Untitled Document Brian Granse is not just anybody; in fact, he’s not even somebody. He’s a nobody — an American Nobody, to be precise. “In this world I’m just a speck on the music scene,” says the Illinois-reared singer/songwriter. “That’s where the idea of American Nobody came from.” After recording his first couple of records […]
R. L. Nave
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Up next
Untitled Document Most people in Springfield want similar things: their sidewalks fixed or new ones installed, roads resurfaced, debris hauled away, a visible police presence. Getting these expensive services isn’t easy, however. Next week, the newly elected members of the Springfield City Council convene for the first time. Although some council members appear content to […]
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The young and the restless
Untitled Document In the fall of 2005, with the assistance of then-U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert, the Illinois Collaboration on Youth and Youth Network Council received a $1.2 million grant to expand mental-health services to children who’d been exposed to the juvenile justice system [see R.L. Nave, “Mind matters,” Sept. 29, 2005]. This week, the […]
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Spend it like Beckom
Untitled Document A white cloud envelops Larry Beckom as he sits shirtless, his head bowed, in the sauna of a Springfield fitness club. It’s 7:30 a.m. on a Monday. One of the few quiet moments of his day, he says, are the 10 minutes or so he spends in the steam room. He devotes the […]
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Ethics questions
Untitled Document It’s rare for college students, who typically preserve their bright-eyed crusading for major state and federal elections, to get involved in local politics — but Springfield is far from typical. In a letter distributed last week to more than 70 reporters, elected officials, and others in Springfield and surrounding areas, Aakash Raut, chairman […]
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Fowl play
Untitled Document He’s been attacked by flocks of crows and fought a six-month bout with the pneumonia-like birdborne disease histoplasmosis. When he was just 4, he almost became an eagle’s meal. “If it happened to you, you won’t ever like a bird again,” says James L. Soules, who turns 85 in June. A lifetime of […]
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The good Earth
Untitled Document Winona LaDuke, an American Indian activist and former Green Party vice presidential nominee, attended Harvard, drives a luxury automobile, runs a business, and was recently involved in a major land-acquisition deal. But it’s not what you think. LaDuke, who spoke this week at the University of Illinois at Springfield, is the […]
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Money talks
Untitled Document Although experts contend that no single governor or General Assembly is to blame for Illinois’ ongoing fiscal crisis, it wasn’t until Gov. Rod Blagojevich laid out his plan this year for a gross-receipts tax that the problem came into sharp focus. The controversy — and PR battle — continued this week. On Wednesday, […]
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“Right” on
Untitled Document Republican predictions that their party would take control of the officially nonpartisan Springfield City Council came to fruition in Tuesday’s municipal election. Sangamon County Republican Party chairman Tony Libri predicted the outcome based on pre-election polling that showed Republican candidates leading in several contested wards [R.L. Nave, “Elephants in the room?” April 12]. […]
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Baby steps
Untitled Document Measured by the number of agencies involved, the effort scheduled for Saturday, April 21, to beautify one neighborhood on Springfield’s east side is massive. The cleanup, involving an area bounded by South Grand, South Pope, and McCreery avenues and East Laurel Street, is a collaborative effort by several city agencies and local organizations, […]
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Elephants in the room?
Untitled Document Local Republicans are optimistic about their party’s chances in Tuesday city’s election, hoping to even wrest a majority on the officially nonpartisan Springfield City Council. GOP-backed candidates could garner four to six seats of the 10 seats in next week’s municipal election, and even score “a couple of upsets,” predicts Tony Libri, chairman […]
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Through the wringer
Untitled Document After more than two years of trying, a minority-owned firm last week signed a trucking agreement with KBV-Springfield, the company that is building Springfield’s new 200-megawatt coal-fired power generator. Starting in 2004, Walter Hale, owner of Econo Materials and Testing Labs of Illinois Inc., wrote several letters to KBV, expressing his desire to […]
