of speakers at “Psychedelic Science in the 21st Century,” a keenly anticipated conference that took place at a San Jose Holiday Inn from April 15-18. The event was presented by the Santa Cruz-based organization MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies), an IRS-approved nonprofit working to legalize psychedelic drugs and marijuana as prescription drugs.

California, breathe easy—offshore oil drilling has been tabled
What do President Barack Obama’s decision to open up parts of the U.S. coast to oil exploration, the Gulf of Mexico oil rig explosion, and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s withdrawal of his support for new oil drilling off of Santa Barbara have in common? They may all influence the future of offshore oil drilling in California.

Though the West Coast was conspicuously absent from Obama’s announcement that he would open parts of the Atlantic Coast, northern Alaskan Coast and the Gulf of Mexico to oil exploration, some fear that opening up those areas may pave the way for new offshore drilling in California.

Jean-Michel Cousteau carries on his dad’s profound legacy
When you’re the son of perhaps the most famous waterman in modern history, you know you’re going to be thrown into the world of ocean adventuring. For Jean-Michel Cousteau, such was the case—literally. At the age of 7, when his legendary father, the revolutionary explorer Jacques Cousteau, strapped an oxygen tank to his back and tossed him overboard into the Mediterranean Sea, the Frenchman inherited an insatiable curiosity and a subsequent need to protect the aqua underworld.

One reporter’s exploration of organic, and the USDA’s standards for enforcement
The sound of a cash register chings at the organic market. Vibrant produce passes over the scanner, and the total leaps five, eight, then 15 dollars higher.

A single adult living the organic lifestyle can spend $500 a month on food—at least if my grocery bill is any sign of the times. An heirloom tomato might be $.50 down the road at Safeway, but here it’s $1.60. Why is organic produce so expensive? Are organic junkies like me getting ripped off?

The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently published the first in-depth report on organic farming, finding that the average organic farm spends $170,000 a year in production. Conventional farms only spend about $103,000.

Proposal for a new Boulder Creek recreation center causes a controversy
The current Boulder Creek Recreation Center sits in an unassuming location behind the Fire Department. A new proposal put forth by the Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District Board of Directors would move the center into a larger space that could serve thousands more people a month and provide more programs for area teens.

But a growing number of concerned residents are saying the plan is not as peachy as it sounds. These neighbors have formed the Boulder Creek-Brookdale Coalition of Concerned Citizens,  (BCBCCC), and are up in arms over the proposal for the new multi-million dollar recreation center that would be built in a residential area on the south side of town. The building would take up nearly three-quarters of a city block, leaving the two homes not included in the purchase with backyards bordering the parking lot.

What are your thoughts on President Barack Obama’s recent efforts to reduce global nuclear stockpiles?

This has been a very active spring in the realm of nuclear proliferation issues.

First, on April 6, the Obama Administration released its Nuclear Posture Review, and while I hoped to see far stronger language in the document, it does move U.S. nuclear policy in the right direction.

The Project for Innovation and Entrepreneurship gives young entrepreneurs local opportunities
A world-class university, UC Santa Cruz is known for cultivating young talent and innovation. But, faced with the prospect of Santa Cruz’s tough job market and a seeming lack of entrepreneurial opportunities, many graduates pack up and head out after receiving their diplomas. The city and UCSC have been trying

to figure out how to retain the auspicious workforce for some time now, and have finally come up with what they believe will curb this outward flow of talent: the Project for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, or PIE.

Singing activists and city clash, weighing First Amendment with concerns of residents
Three amateur singers are currently fighting tickets for opening their windpipes and violating a Downtown Santa Cruz noise ordinance earlier this year. Two of them, Robert Norse and Becky Johnson of Homeless United for Friendship and Freedom (HUFF), are not new to the spotlight, to controversy, or to conflicts with the city. Norse, in particular, often finds himself in the courtroom—whether for an incident at the Metro Station or for making a “Nazi salute” at a city council meeting.

The City County Library Joint Powers Board expects the 10-branch library system's $11.3 million annual budget to shrink to $10.7 million in the near future. What changes are our public libraries facing, and what is being done to preserve them?

Like most publicly funded entities, the Santa Cruz Public Library is facing some very difficult financial times in the next couple of years. Santa Cruz County voters have supported the public library by voting for a one-fourth cent sales tax dedicated to the library. Without that sales tax funding we really wouldn't have much of a public library system. Unfortunately, the one-fourth cent sales tax is not producing the funds that it used to and there is less money with which to run the library.

At 30, Camouflage still educates—and titillates
In three decades, Camouflage has become a  beacon of adult fun. It’s stood proudly and colorfully in Downtown Santa Cruz since 1980 and is considered a Mecca of lingerie, sex toys, frisky holiday costumes, and the single-largest supplier of vibrators in the county. And it’s all thanks to one single pair of edible undies.

In the late 1970s, Joan Levine was a wife and mother living on a farm in Felton, hanging out with the family’s goats and chickens, when her husband proposed she start a T-shirt shop in Santa Cruz. His own shirts with “Santa Cruz” down the arm were fairly popular, and he thought she could start a business selling them. By January 1980, she was all set up in a remarkably small 400 square-foot store on Pacific Avenue.