Host Mike O'Larey and Brian Cox sit down with Oregon Mountain High School wrestling coach Cosmo Delgado and his son Dominic, a sophomore and first-year varsity wrestler, for a conversation about what it means to compete across three combat sports. Cosmo traces his own path from being "voluntold" into the wrestling room at Mayfield in 1991 by the legendary Coach Sullivan to coaching his two sons at Oregon Mountain, while Dominic — voted Las Cruces Sun-News City Wrestler of the Year in his debut season — explains how four years of judo and jiu-jitsu at Legacy Mixed Martial Arts gave him a foundation that translated immediately to the mat. The conversation covers the similarities and differences between wrestling, judo, and jiu-jitsu, the challenge of recruiting wrestlers, and Dominic's recent experience competing at the USA Judo Junior National Championships.
 Lisa Lucca talks with author Sheila Kimble-Haas about her inspirational new memoir, Waiting for the Kick: A Midwife's Grief and Rebirth in Africa, the healing journey that led her to Las Cruces, and her recent next chapter of moving back to France.
Kris Knutson, recently departed chief public defender turned private attorney, joined Walt Rubel and Peter Goodman to discuss the severe understaffing crisis in New Mexico's public defender system. Knutson explained that Doña Ana County felony attorneys often carry caseloads near 200, when a statewide workload study found the office would need roughly double its current 15 attorneys to provide adequate defense. He discussed the human toll of pretrial detention on low-income defendants, chronic under-vetting of cases by the District Attorney's office, and a persistent pay disparity between New Mexico public defenders and their counterparts in other states.
Las Cruces Symphony conductor Jorge Martinez and second flutist Jesús Cándela joined Walt Rubel and Peter Goodman to preview the orchestra's upcoming season. The season opens with soprano Barbara Padilla, a former America's Got Talent runner-up, performing crossover opera and popular Latin music, and closes in April with a joint performance featuring the NMSU choir. Martinez and Cándela described their philosophy of empowering musicians rather than commanding them, and spoke candidly about the symphony's financial fragility since the pandemic, with ticket sales covering only about 30% of costs. Tickets are available at the Las Cruces Symphony website or by calling (575) 646-3709.
Ali Scotten, a consultant who advises businesses on the Middle East, joined Walt Rubel and Peter Goodman to discuss the collapsing US-Iran ceasefire and the risk of renewed escalation. Scotten argued the US is worse off than under the Obama-era nuclear deal, since Iran now has unaccounted-for enriched uranium and has discovered its leverage over the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20% of world oil and gas passes. The conversation covered declining Iranian public support for the regime, the effect of decades of American rhetoric treating Iran as an existential threat, and a heated exchange with a caller over whether Iran should be understood as an irrational "death cult."
Walt Rubel and Peter Goodman opened with a preview of KTAL's ninth anniversary celebration on July 25th, featuring local musicians and new inductees to the Community Radio Hall of Fame. The conversation then turned to Project Jupiter, including a legislator-led protest at La Llorona Park and allegations that paid canvassers used deceptive tactics to collect fraudulent public comments favoring the project. The hosts also covered a city survey targeting underused properties, growth and water scarcity concerns, and closed with national news on Mitch McConnell's health and the Graham Platner controversy.
Greg Smith talks with Carol Brey, director of the City of Las Cruces Quality of Life Department, about the surprisingly broad portfolio her department oversees: the Branigan Library system, four city museums, senior programs, and public art. Brey traces a career that moved from library administration in Illinois and El Paso to overseeing 600 American Spaces cultural centers for the U.S. State Department in nearly 130 countries before she returned to Las Cruces in 2022. The conversation covers the city's growing public art program (now including 20 art pieces at bus stops), the "Made You Look" selfie campaign encouraging residents to interact with public art, and the latest on the Amador Hotel restoration — exterior work resuming soon and a $4.8 million state grant in hand to bring the first floor back into public use.
After two years of single-party rule in Washington, D.C., most voters understand the importance of this year’s election at the national level. But for voters in Dona Ana County, the local elections are just as important.
County government is a mess. Last month, the state Department of Finance and Administration informed county officials they could no longer be trusted to handle state funds. And so, whenever the county receives capital outlay money or special appropriations from the state, those funds will now go through a fiscal agent to ensure they are used properly. Today we share a recent episode from another excellent KTAL show - Black English Vernacular.
Co-hosts Shahid Mustafa and Tameika L. Hannah bring an on the ground - farmers-eye view of the water situation in our community and our state. The show touches on drought, municipalities, infrastructure, water agreements, agriculture, history, culture, Project Jupiter, and what our future looks like. Local Vibes Live hosted For Me For You, a Las Cruces alternative rock band three years into building a sound that draws from the Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Breeders, and Incubus, among others. Vocalist Micaela, guitarists David and Emmy, bassist Ethan, and drummer Tony talked with hosts Alex Brinkley and Casey Chacón about the band's origin - Tony and David jamming together for years before the current lineup came together - and their three-track EP Three Steps Forward, recorded late one night in the KTAL studio. The conversation also touched on their forthcoming full-length, The End of the Bit, a 12-track LP recorded at a home studio the band set up themselves, due out later this year.
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