Can he go the distance?

A strange flower is in full bloom this time of year in the neighborhoods of Charlottesville: the political campaign sign. Though it makes an annual appearance, it is particularly abundant every four years. And this year, there’s a bumper crop, with three dominant strains: Obama for President, Warner for Senate, and Perriello for Congress. You […]

A star in his eyes

Much of Tom Perriello’s success has stemmed from his decision to spend campaign funds on a summer internship program instead of stockpiling it for the October TV blitz. These 15 “Common Good Summer Fellows,” many of them from Southside, ran Perriello offices throughout the district, knocked on doors, put out signs, organized Perriello speaking events […]

Pressure unabated to expand growth area

According to Albemarle County policy, water and sewer service is only supposed to be extended to property within the “growth area,” the 5 percent of county land that’s designated for development. Yet last week, the county Board of Supervisors approved two expansions of service into parcels in the so-called rural area that border the growth […]

Don't throw it all away

Ace: I overheard someone talking about “freecycle” the other day. What is it? Some sort of biking initiative?—Stu Wheeler Stu: In his later, ahem, 30s, Ace assisted a professor of private investigationism at a local university. From time to time, he would notice a group of hipster students assembling themselves on campus. There, in a […]

Walls of shame

Complaining about new buildings is a great, if unsung, American pastime. New condos on the corner? “Ugly!” New strip mall where there used to be trees? “Atrocious!” Everybody does it. And if they don’t, they’re boors who wouldn’t know a Parthenon from a Panera. In the spirit of that noble tradition, we at C-VILLE have […]

Still an attractive metal

I have a personal and rather embarrassing standard for Metallica. It hinges on one question: Does the song lend itself to the daydream in which I stand on a stage, 32nd-note riffs sparking from my guitar, and snarl vocals that proceed to both impress and frighten the crowd, which—incidentally—is composed in equal parts of people […]

The Force is strong with this one

We’ve all known, ever since Obi-Wan Kenobi first clued us in way back in Star Wars: A New Hope, that the Dark Side has an irresistible allure. And now we know exactly why. Absolute power may corrupt absolutely, but it’s a total blast to throw around. The developers at LucasArts have described Star Wars: The […]

Way beyond a shadow…

Doubt: A Parable was written by John Patrick Shanley and marks a serious departure for the man who also penned screenplays for Moonstruck and Joe Versus the Volcano.