Wherefore Art Thou Ethical Scofflaws? Below
Given his numerous eruptions, it's a wonder our Mouth-in-Chief hasn't been before the Nevada Commission on Ethics before. Compared to former Mayor Jan Jones—in front of the tribunal eight times—Oscar's been a goody-goody. Here are the most notable violators of the past seven years.
1997: The commission found County Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates guilty of using her position to win a daiquiri concession in McCarran International Airport.
1998: The commission found Assemblyman Bob Beers guilty of publishing a false statement of fact during his District 4 campaign against Dennis Silvers; a Beers' mailer intimated that Silvers started a fire that destroyed his failing restaurant. The commission waived a $5,000 fine.
1999 and 2001: The commission absolved Reno Mayor Jeff Griffin of claims he conspired to get an airport cargo contract for a business he owned; Griffin was absolved of similar charges as related to the Airport Authority of Washoe County.
2000: The commission deadlocked on a 3-3 vote on former City Councilman Michael McDonald's brokering on two projects, the Ranger Building and Las Vegas Sportspark; the commission's opinion noted that McDonald violated city protocol but not state laws that prohibit pecuniary and business relationships.
2002: The commission absolved Elko County Sheriff Arthur Harris of claims he used his position to win a contract to clean the Elko County Library and violated rules on the use of take-home vehicles.
2003: The commission absolved former City Councilman Lynette Boggs McDonald of conflict-of-interest claims regarding decisions she made while simultaneously serving on Station Casinos' board of directors.
The Beard Awards Like Us, the Beard Awards Really Like Us!
And now, here's food editor Max Jacobson with the latest restaurant news: On May 10, two Las Vegas restaurants—and chefs—came out big winners at the 14th annual James Beard Foundation Awards, considered by the national restaurant community to be the Oscars of the profession. Bradley Ogden at Caesars Palace took home the Illy Best New Restaurant Award, which further establishes our credibility as a premier restaurant destination. And the likeable, easygoing Luciano Pellegrini took home a well deserved American Express Best Chefs Award for the Southwest Region for his work at Piero Selvaggio Valentino in the Venetian.
Quote of the Week Involving Urine Consumption
"To live on our own urine is an impossibility," Dr. Tony Alamo, chief of staff at Sunrise Hospital and Medical Center said. "It has no hydration value whatsoever."
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From the Las Vegas Review-Journal, in reference to lost and then found hiker Christine Asleson, who lived in the wilderness five days eating flowers and drinking piss
First Friday Shooting
A man was shot in the back on Main Street after a fight at an after-First Friday party in the Icehouse moved outside early Saturday. The shooting led to hundreds of calls to the tavern from patrons concerned that the Icehouse might end its popular Get Back night, featuring the record spins of local DJs, on First Fridays.
A manager at the Icehouse, a relatively new Main Street club that is one of the first businesses to take advantage of Downtown's slow rebirth, says the party will stay, but the bar will now scan customers with magnetic wands on busy nights.
"We have to do that; on First Fridays, we have more than 1,000 people in here," the manager said.
More than a year old, First Friday is the brainchild of a group of Downtown artists who banded together to create, on the first Friday night of every month, a multiblock area for art patrons, families and others to get out and see the creations of local artists. The event, which now draws thousands of people, has helped with renewing business interest in Downtown Las Vegas.
Las Vegas police spokesman Jose Montoya said the fight started inside the Icehouse. "Shots were fired; the fight moved to the parking lot and more shots were fired," he said. A man identified as Jose Gomez, not involved in the fight, was running down Main Street when he was shot in the back, but his injuries are not believed to be life-threatening, Montoya added. The suspects were gone when police arrived. Police continue to investigate the shooting.
But Can You Balance the State Budget While Hopping on One Foot and Reciting the Lord's Prayer?
In one of dozens of cut-n-pasted-n-poorly-Xeroxed campaign fliers from Nevada State Assembly 7 candidate Stan Vaughan, voters are informed: "He is the current world record holder for most (chess) games played simultaneously while blindfolded. Vaughan also once held the Guinness World Record for most correspondence games played at one time (1300)."
We're So Proud of Those Boys, We Could Just Plotz!
Our favorite Lion Kings, Siegfried & Roy, are back, and that's no mirage.
CNN.com reported that the duo's NBC fall series, Father of the Pride, has triggered "big hopes" at the now-Friends-less Peacock network. The computer-generated sitcom—costing up to $2.5 million per episode—aims for a Shrek-like satirical vibe and is about the domestic lives of the duo's feline family. Supposedly "wittily adult and even risque," Pride features John Goodman, Cheryl Hines and Carol Reiner voicing, respectively, Larry the White Lion, his lioness wife Kate and Kate's loutish dad, with Julian Holloway and Dave Herman speaking for S&R. (No casting call has been put out for Montecore.)