Fletcher Farrar

 Aside from the defeat of Gov. Bruce Rauner, the most exciting election result here was approval – by a wide margin – of a one-cent countywide sales tax increase for school buildings. The tax is expected to generate $10 million annually for Springfield’s District 186 public schools. That will allow implementation of the Springfield district’s […]

The only campaign excitement we’ve seen around here is generated by Betsy Dirksen Londrigan, who is smart, energetic, practical and new. In her uphill battle to unseat Republican Congressman Rodney Davis, she has stuck to the issues and stayed out of the mud. Davis, a go-along-to-get-along moderate, is burdened by his support for repeal of […]

Last week we said farewell to Scott Faingold, Illinois Times staff writer who has been with us full time for the past five years, covering arts, culture and business. He has accepted a full-time teaching position at University of Illinois Springfield. Scott had been a frequent freelance contributor here before he joined the staff, first […]

This needs to be a country that does not go crazy over editorial cartoons. That happens elsewhere, where free speech is not so well understood, or so deeply ingrained as a defining value. Chris Britt, whose work appears weekly in Illinois Times, has been the target of an over-the-top hate mail campaign after a cartoon […]

This week’s cover story by Dusty Rhodes emphasizes one solution to the teacher shortage, but clearly many solutions are needed. The statewide report, “Strong Teachers, Strong Classrooms,” by the Illinois State Board of Education, discusses a decline in prestige for the teaching profession. “My grandmother said she was proud to say her daughter was a […]

 Some of us are trying to build a constituency for historic preservation while working to assemble a coalition that will come together to save historic buildings. Too often preservationists don’t get together except to circle the rubble. This year’s gathering of the history-minded hopeful is a reception at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 19, at the […]

A praying mantis is doing his praying on my office window just now, a reminder that fresh opportunity comes around with each back-to-school season, with each election campaign, with each guilty verdict, with each Fall Guide to concerts, theater performances and daytrips. Enjoy the issue, embrace the season, keep hope alive. –Fletcher Farrar, editor and […]

Sharp-eyed readers will note that this week’s print edition of lllinois Times is slightly smaller than previous issues. The page is an inch shorter, our concession to the Trump administration’s tariff on Canadian newsprint that went into effect earlier this year. Our printer, P&P Press of Peoria, held out for months before raising prices to […]

 Now, before the silly season starts, is the time to get acquainted with political candidates and their stands on the issues of their campaigns. In this week’s cover story on the 13th District congressional race between incumbent Rodney Davis and challenger Betsy Dirksen Londrigan, writer David Blanchette asked each candidate to outline their campaign without […]

While the current president was flummoxing over pushback from his lovefest with Vladimir Putin, former president Barack Obama was in South Africa lecturing about how truth is now up for debate and how politicians stand by baseless claims after they’re proved wrong. “We see the utter loss of shame among political leaders, where they’re caught […]