Regressive thinkers like Paul Ryan and Harvard economists Carmen Reinhart and Kenneth Rogoff, who just had their invalid austerity facts exposed by three researchers from UMass, are running scared now. So scared, in fact, that they are talking CRAZY.

Here is a collection of thoughts and stories from those who've crossed paths (personally or professionally) with former Higley district athletic director Art Wagner, who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on May 15.

If any piece of classic American literature should be depicted on film with wildly decadent and boldly inventive style, it's "The Great Gatsby." After all, who was the character of Jay Gatsby himself if not a spinner of grandiose tales and a peddler of lavish dreams?

Gov. Jan Brewer has cleared one hurdle for new research on the possible medical benefits of marijuana.

His acceptance speech was easily the most brief, but the thoughts shared Friday night by United Food Bank President and CEO Bob Evans were certainly among the most poignant.

On Sunday, the popular PBS restaurant review show, “Check, Please! Arizona,” hosts its first food festival at CityScape in Phoenix. While attendees enjoy a plethora of food and wine samples and live demonstrations from award-winning chefs like Robert McGrath and Chris Bianco, one humble festival booth — Pittsburgh Willy’s Gourmet Hot Dogs — takes the next step in its Cinderella story.

They may be so commonplace they’re unappreciated, so simple they fail to activate the saliva glands at first sight, but in our book it’s hard to go wrong with chips and salsa.

Centennials are normally cause for celebration, a chance to applaud some thing or person standing the test of time. But not so for the income tax. Even the IRS is declining to mention that this year is the 100 year anniversary of the 16th Amendment of the Constitution, which authorized the tax.

Between the two of them, filmmakers Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel have explored sheepherding in Montana, auto shops and junkyards in Queens and most recently, the fishing industry in the North Atlantic. Their experimental documentary “Leviathan” is both visceral and gritty, in no way spoon-feeding its audience information, but rather, completely immersing them in the gruesome, often dangerous environment aboard a commercial fishing liner.

“Don’t call me Mister. Even in high school, my dad had my friends call him Eddie. There are no misters here.”

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Most folks know Memphis for its barbecue and Philly for its cheesesteaks, but how about Nashville and its hot chicken?

Get Humble, Get Holy

Up there with “Stoker” and “Like Someone in Love” as one of the best films to hit theaters this spring, “War Witch” is devastating, beautiful and truly not to be missed. An Oscar nominee for Best Foreign Language Film, this gut-wrenching tale of a child soldier has been reeling in the accolades: Best Actress awards for young star Rachel Mwanza at both the Berlin and Tribeca film festivals, along with a whopping 10 honors (including Best Picture) at this year’s Canadian Screen Awards.

Every year leading up to Easter, on a temporary, five-story, outdoor stage erected near downtown Mesa, the story of the life and mission of Jesus Christ, taken from the Bible, is portrayed in live performance, music and dance.

Classes stopped at St. Timothy Catholic School in Mesa for a few moments last week as students and staff watched televisions, awaiting for the announcement of a new pope.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is the first ever from the Americas, an austere Jesuit intellectual who modernized Argentina's conservative Catholic church.

Sixteen-year-old Jesus Yanez doesn’t think of himself as a hero, but that’s the role he found himself in when he saved another student’s life at Mesa’s Westwood High School.

Ah, those first few minutes of a third quarter.

In a small thrift shop on a quiet stretch of Arizona Avenue, a group of women sift through piles of clothes and household goods, looking for anything that might catch the eye of someone who has happened upon hard times or someone who is looking for a great deal.

Our higher education system is acknowledged as the best in the world, Yet, our primary and secondary educational system is currently failing our children. While we are scorned yet admired as the most powerful country in the world, other countries are also laughing at us for continuing to deliver such an inapt system of education.

“I just poured Gatorade all over my plants.”

Another legislative session, another day for the nanny state. The list of people whom government officials think are incapable of running their own lives now includes state lottery winners.

“We didn’t really want to waste anyone’s time,” Jason Tippet says of his new documentary “Only The Young,” which he co-directed and shot with close friend Elizabeth Mims. Humble and laidback, but always quick to throw in a playful jab at the other, you couldn’t find two better people to capture the throes of 21st century adolescence.

The state health officials say the flu is still increasing in Arizona with a steep increase seen in the past two weeks.