As fate would have it, hundreds of middle- and high-schoolers lined up to enter the Capitol last week as HIV/AIDS advocates from around Illinois held a rally just a few steps away. Rally participants were calling for an end to HIV discrimination and curbing the epidemic, partly through removing barriers to testing and educating young […]
R. L. Nave
Posted inNews
Where ideas begin to grow
For Springfield inventor Ron Earley, like many others, the sweet gum tree in his yard was a real pain. Commonly referred to as “ankle-breakers,” the tree’s spiked globular fruit can be treacherous to walk on and can suffocate lawns if left uncollected. So Earley — as a half-joke, he says — chopped up a handful […]
Posted inNews
Students with HIV, report to the principal’s office
Twenty years ago, when the Illinois General Assembly approved a law requiring that school principals be notified whenever a student tests positive for the human immune deficiency virus, it was widely believed that children could catch HIV during a game of tag. Much better information about HIV exists today. With infection rates among people under […]
Posted inNews
Illinois gets ready for carbon limits
Notice that nobody talks about acid rain anymore? That’s because in 1990 Congress implemented a “cap-and-trade” program for emissions of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide (SO2), two of the primary contributors of acid rain. Today, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the acid rain program is ahead of schedule in terms of capping emissions, […]
Posted inNews
The economic argument for legalization
Marijuana could help Illinois out of its budget mess. Advocates have long supported reforming current state and federal prohibitions against growing, trading and consuming marijuana. But existing evidence of the economic benefits of legalizing, regulating and taxing marijuana is even more compelling, particularly in today’s trying times. Illinois’ budget gap could be $9 billion by […]
Posted inNews
Medical marijuana
Dennis nearly lost the lower portion of his right leg when the trencher he was working with unexpectedly hit a metal beam in the ground, causing the blade to jump up, catching the bridge of his foot and slicing his leg all the way up to the knee. In the five-and-a-half years since his accident, […]
Posted inNews
The rose that grew from metal
Reactions of Travis Taylor’s friends and relatives to his artwork have ranged from admiration to puzzlement to, in the case of one piece, anger. According to Cindy, his wife of 18 years, a family friend once remarked, “This isn’t about art, it’s about someone potentially wanting to buy a memento of a horrific attack to […]
Posted inNews
Callahan in line for ag position
For agreeing to jump into the race last year against GOP million-dollar golden boy Aaron Schock for the state’s 18th district congressional seat, Colleen Callahan probably deserves the political equivalent of the medal of valor. Schock won the election in November, and subsequently, a contest for the hottest freshman Washington lawmaker. But Callahan may get […]
Posted inNews
Taylorville coal project moves ahead
To put coal’s importance to the Illinois economy into perspective, consider that while state officials and members of the Congressional delegation tried feverishly to prevent Rod Blagojevich from naming Barack Obama’s successor to the Senate, no one lifted a finger to stop him from signing a bill that cleared the way for a new generation […]
Posted inNews
Setting borrowers free
Untitled Document Despite the bad reputation that payday loan stores have, Kevin Slot and the Rev. Charles Jackson aren’t looking to drive payday lenders out of business. Instead, their new organization, In God We Trust referral service, simply provides an alternative for “financially desperate” people. “I’m just grieved whenever I ride by one of those […]
Posted inNews
Back to the FutureGen
Illinois Sens. Dick Durbin and Roland Burris, along with several other Midwestern lawmakers, took a critical step last week toward making the planned 275-megawatt coal-gasification plant, commonly referred to as FutureGen, a reality. In a letter to U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu, Burris and Durbin asked for the release of the project’s Record […]
Posted inNews
Safety hazards at the Stratton
Nearly two years after the state was told to clean up asbestos and mold in the William G. Stratton building, the hazards remain. In March 2007 an Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) inspection cited Secretary of State Jesse White’s office, which is responsible for managing state buildings at the Capitol Complex, after finding several violations […]
