The first thing you’ll notice in our cover story, a report from Ukraine in the center of a war, is that although the headline talks about the bravery and victimization of teen girls by Russian troops, there are no photos of the girls.
Santa Cruz author Steve Kettmann gave me a quick lesson on why not: we have to protect their identities.
But they did open up with Kettmann, a father of two children who spent a week doing relief efforts and researching a book on the war in a place few would dare to tread. Kettmann runs the Wellstone Center, a writing institute in Soquel, and has reported on politics and sports for national publications.
There are two photos that really tell the story: Kettmann and partners in front of a beautiful building, then another shot the next day, after it was bombed to rubble. I give Kettmann high praise not only for going there but also for filing the story on deadline over Father’s Day weekend. That’s what great journalists do.
A side note in keeping with the theme of an alternative entertainment weekly is that one of the people he met over there was Ken Casey, singer and bassist for Boston punk band the Dropkick Murphys, who was bringing aid, including an electric wheelchair for a victim of Russian bombing.
Kettmann was frightened by the cruelty of Russians so unabashedly attacking civilian targets and kidnapping young residents, and he was inspired by the courage of the Ukrainians.
“Ukraine will keep fighting, no matter what,” he writes. “Even if their cities are overrun and they have to take to the hills or the sewers or a remote location where they pilot drones that wreak havoc. As one Ukrainian told me, ‘One thing that Ukrainians do best is we can adapt to pretty much anything and make the best scenario out of the worst possible situation.’”
Thanks for reading.
Brad Kava | Editor
PHOTO CONTEST
LOOKING FOR HOME There are so many pets at the SPCA shelter looking for a new home. Go check them out. Photograph by Rebecca Hall, rebeccahallphoto.com
GOOD IDEA
Community radio station KSQD, known as K-Squid, holds its fourth Broadcast and Podcast Workshop, planned for Salinas at the El Gabilan Library, July 19, 1:30-3:30pm. The series is scheduled to continue Aug. 20 in Marina and Sept. 18 in Monterey.
It will cover interviewing techniques and best practices, how to pick and use the right equipment and editing for radio and podcasts. All experience levels are welcome. To register contact Omar Guzman at Om**@ks**.org. K-SQUID broadcasts at 90.7 Santa Cruz, 89.7 Monterey, and 89.5 Salinas. Visit KSQD.org.
GOOD EATS
Remember Santa Cruz Burger Week? It’s now Bay Area Burger Week, with restaurants participating from the North Bay down to Silicon Valley. Visit BayAreaBurgerWeek.com or download the app for Android or Apple phones. The following local restaurants are participating: Belly Goat Craft Burgers, Churchill and Beers, Emerald Mallard, Hook & Line, Hula’s Tiki Bar and Grill, Laili Restaurant, Laughing Monk Brewing, Makai Island Kitchen & Groggery, Pana Food, Parish Publick House, Pono Hawaiian Kitchen and Tap, Riva Fish House, Rosie McCann’s, Salty Otter Sports Grill, Seabright Social and Sevy’s Bar + Kitchen.
Longtime local comedian DNA has released his first album, Dark Horse, and it’s getting rave reviews for making our hometown hilarious. You’ll learn secrets about who works at the Boardwalk, heroin dipped acupuncture needles, New Age therapists who play Bernie Sanders speeches, what it’s like to be an influencer for unsheltered people and which locally filmed movie has the most Santa Cruz scenes (the answer will surprise you). Buy it online at Bandcamp: votedna.bandcamp.com/album/dark-horse.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“More parents would face the impossible choice between paying rent and buying groceries, and homelessness will increase.”
—Tony Nuñez-Palomino
on the Trump budget bill
