Opinion

They were known as plain people with a practical faith. Their church was called German Baptist and later changed to Church of the Brethren when ethnic identity became a handicap, but they were nicknamed Dunkards for their method of baptism: not once but three times under. Following the injunction in the Book of James “to […]

Just when I thought I’d heard everything, I get this plea from a high-ranking Springfield Police Department official, begging me not to write about a certain officer. “Please don’t write about Matt Fricke,” he says. “You’re gonna scare everybody away.” By now, I’m accustomed to brass trying to shoo me off when I’m inquiring about […]

It’s good to have Republicans in charge of several state governments, as well as our national government, because we can always count on them to take care of our country’s big problems — such as making sure that the wages of working people stay low. Of course, President George W. Bush and the congressional GOP […]

Is there something about being elected to a state legislature that automatically turns an otherwise normal person’s brain to Silly Putty? Medical science needs to study this. Wherever you live, if you take a look at your state legislative body, you’ll most likely gag and say to yourself: “What a parade of fools.” But let […]

Last week the faculty and staff at McClernand Elementary School held a breakfast to show appreciation for its volunteers. A lot was said about how we mentors plant seeds of hope in the kids we come to see once a week. Though we may not think we’re making much progress with our child, just the […]

Before I moved to Illinois, I’d never heard of Casimir Pulaski. I’ve recently learned that he was a Revolutionary War hero, the “father of the American cavalry,” and that he died at age 32 of gangrene after being shot in the leg during battle. Of course, you probably already know all that, because your children […]

For years, Chevrolet has advertised its cars and trucks as the very essence of the American way of life, and its latest multimillion-dollar blitz of TV ads tells us that the newest Chevrolets are nothing less than “an American revolution.” Well you can stick a feather in my cap and call it macaroni, but wrapping […]

George W. Bush likes to strut around declaring that he’s a bold leader who’s unafraid to tackle big problems. So where’s His Boldness on the gargantuan problem of America’s addiction to high-priced, high-polluting oil? We recently saw the ballyhooed release of his “new energy program,” which wasn’t new at all and does practically nothing to […]