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First Solar, based in Tempe AZ, is the world's biggest manufacturer of thin-film photovoltaic solar panels. They use cadmium telluride rather than silicon in creating the panels. This has given them a price advantage over their fast-gaining Chinese competitors, and while such a method is less efficient in creating energy, it can also do so in lower light conditions. Thus, power generation is more stable, which is an advantage for grid-scale installations. Right now, First Solar is creating pane

Retail food prices at Arizona supermarkets were down in the third quarter according to the Arizona Farm Bureau Federation's Market Basket Survey. The informal survey averages the cost of 16 basic grocery items from retailers around the state providing a gauge for price trends. In Arizona, these items totaled $50.71, down $.60 or about 1 percent below the second quarter of 2011. By comparison, the American Farm Bureau Federation's national survey found third quarter prices on those same items av

"When you're up to your knees in alligators, sometimes it's difficult to remember your initial objective was to drain the swamp." That is what has happened over the past few years as Arizona lawmakers have struggled with the budget deficit. While the rush to balance the budget has been understandable, it's generally been done in a hurried fashion and with little or no long-term planning. Cuts were mandated, and the individual agencies were tasked with figuring out how to do so. Predictably, thi

The average age of farmers and ranchers in America is increasing, and rural populations are in decline. This is why the U.S. Department of Agriculture is acting to plant a new crop of much needed agricultural producers here in California and across the nation. Last week, Ag Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan announced this year's winners of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture's (NIFA) 'Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program' (BFRDP). According to a NIFA news release, a tota

This is one of those unfathomable stories where you wonder if we're all living on the same planet or if anything can be gleaned from it to ensure that it never happens again. Shannon Palmer, a mentally ill man with just a few months left on his sentence, was put in a small cell with Jasper Rushing, an obvious predator and sociopath who was serving 28 years for first-degree murder. The cell was designed for one person, not two. The lights had been burned out for weeks so the only illumination wa

From 2008 to 2010, the Great Recession has disproportionately impacted the Phoenix area causing one of the most dramatic declines in employment rates among the nation's 50 largest metropolitan areas. As of last summer, only nine other metro areas had a lower share of their population holding jobs. This according to newly released data from the Census Bureau. Last year, only 65.6 percent of working-age Phoenix residents had jobs. Household income figures also fell during this period as poverty r

Sylvia Longmire's new book Cartel: The Coming Invasion of Mexico's Drug Wars has just been released and is available in bookstores today. She is a retired Air Force captain and Special Agent with extensive experience investigating Mexico Drug Trafficking Organizations (DTO). She now consults and writes about southwest border violence issues and blogs at Mexico's Drug War. I interviewed her last month. Your book implies the violence and corruption of the drug wars will be spilling across the bor

Rep. Gabrielle Giffords hosted a solar summit last Wednesday which discussed solar power policy goals for Arizona. Two fascinating points emerged from the discussions. First, many thought the early projections for distributed solar in Arizona were overly ambitious and could never be met. The opposite has occurred. Such plans are hugely popular. Second - and this is something proponents of renewable energy should keep in mind - the emphasis for Arizona renewable power wasn't that it would be cle

Demonstrators gathered in downtown Manhattan on Saturday to protest the influence of Wall St. and corporate interests in our nation's politics.  The assembly, which has occupied a park in the financial district for the last two days, has yet to disperse, and protesters say they're in it for the long haul. Protests are, of course, not an unusual occurrence in lower Manhattan.  This year, there have already been a number of demonstrations in which people gathered by the tens of thousands in oppos

Tomorrow will mark the close of dove season in the greater Phoenix Metropolitan area. The past two weeks have been a trial run for a new state law that has opened over one million acres of city-owned land to small game hunters. The relaxed regulations have allowed hunters to avoid congestion and potential accidents by spreading out, wildlife professionals say. With the passage of Senate Bill 1334 in July, the Arizona Game and Fish Commission was granted the authority to regulate hunting within