Now that the state’s political season is about to kick into a slightly higher gear, let’s take a moment to look at how some of the Republican candidates for governor stack up. We’ll look at the rest of the pack next week. • State Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka — Her supporters say that her ideological moderation […]
Opinion
Posted inOpinion
common sense
The Transportation Security Administration is the all-knowing, all-seeing federal agency in charge of taking our shoes off at airports — and our heroic leaders there have recently rooted out a treasure trove of invaluable data. Unfortunately, it’s not information about some secret cell of terrorists — it’s a trove of your personal information and mine. […]
Posted inOpinion
letters
Letters policy We welcome letters, but please include your full name, address and a daytime telephone number. We edit all letters for libel, length and clarity. Send letters to: Letters, Illinois Times. P.O. Box 5256. Springfield, Illinois 62705. Fax: (217) 753-3958. E-mail: editor@illinoistimes.com DECK CHAIRS ON THE TITANIC Whoopee! The U.S. Senate just finished its […]
Posted inOpinion
Sunday morning coming down
Zombies have invaded Springfield. Don’t believe me? Venture downtown some Sunday morning. You will see clots of automatons restlessly roaming the streets, trudging ever forward, but shackled by the fact that they haven’t the slightest clue where they’re going. Their eyes, wide open but unfocused, sweep slowly side to side, hopelessly, searching for . . […]
Posted inOpinion
The ogler’s [sic] secrets
In these times when our president struts his bottom-of-college-class standing and our governor jokes of his low ACT score, I find it easier to admit my language ignorance. Of course, our academic failures are not our fault but, rather, the fault of our respective educational systems. And I, for one, admire both the president and […]
Posted inOpinion
common sense 6-30-05
Merck, the $5.2 billion-a-year drug giant, is upset that people think it’s a greedheaded bloodsucker. So Merck’s executives have decided to do something. Does that mean they’ll stop their greedheaded bloodsucking? Don’t be insane — bloodsucking is wildly profitable! No, no, Merck’s honchos want to deal with the appearance of bloodsucking, not tamper with the […]
Posted inOpinion
capital voices 6-30-05
Yanks Avatar is caught between liberal and conservative, and he’s making mistakes. He is, I suspect, not much different from other folks who can reach out and touch their midsixties. Once he was liberal; he’s now leaning conservative. However, in Yanks’ case, his “leaning conservative” brings him only to the middle, for he was, in […]
Posted inOpinion
commentary 6-30-05
It is a natural for man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren until she turns us into beasts — I know of no other way of judging the future but by the past.” — Patrick […]
Posted inOpinion
Bound and determined
Serious, intense clout usually only comes into play at the Illinois Statehouse on behalf of giant corporations, powerful political organizations, influential labor unions, entrenched bureaucracies, and other unstoppable special interests. Rarely, if ever, is the full force of a legislative leader’s office deployed to push a bill that is opposed by the powers that be […]
Posted inOpinion
Durbin was not misunderstood
Now that the dust has settled, it’s time for a closer look at what U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin actually said. Why did it ignite such a strong reaction? My take is that the furor over Nazis by Republicans and talk radio was a smokescreen, part distraction and part denial. What really got Durbin in trouble […]
Posted inOpinion
letters 6-30-05
Letters policy We welcome letters, but please include your full name, address and a daytime telephone number. We edit all letters for libel, length and clarity. Send letters to: Letters, Illinois Times. P.O. Box 5256. Springfield, Illinois 62705. Fax: (217) 753-3958. E-mail: editor@illinoistimes.com INEXCUSABLE WEAKNESS IN THE LAW The Audubon Society’s threat to demolish the […]
Posted inOpinion
common sense 6-23-05
Don’t you wish you had a rich and kindly old uncle whose chief mission in life was to give things to you? Well, if you lived in Alaska, bucko, you’d have a generous relative, and you’d call him Uncle Ted, as everyone else does. This year, Uncle Ted has given $645 million worth of stuff […]
