7 minute read
opiNioN/StREEtalk
from June 7, 2018
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Voting in the Nevada primaries?
aSkeD at Magpie Coffee roaSterS, 1715 S. WellS aVe.
Colin loretz
Web developer Yes. I just think if people complain about how things are going and don’t vote, then they’re throwing away their voices and ability to make a decision. Otherwise, somebody is going to make that decision for you.
Mark SittS
Amateur writer Yes. And I always do it on the actual day. It’s my civic duty.
Dean Heller’s long, slow, downhill slide
This week, Dean Heller put out a news release that read, “Dean Heller ended last week at the opening ceremony of the mobile Vietnam Veterans Moving Wall in Minden, NV. Meanwhile, [his opponent] Congresswoman Jacky Rosen ended her week by fundraising with Hollywood elite in California at the home of Jimmy Kimmel.”
We suspect that many comparisons of schedules could have provided such juxtapositions of competing appearances that would not put Heller at such an advantage, making us wonder why he would resort to such a cheap shot. But since he has done so, we thought we’d take a look at how he spent his time at that Minden appearance.
In the course of his time there, he chatted with a Reno Gazette Journal reporter, who asked him about his reaction to families being split up at the Mexican border. This became an issue on April 6, when U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced his “zero tolerance” policy toward freedom-seeking migrants making illegal border crossings. The policy was conducted as offensively as possible— migrants criminally charged, their children taken from them and, in a typically Trump administration twist, their rosaries confiscated. We are not making up that last item.
In his interview with the RGJ, Heller became perhaps the last person who can breathe on a mirror to oppose this policy—56 days after it was announced. The RGJ, for some reason, thought Heller’s position was some kind of a ringing declaration. Here is some of the on- and offline verbiage that surrounded it in the newspaper:
Whew. We’re not sure what roused the headline writer, but if it’s Heller’s words, then there’s a hair trigger on the reach for the thesaurus. Here is the grand statement from Heller, in its entirety, that inspired all that purple prose:
“I do not like the policy”—and then off into process. How brutal a denunciation. How heartwarming an espousal of family values.
This is typical of what D.C. has done to Dean Heller. He waits forever to negotiate the shoals of which interest groups he wants least to offend, then when he finally decides what stance is least objectionable to the most people, he delivers a mouse of a position. Meanwhile, the state and national consensus has formed without him. No minced words? These are barely words, and they are minced to pieces.
Heller could have led, and not just on this. On so many issues—national health care, guns, environmental issues, Heller has become so calculating that we have no idea where he really stands on anything, only where he thinks it is smart to stand. That was never a problem when he was a state legislator and secretary of state, back when he actually told us what he thought, and when he thought well. Ω Jeff Carter
Bar owner Of course I’m voting. But without mandated local election voting, the lizard people win.
Matt DiCkenS
Window washer Yes, I’m going to vote. I’m going to vote because I want my voice heard. And I feel like I don’t have the right to complain about the decisions that are made if I don’t vote.
VinCe fernan
Barista No. I work from the shadows.
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www.blackholereno.com AT ThE IlluSIONIST’S TABlE
At the Illusionist’s Table
An interview with Scott Silven, Mentalist and host of “At the Illusionist’s Table”
BY ANNE STOKES
Scott Silven is bringing his critically acclaimed show, “At the Illusionist’s Table,” to Reno for a limited 8-show engagement. Don’t expect slight of hand or rabbits. There will be no sequined assistants being sawed in half, but there will be whiskey and an unforgettable night driven by the power of world-renound mentalist Scott Silven’s imagination and storytelling. “I always strive to create singular immersive experiences that allow audiences to directly input their own thoughts, memories, and emotions, and from these fragments I construct illusions of the mind,” the Scottish-born Silven says. “It’s theater for the mind in the truest sense.” “At the Illusionist’s Table” is theater for the palate as well. Guests enjoy three courses of Nevada’s finest dining, created by Liberty Food & Wine Exchange owner and chef Mark Estee in an intimate dinner party atmosphere. With its limited Reno engagement — with room for just 24 guests at each of the eight performances — no two nights are the same. Tickets are bound to sell out, as they have for Silven’s performances around the world from Edinburgh to New York. As a mentalist, Silven’s performances are are influenced by hypnotism, performance art and a lifelong interest in the human psyche. He says the essence of his work explores the mind, memory and human potential. “Through weaving together storytelling, suggestion, psychological and traditional theatrical techniques … my audiences are not only left wondering whether it was hypnosis, psychology, or real mind reading but hopefully galvanized with a sense of wonder that motivates and inspires,” he says. Silven says he wants audiences to leave knowing that they have not only experienced, but were agents in, something remarkable. “I really believe that mystery is intrinsic to the human mind,” he says. “My work should hopefully make you look closely at your own life, consider what motivates you, what you’re capable of, and discover that your life is not a problem to be solved but rather a mystery to be lived.” artownin half, but there will be whiskey and an unforgettable night driven by the power of world-renound mentalist Scott Silven’s imagination and storytelling. “I always strive to create singular immersive experiences that allow audiences to directly input their own thoughts, memories, and emotions, and from these fragments I construct illusions of the mind,” the Scottish-born Silven says. “It’s theater for the mind in the truest “At the Illusionist’s Table” is theater for the palate as well. Guests enjoy three courses of Nevada’s finest dining, created by Liberty Food & Wine Exchange owner and chef Mark Estee in an intimate dinner party atmosphere. With its limited Reno engagement — with room for just 24 guests at each of the eight performances — no two nights are the same. Tickets are bound to sell out, as they have for Silven’s performances around the world from As a mentalist, Silven’s performances are are influenced by hypnotism, performance art and a lifelong interest in the human psyche. He says the essence of his work explores the mind, memory and human potential. “Through weaving together storytelling, suggestion, psychological and traditional theatrical techniques … my audiences are not only left wondering whether it was hypnosis, psychology, or real mind reading but hopefully galvanized with a sense of wonder that Silven says he wants audiences to leave knowing that they have not only experienced, but were agents in, something remarkable. “I really believe that mystery is intrinsic to the human mind,” he says. “My work should hopefully make you look closely at your own life, consider what motivates you, what you’re capable of, and discover that your life is not a problem to be solved but rather a mystery to be lived.” SpONSOrEd cONTENT What: World-acclaimed illusionist Scott Silven hosts an evening of culinary delight interwoven with astonishing feats of illusion, mentalism and captivating storytelling. Everyone will have a front row seat and guests won’t believe their eyes, ears, or taste buds as candles flicker, whisky pours, and conversation stirs over the course of a magical and mysterious evening. Where: Liberty Food & Wine Exchange When: July 6-11 (8 performances) Buy Tickets: 775-322-1538 or www.rentoisartown.com Seating is limited to 24 guests for each performance! 06.07.18 | RN&R | 7
