A GOOD KICK IN THE ASS
It’s been a tough, bitter year. Somehow the simple act of relaxing in a bar became one of the most politically explosive issues to hit Central Texas in decades, and the fallout, economic and otherwise, is still knee-deep. Turns out people are fine with foregoing their civil liberties, but go for their cigarettes and they’ll fight tooth and nail. Misplaced priorities or one final flare-up of true democracy, either way, going out in Austin this year was, for the first time ever, more an ordeal than a pleasure. This cannot continue.This article appears in December 23 • 2005.