Showing God’s will in this moment of “darkness” To the editor, I read your profile of Stephen Brady [“Defender of the Faith” June 19], the Petersburg businessman who has become the world’s most effective force in removing sexual predators from the Catholic clergy, on the same day that the Catholic Bishops of the United States […]
Opinion
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Read his lips
By now, you’ve heard that Governor Rod Blagojevich was so surprised about the state’s budget deficit that he is considering raising taxes. He claims the deficit is $4.8 billion–at least a billion higher than he’d expected–and not the kind of hole he can just cut his way out of. If he really didn’t know the […]
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“The Last Great Radio Show”
You might not remember it–the show last aired more than 25 years ago–but for those who do recall Monitor the memories are vivid. Depending on the listeners, they’ll cite the celebrity hosts, the improvised comedy sketches, or the nonstop flow of news, sports, and music. Most recall the theme–a series of beeps and tones known […]
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Your Turn. . . 1-23-03
Don’t count us in Dear Editor: I write to correct inaccurate information found in a letter to the editor in the January 16 edition of the Illinois Times. The letter incorrectly states that Sojourn plans to participate in a march in connection with a group called the Illinois Citizens Against Abuse & Brutality. Sojourn is […]
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Your Turn. . . 6-19-03
Congratulations Illinois Times contributor Jack Clark–author of our original detective serial, The Highway Side–has been named a 2003 Shamus Award finalist for his first Nick Acropolis novel, Westerfield’s Chain (St. Martin’s Press). The Private Eye Writers of America has been awarding the Shamus to detective novelists for the last 22 years. Past recipients include Ross […]
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Not (quite) a scratch
Brunon Blaszak recalls that about 25 years ago a Bengal tiger bit through his mother’s arm. He was somewhere between 8 and 13 years old, but wasn’t traumatized by the incident–he went on to pursue the family business. At the age of 16, he became “The World’s Youngest Animal Trainer.” Blaszak’s mother and father were […]
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Your Turn. . . 6-12-03
Correction In my “Happy birthday, Frank Lloyd Wright!” story that appeared last week, I should have said Lois Dunbar has long portrayed Susan Lawrence Dana. Pete Sherman A fair shake on the Fair Share Value Dear Pete Sherman, I was reading your article in the Thursday, June 5-11, 2003, edition of the Illinois Times […]
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Illinois’ lost laureate
Quick–who was the first poet laureate of Illinois? If you said Carl Sandburg, you’d be wrong. Don’t feel too bad; Governor Rod Blagojevich didn’t know either. When he announced his search for a new principal poet, he mentioned only two: “This individual will follow in the footsteps of previous Poet Laureates Carl Sandburg and Gwendolyn […]
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Everybody’s a star . . . not really
The quality of the voice has little to do with singing. Placido Domingo can sing, but so can Willie Nelson. Singing depends on weight and balance and knowing when to shut up. It’s not a matter of normal intelligence, because most singers can’t do simple math or parallel park: They sing the way Hank Aaron […]
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Return of the Kickapoo
On June 14 and 15, for the sixth year in a row, the Grand Village of the Kickapoo Park–a few miles northeast of LeRoy, about an hour away from Springfield–will be the scene of color, sound, and dancing, as many from the four directions of Turtle Island (as North America is known) gather for an […]
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Your Turn . . . 1-30-03
City Council to act on Iraq resolution Dear Editor: I would like to alert your readers to the fact that at this Tuesday’s City Council meeting on February 4th a resolution will be presented that “supports UN actions to find and destroy weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and opposes any U.S. military action against […]
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Your Turn . . . 6-5-03
Correction The Auburn sewage treatment plant exceeded the EPA’s limit on suspended solids by 229 percent in October 2001–not September 2001, as stated in Karen Fitzgerald’s May 22 article on Lake Springfield and the leptospirosis outbreak of 1998, “Troubled Waters.” Still working for your trust and respect Dear Editor, Your sympathetic piece on Marc Sanson […]
