Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, February 9,2012

Wanderings and doings

Springfieldians once were prodigious walkers

Yes, kids, I really did used to walk two miles to school. For the whole of my ninth grade year in 1962-63, I often walked from Washington Junior High at 21st and Jackson to our house near the Statehou

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, February 2,2012

College credit

Buying a future with borrowed money

By James Krohe Jr.

In January, the University of Illinois announced it was raising its tuition on new undergraduates at its three campuses yet again. Lamentation was general throughout the land. Tuition for residents at

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, January 26,2012

Such a deal

The state makes a bad bet on Sears

By James Krohe Jr.

By the late 1980s, Sears & Roebuck had lost the knack of selling America its school clothes and car tires like it used to. However, it was still able to sell the governor of Illinois, the General

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, January 19,2012

A new old street

The National Park Service plans for the past of the Lincoln Home

By James Krohe Jr.

The National Park Service has released its final general management plan that sets the parameters for development and preservation at the Lincoln Home National Historical Site for at least the next 15

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, January 12,2012

Just what you want to do

District 186 explores the successful life

By James Krohe Jr.

Springfield’s School District 186 has set up a web page titled “Where Are They Now?” On it, graduates of Springfield public schools are invited to “share their success stories

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, January 5,2012

The mysteries of space and time

Raising the costs of parking would help, not hurt, downtown

By James Krohe Jr.

I wouldn’t want to be quoted on it, but I think it was Michael Burlingame, in his comprehensive biography of the 16th president, who revealed that Abraham Lincoln started thinking about a new ca

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, December 29,2011

Get Out of Jail cards

Do alternatives to prison exist for Illinois’ public delinquents?

By James Krohe Jr.

Writers of newspaper columns, it turns out, are not the only people who have trouble getting sentences right. Eyebrows, if not voices, were raised when federal judge James Zagel set 14 years in prison

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, December 22,2011

Good and true

Another juror confuses another big prosecution

By James Krohe Jr.

Here’s a recap for those who spent the past few weeks standing in line at Walmart: In November, Bill Cellini, Springfield’s very own robber baron, was convicted on federal charges of attem

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, December 15,2011

Making noises in civics class

Splitting Cook County from Illinois is an old bad idea

By James Krohe Jr.

Have you ever thought about how much Freddie Mercury’s Queen owed to the works of Gilbert and Sullivan? You have? Okay, we’ll talk about something else.The other day State Rep. Bill Mitche

Illinois - James Krohe Jr | Thursday, December 8,2011

War without the killing

A green World War II might save the economy

By James Krohe Jr.

Certain Republicans have given way to fits of partisan bloodlust lately and tried to beat the current president with the bones of one of his long-dead Democratic predecessors. Franklin Roosevelt, they