Letters to the Editor

U.S. police departments are using devices that photograph a license plate, stamped with the location, time and date, and send the image to a database. These devices are wholly unregulated in Illinois, but two competing House bills are trying to change tha PHOTO BY RICK LOOMIS/TNS WATCHING THE WATCHERSI am even more concerned about license-plate […]

MED SCHOOL MINORITIES Kudos to Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, which has extremely competitive admission requirements, for achieving a 15 percent minority medical student enrollment, which is much better than any other institution in our country with similarly competitive admission requirements. Vinod GuptaSpringfield USE YOUR VOICE I would like to thank the nearly 2,200 […]

Maple Leaf Dairy is one of six factory farms, also known as CAFOs for concentrated animal feeding operations, in Manitowoc County. Local residents are worried about the amount of waste they produce. Manure is stored in the large blue tanks seen at far rig PHOTOS BY BENNY SIEU/TNS SAY NO TO CAFOsIt is with sadness […]

HOW TO MAKE AMENDS Chris Britt’s cartoon in the Mar. 26 Illinois Times showed ex-Congressman Aaron Schock on his way to join some of Illinois’ infamous in the big house. Recently he has been apologizing for his misdeeds, perhaps in hopes of avoiding a similar fate? However, a far better way to make amends would be to put his money where […]

State Senator Darin LaHood, R-Dunlap, is pushing for new limits on video gambling machines in Springfield. If passed, his bill would likely eliminate many video gambling parlors. PHOTOS BY ELIZABETH ROBERTSON/TNS WHY PARLORS EXIST My name is Matt Gietl, and I am an owner of Miss Kimmees gaming parlors in Springfield. I do not understand […]

Jim Langfelder, left, and Paul Palazzolo, right, are the two candidates in Springfield’s upcoming 2015 mayoral contest. PHOTOS BY PATRICK YEAGLE RECENT RESIGNATIONSI would like to address recent events that concern me and many others with whom I have spoken. These events are the three recent resignations of local elected officials in the middle of […]

WISHING HOUSTON WELL I can’t understand why the “shredgate” issue, in the news for 18 months, suddenly became again newsworthy a week before the election. To my recollection, nothing has come out to directly implicate the mayor, who, as (former WICS anchor) Vince DeMentri should know, cannot comment on any ongoing investigations, nor any personnel […]

FACTORY FARMS Where are all the factory farms in Illinois? The Illinois EPA (IEPA) still has no idea. In early February, the Illinois Citizens for Clean Air and Water (ICCAW) and other groups filed comments to the Illinois Pollution Control Board (IPCB) due to IEPA’s lack of an accurate inventory of concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) […]

The debate on whether to vaccinate or not vaccinate children against illnesses such as autism, measles and other dangerous, deadly disease wages on. PHOTO BY MEL MELCON/TNS MORE REASON TO VACCINATEIn her Feb. 12 Guestwork, “Why historians vaccinate their kids,” Erika Holst provides an excellent explanation why the historians she knows fall into the pro-vaccine […]

MORE POLICE DIVERSITY In 1972, the Illinois State Police hired a young, black state trooper from Rockford to join the force in District 15. He returned to Rockford to patrol the tollway from Rockford to Chicago. Three years later, the state police selected this trooper to head their Office of Affirmative Action and head their […]

Swimming at Lake Springfield beach has been shut down since 2009. BEACH CLOSURE UNFAIRI am concerned about the future of the Springfield beach, especially following the huge damage award against the city. I fear this will be the final death knell of this important local recreation site. It was the only lake swimming available to […]

Former Illinois Gov. William G. Stratton and two books attesting to his admirable leadership record. REMEMBERING STRATTON In your Dec. 25 issue, Mr. Bill Ward wrote (“The name game,” letters) that the main distinction of Gov. William G. Stratton was that he was the only governor tried for corruption and acquitted. Ironically, in that same […]