Guest Opinion | Wednesday, August 9,2006

Surveillance society

We're creating the perfect environment for a police state

The 18th-century English philosopher Jeremy Bentham once designed a prison he called the Panopticon. The Panopticon was shaped as a cylinder, with cells radiating from a central guard tower. The guard

Politics | Wednesday, July 5,2006

Caging the beast

Think the U.S. military is on our side? Think again.

By Rod Helle

“Kill every buffalo you can . . . every buffalo dead is an Indian gone.” — Col. R.I. Dodge, Fort McPherson, 1867 “We are going to fight them and impose

Guest Opinion | Wednesday, June 7,2006

A double standard

Why we need to pay attention to critics such as Ward Churchill

By Rod Helle

One of the most heated academic controversies in America today involves Ward Churchill, a central-Illinois native and Sangamon State University graduate. A May 17 article in the State Journa

Guest Opinion | Thursday, May 11,2006

New class of mandarins

Religious ideologues set policy on reproduction

By Rod Helle

In August 2003 a shipment of the book Grand Canyon: A Different View was delivered to Grand Canyon bookstores and museums to be sold alongside other merchandise. The book, edited by Canyon M

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 23,2006

Independence day

One by one, South American nations reject U.S. intervention

By Rod Helle

A specter is haunting Latin America — the specter of socialism. From the Rio Grande to Tierra del Fuego, alternatives to the Washington Consensus are being developed and leftist govern

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 9,2006

The end is near

Calamity beckons — unless we begin weaning ourselves off oil

By Rod Helle

Denial and willful ignorance are two of the most salient features of contemporary American society. Our political and business leaders have a financial interest in encouraging short-term

Guest Opinion | Thursday, January 19,2006

Take back the country

Growing inequality demands a progressive response

By Rod Helle

America is becoming a two-class society. Not since the age of the robber barons has the distribution of wealth and power been so polarized in America, and never in our history have average c

Guest Opinion | Thursday, May 12,2005

commentary 5-12-05

By Rod Helle

The recent appointment of Paul Wolfowitz as head of the World Bank was viewed around the world as a scandalous example of the Bush administration’s arrogance. Perhaps m

Guest Opinion | Thursday, April 14,2005

Are you an idiot?

By Rod Helle

Broadcast journalism has never been this awful. If you’ve ever watched a few minutes of Fox News, CNN, or even Springfield’s own WICS (Channel 20) news and wonder

Guest Opinion | Thursday, March 24,2005

commentary 3-24-05

By Rod Helle

Over the last decade and a half, and especially since the 9/11 attacks, the Pentagon has developed methods to intervene in other countries without resorting to direct