A few bad men: Where are they?

Aug 1

Risky business: Porn-loving merchant does his time

By James Graham

While some men have a knack for running from the law, others have actually stumbled into it. Take the case of Robert Lightburn, a local entrepreneur who engaged in a risqué online relationship with what he thought was an underage girl but who turned out to be an undercover cop. Lieutenant Anthony Depippo of the Carpentersville, Illinois, police department explains he set up the sting in which an officer, posing as a 14-year-old girl went online and waited for adults to initiate chat. "If things turn sexual, we pursue them," says Depippo.

4Better Or Worse

The week in review
Best reckless, multiple-life-endangering police chase in a 30-foot motor home: Michael David Keys, accompanied by a seven-year-old child, flees from Augusta and Albe...

Essays

See ya greater: Why quitting is back in style
By Rob Walker Even with all the grim business news around us, The Wall Street Journal noted not long ago that employee disloyalty had made a comeback or that it neve...

Real Estate - On the Block

By-gone beauty: Scottsville house glorifies the past
ASKING: $595,000 SIZE: 3,382 finished square feet YEAR BUILT: 1842 ADDRESS: 620 Harrison Street NEIGHBORHOOD: Scottsville in southern Albemarle County CURB APPEAL: 10 of a ...

Movie Reviews

Crop failure: Signs comes up short
We are all Pavlov's dogs. We hear M. Night Shyamalan's name, and we begin to get scared. By the time we get to the theater where his new film is playing, we're terrified. W...

Music Reviews

Beleza
By Mark Grabowski Beleza, Wednesday night regulars at Tokyo Rose, are a walking history lesson. Wednesday is often a stay-at-home evening, when folks reflect on the debauch...
Slow Children at SERP House on Rugby Road
"I can't believe more people didn't leave"– M.C. Muffin. So maybe they've played only two shows. So maybe they were both at M.C. Muffin's frat house. So...

News

A-gas-t: Sale, robbery rock station
By Mythili Rao Recent weeks have been a trial for Vasantha Thaliyil and her husband, Mohan, newcomers to Charlottesville who operate the Chevron gas station at the corner o...
Adelphia founder on "perp walk": Company says arrests won't affect service
On the same day Adelphia founder John Rigas and two of his sons were arrested on camera for looting the nation's sixth largest cable company, the stock market made i...
Fight terror with plates? Virginia joins the battle
There are all sorts of ways to fight the war on terrorism by essentially doing nothing. For example, if we don't buy illegal drugs, according to an anti-drug organiz...

Strange But True

Don't count on rubber
Q: If you're relatively safe from a lightning strike in a car because of the insulating tires, does this mean cars with bigger tires protect you even better? H. Ford

Facetime

Drive-by wording: The man behind the maxims
By Elizabeth Kiem Without getting into a debate on service, speed, or the use of rear-view mirror air fresheners, it's safe to say that Charlottesville's Yellow Cabs are a ...
King of the Hill: Brewer gets on-the-shelf acclaim
By Mythili Rao In just three years, Starr Hill brews have taken five medals at the Great American Beer Festival and at the World Beer Cup. And now, the local restaurant/bre...
Playing a new role: Chapel has big dreams for UVA
When Bob Chapel tells me his parents enrolled him in dance class at the age of three, I imagine a tiny version of the man in front of me turning precise pirouettes across h...

Cultural preview

By the book
In school this year my son had to write a report about the Manhattan Project, the secret World War II-era research conducted by the government in remote regions of New Mexi...
Erotica: Lust rules at odd venues
Imagine the smell of your sixth grade classroom. Recall the chalkboard filled with notes, the posters on the walls, the desks lined up in neat rows. Imagine the face of the...
Evolution: Landscapes had to be learned
It’s easy to assume that landscape painting (or print) has been around as long as humans with paints or ink close by have fallen in love with beautiful vistas– that...
Locked in: Year of Wonders a wonder itself
By Elizabeth Kiem
Locked in: Year of Wonders a wonder itself
By Elizabeth Kiem
Nuttiness: Get freaky at the Pudhouse
By Mark Grabowski
Out loud: Live Poets read and listen
By Mara Rockliff
Sky's the limit: One rock at a time
Spending time outside these days makes sense only if the spot you pick has plenty of shade and you have plenty of sunscreen and swimming options. So many heat advisories ha...